The "Return" of MacPherson (Warehouse 13 Fanfiction)

Part 6: First Date, Second Date

Meanwhile, at a diner in Rockford...

Britney Horne scanned the crowd anxiously for a familiar face. Finally, she located her friend Sarah Rymes. Two men stood next to Sarah as the woman waved to Britney. The first man Britney vaguely recognized as Sarah's husband Ted. The second man must be Ted's friend.

Sarah grabbed Britney's elbow as she neared them. "You made it!" the woman cried jubilantly. "Britney, I want you to meet a good buddy of Ted's, Doug MacPherson. Doug, this is Britney, the girl I told you about."

Doug extended a hand toward her, his hazel eyes twinkling pleasantly under his soft, brown hair that hung over his forehead. "Pleasure to meet you," he said, with an accent not quite American.

Britney blushed, "Hi, I'm nervous!" she exclaimed. "I mean--I'm Britney," she stammered, "Um, good to meet you, too."

Sarah chuckled at their awkwardness. "Well, Ted and I are going to order drinks at the bar. Why don't you two take a seat here at the table and talk amongst yourselves? We'll be back later." She winked at Britney.

Doug politely pulled out a chair for Britney before sitting down himself. They ordered appetizers and ate in silence for a while, conversation consisting mostly of comments on the quality of the food.

Britney finished eating and shyly stared at her lap before she realized that Doug was patiently waiting for her to begin the conversation. "So," she said brightly, lifting her eyes and looking at him, "you have a cool accent; where are you from, Doug?"

Doug grinned, "I live on the other side of town, actually."

Britney blinked, "You do?"

Doug chuckled at her reaction, "Yeah; my parents--well, my dad's from Scotland, hence the accent, but my mum's American, and so am I."

"That's amazing!" Britney cried. "Have you ever been back to Scotland?"

Doug shook his head, "I dream of going there one day, but I haven't been able to yet. Travel costs money, you know."

Britney laughed lightly, "Ah, yes; there are so many places I would love to go if one could travel for free!"

"I'd explore the world," Doug remarked.

Britney clasped her hands in mock elation. "Take me with you!" she cried.

The couple, becoming fast friends, laughed together.

"So tell me about yourself, Britney," Doug continued, "What do you do?"

"I'm a librarian," Britney answered.

"Ah! You like books a lot, do you?"

"Oh yes! Especially old ones, even though there aren't many of those on the library shelves these days."

Doug smiled and brushed a clump of brown hair out of his face. "Oh, a history-lover!"

Britney laughed, "History major, to be exact. Call me old-fashioned, but I love the way life used to be, the things we used to have."

"So you're the type that would be right at home in a museum, eh?" Doug ascertained.

Britney nodded, "You'd better believe it!"

Doug shook his head, "I have a lot of that stuff at my house, if you wanted to see it. A bunch of old stuff from my great-grandfather. He was an inventor, you know, though his machines never amounted to much, I guess."

Britney's eyes lit up, "That sounds awesome! I'd love to!"

Doug nodded, "We'll have to take your car because I came with the Rymes'." The pair glanced toward the bar, where Sarah and Ted still chatted away, not appearing to have any intention of joining them like Sarah had originally expressed.