Roots and Wings, Part Two

202. Life's a Beach

One last time with Parker and Josie.

(Neither Booth nor Brennan appear in this chapter.)

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Over the years, Angela's little hut in Fiji had become an island getaway for both the Hodgins and Booth clans. As time passed and their families grew, rooms were added to enlarge the small house Grayson Barasa built, until one summer, a tropical storm damaged it beyond repair. With no other recourse, the original structure was razed and a new one took its place, one with deep verandas that faced the ocean and wide windows that captured every breeze.

The new house hosted winter escapes and school holidays. Bachelor parties were held there, and honeymoons, and more than a few 'just us girls' weekends. With no television or internet and barely any phone service, it was quiet and peaceful and open whenever an escape from the real world seemed necessary. Even when it passed from Angela's hands to joint ownership by Michael and William, the house remained available for the asking.

Just now, it was Parker's turn to pay the tiny island a visit but judging by the black scowl on his face, he found the idyllic setting considerably less so than usual. He stood on the front porch, wearing baggy knee-length shorts and a ragged t-shirt that had seen better days, watching a group of swimsuit-clad teenagers playing volleyball on either side of a haphazardly assembled net that seemed likely to fall at any moment. There were ten in all, Becky and the group of friends she'd begged to invite along on the trip, but he was concerned with only two of them: his daughter, a long, lithe 15-year-old just budding into her mother's beauty, and the boy who had obviously captured her interest.

"I don't like him."

"Hmm? You don't like who?" Distracted, Josie glanced up from her book. Stretched out on a padded chaise lounge just a few feet behind him, she wore a leaf-printed sarong tied around her neck, with an oversized pair of dark sunglasses shading her face.

Still staring at the playful group of teens, Parker missed the fetching picture she presented. His chin jerked toward the kids.

"That Formica kid out there."

Josie didn't bother to hide her smile. "His name is Fokisi, and you know that. Becky said it's a Tongan name, from his father's side of the family."

"Yeah, well, whatever. I don't like him." Parker's scowl deepened when Becky and Fokisi raced toward the net at the same time. Tall and broad shouldered, the youth's Samoan heritage had graced him with good looks that were almost beautiful. Like the rest of the boys, he was bare-chested and when he leapt into the air, long black hair flying loose in the wind, brown skin rippling over a body filled with a young man's raw, lean strength, everyone else stopped to watch.

Including Becky. Josie heard Parker's teeth grinding and set her book aside.

"Well, I like him." She scooted up next to him at the porch railing and wrapped one of his arms in both of hers. "He's friendly and funny. He's obviously been brought up well, he's polite and well-mannered - - "

"Exactly!" Parker glared at her as if she'd just made his point. "All that yes-sir, no-sir stuff? What fifteen-year-old talks like that? He's got to be hiding something."

Josie shrugged and watched as Becky and Fokisi chased after a loose ball that rolled into the surf. They walked back to the others side by side, with so little space separating them that their arms brushed. The attraction between the two was obvious.

"He reminds me of you."

Parker shot her a look filled with horror. "That's not funny."

Her laughter mingled with that drifting up from the teenagers. "Are your past sins coming back to haunt you?"

"God help us all."

When he groaned and dropped his chin into his chest, Josie laughed again, and wrapped her arms around his waist to give him a sympathetic squeeze. They stood like that for several minutes before, unconsciously mirroring each other, they lifted their faces to the sun and breathed in the scent of tropical flowers and salt-tangy breezes.

"I love it here,"she sighed. "It's so beautiful."

Murmuring his agreement, Parker leaned into her, head tilted to rest against hers.

"Let's not go back," he whispered.

And they laughed.

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There have been a few comments left by guest reviewers for Almost Forever and Enemy of My Enemy about whether or not I plan to get back to those stories. Since I can't answer those people directly, let me just say here that yes, those stories will be finished. My plan is to finish R&W first, and after that, pick up Almost Forever, and then have some fun with Harland and Booth in Enemy. Then I will gather up the threads of Match Made in Heaven and finally (finally finally!) tell Milly and Raf's story. I really appreciate that people are still interested enough to ask about those stories, so thank you.

And thank you for reading this, too. :-)