The Kissing Game, page 4
“Ja, that you cannot resist me. So that’s two dates.”
“What?”
“I think you win is what I’m saying.”
“Wait. I win…two dates with you?”
“You’re irresistible.” He couldn’t help smiling at her puffed-up pride before she realized what he’d said.
“You admitted it. So I win.”
“As I said,” he agreed. “But also, you find me irresistible. We’re a pair.”
She tried to look stern and failed when she laughed. “Okay, we’re both amazing. You sure are good at kissing.”
“And other things,” he had to add, done with trying to play it safe. She flushed, and he did his best not to show his satisfaction. “We go out, yes? When?”
“Um, I don’t know.”
“Tomorrow.” He didn’t want to give her time to rethink things.
“Well, I guess.”
“Good. I come pick you up, and we go out.”
“I—okay.” She frowned up at him. “Has anyone ever told you you’re kind of pushy?”
“No. But I have been told I’m slow, that my speed isn’t what a woman wants, and I am not frightening in the least.”
Rena blew out a breath. “I didn’t mean that the way it came out.” At his look, she amended, “Maybe I did. I don’t know. You’re confusing. You act one way but… Never mind.”
She looked embarrassed, and he chuckled. “Yes, so irresistible when you mumble at the floor.”
She flashed angry eyes at him and, seeing his teasing smile, grinned back. “Well, well. There’s another side to Axel Heller after all. Okay, big guy. I’ll see you tomorrow. Gimme your phone.”
He did, and she added herself as a contact.
He felt as if he’d just won the lottery.
“My phone number and address are in there. Tomorrow at two work for you?”
“Ja. I’ll see you then.” He didn’t want to ruin anything, so he stole a quick kiss, committing her taste to memory. Then he left the closet and the party before he embarrassed himself, grinning like a lovestruck fool.
* * *
Rena spent the rest of the night in a blur. She’d said the right things, fended off good-natured teasing about Axel, and generally enjoyed herself. But lying in bed that night, she could do nothing but replay their shared kisses.
They couldn’t possibly have been that good, could they? She sighed, recalling how smooth he’d been, how hot. God, he had a mouth made for sin. For sex.
She shivered, doing her best to relax when images of Axel had the exact opposite result.
He’d bet her she’d find him irresistible. Bet won. But that didn’t mean she’d fall into his arms so easily. Lord knew it had been forever since she’d had sex. But Axel worried her. She’d been attracted for so long, then to be done with him, only to have him act like a perfect Prince Charming to sweep her off her feet?
She rolled over and punched her pillow. She hadn’t been kidding. She wanted a man, a real man who talked to her, made her laugh, and wanted to be with her…for more than just sex.
With Axel she had chemistry. She liked the guy, well, what she knew of him. But she needed to know more. And he needed to share without being nagged about it. She hated that her date with Axel scared her as much as it excited her.
She didn’t want to be rid of him yet, but she had a bad feeling he’d end up ruining things before they’d begun.
* * *
Sunday afternoon, while she and Axel walked around Green Lake drinking cocoa, she had to wonder if she’d willed the date to be bad. He’d gone with her suggestion to walk through the pretty, light flakes of snow continuing to fall despite the bright, sunny day. An odd contradiction, but the sun continued to peek out when the clouds shifted, and the day felt warm regardless of the white falling all around them.
Axel had been nothing but pleasant. He matched his long-legged stride to hers and talked more than he ever had to her about anything. He mentioned the weather and his fascination with American beers and how bad they all were and asked her about her salon.
He seemed to like listening to her talk, which warmed her. But he hadn’t shared anything personal about himself at all, and they’d been walking for over an hour.
She stopped telling him about one of her stylists in an argument with another.
“What’s wrong?” He sipped from his cup.
“You.”
He froze in his tracks, forcing those behind him to go around. “What did I do?”
She felt like an idiot. He’d been polite and charming and had even bought her hot chocolate. He talked and walked and paid her attention, ignoring the many stares aimed his way. And at his height, with his looks, he always drew notice. But she couldn’t help feeling like Axel wasn’t sharing anything his buddies at his shop didn’t already know.
“Tell me,” he insisted in that low voice that wrapped around her and made her shiver deep inside.
“Well…” She toyed with a strand of hair and stopped herself, annoyed with the nervous habit. “Tell me something about you, Axel.” She tugged him by the arm to continue walking with her.
“I did.” He looked puzzled. “I like German beers best. Though Budvar isn’t too bad, and it’s Czech.”
She rolled her eyes. “Not about beer or the weather or how blue the sky is. Like this: Hi, Axel. I’m Rena Jackson. My mom’s name is Caroline, and she lives over in South Seattle. So she’s close but not too close.” Rena smiled. “I have relatives I love in the city. My uncle Liam, my cousins Del and J.T., and now a nephew since Del married Mike. Oh, and I’m about to be an aunt a second time once Del has her baby.”
“What about your dad?” He gave her all of his attention as they navigated the many people thrilled with the pretty, nonthreatening snow.
“He’s never been in the picture.” Rena didn’t feel hurt by that anymore. It had taken her a long time to come to terms with the fact her father had never wanted her.
“His loss,” Axel said plainly. And he meant it, she could tell.
She smiled at him, aware he watched her with so much focus. Whenever he looked at her, she felt as if he saw nothing but her. She found it flattering but also a little disconcerting. What exactly did he see when he looked at her?
After a few moments of walking in silence, she wondered if she’d need to prod him, when he spoke.
“You know my mother died back in the summer. I loved her very much, and it’s been…hard.”
“I know, sweetie.” She gripped him by the hand.
He squeezed and didn’t let go. “My father and I are not close at all,” he growled. “I have an older brother I don’t know very well. Maksim works with my father in Germany. I came here, with my family, many years ago. After a while, my father and brother went back, but Mom and I stayed. She ended up going back to Stuttgart a few years ago.” He paused.
“I know she had a tough time before she passed away. I’m so sorry for your loss.”
He turned a wan smile her way. “Yes. I am too. She was an amazing woman.”
The guy still cared for and missed his mom. Rena loved that about him, that he could feel so much for someone.
“I have been traveling back and forth these months helping my aunt and cousins with the farming. They needed some extra help, and I needed to be there for them. I told my mother I would.”
“That’s nice of you. Farming?”
He gave her a genuine smile. “A few cows and pigs. Goats for milk. They are more gentleman farmers than the real thing. But it makes them happy.” He sighed. “They all loved my mother.”
He didn’t say anything more about her, and she didn’t want to push him. So she changed the subject to his brother. “So you’re not close to…Maksim?”
He frowned. “He spent much of his youth with my father, so no. We don’t know each other well. When my parents spent time apart, I was with Mutter, Maksim with Vater. Maksim and I, we look alike. It’s strange to see him.”
“So you’re saying he’s big, strong, and handsome like you,” she teased.
“Ja. But not so handsome. I am better.” He winked at her.
Her heart pounded at his grin.
He watched her watching him, and his smile faded. He drew her to the side of the path, out of the way of the many strollers and couples walking. “Is this date okay?”
“Okay?” She wondered if he’d let her run her fingers through his hair. The dark-blond mane looked so soft.
“You are enjoying yourself?”
“I… Oh heck. Can I touch your hair?”
He paused. “Sure.” He bent his head, and she ran her fingers through it, right about its softness.
“Can I cut your hair?”
“I had planned to get an appointment this week. With you.”
“Good. But I tell you what. You let me style your hair the way I want to, I’ll do it for free. Then you tell everyone who cut your hair. You’ll be a walking billboard for my salon.”
“Sounds good to me.”
She watched him raise his hand to cup her cheek, the movement unbearably slow. “Y-you don’t want to know how I’ll cut it?” Right now he had a shoulder-length cut, all one length, and looked smokin’. She had a different look in mind, but one no less attractive. Then again, he’d been sexy-scary with a buzzcut. With Axel’s features, hair or no hair, it didn’t matter.
“I trust you.” He ran his thumb over her cheek, and she did her best not to melt on the spot. When he gave her a slow smile, she lost all thought. “Notice I do not ask to touch your hair. I am a smart man. I never mess with a woman who makes a living with scissors.”
“Ah, good.” She cleared her throat. “Because I’d have to kill you.”
He laughed and dropped his hand, and she wanted it back.
She reached for him at the same time he reached for her. They shared a warm smile and held hands as they finished their loop around Green Lake.
The car ride home passed too quickly, and as she left his truck, promising to see him the next day at four for a hair appointment, she realized they hadn’t talked much on the ride at all. But they’d held hands the entire way home.
* * *
Rylan stuck his head in the door first thing Monday morning. “So, Boss, you finished the Escalade?”
Axel continued to frown at the paperwork on his desk, managing the paint and supplies they needed while wondering what the hell had happened to the budget. He had no one to blame but himself, he thought, knowing his time away from the shop was responsible for the imbalance on the books.
“Boss?”
Axel glanced up, still too pleased about his date with Rena to be too angry. Even if Rylan was a major pain in the ass. “Ja, I finished your work. Come in and sit down.”
Rylan strutted in and sat. Not a small man, Rylan acted big and tough but nonetheless gave Axel the impression that he was not as confident as he portrayed himself to be.
“Rylan, you are creative, and your attention to detail is spot-on. But you’re not good at following orders. If Kelly were here, things would be running smoothly. Unfortunately, he’s out until April. You want to have a job when he comes back?”
“Yeah.”
“Then get your head out of your ass and think. Follow orders. Watch and learn from Mateo and Smitty. Listen when Lou speaks. I’ve never met a finer artist. Not because he draws on command but because he listens to our clients and does what they want. Not what he thinks they should want.” A bad habit Rylan had, of doing what he wanted regardless of what he’d been told.
“So you’re saying you want sheep to work for you? Guys who obey, do what you say without question, go along with the herd?” It wasn’t the sarcasm that made Axel pause but the hint of unhappiness he could sense. Having lived with it for so long, he knew well when a man dealt with impossible burdens.
“What is wrong with you?”
Rylan blinked. “What?”
“You’re not being an ass on purpose. It’s there, ja, but you are having a problem with something. Someone.” He gauged Rylan for a response, seeing the flush that came from his candor.
“I’m sorry, okay?” Rylan blurted and stood. He began pacing. “I’m having…problems at home. I really need this job. I like it here. And I’m good at paintwork, which you’d know if you’d let me do some—” He broke off at the sight of Axel’s stern expression. “Sorry.” Rylan ran a hand through his shaggy hair. “I know I’m new. I know I fucked up a few times. But at my job before this one, they said I didn’t take enough initiative.”
“You mean they fired you because they found out about your record, and no matter how hard you worked, they wouldn’t keep you.”
Rylan paled, frozen to the spot. “You know?”
“I know about everyone who works for me.” Axel sighed. “You should have told me.”
“I want this job. I need it. My P.O. kept giving me static for not having anything, but it’s so hard to find work when you’ve been in the system. And the places that will take you pay for shit.”
Axel could imagine. “What were you in for?”
Rylan flushed. “You don’t know?”
“I’m asking you.”
If Rylan turned any more red, his head would go up in flames. “Assault. I was at a party, drinking. It got out of hand. I hurt a guy. He’s fine, but he pressed charges.”
“Assault is a misdemeanor.”
Rylan blinked. “Ah, yeah, but, well, there were extenuating circumstances.” Rylan paused and mumbled, “I didn’t know he was a cop.”
Axel studied him. “Anything else?” Something Smitty had mentioned stood out, but he waited to see if Rylan would say anything about it.
“Nothing.”
Axel didn’t blame Rylan for wanting to keep some secrets. But he knew how keeping them locked down could hurt.
“Fine. I’m not your parole officer. I’m not your friend, your coworker, or your therapist. I am your boss. I think you have real potential, but you need to stick to what we tell you. I like guys thinking outside the box. But not new guys. Kelly still does what he’s told. To the letter. And I barely tolerate him.” Axel liked the kid, thought the smartass a funny guy. And it never failed to amuse him that Kelly was still afraid to talk to him, mostly because Mateo talked like Axel was a bear to work with.
“So you’re not firing me?” The hope on Rylan’s face hurt to see.
Axel looked back down at his paperwork. “Not today. I don’t care about a fight that landed you in prison. That’s what you did. I care what you do. This is your last warning.” He glanced up. “And get a haircut.” He tossed a business card at Rylan. “Help out a fellow local and I’ll forget I talked to you today.”
“Oh, sure. Yeah. No problem.” Rylan beamed. “I’m pulling dents and detailing.” The crap work. “And I’m fine with that. Great.”
“Get out.”
“Oh, sure.” He paused. “Um, do you want some coffee or something to eat? I’m going out for a food run. Smitty’s orders.”
Axel had caved not only to a soda machine but also to a high-end coffeemaker for the guys as well. “What’s wrong with what we have in the break room?”
“Um, Smitty said he’s not human unless he has his morning Doppio, whatever that is. I guess he got up late today.”
“Tell him he’s a pussy for not drinking it straight up black and cold. Then grab me a vanilla latte and an egg sandwich.” When Axel reached for his wallet from his back pocket, Rylan stopped him.
“No, Heller. I got this. Consider it restitution for not working on Saturday with you and Smitty.”
Axel shrugged. “Fine. But don’t take all damn day.”
Rylan gave him a mock salute and left. A few minutes later, Smitty barged in.
“I’m busy,” Axel barked.
“Talked to Rylan, eh?”
Axel leaned back. “Ja. He’s good now. I hope.”
“Thanks. He’s got some problems, but I’m trying to help him. I think he could be a real asset around here. Besides, we’re getting really busy.”
“You help everyone.” At times too much. Smitty would give a guy the shirt off his back. Sometimes to his detriment. “Don’t let him step all over you.”
Smitty flushed. “Fuck you.”
“Ah, and you’re back. I worried with all the fancy coffee drinks and your fancy date on Saturday.”
“Again, fuck you.” Smitty flipped him off. “The date went nowhere, thanks for asking.”
“Sorry.”
Smitty shrugged. “His loss. So what about you and Rena?” Smitty looked him over and gave him a sly smile. “You haven’t been such a prick today. So she didn’t throw your ass to the curb, I take it.”
“I went on a date yesterday. Just a walk around the lake. It was good.” Remembering it made him feel warm inside.
“That’s one dopey smile, son.”
This time Axel gave Smitty the finger. “I have a haircut with her later today. But I’m wondering what to do with our next date. Something good. Not pathetic like walking again.” He’d felt unsure about Sunday, but Rena had liked talking to him. Except he’d had to share. He shuddered just thinking about it. “She wanted a lot of talking, Smitty. Is that something I’m going to have to do a lot?”
Smitty nodded. “Yep. Your girl is a talker. You know that.” He fingered his red locks. “She’s talented. My cousin loves sitting in her chair while she makes him look pretty, so he says.” He ignored Axel’s snort of amusement. “But from what he said, that woman can talk. And she has a way of getting things out of a guy.” Smitty shook his head. “Good luck.”
“Thanks.”
Smitty left, and Axel daydreamed about what the afternoon might bring. He hoped she didn’t consider this their second date. A haircut? Then again, he didn’t know what to do to romance her into a third date.
Who did he know to ask? Not Smitty. Smitty’s idea of romance included fine dining and mutual blowjobs. Mateo and Axel weren’t on a friendly kind of level. Lou might be a help. Axel’s paint specialist had a million female relatives and had snagged a woman he was head over heels for. Had the dickhead shown up for work today, as he’d been scheduled to, Axel could have asked him.
