Chapter Seven Loki

I 'd been limping along for about an hour, not going anywhere very quickly. Just keeping myself upright was proving to be a bit of a challenge. The healing powers of my race were a marvel, to be sure, especially when compared with humans. But they weren't without their limits. As it turned out, resetting a bone and then walking on it a few hours later was one of those limits.

However, I didn't want to show weakness. Not in front of Heimdall. Regardless of his promise, I didn't trust him. I had a feeling that should I misstep or go down, he would try to take me out as fast as possible. In this particular situation, I was the one with the power thanks to my phone's flashlight. But that only gave me more reason to think he might try to take it from me. Even in our weakened states, should he attack me, I knew I stood no chance of fighting him off. I could barely stand, and I was already limping something terrible.

And the worst part was, I could tell he was keeping an eye on me. Every time I glanced back, I caught him staring. He always quickly averted his gaze, pretending to be examining the walls or the stalactites above. But I wasn't a fool. I knew he was searching me out for weaknesses. Or, at least, I thought he was. Although I couldn't quite understand why he was always staring at my ass. I figured it had to be the hurt leg, right?

For some reason, the idea of him staring at my ass made my stomach flutter. That, more than anything, was extremely disturbing. I recognized the feeling of course. The last time I'd had it was in high school when I'd seen a naked woman for the first time. It was a rush of excitement and nervousness all in the same instant. But why would I feel that way with Heimdall? He was not only a man, but my sworn enemy's son.

Of course, my thoughts immediately shifted to Thor. Up until the moment he met Flynn, everyone, including him, was convinced he was straight. But once he found is fated mate , all that changed. Personally, I was convinced that Flynn had put some sort of spell on him. Whether it was charisma, training, or actual magic, I wasn't sure. Everyone who met him seemed to think he was charming and sweet and wonderful. But I wasn't convinced. He was just as much an enemy as Heimdall was.

Was Heimdall ensorcelling me?

I glanced back again, catching him staring once more. No. He was too thick headed and slow to be a magician. Besides, Tyr had mated with a werewolf. He didn't approve of mixing the races. That's why he despised Baldr so much. And as far as I knew, no full-blood werewolf had ever had magic.

So why did my stomach dance and twist when he stared at me? It was a frankly irritating mystery. For now, I was happy to chalk it up to pain and desperation. Both of them were probably making my brain do weird things. That had to be it. There was nothing more to it.

My thoughts were drawn back to the task at hand as a darkness rose up in front of us. I stopped, holding the phone flashlight high to get a better look. The cave opened suddenly wider there as it split into two distinct natural tunnels. One curved downward and to the left while the other seemed to stay level as it curved to the right.

I stood there for a long moment, turning my light back and forth, trying to figure out which way to go. But when nothing came to me, I let out a frustrated huff and leaned my back against the wall, sinking down to the floor. I was fucking exhausted anyway.

"I need a break," I said unapologetically.

"Okay."

I narrowed my eyes as Heimdall sat down opposite of me. It was odd that he didn't argue or push me on. He wanted to get out of the cave just as bad as I did. It was surprising that he would agree to rest when we'd been walking for such a short amount of time, especially when it was me that needed it and not him.

"I'm going to turn off the light to save the battery," I said, pulling the phone down. "It's gonna get really dark."

"Here," he offered, sticking out his leg so it was next to mine. "Hook your ankle around mine. Then we'll know where one another is at."

I glanced at his foot, then back to him. In the light I could make out his short brown hair and his bright green eyes. They were the color of moss in high summer after the rain. His jaw was sharp and clean shaven, his neck thick and flexing as he tilted it to the side. My eyes trailed down his body. His shirt was torn, revealing muscular pecs and a splash of dark hair across his chest. The denim of his jeans was shredded in places too, showing off his buff thighs. It wasn't until I looked up again that I realized he was staring back at me.

My stomach fluttered and I shook my head. "Right," I muttered, hooking my foot over his before quickly turning off the light.

Immediately, we were plunged into absolute darkness. I'd been in caves before, but never far enough to lose the light completely. Here in this space though, it was what I imagined complete blindness would feel like. I slipped my phone into my pocket before lifting my hand up in front of my face. Even when I could feel the heat radiating off my palm a half inch from my nose, I couldn't see it. I couldn't see anything .

Suddenly the cavern seemed colder and scarier than it had before. It slowly dawned on me that should my phone be damaged or run out of battery, we'd be lost in the dark forever. The thought made my stomach sink and my heart race. We'd be doomed to wander the dark until we starved to death. Or fell into a hole. Neither sounded pleasant. Although maybe the pit would be preferable. At least it would be fast.

I took a deep breath, trying to steady myself. Closing my eyes, they were useless anyway, I tried to focus on my other senses. The stone beneath me was cold, the chill seeping through my clothing with ease. Everything was quiet except for Heimdall's steady breathing. The only warmth I felt in that darkness was my leg looped over his. As my senses focused on the warmth, I felt something else. It was a strange buzzing sensation, like electricity prickling my skin where our bodies touched. I'd never felt anything like it before.

Before I could explore it too much, my nose picked up something. I breathed it in deeply on instinct, the deep rich scent filling my nostrils. It was earthy and spicy, like those stinky candles people bought around Christmas. But this wasn't pungent or off-putting. It was soft, warm, and pleasant. It made my stomach flutter even more and I wanted to lose myself in it.

The second inhale brought other information. It was a distinctly male scent, and it belonged to an Alpha.

My eyes snapped open in the dark, panic streaking through my body. The scent belonged to Heimdall. It had to. Everything else in that cavern stank of minerals and cold water. But not him. His scent brought back happy memories of baked goods and the resort decked out in holiday decorations. I recalled childhood days that I hadn't thought about in years and the joy that came with them. His scent made me feel like I was home .

What the fuck was all that about?

However, those happy feelings were quickly replaced with fear when I felt the crotch of my jeans shift suddenly. I reached down, terrified that some sort of cavern insect or monster was trying to eat my junk. But as my hand gripped the fabric, I realized what was going on.

I was hard .

The buzzing feeling where my leg touched his grew stronger as I connected all the pieces together. Heimdall, his scent and his touch, had distracted me so much that I didn't even notice the effect they were having on me. I was rock-hard just from being in his presence. And for the first time since I turned off my phone, I was happy to be in the dark.

"You okay?" Heimdall asked, his voice startling me.

"Y-Yeah," I muttered, shifting a little to give my dick more room. "Just sore I guess."

"You must be in a fair amount of pain. I can hear your heart racing."

Fuck, fuck, fuck. Not only was he giving me a boner, but he had to have supersonic hearing too? What was he gonna tell me next? That he could hear my cock twitching in the dark?

"I'm fine," I replied, trying to avoid the subject. "Are you alright?"

There was a long pause as he shifted against me as well. "I… I don't really like the dark."

His admission was so surprising, I forgot about my dick entirely. How could an Alpha of that size be afraid of the dark?

"Well, I'm right here," I said, not really knowing what else to say.

He hooked his foot a little snugger around mine. "Thanks."

Goddamn this was getting weird. Were we comforting each other now? What the fuck?

"Do…" Heimdall paused. "Do you think I could sit next to you?"

I knew I should refuse him. It was a stupid ask, and he was acting like a child. But for some reason, I couldn't bring myself to do it.

"Yeah. I guess."

Heimdall shifted again, his body completely invisible in the darkness. I felt his leg pull away from mine, quickly replaced by a thick hand on my ankle. Slowly his hand worked its way up my leg, then my thigh as he crawled his way toward me. My breath hitched in my throat, and I screwed my eyes shut, trying to think of anything else but his wandering fingers. However, I couldn't help the small gasp that escaped my lips when his hand suddenly came to rest on my rock-hard cock.

"Th-That must be your phone," Heimdall laughed nervously.

I wasn't sure if he was trying to convince me or himself. He'd seen my phone. He knew it was a flat rectangle. My cock, last time I checked, was not shaped like that. But I didn't say anything as he came to rest beside me, his back against the wall and his shoulder pressed to mine.

"Thanks," he said at last.

"Uh-huh."

For the next fifteen minutes we sat there in absolute silence. I was keenly aware of Heimdall's body pressed against mine all along my right side. The buzzing sensation intensified and now that he was so close, his scent all but overwhelmed me. And that meant, of course, that my dick remained stiff and throbbing the entire time. In fact, I was certain that if I were to turn on my flashlight and point it down, I would find a wet spot in my jeans from the amount of pre-cum I was leaking. The excitement caused by him merely touching me was incredible.

And also terrifying.

After those fifteen minutes, there was no doubt in my mind that I was desperately attracted to Heimdall. It shook me down to my very core. I, a straight man, was attracted to this male werewolf beside me. Not only that, he and his father wanted me dead. And if that wasn't enough, there was a single word that kept floating through my mind when I thought of him, terrifying me more than anything else had in my entire life.

Mate .