Chapter 11
I'm so sorry it's taken me so long to write this chapter. It just absolutely didn't want to be written. Writer's block is awful, lol!
I hope you enjoy it and please leave a review!
"Absolutely not!" Loki said loudly later that evening.
"Oh please," Deidra said.
"No!" He walked away from her into the kitchen. He opened the refrigerator and looked inside. She followed him, standing behind him. "Must you stand so close?" he asked her, looking back at her in slight irritation.
She took a step backwards. "Why not? Bill just wants to meet you! He's not going to do anything."
He stood up straight and closed the refrigerator door. He cracked open a can of Coke. He had found that he absolutely loved this drink. "Because," he said turning around to face her. He took a drink. "I am not some pet or trophy for you to show off to your friends."
Deidra frowned and her shoulders slumped in realization. "Oh..." she said softly. She had no idea that that was how it made him feel. "I'm so sorry," she said.
He raised an eyebrow at her, but didn't respond. He leaned against the kitchen counter and sipped his soda.
She sighed. "I'll tell Bill that you don't want to meet him." She sat down at the kitchen table.
"Indeed," he responded.
They were quiet for a few moments before Deidra spoke again. "Hey," she said to him. He glanced at her over his soda can and raised his eyebrows to show he was listening. "Let's go out tonight. I have some extra money."
"Where would we go?" he asked. An evening out of the house would be most welcome. He was starting to get cabin fever.
She shrugged. "I don't know. Somewhere to eat? A walk in the park? Go shopping?"
Loki thought it over for a moment. "A walk sounds most welcoming," he said finally with a hint of a smile.
She smiled. "I agree. And then we'll get food."
They got ready to go and then loaded up into the car. Deidra drove out of town.
Loki looked out the window and then at her. "We aren't going into town," he commented.
"Nope," she said. "Anderson has a lot more options for food. Plus it has a really nice park to walk around."
"How far is this Anderson?" he questioned.
"About two towns over," she replied.
He nodded and sat back in the seat. 'It is so refreshing to get out of that house,' he thought. He looked at Deidra and smiled a little before looking out the window again.
They reached Anderson about forty minutes later. Loki wanted to walk before eating so Deidra drove to the park.
They parked and got out. Loki looked around and smiled. It was a beautiful area and very secluded, he noted. People were walking and playing and relaxing. There was a stream running through the center of the park that ran into the woods around the area.
Deidra walked around the car and clapped him lightly on the shoulder. "Are you going to stare all night?" she asked with a smile.
He gave her a look and walked with her into the park. They decided to walk along the trail into the woods.
Deidra looked up at him. "You seem in a better mood," she said with a smile.
He gave a nod. "I don't do well confined to a single area," he said. "I'm accustomed to coming and going as I please."
She frowned. "You do know you're not trapped there," she said. "You can go wherever you want."
He gave a humorless laugh. "And where would I go? How would I get there?"
'True,' she thought. Instead she smiled. "How about we start going out more often? We don't have to do things that costs much money."
He raised an eyebrow. "Like what?"
"Oh I don't know," she said. "We could go fishing. We could go kayaking. I know a guy who runs a kayak shop and would give us kayaks for cheap for the day."
"What is a kayak?" He asked.
"It's a little boat you ride down a river," she responded. "It's fun," she added with a smile.
He gave a little non-committal shrug and made a "maybe" face. "Do people normally travel by river for entertainment?" He asked.
"A lot of people do," she responded.
At that moment the sound of snapping twigs and heavy steps came up behind them. Two people in horseback trotted along past them and down the trail.
Loki stared after the horses. "What's wrong?" Deidra asked, looking up at him. "Do you not like horses?"
He shook his head. "Quite the opposite," he said, breaking his stare. "I'm actually quite fond of them. I had my own steeds back home."
She raised her eyebrows. He didn't look the type to be into horses at all. "Really?" she asked. "We could maybe go one weekend to rent trail horses."
He turned his head quickly to look down at her. "Truly?" he asked with an eager gleam in his eyes. It would be wonderful to be able to ride a horse again.
She couldn't help but smile at his eagerness. He seemed almost child-like in that moment. "Yeah," she said. She had no idea how much it would cost to rent a horse for a day, but she couldn't say turn him down; not with that face. He brightened at her response. She thought about it, then added. "We can go this weekend if you want."
"I would like that very much," he said.
They walked along the trail for about another hour. They then left the park, got something to eat, and then headed home. By then it was very dark outside.
They were quiet, listening to the radio play softly, until Loki spoke up. "I will allow it," he said.
Deidra looked over at him, confused. She noted how the streetlights briefly lit up his features as they drove by. "Allow what?" she asked.
"I changed my mind about meeting your employer," he explained. "I quite enjoyed our outing tonight. It might be interesting to go with you tomorrow as well."
"Really?" she asked. "You want to go to work with me tomorrow?"
He rolled his eyes and gave an exasperated noise. "Are you hard of hearing or are you just being thick tonight?" he asked.
She shot him a dirty look. "You don't need to get an attitude," she said. "But good. Bill will be happy."
The next morning Deidra was surprised to find Loki awake and ready to go before she had even come out of her bedroom. He was sitting at the kitchen table sipping coffee when she walked out.
"You're eager to go," she commented, digging through the fridge for some juice.
"I made coffee," he replied, motioning to the nearly full pot of black liquid on the counter.
To be honest, and totally to his surprise, he was actually somewhat nervous about meeting her employer. He would never let it show, but he was a bit afraid that Bill would judge him for his crimes. 'And why wouldn't he?' Loki thought bitterly. 'I deserve judgement.'
Deidra was oblivious to his worries and smiled, putting back the juice. "Thank you," she said brightly, going to pour herself a cup. "That was really sweet of you to think of me like that."
'She thinks of me as sweet?' He thought and a warm feeling spread through his chest. 'That would be a first.'
Deidra sat down in front of him and smiled. "I'm not sure what Bill has planned for us to do today," she started.
"As long as it doesn't involve swamps, I think I shall be fine," he commented sipping his coffee.
She looked at him and laughed, recognizing his joke. "I can't promise anything," she said.
She looked at her phone. "We've got to go," she said.
They finished their coffee and headed off to Bill's lab.
When they arrived Deidra and Loki walked inside. "Hi, Bill!" Deidra called out.
Not a few moments later Bill popped his head out of his office. He started to say hello, but stopped short.
"Bill this is-" Deidra started, but Bill cut her off. He stepped fully out into the lab and beamed.
"I know exactly who this is!" Bill exclaimed excitedly walking to them.
Loki stared silently as the man approached. He wasn't accustomed to anyone being so excited to see him. It unnerved him. He reminded himself to not say or do anything that would compromise Deidra's employment.
He cleared his throat and greeted him cordially. "I am Loki," he said and was immediately clapped hard on the shoulder by Bill.
"Yes! I saw you on TV!" Bill responded enthusiastically.
Loki rubbed his shoulder painfully and a dark look shot across his face. He opened his mouth to say something. Deidra saw the look and nudged him hard in the side. He looked at her angrilly and she shook her head sharply. He understood and got his irritation in check.
He took a deep breath. Bill didn't notice his irritation. He shot the man a tight-lipped smile. "So this is where you steal Deidra away to all day," he said changing the subject.
Bill looked around proudly. "This is my life's work!" he said. "I'm trying to discover a way to reduce aging in humans. I know plants are the answer."
Loki raised his eyebrows in surprise. 'That is actually an interesting concept,' he thought. "Why do you believe plants hold the key?" he asked.
Bill smiled brightly at his interest and put his arm around the dark hair man's shoulders and lead him into the lab.
Deidra watched Bill chatter on and on about his research to Loki, who honestly seemed interested. The more questions he would ask, the more excited Bill became. She smiled and began her work.
A little while later Bill came to Deidra, all smiles. "I like him," he said.
She laughed. "Yeah I figured," she said.
"I offered him a job and he accepted."
She frowned. "You what?"
He nodded. "He seems genuinely interested in our work and he is astoundingly intelligent. You don't see those traits very often."
"What job did you offer him?" she asked.
"An intern. Same as yours, except he'll be paid in cash since he has no documentation."
'He didn't even go to college!' Deidra caught herself thinking in jealousy. She stopped her train of thought and shook it out of her mind. She had no right to be jealous. She still had her job and knew Bill was only trying to help. She smiled. "Well great. Loki can start helping with the bills and paying back what he owes me when I bailed him out of jail."
Bill nodded and let her get back to work.