The Rise of Hel {Loki Laufeyson} Book Two

Chapter Thirty-Seven

Loki follows me back to my dorm, closing the door behind him. "It all ends tomorrow." He says, staring at the floor.

I plop down on the couch, the nerves bundling in my stomach. I've been a part of this kind of thing before. I lost my mother to the Chitauri - but I could lose so many more to Hel. "Yeah. Tomorrow."

He strides over, pushing a strand of my hair behind my ear. "I just want you to know that I've lost you too many times. You die tomorrow, I die tomorrow."

"Don't ridiculous. They'll need your help in stopping her. If you die, we all die."

"Not necessarily," He slips my hands into his, skimming his thumbs over my palms. "I still don't know what you're hiding from me, but if you can use it to your advantage, we could win over her."

"I can't control it." I whisper, swallowing hard.

"We can fix that. You just need to focus on something other than that fire inside and figure out it's trigger." He furrows his brows.

"Danger - that's its trigger. Every single time it's happened, I've always been in some kind of danger."

"It happened with me, but you weren't in any kind of peril," He presses my hands to his cool cheeks. I exhale, the temperature calming me down. "You're not afraid of me, are you?"

"Of course not. Like I said, Max shocked me and that must've set it off. If anything, I'm afraid of myself." I shake my head, smiling.

"I'm not afraid of you. I think you're more in control of it than you comprehend. You just let yourself worry about everyone and their problems that when you have a problem, you start to deteriorate. You need to trust yourself and your strength."

"What if I hurt somebody? What if I get them killed somehow?"

"You won't. Like I've said before, you're the strongest mortal I've ever met and I love you, flaws and all." He touches his forehead to mine, kissing the tip of my nose. "More than anything in the nine realms."

I smile, pressing my lips to his and kissing him softly. "I love you." I say, climbing into his lap. He wraps his arms around my torso, pressing me to him, his hands slipping up my shirt and exploring my bare back. His cold fingers send shivers down my spine, causing me to throw my head back, exhaling shakily. He sucks the spot just below my ear, driving me crazy.

I giggle. "Possibly our last good day on earth, what better way to spend it?"

He grips my thighs, pulling away so I can lift my shirt off. "Exactly." He lays me down on the couch. I grind my hips against his as he works on stripping down, yanking my jeans off and tossing them to the side. He sits back, admiring me and my half naked body. "You're so beautiful." He says, reaching out and touching my stomach.

"I seem to remember you telling me the exact same thing the last time this happened." I say, unbuckling his pants and pushing them down his slender legs. He steps out of them, crawling over me, grinning wickedly.

"I can't help it if it's true, pet." He kisses my neck.

I sit up and force him back, hopping off the couch and gesturing for him to follow me to the bedroom.

He grins maliciously. "Gladly, m'lady." He growls, picking me up and draping me over his shoulder, laying me down on the mattress and making me feel something other than dread for the the first time in days

***

I toss and turn in my bed. Even after the incredible bliss Loki gave me just hours before, I can't get the anxiety in the pit of my stomach to go away and leave me alone. What if I can't save Peter and Sky? What if I do save them and Sky has to wake up to no family whatsoever? What if Loki is wrong and I can't control what's going on with me?