floor, I dressed and placed a soft kiss on his head before I went back to the bed I shared with Celeste.
She stirred in bed when I lay down next to her. “Did you talk to Thor about Freya?”
“Mm-hmm. I helped him calm down. He’s sleeping now.”
“That’s great. You have a good influence on him. I can tell.”
“Thank you.” Closing my eyes, I drifted into dreamland, where Thor and I continued loving each other with no concerns of our being from opposite cultures or wanting different things.
CHAPTER 18
Obvious
Thor
I had slept with Linea.
It was all I could think about.
When we said goodbye to my sister the next morning, my brain was in a haze and I repeated myself several times.
“You’ll be careful?”
“Yes, Thor, I promise.” Freya hugged me tight. “Mom suspected I’d stay so I already said goodbye to her, but Dad will be mad about it.”
“If you knew you were staying, why didn’t you tell him before you left the Northlands?”
“Because I didn’t want to argue with him. You know, Dad would have insisted that I come back home to wait for Shelly and Marco to arrive here before joining them. I didn’t want to.”
“But you’ll be careful.”
“You already said that.” She laughed. “What’s with you this morning? Are you nervous about telling Dad that you left me here? It’s not the same as when Aubri and Indiana stayed. This time he knows about it and it’s just a week or so before Shelly and Marco will get here.”
“Don’t worry, Thor. Your sister will be safe with us,” Celeste said and patted my back. “Victor and I will make sure she returns smarter and more independent than ever.”
Victor stood close by. “I’ll personally teach her everything I know.”
I didn’t like the mirth in his eyes, and I got the feeling that I was missing out on an inside joke.
My gaze went back to Freya. “Six weeks.”
She nodded and repeated, “Six weeks.”
“And you’ll be careful.”
“Yes! Now go.”
Once Indiana, Mason, Linea, and I had boarded the drone and were flying home, I watched her interact with the others and wondered how they couldn’t tell that we had slept together. How was it possible that something as monumental as what had happened between Linea and I last night didn’t leave a mark on us for everyone to see?
I wasn’t the same person anymore.
Something profound had shifted inside me and it had to do with her.
“Why are you so quiet?” Mason asked me when I sat with my chin in my palm, watching the clouds below us.
I shrugged. Even if I had wanted to tell him about last night, I wouldn’t know how to express my feelings.
Linea always talked about energy. I didn’t understand half of the things she referred to, but what I knew for certain was that being inside her had given me a sense of peace that I hadn’t known before. Now, I wondered if it was the act of having sex with a woman or Linea specifically.
My head was busy with thoughts and most of them weren’t positive or peaceful. While Linea and I had sex there had been no room for negative thoughts in my mind. She had made me feel accepted, loved, and cherished. Turning my head, I looked over at Linea. Her gaze met mine and with nothing but a lift of the edge of her lip, she made everything inside me feel soft and gooey.
I wanted her again.
The craving inside me felt like a fierce and urgent matter, but I’d already screwed up once. I had wanted our first time to be on our wedding night and she still hadn’t accepted being my wife.
I needed Linea to see that we could be happy together.
How I wished that I hadn’t been such a jerk to her when we were younger, or that time in the Motherlands… well, actually both times in the Motherlands. Why the hell was I such an idiot when it came to Linea? I should have realized that she was special.
Memories of mocking her energy work when I was clueless came back to me and internally I beat up myself for being the biggest fool alive.
“Don’t look so solemn. It’ll be all right,” Mason leaned over and pushed at my knee. “Your dad won’t freak out this time.”
I shook my head. “I don’t care if he does. Freya is an adult and can do as she pleases.”
“I doubt she’ll stay six weeks anyway,” Indiana chuckled. “Victor will drive her crazy in a few days