Axle's Secret

by Nia Arthurs

  Ember freezes too but she doesn’t look at me. Her gaze is on my shoes. Her expression is serious, sober, as if her future rides on this conversation. “Maribella.”

  “Maribella?” I’m at a complete loss now. “Why are you suddenly bringing her up?”

  “I saw the way you reacted when you met her at the gallery. Were you… in love with her? Is that why you can’t stand the sight of Seb anymore? Because he’s with her and you’re not?”

  “What?” I say again. Where did Ember hear such a ridiculous story? “No, you misunderstood. Maribella and I—” Before I can finish, the sky bursts open and unleashes a violet downpour. The rain batters my head. I’m instantly soaked.

  Ember shrieks and lifts a hand to cover her, though it’s not doing much good against the storm.

  I grab her arm. “Run!”

  We take off. My sneakers dash through puddles and the rivulets that form in the cracks of the sidewalk. While I sprint, I scan the surroundings for refuge. My gaze settles on the stoop of a café that’s closed for the day.

  I pull Ember in that direction, guiding her up the stairs and nudging her closer to the shutters, using my own body to shelter her from the wind and rain. She shivers beneath me, huddling closer to my chest for warmth. I don’t know how much help that will be. I’m wet to the bone.

  “Where did this rain come from?” she gasps, leaning past me to stare at the grey mist covering the street.

  I dry her cheeks with my thumb, in awe of the sparkling drops of water lingering on her lashes. The light from the café bathes her hair with a golden glow. Raindrops form a brilliant crown on her forehead.

  “Axle?” she prods.

  “Not sure.”

  Our gazes lock. Hold.

  The storm beyond us falls into the background as I breathe Ember in. My touch becomes less practical, more caressing. She shudders again. Not from the cold this time.

  I lean down.

  Ember pulls back, sliding as far away from me as she can. Which isn’t much since I’ve got her trapped against the shutter. She stares me right in the eyes. Presses a halting palm to my chest. “You didn’t answer my question.”

  “It’s not because of Maribella.”

  “You can tell me the truth.”

  “I am. Seb was the one who liked her. And I—well, I met this girl at the park. Ever since then, I couldn’t get her out of my head.”

  Her gaze softens. “Is that so?”

  “She had curly brown hair,” I slip my hand behind her neck, “and big brown eyes that had the world in them.” I lift her up to me, guiding her closer. Ember doesn’t put up a fight, allowing me to draw her near. “Have any idea where I can find her?”

  “I can be convinced to give you a tip.”

  I smile, using a hand to cup the other side of her jaw. Her skin is soft, supple beneath my thumbs. Her chest is on mine, so close I can feel her heart beating. Speeding. Racing. Or maybe that’s my heart. I can’t tell the difference.

  Her eyes flutter shut. Her chin rises expectantly, mouth slightly parted. Welcoming my invasion. But we have plenty of time and I’m not the type of man who likes to rush.

  My nose brushes against hers, running all the way to her forehead. I savor the scent of her skin. Like rain. Like damp earth. Like new beginnings. My excitement to hold her, to kiss her, clashes with my desire to savor her as much as I can.

  I press a kiss to her forehead. Just above her brow. The tip of her nose. Her cheek. What was meant to be tender spirals into something harder and more forceful as the war for control slips out of my favor.

  My restraint cracks.

  I swoop down and capture her lips, holding onto her face and nudging her chin up so I can go deeper, harder. Ember kisses me back, letting out a moan that is swallowed by the growl of thunder overhead.

  Her hands fall to my waist, gripping me there. Tethering me to her. Her taste on my tongue is sweet, like the ice cream we shared after the art exhibit. I don’t think I’ll ever get enough of it.

  A sudden bang breaks us apart, though not far enough that I let her go. Our breaths mingle. Her tiny gasps hit my cheek like little hammers. When Ember raises a hand to massage her head, I realize I may have thrust her back into the shutters in my eagerness to devour her.

  “I’m sorry.” I duck to gauge the level of pain in her expression. “Are you okay?”

  She lets out a sheepish chuckle. “I’m fine.”

  “I didn’t mean to be so rough.” I reach up and settle my fingers above hers. “Where does it hurt?”

  “Really. I’m fine.”

  Her tone gives me pause. I study her, noticing the way she avoids my eyes. Rather than angry, Ember seems embarrassed. I step back to give her some room. The rain hits my shoulders and the back of my neck, but I put up with the discomfort so she doesn’t have to.

  Ember clears her throat. “Maybe we should make a run for the car.”

  “We should wait till the rain lets up.” I put out a hand, gauging the sting of the water. “It’s still going hard.”

  “We’re wet already.” She shrugs.

  “Okay…” I start to agree but catch sight of something in the distance. “Wait here a minute. I’ll be right back.”

  “Axle!”

  I pretend not to hear her and stride to the convenience store I spotted. The attendant shoots up when I walk in, but I ignore him and search the aisle until I find the umbrellas. In three quick strides, I grab one and toss it on the counter.

  After paying, I open it up and return to the stoop. Ember’s expression changes from slightly annoyed to amused when she sees me.

  “What is this?” she asks.

  “Your ride.”

  Her smile grows. “It’s pink.”

  “It is?” I glance up and almost drop the umbrella when I realize that she’s right.

  “I love pink,” Ember says, walking toward me and settling beneath the umbrella.

  I love you.

  The words pop into my head and shock me. I clamp my lips together before I blurt them out loud and guide Ember back to my car. A serious confession will have to wait until later. Tonight, I’ll be satisfied with a kiss.

  12

  Ember

  “That’s so gross!” Aunt B squeals and hands me a clean tissue with the tip of her fingers. “You’ve got a little…” she points to my nose, “snot there.”

  “I’m aware.” I snatch the tissue from her.

  Aunt B sinks into the couch across from me and watches with a grimace as I blow my nose. She pulls her legs into the chair and wraps her arms around them. “You disgust me.”

  “How sweet. Just what a patient wants to hear.” I toss the used tissue in the plastic bag at my feet. It’s overflowing with paper.

  “Why did you run around in the rain last night? You know you catch the flu easily.”

  “We got caught in the storm. It wasn’t intentional.”

  She cringes when I sneeze and curls further up the sofa as if she’ll climb on top of it to get away from me. “Have you taken any medication?”

  “I took a flu pack.”

  “It’s supposed to make you drowsy. Why don’t you sleep in your bedroom instead of the couch?”

  I shoot her a knowing look. “You just want me out of the living room so I don’t sneeze all over your pillows.”

  “That’s exactly right.” She darts away and returns with a spray bottle. “I don’t want you contaminating my air. I go back to work next week and I refuse to get sick.”

  I unfold myself from the chair and limp toward her. “Watch out, Aunt B. I’m gonna blow!”

  “Ember!” She squeals. “Stay back!”

  I chase her, laughing evilly as she screams like a banshee and makes a break for the kitchen. Her long hair flies behind her and her feet thud against the floor. I give up halfway, clutching my stomach and roaring with laughter.

  Aunt B glares at me from the safety of the kitchen. She holds a frying pan in her arms, wielding it like a ba
t. “Don’t come any closer. I’m warning you!”

  “Fine.” I throw my arms up. “I surrender.”

  She approaches me cautiously. “You should have told Axle about how crappy your immune system is instead of suffering like this. When did you come in last night? I didn’t even hear you.”

  “I came home after the movie.”

  “What?” Her jaw drops.

  “I just… spent hours talking in the car downstairs.”

  Aunt B rolls her eyes. “You’re crazy. Didn’t you spend all evening with him? What did you have left to talk about?”

  “We watched a movie. We had to be quiet in the theatre.”

  “How did you get caught in the rain if you came straight home after the movie?” Aunt B demands.

  “What are you? The police? Is this an investigation?”

  She pauses. Drags her gaze over my entire body before settling on my face. It’s impossible not to squirm beneath her probing eyes. “You’re acting shady, Em. Just answer my question.”

  I sneeze, buying myself some time. Aunt B curls her lip in disgust but waits expectantly for my answer. I fold my hands together, playing with the ring on my finger. “Uh, we went for a walk.”

  “In the rain?”

  “Not exactly. When the storm hit, we found a nook for shelter.”

  Aunt B tilts her head, brown eyes narrowing. “That sounds innocent enough so why are you avoiding my eyes?”

  “I’m not,” I say, staring at her forehead.

  She steps closer. “Ember…”

  “Aunt B…”

  “What did you and Axle do last night?”

  I glance at the floor and say softly, “We might have kissed—”

  A blood-curling scream cuts me off. “Shut up! You didn’t!” I’m sure if snot weren’t dripping from my nose, Aunt B would rush over and hug me. Instead, she bounces on her toes and grins. “You kissed? In the rain? How was it? As romantic as the movies? Tell me everything.”

  “It was… perfect.”

  Her smile falters. “That’s it? That’s all I’m getting? Was it open? Closed? French?”

  “All of the above?”

  She paces the kitchen, her head shaking. “I can’t believe this. My little girl is growing up. Wait.” She freezes mid-stride and turns to me. “So, after a perfect kiss you guys came back here and talked?”

  “Yup.”

  “He didn’t try to go to second base or anything?”

  I wrinkle a brow. “What’s second base?”

  “Oh, you poor thing.” She rubs her temple. “I guess I should be glad. Axle’s only in town for a week, right?”

  “That’s what he told me.”

  “Good. Don’t go any further than kissing. It won’t work out anyway.”

  Her words prick me. “Did you have to ruin it?”

  “I’m not just your friend, I’m your aunt too. And I’m older than you.”

  “Only by four years,” I grumble.

  “Trust me on this. You’re stunning, Ember. A knockout. And you’re clearly into Axle. The only way a man like him won’t push for more physically is if he’s not invested in the relationship.”

  “You’re saying because we didn’t have full on sex—on the second date, by the way—that Axle’s not interested in me?”

  “I’m saying Axle’s not going to take things deeper even if he wanted to. I’m saying you should be careful not to put your heart into something that won’t work out.”

  I frown. “It’s not like I’m in love with him.”

  “But you’re on your way, aren’t you? You caught feelings ten years ago and it’s all starting to bloom now. Listen to me, Ember. Don’t let the past influence the present. Just because you always liked this guy doesn’t mean you belong together.”

  “It was just a kiss. He didn’t propose. Chill out.”

  “Just… be careful.” There’s no hint of mischief in her gaze now. “I don’t want you to get hurt.”

  “I’ll be fine.”

  “Good. Now get to bed. You need plenty of rest to get over this. I’ll go buy you some soup from the store.”

  “Thanks!” I call to her back.

  She raises a hand in acknowledgement and disappears through the door.

  I slog to my bedroom and drop into bed. I feel like a twenty-five-year-old trapped in the body of an old woman. Everything aches. But especially my heart. Axle’s departure was a thought I didn’t allow myself to linger on, but after that kiss I can’t hide from it.

  Aunt B knows me better than I know myself. If she can tell that I’m falling for him, it’s because I am. Which sucks. Axle has given no indication that he’s looking for a serious relationship.

  Sure, he said he liked me. But he was referring to the fifteen-year-old ‘me’. Not the ‘me’ today.

  What if he’s just scratching an itch, conquering ‘the one that got away’ as some sort of mark off his bucket list?

  My thoughts run circles and if it weren’t for the pills I took for my flu, I wouldn’t have been able to sleep. But somehow I drift off.

  When I wake up next, the room is dark. Someone is placing a wet cloth over my forehead. What time is it? The sun was still out when I fell asleep.

  As my eyes adjust to the dimness, I recognize Axle leaning over me. I scramble up and the wet rag plops to the side of the bed. He scoops it up, censure in his gaze and tone when he says, “Hey, slow down.”

  “Axle, what… what are you doing here?”

  He picks up the wet rag and props my pillow. “If you insist on sitting up, at least lean against that.”

  “Uh,” I stare at him as he reaches over to return the rag to my forehead, “how did you get in?”

  “Bee let me,” he says casually.

  “Bee?”

  My aunt only allows a chosen few to call her by the nickname and I didn’t expect Axle to be one of them given her insistence that we weren’t meant to be together.

  “I stopped by to ask you out to dinner and she said you were sick.” He folds the sleeve of his shirt, an incredibly sexy motion that would have stolen my breath if I wasn’t so floored already. “She ran out to tend to your mother so I told her I’d take care of you.”

  Concern winds through me. “Is my mom okay?”

  “She’s fine.” He leans closer, grey eyes piercing my face. “Are you hungry? I can warm up the soup.”

  I reach for a tissue. Axle grabs it quickly and hands it over. I’m not used to being pampered and I uneasily grab a paper to blow my nose. I try to be all lady-like, but the snot refuses to work with me. Embarrassed, I just nod.

  He smiles and pats my hand. “I’ll be right back.”

  The moment he’s gone, I rush off the bed and scramble to fix myself up. Sitting before the mirror, I run my Denman brush over my head and pull my hair back into a sleek bun. After checking for cold in the eye corners, I slip on some gloss and tumble back into bed before Axle returns.

  “Here you go,” he says, balancing a bowl of soup and a glass of orange juice on a tray. When he sets it down, I notice it also has another flu pack. “Bee told me to give this to you.”

  “Thanks.” I take the pills and wash it down with the juice.

  “The soup is still a little hot.” Axle blows on the spoon and then offers it to me. “Do you want me to feed you?”

  “I’m good. Thanks.”

  He transfers the spoon to me and frowns at my forehead. “Where’d the rag go?”

  “It’s somewhere around here. Do I still have a fever?” I raise a hand to my temple.

  “Let me check.” Axle wraps his palm over the top of my head. His touch is gentle, soft. My eyes flutter closed, recalling the kiss and his tenderness as he caressed me last night. He pulls back far too quickly. “I think it’s going down.”

  I focus on the soup, unnerved by the sight of him in my bedroom. He’s content to watch me eat and doesn’t say much. For a while, the sound of the spoon clanking against the bowl is all that can be heard. />
  When I’ve eaten all I could, Axle takes the tray back to the kitchen and returns to my side. He adjusts the blanket. “Try to get some sleep, okay?”

  “Why are you doing this?” I ask.

  He pulls back, head tilted. “Because I want to.”

  “But you’re not my… I mean, we’re not—” My words falter. I don’t want to force him to define the relationship. The last thing I need is to appear desperate.

  “We’re not what?”

  “You’re leaving next week,” I say, chickening out.

  “So?”

  So are we boyfriend-girlfriend? Just messing? Friends that kissed once? What? “I guess it doesn’t matter.”

  Axle chuckles.

  I frown at him. “What?”

  “You’re cute.”

  “Cute?” I’ve never been called ‘cute’ a day in my life. “Excuse me?”

  He leans over and presses a kiss to my forehead. I squeeze my eyes shut, absorbing the feel of his lips on my skin. Axle’s gentleness continuously undoes me. I’ve never met anyone who treats me so tenderly.

  He leans back, his gaze intent. “You mean a lot to me, Ember. I want to be there for you when you’re sick. I want to make you smile and I—”

  “Wait, are you…Is this a proposal?”

  He laughs. “Would you marry me if it was?”

  I duck to hide the truth in my eyes. If he asked me right this minute, I’d probably go with my gut and say ‘yes’.

  Axle squeezes my hand and then rises, making a path to the door. “Get some rest. Bee will kill me if she thinks I kept you up.”

  “Wait.”

  He turns, an inquiring look on his handsome face.

  “Stay with me.”

  Axle pauses in the doorway. Turns back. With a soft smile, he nods. “Okay.”

  That night, he stays by my side until I fall back to sleep.

  13

  Axle

  I slip into my house and lock the door quietly. The darkness swallows me whole. The sound of snoring from upstairs says both my parents are fast asleep. Or at least, Dad is.

  I tiptoe toward the empty living room. It’s late, but it wasn’t my plan to come home at all. Unfortunately, that decision was taken out of my hands when Bee chased me out of her place.