Godhunter

Chapter 4

I edged past Thor and walked down the sidewalk casually; as if it were just another beautiful day in paradise, and I wasn't still a little shaky from that sexy laugh. The sun was shining, children were splashing in the waves, and a Norse god was about to buy me a drink. Yep; everything normal here. I dropped my empty coke can into a trash bin marked "Mahalo"-it means thank you not trash—and kept walking.

Thor didn't say a word while we walked, which would normally creep me out, but I was a little too busy freaking out about everything else for it to matter. Was I really going to do this? Sit down and have a drink with an Atlantean? This so wasn't part of my job description. What the hell was going on? I only interacted with gods at the end of a blade. Plus, in my experience, guys didn't offer to buy you a drink after you kneed them in the groin. Maybe it was that whole divine forgiveness thing? I glanced back at Thor, and he grinned devilishly.

Nope; wrong god.

I led Thor up the shaded drive of the first building at the end of the beach. We headed up the wide, white, stone stairs and through an airy lobby to the bar of The Hau Tree Lanai. Very posh. I don't get a god offering to buy me a drink every day; might as well make it a good one.

I found a little table near the rear of the bar and sat down with my back against the wall so no other hot—I mean; dangerous—gods could sneak up on me. Thor slid in across from me; almost entirely blocking the view. I peered around him for a second and then gave up. I figured that I could make do with the scenery I was left with; mainly him. Hey, I can be accommodating.

"Nice choice."Thor glanced over his shoulder at the open-air restaurant which ended abruptly in a short wall and then gleaming beach.

It was too early for dinner so the patio was empty; wrought iron dining sets waiting patiently for the night's excitements. A mynah bird cawed and took flight from the tree in the center of it all

"Robert Louis Stevenson's house was right there."I pointed to the Hau tree with its small circle of earth bordered by floor tiles. "There's a picture of him lying beneath that tree."

"Interesting. Do you come here often?"

"Really?"I shook my head and pushed a frizzy strand of hair behind my ear.

Damn humidity. I had my waist-length dark hair in a tight bun at my nape. Usually, I wore it up when I went out hunting, but it was baby fine and was always trying to escape my evil clutches.

"That's all you got?"I asked. "I expected better lines from you Thor; you being so… experienced and all."

"Unbelievable."Thor laughed again as he leaned back. "It's been a long time since I've met someone so entertaining when they're so scared, Ms…?"

"'Miss' is fine."I smiled again. I wasn't about to repeat my stupidity so soon. "And I'm not scared."

"Then you have the advantage of me, Miss."His eyes gleamed as he leaned forward; completely disregarding my lie. "Concerning my name, I mean."

"I'll take every advantage I can get."I looked up at the sudden appearance of a waitress.

"What can I get for you two?"She stared only at Thor.

I couldn't blame her, although it made my lip curl in distaste. Guys as good looking as Thor always came with an attitude to match. Add to that his "godhood"and you have a grade A, egotistical bastard. Give me a nice average human male over Mr. Gorgeous any day. The only problem was, Mr. Average wouldn't understand my hobby.

"I'll let the lady order for us."Thor smiled at the waitress, nodded graciously as if he were accepting his just due, and then looked at me expectantly.

I shook my head; suspicions confirmed.

"A bottle of Patron Silver and two shot glasses please."I smiled sweetly at the poor woman who obviously hadn't learned to be wary of the hotties.

The waitress raised her eyebrows but just asked if we needed limes and salt along with the tequila. Very professional. Very used to rich alcoholics. After she had sauntered off, I looked back at the god-incognito seated across from me.

"I thought you only wanted one drink."Thor was smiling again.

Did he never stop or was it just a clever way of lulling me into a false sense of security?

"I didn't say one, you did."I leaned back and crossed my legs; not to be ladylike, just to have an excuse to be a little further away from him. I had no idea what he was up to, and I wanted as much room as possible to reach for my weapons if necessary.

"All right."He did that head incline thing that royalty doe,s but he did it better. "Good choice. I wouldn't have pegged you for a tequila drinker, though."

"You've known me for all of thirty minutes."I smirked, "Part of which you spent on the floor; groaning. You shouldn't have pegged me for anything other than a woman to guard your goodies around."

"I don't know"-Thor's eyes went suddenly still—"I think I could hazard a few guesses."

Maybe it wasn't wise to remind Thor of the specifics of our introduction, but hey, I just couldn't help wanting to bring him down a notch. Cocky guys put my teeth on edge.

"Try me."I narrowed my gaze at his twitching lips but then I noticed how his eyes remained solemn.

"I'd say first of all that you're some kind of an artist."He leaned in even closer as he spoke, "You paint, and your favorite subject is people."

I went quiet and as still as his eyes were. The statement was accurate; too accurate. I started to wonder how much the Gods knew about me until I noticed the spot of oil paint on my pinky. Phew; I smiled.

"Very observant."I shook my traitorous finger at him.

"How would I know about your subject preference?"He smiled and leaned back for the waitress to deposit our order on the table between us.

She poured us each a shot before leaving, and I was grateful for the Twix moment.

"Lucky guess."I reached for my glass and eyed him suspiciously over the rim as I sipped.

I only shoot tequila when I either; A. Want to get drunk, B. Want to act tough, C. Want to get someone else drunk, or D. Any combination of the above.

Thor shot his and poured another.

"Tell yourself whatever you want, Miss."He saluted me with his glass and downed it.

Show off. I was so not going to rise to the challenge. Thor was a god; he could probably process alcohol in a heartbeat. Of course, I'm part Japanese and could do a fair amount of alcohol processing myself. I'm told that it's an allergic reaction a lot of Japanese have, but basically, it results in me being able to drink with the big boys but look as if I'm embarrassed the whole time; my face turns pink. I didn't want to let Thor play on my insecurities, but then again, I'd been the one who ordered the damn bottle in the first place.

I threw back my shot and pushed the empty glass toward him. Oh well, I'm only human; put me down for B. Want to act tough.

"What do you want, Thor?"I pulled my glass closer after he refilled it and lifted it to my lips.

"You."He smiled serenely.