Out of This World

“They’re coming,” she whispered, and whirled around to face me as the door opened.

“Axel’s going to take Serena and William on a hike today,” Marilee said as she emerged.

“A hike,” Rach repeated, in a tone that said hiking was pretty much the last thing on Earth she’d voluntarily do.

“We’ll join you,” I said.

“We…will?” Rach shot me a death look, which served to shrivel my erection nicely.

“Yes.”

“A hike.” She sighed. “Sounds…lovely.”

“Sorry.” Marilee gave an apologetic shake of her head. “This is a prebooked hike. Just Serena and William.”

Axel appeared in the hall. “Ready for the hikers.”

“I could book you for later perhaps,” Marilee said to us. “If there’s room in the schedule.”

“If there’s room?” I said. “The B &B isn’t even full. How could there not be room in the schedule?”

“Oh.” Not easily flustered, Marilee kept her composure and smiled. “It’s best to see the area in small groups. You know, individual attention and all.” With that, she hustled Serena and William out.

Axel stayed back a moment. “I’ll be right there,” he called to Marilee with an easy smile, which faded when she was gone. “Look,” he said to us-specifically, to me. “Yeah, okay, so I lied about you getting your answers. But trust me, you don’t want to know. You need to just relax and-”

“No,” Rach said with a shake of her head. “Not relaxing.”

Axel sighed. “Dudette.”

“You tell us what’s going on,” I said, “or I’ll get Marilee to talk.”

“You’ll get Marilee to talk?” Axel repeated slowly.

Even Rach looked as if she didn’t like the sound of that, and they both gave me a long, measuring look.

“She’s mine, you know,” Axel said.

“Okay, wait a minute.” Rach laughed a little harshly. “I must have just gone back in time to the dark ages. To before women’s rights. Getting women to talk, owning women…”

Axel flushed. “I meant, I want her to be mine.”

“What does this have to do with us getting our answers?” I asked. “Nothing.”

“You want her,” Axel said. “Marilee.”

“Kel wants Marilee?” Rach looking at me. “Really?”

“No.”

“Yes, he does,” Axel said.

“No, I don’t,” I said.

“Great, because she’s mine,” Axel repeated, not looking so slackerish at all at the moment.

“I’m telling you, I’m not interested.”

“What, she’s not hot enough for you?” Axel asked.

“No, she is, but-” But I zipped my mouth because Rachel was eyeballing me with that ball-shriveling expression.

“So, you do think she’s hot,” Axel said.

I sighed, caught between a rock and a hard place. Was it possible for a head to just blow right off its shoulders? Because it felt like maybe mine was going to.

“Look, all I want is information. Can we stick with the subject? Please?”

“Kel, that’s not very sensitive of you.” Rach touched Axel’s arm. “Have you told Marilee you’re crazy about her?”

“Not yet.” Axel looked miserable. “Working on it.”

“How?” Rachel asked.

I couldn’t see how this was relative, and opened my mouth to say so, but Rach glared at me.

Axel scratched his head. “Oh, you know. A bit of this and that. By telling her how to cook.”

“A woman doesn’t want to hear that she sucks at something,” Rachel said. “You have to compliment her. Show her you’re interested.”

“Hey, I’ve shown her lots of interest,” Axel claimed.

“Have you told her she’s pretty?”

“She already knows that she’s pretty.”

“Then tell her you like to be with her,” Rach suggested. “Tell her you want to date her. Then, you know…take it from there.”

“You mean…in physical ways?”

“Sure.”

Axel looked hopeful. “Yeah. Thanks, dudette. I owe ya.” With a quick grin, he leaned in and gave her one smacking kiss right on the lips.

Then he was gone.

Yeah, definitely, my brain matter was boiling. “The next time you play good Samaritan,” I said with remarkable calm, given I was so not, “maybe you can make a bargain for, oh, I don’t know… answers?”

“I did,” she said. “Now he’s going to try to romance her tonight.” Her eyes sharpened. “While we snoop.”

Okay, maybe she was sharper than I’d guessed. “Just promise me you’re never going to turn your powers against me.”

She smiled. “How about on you?”

My poor body went from at-rest to ready-to-party again in five point five seconds flat. “Stop.”

“Okay, but only because I have another plan.”

I was almost afraid to ask.

“Come on,” she said, and tugged me along to follow Axel into the kitchen, leaving me to wonder what exactly the plan was and if it involved her seducing me.

I’d like to say I hoped not, but in spite of myself, hell yes I hoped the plan included some seduction.

And a naked Rach.

Chapter 13

Still Kellan’s view…

When we entered the kitchen, Rach right behind me, Axel whipped around from where he’d been standing in front of the open fridge.

“I’m just checking the temperature-” he began, and when he saw it was just us, he sagged. “Whew. Close one. She hates it when I dip into the food in between meals.”

“Where are you taking Serena and William?” Rachel asked.

“Told ya. On a hike.”

“Where to?” I asked.

Axel scratched his head and shifted his big feet. “Oh, here and there.”

“Can you be more specific?”

“Winging it, to tell you the truth.”

Marilee poked her head in the kitchen doorway right behind us, took in the scene with one glance-including Axel in the refrigerator-and sighed. “You hated breakfast.”

“No,” Axel promised. “I just…”

“Truth. You hated it.”

Axel glanced at Rachel, then back at Marilee. “You look really beautiful today.”

She raised one brow and crossed her arms.

And he folded like a cheap suitcase. “Ah hell, Mari, don’t make me tell you how bad it sucked.”

In a rare unguarded gesture, Marilee’s mouth fell open. “Sucked? It was that bad that it…sucked?”