by Anya Nowlan
“What is it, Thor? I thought we were supposed to keep some distance from one another,” she said, biting her tongue as the snark slipped out without her really intending to make the conversation any more painful than it had to be.
But before she could apologize for it, Thor chuckled. It was a low, resonating sound and it almost sounded like when he had been chatting with her in the forest, blind and for some reason a lot less guarded than he was usually.
“I probably did imply that, yeah,” he said with a shrug. “And I stick with it. But I wanted to let you know that we’re about to head out on a mission. We’re goin’ to try and find a sample of that virus for you.”
Nia nodded, worry blooming in her chest. Somehow, the fact that Thor would also have to go if Shifter Squad Nine set out had completely slipped her mind. Looking over at Thor, she had to wonder if it hadn’t been a good thing for him, though.
Compared to when she had seen him before, he had clearly grabbed a shower and a shave and changed his clothing. While the slight stench of alcohol still hung to him like an unfortunate cologne, he’d definitely cleaned up a lot. Perhaps he was just the kind of man who needed a constant goal to strive for.
Including one that gives him the option of being as far as possible from me, Nia thought with a roll of her eyes.
“Good luck,” she said awkwardly, reaching the door that would lead her into the room that The Firm had given her for the time being.
It was simple, unadorned and felt just as bland as the rest of the damn building. Whatever The Firm was in the world of war, destruction and mayhem, they sure had a lot to learn about interior decorating.
Nia’s hand was already on the handle and she was about to turn her back to Thor when he spoke up again.
“I wanted you to-… Nia, I don’t know if I’m comin’ back from this one. I just need you to know that if you pull through this, you and the baby, then I’ve got you covered.”
Nia’s mouth fell open.
The combination of Thor implying that there was something that he couldn’t take on and that bombshell of a piece of news that he’d left for the end both had her stuttering. She was struggling for words, sort of gasping for air, when she heard the muffled sounds of conversation coming from the opposite end of the hallway, clearly heading their way.
Nia swiped the card against the door and grabbed a hold of the front of Thor’s shirt.
“Come with me,” she commanded, exasperated at both what he’d said and that she was being dumb enough to do this again.
Hadn’t she learned already that forcing Thor Dremmons to do something that he didn’t want to do would never end well, not for him or for her?
I guess I’m just too damn stubborn for reason, she thought, biting down on her lower lip as the door closed behind the two of them.
Thor stood awkwardly in the middle of the room, looking too damn big for the tight, enclosed space. Her bedroom had gray walls and a simple bed with a small desk and a chair to accompany it. Off to the left was a small washing room and a closet space for all the clothes that Nia didn’t have.
Bringing a hand to her cheek, she could feel that her face was burning up. The scientist in her wondered if it was because of the virus exhibiting new symptoms or if she was just reacting to what Thor had said. Either case, she was getting damn tired of constantly blushing around the man.
“Explain,” she said simply, looking up at Thor.
He was wearing black pants and a skintight black tee that strained around his wide, strong arms. The rose and thorn pattern that he had on his right arm peeked out from underneath the sleeve, warping into a set of vines that ended with snake heads down his forearm. It might have looked scary to most people, but to Nia, the tattoo was oddly poetic, showing his two sides. The softness that Thor had shown her and the vicious animal that he exhibited to everyone else.
Right now, she wasn’t sure if she was dealing with the thorns and snakes or the blooms.
“The mission?”
“No, your goddamn banana bread recipe,” Nia said, throwing up both her hands in a moment of annoyance. “Sorry. My trigger’s sort of short with everything going on,” Nia said, groaning as she brought both hands to her face now. “No, not the mission. What do you mean by ‘you’ve got me covered’? How can you help with anything if you’re dead?”
That word sent a chill down her spine that seemed to spread through her, filling her with the cold of a hundred winters. The thought of losing him like that was… unbearable. It kicked the breath out of her lungs and instinctively, her hands went to her belly, feeling the baby stir suddenly.
“Are you alright?” Thor asked immediately, crouching down next to her and putting his hands over hers. “Should I call someone?”
There was such urgency in his voice, worry and outright fear clear in his tone. That more than anything else brought tears to Nia’s eyes, which she swallowed valiantly.
No. No crying. I might have plenty to cry about later – save it for then!
“No, I’m fine. Well, I’m not fine, but you know what I mean,” Nia explained, giving him a meek smile. “Please, just tell me what you meant. I know I shouldn’t be keeping you.”
“I’ve got time for this,” Thor said, a hint of sternness in his voice. He kept his hands right where they were before speaking again. “I set up an account for you and the baby. It’s in your name in Shifter Savings Unlimited,” he said, looking positively sheepish. “I’ve saved up a lot of money over the years with this line of work, never really had anythin’ to spend it on. If you ever need anythin’, there’ll be enough there. Just promise me that you’ll… Hell, never mind.”
Thor removed his hands and stood up, pulling a hand through his hair in frustration. He turned his back on her but before he could move toward the door, Nia managed to hook her fingers through a loop on his belt and yank him back to look down at her.
He wasn’t going to get away that damn easy.
“Promise you what?” she asked, keeping her voice as level as she could.
She wanted to yell at him, possibly even throw something at him. Where did he get off on thinking that he was allowed to die when she was carrying their child? And why did he think that any amount of money, no matter how large, would in any way make up for the fact that he wasn’t sure if he could be a part of her child’s life?
He needed a big dose of reality and she had every intention of giving it to him, but seeing the lost and pained look in his green eyes, her heart couldn’t help but melt into the mushiest puddle right at his feet.
“That you’ll be alright. I know you can’t promise that so I shouldn’t ask,” he said, casting his gaze down and shuffling a little with his feet.
Nia made a little sound that was somewhere between a squeak and a squeal. In any case, she was up on her feet in an instant, pulling Thor close to her and getting up on her tiptoes so she could almost reach him.
“On one condition,” she whispered, her voice far breathier than she had intended it to be.
“What condition?” he asked, sounding wary but doing nothing to put any additional, unwanted distance between them.
“That you come back alive.”
He grinned slowly, his lips parting in that sly smirk that she loved and loathed on him with equal measure.
“What’s in it for me?” he asked, and she was damn close to punching him for it.
Not that it would have done her any good. He would have probably barely flinched.
“I might not come and find you in hell for being an absentee father,” she said, snorting.
“I guess that’s somethin’,” he murmured, finally leaning lower.
Despite better judgment and everything she’d told herself, Nia took hold of his shirt and kissed his mouth with all the ferocity and lust that she’d bottled up over the last two months. The very first thing she’d wanted to do when she’d laid eyes on him again was to jump his bones, but that was sort of difficult when deranged terrorists were draggi
ng her through an abandoned paint factory.
At least for a moment, they were alone, Thor wasn’t being a complete asshat and she could have what she wanted.
Maybe for the last time.
Nineteen
Thor
“Are you sure you wanna do this?” Thor asked, though his hands were already peeling off the lab coat Nia was wearing.
“Uh-huh,” she muttered as Thor tossed the crumpled fabric across the room, leaving it on the table in a haphazard pile.
“You know I’m no good for you,” Thor continued between kisses, his heart pounding out of his chest as his hands roamed over her body, taking in every mouthwatering curve again.
Her curves felt impossibly familiar to him, like he had spent a lifetime learning them by heart and he was finally given the chance to put his knowledge to use. She squirmed just right when he grazed his fingertips over the small of her back, feeling the delicate fabric of her black blouse against his touch. As far as he was concerned, she shouldn’t have been wearing a damn thing and though his rational mind was telling him to step away, back off and leave, he wasn’t about to listen to any of that nonsense.
For once, he was going to let emotion and desire to take over. Just like that night in the cave, a part of him was screaming that it was wrong and that he shouldn’t be giving in to what he needed, but at the same time he knew that if he didn’t, he may as well put a gun to his head and pull the trigger now.
It might be the end of him either way, but at least this way he was going to have a hell of a lot more fun.
“The only one you’re not good for is you, Thor Dremmons,” Nia said, nibbling on his lower lip as she tugged on his tee, making him pull it off.
She mewled in the cutest way when she saw his body flex in the glaring, fluorescent light. The light cast shadows on his perfect body, not a pound of fat on him and his whole form carved of muscle and sinew. Thor caught himself flexing for her, his hands rolling into fists, and he had to grin when he relaxed himself.
Tryin’ so damn hard to show off for her and then I act like a fuckin’ fool.
He didn’t think he had been wrong for what he’d done. The bottom of the bottle was the right kind of place for louts like him, men who couldn’t be the kind of people who deserved the happiness that was being shown to them. But the last thing he wanted was to cause Nia any more pain or displeasure. If she wanted one more moment together… well, how could he say no?
You’re being selfish, a voice in the back of his head said as he kissed her again, his panther purring when her tongue intertwined with his.
He knew he was. But he didn’t care.
What Thor had said about the likelihood of him not returning quite in one piece hadn’t been for posturing or getting any fake sympathy. Prowler had figured out where The Arctics were probably holed up in Singapore and judging by the communications going in and out of that place, it was swarming with werewolves looking for fresh meat to grind.
Every one of Shifter Squad Nine had simply shrugged and asked when they were rolling out. There had been every sort of macho bullshit reason for why they were going – from kicking in the teeth of werewolf mutts to just because they wanted to watch the world burn – but Thor knew that his squad was doing it because they hated seeing people suffer who didn’t deserve it.
What better way to put a stop to that than by making the bad guys suffer instead?
Nia pulled off her blouse and then undid the button on her pants and every rational thought was wiped clean out of Thor’s head. He kissed her again, cupping her sweet face with his hands, and she tasted like cocoa and honey. It made his head spin.
His hands snaked behind her back and he unclasped her bra with one deft, hurried move, at the same time already trying to push her pants down. She let the bra slip off her frame but stopped him there, grinning up at him as she unzipped his cargo pants and sunk down on her knees in front of him.
“No, if you intend on trying to die tonight, then I’m going to show you what you need to be thinking of so you’ll come back,” she said, looking positively devilish as she yanked down his pants and boxers.
Thor sucked in a lungful of air as her tongue poked out and she made a tiny, tight circle around the head of his cock. He pushed back his head, a low snarl ripping through his body as she repeated the motion and then laid her tongue flat against the head, rolling over it with wider strokes. She was lapping at him as if she was licking a lollipop and Thor could feel his body tightening up again, muscles growing rigid from the tormenting bursts of pure pleasure.
“You’re an evil woman, Nia,” he pressed out through gritted teeth, grabbing his head with both hands as she sucked the head into her mouth,
Gently, she cupped his balls, and then tugged on them lightly as she rolled them around in her hand. Her tongue still swirled around the head as she started bobbing up and down on his cock, taking him deeper into her mouth with every stroke.
Finally, he dared look down at her again, fearing earlier that he might just toss her down on the cold hard ground of her room and fuck her like the savage he was again.
He’d been meaning to ask if it was okay that she was doing this at all, whether she should have been careful because of her health. Not that he was in any way afraid of catching the virus himself – the compound had been given a quick briefing on how that wouldn’t be possible as soon as they’d been brought in – but he didn’t want her to hurt herself.
By the way she was absolutely driving him out of his mind, he figured it was best not to ask that question now.
Her eyes were half-lidded, her cheeks flushed as she grabbed his thick shaft with one hand and started pumping up and down. Thor groaned, a violent shudder ripping through his body now. She was playing him like a damn instrument and she remembered exactly what got him off. The way she ran her tongue down the underside of his shaft should have been damn near criminal.
If there was ever a way to get Thor to do whatever a woman wanted, it was by doing that.
Well, okay, in Nia’s case, she probably just had to ask nicely. He was completely defenseless before her and every attempt at saving her from him had only resulted in him getting tangled up deeper.
Maybe you can’t fight this, he thought, the notion sudden and sort of scary in its clarity.
His green eyes shot open, having shut them before and simply focused on the pleasure for a minute, and he leaned down to scoop Nia back up on her feet. Her eyes were hazy and he kissed her mouth, tasting himself in her mouth and not caring one bit.
“What is it? Did I do something wrong?” she asked, frowning a little.
“You could never do anything wrong, honey,” he said, conviction ringing in his voice.
Gently, he pushed her back on the narrow bed and pulled off her pants and panties. Her scent hit his nostrils and he groaned again, a deep, throaty noise. She smelled even more delicious than he remembered.
Getting down on his knees in front of the bed, he pushed her thighs apart and licked and nibbled a path up her inner thighs. Reaching the apex of her thighs, he breathed in deeply, a smile spreading over his lips. If this was to be his last meal, no one was going to catch him complaining about it.
“Relax,” he told her, Nia looking at him with wide eyes, her teeth digging into her lower lip so hard he thought she might draw blood.
“Easy for you to say,” she shot back, her voice quivering a little.
Thor chuckled and while still keeping eye-contact, ran his tongue up the length of her wet slit. They moaned at the same time, Nia’s eyes rolling back in her head as she slumped down on the covers. Thor’s mouth filled with her taste and his hands gripped her soft thighs, fingers digging into the flesh slightly, though remaining careful not to accidentally hurt her.
He started slowly, by letting his tongue explore her folds and then curling around her clit. She wiggled in his grasp and he breathed on her clit, making her gasp, before he sucked on it lightly. The noises she made were music to his ear
s and he kissed her clit and around it, loving every second that she allowed him to lavish her with attention.
She writhed against him as he pushed one finger into her soaking wet pussy slowly, then adding another when her back arched. Her fingers twisted in the sheets as he slowly fucked her with his fingers, all the while kissing and licking her clit. It wasn’t long until those familiar shudders hit her body and he knew she had to be getting close.
For a moment, he stopped, and Nia looked up immediately, her expression a painting of sudden surprise.
“Why did you stop?” she asked, breathing heavily.
“Maybe I wanna hear you beg a little,” he teased, smirking.
He was fairly certain that had Nia had any energy to spare, he would have been dealing with a hell of a kick to the head. Instead, she just groaned and plopped back down on the covers, laughing a second later.
“I’m not sure I can get with your multiple personalities, Thor Dremmons,” she said, sounding positively exasperated.
“Whatever do you mean?” Thor asked, slowly sliding his fingers back in her and then pulling out again with excruciating slowness.
She whimpered and convulsed around his digits so beautifully he almost wanted to never stop tormenting her like that.
“I mean that you’re a-“
But she never got the chance to finish that thought, because Thor pushed his fingers deep in her again and put his mouth over her clit, sucking at it and lapping his tongue over it at the same time. Within seconds, she was a grinding, gasping mess in his hands.
When she screamed out, yelling his name, Thor couldn’t keep himself from claiming what was rightfully his again. He pushed her higher on the bed and got up, covering her curvy, deliciously dark-skinned body with his. Her softness felt extraordinary against the hard steel of his muscles and when his thick, rigid cock thrust into her pussy, he went to heaven right with her.
Gritting his teeth, Thor had to forcefully hold himself back to not pound her right into the mattress as her pussy clenched around him, milking him. He took short breaths, thrusting in and out of her carefully, every movement bordering on torture and pleasure at the same time as she rode out her orgasm, her nails raking down his chest and arms.