merely nodded and strode out without greeting. He figured he'd bite off the head of anyone who so much as smiled at him. If he were the kind who snarled, he'd snarl. Instead, he left his car at the curb and dodged raindrops to the rear of restaurant, releasing what little steam he could in the short walk.
The damage was already done. There wasn't much the mayor could do unless he called the governor and told him to have the alcohol board back off. Axell couldn't see that happening. If Axell called a news conference and announced he was filing for the mayor's job, that would only drive Ralph to speed up the license inquiry. The only way out of this trap would be to pacify Ralph by persuading Maya to close her damned school, and that would lower him to the mayor's level of slime.
By the time he reached his office, Axell's brain was steaming full speed ahead. He needed to convince Ralph he had the power to make Maya and Selene change their minds about the Pfieffer property. Maybe he could find them another property. Ralph really didn't care about the bar's liquor license. For some reason, he was just determined to have that shopping center road. If he thought Axell could give him what he wanted...
"It's about time you got here. The ABC people are crawling all over the kitchen."
Katherine was pacing up and down his office, looking more spectacular than usual with her blond hair cut in some bouncy new way so it swung and danced every time she moved. And she moved a lot. Axell could appreciate the performance, even if he wasn't interested in the play itself.
"You want me to set out mousetraps for them?" he asked, dropping into his chair to jot notes. Last night's dream of red-haired leprechauns had gotten under his skin. He'd actually been hoping he'd come in here and find Maya waiting for him instead of Katherine. She'd promised to stop over and consult him about the shop's grand reopening. The house had echoed emptier than ever last night without her and Matty in it.
"Very funny." Katherine stalked up and down one more time for good effect. Her mini-skirt was shorter than usual today, and her legs flashed enticingly above her high-soled shoes.
Axell thought irrelevantly of Maya's dragon-decorated sneakers and bit back a grin wondering if Katherine would dare have her shoes tattooed. That led him to wonder if Maya had ever had anything else but her shoes tattooed, and from there, his mind degenerated into wondering what she looked like naked. He blinked in horror at the wayward path of his thoughts.
Katherine sat on the corner of his desk and her skirt slid to the top of her thigh. She wore shimmering pantyhose that caught the morning light, but Axell's mind traveled rebelliously to a rainbow-prismed purple streak. Maybe he was having some kind of mental breakdown. He should take a vacation.
He slapped his pencil on the desk, leaned back in his chair, and ignoring his assistant's flashing leg, glared up at her. "Did you want something, Katherine?"
He thought she'd explode. Her eyes narrowed dangerously, her lips thinned to half their usual size, and her cheeks pinkened beyond their cosmetically-applied blush. "I wanted to help, but obviously, your mind is on more important things." She slid off the desk and stormed toward the door before turning for her parting shot. "Judge Tony called me yesterday, making inquiries about how often Constance eats in the kitchen and who takes care of her while you work. I'm thinking of taking up Ralph's offer of a job."
Axell winced as she slammed out. This was not going to be a good day.
Picking up his pencil, he dialed his lawyer.
* * *
Sitting at the parlor table, her wrought-iron chair padded with a cushion from the upstairs sofa, Maya polished Cleo's myriad gnomes and dragons while the cleaning crew worked on unpacking and dusting the rest of the inventory. Cleo had always loved playing with the action figures from fast food chains, she remembered. The child in her must have thought this ugly pewter would sell well. Cleo's inventory tended to reflect the toys she'd never had rather than any spiritual interest in New Age mysticism.
She ought to be at school, drawing up lesson plans for summer sessions and their first full-time program. They had several teachers already lined up, and Maya prayed Cleo would be home in time to take over the store