“So to clarify,” Jess sat up straighter, lifted her hand and raised her fingers one by one as she counted things off. “There was food, alcohol, nudity, and groping. That doesn’t just sound like a date, it sounds like a damn good date.”
Brynn shook her head. “No, it wasn’t like that.”
Ali and Jess exchanged knowing looks. Ones that made Brynn feel like her friends were quickly jumping to their own conclusions.
“So who is this guy? What is he doing here in Whisper Lake?” Ali questioned.
“Work.” That was the answer he’d given Max.
“What work?” Ali followed up.
“I don’t know.” Brynn wasn’t used to this kind of scrutiny since her love life had been non-existent for a long time. She was starting to regret bringing him up and hoped the subject could be dropped.
Jess didn’t drop it. “Okay, well how long is he going to be here?”
Brynn felt more than a little silly that she hadn’t asked any of these questions during their two-hour pizza dinner. And even sillier that she’d Googled him this morning and she still didn’t know. “I’m not sure. My mom said that he paid up-front for three months.”
“Three months?” Jess’s eyes narrowed as she rubbed her hands together and wagged her brows. “I love a good mystery. Okay, maybe he lost his wife in a tragic fire and he’s here to forget about her. Or maybe he’s on the run from the law.”
“Whoa, Nancy Drew.” Ali teased putting up her hands.
“He’s not a grieving widower.” Just an emotionally unavailable divorcé, Brynn thought. “And I don’t think he’s an outlaw.”
“Really?” Jess looked at her friends as if they were naive in their assumptions. “What are the facts we know about tall, dark, and gorgeous?”
“I never said he was gorgeous.” Brynn defended, adding, “Or tall.”
“Maybe not with your mouth, but the pink flush that sprung up on your cheeks when you talked about him tells a different story.” Jess winked.
“I was just embarrassed because I was telling you guys that he saw me naked.”
“So he’s not hot?” Jess asked, her tone implying she already knew the answer.
“He’s good-looking,” Brynn unenthusiastically admitted.
She wasn’t sure why she was so defensive about finding Axel attractive. It was just something that she hadn’t experienced for so long and she wasn’t sure how she felt about it.
“Right, so, tall, dark, and hot shows up on your doorstep after paying up-front for three months. When you asked him what brought him to town, he said work.”
“Max asked him,” Brynn corrected.
Both of her friends looked at each other like they were missing huge chunks of the story.
“Wait! When did Max meet him?” Jess might as well have asked, When did Satan meet him?
“This morning. Axel was out front when Max dropped Ryder off.”
“His name’s Axel?” Ali asked eagerly.
“Axel Vaughn.”
“Sounds like a rock star,” Jess observed.
“He’s named after Axl Rose,” Brynn revealed.
“Okay, we’ll get back to that.” Jess lifted her pointer finger. “One thing at a time. He’s here for work. It’s not like Whisper Lake is a thriving metropolis with unlimited employment opportunities. Especially this time of year.”
Her friend made a good point. Whisper Lake was a small, sleepy tourist town known for its festivals, haunted castle and a short-lived reality show. There were two busy seasons, winter and summer and one week in spring. This was fall. So it’s not like he’s here because he’s a ski instructor or boating expert or something.