Cellmates

19

She lost count of how many times she woke up that night, but every time it was the same, the cool comfort of a body beside her – of Loki. And he was always watching over her with a look in his eyes like at any moment she might disappear. Honestly, she had more than once worried the same thing of him. But when she shifted beneath the sheets, she felt the reassurance of an arm curled around her and the more she woke, the more aware she became of how he'd completely surrounded her. He was breathing softly against the back of her neck, while the rest of him was curled protectively around her. And this time he slept.

Through tired eyes, she retained a vivid memory of all that had transpired that night. Every moment seared into her mind, her body still wrought with sensation hours past. And to even think back was pleasantly chilling. From the first time she spoke with him, when he teased of his lecherous intent, she never could have imagined this. His hands shook, gentle in their guidance, the whole of him somehow as nervous as she was. He handled her as though she were glass, afraid he might break her – or afraid she might panic. She had forcefully neglected the very idea, buried it as deep as she could, hoping desperately to be free of it entirely.

But it was still there, always an unhealed wound waiting to be torn open again, a fragile seal to be broken at her inconvenience. When the night began it was the thorn in her side that it had been in the weeks preceding – not that it mattered then – when it couldn't be real. And it was a dull throb, threatening her at every turn, burning in her chest and slowly seeping elsewhere. But it flared, her mind steeling and forcing horrid associations when she found herself inevitably vulnerable, left to someone else's mercies. But his grip was never insistent – never restraining. In that moment, his touch was almost timid and when he spoke there was fear, not force.

She leaned into his touch, dragging herself from her own obtrusive thoughts. Not an attacker – not a guard – Loki. All comfort and worry. And more concerned for her safety than his own damn life. Idiot. The heat faded, smothered in the wake of his cool skin against hers. And this time, reduced to less than a pinprick until she forgot, until it slipped her mind and vanished entirely. Lost among waves of pleasure, buried beneath overwhelming sensation. Not a memory. Not a dream. Something real. And the night went on.

More than once she was drawn from sleep by forces unknown, awakening to a pair of glimmering green eyes, shining like a cat's without the predatory edge. And for once without an air of misfortune. This time it was adoration, hope, love. Her heart swelled every time that tiny thought occurred to her. She would hear his soft-spoken admission over and over again until she couldn't help but smile. I love you, Naomi. She could almost feel the way those few words weighed on him like an oath he had to carry. But still they melted the ice from his heart. And soon the whole of him had opened up to her. He was hers. And she was irrevocably his.

Through the night, his touch was a constant reminder. She could feel where he'd marked her, a tender bruise on her chest, but she loved it as much as his softer caresses. It spoke as much of the love they shared as the dull ache in her muscles from being taken more than once that night. She sat up, sliding out of his grasp and finding that this time he stayed asleep. His form subtly adjusted but after that he was still, his countenance perfectly peaceful. And beautiful.

Sunlight slipped through the cracks in the heavy green drapery, casting shifting patterns of light onto the area rug as they rippled slowly with the wind. Curiosity freed her from the sheets and had her wrapping one of the many discarded fur blankets around herself as she stepped silently toward the curtains. With a single hand parting the heavy green fabric, she turned back to ensure Loki wasn't disturbed, but he was still a slumbering lump beneath the sheets with a mess of black hair escaping at the pillows.