The God and the Siren (Loki Romance)

Chapter Sixteen

A bout of turbulence jolts me awake, and I inhale sharply as I sit up from the leather chair, looking around me. Three heads turn toward me—Thor, Pepper, and Heimdall. I give them a tired smile as I yawn, and plop back against my seat. I look over to my left, at the rising sun in the window, and movement in the bottom corner of my eye catches my attention. I look over to see Loki flipping a page of his book, and drop my gaze down to it for a moment.

"Cerys, is there a reason you're breathing over my shoulder?" he breathes out—a bit dryly—without looking at me.

I stare at him for a second, processing the rude inclination in his tone yet again, and turn away without a word—rolling my eyes. This shit just isn't going to fly anymore, and I'm definitely putting a pin in this for later.

To my right, I see Thor turn his head slowly toward Loki, also noticing the tone. God, his moods are such a trip these days, clearly for everyone. I look over and meet his equally confused expression with my own—none of us seems to know what crawled up his ass overnight and died. Meanwhile, a stewardess comes around with a tray of breakfast for everyone: scrambled eggs, yogurt, a croissant, and coffee.

I put on an episode of Big Bang Theory while eating, and am halfway through tearing apart the croissant when an announcement pauses the screen, "Good morning ladies and gentleman, this is your captain. Just checking in to let you all know that we'll be landing in Geneva in approximately thirty minutes. We'll be starting our descent in a bit here, so we'll be putting on the 'fasten seatbelt' sign in a few minutes. The weather in Geneva is cloudy skies, we're anticipating a smooth landing and an otherwise snowy day. Thank you again for flying with us, we'll be on the ground soon."

I let out a steady breath at the words 'smooth landing,' but it doesn't last—the landing is anything but smooth, really. At least, not what I imagined smooth would be. Turbulent, and seemingly longer than it should be.

I squeeze the leather handle of my chair with another bump, and see Loki stiffen, holding the corner of a page as he glances down at my hand—then me—in my peripheral vision. His eyes jump up to my face as well—with a slight, upward turn of his head—but I continue staring ahead, and even turn my gaze slightly to the right.

"It's a good morning, Lady Cerys," says Thor with a cordial nod.

My eyes dart over to Thor and I grin warmly. "It is. I'd ask how you slept, but you looked pretty peaceful all night."

Thor chuckles slightly, and rubs his brow with his right thumb. "Yes, well... I prefer the comforts of a bed, but this was far from the least comfortable set of circumstances I've slept in."

I smirk. "Yeah, well, who doesn't like the comforts of a bed?"

A silence falls between us as I pause for a brief instant. Thor and I exchange amused glances, both noting the connotation, and break out in a quiet chuckle. Though as I turn to look back at the screen, I notice two things—the seatbelt sign is on, and Loki's fingers haven't left the corner of the page.

***

With Christmas just around the corner, it seems that everyone's flying in and out to be with their families. The airport is bustling endlessly with people, and the roads even more so. Tony and Pepper were able to get us through customs quickly, but it takes almost an hour for us to get to our 'abode'—a beautifully furnished, enormous AirbnB flat with rooms for every single one of us, and a gorgeous view of the snowcapped mountains etched across the tall window overlooking the living area.

My jaw drops straight to the floor at the sight of it all—the coziest, most amazing interior I've ever seen in my life. The large, circular window revealing the mountains is surrounded by smaller windows near the ceiling—likely meant for letting in additional light—just above a set of towering bookshelves. Puffy sofas line the sides of a walkway leading from the window to a fireplace on the other side of the room, while an elegant, wooden coffee table lines the length between those as well. I could swear a little hint of a squeak escapes my throat as soon as I lay eyes on the blankets littering the sofas.

I grab Pepper by the arm as she walks past me, and lean toward her—whispering quietly as I continue looking around the rustic room. "This had to have costed you a fortune..."

She shrugs. "Good thing we have one, right?"

My eyes dart over to meet hers. "I feel like I need to contribute to this..."

Pepper knits her brows together and shakes her head. "No, don't worry about it. Tony picked this place, and he'll make enough to compensate the cost for our entire trip in about..." she pauses, glancing at her watch demonstrably. "Two hours? In the meantime, you should go and try to pick a room before everyone else does."

I watch as she walks off, before trailing my gaze over to the hallway beside the kitchen, in the far left corner. This whole place has one giant open-floor plan, and it's hard to believe that someone might live here casually—never mind the fact that this building has enough width to cover the floorspace of all these rooms.

While the others explore the living area, my eyes narrow as I see that Loki's almost reached the hallway, and I pick up my luggage—scurrying across the wooden floor, past him. I stop just  a few steps into the hallway, and hear his footsteps also stop behind me. A glimmer of mischief crosses my thoughts as I pause for a moment, and look back at his blank expression over my shoulder.

I raise a brow in mock disapproval of his staring at my backside. "You're breathing over my shoulder, Loki," I croon sarcastically—referencing his earlier, rude comment.

Loki's eyes narrow in turn as he presses his lips together, pulling the corners of his mouth downward in restraint. Before I know it, he's walking toward me—more like at me, actually—forcing me forward as his eyes begin jumping between the open doors on either sides of me.

I turn sharply, realizing that he's on his way to lay claim to a room, and start pacing briskly down the hallway. A hint of a chuckle twinges in my chest as I hear his footsteps pick up behind me, and I look back and grin at the dour expression he's forcing at my obvious challenge.

I pass by a giant bathroom to my left, and then look over to see the room I'm going to take—the one at the end of the hallway. I can't even fully see what the interior looks like, but Loki seems to be headed toward it without stopping, so it definitely has to be mine.

A little bit of a laugh breaks out in my throat as I scurry over the threshold first, with my luggage sliding past me on the wooden floor. I turn and look up at him from the threshold, leaning victoriously against the frame as I close the door halfway.

The forcefulness in his expression dissipates a bit—as though he's trying to hide a scintilla of amusement brimming in his own thoughts. "I'd like this room," he says, and I find myself pleased to note that I can't hear the annoyance in his voice at all.

I tilt my head as I step closer to him—leaving my luggage in the room. "Well," I say with a heavy exhale, and Loki visibly stiffens as I take a tiny step toward him out the door. "I'd like you to not be a dick for no reason, but it looks like that's not going to happen either." I raise a hand up to my nose and tap it lightly with my index finger. "Better luck next time."

Loki merely stares as I step back into the room—closing the door pointedly in time to see the corner of his mouth twitch.

My hands remain pressed against the wooden door for a moment, and a cheerful lightness stirs in my chest as I turn slowly and look around the room. It's just as rustic as the rest of the apartment, and the bed looks large and welcoming.

Everything is well-kept and beautiful. From the generously pillowed bed, to the ornate desk nestled under the window, to the bookshelves and forest paintings lining the walls on either sides of me. To top it off, the vastness of the window itself allows a considerable amount of light into the room from off to the right—along with yet another gorgeous view of the mountains.

This is going to be amazing.