This Time Around (Sequel to All Over Again)

Chapter Twenty-Six

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

The bathtub in their chambers was the biggest tub McKenna had ever had the fortune of soaking in. The water, no matter how long it sat, never grew cold and one of the gold taps actually filled the huge black marble tub with bubbles.

She sank into the bubbles with a low sigh and closed her eyes as she reclined on one of the built-in benches. It was, without a doubt, the most welcome bath she'd ever taken. The lights were out as she'd taken the time to light about a dozen candles and set them all around the tub before she filled it.

Soft golden light flickered around her as she rested her head against the side of the tub and closed her eyes. It was difficult to remember the last time she felt so absolutely worn out. Probably not since the night last winter, when Sif showed up in New Jersey to tell her Loki had been badly wounded while retrieving the Tesseract from Ronan the Accuser. McKenna sat at his bedside all through the night and into the next day, when Loki technically died. Thankfully, his will to live was far stronger, and he opened his eyes just as McKenna broke down.

That was the only time she felt more drained. The thought of losing Loki, of anything ever happening to him, was one of her greatest fears-other than something happening to either Selig or Aislinn-and when Ward shot him with the ICER, it brought back that screaming fear. Even if she hadn't worked hard under Sif to learn what she had, McKenna was pretty sure she still could have kicked Ward's ass.

Her eyes slid shut as she let the water cradle her in its warm arms and enjoyed the peaceful silence. She earned it.

"Now this is a sight I wouldn't mind walking in on more often."

She didn't open her eyes at Loki's purred growl, but smiled as she said, "Is that so?"

"Absolutely, love."

Bubbles fizzed and she bit down on her bottom lip as Loki's fingers trailed through the bubbles and brushed her stomach. Water sloshed softly with each light graze and his fingertips swept up in between her breasts, over the rise of her left one, and back down around the curve.

"Mmmm..." she whispered, stretching her legs under the water. His gentle caress made her blood warm and tingle its way through her veins.

Then his hand disappeared. "Oh..." she pouted, still not opening her eyes.

Water sloshed again and he eased into the tub alongside her, slipping an arm about her as he whispered, "Don't open your eyes, love... Stay exactly as you are," as his lips came down on hers.

She wrapped her wet arms about his neck as he cradled her against his body, pulling him down to meet her. She parted her lips, her toes curling at the silken caress of his tongue gliding along hers.

His mouth moved against hers tenderly, leisurely, in a deep kiss that she felt clear through to the center of her being. His arms tightened about her, his hand came up to cradle the back of her head, and when he broke the kiss, he whispered, "You were amazing this afternoon, love," as he held her tight.

"Thank you." She rested her head against his chest, tracing her fingertip through the bubbles on his chest and belly. "I was scared to death until that prick hit Selig. Then, I forgot all about being scared. I only wish I'd been able to knock out a few of his teeth, like you did."

He swept his hair away from his face with one hand. "I cannot believe Selig made my dagger appear for you. He's come a long way since I first taught him how to do that. At first, he could make the object appear, but couldn't make it permanent."

"I can absolutely believe he did it. He's so smart and he is just like his daddy." She smiled up at him, still trailing her fingers up and down over the ridges of his abdomen. "And he learns fast."