Wanted Man (Loki Fanfiction - Book #1)

Chapter Six

When McKenna opened her eyes, she immediately regretted it. She was pretty sure the light actually sliced her eyeballs in half and split her skull in the process. She winced as she swallowed. Cottonmouth. Ugh. What on earth possessed her to drink all that wine? She knew better. She absolutely knew better.

She rolled over to squint at the clock. Ten after nine. And what was that smell?

Bacon. It was frying bacon.

She groaned, dragging the pillow over her head to block out both the light and smell. Loki had probably eaten the entire pound of bacon she'd bought just yesterday. It was probably just as well. She had the horrible feeling she'd throw up if she tried to eat something like bacon.

"Are you awake?"

Loki's voice wasn't quite a whisper, but it wasn't its usual volume, either, and she burrowed out to squint at him. Her eyes refused to focus well and her thoughts were far too muddy for anything more than a mumbled, "What?"

"I wasn't sure whether to wake you or if I should but let you sleep," he replied, his voice still low. "How do you feel?"

"Don't ask."

"I thought as much." He pushed away from the doorjamb to come into the room, and as he did, she saw the coffee cup he held in his hand. "I also thought this might be in order."

"That was nice of you, thank you." She slowly sat up, the covers pooling at her hips, and shoved her sleep-mangled hair out of her eyes. "You have no idea how much in order. How many glasses of wine did I have?"

"I stopped counting at four."

"Holy crap. I never drink that much." She accepted the coffee, her eyes closing at the comforting aroma rolling away from the creamy surface. "Thank you."

"You're most welcome."

She sipped. It was perfect. Neither too bitter nor too sweet, and had just the right amount of half-and-half in it. "Did it snow in here last night?"

He grinned, leaning back against the dresser. "For a little while. You remember that?"

She nodded gingerly. "And butterflies. Sparkling butterflies. I wish you could teach me to do that. I'd be a riot at parties."

"It isn't something that a Midgardian can be taught, I'm afraid. Otherwise, perhaps I would."

She swallowed another mouthful of coffee and the flash of a memory exploded in her mind. She was in his arms. Pulling him down. "Did I do anything embarrassing last night?"

"No." He held her gaze and shook his head. "You looked half asleep, so I brought you in here and covered you. I went back to my sofa and your cat did his best to smother me while I slept."

"Good. I thought..." she caught herself and shook her head. "Good. I'm not much of a drinker, but some days you just have to say to hell with it, you know?"

"I know."

"You look nice today," she remarked, taking in the jeans and black tee shirt he'd worn outside the dressing room yesterday. The sleeves were rolled back to his elbows. He must have showered already, for his hair was slicked back from his face, but curlier than it had been the previous day, and left damp patches on his shoulders. "If you want, you can use my blow dryer. Your hair was a lot sleeker when you first came here."

He smiled, dragging his hand through it to sweep it away from his face. "What is a blow dryer?"

"It dries your hair using forced hot air." She set her empty coffee cup on the nightstand. Her belly seemed a little more settled now. "Did you make breakfast?"