His Naughty Lessons
Chapter 143: First Official Date

Chapter 143: First Official Date

** Eli **

Eli had a destination in mind. A perfect place for just the two of them to enjoy their time together and forget about all the unromantic hassles of the evening before. But as they cruised the coastline, winding through the postcard-perfect landscape that had Harper gasp in wonder at every turn, he wished that their destination was farther away. He could spend a lifetime watching her in high spirits like this, eyes gleaming and full of interesting chatters:

"That must be the fiftieth chicken I’ve seen in five minutes. Are chickens the state bird of Hawaii or something? For how many of them there are, I’m surprised I didn’t wake up to one calling outside my window in the morning!"

"Wait, is that a pineapple field? That’s what a pineapple plant looks like? How could such a huge fruit just sit like that on top of such skinny leaves? How does it even balance?"

Eli laughed the entire way at the unconventional wisdom behind all those curious questions. He told her in turn about the Hawaiian state bird Nene, among various other colorful ducks and songbirds that he saw the last time he visited a different island. He also told her about the overrated and tourist-trappy pineapple whip at a particular famous plantation. Upon hearing that judgment, Harper protested skeptically, insisting that he’d need to demonstrate the standard for true quality ice cream by getting her some that didn’t count as tourist-trappy.

He shot her a sharp glance and made her promise that she’d eat it like a good girl, without putting on the kind of show she did at the amusement park and at the book fest. Which resulted in Harper giggling for the whole duration of eating a Hawaiian shaved ice, all the while throwing him foxish looks that actually turned out even more effective than the licking show.

He loved it though. Her teases, her jokes, her bright laughters that danced in the wind along with her wild hair, he loved it all. They awakened so many memories both old and new, all of which were beautiful.

To take her on this trip was probably the best decision he had made in months.

As they continued detouring along every small road following the shore — something that Eli did on purpose to lengthen this precious drive — the sun had begun accelerating its descent toward the horizon. The blue sky and white clouds from when they started had slowly changed, turning into a golden canvas stroked through with wispy patches of pink. The warm light gave the verdant landscape in front of them a slightly different hue, tinting the emerald mountains a lighter shade of lime green, and when they rounded a big bend in the road to emerge on the west side of a valley, Harper gasped.

"Wow, this looks just like Jurassic Park!" Her voice was pure awe and delight. "Those mountain ridges really look sharp as knives. The movies didn’t exaggerate at all! If only there’s a waterfall too ..."

Eli chuckled. Darting a quick glance at his GPS, he turned them onto a small dirt road leading toward the ocean. "Waterfall, you say? How about the view on your left?"

Harper whipped her head around, and then she gasped again.

They had made it to their destination, a small private beach tucked into a hidden corner at the west end of the island. To their right side, the ocean splashed and dazzled against the lowering sun, sparkling like a thousand diamonds floating amidst the foaming waves. To their left, the mountains soared high, all sharp edges and piercing summits, and draped right above them was a beautiful waterfall cascading down the rugged hillside, like a bridal veil flowing gracefully in the ocean breeze.

"No way ..." Harper craned her neck to follow the misty water all the way to the top, where it disappeared behind the mountain’s summit obscured by a halo of golden sunlight. "This is ... unreal ... How could a view like this exist here? I looked up all the top tourist attractions on this island before the trip, and I’m pretty sure nothing was nearly half as breathtaking!" Then her eyes landed back on Eli, a peculiar light gleaming within. "It’s not some kind of VR trick?"

Eli almost choked on his own laugh. "Nope, no tricks. This beach is private, so it makes sense that you didn’t see it on the commercial sightseeing lists." He pulled into the parking spot at the end of the road marked by nothing but a stump in the ground. "What do you think? Is this a good destination for your first official tour of Hawaii?"

Her eyes gleamed again, this time with something new in their depths. "You mean a good destination for our first official date? Oh yes, absolutely." She stretched her arms out and took a deep breath of the seaside air. "Talk about movie inspirations ... This is exactly where the most romantic scenes always happen! The honeymoon couples setting up a perfect picnic with wine and cheese, toasting to a glorious sunset ..."

She trailed off when Eli replied with a mysterious smile, slipped out of the car, and brought out what was in the trunk.

Oh he loved that shock on her face when she saw exactly what he had prepared. But of course he had thought of the romantic picnic too! How could a date on a beach be complete without it? He winked at her as he rolled out the beach towel over the sand, held down each corner with small flameless candles, and proceeded to lay down the various trays from the cooler. Fruit, cheese, wine ... just like what she asked for.

"... I was just kidding!" Harper exclaimed, watching the banquet unfolding in front of her. "Oh my God, did I just walk in on a real movie set?"

Eli laughed again. He had probably laughed more today than the past ten years combined, and he had only her to thank for it. "It’s not a movie set." He strode back to the car and cupped her cheeks, answering her with a soft kiss. "It’s our first official date."

She beamed, and when he pulled back to look at her, the sun was in her eyes, glowing warm and bright and beautiful.