Chapter Sixteen

Jane stared at Loki trying to process what he'd just told her. He looked ashamed. He hung his head and shut his eyes tightly. "I'm sorry," he whispered.

"I—I don't understand," she said. "Why would you be thinking of me?"

He looked up at her in resignation. "Because I want you, Jane. Because I'm in love with you and I want you for my own. I think of you – of touching you, of holding you…"

"You do?" she whispered, scarcely able to believe it. This felt surreal. Was she dreaming? She pinched herself and then winced when it inevitably hurt.

"What are you doing?" Loki demanded. "What did you do that for?"

"I thought I must be dreaming," she murmured. "I had to check."

He swallowed hard. "I'm sorry, Jane. I know what you must think of me—"

"You don't," she said quickly. "Trust me when I tell you that you don't."

He looked at her curiously. "What do you mean, Jane?"

"I love you," she burst out. "I'm in love with you too, Loki. I have been for so long now and I didn't know how to tell you."

Loki gaped at her. "You—you love me?"

She nodded, tears of relief and joy dropping from her eyes. "I thought I was alone in it. Oh, God, Loki if you only knew how much I hated seeing you with Darcy and just the thought of you and Lady Sigyn—"

Loki cradled her face in his hand and looked down at her searchingly. "I'm not dreaming?"

"Do you want me to pinch you?" she asked with a smile.

His expression shifted to one of awe. "Jane…my Jane…"

She nodded. "And my Loki."

He bent his head and crushed his lips to hers. Jane moaned and her arms went around him. Kissing Loki was much better than kissing Steve. When she felt his tongue touch the seam of her lips, she started and gasped. And then his tongue slipped into her mouth and she and Loki shared a moan. Jane clung to him, feeling a tad overwhelmed by the onslaught of passion she felt.

Loki broke the kiss, panting, and pressed his forehead to hers. "I thought you'd marry Steve. I thought I'd spend my life having to watch you with another man."

"And I thought you'd marry Darcy or even Lady Sigyn. Thor thought you might ask Darcy to marry you," Jane whispered.

"I do not want anyone but you, Jane," Loki said solemnly and kissed her again. He began walking her backwards towards her bed. "You are all I want," he muttered against her lips in between kisses.

When the back of Jane's legs hit the bed she sat down and looked up at him. He smiled and pushed her back onto it. She scooted back onto it and Loki followed, crawling over her like a panther. Her heart hammered hard in her chest. She didn't know what he was going to do with her in the bed, but she had heard enough talk at balls to guess. As much as she loved Loki, she wasn't sure she was ready for that yet. However, she was also powerless to stop him.

She matched his fervent kisses with fervent kisses of her own and when his hand parted her robe, she shivered.

"I won't make love to you tonight," he murmured. "It's too soon for that, yes?"

She nodded.

He smiled tenderly at her and nuzzled the side of her face. His nose traced a line down her cheek to her jaw and Jane moved her head to the side. Loki buried his face in her neck and sucked lightly on her neck and then kissed her there. He then rolled off of her and lay on his side, looking at her with a smile on his face. "It appears we do have some things to discuss now."

She rolled onto her side and faced him. "Yes." She scrunched up her face as though in pain. "What are we going to do, Loki? Is this not wrong? We are brother and sister."

"No, Jane, we're not. We are not blood-related."

"But Mother and Thor do not see it that way."

He sighed, reached out and caressed the side of her face with his hand. "I know."

"Are we to live in secret?" she whispered.

"No. We will tell them."

Her eyes went wide. "Oh, Loki, I don't know about that…"

"Do you prefer to live in secret then?"

She shook her head. "No, but I prefer to not be cast out of the family."

He looked puzzled by this. "Why would you be cast out?"

"Because you are Frigga's son. You are her blood. I am adopted. She might decide I am some kind of harlot, that I've corrupted you—"

Loki laughed, a low rumble. "She would not believe you to have corrupted me, Jane. She would believe I have corrupted you instead."

"Be that as it may, she could very well decide I must go." Jane shivered. "I do not wish to become a lady of the night."

"Jane, dearest, let's not get ahead of ourselves," Loki said and inched closer to her. He reached out and cupped the back of her head, bringing her in for another kiss. "I can scarcely believe this is real and not some dream," he murmured. "This feels like one of my many dreams and fantasies about you."

Jane was acutely aware that her parted robe and thin nightrail offered little barrier between her and Loki. He was barechested as it was, and she could feel his body heat through to her skin.

She could also feel the instrument against her stomach that had led to all of this. She broke the kiss, panting, and buried her face in his chest. She felt her cheeks grow hot.

"Dearest?" he asked in concern. "What's wrong, my love?"

"I can feel your…" she trailed off, mortified.

Loki laughed and brought her face up to his. He smiled. "You'll have to get used to that, darling."

"Loki!"

He laughed and pushed her onto her back. He lay half on the bed and half on her. He swept his hand through her hair and gazed down at her with a soft smile on his face. "Perhaps before we decide to tell Mother and Thor, we grow accustomed to this change to our relationship first?"

Jane nodded and smiled at him. "Yes, please."

Loki grinned and then leaned in and kissed her again.