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Chapter Four

LAIKEN

There aren’t typical days of the week that are busier than others. Because the entire island chain is dedicated to tourism, the bars are always busy. I pause at the dock and stick my phone and keys in the small phone locker, securing it with my thumbprint.

Once I’m free of technology, I step through the scanner on my way to the ferry.

The Isle of Kala boasts being technology-free and completely anonymous, as well as being a LGBTQIA+ resort.

Not a bit of that is ‘ We are, except for certain individuals .’ Every single guest that sets foot on the island doesn’t make it past the docks unless they turn over every single piece of technology and sign an NDA.

The NDA isn’t nearly as crucial to the operation as remaining technology free. That means there are no video leaks. No sneaky pictures. No audio recordings to be analyzed. This is a peaceful paradise for everyone who vacations here.

There is technology on all the islands, though.

Guests all wear rubber bracelets, color coded, and with chips in them that make them identifiable as well as accessing their credit card.

There are tech huts on the guest islands where people can sign into computers to check emails or whatever.

There are movie theaters and arcade games.

There are televisions in the rooms. There are security cameras in many places.

But that is all tightly controlled by a very well-established and highly trained IT department. There are controls, checks and balances, and it’s backed by a very aggressive legal team should someone decide to fuck up.

The residential islands are a little different.

We’re allowed technology. We have personal laptops and phones and internet and shit.

But we also have checkpoints on the two residential islands where personal technology cannot pass.

The security and legal teams that protect the guests of the Isle of Kala also watch over the residents.

The docks are one of the obvious visible lines.

One of the most interesting things about Kala is that the entire island chain is owned by a single family. They built this resort from the ground up. Through many decades, they’ve created this safe-haven paradise for the LGBTQIA+ community, and it’s grown exponentially.

That’s not to say there aren’t the occasional residents or guests who are straight. Nason and Miranda, for example. Straight all day long. There are guests, especially high-profile guests, who come to the island simply for its guaranteed privacy and escape from the world.

I’m sure there’s some safeguard in place, so those outside of the queer community don’t take the resort over. In a world where so many queer places get taken over by straight people for one reason or another, Kala remains loudly queer.

We’re a very small, tight community. Kala employs several thousand people, and they all reside right here on the two residential islands—Bane and Keone Reef.

It’s a very tight-knit community where everyone knows everyone.

Very small-town vibes. However, as the islands expand, the housing situation becomes a bigger and bigger challenge.

I’m excited to see this new island expansion project get underway.

It’s still in the very preliminary stages, but I’m looking forward to seeing it all come together.

There’s a large poster at the dock that I look at every time I get on the ferry.

This is the first of its kind, announcing the project.

There are three uniform-shaped outlines in the water beside the six islands of Kala.

One is beside Bane, sandwiching the island between the new outline and Keone Reef.

The other two outlines in the water are the new resort islands around the cluster of resort islands.

The banner reads: In Planning Now!

Under that is a call for action, asking residents to submit names for the new islands. As the ferry pulls away from the dock, I’m smiling at the poster. One of the things I love about this place is the community inclusion.

A massive resort like this, an entire island chain, and the vast majority of businesses all owned by a single entity, could be a very bad thing. There are the negatives of having a monopoly, like the lack of democracy and feeling as though you’re trapped with no choice.

I think you’d be hard-pressed to find someone who lives and works on Kala unhappy with the family who owns and operates the island, though.

They’re good people. They’re the children of a time when the world was very dangerous to be anything but heterosexual, white, and Christian.

Being none of those things and finding peace was hard to accomplish.

I’m a little rusty about the knowledge of where the startup money came from, but in an effort to create a safe place for their family, the Isle of Kala was born.

There are four generations of the family now, though the youngest generation is still in diapers.

Every new generation builds on what their parents created, making this place bigger, better, more successful, and remains incredibly safe for our community.

It’s one of their promises to the island that, while this isn’t necessarily a democratic state, it’s also not a dictatorship. They want everyone involved in everything they do. Right down to naming the proposed new islands.

I wouldn’t give up living here for anything.

I’ve been working in the bar scene since arriving on Kala almost eighteen years ago.

Generally, I work at the Hinky Dinky Bar on Etsumi, but I’ve hopped from place to place as needed.

Sometimes to train or maybe to oversee a transition in staff.

Once, to reinvigorate one of the bars that had seen a massive drop in visitors over a period of months, until nearly no one was coming in.

The ride to Etsumi on the ferry is only fifteen minutes, and then I’m heading down the road to the bar.

Etsumi has a heavier female population than the other three resort islands, though they’re not restricted to Etsumi just as men aren’t restricted from Etsumi.

As it happens, Etsumi tended to attract the female crowd, and that trend grew over the decades.

It’s grown just in the years I’ve lived here.

The Hinky Dinky is my favorite bar. I love the atmosphere.

The vibe. As I near the entrance, I can already hear the band playing.

I recognize their style as the island band, Whiskey Horizons.

They claim to be punk rock, but their songs are more like love songs, only sung loudly and maybe a little angrily.

I step into the side door, and my eyes immediately land on Elijah sitting at the very end of the bar with Cash. The bar is semi-circular, with one end abutting the wall on one side. My hackles rise in response to the two guys there with them.

No , I insist to myself. Not mine. He can flirt with whomever he wants. Not. Mine.

There’s an animal inside me growling, telling me I’m wrong. I’m not wrong, though. I’m only feeling protective because that’s Nason’s son. I’m going to be wary of anyone interested in him because he’s… uh… family.

Right.

Elijah’s eyes meet mine and he holds my gaze while I head for the opposite end of the bar where it’s open. He smiles. A cute, smug look on his face. Probably because he’s remembering how I lost decorum a few days ago when he was baking cookies, and practically said I wanted his fine ass.

I take a breath and ignore the fact that he’s here. Probably in tiny, tight shorts because that’s his go-to. And with some fucking guy drooling all over him.

The bars on all islands tend to be a mix of guests, especially when we have live bands playing.

Whiskey Horizons is one of three bands formed by residents of the island.

This one is probably one of the best as far as lyrics go, though they don’t match the style of the music itself.

It always sounds to me as if the writer’s muse doesn’t play well with whoever insists that this is the kind of vibe they’re playing.

“Hey,” Mike greets as I grab one of the charged readers from the port on my way by. I tap my bracelet on it so it identifies that I’m here, but that I’ve served the people who tap it following.

There is no cash exchanged. Everything is done by scanning the bracelets. Residents have bracelets that we wear when we leave the residential islands or need to purchase something. There is no physical cash on Kala. It’s all electronic.

“Hey,” I return as I glance at Elijah again. His back is to me as he continues to talk to the guys there. I can see them flirting from here.

I force myself to turn away and look at Mike. “Been a busy afternoon?”

“Nah,” he says. “We’ve been fine with the two of us, though business has picked up over the last half an hour.”

Something I’ve come to understand about Kala is that there isn’t any time that’s truly busier than another.

Not a time of day or a month or a day of the week.

Because excursions and establishments stay open until one or so, and then reopen between five and seven later that morning, there’s a constant flow of people.

Early risers, night owls, peak of day-ers.

They’re here all the time, just a different crowd.

The only reason things close at all is for restocking or cleaning. Otherwise, I think everything would be open constantly.

“It was feeling a little rainy,” Beth says on her way past. “That might account for the influx. Even when it’s warm out, people don’t like to be in the rain.”

Huh. I must have been too caught up in thought to notice the weather.

Elijah’s laughter makes me glance down that way again. Grabbing a couple glasses, I mix two drinks, keeping the alcohol content light but the flavor strong. With a fresh towel over my shoulder, I head down to the end of the bar and set the glasses in front of Elijah and Cash.

The guys they’re talking to look over their heads at me. I’m sure they’re not receiving a friendly expression in return.

Elijah spins in his seat and gives me a big smile. “Hey, Laiken. Want to meet our new friends?”

Cash shifts so he’s facing Elijah, making it easy for him to look at the guys they’ve been talking to and me.

“No,” I say and push the drink toward him.

He likes my answer. His smile ticks up. “This is Bruce and Robert,” he introduces, ignoring my answer. “This is Laiken. The guys were just asking us if we wanted to dance with them.”

Nope. I’m not ready to jump over the bar and rip these strangers’ heads off. He’s Nason’s son , I remind myself. Not. Mine.

“Are you hungry?” I ask, ignoring his comment. I’m pretty confident he’s baiting me right now. Elijah wants my reaction.

“Not yet. I’m sure I’ll work up an appetite on the dance floor,” he says and hops off the stool. I watch as he reaches for the drink I brought him and takes a long sip. He hums and then turns. I’m left staring at his ass.

Fucking Christ, what is he wearing?! I groan at the way his shorts somehow make his ass pop. There must be an elastic or something that makes the back of them shape into his crack, so I’m looking at two perfect globes.

Cash follows, and the guys follow them. I try not to stare like a savage beast while I tend to other patrons at the bar. I’m not sure I succeed in that. In fact, I’m positive my eyes are glued to Elijah the entire time. Waiting for him to return.

Songs play. Several. Because I’ve been obsessively staring, ready to pounce, I see when they turn for the door.

My entire body stills as I watch them leave. Elijah glances at me, sends me a flirty smile, and then leaves.

A sour taste fills my mouth, making my stomach churn. The beat of the drums reverberates through me, making everything inside me dun-dun-dun . I feel it like I’m in a tube.

“I’ll be right back,” I tell Beth and drop my towel on the bar. She doesn’t stop me as I push my way through the crowd and head for the door that Elijah walked through. I hurry so I don’t lose him.

I don’t know what I’m doing. I have no idea what I’m going to say. All I can do is follow where my feet take me.

It’s raining, though it feels more like a mist than rain. I look around, looking for the direction they headed. My muscles tense as I turn.

Elijah is leaning against the side of the bar with his arms crossed over his chest. He stares at me with an amused smirk. I don’t see the guys anywhere, but I do see Cash. He’s talking to a group of people I recognize as residents.

This fucker played me. He was looking for a reaction, and he got one. I have half a mind to go back inside. I need to go back in. I’m on the clock. I’m working.

Instead, I gesture with my head for him to follow me as I walk around the opposite side of the bar. As soon as he rounds the corner, I press him against the wall.

His lips part in sexy surprise as he stares at me. What am I doing?

“You don’t leave with strangers,” I tell him.

“Are you worried about me, Laiken?” he asks, voice breathless.

Worried. Am I worried? I’m about to go fucking feral.

I’m not sure what comes over me. The next thing I realize, my mouth is on his. I’m kissing him in the most manic, possessive way. The kinds of kisses you write about. There’s something animalistic in the way I tell him he’s mine through our kiss.

His hands flatten against my stomach, push upwards over my chest and shoulders, and around my neck. He presses against me. My grip is reflexive. The growly voice inside me wants to dig my fingers into his skin, to leave marks on him so he knows who gets to touch him every time he sees them.

I think I’m devouring him whole. Sucking on his tongue, biting his lip. Losing myself in the hypnotic taste that is Elijah Cain.

When he moans, sirens go off in my head, and I pull backward. Oh fuck. Oh fuck, oh fuck, oh fuck!

“Lie,” I say.

His cheeks are flushed. His lips are puffy. His tongue sneaks out to lick them. My entire body throbs with want for this man.

“Laiken,” he responds, his voice just as quiet as mine had been.

I shake my head, taking a step back. Letting him go, though everything inside me is screaming to hang on tightly. “We can’t do this,” I insist. “We can’t. This can’t happen again.”

Elijah frowns.

“I’m sorry,” I say and move further away. “I shouldn’t have done that.”

His frown deepens as he crosses his arms over his chest.

I force myself to move. “Don’t leave with strangers,” I repeat.

“Seems to me like you don’t get an opinion on who I leave with,” he mutters.

My feet pause, but I know that anything that comes out of my mouth is going to lead us somewhere we can’t go. We can’t.

Nason’s son!

Taking a deep breath, I leave him at the side of the bar and go back inside. Elijah doesn’t come back for the rest of my shift.