Chapter 15

 Her I-phone began ringing and she quickly looked down, “Excuse me.” She said to her guest when she saw Cam’s number on the display.

“Hey what’s up?” she asked uncrossing her long legs and getting up to walk away from the table.

“K.C. Whitfield rented a vehicle today.” Said Cam anxiously and Rielle frowned.

“That’s a good thing isn’t it?” she asked wondering at her tone.

“Hell yes, my father was against me getting such an expensive vehicle but I knew someone would lease it. He came in with Michael Hernandez and Jarrod Stewart who invited me to his house in Royal Palm Estate for a dinner party to welcome them to the island tonight." she said anxiously. 

"That sounds like it'll be fun." Rielle said not sure where Camille was heading with this. 

"Andrea was there so I couldn’t say no. He asked us to bring anyone else we thought would be cool. Consider this your invite woman and I’m not taking no for an answer. You cannot abandon me. What are you going to wear?” Camille asked almost frantically.

Gabrielle pondered her friend’s odd behavior for a moment before she finally said softly, “Girl you need to take a breath and calm down. I've got company so I can't really talk right now. Let me call you back in a little while okay?” and she hung up from the other woman.

She looked over at K.C. to see him frowning at his Blackberry as he texting someone but he stopped when he saw she was finished with her call just as the timer buzzed in the kitchen.

They went back in to find the water had been absorbed, she finished off the dish by seasoning it with salt and pepper and stirred in the shrimp before covering it for another few minutes. All that was needed now was a sprinkle of some of the reserved chopped green onion.

Rielle was reaching for plates from an upper cabinet when K.C. came to stand behind her and easily reached over her head and took them down. He smelled the combined coconut and almond fragrance of her hair before he stepped back.  

The rice had absorbed the flavor of the shrimp a few minutes later and it smelled and looked great as Rielle ladled the steaming food onto two plates. He followed her back outside and they sat at the teak table before saying grace.

Gabrielle slid her hands across the small table and K.C. lightly held them and bowed his head and she was pleased that he was not a stranger to this practice as he said a short but respectful prayer.

K.C. had Sunday dinners at his grandparents home to thank for his ability to say a prayer. From an early age he could remember everyone around the table having to say what they were thankful for before eating. He took his first bite while she discreetly watched for his reaction to the meal.

“This is really good Rielle, you’ll have to give me the recipe.” K.C. told her.

The spicy heat of the Scotch bonnet pepper danced on his tongue without overpowering the delicacy of the shrimp and rice. He watched her expressive face and knew it was the right thing to say as a smile blossomed.

“Your view is priceless. I can imagine having any meal out here is a pleasure.” He said taking a sip of lemonade.

A breeze helped to cool off the midday heat and the clear blue sky was interrupted by fluffy white clouds that floated by and with houses scattered in the green valley below them made an idyllic scene.

“It is. I prefer to eat out here to enjoy the breeze and view especially during the summer. It was something that I missed when I went away to college so I really take advantage of it when I can.” She replied happier than she cared to examine that he was enjoying their culinary efforts.

K.C. couldn’t help drawing references between Gabrielle and Tiffani who wouldn’t have been caught dead in a kitchen unless it was to yell at the staff or to order more caviar.

She looked over at him while chewing a mouthful of buttery avocado, and he decided that he liked how she enjoyed her food instead of picking at it.

“I noticed that not a lot of the natives on the island have a very strong accent. I’ve been to quite a few of the islands where they have very strong regional dialects but for some reason I don’t hear that here. Why is that?” K.C. asked curiously.

Rielle considered her answer for a moment before she finally answered him.

“Tourism is the driving force of our economy here and has been for a long time. There has been a push in our schools to speak proper English and we’ve been exposed to mainland American culture for a long time which has helped with that as well. There is also the fact that a lot of us travel away whether for work or to further our education, most of the islanders have learned to turn the accent on and off at will.” She answered easily.

He thought back to his mother who had no trace of an accent even when she was angry there was no indication that she was from the island. It was like she had wiped all traces of her former life totally away.

“What about you, I don’t hear an accent with you at all.” He asked as he speared a shrimp off his colorful plate.

He had deliberately chosen not to ask Jarrod anything about Gabrielle so that he could find out about her on his own without someone else’s preconceived notions.

“My father played basketball professionally and my brother and I were born in Atlanta not on the island by the time we came here at about eight and five years old our speech patterns were set.” Rielle answered popping a bite of cucumber into her mouth.  

“Wait a minute; your father is Graham Hall who played for the Savannah Sentinels isn’t he?” K.C. asked excitedly and Gabrielle was surprised when he actually started reeling off statistics.

“Yep that’s my daddy. I can vaguely remember when the Sentinels won the Championship.” She replied proudly.

They talked about her childhood in Savannah and growing up on the island and K.C. found himself fascinated by the life she had led. He could imagine her playing pirates with her sibling and cousins, exploring the island or some other game, romping on the beach. She must have been an adorable little girl he thought.

Her next words dispelled that image however.

“I was a holy terror as a kid pulling pranks, picking fights, not doing well in school. It wasn’t until my mom suggested I play volleyball in junior high that I had an outlet for the pent up energy that caused me to be such a brat.” Rielle told him honestly as he finished his meal.

He was surprised by her revelation and looked into her clear eyes, “I can’t believe you were ever that bad.” He told her watching her sip at her lemonade, his eyes warm. A  sleek eyebrow arched and K.C. saw the corner of her mouth kicked up.

“It’s true, I was one of those terrible kids but thankfully I got turned around and I enjoy helping the girls at my school where I teach to channel their energy into something positive. Enough about my unruly childhood behavior, I just want to thank you again for fixing the light for me, with Chris away on training and my father so busy  it would have taken a while to get it fixed.” She replied pushing away her plate.

“Anything to help out a beautiful lady.” He replied easily as he looked out at the serene view and took a deep breath letting it calm him.

“So have you given anymore thought to going out with me?” he asked his eyes sliding her pleasing features.

“Are you seeing anyone back in Denver; I’m not interested in being any man’s side piece or undercover lover.” Rielle said bluntly her gaze unwavering.

The fact that she was attracted to K.C. didn’t mean she was going to expose herself to a potential relationship if he was involved with another woman.

Relationships were hard enough these days without adding a third person or fourth for that matter to the mix. K.C. was not going to lie to her, but he had the feeling if he told her he was just coming off a broken engagement Gabrielle would refuse to go out with him.

“I was in a serious relationship several months ago but that’s over now and there is no one special in my life at the moment. Unless you can count this funny, smart, beautiful woman who I’m very interested in but she’s giving me a hard time.” He admitted playfully and saw her crack a little smile.