“Smart men.” I tip my face toward the breeze for a second. The ocean is so close I could throw a chip into it. “Is it always this good, or is today special?”
“Always,” Luca says. “You stop noticing after a while.”
“That’s deeply sad, and I refuse to let that happen to me.” I lower my sunglasses from my head to my eyes purely so I can stare at the water without squinting. “I want to go in so much.”
“You were just in the ocean,” Ace says.
“Completely different energy.” I reach for the nearest glass and find it’s water with lime and drink half of it immediately because I’m dehydrated on top of everything else. “How’s the food here?”
“Outstanding,” Luca says, leaning back in his seat, and it’s hard not to notice all those muscles pushing against the fabric of his shirt.
“Good. I’m starving.” I set the glass down, and the three of them are watching me too intensely. “I’m fine, by the way, before anyone asks. I’m assuming Luca told you about the van?”
“I was going to ask anyway,” North says. Those steady brown eyes tell me he has the calm manner of someone who doesn’t rush anything. “How are you holding up?”
“Feeling pretty annoyed and a bit worried, to be honest. I don’t need a stalker in my life right now.”
Ace leans forward on his elbows, closer than strictly necessary, and I get the edge of his scent—guava, basil, and ocean salt. But it’s so much more than a delicious smell. It curls inside me as if it’s calling me to him. But I need to keep my head straight, so I make a very deliberate decision to focus on the menu. “Any idea who did it?” he asks.
“None,” I say. “Which is the part that’s making me insane. Who breaks into a van, goes through everything, takes nothing, and slashes the tires? Like, what was the end goal? What were they hoping to find?”
“Maybe it’s a warning,” Luca suggests.
I don’t answer that, because he’s right and saying so out loud will make it more real than I want it to be right now.
“Adelaide. We can help you,” Ace says, voice low.
“Youarehelping me.” I open the menu. “Luca rescued me, called the tow truck, and now the three of you are joining me for lunch. Honestly, that’s already a lot.”
“That’s not what he means,” Luca says.
“I know.” I keep my eyes on the menu. “What’s good here besides everything?”
North makes a quiet sound that might be a laugh.
Luca leans back as I lift my gaze. “For the record, I’m the only one with military training, but if you want all three of us as bodyguards, that can be arranged.”
“I’ll think about it.” I close the menu. “So how did this happen, exactly?”
North lifts a brow. “Lunch?”
I wave a hand between them. “You three. As a pack.”
“We grew up here,” North says. “Met young. Stayed.”
Ace shrugs. “Known each other forever. It’s not very exciting.”
Luca grins. “That’s his version. Mine’s better.”
Ace barks out a chuckle as North takes a sip of water. “Most of them are lies.”
I laugh. “Good. All this vagueness helps. And now?” I ask. “You all surf and work luaus?”
“Professional surfing pays when we place,” North says, resting back in his chair with that easy, steady confidence that somehow never looks forced. “The luau work fills the gaps.”
Luca grins and drags a hand over his jaw. “Which, in my case, mostly means carrying heavy things and looking useful.” He says it like a joke, then laughs at his own line, low and rough, and I can’t help smiling.
Ace glances at me. “He’s not wrong.”
