Hawaiian Love Read online

  HAWAIIAN LOVE

  Jeanne McCann

  iUniverse, Inc.

  Hawaiian Love

  All Rights Reserved © 2004 by Jeanne McCann No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping, or by any information storage retrieval system, without the written permission of the publisher.

  iUniverse, Inc.

  For information address:

  iUniverse, Inc.

  2021 Pine Lake Road, Suite 100

  Lincoln, NE 68512

  www.iuniverse.com

  ISBN: 0-595-76849-0

  Printed in the United States of America

  Dedication

  This book is dedicated to the romantic and ground breaking gays and lesbians who stood in line for hours to be married these last few months. All of you are creating history and will one day look back and recognize your contributions to all of our lives.

  I would also like to recognize the brave and talented police and firefighters all over the world that daily put their lives on the line without question. Every day you set out to protect and serve and we all want to thank you for your dedication.

  Thank you.

  Acknowledgements

  As always, many others besides the author contribute to a story. I would like to thank my partner, Pam, my friends who wait for the next story to be published, and my family who loves to tease me about being a romance writer. I would also like to thank my editor, Holly Vierk who is trying to teach me the value of a comma, with no great success.

  chapter 1

  Shanni, I’m really glad you decided to come with us to Hawaii.” Janice’s white teeth gleamed against the pink skin of her face. She lay basting in the hot sun, her body coated with SPF 15 sunscreen. Janice’s blond hair and blue eyes matched her freckles and still pale complexion. Her cheeks were already showing signs of sunburn as she lounged negligently on her towel.

  “I’m glad I came too,” Shannon smiled in response. She, on the other hand was already a deep brown, her olive skin complexion matched her dark brown hair and eyes. She tanned very easily, much to Janice’s dismay. “I’m enjoying just being able to relax.”

  And Shannon was relaxing. Hawaii was her favorite place to unwind. She loved the water, the beaches, and especially the heat. It always made her feel sensuous and decadent. The air around her was perfumed with a blooming hibiscus tree behind them, the turquoise water sparkling. The sand was white and soft as she pushed her toes comfortably through it. Even the smell of tropical tanning oil made her smile as she watched others languishing comfortably on their towels. No one moved quickly in Hawaii, slow and happy was the mood.

  “You needed this. You have been working way too hard.” Janice commented as she spread more sunscreen on her arms.

  Shannon had needed a vacation. She had been working non-stop the last few months taking on every filming request that passed her way. This was good for her pocketbook, but not for her spirit. But traveling to Hawaii and single life was still a little painful. She and her ex-girlfriend Anita had vacationed every winter in Maui the last four years they had been together. After they parted ways, Anita had spent her latest vacation in Hawaii with her new girlfriend, one she’d had long before she and Shannon had separated. At least Shannon was on a different island, away from some of the memories that plagued her. Anita and Shannon had grown comfortable with each other, more roommates than lovers. But it had hurt her deeply when Anita had told Shannon she wanted out of the relationship. Shannon missed the companionship.

  She could admit that their relationship wasn’t full of passion, but whose was?

  “Hey girls, how’s the beach?” Melody Anton, Janice’s girlfriend of eight years, along with Hanna Bryce and Olivia Charles, joined them. Melody was a very healthy woman of five-ten clad in a one piece bathing suit and a pair of shorts. She worked out constantly to keep herself in shape, due in part to her job as a firefighter. Her chosen career required physical strength and agility.

  Mel was dedicated to her profession and since peoples’ lives depended upon her, she worked out religiously to maintain her body. Even with her diligent focus she had sustained an injury a month earlier. But that didn’t stop her from enjoying her vacation. Her hair was cut short, and her auburn hair was liberally shot through with silver. Her eyes were a deep brown and her face was full of appealing laugh lines. Her face was a window to her feelings and she was a woman who enjoyed her life. Hanna and Olivia were both on the short side; Hanna was blond and a very plump five-three. Olivia was also a little on the full figured side, her hair a light brown, and her hazel eyes full of humor and affection. Hanna was a very talented chef and she and Olivia enjoyed the fruits of her work, making their waistlines fluctuate with their meals. The word diet was not in their vocabulary. All three women were showing signs of a healthy tan and the relaxed laid back attitude that was so much a part of the islands.

  “Good, hot, but relaxing.” Jan sat up to greet her girlfriend. “It’s about time you guy’s got up.”

  “Hey, we aren’t early birds like the two of you.” Melody teased Janice as she spread her towel on the sand next to her own before flopping on it and sneaking a quick kiss from her, while Hanna and Olivia made themselves comfortable on their own towels. They had staked out their spot days before, close to the beach and shaded with trees. The sun could get down right grueling after a couple of hours.

  For the last four days, Shannon and Janice headed for the beach a good two hours before the other three women, who elected to sleep in. Since the five of them had been friends for over ten years, they knew each other’s habits, good and bad, and accepted them. Janice and Shannon took the ribbing about their early rising with good humor and returned the teasing with barbs of their own.

  What were friends for if not to zero in on each other’s quirky habits?

  “The beach is pretty crowded today,” Olivia commented as she and Hanna pulled out their snorkel gear.

  “There’s lot’s of people. The waves are very rough, watch yourself going into the water.”

  “You guys want to snorkel with us?”

  “No, I’ll pass,” Melody responded, and Janice just shook her head no.

  “I’m staying here.” Shannon was just fine lying on the beach reading her latest mystery novel.

  “Okay, come on sweetie. Let’s go out by the coral reef.”

  “Be careful, it’s really heavy surf out by the reef,” Janice cautioned. She’d been watching the water all morning. There was a strong wind, and combined with the high tide, the waves were very dangerous.

  “We will.” Olivia and Hanna headed for the water chattering to each other playfully, flippers hanging off of their arms.

  “Mel, how’s your back?” Melody was recuperating from a serious back injury due to an accident at work. She and Janice were both firefighters for the city of Seattle. Melody was a lieutenant in north Seattle, who had recently gone out on a call at a burning warehouse. One of her team had gone down inside the building and she and another firefighter had carried him out of the flames.

  It had not been an easy task and she had suffered a serious back strain. She was on injured reserve status until she recuperated, relegated to office work and some vacation time. These types of injuries happened in her line of work and Melody dealt with it just like everything else, with good humor and hard work.

  She was intent on getting back into shape and active duty.

  “Good, I did all of my exercises this morning and it feels great.”

  “Honey, a little swimming might be good for you.”

  “So would a little morning delight,” Mel grinned at her girlfriend, a gleam in her eyes.

  “
Morning delight,” Jan chuckled, rolling her eyes. “I can’t believe you said that out loud.”

  Shannon tuned the two of them out, smiling at their banter. She was used to it. It was a part of their relationship. They would tease each other with affection, never running out of things to talk about. Shannon enjoyed their easy way with each other. She wanted a relationship that was as open and loving.

  She sat up and gazed out at the beautiful shoreline, enjoying the incredible view and the scenery. There was nothing like Hawaii, with its brilliant water, colorful flowers, and weather. But there was something else that tugged at Shannon whenever she visited. Something spiritual and sacred surrounded Shannon, and it made her feel protected and a part of the islands.

  They were staying at an elegant Four Seasons Resort in Kona, right on the water. It was a beautiful complex that had everything a traveler might need. It contained restaurants, a private lagoon, and any other amenities a person could imagine. The five of them had gravitated to the beach in front of their rooms. It was large and relatively quiet. Shannon watched as children and their parents frolicked in the surf, jumping the waves, snorkeling in the clear blue water, and shrieking with pleasure. She started to lie back down when she caught a faint cry that sounded very much like a call for help. She stood up quickly, shading her eyes as she scanned the beach.

  “Help!”

  Shannon heard the muffled cry again and moved closer to the shoreline, as she scanned the water looking for someone who might be in trouble. “Janice, Mel, did you hear that?”

  “What?”

  “A cry for help.”

  “I don’t hear anything.”

  “Shush.” Shannon strained to hear, shading her eyes from the sun as she continued to search the crowded shoreline.

  “Help, help!”

  “There he is!” Shannon burst into a run. “He’s being pounded by the waves on the reef!”

  While Janice and Mel watched in disbelief, Shannon raced into the water and started swimming with strong strokes in the direction of the coral reef about one hundred and fifty yards off the shore to the right of where they lay.

  No one else seemed to have noticed that a young boy was experiencing trouble in the water.

  “Mel, go get some help! I’m going out with Shannon.” Janice struggled through the high waves and began swimming after her friend. She wasn’t as comfortable swimming as Shannon but she followed after her.

  Mel raced to the hotel lobby while Shannon swam toward the young boy.

  He tumbled against the reef as high waves pummeled his small body. Shannon prayed she would reach him in time. When she was only twenty feet away, he disappeared from her view. She swam those final twenty feet even faster and dove into the water. She saw the unconscious child twisting and turning against the jagged coral reef. She grabbed his arm and pulled him to the surface. Her lungs burned. Waves rolled the two of them over and over and Shannon pulled the boy’s tiny body tightly against her as they slammed against the sharp reef. Pain shot through her as the coral tore the skin of her back and legs.

  She sucked in a mouthful of salt water and gasped for air. Still, she managed to keep the boy’s face above water. She choked, gagged, tightened her grip on him, kicking heavily, and swam with one arm toward shore. Her body screamed with pain and exhaustion, but she couldn’t stop now.

  “There they are!” a man yelled as Shannon broke through the waves, holding the boy’s face above the water.

  She felt hands grabbing her arms, pulling her out of the surf and on to the shore, the boy taken out of her arms as she fell to her knees, gasping. “Is he breathing?”

  “The paramedics are working on him. Let’s get you out of the water, honey.” Janice and Mel tried to help her. Janice had been one of several swimmers who had helped Shannon get the boy to shore. Shannon was unaware she was kneeling in the shallow surf on her hands and knees, as she forced herself to breath, her body screaming with pain.

  “Is he breathing?” She couldn’t stand up; her knees were too weak.

  Simone Moreau was a senior paramedic for the town of Kona Hawaii, and had been a medic for over twenty years. Normally, she could be found in her office doing mounds of paperwork since she was in charge of a staff of twenty-six. Today, she was in the field with two of her younger medics, observing and training. They had responded to a possible drowning at the resort, which unfortunately, was something that happened periodically in the heavy beach surf around the island. Tourists and the island bound were equally at risk, as the waters around the main island of Hawaii could be treacherous. The island was formed by lava flow from Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa volcanoes, many years earlier, leaving the shoreline rough and in many places very deep. Undertows and rough surf claimed many a tourist and islander if they weren’t respectful of the water. She watched two of her junior medics as they worked on the young boy.

  “He’s not breathing. I’m going to begin compressions,” Barry Levin explained as his partner, June cleared the young boy’s airway and took his pulse. “How long has he been without oxygen?”

  “This woman pulled him out of the water.” A man in the growing crowd of onlookers spoke up.

  Simone turned to Shannon and saw the exhaustion and pain on her face.

  “Here, let’s get you seated and warm.”

  “Oh, Shanni, what happened to your back and legs?” Olivia cried out in horror.

  “Is he breathing?” Shannon repeated, as she painfully tried to move. She just wanted to make sure the boy was going to be okay.

  “Not yet, but give the medics some time.” Simone reassured her. “How long was he under water?”

  “Not long, he was just going under when I reached him, maybe ten minutes or so, I’m not exactly sure.” As Shannon spoke, the boy coughed and choked loudly, before throwing up the salt water that had filled his lungs. They rolled him on his side as he struggled to breathe.

  “Jason, that’s my son Jason!” A frantic woman dropped to her knees next to the young boy. “Is he okay?”

  “His pulse is strong, and he’s breathing normally.” Barry covered the shiver-ing boy with a blanket as June prepared a gurney so they could transport him to the ambulance. “We need to take him to the hospital to be looked over by a doctor. He needs to be checked out, but it looks like he is very lucky.”

  “Jason, I’m so mad at you. You were not supposed to go in the water without me, honey.” She smothered the little boy with kisses.

  “Ma’am, let us get your son into the ambulance and then you can talk to him.”

  “We need to take care of your injuries now that the boy’s okay.” Simone spoke to the drained woman who stood silently watching the paramedics work. She was being supported by two women, one on either side of her. Her body slack from exhaustion and shock.

  “I’m fine. I just need to go get cleaned up.” Shannon turned stiffly, intent on heading up to her hotel room to lie down. She hurt like hell and she hissed in pain as she tried to move.

  Simone saw the extent of her injuries and winced. She knew first hand what coral could do to skin. “You aren’t going anywhere but to the hospital. Your back, arms, and legs need to be cleaned and taken care of.” Shannon’s eyes were already glazed with pain and she just wanted to return to her room. “That’s okay, there’s no need.”

  “Are you the woman who saved my son? Thank you so much. What’s your name?” Shannon almost cried out as the oblivious woman overwhelmed her, hugging her energetically. Her back screamed as the woman’s hands touched it.

  “Shannon, my name is Shannon,” she gasped, closing her eyes to keep from crying.

  “Shannon, I can’t thank you enough.”

  “It’s no problem.” Shannon started to feel lighted headed and her knees began to buckle, her stomach churning.

  “Oh my, you’re bleeding,” the woman cried out. “Someone help her!”

  “I am, ma’am.” Simone couldn’t help but notice how pale Shannon had gotten and reached out to support h
er. “June, we need another gurney.”

  “Right, boss.”

  “Can you hold her while we wait for the gurney? We need to get her to the hospital.” The tall blond medic spoke quietly but with such authority that Mel didn’t question doing what she asked. She recognized knowledge in the woman’s demeanor.

  “Certainly. Shanni honey, Janice went to get your pack so you have your wallet with you. We’ll meet you at the hospital.”

  “I’m not going to the hospital.” Shannon’s face was beaded with sweat, her eyes all but shut as she tried to ignore the pain that moved through her body.

  “Honey, you need to go, please?”

  “I’m fine. I just need to go to my room and get cleaned up. I’ll be fine.”

  “Shannon, what’s your last name?”

  “Dunbar.”

  “My name is Simone Moreau, and you need to get to the hospital. Coral cuts can get infected very quickly if you don’t take care of them.” Shannon smiled up at the tall beautiful woman standing next to her. “What a beautiful name, it suits you perfectly.” Simone was pleasantly startled by the comment and the smile on the beautiful, injured woman’s face. June met them with another portable gurney.

  Shannon sighed heavily and stared at the woman who had spoken so gently to her. She was beautiful; her soft eyes a pale blue, her hair short and ash blond, with streaks of lighter blond sprinkled throughout. An abundance of full curls adorned her head, her nose thin and elegant to match her high cheekbones, but it was her mouth that caught Shannon’s attention. Her lips were full and arrested in a slight smile, her perfect white teeth offset by her deeply tanned face. She was tall and lean in her navy uniform of shorts and matching shirt, but obviously very strong as her bare arms and legs attested to. Shannon started to object to going to the hospital again, but the slight smile, the gentle hand on her arm, and the direct gaze, kept her silent. She just nodded her head in agreement, all the while staring at the woman who somehow made her feel safe. Shannon let her guard down and put herself in the woman’s capable hands.