Page 22

He laughed, and sipped his beer. “I have my moments.”
On the other side of the fire, music started. Uncle Duke was strumming his battered guitar, and a young man—one of Kalani’s cousins—started playing a ukelele. A moment later, an auntie started singing in Hawaiian.
“They’re good.” Hollis swayed in time to the music.
He knew she’d worked with some of the best composers and singers for her movies. “You love Hollywood?”
“No, I hate Hollywood.”
His eyebrows shot up.
She pulled a face. “It’s all so fake and cutthroat. But I love acting. Sometimes I think it saved my sanity. I had a stepfather for a while. A really great guy. He was a firefighter, who didn’t mind inheriting an awkward, teenage stepdaughter. He loved classic movies and got me watching them. Movie night withDave was one of my favorite things. We’d make popcorn and fight over the remote.”
Sawyer smiled. “What was his favorite movie?”
“Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.”
“And yours?”
“I couldn’t just pick one, but I am partial toThe Wizard of Oz. I’d kill for a pair of shiny, red shoes. Plus, Dorothy’s hair looked red to me. Another sign.”
“You don’t see Dave anymore.”
Her face fell. Sawyer couldn’t stop himself from reaching out and covering her hand with his.
“I had Dave for almost five years. He was the first and only person to tell me that he believed in me.” She shot Sawyer a sad smile. “Then, my brother died of a drug overdose, and one month after that, Dave had a heart attack. I lost them both.”
“Shit, I’m so sorry, Hollis.”
“Thanks.” She pinned on a smile. “I learned a long time ago that life isn’t always fair. That sometimes, things suck.”
“Yeah.” He’d had his share of that. “SEALs have a saying, embrace the suck. That the only easy day was yesterday.”
She laughed. “Not quite something you want stitched on a pillow, but I sometimes feel like the only easy day was months ago.”
He stroked her fingers with his. “You going to tell me what you’re running from?”
Instantly, she tensed up.Shit. He was sorry he’d pushed.
“Nothing.” She shrugged a shoulder. “Like I said, I was burned out and running on fumes. Maui seemed like a good place to recharge.”
She was a good actress, but even she couldn’t hide the entire truth. Eventually, he’d get it out of her. When she trusted him.
“And there’s always paparazzi and overzealous fans,” she added. “Hazard of the job.”
“None of those here.”
She tilted her head. “Oh, you’re not a fan?”
“I like your movies. I’m a fan, just not overzealous.”
He detected a faint flush on her cheeks. He found it attractive as hell that she could still blush. That she wasn’t too jaded by Hollywood.
“So no boyfriend, huh?” he asked.
She shook her head and sipped her wine. “The last guy I dated was a Hollywood agent. I thought he was charming, handsome, driven.”
Hell, Sawyer was none of those things. His hands tightened on his beer bottle.