A Familiar Star (Romance Mystery) (10 page)

Suddenly
, as if from out of nowhere Kylie felt a hand touch her on the arm, and she nearly tripped over the rake as she whirled around.

"Hello."
Said the, oh too familiar woman standing before her. “I'm Leslie McKenzie.”

Kylie could hardly speak.
She quickly glanced around for Max, but he wasn't around, so she turned to face her strange visitor and squeaked out something that sounded like a "Hi".

The woman took a step back.
"I'm sorry if I startled you. I meant to say hello this morning at the restaurant, but I wasn't sure if I had the right people."

Kylie started to put two and two together but still wasn't buying it.
"Yes we saw you too. Do you live around the lake?"

"Yes, just a few houses to the left of yours
."

The pretty but too heavily made up blond standing before her
, explained that she had seen them move in and was wishing that they could be friends. But Kylie didn’t buy it. Wasn't she staring at Max in the restaurant or maybe she was wrong. Nothing seemed to be clear to her anymore.

Max finally walked down from the house with an equal
ly suspicious look on his face.  "And who do we have here? Our mysterious Madame X!" He exclaimed.

Kylie felt like running but bit her bottom lip instead.
  "This is Leslie ...McKenzie did you say?" She turned to the woman.

"That’s right."
Leslie smiled then shook Max's hand.

Kylie felt a vibe run through her, it felt like jealousy but it couldn't be.

Max was smiling at the woman and had started a conversation; however, Kylie couldn't follow it. She was too busy observing the subtle seduction this woman was performing on him. God she was good! And Max was sucking it all up!

She snapped back when she heard Max invite her to stay for dinner.
"You’re staying for dinner?" was more of an accusation then a question.

"
Yes, I would love too!" Leslie smiled innocently at Kylie.

"That's great."
Kylie heard herself say but was focusing on Max who had a mischievous grin on his face again.  Now what was he up too?  She fought the urge to pull him aside and ask him.  She didn’t know him well enough to presume that he was up to something.  She supposed that she’d have to wait it out and see.

Deliberately, she trailed behind them.  Watching, as Leslie delighted in every word that came out of Max’
s mouth.  When he turned around to include Kylie in the conversation, she’d nod her head absently.  She simply couldn’t focus with the cloud of blond hair panting like a dog in front of her.

Max considered the situation carefully.  It was true that s
ometimes it was easier to go with the flow, in fact he usually did, but it was evident that Kylie did anything but. The incredulous look on her face that was inching its way to anger, made him wonder why she hadn’t continue her raking instead of putting herself in a situation she didn’t enjoy; politeness probably.

Still, there was that tell all look on her face, which indicated that she wasn’t happy.
Was it possible that she was a little put off by Leslie because she was jealous? He wasn't sure but it wouldn't hurt to find out.

Max led them back up to the house
, then he and Kylie showed Leslie around.

Kylie
was even more uncomfortable at the dinner table. Her sky blue eyes turned dark teal in the fading light as she examined the situation.

It seemed like
there was a devil in the air tonight, and she for one was not happy about it.  She focused first on Leslie, studying the way her eyes bulged out of their sockets when she feigned surprise or delight.  She was definitely not the most attractive creature on the planet. Then Kylie turned her attention to Max, who seemed all to content to suck up the bizarre energy from this overgrown Chihuahua.  For a moment, she thought of excusing herself but it was much too entertaining, she decided.

Max on the other hand knew that the devil i
n the air was undeniably him. He didn’t need to do much to provoke Leslie; actually he didn’t need to do anything at all. She would take him straight to bed this instant if he wanted. He knew that. He also knew that if Kylie truly didn’t care about him, she wouldn’t be wiggling in her seat like a fish out of water. Every time Leslie touched his arm or his hand, Kylie looked the other way.

“So you’re not married
, isn’t that funny, I thought you were.” Leslie smiled like a Cheshire cat.

Kylie
flipped the napkin off her lap and was about to get up from her chair when Max decided he’d end the games.

“No.  A
t least not yet.” He said as nonchalantly as possible.

Kylie sat back down and stared at him
in disbelief

“But you told me you two just met.”
Leslie said through clenched teeth.

“Yes, that’s right,”
Max let it go and changed the subject. “So tell us what you know about the murders around the lake?”

“Oh, the murders,” Leslie was disappointed.
“Well, they’ve affected me directly you see,” she hesitated, looking them over closely.  “My husband was murdered recently and my mother was murdered many, many years ago,” she said quickly.

Kylie thought that if her hair were cut short
, it would be standing straight up in the air right now. Could this woman have said it any more bluntly than that? She looked over at Max who appeared to be unaffected.

“I’m sure it must have been horrible, I’m very sorry,” Max said sincerely.

“Well, it was,” Leslie sighed, “I’m just glad it’s over. The months that followed were exhausting.” She got up and walked over to the window and peered out at the lake.  “You know, reporters, police, all asking hundreds of questions.”

“But it’s not over,” Kylie stood up
and started clearing the table; stacking the plates and cutlery into a pile.

“Well it’s over for me.”
Leslie shot her a look.

“I’m sorry,” Kylie told her
.  “It’s just that there are still people in danger until they catch this guy.  I think we should all try and help, but I understand your trepidation.”

“I did all I could Kylie; it’s
in the hands of the police now.” Leslie grabbed her purse. “I really should be off; I have a million things to do in the morning.”

They walked her to the door and said their goodbyes. 
Kylie stood in the doorway watching Leslie’s fancy Mercedes crawl across the gravel then she closed the door and leaned against its heavy wooden frame.

Max
stared at her, sunned at her obvious transformation.  He was sure that this was the first time Kylie had smiled all evening.

After t
he dishes were cleaned, Max turned down the lights and carried their wine glasses into the living room.  The sun had gone down and the night was settling in. Kylie followed his lead and sunk down into the sofa.

Maybe she
was
getting used to him, he thought.  Having her sit this close to him was a small triumph.  It wasn’t as if they’re bodies were touching, but the distance between them, was that of people who had an intense fondness for each other.  He watched as she crossed her legs slowly then smoothed out the tiny pleats in her skirt.  Her long fingers moved gracefully across the supple material.  She was so lovely; it made something tighten in his chest.

They hadn’t really talked about what happened since Leslie left.
  Max was curious to see what she thought.  He already believed he knew what her answer would be, but he asked her anyway.  “So what do you think of Leslie?”

“I don’t know.
She scares me.” Kylie admitted.

“Why?”
Max was caught off guard; somewhat surprised by her answer.

“There’s something very insincere about her.”
She muttered.

“Do you think she’s hiding something?”

“I…I’m not sure.”

“I
t’s probably the fact that she has a relationship to the victims that’s giving you the creeps.”

“Well
, she told us about it with very little compassion, don’t you think?”

“I
t’s probably hard for her to talk about it,” he assured her.

“I suppose
.” She smiled halfheartedly but didn’t buy it.

Max grinned
, grabbed the remote and then put his arm around the back of the chair.

“Anyway,
you don’t have to worry your pretty little head about it. It has nothing to do with you.” He squeezed her shoulder gently then flicked on the TV.

It was true
; it didn’t have anything to do with her.  But something was nagging at the back of her mind.  Then as soon as she made the connection, she felt really stupid for not thinking of it sooner.  Leslie had said that she lived right next door to Jeffery Williams. Did she know him? She would have to, if they were neighbors. Or maybe when people called him a recluse it meant he never came out, ever.  Still, he’d have to get food from somewhere. But then he must have servants for that.

“Let it go Kylie,” Ma
x said softly.

Kylie relaxed back into the sofa.
She didn’t like it when Max read her mind and she gave him a look, a kind of playful warning.

At least Leslie was gone
, and who knew if they’d ever see her again; hopefully not. Max was himself again and it was nice to feel his warmth only a few inches away from her. Her emotions began to war against each other as if she were two completely different people. One part of her told her to pull away, but it was the best she had felt all day, so she let her head lean back against his arm and sipped her wine. After all, his arm wasn’t completely around her, just over the back of the sofa, and if she moved, it would cause tension, and then they would just start arguing, she told herself.

So they watched the movie this way, together, neither one moving a muscle.

Early the next morning,
Max snuck into Kylie’s room and shook her awake.

“Hey gorgeous, wake up.”

Kylie jumped up, half trying to make her way out of the covers. “What’s wrong?”

The alarm in her voice made Max laugh.
“Nothing is wrong; I just wanted to talk to you.”

She flopped back into the bed leaving him unable to speak.
He crouched down and brushed the silky hair off her shoulder and then took in her sensual form which was hardly covered by the little nighty and thin sheet.

“What time is
it?”  She pulled at the covers and turned her back to him.

“It’s 6:30.”
He whispered as if not to wake her any further.

“What!”
She pulled herself up and looked at him questioningly.

“I have to go to work.
I have a couple of meetings today, but I wanted to tell you something first.”

“Ok
ay,” she looked at him through sleepy eyes.

“I called my friend R
ob this morning to see if he wanted a lift to work. We got to talking, and I mentioned Leslie. He said his wife knew her very well.”

Opening her eyes wide, Kylie
blinked against the misty light.

“He said
, Leslie hated her husband and that they were going through a bitter divorce when he got murdered. Rob’s wife hasn’t spoken to her since. He said she kind of had the spooks after that.”

“What do you mean
the spooks, does his wife think that she did it?” Kylie was sitting up straight now.

“No, I don’t think so.”
Max slipped down on the bed carelessly, and propped himself on an elbow. “I didn’t ask. Rob did mention that Leslie knew the last victim. But rumor is, she told the police that she didn’t.”

Kylie turned around
to face him. “Maybe it was a cover up.” She raised her brows and slid down on one elbow.

Max stared at her then traced a line down h
er cheek to her shoulder with the back of his hand.

Kylie looked into his
eyes, now nearly black with the lack of light. “You’d better go to work.” She whispered.

“Y
eah, I’d better.” He lingered, then laughed and sat up. “Now don’t you go getting yourself into any kind of trouble. I’ll see you later.”

She could see his white te
eth as he smiled, then he left.

Kylie snuggled into the
soft feather pillow. That was close, she thought. She tried to concentrate on what he had told her. There was something about that woman she didn’t like. Besides her obvious, trashy display of affection, for a man she just met was simply too much …… she laughed out load. Who was she kidding! The woman simply touched his arm a few times, she had practically made love to him the first time she met him. God, this was crazy. Why did she care about any of this? She should pack up her things, leave the house to Max and move to another place. The world was full of beautiful houses and normal people.

She stretched back against the bed making it squeak.
Wide-awake now, her thoughts began to stray. His hand was so soft, and his touch so tender. Could he actually be more than a handsome rogue? She thought not. Anyhow, she didn’t want to know. She’d go to Lucy’s tonight to cool things down. He was just a roommate now; no matter how hard he tried to persuade her otherwise. It wasn’t going to work. Their relationship was simply too sexual and people had to be friends first. How else would a relationship last?

She suddenly wis
hed that she could talk to Paul.

There were pancakes and bacon cooking on the stove when Kylie woke up late Saturday morning.
She’d come back early from Lucy’s and tried to get some extra sleep.

“Hey there
sleepyhead, I was going to crawl in with you and tickle you awake this morning.” Max teased, as he flipped the pancake in the frying pan.

“You wouldn’t dare.”
Kylie smiled and sniffed at the same time, “but I do want your pancakes.”

He laughed then tapped
her behind with the spatula.

“Max!”
She shouted, grabbing a plate from the cupboard and placing it on the counter.

“It’s just that I missed you last night.
Instead of having you here when I got home, I had Leslie sitting on the porch waiting for me.

“Leslie was here?”
Kylie made a disgusted face. “She likes you.”

He glanced over at her and grinned.
  “Are you jealous?”  His brows fluttered up and down. “You don’t have to be because I sent her home.”

“Nooo, I’m not jealous.
For the millionth time, I told you, you and I are just friends,” she emphasized the word friends.

Max took the pan off the stove and grabbed her by the wrists
. He brought her over to the sofa and sat her down. The look in his eyes, made Kylie giggle.

“Let’s see,” he bent down and stared into her eyes.
“You are jealous, I can tell.”  He teased.

“I’m not!
”  She laughed seductively.

“Did you sleep with that guy?”
He said playfully and began to tickle her.

“None of your business!”
She wiggled to get up.

He half sat on her lap then
tickled her some more. This time Kylie squealed and laughed at the same time. She couldn’t stand being tickled and Max was good at it.

“Get off!” She howled and snorted.

Her robe was coming undone but she was too busy grabbing at his hands to do it up.  That’s when she noticed the obvious bulge in his shorts and screeched even louder.

“You are such a pig
Max!”  She cried.

Max started
laughing with her, and Kylie was snorting so hard she couldn’t breathe.  She was slipping down the sofa’s leather surface with Max on top of her.  Every time she tried to get a grip on her robe, he would take advantage and tickle her some more.

Without warning,
there was a knock at the patio door. Max stretched his neck and saw Leslie standing there holding something.

“Get down!”
  He whispered.

The two slumped down on
to the floor and giggled hysterically.  Max tried to tickle her some more. She slapped his hand back then began play fighting with him.

“Well
, aren’t you two having fun!”  The sarcastic voice broke the tangle from behind the sofa.

Max let Kylie go.  S
he got to her feet in a flash, wrapping her robe tightly around her.

“Good morning Leslie.”
Irritation tinged his voice as he got up off the floor. He brushed a hand through his hair then followed Leslie’s gaze.

Leslie’s eyes were no dou
bt on the object of her desire.  Kylie watched Leslie glanced up at him then down at his shorts then back up again.  Kylie’s playful mood vanished and annoyance took its place.

“I thought you two were just friends?”
Leslie said slowly.

“We are.”
Kylie answered, shifting into high gear and racing back into the kitchen in a frenzy.

Leslie pulled a small, thin cardboard box out of a bag and handed it
over to Max. “Well then you shouldn’t be wasting your energy on someone who doesn’t want you.” She addressed him.

“What’s this?”
He said, his patience running out.

“
I went to the bakery this morning and picked up a strudel on my way back from town. I thought you’d like it.”  She peered into the kitchen.  “I would have brought one for Kylie, but you said that she’d gone to her sisters.”

Max looked
over at Kylie who was making faces from around the counter.

“Thanks, that’s very nice of you.”
Max moved into the kitchen, placed the box on the counter and put the pan back on the stove.

“Have you had breakfast?”
Kylie asked Leslie out of politeness.

“Yes, I had breakfast in town this morning
; with my friend, Paul McFarland.”

The words hit Kylie like a bird in the face.

Leslie saw her expression, before adding.  “I’ve known Paul for many years. He helped me get through my husband’s murder. He’s a wonderful person, always ready to help. Come to think of it, he mentioned that he met you recently. Maybe you’ll see him at the Hamilton’s party this evening.

Kylie
’s eyes widened, her feet frozen to the spot.

Max turned to look at her and laughed.
“Oh great,” he said sarcastically.

Kylie ignored him.
“What did he say about me?”

“Oh
, just that he met you through Frank, that’s all.”

Kylie
felt uneasy.  The connection between Paul and Leslie concerned her.

“Is something wrong?”
Leslie probed.

“Yes
, there’s something wrong.”  Max interrupted. “She thinks he’s superman. A real hero.” He mocked.

Kylie shot him a look.
She didn’t want Leslie knowing her business. She simply didn’t trust her.

“Oh,
come to think of it, I think you and Paul would make a lovely couple.” Leslie smiled her sweetest smile.

Of course you would, Kylie thought.
You would fix me up with the devil to get me out of the way. Kylie turned back to the pan of bacon that was sizzling furiously and went into deep thought. She could hear voices behind her but they were only background noise.

“So are
going to the party tonight…Kylie?” Leslie laid her hand on Kylie’s shoulder snapping her out of her daze.

“Ah, yes
, I guess so.”

“Good, it will be great fun, I promise.
The Hamilton’s always give the best party on the lake. Lots of food, drinks, live entertainment. Oh! And there’s even a magician!”

Max snickered
, “I wonder if he could make someone disappear?”

“It depends on who you have in mind?”
Leslie countered.

Kylie rolled her eyes.
Enough is enough.  “In all honesty Max, I don’t know why you have to be so macho.”

He studied her slender figure then slowly made contact with her eyes.
The look he had was no longer humorous. “Let me tell you something Kylie. I’ve had to fight for things my whole life. I’m not going to let some smart ass cop come along and screw things up for me now.” He slammed the pancake down on the plate.

Kylie was thoroughl
y mystified. Why would he feel that Paul was screwing anything up for him? It was impossible that he wanted her that badly. He could have any woman he desired.

She looked over at Leslie who had a victorious look on her face.

“Besides, I’ve told you, he’s not right for you…he has skinny chicken legs.” He tried to lighten the mood.

“You’
ve never seen his legs.”  She shifted out of the way and got her breakfast.

“
Ah,   but I can tell.  It’s the way he walks. Very chicken like.” He was smiling at her again.

Leslie watched the two
exchange friendly glances yet again.  “Well I guess I’ll be leaving.”  Her voice was quiet and even. “I’ll see
you
at the party tonight,” she said to Max.

When Leslie
was out of sight, Kylie spoke. “She really likes you, you know. I wish you wouldn’t drive her crazy, just tell her you don’t want to be with her, but stop teasing her with me.”

Max sat down at the table then leaned in very close.
It was as close as she wanted him to get. His tanned muscular body was making her feel woozy, and she was afraid he was going to try and touch her again.

“If she bothers you I’ll take care of it.
Don’t worry.” He said simply.

“It’s not that she bothers me!
I actually wish you would go out with her.” She felt weird saying it.

Max raised his eyebrows in disbelief.
“I told you she’s not my type. She’s always tired looking. I mean she’s not bad looking, if you like blonds with big frames.”

“You mean breasts.”
Kylie corrected flatly.

Max chuckled
. “Anyway I’ll say it again; I’m just not interested in her.”  He sat back in his seat and munched on some bacon, then stopped short when he realized it was burned to a crisp.

“Oh, Sorry,”
Kylie laughed.

Kylie spent part of the afternoon soaking up the sun and the remainder of the day getting herself ready for the party.
It was one third pampering and two thirds mental rehearsal.  She was sure she’d gone through every possible scenario that could happen tonight.