Athena's Daughter

by Juli Page Morgan

  Elizabeth closed the door and trudged across the room to plop onto the couch next to Athena. “He’s writing a song and said he needs peace and quiet to do it.”

  “Yeah, I know.” With a grimace, Athena put aside the inventory lists for Stax of Wax, and slipped her arm around her daughter. “He’s just getting ready to go back to work.” The shoulders under her arm remained stiff and unyielding, and she repressed a sigh. Elizabeth had gotten spoiled having her father around all the time and had not reacted well to the news that the situation was about to change. “It’s kind of like when you learn your spelling words during the school year, you know? You need quiet so you can concentrate.”

  “I don’t want him to go back to work.” Elizabeth’s bottom lip began to protrude in a pout. “I want him to stay here with me while you go to work.”

  After a week of hearing this refrain, Athena was growing weary. “Well, that’s not going to happen, and your pouting about it isn’t going to change things.”

  “It’s not fair!”

  Athena pulled her arm back and fixed her child with a stern look. “Fair’s a place where you get cotton candy. You’ll just have to deal with this, Elizabeth. Do you hear me?”

  When Elizabeth continued to sit and sulk, Athena’s patience broke. “Okay, that’s enough. If you’re going to behave like this then you can go do it in your room where I don’t have to watch it.”

  Without a word, Elizabeth got up and slouched from the room. Athena watched her go, and shook her head in exasperation. Much as Elizabeth might hate it, it would be good for her to spend some time apart from Derek, and to learn that there were parts of his life where she couldn’t participate, just like she couldn’t go to work with Athena. And Athena herself would be more than a little relieved when he was gone.

  For two months she allowed herself to fall into the fantasy that they were a family, and that had to stop. Even if Derek now took all his meals with them and had even gone with them to her family’s Fourth of July celebration instead of attending the Rolling Stones concert like he’d planned, they weren’t a real family and never would be. With no more occurrences of the “moments” she told Andi about, Athena finally accepted that Derek had no romantic interest in her, no matter how many evenings he spent watching TV with her in the den after Elizabeth was in bed.

  When he told her the band was going to Muscle Shoals Sound Studio in Alabama in two weeks to begin work on their new album, she breathed an internal sigh of relief. After the album would come a world tour, and even though she didn’t like the thought of Elizabeth being without her dad for such an extended period of time, she hoped it would give her time to get over Derek once and for all. If she didn’t have to see him every single day she might be able to move on.

  Her ruminations were interrupted by the ringing phone, and she leaned across the arm of the couch to snag it from the end table.

  “Has Mom called you?” Andi asked without preamble after Athena answered.

  “Who died?” A death in the family was the only thing Athena could think of that would make her mother call her to chat without someone holding a gun to her head.

  “Nobody. But Donnie got married!”

  “Do what?” She sat up straight in surprise. “Who? When?”

  “What do you mean, who?” Andi sounded indignant at the implied slur to her twin’s morals. “It’s that girl Aimee he brought to the Fourth of July party. And speaking of Fourth of July, it was a real hoot to have a British guy at a party celebrating his country’s loss of a war. He really must love y’all’s kid. But back to Donnie. As for when, apparently they went to the courthouse in Nashville Wednesday morning and got married.”

  “Wait a minute.” Athena frowned. “Did he say anything about it being so serious to you when they were here?”

  “Nope. Not a word.”

  “Well, well.” Athena sat back with a smug smile. “Are you thinking what I’m thinking?”

  Andi laughed. “I’m thinking that you and I are going to be aunties.”

  After a moment of joining her sister in snickering laughter, Athena had to ask. “Did Mom say anything about that?”

  “Are you kidding? She wouldn’t admit it even if Donnie spelled it out in neon letters on the side of the Goodyear blimp. One good thing, though; you won’t be the only family pariah anymore.”

  Athena snorted. “That’s what you think. It doesn’t matter how far along Aimee is. They’re all nice and legal now, and that’s all Mom cares about. She’ll just tell everyone the baby is premature – which will fool no one – but she won’t have to bear the shame of having two illegitimate grandchildren.”

  “Elizabeth was never illegitimate. You were married to Steve when she was born, even if she wasn’t his kid.”

  “Try telling that to your mother.” She felt her lip begin to pooch out like Elizabeth’s had, and made an effort to wipe the pout from her face. “It was bad enough that we had Elizabeth’s name changed, but everyone at that party who got a look at Derek knew immediately that whoever I was married to was never Elizabeth’s father.”

  “Ah, screw ‘em. We’ll just go around telling everyone Donnie had to get married, okay? He lives in Nashville so it won’t bother him, and it’ll give Mom something new to fret over.”

  Athena shrugged. “Doesn’t matter. I’m used to it by now.”

  The sound of a drink being sucked through a straw came down the line before Andi spoke again. “So Walt and the kids and I are going to Nashville next weekend to welcome that poor girl to the family. Wanna come? We’re leaving Friday and coming back Monday.”

  “Can’t. I have to work.”

  “Nuh-uh! You said you were off this Saturday.”

  “I am off Saturday, but I have to work both Friday and Monday,” Athena explained. “You know summer’s our busiest season outside of Christmas. But how about taking Elizabeth with you?”

  “Sure,” Andi agreed. “Why?”

  “She’s driving me bat shit.”

  “Still moping about Derek’s upcoming work schedule? Seriously, Theenie. Y’all need to tell her exactly what this whole ‘work’ thing entails.”

  Bristling at her sister’s censorious tone, Athena gripped the phone tighter. “Look, she’s having a hard enough time with the thought of not having him at her beck and call all the time. If we told her he was going to be gone for months and months after he brings her back from England, she’d go nuts. Got that?”

  “You have a point,” Andi conceded. “Yeah, we’ll take her with us, try to get her mind off it.”

  “Thanks,” Athena sighed in relief. “You don’t know how much I appreciate it.”

  *****

  After leaving work on Friday evening, Athena swung by a local steak house to grab dinner to go. She couldn’t remember the last time she hadn’t had to take a child’s picky appetite into consideration when planning what to eat, and she looked forward to tearing into a nice, juicy steak and a piping hot baked potato. They’d taste even better since she didn’t have to cook them herself.

  At the last minute she added another steak and potato to her to-go order. Though she hadn’t been in the guest house since Derek moved in, she had a sneaking suspicion that he had no food there. After all, he ate all his meals at her table.

  When she arrived home, she peeked out the French doors to see if she could detect any activity from Derek’s house. Instead, she beheld him floating in the pool on an air mattress. Stark naked.

  Okay, she had to look away. She would look away and pretend she hadn’t seen him. Yep, that’s exactly what she’d do. Look away.

  Her eyes roved over his body, glorious in the golden light of the early evening summer sun. Damn, but he was beautiful! Lean muscles bulged slightly under his tanned skin from his neck to his feet. And speaking of bulging…

  Athena drew in a sharp breath. Even though he wasn’t aroused, he was still magnificent. And she knew just how to touch him to make him…bulge. What if she went out to the pool, le
t him know she was there? What if she didn’t try to hide the fact that she was not only looking, but wanting? Would he respond? Would they end up making blistering love in the pool?

  Fists clenched, she turned away from the tempting sight and banished her lusty thoughts. She couldn’t chance it.

  Instead of indulging her fantasy, she went back into the garage and opened the door of her used white Toyota Celica. With a heave, she slammed the door shut, making as much noise as possible. Then she re-entered the house through the laundry room and banged that door shut as well before heading back into the kitchen. On tiptoe she went into the breakfast nook and peeked through the window just in time to see the door to the guest house close behind an exceptionally gorgeous derriere. Good. Temptation removed. Now they could just have dinner like they always did.

  She picked up the phone and dialed Derek’s number, and cursed the way her heart gave a thrilled little thump when she heard his voice.

  “It’s me,” she said. “I’ve got steaks and baked potatoes if you’re hungry.”

  “Starving,” he replied with a soft laugh. “Missed lunch today because Elizabeth wasn’t here.”

  “Well, come and get it.” Warmth flooded her cheeks at the double entendre.

  “Let me grab a shower first – I’ve just had a swim – and I’ll be right over.”

  “See you then.” Athena replaced the phone in the cradle, and shook her head at her idiocy. All that swearing to herself that she had to get over him and move on vanished the minute she laid eyes on him. Thank God he’d be gone soon, and then….

  Grief washed through her with the force of a tidal wave, leaving her weak and shaking. He was leaving. And as much as it hurt to see him every day and know he didn’t want her, not seeing him would be a thousand times worse.

  A sob shook her, and she ran blindly to her bedroom before he could catch her bawling like a baby. She locked herself in her bathroom and turned the shower on full force. Hot, scalding tears burned her eyes as she stripped off her clothes and stepped under the spray. The water sluiced over her lowered head and poured over her face, taking her tears with it.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

  Careful not to burn her fingers, Athena shook a hot potato from its foil wrapper onto a plate. She’d left her desolation in the shower and was determined to just enjoy what time she had left with Derek, beginning with dinner. She heard the French doors open, and worked faster to get the food on the plates.

  “Did you lure me over here with take-away food?” Derek’s soft voice was full of amusement.

  “Guilty.” She tossed an apologetic grin over her shoulder. “Wanna back out?”

  “Not a chance.” He advanced into the kitchen and started peeling the foil from the second potato. “I love our daughter, but I’m awfully tired of burgers, hot dogs, and macaroni and cheese. I’d almost record a polka song if it meant I could have a steak, take-away or no.”

  “Please, Derek. Swear to me you’ll never record a polka song.” Shuddering at the thought, she rolled her potato next to the steak on her plate. “Besides, this is good stuff. I ate at the restaurant a couple of years ago on a date, and the food was fantastic. Only good thing about the whole date, matter of fact.”

  “Really.” Before Athena could wonder at his odd tone, he picked up his plate and went to the table. “Then let’s erase the memory of a bad date with good food. Do you have any wine?”

  “Actually, I do.” She put her plate on the table, and stepped into the small pantry off the kitchen. “My brother’s a wine snob and keeps trying to educate me by giving me bottles as gifts. Red’s good with steak, right?”

  “That’s what they say. Where are your wine goblets?”

  She came out of the pantry laughing, a bottle of wine in her hand. “Sorry. Nothing that fancy. We’ll have to drink it out of plain old water glasses.”

  “That’ll work.” He reached into the cabinet next to the sink and pulled out two glasses. “I do hope you have a corkscrew.”

  “In the drawer right in front of you. “ She sat at the table and shook a paper napkin into her lap. “Another gift from Donnie.”

  “Let’s have a look.” He deposited the cork screw and glasses on the table, and took the bottle, squinting at the label.

  “It says it’s a cabernet sauvignon,” she said, hesitant. “Is that good?”

  “Hm.” He looked up, a glint of mischief in his eyes. “My only criteria for ‘good’ is whether or not it contains alcohol. So I’d say this qualifies.”

  He was driving her crazy with nothing more than an easy manner and a teasing look. And he didn’t know it. Suddenly, alcohol sounded like the best thing she’d ever heard.

  “I agree,” she told him. “Pour it out.”

  At first, conversation was strained. Without Elizabeth as a buffer, they were forced to deal with each other in a more direct manner than they had since that disastrous day in Los Angeles. Athena had to force herself to reply in more than monosyllables, and the strain she detected in Derek’s voice let her know he was having trouble adjusting, too.

  But the wine – which was excellent and did contain alcohol – helped. By the time they finished eating, the bottle was empty and their tongues were loosened. The frisson of unrelieved desire Athena had been dealing with for so long mellowed to a pleasant hum, allowing her to admire the gorgeous man across the table with no worries about who might feel what for whom. In fact, she was so relaxed about things that she brought out another bottle of wine which Derek opened and poured out with no protest.

  They carried it with them into the den, and Athena grabbed up a stack of 45s and put them on the stereo. Then she got him talking about the new album, a subject she knew would keep him occupied and talking so she could just sit and watch him without having to do more than interject an occasional “Wow!” or “That’s interesting.”

  It was so nice to be able to look at him unimpeded, not worrying about what he might think if he caught her at it. His after-shower attire was beyond casual; soft, faded jeans, bare feet, and a shirt he’d not bothered to button hanging open over his chest. During dinner his hair had mostly dried and was curling up at the ends. She couldn’t take her eyes off him, and he didn’t seem to mind a bit, returning her admiring stares with a heavy-lidded gaze of his own. Athena’s mind took that look and combined it with the view of him she’d glimpsed in the pool, and wondered if it would be so horrible if she took Andi’s advice and made a move.

  The alcohol in her system was in fervent agreement, and she drank more wine to better get its opinion on the matter. Refreshed, it urged her to bang this man, the sooner the better. One night of unrestrained passion wouldn’t hurt anyone, and it would most certainly relieve the ache that grew higher and hotter every time she looked at him. Okay, that sounded good; but how could she bring it up – in more ways than one?

  With a start, she realized he’d quit talking and was regarding her with a calculating expression.

  “What?” she asked, trying to appear innocent.

  “You’re looking at me funny.” One eyebrow arched in inquiry.

  “Oh, that.” She gulped more wine, and it rewarded her with courage and a grape-infused honesty. “It’s just that I saw you in the pool this afternoon when I came home from work.”

  “Oh, you did?” He poured the last of the wine from the bottle, shaking it to get every last drop into his glass.

  “Mm-hm. Thought about joining you.”

  His eyes met hers, his expression lazy and relaxed. “Why didn’t you?”

  One shoulder lifted. “Didn’t know how you’d react.”

  Tilting his glass up, he drained the contents without breaking eye contact. The left side of his mouth curved into that familiar smile, and a blaze of heat shot to every one of Athena’s nerve endings.

  “What is it they say?” he asked softly. “You never know until you try.”

  And by God, she was going to try. The alcohol cheered as she lurched to her feet and weaved he
r way to the stereo where she picked up the tone arm, cutting off “At Seventeen” while Janis Ian was in mid-lament about never receiving valentines. Fuck getting valentines; she was going to get laid.

  She shuffled through the records until she found the new Eagles single she’d brought home from the store. As she put it on the turntable, she glanced over her shoulder. Derek was staring with rapt absorption at her ass, and her knees weakened as lust loosened her muscles. All of a sudden the halter top she’d donned after her shower felt too tight under the arms, and she was intensely aware of the way her cut off shorts rubbed the tops of her thighs.

  The insinuating bass line that began “One of These Nights” resonated through her, and she swayed with it, her hands going to the bottom tie of her top. Without turning around, she pulled the tie loose and backed closer to the chair where Derek sat. One hand rose to her neck, and at the first guitar lick she loosened the top tie, leaving her back naked. Undulating in what she hoped was a sensuous way, she turned to face him, holding the top against her breasts.

  He was watching her with an intensity that caused her to stop dancing for a moment, only to begin again as pure wantonness overtook her. She let her blouse fall, and was rewarded by the fire that kindled in his eyes, a blue flame that touched her with such passionate force it was almost physical. Feeling sexier than she had before in her life, she closed her eyes and ran her fingers through her still-damp hair. Her head fell back, and she gave herself over to the rhythm of the music and the knowledge that he was watching her.

  When she heard him shift with impatience, she opened her eyes and ran her hands down her body, stopping to cup her breasts before letting her fingers trail down to the waistband of her shorts. The sight of Derek’s tongue peeking out to moisten his lips roused her further, and she popped open the snap of the shorts and lowered the zipper.

  Derek’s chest expanded with a deep, indrawn breath as Athena shimmied out of the shorts. As she stepped out of them and kicked them aside, she ran her hands up the inside of her thighs, stopping where the bands of her panties hugged her legs. When he groaned in frustration, a burst of power glowed in her chest. There was no denying he wanted her now.