A Familiar Star (Romance Mystery)

by Waters, JesseAnne

  He was pissed off but was trying not to show it.

  “Wait.” It occurred to her that she’d forgotten something. “Thanks.” She smiled weakly then went upstairs.

  She flipped on the shower, slid out of her dress and tossed it towards the garbage can. There was no use keeping that.

  She heard the phone ring before stepping into the shower and wondered if it was Paul. He’d be freaking out by now. Hopefully he wouldn’t come over. She couldn’t face him. How could he be so insensitive? She would be better off if she never saw him again. Max was right; he only wanted to sleep with her…but then so did Max.

  Then suddenly a thought crossed her mind. An arresting thought that almost fired a shock wave through her overused, wrangled nerves. If it weren’t for the Hamilton’s, would she have stopped making love to Max, they’re first night here? She reflected back and something inside her knew. Max had been incredibly gentle, extremely passionate and he gave, he did not take. He’d wanted to please her first. She was so captivated by him that night that she knew, if it wasn’t for the Hamilton’s things would be completely different.

  She got out of the shower and pulled on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. She wanted to ask Max why he was in jail last night. It wasn’t right that they left things the way they did.

  When she got downstairs he wasn’t there, so she flopped on the couch. After a minute he came out of his room in fresh clothes.

  “Hi.” She said trying to muster up some energy.

  “Yeah, hi to you too,” he said, his mood had gotten worse, she thought, “long time no see.”

  “So you’re mad?”

  “Mad! Hell no! I told you, I couldn’t care less who you sleep with!”

  “Or you!”

  “What does that mean?” He looked puzzled.

  Kylie put her head down. “I saw you making out with Leslie at the party.”

  “You saw nothing!” He grabbed the box of cereal and when he found it empty he whipped it across the room at the trash can.

  “I know what I saw.” She snarled at him then ran up the stairs.

  She heard him screaming behind her but slammed the bedroom door. Abruptly he flung it opened. It cracked against the dresser and left a mark. Kylie sprang back and whacked her heel on the TV cabinet.

  “Shit!” She cried out, pain vibrated though her worn out foot. “What the hell are you doing?”

  Max didn’t know what he was doing. He was so mad he could ring her neck for making him crazy, but he wanted her to know one thing.

  “Let’s get something straight!” He choked out, his breathing rapid. “Leslie grabbed me on the dance floor!”

  “You must be kidding!” She spat loudly,

  “No I’m not!” He sat down on the bed and placed his head in his hands. “There’s something wrong with her.”

  Kylie couldn’t help but believe what he said to be true. She knew Max didn’t like her, and she also knew how persistent Leslie could be.

  “So you’re telling me you had nothing to do with that embrace?” She said sarcastically.

  Max shot her a look. “After that, I tried to tell her nicely without hurting her feelings that I just wasn’t interested, but she acted like she didn’t even hear me. I started dancing with other people, but she still didn’t get the hint, then I went looking for you.”

  “Hmm.” Kylie hummed, wanting to wrap her arms around him and tell him what had happened to her. “So after that?”

  “After you passed out, I argued with Paul to let me take you home.”

  She folded her hands together and looked down at them. “Why didn’t you take me home?” She sniffed.

  Max’s voice was harsh with anger. “Because big cop man had his friend read me my rights!” He got up. “Believe me I tried.”

  “Well you didn’t try hard enough, did you?” She was suddenly rattled and her voice cracked with emotion.

  Max stopped at the door and sneered. “So what, you didn’t enjoy it?”

  Kylie wanted to scream at him and tell him to get out, his words stung deep inside, but she probably deserved it.

  “I’m sorry,” he shook his head when he met her eyes.

  She looked away and changed the subject. “Why do you say there’s something wrong with Leslie? She’s just in love with you, that’s all.”

  “Oh yeah, come with me.”

  Kylie followed Max back downstairs and into his room. It was the first time she’d seen it since they’d moved in. She remembered the space being dark and lonely but now it was cozy, lived in and extremely neat. Max was not only well dressed but had style. There was a wall of books on one side, and a well-made waterbed on the other.

  “No TV?” She said innocently as she looked around.

  “Sit down.” He said seriously and she obeyed.

  Flicking on the answering machine on his dresser, he played the messages.

  “Max, hi, it’s Leslie, I just wanted to know if you had a good time tonight?”

  “Max, it’s Leslie, we had such a great time tonight, maybe we could get together tomorrow? Call me.”

  “Max, maybe if I came by, we could talk. Please pick up.”

  “Max, I really need to talk with you. I just know we were meant to be together. You have to listen to me!”

  The calls went on and on until Kylie got sick of listening to them.

  “Turn it off.” She said quietly, grunting in acknowledgment. “What are you going to do?”

  “I don’t know. She came by when I got back from the police station, but I hid.”

  Kylie laughed but stopped swiftly when she saw the venomous look on his face.

  “You’ve got to talk to her again, I’m sure she’ll listen to reason.” She stood up to leave then stopped at his book shelf and poked around.

  She picked up a book called ‘A Familiar Star’ and flipped through it.

  Max walked up beside her. “That’s a good book. It has nothing to do with stars though.” He grinned softly. “It’s about why things happen and that there’s always a reason for every event in your life. That everything is connected.”

  “Right,” she said, not paying attention to what he was saying but mesmerized by his eyes.

  “Do you want to borrow it?” He said softly, noticing how intensely she was staring at him.

  Kylie didn’t answer right away. She was further distracted by his scent and the sheer tension there was between them. This was the man she almost made love too…and had never wanted it to end. Why couldn’t she see that before?

  Max stared down at her. He just couldn’t figure her out. He wanted her since the minute he laid eyes on her, but what did she want? He felt like her fate was still undecided. What had happened with Paul anyway? He really wanted to know, but if he’d waited this long, he could wait it out. He knew that if this was to work; this time, she needed to come to him.

  “You felt uncomfortable kissing Paul on the dance floor last night, didn’t you?” He said breaking the spell.

  Kylie was caught off guard by his statement, and her face turned red. “I…I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “Sure you do.” He walked past her, triumphantly.

  Chapter 10

  Kylie took the book and went into her study. It was still filled with boxes, some were hers and some belonged to Max. Max had claimed a small section in a dark corner as his space. He’d left her the big bright windows, and had placed all of her boxes neatly in a row. He’d also set up her easel, her drawers and a small sofa just to her liking.

  She picked through a few things then set them in the drawers and on her desk. Picking up a sketchbook, she sat down on the small sofa and started doodling but the doodle turned into eyes. Max’s eyes. Then the straight bridge of his nose and those sultry lips. She had him down pat. It was as if he’d been sitting right there in front of her.

  She sketched some more; the way his hair fell, his strong jaw line, his eyes needed to be deeper still. She could almost smell his scen
t of musk, almost feel his mouth on her breasts, his hands on her hips. The poetry of their lovemaking, like a boat that didn’t need a sail, it knew exactly where to go.

  She sank back in the sofa and closed her eyes. She was so tired she couldn’t figure out the difference between right and wrong anymore. She waited a couple of minutes for some reasoning but couldn’t find it.

  The concentration she was putting into her drawing made her eyes blurry. She felt her hand jerk and realized that she’d dozed off for a few minutes. Deciding that it was time to sleep, she positioned herself into cushion only she felt antsy again and couldn’t get comfortable.

  Back upstairs she checked her cell for messages but it was empty. She needed sleep desperately but that was beginning to seem like an abstract idea. She called Lucy and got no answer. Of course, it was Sunday and her sister the socialite was probably getting ready for church; she said it was good for business.

  Kylie lay back on the bed and tried to relax. Certainly she could sleep if she really tried. She tossed and turned until the sheet wrapped around her leg and she gave up, it was as if her nerves were nylons put in the dryer by mistake. She had to get rid of the knot of bad energy. Maybe food would help. A big glass of milk at least. Something to coat her stomach. Then maybe a swim.

  She put on her bathing suit then headed downstairs, when the sound of an engine and the crushing of gravel under its wheels, made her look outside. Max was going somewhere. She opened the door and walked barefoot onto the driveway.

  “Should I lock up or are you coming back,” she yelled to the car at the bottom of the drive.

  The car stopped abruptly and the door opened. “Are you ok?” He asked.

  “Yeah, I’m fine. I just wanted to know if you were coming back.”

  “Why?” He smiled questioningly.

  Kylie sighed. “Because I wanted to know if I should lock up?”

  “I did lock up.” He told her, grinning deeply.

  Kylie let out another long sigh and went back into the house to get her milk.

  “He’s impossible,” she thought as she got a glass from the cupboard.

  Max opened the door a second later and tried his hardest not to admire her figure. “I did lock up but I won’t be back for a couple of days so you’re on your own. You should go stay with your sister. I left you a note right there.” He pointed to the counter.

  Kylie turned to look at him without looking at the note, disappointment swept across her face. “Where are you going?”

  “Camping.”

  “Camping? Where?”

  “North Point. It’s about an hour from here. I just need to get away for a while.”

  “Oh.” Kylie shrugged then went into the living room and flopped down on the sofa, turning away from him. She felt so vulnerable it made her sick. Nevertheless, she couldn’t come undone in front of him, she just couldn’t.

  He dropped down beside her. “Are you o.k.?” He asked her, a little concerned this time.

  “I’m fine. You go, have a nice time.” She said, her voice slightly quivering.

  Max was about to get up and walk out the door when he hesitated. He didn’t want to push, but she looked so lost. Something happened last night that had changed her in some way. It wasn’t just bad food and too much alcohol as Paul said. There was something else. She looked like a lost puppy. He waited a moment just to make sure he wasn’t imagining it.

  “Do you want to come with me Kylie?”

  She kept her expression serene but the look in her eyes told him otherwise.

  “No, I wouldn’t want to ruin your trip.”

  “Are you kidding, I would love you to come. You know that. It’s not you I need to get away from. But there is one thing though,” he grinned, “you can’t bring Paul.”

  She laughed out loud then jumped off the couch. “I wouldn’t want to.”

  “Good.” He smiled softly. Everything his heart wanted to hear was in that one sentence.

  “Are you sure you don’t mind?”

  “Not one bit, but you’ll need a few things.”

  They headed north on route 19. It was a beautiful day to be out on the road. The sky was a clear, blue ocean with fluffy, white caps. Kylie felt like she was imagining the whole thing. If someone would have told her she was going to feel this way an hour ago, she would have called them crazy. How things could turn on a dime had always astonished her.

  Relief was settling into her bones and she felt her spirit seeping back into her body. Max was singing along to April Wine on the radio and made her join in.

  “You look so happy.” He noticed her mood did a 360 since they left the house.

  “I am. Thanks.” She touched his arm innocently.

  “Anytime,” he said, absorbing the contact.

  “It’s good to get away sometimes, isn’t it?”

  “It sure is,” she exhaled.

  She’d left Lucy a message to tell her that she was okay but didn’t let her know where she was going, so she wouldn’t have to lie to her. Explaining what happened was going to take some time. For now, it simply felt good to put some distance between her and Forest Lake. Besides, she wouldn’t have to deal with Paul. She was surprised he even got involved with her in the first place, considering she lived around the lake. Paul…she looked out the window. Surely he’d never want to see her again but that was just fine.

  The mountains in North Point were higher and more distinctive than Forest Hills. The temperature was also a bit cooler. They got out of the car and registered at the sites office. This was real wilderness camping. On some sites you had to take a canoe across the lake, others were simply a good hike, either way the campers were obligated to stay 200 feet away from each other, which was great Kylie thought, no one would get in any ones way and noise would be kept to a minimum.

  A guide took them up to the spot they chose on the map, and by the time they got there Kylie felt her last bit of energy drain away. She dropped her pack on the grass and sat on top of it.

  “Why don’t you rest here or go take a dip in the stream and I’ll get things set up.”

  “That’s a good idea, thanks.” Kylie smiled.

  The site they chose was spectacular; Kylie thought as she stripped down to her bathing suit and sat down by the stream. The stream trickled into a shallow pool then cut across a small open meadow and disappeared into a deep wooded forest with the Grey Stone mountains as a backdrop. It was extremely picturesque no matter which way you chose to look.

  Kylie tested the water with her toes then shook them off. It was definitely cooler than the lake but the crystal clear pool was too inviting to pass up. She waded in slowly trying to be brave about it until the water was at her waist, then she leaned forward and sliced into it leaving a neat ripple behind her.

  “Hey, you brought a bathing suit!” Max called to her as he set up the tent.

  She laughed then dove back under like a seal having a good time. The water seemed to heal her aching body and restore her clarity of thinking. She swam to the rocks and laid her head back, letting the trickle from the stream wash through her hair.

  “Are you coming in?” Kylie called out.

  “Can’t, a man’s work is never done on a camping trip.”

  Kylie got out and grabbed a towel. “Do you need help?”

  “No, it’s okay, go relax.” He said touching her icy arm gently.

  “Alright, I offered.”

  Kylie found a bush nearby and changed into shorts and a t-shirt then she spread a blanket out on the grass and lay back and closed her eyes. It was so wonderful to rest in the sun and feel its warmth penetrating deep inside her.

  She watched Max gathering wood, and for the first time she allowed herself to feel the tremendous emotions he caused her to have. His body glistened with perspiration and his muscles flexed with every movement. He was truly beautiful; his incredible green eyes, his mischievous smile and his perfect hands, perfectly gorgeous hands. In addition, he was confidant and devilishly
charming, a frightening combination.

  He had such a disturbing effect on her she shivered to think of the possibilities, if she let herself go. Paul, on the other hand, had been safe because she believed she was in control of the situation, but maybe it was time to stop fighting for control.

  Max walked over and leaned down. “Look at you,” he said warmly

  “What?”

  “You’re so beautiful lying in the sun.”

  Kylie smiled then stretched openly. The sun was making her drowsy and she could hardly keep her eyes opened. “I’m going for a swim,” was the last thing she heard before she fell into peaceful bliss.

  Sizzling and crackling sounds woke Kylie from her sleep. She looked around and saw Max cooking something on the fire.

  “Hey sleepy-head, how do you feel? I thought I lost you there for a while.”

  “I feel refreshed, thanks,” Kylie looked down at her legs, “and a bit burnt I’m afraid.” She poked at her skin, watching it turn from white to pink.

  “It’ll keep you warm tonight,” he smiled.

  She got up and walked around, the quite setting enhancing her mood.

  Max watched her move, slowly, inch by inch, she turned in appreciation. He could see it on her face. The sun was setting, leaving behind a blazing red sky. It was absolutely beautiful, yet for him, her physical beauty drew him with the same seductive power.

  “It got cool,” she said, pulling a hoody over her head.

  “We’re at a higher altitude then Forest Hills. The mountain elevations are almost twice as high.”

  “They’re gorgeous.” She breathed deeply, feeling deliriously free.

  Beside the stream, was Max’s telescope all set up.

  “Are you going to do some star gazing tonight?”

  “That’s right. Are you going to join me?” Max looked up at Kylie who was staring at him.

  “Would love too,” she stared for a moment longer than necessary then bit her bottom lip and blushed. He made her feel like a schoolgirl, who’d never been alone with a boy before. Only this was no boy.