Kona Winds Read Online Free PDF Page B

is—"
    "My mother's sister."
    "I had it all mixed-up. I never bothered to ask. I simply presumed that Debbie's last name was the same as your aunt's. I should have asked."
    "It doesn't matter." Not a single expression seemed to crack the hard set of his features, but Julie thought she detected a note of boredom.
    In another minute he might walk away and she would still be lost. "Perhaps you could help me. I have a small problem," she said.
    "What is it?" He tipped his head to the side, vaguely indifferent.
    "Your aunt asked me to join her for breakfast this morning on the lanai. My problem is I don't know where or what a lanai is." Julie smiled at her own ignorance.
    "It's a porch or a balcony. Emily usually has her breakfast on the lanai on the ground floor," he explained with seeming patience. A hand gestured toward the rain darkening the windows. "But, as you can see, it really isn't the kind of weather to be eating outdoors today. Breakfast will be served in the dining room. It's right through that archway." He pointed in the direction from which he had just come. "You can't miss it."
    "Thank you." Her gratitude was met by a dismissing nod before he moved off in another direction. She watched him for a couple of seconds, then walked through the archway he had indicated. A living room led into a dining room where Emily Harmon was seated.
    "Ah, Julie." She glanced up. "Did you have a good night's rest?"
    "Yes, I did, thank you."
    "Sit wherever you like," Emily instructed. "What will you have? Juice? Fresh fruit? Pineapple? Papaya? Malia will fix you some eggs."
    "Ill just have some fruit and toast. I've never been able to eat a large breakfast," Julie took the chair at the table opposite from her employer.
    "Pineapple or papaya?" Malia inquired.
    "I believe I'll try some papaya."
    As Malia disappeared through a door, Emily offered, "Coffee?"
    "Yes, please, black." Julie noticed a place setting at the head of the table. It hadn't been used. She supposed it was for Ruel Chandler.
    Malia returned carrying haft of a papaya in a bowl, a green tinge to its ripely yellow skin. It was a melonlike fruit of a rich orange color. A lemon wedge was in its hollowed-out center.
    "Squeeze the juice over the fruit," Emily Harmon instructed. "It tones down the sweetness and gives it a tangy flavor."
    After following the suggestion, Julie scooped out a spoonful of the fruit. It was delicious, tangy but sweet. Emily was waiting for her opinion.
    "It's very good," Julie assured her.
    "Malia, why don't you go see if Ruel is going to join us this morning? I'm not even sure if he's up yet. I know it was very late when he came in last night," her employer stated.
    "He's up." Julie offered the information, and was immediately the recipient of Emily's questioning gaze. "I met him in the entryway just before I came in. He was talking to someone named Al."
    "You met him, then?" It wasn't exactly a question.
    "Yes, he introduced himself." Julie laughed shortly. "I wasn't aware that Debbie had a brother until he told me."
    "Never mind going after him, Malia. If he's going to join us, he'll be along. He probably went to see Deborah," Emily decided.
    "Very well." Malia glanced at Julie. "I'll bring you some toast."
    "Actually Ruel is Deborah's half brother," Emily offered the information as the housekeeper left the room. Her voice was very matter-of-fact. "Deborah is the daughter of Ruel's father's second wife."
    "Oh," Julie digested that for an instant. "Then you aren't really related to Debbie."
    "Not by blood, but I consider that an unimportant detail."
    And Julie believed her. Emily Harmon seemed genuinely devoted to the young girl Julie had not yet met. "What does Ruel do?" she asked.
    "He manages this place and he has business interests in Honolulu and Waikiki." The last was admitted very grudgingly.
    The statement Emily had made yesterday at the airport about Ruel came back to Julie. She had been talking about the tall string of hotels and