Page 18 of Maliea's Hero
“I know. I miss them, too. Your father was always so good to me and fair with all his staff. He left a hole in our lives that will be hard to fill. And Professor Kaleiopu brought an energy and passion to the faculty that is noticeably missing.” The older woman sighed. “How soon do you want to come?”
“The sooner, the better,” Maliea said. “I might as well get it over with.”
“How’s this afternoon? If that’s too soon, tomorrow morning would work as well. I’m taking off tomorrow afternoon for some appointments I can’t reschedule.”
“This afternoon would be good. Is an hour and a half from now too soon?” She’d need at least some of that time to get back to the other side of the island. “And I might have Nani with me. Will it be okay to bring her?”
“Yes, that would be wonderful,” Andrea said. “I still have a drawer full of coloring books and crayons I keep just for her visits. We can load her up with those to take home with her.”
“That would be lovely,” Maliea said. “She talks about her Granny Annie all the time and asks when she can visit.”
“That little sweetheart can visit any time. She gives the best hugs.”
“Then I’ll see you in an hour and a half,” Maliea said.
“Yes, ma’am,” Andrea said. “See you then.”
Maliea ended the call and looked up to find Reid studying her.
“We’re going to the university?” he asked.
She gave a little shrug. “Nani and I are,” she said. “You don’t have to. I’m sure we’ll be all right. Like you said, the attacks have been on the apartment and my car more so than on me or Nani.”
“And if you find anything in your father’s or husband’s office, the attacks might shift to you.” Reid’s brow furrowed. “Even if you don’t find anything, the attacks might shift to you and Nani. Whoever was behind the previous incidents might think you found something and go after you either way.”
Her gaze on her daughter happily swinging on the playset, Maliea chewed on her bottom lip. “I can’t leave Nani with Tish or Solange. It would set them up as targets as well. Besides, I hate to let Nani out of my sight. What if he kidnaps her and uses her as a bargaining chip to extort whatever he thinks I have—which I don’t—in exchange for my daughter?” She threw her arms in the air, overwhelmed by all the horrible scenarios running rampant in her head. “Hell, if I had what he’s looking for, I’d give it to him just to get him off my back and keep Nani safe.”
Reid reached for Maliea’s hand and held it firmly in his. “It’s okay. Either one of my team members or I will go with you two and keep you safe. Maybe once you find whatever it is he’s looking for, it will help us figure out who’s bothering you, and you can put it all behind you.”
“Sooner than later, I hope,” Maliea muttered. “I’ve had enough drama in the past few weeks to last a lifetime.” Her heartbeat fluttered as if it couldn’t quite find its normal rhythm while Reid Bennett held her hand. What was wrong with her? She was newly widowed and yet lusting after a stranger. Had she no shame? No sense of grief for the man she’d promised to love, honor and cherish?
Guilt gnawed at her gut.
Maliea pulled her hand free of Reid’s and laid it safely in her lap. It was too soon after losing Taylor.
Never mind they hadn’t had sex in months. Maliea blamed it on their opposing schedules, but it was more than that. He hadn’t bothered to touch her, hold her or even kiss her, coming and going.
If she was completely honest with herself, she’d lost Taylor even before he’d died in that plane crash.
Still, it was too soon after losing her husband. Now was not the time to have feelings for someone else. To desire another man’s touch.
CHAPTER 5
Jenny, the cute, blond waitress, arrived carrying a tray loaded with Reid’s two hamburger platters, overflowing with steaming hot fries, and the grilled cheese sandwich with potato chips and a pickle spear. While she set them on the table, Maliea stepped over to the playset to bring Nani in to eat her lunch and to get a grip on her overstimulated libido.
Nani came as soon as her name was called.
Maliea’s heart brimmed with pride at how well-behaved her daughter was. For a three-year-old, she acted more like an old soul than a small child all too often.
If her marriage had been more stable, her husband home more often, and if they’d had any kind of sex life, Maliea would have wanted more children.
Nani needed siblings. Maliea had always wished she’d had a brother or sister to share her childhood with. She’d always dreamed of having three or four children. A house full of love and laughter. Her own mother had wanted that many but had to settle on her one daughter when cervical cancer struck her shortly after Maliea’s birth. A hysterectomy had ended her ability to have more children at an early age.
When Maliea returned to the table, she noted that Jenny had set one of the two hamburger platters in front of Maliea’s chair. Her mouth watered at the juicy burger with the mound of fries. She helped Nani into her chair and cut the grilled cheese in half before turning to the plate before her.
“This is yours,” she said, pushing the delicious-smelling burger toward Reid.
“I’m not quite as hungry as I thought I was when I ordered. I hate to see it go to waste. You do like hamburgers and fries, don’t you?”