Chapter 2
When we got to my parent’s house, part of me was nervous. Loki got out of the car and opened my door.
“Darling, relax. Why are you so tense?”
“I was sent away and never came back. I chose to stay on Asgard and didn’t even tell them why.”
“If you want, we can leave.”
“No. I owe it to my mom.”
She stood in the doorway for a minute looking at me and Loki. “Lyla…?”
“Hi mom.” I knew once she started crying, I was going to lose it. “Oh sweetheart…who is this?”
“This…is…Loki. My husband.”
“Husband? Oh geez! Come in, come in.” She gave Loki a big hug. The look on his face was priceless. “Can I get you guys anything to drink?”
“Water is fine.” He looked around as we passed into the kitchen. My mom was one of those women who had tons of photos and knicknacks everywhere.
“What brings you down from Asgard?”
“Loki needed to pick something up for his dad and we figured we could spend a couple of days visiting while we were here.”
“So, you’re the reason my daughter decided to stay on Asgard? I hope you’re taking good care of her up there.”
“I treat her like the princess she is.”
“I brought you something.” There was no need to pack when we left Asgard, but there was one item I wanted to bring. My mom having been a florist loved flowers and there was one in particular that grew on Asgard that was my favorite. It resembled a Star Gazer Lily except in glowed in the moonlight. Our first anniversary together Loki brought me a bundle from the palace. After they wilted away, we planted several in the flower bed in front of the house. I didn’t want my mother’s to wither the way mine eventually did, so I pressed it to preserve as much as possible.
“It’s beautiful, sweetheart.”
“Just wait until it gets dark.”
It wasn’t long after that my father’s patrol car pulled in.
“Honey, who’s Corvette is…”
“Hi…Dad…”
“Lyla?” He quickly disregarded Loki and gave me a hug. To be honest his reaction wasn’t at all what I expected.
“Jack…” My mom gestured to Loki.
“I’m sorry, you are?”
“Her husband.” She winked.
“The name is Loki.”
My dad let go of me and looked at the two of us. “You got married?”
“Six years ago.” I informed him.
“Well, welcome to the family.” He shook Loki’s hand rigorously before pulling him in for a hug and pat on the back, again putting him in an awkward position. My dad insisted we stay with him and my mom while we were in town. He was extremely friendly. I almost felt bad. All those years I had held a grudge, and here he was acting like he thought he would never see me again.
Abby had completed the police academy and was on duty until six that evening. She told my mom she would come over for dinner as soon as she got off.
My dad got on the grill and tried chatting with Loki about “guy” stuff while I was in the kitchen with my mom making potato salad. She had just stepped out when he snuck away from my dad and wrapped his arms around me.
“It’s killing me not to take you right here on the counter.” He whispered in my ear.
“Behave. Are you having fun with my dad?”
“Why do you Earthlings cut your animals into little pieces and then cook them over the fire? Why not cook the whole animal all at once?”
“Sweetheart...” I held up a spoonful of the potato salad and he tasted it.
“Not nearly as delicious as you, but I will take another bite.”
I fed him another spoonful and he kissed me just as my mom walked back in from the dining room.
“Hey now! The only buns that go in the oven around here are the breakfast biscuits.”
“I beg your pardon? Am I missing something?” Loki didn’t understand the reference.
“Speaking of buns, am I going to have any grandbabies any time soon?”
“Um…it’s not out of the question…it just hasn’t happened yet.” Loki ran his hand down my back and grabbed another beer out of the fridge for my dad before walking back outside. It was becoming a sensitive subject for me and had been brought up by Odin at one time as well after catching us in the act in the Hall of Heroes during a festival. I had seen a doctor on Asgard after several failed attempts to conceive and was told that I had some minor internal scarring done after being abducted by Mog that may be affecting my conception.
“Well I hope when you do, you visit more often.”
“We will.”
“Hey, Ly.”
I turned to find Abby standing in the kitchen behind us. We didn’t even hear her come in. She hovered for a minute, I’m assuming she was just as unsure about seeing me as I was her. She ultimately led to the chain of events that caused everything, but those events also brought me Loki.
“That uniform looks good on you.”
“It’s good to see you.” She walked over and gave me a hesitant hug. “Wow, I cant believe you came back.”
“With a husband.” Added my mom, apparently she was still waiting for Abby to catch one of her own.
“What? What happened to our double wedding in Bora Bora?” She laughed. We had made a childhood pact that when we got married, we’d have a double wedding. It was funny thinking of how close we used to be. We planned everything around each other until we weren’t.
After dinner I showed Loki to my old room where we were going to stay.
“What’s with all the half-dressed men on the walls?”
“Celebrity crushes. Your not jealous are you?” I teased.
“Not at all. You belong to me.”
“And you belong to me.” I wrapped my arms around him and gave him a kiss. “Thank you for thinking of me on this visit. I really needed to see them.”
“I know.”