Athena's Daughter (5 page)

“Athena!” Vanessa’s sing-song voice intruded
on her thoughts. “Someone is out in the front asking to see
you.”

She looked up to meet Vanessa’s knowing
smile, and a rush of excitement made her heart beat a little
faster. “Is it Derek?”

“Oui, it is!” Vanessa jumped onto the bed,
almost sending the mirror over the side. She saved it with a last
minute grab and waved it around as she spoke. “I had just finished
breakfast and went to the door to see the weather, and there he is.
He asked if you are still here and wants to see you.”

A flush having nothing to do with makeup
warmed Athena’s cheeks. She thought she’d seen the last of him
after the previous night’s anti-climactic finish. After an hour of
the most blistering rock ‘n roll Athena had ever heard, the
authorities had arrived at Hyde Park to demand Wolf leave the area.
She and Vanessa helped the band pack up the stage, and as Ian drove
the truck out of the park Derek asked Athena if she was ready to
go. Unfortunately, Paul overheard and invited himself and Vanessa
along. They ended up in a little pub where Athena and Derek were
overshadowed by the loquacious Paul and Vanessa. Since Paul seemed
to know everyone there, the foursome soon turned into a large,
boisterous group.

It wasn’t long before Athena felt left out.
She had never been able to interject herself into lively
conversations since any witty response she thought of came at least
five minutes too late. So she did what she always did – sat back
and watched from the sidelines. She noted that Derek also seemed
uncomfortable and either unable or unwilling to make himself part
of the in crowd.

As a consequence, both of them faded into the
periphery as Paul led the group in singing drinking songs and
telling stories. There was no chance for private conversation, and
before the evening was over she and Derek weren’t even sitting in
the same section of the pub. Disappointed in the turn of events,
Athena said her goodbyes and made an early exit. It seemed Derek
had lost interest in spending time with her, and she accepted it as
yet another lost opportunity.

But if he had come to the hostel looking for
her… With a muffled squeal of delight, she started cramming her
makeup into her bag.

“He was very happy when I told him you are
still here.” Vanessa grinned and tucked the mirror into the
bag.

“I can’t believe it!” Athena zipped the bag
closed and shoved it into her backpack. Grabbing handfuls of
clothes not yet packed, she stuffed them in. A sudden thought
quailed some of her excitement. “Paul’s not with him, is he?”

“No, he is alone.” Vanessa shrugged. “I like
Paul, but I told him I am leaving for Brighton today, so we said au
revoir last night.”

Athena paused as realization hit her. “Oh,
that’s right. You’re leaving today.” Though she’d known her summer
would involve meeting people and then parting from them on a
regular basis, a pang at parting from Vanessa stung her. Even
though they’d only known each other a few days, Athena had grown
close to her.

“Yes, I’m leaving now. I just came back to
get my things.” The excitement in Vanessa’s dark eyes dimmed a bit.
“I thought to ask if you would like to come with me, but…” An
impish smile curved her lips. “With Derek here for you, I think you
might stay in London for a bit, no?”

“Maybe.” Athena leaned forward and hugged her
friend. “I’m really going to miss you, though.”

“I shall miss you, too,” Vanessa said,
returning the hug. “But it is not such a big country, so perhaps we
shall see each other again.”

“I hope so.” Athena gave her a last squeeze.
“Have fun, and be careful.”

“Fais attention à toi, et amuse-toi bien.”
With a last hug, Vanessa got up and crossed the room to where her
backpack rested on her bed.

Athena swung her own backpack over one
shoulder and left the room.

As advertised, Derek was out front, and
Athena’s heart performed a small back flip when she saw him.
Tousled dark hair brushed the collar of the long fringed vest that
hung open over his navy blue T-shirt and a pair of faded jeans
hugged his thighs. All her life she’d heard the term “sex on legs,”
but this was the first time she’d ever seen an actual specimen. He
straightened up when she appeared and the smile that lit his face
made her muscles turn to mush.

“Hi,” she murmured, still unable to believe
someone this gorgeous and this nice not only wanted to spend time
with her, but actually came looking for her.

“Hi. I thought since we didn’t get a chance
to talk yesterday that we might spend some time together today. If
you don’t have anything else planned, that is.”

A radiant smile fixed itself to her face and
refused to be dislodged. “No, I don’t have anything else to do.”
Even if she’d had an audience with the Queen on the agenda, she
would have thrown it aside for a chance to be with Derek again.

“Have you eaten yet?”

Athena shook her head. “No, I kind of slept
in today.”

He held out his hand. “Come with me,
then.”

The warmth of his fingers laced with hers
melted away some of her nervous tension and the jittery feeling in
her stomach subsided. Her curiosity was piqued when Derek bent and
picked up a faded blue backpack from where it rested next to his
feet and settled the strap over his shoulder.

Instead of taking her to a pub like she’d
expected, Derek led her to the Piccadilly Tube Station. “We have a
bit of journey,” he explained as they boarded the train, “but it’s
not too long, and it’ll be worth it.”

Athena didn’t care if they ended up boarding
a slow boat to China as long as she was with him. The uncomfortable
silence she dreaded didn’t materialize since Derek turned to her as
the train began to move and asked her to tell him all about
herself. She uttered a nervous laugh.

“How much do you want to know?”

“Everything,” he replied, a twinkle in those
blue, blue eyes.

“You’re a glutton for punishment, aren’t
you?” She leaned back in the seat and crossed her ankles. “Let’s
see; I’m from Memphis, Tennessee, lived there all my life. My
parents are professors at Memphis State University and they both
teach Greek Mythology.”

“Ah. That’s where you got your name.” He
appeared pleased, like he had been trying to solve the mystery of
her unusual name, and a glow of exhilaration warmed her chest when
she realized she was on his mind as much as he was on hers.

“Got it in one. At least it’s not as bad as
my brother and sister. Their names are Adonis and Andromeda.”

Derek barked a surprised laugh. “Oh, Jesus!
They can’t have had an easy time of it.”

“I think they insisted on nicknames fairly
early on.” A grin lit her face when she thought of the vehemence
with which her brother and sister corrected anyone who used their
given names. “They go by Donnie and Andi now. They’re both in
school at Memphis State, where my parents think I’ll be going this
fall.”

“Think?” Derek turned sideways to face her,
leaning back against the side of the car. He propped one foot on
the seat in front of him and rested his arm on his upraised knee.
“You’re not going?”

Athena shook her head. “Nope. I’m going to be
a stewardess. I’ve always wanted to travel and see the world, and I
think it would be so cool to fly to all these great cities and meet
new people.” Afraid she was boring him with the details of her
humdrum life, she attempted to transfer attention to him. “Now,
enough about me. Tell me about you.”

“Everything, right?” he asked with a
mischievous glint in his eye.

She dimpled. “Yep, everything.”

“You’ll be sorry,” he warned with a laugh.
“It’s fairly straightforward, I’m afraid. I’m from Liverpool, and
no, I don’t know The Beatles. Everyone always asks me that. My
older brother Lee used to be friends with Paul McCartney’s brother
Mike when they were in school, though. My brush with fame, I
suppose.”

Athena had to laugh at his rueful tone. “I
guess everyone thinks of the Beatles when they hear ‘Liverpool’
now.” A sudden thought occurred to her. “It must be hard to get
anyone to take a musician seriously when they hear they’re from
Liverpool. But you want Wolf to be as big as The Beatles,
right?”

“Bigger,” he replied with no hesitation.
“That’s why I left even though all my family is there. It’s not
that no one took me seriously, but everyone expects a Liverpool
band to be the next Beatles. I like them, but I’m not keen on
everyone having this preconceived notion that my music is like
theirs.”

Athena grinned. “Oh, it’s not. What I heard
yesterday didn’t scream ‘The Beatles’ at all.”

Derek glanced her way, but couldn’t seem to
meet her eyes. “I didn’t get a chance to ask you yesterday – thanks
to my big-mouthed singer – but…” A shy note crept into his voice.
“What did you think of it?”

“I’ve never heard anything like it.” All the
words that came to her mind first were inadequate to describe what
she felt about Derek’s music. From the hesitant way he asked and
the fact that he wouldn’t meet her eyes, it was clear her answer
was important to him; a lame “great” or “far out” wouldn’t cut it.
She leaned forward to force eye contact.

“It was powerful.”

Derek drew in a swift breath at her words,
and a pleased light made his eyes shine.

“It had power,” Athena continued, determined
to convey to him how his music affected her. “It resonated in me,
still does. It made me want to sing. Not the lyrics. I don’t mean
they were bad or anything; I liked them when I heard them, but I
couldn’t tell you what they were now. But the music itself – it
made my soul sing.”

Derek visibly relaxed and that little
half-smile that had so captivated her the day before appeared
again, bringing out the dimple in his left cheek.

“Thank you,” he breathed. “You don’t know how
it makes me feel that my music made you feel like that.” He leaned
forward and pressed a sweet, feather-light kiss on her lips.

Gentle as it was, it left more than Athena’s
soul singing. Her natural inhibitions fled, and she slipped her
hand behind his neck and pulled him to her for another kiss, a more
thorough exploration that said a lot more than “thank you.”

Before the kiss could intensify too much, a
garbled announcement squawked through the speaker at the front of
the car. Though it was indecipherable to Athena, Derek apparently
understood since he pulled away from her with a rueful laugh.

“This is our call.”

Disappointment flashed through her; she
wouldn’t have cared if they’d stayed on the train forever. She’d
have ridden it to hell and back if it meant she could keep kissing
him, could keep feeling his breath quicken as he kissed her back,
and stay close enough to feel the warmth of his skin on hers.

Derek stood and swung his pack over one
shoulder and she followed suit. His eyes were sparkling with
anticipation again and some of Athena’s disappointment abated.
Wherever he was taking her, he was excited about it.

They emerged from the Underground station
into muted sunlight. Derek cast an eye toward the light clouds that
gathered and a small frown line appeared between his brows.

“Hope it doesn’t rain,” he muttered under his
breath. With a fatalistic shrug, he held out his hand. “It’s not
far now, just a short walk.”

Hand in hand they strolled along the sidewalk
with Athena casting surreptitious glances at him. Whenever the sun
peeked through the clouds it illuminated a fascinating array of
bright copper, auburn and gold strands in Derek’s hair, turning the
dark brown into an ever-changing halo around his head. It waved
softly in the light breeze, and Athena was captivated by the way it
curled against the back of his neck. Her palm still tingled from
the remembered feel of those soft little curls.

A discreet sign advised her that they were
entering Waterlow Park. While planning her trip, Athena researched
the most popular tourist destinations in London, but she couldn’t
remember seeing the name Waterlow. She was glad Derek brought her
there, because now that she’d seen it, she couldn’t imagine passing
it up. It was a quiet, serene place with beautifully maintained
walkways passing between rows of mature trees and shrub borders.
The sound of birdsong filled the air, and it was hard to remember
they were in the heart of a bustling, busy city.

Derek seemed to have a destination in mind as
he led her forward, and soon they came to a lovely pond with a
number of ducks floating on its placid surface. As Athena watched,
one of the ducks dived after a tidbit only it could see, its tail
feathers pointing toward the sky in a ruffled triangle.

A small glade shaded by trees sat just back
from the water’s edge, and here Derek stopped. With a smile, he
released her hand and opened his pack. Reaching in, he pulled out a
blue and white striped cotton blanket with the flourish of a
magician producing a rabbit from a hat. He shook the blanket open
and spread it on the ground in the shade.

“I thought we might have a picnic,” he said,
his mouth curving into a half smile.

“Oh, Derek! What a great idea.” Her heart
melted at such an unexpected sweet gesture, and she sank down onto
the blanket. “And what a great spot to have one.”

“Yeah, this is a wonderful park.” He sat
beside her and reached into his pack again. “It’s not as well known
as Hyde Park or Kensington Gardens, so it’s usually not as crowded
or noisy. I found it a couple of months ago, just after I came to
London.” He pulled some wrapped bundles from his pack and pulled
back the wax paper to peek into one. “We both have a chip butty and
a bacon butty. Here.” He handed her the package. “This one’s
chip.”

What he’d just said was as indecipherable to
Athena as the garbled train announcement, but she took the warm
package from him anyway. She lifted the top slice of bread to
reveal what appeared to be a French fry sandwich between two thick
slices of buttered white farmhouse bread. It even had ketchup
topping. Before she had time to wonder about it too much, he handed
her a second wrapped package.