All Over Again (Sequel to Wanted Man)

Chapter Eight

CHAPTER EIGHT

It was one of the longest days McKenna could ever remember passing, as she and Loki sat in the infirmary, at Selig's bedside. Although Eir assured them both that he would be fine in a few days, neither one budged and she didn’t argue with them.

Selig slept most of the time, waking once to smile at Loki and said, “Hi, Daddy,” before yawning and going back to sleep.

They sat on a small sofa, Loki against the arm, her against him, her head resting against his chest. Neither one spoke much, and Loki's hand skimmed along her hair, down her shoulder, and back up.

Finally, the silence stretched to the point where it bothered her more than it soothed her. She sat up, turning to Loki. “What’s the matter?”

“What do you mean, love? Nothing is the matter.”

“Really? Because I’ve never known you to be this quiet and you look like you’ve got something on your mind. What is it you aren’t telling me?”

His gaze wandered to the hearth, where a soothing fire crackled. The sun had faded into a rare gloomy day and the chill permeated even the palace. Then, he took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. “McKenna, there’s something I need to tell you.”

Her belly did a slow, painful flip and her mouth went terribly dry. “What is it?”

“Last night, I—well, actually all of us—Thor, Annelie, and I—all went out for a drink.”

She pulled away from him, shifting to sit cross-legged on the sofa. “You did.”

“It was a long, dull afternoon of listening to these fools fight about the silliest nonsense.” He rubbed his forehead with one hand. “And we all rather lost track of how much we drank.”

A sick feeling rose up from the pit of her stomach and it wasn’t morning sickness. She swallowed hard against it, leaning her elbow against the back of the sofa and propping her head on her fist. Her throat felt painfully tight and it hurt to swallow again. “I see.”

“When we returned home for the night, Annelie…” His voice trailed off and a dull flush crept up into his pale skin.

“Annelie what, Loki?” Speaking hurt almost as much as swallowing did, and her heart had sped up to the point where it sent her blood pounding through her temples. “What happened with her?”

He drew in another deep breath, and when he turned to her, his eyes were filled with such pain, that she thought her heart actually stopped beating. “Loki?”

“Nothing happened with her. Exactly.” He cleared his throat. “But she did kiss me.”

“What?”

“She kissed me. And that’s it. Nothing more happened and I pulled away immediately. I didn’t kiss her back and I had no desire to.”

“Oh, well then there’s no problem.” She sat back, folding her arms over her chest. That sick feeling receded a little, but anger now bubbled along the bottom of it. “If you pulled away immediately and all.”

He reached for her. “McKenna, I—”

“What? I’m sorry, Loki, but you already lied to me about how close you were with her. You told me she was no one special, except that she was someone special. Why should I believe you now?”

“McKenna, I am not lying to you now. I would never do anything to jeopardize what we have. Not ever.”

She pressed her lips together as she rose from the sofa and skirted Selig's bed to move to the window. Folding her arms over her chest, she stared out as rain began softly falling against the glass. The droplets turned into rivulets, streaming their way down, beating a soft staccato against the glass as the rain fell harder.