He snapped out of his trance and said, “Haha, you can call me Luke, not that I’d mind you calling me a hero, but I should earn it first.”
“Nice to meet you, Luke. Glad to see someone came prepared around here,” she responded, as she put her hands on her hips.
“What can I help you with?” he inquired, looking at his belt and plucking at the different tools dangling from it with confusion.
“Hand me that hammer and let’s see about cracking open these crates. I’ll be no good to anyone around here until I get this set up,” she replied, trying to hide her smile at his lack of knowledge.
“Sure thing, but what do you want me to do? I was promised large muscles and a good tan by the end of the summer. I won’t get that standing around. Well, maybe the tan but not the muscles,” joked Luke, handing her the hammer reluctantly.
Kiya laughed out loud and decided she liked the young man. “I promise I won’t stand in the way of you building any muscles this summer. Here, take the hammer and make yourself useful by opening this crate,” she said, and pointed to the largest of the three crates. Luke opened the first box with ease and let her explore the contents as he opened the others.
As promised, the crates contained everything she needed and more. Kiya pulled top of the line transducers from the first crate and practically salivated when she came across gold plated reflector plates. When she informed S&S Enterprises of her plans to build a mobile sound cannon, they spared no expense and never balked at any of her absurd requests. The final box was the icing on the cake, it contained the same wheel and frame setup that was used on the Mars Rover and would be the base of her cannon.
Kiya worked all afternoon assembling her cannon and workstation with Luke’s help and only stopped once for lunch. She looked at her watch when she heard Luke’s stomach roar and noticed the time. “You should have said something sooner if you were hungry! Dinner’s in a few minutes, if we hurry back we won’t be too late. I’m sure they’ll serve enough to feed that bottomless pit you have there,” she joked, as she stored her laptop in her computer bag.
“I wanted to live up to your high standards and earn the title of hero by not giving in first. Let’s go, I don’t think I would last until morning,” whined Luke, as he reached to help her up off the ground.
Laughing, she grabbed for Luke’s outstretched hand and stood up with grace. She was just about to thank him for the help when she was interrupted by a throat clearing.
“Ahem. If you guys are finished, dinner is about to start,” Aarik growled out, as he stared at Luke and Kiya’s joined hands.
Luke dropped her hands and stepped back like she had leprosy. Kiya watched Luke’s face turn white as he swallowed hard when he saw who interrupted them. He looked like the cat that ate the canary and was about to bolt. Luke acknowledged Aarik meekly, “Thanks, Dr. Landon. I’m heading there now.” Aarik continued to watch Kiya and made no indication he heard Luke’s response. Luke turned around and stuck his tongue out behind Aarik’s back. Kiya giggled, in spite of Aarik’s grumpy presence, and tried to cover her laugh with a cough.
“That was rude, you didn't have to scare the kid,” Kiya stated firmly, when she regained her composure.
“I hardly think it was rude. You guys were practically on top of each other when I walked up here. You are aware he’s underage, right?” Aarik retorted angrily.
“Ha, maybe you need your eyes checked. The kid offered me a hand up off the ground,” she retorted angrily. Kiya wasn’t sure why her first natural response to Aarik was to rile him up, but she liked the way it made her feel alive inside to provoke the dragon. Aarik’s reaction confused Kiya, it was almost like he was jealous.
Kiya took her time as she brushed off the dirt from her jeans and stretched her arms up over her head to get the kinks out. “While I appreciate the gesture, you didn't have to check up on us. We were just about ready to head to dinner. I’m sure you have better things to do with your time. I wouldn’t want to think you were paying special attention to me, Dr. Landon,” she stated, and celebrated internally when she noticed he perused her curves in appreciation.
Aarik seemed to recover quickly before he smiled demurely at her and said, “Still stuck on calling me Doctor, I see. Well, I actually wanted to check on your progress, Ms. Brown. I originally felt bad for stealing Diego, but it seems like you didn’t need his help after all.”
“I was second guessing myself when I first got here, but that kid, Luke was nice enough to offer his help and stuck around all day,” stated Kiya, and ignored his first question, thinking it didn’t require a response. She gestured toward the chow hall with her hands, “Shall we head back? I’m starving,” she finished and walked away.
Chapter Eight
Aarik
“By all means, lead the way, Ms. Brown,” he playfully responded, as she sauntered by.
Following behind Kiya, he recalled the way she emphasized each of her curves with her hands as she slowly dusted her jeans off. He was positive she had done it on purpose. “I should have gone first,” he thought to himself, as he eyed the sway her hips made as she walked. This display, emphasizing her assets flirtatiously, he filed away to chew on later. He was sure she was ready to succumb to his charm soon and, even though he knew they wouldn’t be able to pursue a relationship, he couldn’t stop himself from wanting one.
Kiya looked over her shoulder and called back, “I noticed you didn’t correct Luke earlier when he referred to you as Doc-” she trailed off mid-word as she stumbled over a root in the trail.
Aarik rushed forward to catch her before she crashed to the ground. He reached out and grabbed for her stomach, managing to spin her around and pull her into his chest in a move that pushed the air from his lungs. As the air rushed back into his lungs her delicate scent permeated his senses and stunned him for a moment before he realized he was still holding her tight. He loosened his grip and looked down into her dark eyes, expecting she would be annoyed, only to find a look of curiosity.
Kiya seemed to realize he was still holding her and cleared her throat as she squirmed to get free. “Th..Th...Thank you, Dr. Landon,” she stuttered out in a shaky voice.
“Geez, not even saving you from a nasty fall earns me the right of being called by my first name?” he responded, stupefied, throwing his hands up into the air.
“Just pointing out the fact that you didn’t correct Luke earlier when he addressed you as doctor. Why are you adamant that I don’t?” she fired back and threw her hands in the air.
Aarik paused when he tried to recall what Luke had said before he fled the area like a coward. “I honestly didn’t hear him, but I don’t think I will correct him now that I think about it. It will be good practice with his professors and the like at college to always address people he encounters with their proper title. We need to teach the kid respect and hierarchical organizational structure,” he countered. “There is a caveat to that rule of course, that I don’t believe you are familiar with though. Would you like me to educate you?” he questioned.
“I’m sure you would tell me anyway, so by all means, please continue,” she answered in an annoyed voice.
Aarik tried to maintain a straight face as he replied, “If the doctor has asked you to call him by his or her given name, instead of their title, it is considered rude to refuse.”
Kiya smirked and replied, “I don’t believe you.”
“Alright, you caught me, but can you blame a guy for trying,” Aarik replied jokingly. “Look I know I can’t make you call me Aarik, but I can always hope that, one day, you and I will get past this and be on a first name basis,” he finished the statement with a hopeful smile.
Kiya looked over at Aarik and smiled slowly before she said, “Perhaps one day, Dr. Landon.”
The noise coming from the chow hall reminded Aarik of the need to end their conversation, but he needed assurance that this would not be the end of their discussion. “Perhaps is better than no, in my book. Which only means w
e get to revisit this another time. Enjoy your dinner, Ms. Brown.” Aarik entered the chow hall tent and headed for the food before she could respond. He doubted she would argue the point further in public.
Aarik grabbed his food and looked around for Luke, intending to interrogate the kid on what he walked in on that evening. He found Luke sitting at the end of the last table, away from the food table, gazing into his food like it was his last meal. When Aarik sat down across from him, Luke jumped in his seat and swallowed hard. “Evening,” he quipped, before he shoveled more food into his mouth, trying to avoid speaking to Aarik.
“When I asked you to look after Kiya for me today and basically told you hands off, you can imagine my surprise when I walked up to find you two almost embracing this evening,” Aarik stated in a firm tone.
“Kiya worked me hard today, we weren’t fooling around, sir,” Luke replied with a forlorn face.
“Wow, I don’t think you realize how bad that sounded,” replied Aarik in disbelief.
“I was only helping her up and might have pulled too hard. I swear to you, Dr. Landon,” Luke pleaded in desperation.
“I’ll give you one more chance to prove to me we are on the same page, by helping her out again tomorrow,” said Aarik curtly, before he added, “Let’s ensure you have more work than play this time.”
Luke scooped up the last of his meal and nodded enthusiastically in concurrence. “Scouts honor,” Luke said, as he saluted Aarik and quickly left the table.
Aarik devoured an excellent dinner of barbecued ribs, corn on the cob, and baked beans before he headed towards the command central tent. He planned to document his progress on the main chamber daily and it was always a good idea to check in with Taylor on anything they might have uncovered at the intact dolmen.
On his way to the tent he enjoyed watching the sun set on the landscape as he studied the dig site. A figure near the broken dolmen caught his attention and as he got closer, he recognized Diego and veered off the trail to investigate. Aarik approached Diego from behind and regretted not having a flashlight as the last of the sun dipped below the horizon. He could see that Diego was prepared for the night jaunt as the light from his flashlight flicked on. Diego scanned the area methodically in a sweeping motion as if he was looking for something. Aarik was debating either watching or questioning him when he stepped on a twig and Diego swung his light around catching Aarik off guard as he stood in the spotlight.
“Dr. Landon. What brings you out without a flashlight?” questioned Diego, leaving the light to shine in Aarik’s eyes.
“It was a beautiful evening for a walk and I lost track of time. I’m pretty sure it’s supposed to be a full moon tonight though, that outta provide ample lighting for the walk back. I was wondering though...what brings you out to the broken site?” Aarik volleyed back, holding his hand up to block the light shining in his eyes.
“I was just admiring the size of the stones and dreaming up ways our ancestors might have created these immense structures. It makes a person question the validity of what we think we know,” answered Diego obstinately, dropping the flashlight from Aarik’s eyes to the ground in front of him.
The answer sounded logical, but Aarik was positive that when Diego turned his flashlight on, the beam of light was concentrated on the foliage surrounding the stones, not the stones themselves. Aarik didn’t want Diego to feel threatened and decided to play dumb so that he would be able to watch him more closely without being suspected. “One of the many reasons why I chose this profession was to challenge what we think we know. I believe that we don’t have all of the facts for scientists to be able to establish an accurate homosapien timeline. My field should adopt a more fluid timeline structure. The science books teach everyone that our race didn’t evolve until 200,000 years ago based on the oldest human skull ever found in recorded history. Yet recent evidence brought forward from a skull in western Africa contradicts that timeline by 100,000 years. Who knows when the next skull will be found to push that date back even further,” Aarik responded passionately, as he walked up to the broken dolmen and leaned on the structure.
“Well, I like to say, you learn something new every day. Perhaps we are not as different from each other as it would appear,” said Diego, as he looked at Aarik with contemplation.
“Sorry, I can get passionate when it comes to my work. Would you mind walking me back, the moon doesn’t seem to be making an appearance quite yet,” replied Aarik, ignoring Diego’s comment on their likeness. His first thought was that they had nothing in common, but then he remembered how Diego had flirted with Kiya earlier and it angered him.
Diego’s face flashed a brief hint of annoyance before he covered his reaction and answered, “No problem. I can’t see much out here, anyway.”
“Thanks, I appreciate it. Lead the way, I’ll follow,” Aarik replied, and motioned Diego to take the lead.
Chapter Nine
Kiya
Kiya woke the next morning exhausted. Her mattress had a pin sized hole that leaked faster with pressure. Once an hour, she found herself laying on top of the metal rods in the cot that forced her to get up and add more air. She dressed in a haze, not caring what ensemble she wore, only the need for coffee pushed her forward, leaving her tent half asleep. She pulled her hair into a baseball cap and prayed that no one approached her until after she had her first cup. Luck was not in her favor as Aarik walked out of the tent next to hers and stretched his arms. He looked perfectly rested and was most definitely a morning person as he looked her way and smiled like the Cheshire Cat.
“Good morning!” he exclaimed in his deep voice, which was even more pronounced in the morning.
“Humph,” she grunted back as a reply. She hoped her lack of response would clue him into the fact that she didn’t do mornings. His beautiful voice was soothing to her ears most of the time, but any noise before coffee was barely tolerated.
“Ah, not a morning person, I see. I’ll talk to you after your coffee, then. I hear Doris makes an excellent strong cup of coffee that would bring the dead back to life,” Aarik responded in a low voice, as if trying not to disturb her zen.
His response was unexpected and caught Kiya off guard. He walked next to her in silence to the chow hall and poured her a cup of coffee without saying a word. Kiya closed her eyes as she brought the cup to her nose to smell the lifesaving elixir and moaned her approval after her first taste. She opened her eyes to find Aarik smiling down at her before he averted his eyes and said, “I hope it tastes as good as you make it look.”
“Heaven,” was all she could reply, before draining her cup in the next breath. She waited impatiently to pour herself another as Aarik filled his. “I need one of those cups that has the lines on the side that indicates when it’s a good time to talk to me. It would only need just one line really, at the very bottom that says 'now you may approach'; it usually takes a full cup before I’m human,” she answered finally, once the coffee started working through her system bringing her back to the land of the living.
“Thanks for the warning. Until later, Ms. Brown.” Aarik winked and walked toward the food table where he loaded up a plate with so much food it looked like he planned on feeding three. When he sat at the first table available and proceeded to devour everything on the plate, she wondered how he kept in shape.
Kiya poured her second cup of coffee and looked around for the cook to see if she had any travel coffee mugs with lids available. She needed at least four more cups to kick start her morning and standing next to the pot for the next hour while she got her fix would probably not go over well with Aarik. She spotted Doris next to the pastry display and headed in her direction.
On the way over she couldn’t help but notice a woman, settled in next to Aarik at the table dressed in clothes meant to impress a man, not for working outside. She acted like they were old pals and were perhaps on something more than a first name basis with the way she practically rubbed herself over him like a purring kitten.
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br /> Kiya looked down at her outfit and groaned inwardly at her appearance. She reminded herself that she wasn’t here to impress anyone and thought that, if that was the type of woman Aarik wanted, she didn’t want anything to do with him. Kiya was surprised by her jealous thoughts and tried to ignore the immediate dislike she felt towards a woman she had never met. As she passed, she overheard Aarik’s reply to something the woman said.
“Please don’t take this the wrong way. I am not taken, but I am also not interested in a relationship with someone I work with. It would make things difficult around here if things didn’t work out, you see. I am also a bear of a man without sufficient sustenance, so I would appreciate it if you gave me some elbow room so that I can finish my meal,” he rumbled out truthfully.
Kiya wanted to rejoice at the immediate rejection Aarik easily handed out to the clingy woman, until she recalled his vow to not date anyone he worked with. Their constant bantering felt like more, even if they both knew it shouldn’t go anywhere. She wished she could turn around to see the reaction on the woman’s face at the instant let down Aarik dished out, but didn’t want to appear like she was eavesdropping. By the time Kiya reached Doris, her face must have shown the gauntlet of emotions she just went through because Doris raised one knowing eyebrow as if she knew what Kiya was thinking.
“Mornin’. You responsible for this wonderful cup of joe in my hand?” she queried gently, wanting to get on Doris’ good side.
Doris looked to be in her late sixties. She had peppered gray hair that was up in a bun and the skin around her eyes and forehead bore deep wrinkles from either constant laughter or frowning. She was slightly bent over at all times from back issues and appeared to be a very grumpy old lady. Her demeanor was crusty on the outside but you could see her exterior crack at times for people who bothered to try.
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