Page 35 of Fenrir

The two shared a look, and Val shook her head.

Val didn’t want more kids? Grace couldn’t imagine having only one child. She wanted a whole brood of children. Boys and girls. She looked at Fenrir and wondered what it would be like to bear his children. To carry them in her belly and feel them grow inside her. To feel his strong hands on her stomach as their child kicked inside her.

He would be a fantastic father. A father unlike the one either of them had. The way he acted with Freyette made that perfectly clear. She imagined him on the floor with their children. Wrestling. Laughing. Playing.

Fenrir stroked her with two fingers, and she let out a small gasp, pinching the inside of his thigh before moving her hand between his legs.

He smiled down at her, and her breath caught. It took every ounce of restraint she had not to climb on top of him right there.

“We have given it much thought and have decided that we want an extra layer of protection for our daughter if something should happen to us,” Loki said, breaking through Grace’s haze.

Fenrir’s grip on Grace’s thigh tightened a fraction.

“We would like for Fenrir, Son of Loki, and Freyette’s older brother, to be godfather and guardian to Freyette,” said Val.

Fenrir’s grip went slack on Grace’s leg, and his fingers stopped moving. Every eye went to him, and a tense silence formed around the group.

A moment passed, and then another.

“Thank the gods,” Hel finally said. “I was terrified you would task me with raising the little thing. I can’t even stand adults, let alone children.”

A snort escaped someone and then a laugh from another. Soon the entire table erupted in laughter, followed by applause.

Grace smiled at Fenrir, and he looked at her, confusion playing over his features.

“Say yes,” she urged. “Tell them you will protect your little sister.”

“I will protect her,” he said. “I’ll protect her with my life.”

A loud cheer sounded around the table, and then mugs of ale appeared out of nowhere. Everyone grabbed a mug and began clinking them together.

Grace picked up the mug in front of her and sipped it. She’d never been a beer drinker and now was no exception, but in light of what had just been bestowed on Fenrir, she had to join in.

Fenrir raised his mug to his lips as if in a daze. He looked down at Grace, and she smiled at him.

“They couldn’t have picked a better man,” she said. And she meant every word. With Fenrir as her protector, no one would ever dare harm a hair on the girl’s head. And Goddess help any man who broke the poor girl’s heart.

* * *

The other godscame around one by one and clapped Fenrir on the back. They congratulated him and talked to him, and treated him like he was one of their own. Even Odin.

The feeling made him uneasy, yet he craved it all the same. All he’d ever wanted was to belong. To join in. To be part of the family. And now it seemed he was.

Once more, Vidar, Tyr, and Hermódr invited him and Grace to hang out for the evening, but Fenrir wasn’t ready.

Hödr approached him with his dog Rolo. Fenrir bent and pet Rolo and spoke for several minutes about how Rolo and Hödr were doing and if there was anything Hödr needed help with.

Fenrir watched Grace as she spoke with Sutrelle and Frigg, and Meili. They smiled and laughed like Grace had always been a part of their group. It made Fenrir happy to know that Grace was so well-liked.

“She’s lovely,” said Tyr.

Fenrir stiffened where he stood near the door, watching her.

Tyr ambled closer to Fenrir. “I can tell you care for her a great deal.”

Fenrir ground his teeth together.

“I’m happy for you.” Tyr set his hand on Fenrir’s shoulder, and Fenrir fought the urge to shove it off. “Loki said you are working on forgiving him.”

---