Page 31 of Loki's Enemy Mate

No answer.

I let out a sigh, smiling to myself. I would have to be careful around this one. Sleeping naked with him might mean getting fucked in the middle of the night. Not that I minded. The mere thought of it would’ve had me rock hard and leaking if I hadn’t been already. But as much as I wanted to suck him off right then and there, I forced myself to push it from my mind.

The wall still had to be broken, and it would take a lot of effort. Both of us needed to conserve our energy if we were going to get out of this cave alive. Neither of us had eaten in over two days now and I wasn’t sure about Heimdall, but I was starting to feel it. My muscles never stopped being sore, my stomach was constantly growling, and even my healing had slowed down. I was running on fumes, and it wouldn’t be much longer before I was too weak to do most anything.

We had to make it out while we still had some juice left. And that meant, much to my chagrin, that I needed to keep my dick and my mouth to myself. However, the moment we were out and got some food, I promised myself I’d give Heimdall the ride of his fucking life.

With a level of self-control I didn’t know I had, I extracted myself from his arms and stood up, stretching away some of the sleepiness. I was still sore and my head throbbed, but I didn’t feel dizzy anymore. That meant I could at least be useful while he slept.

Picking up the stone he’d been using, I stepped into the river, hissing through my teeth as the cold swallowed everything from the calf down. I gritted my teeth and headed for the spot where he’d been working. It was a little harder to find in the dim light, but the moonlight shining through helped me locate it at last. Recalling his methods, I reached deep inside myself, coaxing the exhausted wolf inside me to the surface. With a deep breath, I let my Alpha form take hold, the fangs filling my mouth as my body swelled.

A rush of energy filled my veins, but I knew it wasn’t going to last forever. There was no time to waste. Reeling my arm back, I screwed my eyes shut and slammed the stone into the wall as hard as I could, keeping my fingers clear. There was a resounding crack, and several shards fell into the water around my feet. To my surprise, I found the hole a little larger when I opened my eyes. A few more stars peeked through, lighting the darkness beyond. Smiling to myself, I reeled back again and struck the wall, determined to open it further before Heimdall woke up.

For the next hour, I worked myself until my arm was numb from the constant impact. I forced myself to take a break, happy with the progress I’d made. The hole was no longer tiny, but actually big enough to get my entire head through. I was still a long way off, but the rock I’d been using to chip my way out had all but disintegrated.

I pulled myself out of the river and back to Heimdall’s side. Leaning my back against his chest. He was still passed out, clearly undisturbed by the constant ear-splitting echo of stone against stone. He must’ve used a lot more energy than I anticipated. However, I was happy to let him sleep. After everything he’d done for me, he deserved it.

The break gave me some time to think, anyway. I’d been avoiding it for the past hour because, to put it simply, I just didn’t have an answer yet. But after everything that had happened and our multiple brushes with death, I was determined to make a fresh start for myself once I was free of that cave.

The one thing I was most certain about was that I wanted to be with Heimdall. We’d known each other for less than three days and already I knew, deep down in my heart of hearts, that he was my future. Any plans that didn’t include him were pointless. If he wasn’t at my side, I’d spend the rest of my lifewandering the edges of our packs, just hoping for a glimpse of him. I was hopelessly and utterly smitten and there was nothing I could do to change that. Three days ago, I would’ve killed him if I’d been given half the chance. But now, I’d lay my life down to keep him safe.

Logically, it was a leap and a stupid one at that. Every part of my brain was screaming at me that I was being childish and whimsical, that it would lead me to my doom. But despite all that, I was a werewolf, and a mate bond was something thatcouldn’tbe ignored. Despite our differences and the fact that our packs were at war, I was going to be at his side. And maybe one day I’d even learn to love him.

If I didn’t already.

And that thought, more than anything else, scared the ever-living shit out of me.

I still didn’t know what I was going to do about Tyr or avenging my father. But I did know that I wanted to go back to Thor and apologize to him when the time was right. And to Baldr. They deserved better than the way I’d been treating them these past few months. Our pack deserved a better leader than what I’d been as well. And as for Flynn… well… I still didn’t like the idea of having a human around, but I couldn’t deny Thor his mate. Still, I planned on interrogating the shit out of him and his grandma. I wasn’t buying that Little Red Riding Hood bullshit they were doing. Wolf hunters were no joke, and I wanted to make sure that those traditionstrulyhadn’t been thrust upon him.

“Loki?” a whispered voice said from beside me.

“Hey,” I replied softly, leaning down to kiss him on the cheek. “I didn’t mean to wake you.”

“You didn’t.” He sat up on one elbow, yawning and rubbing his eyes. “Fuck I’m sore…”

“I can imagine.”

“You been awake long?”

“An hour or so. I opened the hole up wider while you were resting.” I lifted a hand, showing him the crumbled remains of his stone. “But I need a new rock.”

His face dropped. “That was the last one,” he sighed. “I broke all the stalagmites I could find. There aren’t any more.”

“It’s a cave,” I shrugged. “There’s gotta be more rocks somewhere.” I glanced back the way we’d come down the river. “I don’t really want to go back into the dark though and chance getting lost.”

“The only place I haven’t checked was the pit you fell into.” He shook his head. “I wouldn’t be able to get back out by myself. It’s a stupid idea, anyway.”

“Actually… it might not be. What if you lowered me back in and I looked around?”

“You won’t be able to see anything!” he snapped, suddenly wide awake and alert. “And what if you take another bad step and fall somewhere I can’t reach you? I barely got you out last time!”

“Hamball,” I said, stroking his cheek. He visibly relaxed, my touch seeming to have the calming effect I’d intended. “I’m not going anywhere, okay? But we can’t just give up when we’re so close to being free of this place.”

“Idon’twant you going down there,” he reiterated, not budging an inch. “Besides, what’s out there?” He gestured toward the hole in the wall, a tone of despair in his voice. “How would we ever make it work?”

“I don’t know,” I replied honestly, leaning down to kiss him once more. I remained close, my forehead pressed against his. “But if we don’t try, we’ll never know.” I held him there for a long moment, my voice barely above a whisper. “You’re my mate and no matter what, I’m not going to let you go. I can’t. I feel too much for you already. And I know it’s stupid to get soattached so quickly and let my emotions run away with me but… well… I can’t help it Heimdall. You’re the only one for me. Three days ago, I would never have believed it but today I know it’s the truth. It might be the only truth I’ve ever known.”

There was a long silence.

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