Beyond the Ordinary

Chapter 58

KATE 

"Katie, you can go on your break now if you want, I got this," Axel insisted with a soft smile.

I smiled back before taking off my work apron and draping it onto the counter. I walked through the double doors and into the back, grabbing my lunch box and my phone before heading to the back room where Axel usually takes his breaks.

Reluctantly, I dialed my mother's number, letting out a soft sigh as I waited for her to answer. After the third ring, she did.

"Kate?"

I froze at the sound of her voice, so familiar but so different at the same time.

"Hey," I responded, my own voice sounding like it belonged to someone else.

"How are you?" She asked.

I could hear rustling around her and a door shut. She sighed, still expecting an answer.

"I'm good," I managed to say, "But I only have eleven more minutes since I'm on my break."

"Oh, you got a job?" She asked, sounding surprised.

"Yeah, at a Starbucks," I replied.

"Oh wow! You love Starbucks!" She exclaimed, sounding genuinely happy for me.

I felt a smile crawl onto my face. "Yeah, I do."

"Was this your father's idea or yours?" She asked.

"It was dad's, but I agreed."

"Good for you. How's school?"

"School's fine. I've made a few friends," I replied, purposely leaving out Axel.

"Oh have you? Wow, that's awesome," she said, sounding surprised and confused all at the same time. "I thought you didn't want friends?"

"Well, this isn't New York," I declared, trying not to sound bitter.

"Are you planning on doing soccer?" She asked. If she'd sensed any bitterness to my tone, she'd ignored it.

"Yeah, the school I go to has a varsity team that I'm planning on trying out for," I answered, glancing at the clock on the wall.

I had three minutes left.

"Oh, honey, that's great. I'm really proud of you."

Suddenly, I heard something break and a kid start to cry.

"Oh, shit," my mother swore, "Johnny just knocked over something. Sweetie, I have to go. I hope to hear from you in a month!" She exclaimed and quickly hung up.

"Bye," I said to no one and shut off my phone, heading back to work two minutes early.

"Katie? It hasn't been a full fifteen minutes yet," Axel said, but he handed me my apron anyway.

"Yeah, I got bored," I lied.

He chuckled and strolled back over to help another customer in line.

Once it started to die down, Axel hopped up onto the counter, wiping the sweat off his forehead with a towel.

"I don't think people understand how hard this job is," he declared as I sat down beside him.

"Yeah, it's a lot of work," I admitted, resting my head onto his shoulder.

He kissed my forehead then leaned his head against mine. "It's been like this for days. Do you think that you can work for the rest of the week?" He asked.

"Yeah, I just can't work Tuesdays," I replied, remembering what Aliza had told me.

"Oh, really? Does Penny know that?" Axel asked, running his thumb along the top of my hand.

"I haven't mentioned it yet," I responded, closing my eyes as his finger slowly trails up my arm, sprouting goosebumps along my arm.

He removed his head from mine and pressed a kiss against my neck, before trailing downward. "Axel, we're at work," I protested.

"I don't see anyone here, do you?" Axel replied, his lips brushing against my neck as he spoke.

"N-no," I stuttered as he trailed his lips downwards.

I felt him pull down the collar of my work shirt just slightly, exposing my collarbone. He latched onto it, sucking hard. Once he pulled away, I noticed a mark where his lips had been that looked a lot like a bruise.

He pulled the collar of my shirt back up and hopped off the counter, flipping the sign on the door from 'OPEN' to 'CLOSED'.

"Wait, but Penny-" I start to say, but Axel interrupts me, cutting me off.

"She left two hours ago. It's just you and me."

"But the place doesn't close for ten more minutes," I stated, confused.

Axel came back through the double doors before joining me on the counter once again. "So? Penny always leaves me in charge when she leaves," he explained.

"So, what do you want to do for ten more minutes?" I asked him.

"Anything you want," he replied.

Feeling nervous, I slid closer to him and lowered my head until my lips were level with his neck. "I want to do to you what you did to me," I admitted, pressing my lips to his neck.

He hissed, his palms clenching against the table, but he didn't pull away, so I knew that I must've been doing something right. I trailed my mouth down his neck, leaving open-mouthed kisses as I went down, as he'd done to me. Using the hand that wasn't holding me up as I leaned over, I pulled down the collar of his work shirt, his collarbone becoming more and more prominent with each breath he inhaled. I latched my lips onto it, sucking as hard as he had done to me, my mouth releasing small noises as I did. Once I was done, I pulled away, watching as the mark slowly became more and more visible.

Axel opened his eyes and met mine, his pupils dilated so far that I could barely see the dark brown ring around them. Using one of his hands, Axel nudged me onto his lap, kissing my nose. "I think you might be better at that than I am."