“It’s not a big deal. We’re just having a barbecue and were wondering if you’d like to join us?”
“Today?”
“If you have the time, yes. It’s not far from the estate.”
Chapter Twenty-Two
Gina was glad for the barbecue invite, because it gave her a reprieve from displaying her bikini-clad body at a public beach. The only place she’d worn it without a layer of clothes over it was in her bedroom. She got the directions for where to go, yet another part of town she hadn’t yet been. It sounded as though she could just drop in whenever she wanted, and after buying a bouquet of flowers and a bottle of red wine at the market, she found the street on the map she kept in the Datsun.
St. Louis Heights turned out to be very close to the estate, a long narrow residential area that followed the ridge above the estate. Looking up from the gardens at the bottom of the valley, she’d noticed a few of the houses. On the opposite side of that ridge was yet another valley with its own stream. What she had to do was find the street that wound its way up through the neighborhood that clung to the ridgeline.
“Wouldn’t be able to drive these streets in the snow and ice,” she muttered, following a zigzagging street. “Be great for sledding, though.”
Gina wasn’t sure of what to expect of the house that her employers lived in, or exactly who lived there. All she really knew about the Tanizawas were the estate gardens that she was recreating, and that they had farms on the island. She’d even seen Tanizawa produce in the supermarket, mostly specialty stuff for Asian cooking. What she didn’t know was if the farms were giant impersonal places like in the Midwest, or smaller family-run operations.
When she found the address, it was for a house hidden from street view. All that showed in front were the glazed-tile roof and lush tropical plantings. It was positioned near the top of the ridge, and considering its location, it would have a view down into the same valley as the estate, and the city beyond. It was older, but well-tended and stretched out to the sides instead of up. Large trees provided shade at each side and along the front.
Several cars were parked along the curb on both sides of the street, and she wondered if they were all for the afternoon barbecue. Parking half a block away, she took her wine and bouquet to the house. It was a matter of walking down a set of steps to get to the shaded main entrance that had a cool and inviting feel. She didn’t need to knock before the door opened. Millie was there smiling.
“Any problems finding us?”
“Almost got car sick driving around in circles, but no,” Gina said. She handed the flowers to Millie when she went in. “I guess it’s a little lame bringing flowers to someone with a yard full of them.”
Millie smiled politely. “Not at all. We don’t have this kind here at the house.”
A man about the same age as Millie joined them in the front hall. He had the same face with narrow eyes and dark skin, and one leg was bowed. Like everyone else in Hawaii, he was dressed in shorts and a T-shirt. He smiled to Gina.
“You must be Miss Santoro?” he asked, extending his hand to shake hers.
“I hope so. Otherwise, I’m in big trouble.”
The smile on his face froze before it started to drift away. Millie abandoned her then, taking the flowers with her.
“I’m sorry, yes, I’m Gina. I shouldn’t say things like that. Nobody ever gets my sense of humor.”
He smiled again. “It was funny. I’m Dwight, by the way. You already know my sister, Millie. Come out to the patio and meet the rest of the gang.”
Gina followed him through the middle of the house. With only the quick glance she got, it looked like the bedrooms were off to the left, and the living room and kitchen were to the right. Going out a large sliding glass door to a long narrow patio, Gina froze in her tracks. There had to be two dozen people there, including a few kids, all smiling at her. Most were Asians, a couple of them white, and a couple others were Polynesian. Behind them was open sky with a view of the next ridge in the distance, and the valley below. White clouds were coming from over the mountain range. Feeling as though she were an actor thrust on stage before she knew her lines, all she could do was smile back.
Dwight did the introductions, and all Gina could do was smile and nod at each of them in turn. Some had Japanese names, others the same as old friends. Kyle from the hardware store was there with his wife, as was Brad, the other hardware store employee she’d met a few days before. Looking at the two couples, she was struck by how odd they seemed. Japanese Kyle was married to a blond-haired and blue-eyed woman named Koni, and white as snow Brad was married to a Japanese woman named Reiko. Her next surprise came when she was introduced to the handyman that had been at the house so many times, Kenzo.
“Kenzo is the oldest brother,” Dwight said. “This is his house, our meeting place whenever the family has something to discuss.”
Gina made a point of shaking his hand. “You never said a thing to me about who you are. I thought you were a handyman the family hired to work on the house.”
Kenzo smiled as though he was enjoying the trick he’d played on her. “I wanted to get to know the person staying in our house.”
“You never asked me any questions. You put me to work instead.”
“Never asked you to work on the roof, but you volunteered, just like with the hot water
