Chapter 3

Chapter Three

Nando and Alana stood in the driveway that separated his little cottage and the main house and watched Sunshine back up and drive away.

“So, her name fits her.”

Alana chuckled. “Yeah. Her mother was a little different.”

“She said she was alone in the world.”

Alana sighed, but she was still smiling. “I’ve never known another person who was never alone. She always seems to have people around her. But, as in blood relatives, she is alone.”

“Oh?”

Then, her smile did fade. “I didn’t know her then. Her mother died when she was about sixteen, and she has no contact with her father.”

“She said her father was military.”

Alana nodded. “That’s all I got out of her, other than he never claimed her. Even after Sunshine’s mother contacted him, he didn’t respond. He was married, but he didn’t tell her mother until after she got pregnant.”

“Bastard.”

Alana shrugged. “That’s the story her mother told her. As I said, her mother was a little different. I would never say anything in front of Sunshine, but the truth is that I always wondered if her mother ever did contact him. I heard she was a little…odd.”

“Like Sunshine?”

She shook her head. “No, not like that at all. Sunshine marches to her own beat, but she’s warm and open to meeting people. You saw the way the kids acted, and I wasn’t kidding about the animals. People are drawn to her even if they don’t realize it.”

He did. There was a part of him that had been irritated that Alana had been there to see Sunshine off. He’d wanted time alone with her even though he knew it wasn’t a good idea. He was definitely attracted to her, but they seemed to have too many hang-ups between the two of them.

“And you say her mother wasn’t like that.”

“I didn’t know her. By the time I met Sunshine, her mother had already passed on. But from what I have heard from other people, her mother was different in a way that made people uncomfortable. At least that was what Mary said.”

“Mary?” he asked before he could control himself. He was greedy for information about Sunshine.

“Her foster mother and her mother’s best friend. She said that Sunshine’s mom was a lot like Sunshine when she was younger. She ended up having early onset dementia. It was terribly hard on Sunshine. I know because she doesn’t talk about it ever.”

He couldn’t imagine going through that alone. The idea of facing something so earth shattering without the support of his family was unthinkable. They were annoying and could drive him crazy with their nosiness. But, in the end, he knew when it counted, he could call on any of them for support.

“So, you’re going to see her tomorrow?” Alana asked, cutting into his thoughts.

“Yep. It’s worth a try.”

“I’m glad. A lot of people poo poo Reiki, but I completely believe in it. I’ve seen the work she’s done with abuse victims.”

“Do you think it could be the woman?”

One side of her mouth twitched. “Might be, but I’ve seen other healers use it and have it work.” She crossed her arms over her chest. “I can’t believe you thought I was trying to set you two up.”

“Now that I’ve met her, I can see that we wouldn’t work out.”

But he wanted them to. He wanted to do a lot of working out with her.

He pushed that thought aside. “And no setups at all. I don’t like them.”

“I still think you should let me take some pics of you doing yoga to put on my Instagram. There are a few of my friends who would love it.”

Yeah, that would be great. No thank you. He’d never hear the end of it from his brothers and cousins. It wasn’t that they looked down on him for using yoga, as he knew Madison had gotten Dante to try it, but pictures on Instagram were a different matter.

“You do that, and I’ll tell Joey you want to divorce Marco.”

She snorted. “Joey would disown him for her grandbabies.”

He chuckled. His mother was getting just as bad. “Yeah probably.”

He walked her back to her door. When she stepped up on the stoop, she sighed. In that one sigh he heard her loneliness and exhaustion. Nando always wished he could do something to help her, but no matter what he could do, it wouldn’t be enough. Not until Marco was home.

“Are you okay?” he asked. “You didn’t overdo it, did you?”

She turned and smiled at him. “I’m fine. I’m pregnant, not an invalid. I’m just ready for Marco to come home.”

He stood there and waited until she shut and locked the door. Then he took his time walking back to his cottage. It was still amazing to him that he lived in Hawaii. The sweet air always seemed to be kissed by angels, so soft and fragrant. Of course, when the trade winds died down, he would change his mind. But for the most part he was enjoying living on Oahu.

He stopped and looked just past Alana and Marco’s house to the ocean. He could barely see it, and he definitely couldn’t hear it this far away, but it was always present. His brother had told him that living in Oahu had given him a connection to the land he’d never felt before. Nando could absolutely understand that.

He was just shutting the door when his phone vibrated. He looked down and saw Dante’s face. He clicked it on.

“Shouldn’t you be in bed with that sweet wife of yours, bro?”

His brother sighed. “It’s my turn to do the feedings with Jasmine.”

Dante and his wife Madison were new parents.

“And, you are calling me because?”

“I gave her a bottle, then she went back to sleep but now I can’t. Madison is so tired, I decided to come outside and call the one sibling who might be up.”

“What about Anthony?”

“He might be busy.”

He almost opened his mouth to ask with what but thought better of it. Anthony wasn’t busy with what , but with who —specifically his new wife.

“And you’re sure I’m not busy? Maybe I have a hot date?”

Dante snorted. “Come on, Runt. It’s a work night. You don’t do dates on work nights.”

Dammit. Did he just think how lucky he was to have his family? The one problem was that they did know each other well. Even with six kids, they were close.

“You got me. But I did have dinner with two very beautiful women.”

“That so? One was Alana, right?”

“Yeah,” he said with a smile.

“And the other was a friend of hers.” He chuckled. “She’s trying to set you up, Runt.”

Dammit, he hated how they all treated him like he was a little kid. He knew they would always see him that way, especially Anthony, who was the oldest. And he hated thinking these things because it made him feel like the baby they perceived him to be.

“No. Sunshine is a massage therapist and Reiki Master.”

“Sunshine? That’s her name?”

He smiled. “Yeah. Kind of a little bit of a thing. Looks sort of like a fairy.”

Dante didn’t say anything for a moment. “It might not have been a set up, but it seems she captured your attention.”

“She’s gorgeous in a hippy kind of way, but I’m military and I’ll be her client. Those are two big no nos for her.”

“She doesn’t like military? Why? And why would you go to someone who didn’t like military?”

He chuckled. Santinis were born to serve, and they took umbrage at anyone who didn’t support the military. “It’s not that she doesn’t like military. From what Alana says, she works with a lot of military folks who have PTSD.”

“But?”

“What?”

“I feel a but was left out.”

“She’s estranged from her father, who happens to be in the military. Or he was. Not sure if he’s active duty or not, but they’re not in contact. Plus, just from meeting her, I have a feeling she would never leave these islands. She was born here and there is definitely a connection for her.”

“I can understand that. Anthony and Marco talk about how they don’t think they would live anywhere else. Marco will have to at some point, but I know when he retires, he’ll be back in that house. He loves Oahu.”

“Yeah. Kind of falling in love with it myself.”

“Yeah?”

“So peaceful and damned if I can’t resist living surrounded by water. I know some people would hate it, but I kind of like it.”

“Okay, since you aren’t going to date the fairy Sunshine, are you dating anyone else?”

Dante never asked him about dates. Well, at least not since they were both younger. He knew there was another person at work here. “Mom has been after you.”

His brother sighed. “Sorry, but she’s worried about you.”

“And dating solves what?”

“She just wants to know you’re back to normal.”

“First, I have never been a heavy dater.”

“Come on, even though you are the nerd of the Santinis, you dated a lot at Annapolis.”

“Not as much as you think. You all did, but I found myself more selective.”

“Get bent.”

“Hey, not my fault that you were indiscriminate before you met Madison.”

His brother chuckled. “I got the best of the best, that’s for sure.”

He rubbed his chest. There it was. That ping of jealousy. Not of Madison, but of what they had. But at the moment, prospects for dates were low, and he wasn’t completely settled.

“Tell Mom I’m fine.”

“Tell her yourself.”

“I do, as does Alana. It’s not like I’m not dealing with my issues. And let’s remember, I’ve always had sleeping issues.”

As a kid, he would sleep walk whenever he was stressed. That meant that every time they PCS’d, Nando would sleep walk.

“Yeah. I remember when you guys moved to Arizona, Mom was worried you would fall into the pool and drown.”

It was why they had a fence around their pool. “Anyway, I tell her all the time, but tell her yourself. If she hears it enough times, she might believe it.”

“Not sure about that, Runt. You’re her little baby boy.”

“Like I said, get bent. And go to bed. You have a good woman to keep you warm and you’re on the phone with your brother.”

“Damn, you’re right. Night, Nando.”

“Night.”

He clicked his phone off, then started getting ready for bed. He tried to keep to the same routines, which seemed to help, although lately, it was a fifty-fifty chance one way or the other. Once he was settled down into bed, he smiled. He had his issues, but he was living in Hawaii. The windows were open and again he thought of that sweet air. The breeze drifted over him and he immediately started to fall asleep. He wouldn’t dream of that night…the one that had left him unconscious and injured. He would dream of sweet air and the woman who had named herself.

Sunshine settled into her tub with one of her favorite books on her Kindle and a glass of wine on the little table beside the tub. She loved her house. It had been a steal a few years ago when she’d bought it, but mainly because it was such a mess. Two solid years of working on it and it was finally about done. Her own finances had slowed her down, but little by little she had made it her home.

One of the things that had sold her on the house right away was the big clawfoot tub. It needed some refurbishing, but after a little bit of work, it was gorgeous, as was the rest of her bathroom. The soft greens and blues were always relaxing to her and she needed that, especially today. She had a full day ahead of her tomorrow, and one client in particular was giving her issues. He was the reason she was ignoring Nalini’s most recent release sitting on her Kindle.

Nando Santini. She shouldn’t be worried about him that much, except she was. She had a lot of hot clients. Hell, she had polo players who came to her, and those dudes had some of the best damn backsides that ever rode a horse. Not once had she been tempted to cross the invisible line she had drawn. Dating clients was never a good idea for her. Actually, she had never dated a client; rather, she treated people she had dated. So, ass backwards as usual, she thought with a chuckle.

Still, he drew her in. He was typical of all the Santinis she had met. She’d even met his uncle, Papa Santini. The man was old enough to be her father and still hot as hell. Add in a man like Marco, who made her friend Alana so happy, and she knew that they were a cut above the rest. But there were other things. Mostly his smoking hot body.

She rolled her eyes. There she went again. Fantasizing about Nando wasn’t going to do her any good. She didn’t have the time for a romance right now, especially with a man who would never be in for the long haul. No, she was better with book boyfriends for the time being.

With that thought, she clicked on her reader and began reading.