Just Good Friends (22 page)

She set down her half-eaten sandwich and moved closer.
Reached up to kiss his cheek, ran her hand down his chest. “Because you are powerful,
when you’re doing that to me. You make me so crazy I can’t think. Can’t talk. You
make me want you so much.”  

“And this would be the upside,” he told her, moving the
plate aside so he could pull her into his arms. “For all that temper. I’ll take
the fiery bits, when you show them to me here.”

Koti swore as they neared his house late Saturday afternoon
after an all-day outing to the west coast, only to see a car parked in the
driveway.

“Were you expecting somebody?” Kate asked as he pulled into
a spot on the street instead.

“Nah. But I’m not too surprised. That’ll be my sisters. That’s
Grace’s car. Bet it’s more than just her, though.”

“Oh.” Kate felt a pang of uncertainty. “Well, why don’t you drop
me off at home, then? That way you can have a visit.”

“Oh, no. Strength in numbers. Come on.” He hopped out and
began untying their surfboards from the roof rack.

“I’m not sure this is a good idea,” she said nervously as
they walked toward the house. “I’m a mess right now. And not ready to meet your
family in any case.”

“Thought you didn’t back away from a challenge anymore,” he
pointed out. “And my sisters can be a challenge, trust me.”

“You’re really helping here. Thanks a lot.” Kate wished
she’d at least taken the time to put on makeup after she’d changed out of her
wetsuit. She tugged her sweater into place over her jeans and took a deep
breath as Koti opened the door.

“Oi! Who’s here?” he called as they stepped inside and found
themselves enveloped by a delicious smell of roasting meat.

“Koti!” A tall, beaming woman came out of the kitchen,
wiping her hands on a dishtowel. “Lovely to see you, darling.”

“Hope!” she called. “Koti’s home.”

Koti returned his sister’s hug and kiss, then pulled Kate
forward as another woman entered the room.

“These are my sisters. Grace,” he indicated the
maternal-looking woman who had greeted them. “And this is Hope,” he added as he
hugged and kissed the other woman, a statuesque beauty with Koti’s bronzed
complexion and luxuriant black hair, pulled back like her sister’s into the
knot Kate was beginning to recognize as the preferred Maori style.

“This is Kate,” he told the women, grasping her hand firmly
in his own. “We’ve been surfing, so we need to get cleaned up before we can
chat. Didn’t know you were coming.”

“Poor you,” Hope said sympathetically to Kate. “Having us
sprung on you like this.”

“We did text you, Koti,” she said reproachfully. “Didn’t you
see?”

“Surfing. Like I said. Where are the kids?”

“Back home, with the boys,” Grace told him happily. “We
decided this morning to come up for the weekend, do some shopping. It was an
impulse, eh. We’ve had a good day, been in all the shops. Bought them out, more
like. I’m glad you weren’t away, though. We checked the fixtures first, so we
knew you weren’t playing.”

“So you decided you’d just descend on me. For the weekend, I
take it,” he grumbled.

“Of course we did,” she confirmed. “Because you will’ve
missed us. And you haven’t visited Mum in three weeks. It’s clearly time for
your family to check on you, make sure your head’s still on straight. But go
on, now. Take this poor girl upstairs and let her have a bath. She looks half frozen.
We’ve got tea started already. It’ll be ready by the time you’re done.”

“Go on and get warmed up,” she urged Kate again, making shooing
motions at both of them. “Then you can come down and have a glass of wine, let
us get to know you.”

Kate followed Koti upstairs in stunned silence, then sat
down on the bed with a thump. “Whew.”

“Told you. Good job Joy isn’t here. You only have to deal
with two of the three.”

“Your sisters are named Hope, Grace, and Joy?” she asked in
disbelief. “They’re pretty names,” she went on hurriedly. “It’s just a little
overwhelming, hearing those names all together like that.”

He laughed. “Not as overwhelming as meeting the three of
them together. Be glad Joy couldn’t come. She’s the most talkative.”

“Wow. I’ll take your word for it. Are they all older than
you, or younger?”

“You’re joking, right? All older. I’m the baby. Can’t you
tell? Hope’s the youngest and quietest. Grace is the oldest. And the bossiest.”

“I’m getting the picture. And your house is their house, I
take it. I’ll bet they all have keys, too.”

“Too right. Can’t exactly say I don’t have room, can I?”

“Nope. The price of success. And of family.”

“All right, then,” she decided, getting up off the bed. “If
I’m going to appear before this tribunal, I need to get cleaned up. I wish I
had something nicer to wear, though.”

“What are you doing?” she asked in alarm as he stepped into
the shower with her a few minutes later. “Your sisters are downstairs.”

“Yeh, they are,” he agreed, pulling her into his arms.
“Which makes this our chance, doesn’t it? You can be loud here, too,” he
encouraged her as he poured body wash into one palm and began to run his soapy
hands over her skin. He smiled as he saw her neck arch, heard the low thrum
begin in her throat. “Bonus for both of us.”

“And I promised hard against the wall, I seem to remember,”
he added at last, lifting her under the spray so the water poured onto her.
“Haven’t delivered on that yet, have I. No time like the present.”

When they finally rejoined the others in the kitchen, Kate
devoutly hoped Koti’s sisters had missed the implications of their long shower.
Her legs still felt rubbery, and she turned red at the thought of what they’d
just done, twelve feet overhead. She found Grace checking the oven while Hope
prepared a salad at the large center island.

“I can tell you’re both feeling better, now that you’re
warmed up,” Hope smiled approvingly. Kate blushed again, feeling like a
schoolchild caught in some misdemeanor.

“We are.” Koti grinned at them, pulled Kate up against him.
“Much better. Hungry, too. What are you making for us?”

“Leg of lamb, roasted vegies, and salad,” Grace announced,
pulling the pan from the oven. “Pour the wine, Koti. We bought some quite nice Pinot
Noir. Over on the bench there.”

“What can I do?” Kate asked.

“Nothing. Just sit down and have a chat while we finish up
here,” Hope instructed.

“How often do you two get up to Auckland?” Kate asked when
Koti’s sisters had served the delicious meal and everyone was contentedly
tucking in. “Do you always do your shopping here?”

Grace laughed. “Really just an excuse to get away from the
kids for a bit. And to keep an eye on our little brother, of course.” She
looked across at him fondly.

“How many kids do you have?” Kate wondered.

“I have three, Hope has two,” Grace answered. “Their dads
are coping now. It’s good for them. Mine are ten, seven, and five, and Hope’s
are five and two. We need a break from time to time.”

“So you have five nieces and nephews,” Kate told Koti. “Wow.
I didn’t realize.”

“Seven,” Hope corrected. “Joy has two as well. How about
you, Kate? How many nieces and nephews do you have?”

She laughed. “I’m way outgunned here. None. I’m an only
child. Even my parents are back in California. I’m afraid you’d find my family
life awfully tame in comparison to yours.”

“Yeh. Because that’d be a nightmare,” Koti said with a
straight face. “All that peace and quiet at the holidays.”  

“Oh, you love it,” Grace told him. “You know you do.
Everybody’s favorite uncle, aren’t you. You’re so good with the kids. Time for
you to have some of your own.”

“You must live close to each other, I’m guessing,” Kate put
in hurriedly. “Is that near where you grew up?”

“We all live in Hamilton,” Hope said. “All three of us.
Close to each other, and to our mum and family in Cambridge as well. We tried
to convince Koti to play for the Chiefs again, when he came back.” She looked
at him reproachfully. “But he went to Auckland instead.”

“Wonder why,” he muttered, taking a sip of wine.

“At least he’s not playing for the Highlanders,” Grace said.
“He’s close enough for us to visit, anyway. Make sure he stays out of trouble.”

“I’m beginning to see why you’re so attractive to women,”
Kate told him. “You’ve had lots of practice being appealing.”

“Not that I got to see that at first,” she explained to his
sisters. “I hate to tell you this, but your brother did not make a good first
impression on me.”

“On
you
?” he spluttered. “I thought you were two
sammies short of a picnic, myself.”

“’Mad as a meat axe’ were, I believe, the words used,” Kate
agreed.

“That was later, though. You started by warning me off the
beach. I couldn’t stand you. Well, I always liked the way you looked,” he
amended. “Just not too fond of that stroppy side at the time.”

His sisters traded glances. “You seem to be getting along
well enough now, though,” Hope ventured. “Looks like you got it sorted. How did
you meet? Sounds like it was memorable.”

“I work for the Blues,” Kate told her. “Koti was one of the
first players I met, in fact.”

“And I’ve been trying to keep her from meeting the others
ever since,” he said.

“Another sensitive subject,” Kate pointed out. “Not to
mention yet another failure of the famous Koti James charm offensive.”

“That’s unusual,” Grace said. “It doesn’t let him down much.
Three older sisters and a mum, eh. He’s had women fetching and carrying for him
since he was born. Knows how to make them feel happy to do it, too.”

“You don’t have to tell Kate that,” Koti complained. “She
doesn’t need any more ammunition. Think I’d better keep her from getting any
more background information, in fact. Why don’t you two go watch telly or
something. We’ll do the washing up.”

“My house, remember?” he reminded them when they objected.
“Much as you like to forget it. Go on, now.”

He herded his sisters into the lounge and closed the kitchen
door in relief. “Sorry,” he told Kate. “You don’t actually have to help me if
you don’t want to. But I needed a break.”

“They’re crazy about you, though,” Kate objected as she
began to put away the leftovers. “You obviously have a loving family. And it
sure looks to me like you’re the pet.”

“Too loving, I sometimes think,” he muttered, rinsing plates
and putting them into the dishwasher. “They’re missing some boundaries. Think
I’m still their baby brother.”

“And on that note, why don’t you take me home after we
finish this?” she suggested. “Despite what you’re saying, I’m sure you’d like
some time with them. And I’m not that comfortable staying with you while
they’re here.”

“Why? Because they’ll be shocked that you’re sleeping with
me? We can always rumple the sheets in the fourth bedroom so you can pretend
you spent the night there,” he teased. “Not that they’d believe it. But I’d
rather you stayed. As you can see, I need the support.”

“Right. Because they’re so hard on you,” she scoffed. “They
adore you.”

He grimaced. “Having you here will help remind me I’m not
eight anymore. Growing up in that house full of women, all mothering me.”

“Where was your dad?” she asked hesitantly. “If you don’t
mind my asking.”

“Took a hike,” he said shortly. “When I was eight, like I
said. And since even Hope is four years older than I am . . .  A bit hard to
feel like a man with my sisters kissing me on top of the head for years. Can’t
tell you how relieved I was when I finally grew taller than all of them and
they couldn’t reach it.”

She laughed, but was touched all the same. “You haven’t
heard from your dad since then?”

“Oh, I’ve heard from him. As soon as I made a bit of money,
started being written up by the journos, he was on to that. Never contacted my
mum or my sisters, of course. Just me.”

“I take it you didn’t follow up with him.”

“Shit, no. Told him to fuck off,” he glared. “Sorry.
Language. Makes me ropeable to think about it, that’s all. After he left my mum
to raise the four of us by herself. He sent money. Had to do that. But that was
all. Reckon he decided he was entitled to more fun than he was having, and we
were in the way of that. My mum didn’t have that choice.”

“Sounds like she’s a strong woman.”

“She is. Strong and proud. My sisters too. They’re all good
mums to their own kids. Married pretty good blokes, too. I know I have a good
family, and I love them. Just wish they’d see I’m grown up now. Which is why
I’d like you to stay tonight. Help remind me I’m a big boy,” he said with a
grin, shaking off the serious subject.

He good-naturedly put up with his sisters’ reminiscences of
his boyhood during the rest of the evening, but it was with obvious relief that
he finally ascended the stairs to his bedroom with Kate.

“Koti, no,” she hissed in shock when he reached for her
under the covers, his clever hands moving to pull her nightgown over her head.
“We can’t do this now. Grace is right next door. I’d die of embarrassment
tomorrow. Plus, we already did it, remember?”

“That’s right. And now we’re going to do it again. You’ll
have to be quiet this time, though, won’t you? Like a little mouse. Think you
can do that?” He kissed her neck. Reached the spot under her ear he knew she
loved, bit her there.

“No,” she moaned as his teeth closed over her skin again. “So
you need to stop.”

“Hmmm. You are a noisy girl. I’ve noticed that. I’ve got an
idea, though. Every time you forget, I’ll stop what I’m doing. Wait till you
can be quiet before I start up again. Give you some incentive to behave.”

“Don’t make a sound, now,” he reminded her as his hand moved
to stroke her. “Or I’ll stop.” He bent his head to her breast, bit down.