THE POLITICS OF PLEASURE (51 page)

So, would she catch her flight? He could only imagine what was going through her mind.
It's just the alcohol, you're just holidaying in Hawaii. You've got to go back and face the real world
.
Reality's a bitch, sweetheart, she bites hard ... you of all people should know that.

Goldman thought back to Fast Eddies, to Michelle's drunken exuberance at the table, to her declared love for all things Oahu. She'd gone on about the island’s cloud-tipped peaks, its North Shore surf and abundant flora, the full moon rising over Kahala Beach, her sitting on the sand with a bottle of wine and a half-smoked joint, the wind whispering about an ancient people in dugout canoes, their brown feet marking virgin sand. Yes, Goldman sensed she'd been touched deeply by Oahu's magic. He imagined the island's fresh air and rolling shorelines would be hard to exchange for the uncertainty of her Robert-scarred life in Los Angeles. Well, he certainly hoped so.

They drove along the Pali Highway in his Buick Skylark convertible, his arm out the window, her long hair streaming wildly in the wind. The twilit sky was lavishly painted with soul-stirring hues. Navy and aquamarine, interspersed with dying splashes of pink and gold. They'd just visited the Tendai Mission of Hawaii. The Mission's impressive twelve-metre statue of Senju Kannon, the Thousand Armed Goddess of Mercy, had made a lasting impression. Michelle ran her fingers through Goldman's hair as they headed for his Kailua home, the couple's rekindled attraction a palpable force in the car.

"...
Joe Moore, Hawaii's choice. Weeknights at 6 and 10 pm, on 2N KHON"

Goldman glanced at the winking lights of a descending DC-9 jet and turned up the radio as a popular Top Ten song played through the car speakers. He felt the wind against his face, felt Michelle's fingers on his neck, and the sparkled showing of early stars seemed like celebratory lights, filling him with the sweet certainty he and Michelle would never again part.

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Table of Contents

DEDICATION

PROLOGUE

PART ONE

ONE

TWO

THREE

FOUR

FIVE

SIX

SEVEN

EIGHT

NINE

TEN

PART TWO

ELEVEN

TWELVE

THIRTEEN

FOURTEEN

FIFTEEN

SIXTEEN

SEVENTEEN

EIGHTEEN

NINETEEN

TWENTY

TWENTY-ONE

TWENTY-TWO

TWENTY-THREE

TWENTY-FOUR

PART THREE

TWENTY-FIVE

TWENTY-SIX

TWENTY-SEVEN

TWENTY-EIGHT

TWENTY-NINE

THIRTY

THIRTY ONE

THIRTY-TWO

EPILOGUE

NEWS AND UPDATES

Table of Contents

DEDICATION

PROLOGUE

PART ONE

ONE

TWO

THREE

FOUR

FIVE

SIX

SEVEN

EIGHT

NINE

TEN

PART TWO

ELEVEN

TWELVE

THIRTEEN

FOURTEEN

FIFTEEN

SIXTEEN

SEVENTEEN

EIGHTEEN

NINETEEN

TWENTY

TWENTY-ONE

TWENTY-TWO

TWENTY-THREE

TWENTY-FOUR

PART THREE

TWENTY-FIVE

TWENTY-SIX

TWENTY-SEVEN

TWENTY-EIGHT

TWENTY-NINE

THIRTY

THIRTY ONE

THIRTY-TWO

EPILOGUE

NEWS AND UPDATES