Chapter Five

Chapter Five

M arco chose a local place to eat that was one of her favorites on her side of the island. They weren't too fancy but they had an extensive menu. It was always amusing seeing what a haole would pick. She should have known he wouldn't go to one of the brand name places, but a small local place on the North Shore. In the short time she had known him, Marco had acclimated himself to the area. Most military people did. She had never seen a group of people who could settle into a different culture so easily, but she knew that was just part of their lives.

The restaurant was set off a side street, just a block from Kam Highway. It was only a few minutes from her house. The menu featured so many different cuisines, she could usually find something to suit her mood. She was there so often, they knew her by name.

"Hey, Alana, how you doing, cuz," Jaime the night manager asked as he showed them to their table.

"Not too bad."

"I heard you might be doing a scholarship with that charity of yours."

She forced herself not to grit her teeth. She loved her islands and her Hawaii heritage. The only problem she had was with the gossip.

There might be close to a million people on the island of Oahu, but everyone seemed to know everyone else—or their cousin. And, in her world, most people knew her, even if she didn't know them.

"Yeah, looking into it. Trying to set up the parameters."

Once they were seated Marco stared at her.

"What?"

He shook his head. "I guess I should pay more attention."

"To what?"

"Your charity. You."

She shrugged and opened the menu; although, she knew what she would order. She'd been here so many times, she knew the menu backwards and forwards.

"Alana?"

She glanced up at him and he was still staring at her with that solemn expression on his face.

"I guess I just thought you were independently wealthy," he said.

"None of us are independent. At least not in Hawaii. We are all part of the whole."

His lips twitched. "You sound like you're talking about a SEAL team."

She laughed. "That's something I have never been accused of."

Before he could comment, the waitress stepped up to the table.

"Hey, Alana, how you doing, cuz?"

She smiled. "Pretty good."

After getting their orders, the waitress left them alone.

"So, tell me how someone so young is in charge of such a big charity."

She shook her head and sipped her water. "First, I'm not all that young. Secondly, the charity isn't that big."

Marco frowned at her as the waitress brought his beer to the table. He waited until she left.

"What do you mean by that? That host knew who you were."

She laughed. "I forget you've only been here for a little while. If you live here for any amount of time, especially if you're Hawaiian or married to a Hawaiian, you get to know a lot of people."

"And so everyone knows you."

She realized he didn't know her story. Alana was accustomed to having people know about what brought her to this point in her life. Explaining herself wasn't normal. From the expectant look on his face, she decided there would be no getting around it.

"When I was eighteen, I was at UCLA my freshman year of school. My parents and brothers were killed in an accident. It was kind of a big thing here on the islands, so people know me and they know my charity."

He nodded. She could tell he was disappointed that she didn't reveal more but she couldn't right now. She normally didn't even have to tell people about it. Explaining the horror of that incident still made her cry and she refused to do that on a first date in front of her SEAL.

Dammit. Not her SEAL. A SEAL.

"Did you ever go back to college?" he asked.

"Yeah, but I stayed on the islands. I went to UH. It was just easier." She wanted to get away from the discussion of her family. "So, your brothers had a good time, yeah?"

To this he frowned. "Yes."

She had hit a nerve with that one. "What?"

"I just...okay, I'm not happy with Gianni or Vince—especially Vince at the moment."

She shook her head. "Brothers."

"What do you mean by that?"

"It's been a few years, but I remember the rivalry. It's probably good you didn't go into the same service."

He took a sip of beer and nodded. "It wouldn't have been too hard on Gee or me. We are young enough not to have to compete with the others. Plus, we are far enough apart in age it doesn't really matter. Now, Leo and Vince, they are really close in age. Less than two years. So, it would have been hard. Leo didn't want to go into the Marines though."

"And your father is okay with this. He was a Marine too, right?"

He nodded. "He's happy we all wanted to serve. It's a Santini tradition."

"My father was an only child, but I think he would have liked to have my brothers serve."

"Neither of them did?"

"No, they were only in middle school when they were killed."

Damn. He opened his mouth but was interrupted by Ashton Martin, a local politician.

"Alana, darling, I didn't know you would be here tonight."

She sighed and turned her attention to him. If she hadn't been so interested in talking to Marco, she would have noticed Ashton coming in. He had more hair gel and teeth than sense, but he did help her with fundraisers.

He leaned down and kissed her cheeks. There was an odd sound from the other side of the table. She glanced at Marco who was giving Ashton the death glare.

"I'm not making an appearance, Ashton. I'm on a date."

He turned to Marco. "I see."

She could tell his feelings on the subject. Ashton was only an eighth Hawaiian, much less than she was, but he was kind of stuck up about it. He didn't like mixing with haoles. She truly thought it had more to do with the fact that they couldn't vote for him.

"Ashton, this is Marco Santini. He's stationed here with the military." That changed Ashton's demeanor quite a bit. "Marco, this Ashton Martin, one of our local politicians."

Marco smiled and was pleasant enough. They were lucky enough that their entrees came and she could shoo Ashton away. When he left them alone, Alana dug into her mahi mahi. She had missed lunch and was starving.

"So, did you ever date Ashton?" Marco asked casually.

She choked on a bit of fish. She grabbed her water and took a gulp.

"I'm sorry, but no. He's much too old for me."

"He doesn't think so."

She frowned at Marco. "I can promise you that he doesn't. Ashton has never looked at anyone that way. Even his last wife. He is all about his career. He thinks he will make it to DC at some point."

"You don't like him."

"I wouldn't say that."

He gave her one of those toe-curling smiles. "You can't even be mean about someone you don't like."

"I don't approve, something completely different than not liking."

"What don't you approve of?"

She could have just shied away from the question. Most people wouldn't want to talk about things like that on a first date. Marco was different. He didn't talk much so she found that when he did question her, it was important to pay attention.

"He uses his Hawaiian heritage to get ahead and to exclude people. That just seems wrong to me."

Something shifted in his eyes and then his lips curved again. Oh, god, her heart started beating and her body heat shot up a thousand degrees.

"I agree," he said. Then, he shifted the talk to other things. She figured it was just a moment in time, but she would cherish the moment Marco Santini looked at her as if she were the most special woman on earth.

Marco pulled through the gate at the house and was kind of disappointed he couldn't come up with something else to do. He hadn't planned on a long date, mainly because he knew his limits. All SEALS did. Being alone with Alana for hours on end was hard on him...especially certain body parts.

He parked in front of her house.

"I had a really good time tonight, Marco."

He loved hearing his name in her accent. She drew out the name a little and the Hawaiian lilt in her voice made it sound magical. Everything she said sounded magical.

"I'm glad."

Lame, Santini. Really lame.

She reached across the console and patted his hand on the steering wheel. "And I forgive you."

He frowned and looked at her. "What did I do now?"

"I understand this was something you were doing to prove you weren't a complete jerk. It's fine. I enjoyed it and I enjoyed dinner."

She leaned toward him and brushed her mouth over his cheek.

"I have an early morning tomorrow, so I'm going to head in."

For a second he sat dumbfounded. He couldn't seem to respond. She slipped out of the car and he couldn't come up with anything to say. She thought he did the date out of pity. Why would she think that?

He looked at her walking away. There was a light mist of rain that always seemed to cling to this side of the island falling around her. The glow of her porch light created an almost mystical scene. She was already at the door by the time he reacted.

He opened his door and marched toward the door. She didn't hear him until he reached her. He grabbed her arm and turned her fully around.

"Marco?"

He didn't say anything. He cupped her face and slammed his mouth down on hers. For months now he had resisted her out of respect. He poured all those feelings into the kiss, thrusting his tongue between her lips. She didn't respond immediately, but the next instant, she slipped her hands up to his shoulders and pressed all those wonderful curves against him.

His body reacted immediately. It had been a long time since he'd had a woman...really wanted a woman. Now, he had one that made everything in his body sizzle, his brain shut down. Without breaking the kiss, he backed her up against the door. God, she tasted so good.

He slanted his mouth over hers again and again. He was already fully erect. She shivered against him and it was enough to bring him back to reality. With much regret, he pulled away from the kiss.

"I just wanted to clear that up."

He untangled himself and then walked back to his car.

It was going to be one long fucking night.