Chapter 4: The Man from Her Dreams

 

 

The salt-laced air filled Elena’s lungs as she stood on the wooden veranda of Mr. Keanu’s estate, watching the sun dip into the horizon, spilling fire across the sky. Hawaii. A place of refuge, of healing. A world away from the suffocating grasp of men like Bill and the shadows of her past. She had come here in search of peace, and against all odds, she had found it.

Mr. Keanu, the wise and soft-spoken owner of the estate, had taken her in—not as a worker, but as something far more precious. A companion, a confidante. The daughter he had never had. Their bond had formed quickly, as if the island itself had woven their fates together. Over the months, he had taught her about the land, the traditions, the quiet whispers of the ocean that spoke of ancient spirits and lost souls. In return, she brought him laughter, companionship, and a shared understanding of loneliness. But there was one thing he had never told her. He had a son. She learned it one night in the most unexpected way.

A sudden crash shattered the evening calm. The sound came from beyond the edge of the estate, near the dense jungle that framed the property. Elena's body tensed. Wild boars sometimes roamed this area, and she had heard stories of how aggressive they could be. But something about the noise felt different—urgent, human.

Without thinking, she grabbed a lantern and hurried toward the source of the disturbance. Her bare feet moved swiftly across the soft grass, her pulse quickening with each step.

Then she saw him.

A man stood near the base of a twisted banyan tree, breathing heavily, his clothes smeared with dirt. The remains of a broken wooden fence lay at his feet, as if he had crashed through it in some frantic chase. His broad shoulders lifted with each ragged breath, and in his arms, he cradled something small and trembling—a dog, its fur matted with blood.

Elena stopped short, the lantern’s glow illuminating his face. Her breath caught in her throat.

She knew that face. Not from television screens or glossy magazine covers. Not from movie posters or award ceremonies. From her dreams.

For years, she had seen him in the depths of her sleep—a man with strong features and warm, unreadable eyes. A man who, in those fleeting visions, made her feel something she had never felt in the waking world. Safe. Understood. Home.

Yet now, standing before him in the flesh, she felt anything but safe. A strange fear gripped her, a feeling of inevitability, as though the universe had conspired to bring her here, to this exact moment.

The man, oblivious to her inner turmoil, turned toward her. The tension in his body softened slightly when he saw her, his eyes reflecting both relief and something unreadable.

“Please,” he said, his voice rough from exertion. “I need help. My dog—he’s hurt.”

Elena’s throat was dry. She wanted to ask who he was, why he was here, why he looked exactly like the man she had dreamed of for years. But instead, she took a steadying breath and nodded. “Come with me,” she said. “We’ll take care of him.”

She led him back toward the estate, her mind spinning with questions she wasn’t ready to ask. As they stepped into the warm glow of the veranda lights, Mr. Keanu appeared at the doorway. His eyes fell on the man, and for the first time since she had known him, a crack of emotion crossed his normally serene expression.

“Arthur,” he murmured, his voice thick with something between surprise and affection. Elena froze. The name rang through her like a thunderclap.

Arthur Keanu. The Hollywood star. The man who could command the attention of millions with a single performance. The son of the man who had become her closest friend.

And yet, all she could think about was the dream. The impossible dream that had just stepped into her reality.

Arthur turned to his father, nodding in acknowledgment, then glanced back at Elena. A slow, knowing smile tugged at the corner of his lips, as if he, too, could feel the strange pull between them.

“Looks like I made quite the entrance,” he said.

Elena barely managed a breathless laugh, her heart pounding. She had come to Hawaii searching for peace.

But peace had never been her destiny.