Wren is a hardworking archaeologist on his first vacation in years. While he’s tempted to look for ancient artifacts, this is Maui and he needs to focus on taking it easy. So it’s off to the beach to relax. There Wren dives into trouble, literally. Luckily, the backward roll and breathing techniques he learned studying Ninjutsu saves his life, because the shore break called Satan’s Washing Machine grinds him up and spits him out, temporarily blinded and badly battered. A karate dojo owner named Steven takes him to a doctor, a pharmacy, and then back to the beach, only to find Wren’s car and all his belongings have been stolen. So Steven invites him home instead. Will their mutual love of martial arts lead to other a deeper relationship? Or will their shared desire for humbleness and respect for others keep them from falling in love?

Beyond Black Belt

“For the dojo. I do a little karate. Nothing special. I sure don’t want to sound like I’m bragging. It’s big here because of all the Japanese and other Asians.”


I hid a smile. I had only just earned my first black belt, but I didn’t want to brag about that in case he was just an interested fan or beginner. Ninjutsu, or maybe all of them, was like that. It made you humble and kept you silent. You knew what you were capable of, but nobody else needed to know.


“It’s not a whole lot like other sports, is it?” I asked. “Mysterious and all that. I think the biggest appeal on the mainland was in the eighties when Stephen K. Hayes made his style popular.”


“Yeah,” said Steven guardedly. “They’ve been just handing out black belts ever since.”


Chapter 14