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crushedbyhyperbole · 5 years ago

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Beyond Broken - Chapter Six

Chapter Summary: Thor's stalking reaches a new high with the help of a certain former Russian spy. He comes to realise that he's hopelessly addicted to the woman named Jess. Thor gives her a name for himself, and they strike an easy rapport. Weeks on, something suddenly changes and Thor is thrown into a dilemma: kiss the girl or do the honourable thing.

Words: 5.6k

A/N: Here, Donald Blake is Thor's alter ego. (It's a little nod to the comics.)

Warnings: Angst, emotional hurt & distress, crying, a really mean argument happens, sexual attraction, soft Thor, first kiss, morale dilemma, guilt, bad language... also Thor is a stalker (but he means well). Really long chapter - sorry.

New Heights

Thor had accepted that the mystery woman had not wanted his company on her walk back through the park but he did not stay on the promenade. At a distance he followed her, watching her traverse the foot-worn trails through the brush in the sporadic light of the lampposts.

He watched from the shadows as she met with her fiancé, as he kissed her and they embraced. With the use of his bionic eye he watched them walk further up the street where they seemed to get into a fight. He couldn’t make out the words but he could see she was angry, and then terribly sad. Whatever that man had said or done to her was none of his business but it irritated him nonetheless.

When they both disappeared into an underground parking garage, he thought perhaps they lived there in the building above. Soon after, a small red Toyota emerged onto the street and disappeared along a side street. Perhaps not then.

There were many things about the woman that he didn’t know, and those were mostly things that he had no right to know, like where she lived or worked for example. Thor liked to know things, he preferred to be prepared.

The parking garage served the offices and businesses above, of which there was a mixture from legal to health and not surprisingly, an art studio. It also served as a limited space public parking area.

The art studio is promising. He thought.

The next day he went to investigate, disguised as a rich entrepreneur. He carried a suit very well and had seen enough of Stark’s interactions with people to know how things should be done. So, wearing the petrol blue three-piece he had worn to the first Avengers press conference and ball, and the large silvery time piece gifted to him by Clint two Christmases ago, he availed himself of the studio’s exhibition.

The paintings were mediocre at best. In all his years on Asgard, visiting all nine realms, and the years he’d spend here on Midgard, he had never seen anything as unsatisfying as what they produced in this era and called modern art. The sculptures were better, in particular a twisting metal contraption that spun, creating undulating waves using the motion of each segment. It looked like a jellyfish propelling itself through the deep ocean. The kinetic sculpture was powered by a motor inside the gallery but the intent for the piece was for it to be wind powered.

It was beautiful, mesmerising even.

“Good morning, sir.” The smartly dressed assistant approached him. “Can I show you our video catalogue of kinetic sculptures?”

“What’s the artist like?” He asked aloofly, suddenly disinterested in the motion of the sculpture.

“I don’t quite follow.”

“For me it’s more about the artists journey than the final piece. The kind of person they are, the things they’ve overcome, their process. Can you show me some biographicals on your artists instead? I have a specific need to find a connection.” Thor could feel himself oozing with charismatic over-confidence and pompousness.

“Certainly, sir.”

The young man scurried away but did not return. Instead an older lady in a designer pants suit, with a commanding presence approached.

“I understand you wanted to meet the artist.” She smiled smugly.

“You painted all of these works?” He spread his arms and gestured largely.

“Save a few.” She nodded, eyeing him like a snack.

“And the sculptures?”

“Some.” She drank him in from head to toe. “I mainly work in clay, like this one.” She stroked her hand lovingly down a large sculpture shaped like a lady’s forearm, the base was like the roots of a tree and a single leaf sprouted from one of the splayed fingers. “It’s the tree of life.” She smiled with pride.

The piece was titled Yggdrasil.

You have no idea what Yggdrasil really is. He thought.

“Poetic.” He said, nodding with false appreciation. “What about the metal-work?”

“My partner. He works large-scale for public display.” She flicked her hand dismissively. “These are the smallest of his works.”

“And it’s just the two of you?” Thor was starting to despair.

“Yes, we’re a business here, not just a labour of love, Mr…?”

“Blake.” He supplied languidly.

“Mr Blake?” She mused over the name. “British aristocracy?”

“Something like that.” He coughed nervously. “How could you tell?”

“You have a rarefied air about you. If I did portraits I’d offer you my services.” She winked, predatory.

“I’m after something in particular, a connection. Not a portrait.”

“And what is the budget, if you don’t mind my asking?”

“The price is irrelevant, for the right piece.” He took another look around, trying not to notice her greedy smirk. “None of your assistants paint?”

“No, neither of them.” She scowled.

“Are you sure? I had heard there might be a budding artist in hiding up here.” He winked at her cheekily.

“You’ve met Alasdair, and She’ree has no skill with a brush. She is wicked with record keeping but isn’t artistic in any way.”

“Sherry? The brunette?”

“She’ree. The redhead.” She was growing impatient. “It’s obvious that nothing here has caught your eye, Mr Townsend.”

“Yes,” he blinked disappointingly, “it appears this has been nothing but a wild goose chase. I apologise for wasting your time, madam.”

What in Odin’s name was he doing? Stalking a woman he’d seen out walking her dog? Visiting places in the hopes of seeing her or finding out more about her?

On his way down in the elevator he noticed an older woman staring intensely at him, unashamed. He looked away but she did not. Looking at the floor, the walls, the ceiling, the doors, his shoes, his fingernails, everywhere but her, he endured the ride to the ground floor in uncomfortable self-conscious silence. A nervous smile and a quick exit later he was striding out of the communal lobby and onto the street.

“There you are!” A familiar voice stopped his heart. He panicked. Stopped dead outside the doorway and stepped immediately left, hiding behind the pillar. He mentally blessed the girth and steadfastness of the stone feature.

“Did you see that guy?!”

“What guy?”

“The guy who just got off the elevator.”

“What guy?”

“The hunk in the swanky blue suit.”

“I didn’t see a guy.”

“You wouldn’t.”

“Come on, we’ll miss all the good tables.”

She was coming. Heading his way. She’d see him and the game would be up. She’d be upset, creeped out, disgusted even. She’d tell him to stay away from her and he’d do what she asked, of course he would, but it’d hurt. Ever since he’d met her he’d felt different, less angry, less loathsome. She’d calmed his inner storm without him fully realising, until now, the extent of the effect she was having on him.

“I swear if I was twenty years younger I’d be getting arrested for rape.” The older woman laughed. “He was beautiful, Jess, absolutely stunning. My Charlie would be getting a divorce if someone like that walked into my life. Hell, I’d probably never walk right ever again.”

“Jesus woman, I can practically hear you squelching as you walk. Do you need a napkin?”

Both laughing heartily, the two women exited, and as they did so, Thor shuffled himself around the column, slotting himself between the stone and the full-length glass of the lobby frontage. The girl at the desk frowned at him.

He smiled nervously and moved away. The two women turned the corner and he was suddenly safe. And now he had a name. Jess. Why hadn’t he looked closer at the woman in the elevator? He could remember next to nothing about her except that her hair was short and light, that her eyes were brown and made him uncomfortable, and that she wore dark coloured formal attire. There were no clues at all.

He racked his brain for information. He hadn’t even seen his mystery woman, only heard her voice. There was a chance that he had been mistaken, and it hadn’t even been her.

You know in your heart it was her. He pepped himself up. Now remember more!

It was useless. The more he plundered the memory the fainter it became until he could barely hear his mystery woman’s voice in his head.

This is wrong. He berated himself. She’s taken. You should just let her go. There’s nothing for you but heartache and a knee to the groin. If you’re lucky, just heartache.

He couldn’t argue with the facts but it didn’t change the other fact that he’d become different since he’d met her. The small amount of interaction he’d had with her had lifted him out of the gutter and back on his feet. Imagine what getting to know her better could achieve. He was attracted to her, certainly, but sex wasn’t the ultimate goal. He decided he’d be happy just to have her in his life. A friend, someone he could share things with, good and bad.

So stop the creeping.

“Ok, fine!” He huffed aloud.

That evening, after he watched Jess meet her fiancé at Neptune’s coffee shop, watched him kiss her and hand the dog off to her before dashing away, Thor realised that he had no willpower, couldn’t be trusted and also he decieved himself all too often. Telling himself he’d stop stalking her had been a bare-faced lie. Well, almost. Instead, he was stalking the fiancé.

Thor tailed him six blocks to a small hotel by the lighthouse, right near where Thor lived. He knew that the man made it back to meet Jess by ten pm, so what could the fiancé of a beautiful woman like her possibly be doing going to a hotel several nights a week?

Thor disliked the man before, but now he was disgusted.

Jogging back along the promenade he made it to marker twelve later than usual. Jess was already there, sitting in his seat.

“Stealing my seat now?”

“You snooze, you lose.” Her smile was mischievous. “I thought for a moment you’d found a better spot.”

“This is definitely the best spot.”

“You sure you’re not holding out on me?”

“Certainly not.”

“Alright.” She looked at him with suspicion. “You keep your secrets.” She gave him a tiny wink.

Talking to her that evening he could only think of the betrayal that was happening at that very moment in a hotel room a little over a mile away. Where did she think her fiancé went while she was here walking their dog?

When she left their communal spot to meet back up with her fiancé again Thor followed. The man looked crumpled, dishevelled, flustered. How could she not notice that? It wasn’t Thors place to judge. Maybe she was so in love that she didn’t see, aand discover her fiancé’s treachery would break her heart.

The next day Thor used the communicator.

“Romanoff,” he rumbled, “It’s Thor. Yes, yes, I know you know who I am. Listen, I need a favour.”

He asked the former spy to get him some information on who had been staying at the hotel by the lighthouse the previous night.

“It’s a personal project.” He said vaguely when she questioned him. “I need to find someone.”

“Any thoughts on when you’re coming back? Steve is worried about you.”

“Tell him I’m fine. Tell him I said hello.”

“I’ll email you what I find.”

“Great, Thank you.”

Romanoff was thorough and efficient. There were only four rooms booked at the hotel that night. One a couple from Canada. One a lady who had been staying there since Monday and was due to leave on Sunday – promising. One a conference suite rented by the hour – also promising. And one an elderly gentleman there for one night.

There were additional notes and photographs attached. Romanoff had pulled driver’s licences, addresses and a flurry of other information from the SHIELD and law enforcement databases. The elderly gentleman apparently lived in Florida but visited New London once a year on the anniversary of his wife’s death. Not him then. The woman was staying in the hotel for a week while her house was repaired, after all the recent rainfall, her basement had been flooded and needed significant repair. Ooops. That just left the conference suite.

It had been rented on an ongoing basis by a Mr Charles S. Duffy. Charles was an investment banker living right here in New London. Age 58. Married, with one child [DECEASED]. Vehicle: Silver Ford Explorer. The plate number was right there too.

Thor sent a reply requesting more info on Duffy’s activities at the hotel, and received CCTV footage of the man entering the hotel and various cameras tracking his movements into the Seaview Suite - as the name on the door said. A short while after, a tall man looking very much like Jess’s fiancé entered the suite also. Both men emerge from the suite within minutes of each other shortly before ten pm.

His communicator played a snippet of a tune with tension and drums. He’d received a message.

[N.R] Are you P.I. Thor now?

[T.O.] It’s personal. What is P.I?

[N.R] Forget it.

[T.O] Please don’t tell Stark.

In the early evening he went to the gym. They were used to seeing him there now and happy to let him go about his business without interrupting him to find out if he knew how to use each of the machines. There was always the occasional patron who looked on, impressed, to see how much he was bench pressing. He pushed himself hard, realising he’d missed this aspect of his life.

It was warmer today than previous days. The progression into late spring /early summer was apparent now that his month-long brooding session was drawing to a close. Soon there would be more people staying out later in the evenings due to the nicer weather and the lighter nights. He decided he might as well enjoy the beach while he could.

Tucking his shoes into his gym bag he crossed the railings and dropped the few feet down onto the sand. It was cold and damp between his toes, not at all as pleasant as he had hoped. Using his bag as a seat he sat a few metres up from the dark line that marked the most recent tide line and picked out pebbles to throw at the water. If he timed it just right he could throw the pebbles right at the leading edge of the water as it shifted and began to recede.

The yap of a small dog startled him. He’d know that bark anywhere but he refused to turn around, that would be… desperate. Soon the clunk of heels along the promenade drew to a stop nearby. He continued to throw his stones, unable to prevent the small smirk that forced its way onto his lips.

It felt like he sat there for hours waiting for her to notice him, he’d exhausted all pebbles in the reachable vicinity and would be forced to move very soon. Just when he was about to admit defeat, her voice carried down to him.

“You tired of sharing your spot with me now?” She said playfully, leaning on her forearms on the railings, as was her preferred position.

Acting as if he hadn’t noticed her approach he turned, looking surprised.

“Oh, hello!” He waved and stood. “Not at all. I’m a very gracious landlord.” Approaching the raised wooden walkway he came face-to-face with her ankles. Looking upward, the line of her nylon-sheathed legs disappeared at the knee under that wonderfully shaped skirt she seemed to prefer. “You may squat here at my marker as often as you like.” He smiled, squinting a little against the light behind her. “I mean, you said you were a squatter, I didn’t mean that you should squat. Unless you’d prefer to come down here. I mean I can help you, if you’d like?”

Oh shut your infernal mouth for once! His face burned.

“I’m fine thanks.” She laughed, lowering her head until her smirk was smothered by the backs of her hands. “I’m not exactly dressed for climbing fences.”

“I’ll come up then.” He slung his bag across his back and pulled himself up and over the railings. Dusting the sand from his feet he put his shoes back on, regarding her furtively while his head was lowered.

“You come here every day?” She asked.

“In one way or another, yes.”

“Oooh, mysterious.” She poked fun. “I don’t even know what that means.”

“Well,” he rumbled, swallowing dryly, “I come here to use the gym, or run sometimes. I do live quite close, just over there in fact.” He pointed to the waterfront apartment building a mile up the shoreline. “Mostly I come here to be at peace.”

You give me peace. He thought.

Something in her face changed, softened even, if it could possibly get any more appealing. There was a sadness in her eyes. He couldn’t look away.

“You lost someone?” She broke eye contact first, staring down at her hands.

“hmm?” He was baffled for a split second. “Oh you mean The Infinity War? D-Day? Yes, I lost a great many people that day.” Did his voice just break then? “But before that even… I’ve seen some terrible things.”

He was aware that he shouldn’t be going down this road, not with her. He’d hoped to remain anonymous, to leave Thor -The Avenger behind and become Thor - the man instead. Or possibly even not Thor at all, just a man.

“Were you in the army?”

“Close enough.” He nodded. If he wasn’t careful he would give too much away. “I prefer not to speak of it.”

“I get it.” She reassured. “We’re all hurting, it’s just that some of us hide it better than others. A lot of people died. It’s harder to find people who didn’t lose someone.”

“Life is the only thing that can be stolen and never given back.” He muttered. “And time.”

“Profound.” She praised.

“I have my moments. There’s a lot going on with me, you know.” He tried to lighten the mood. “Part-time public-space landlord, rain chaser, and philosopher. To mention just a few.”

His humour was verging on cringeworthy. How had he taken it from harrowing inner turmoil to shameless flirtation in one sentence.

“I’m sure you have many talents.”

Had she just flirted back or was that sarcasm?

“I’m Jessica, by the way.” She proffered her hand.

He took it gently, raising it and bowing as if to press it against his forehead in a gesture of utmost respect.

“It’s a pleasure to finally meet you.” Charm oozing from him in waves. “My name is…”

What should I tell her? Hello, I’m Thor, God of Thunder! Out of the question.

He spoke slowly, giving himself a chance to think of a name. He’d never given it any thought before, if he wasn’t Thor then who was he? The woman in the art studio had thought him British aristocracy, so what was a good British name? A British King perhaps. Henry. Richard. George. William. Yes, that one!

Her face dropped, slack jawed and horrified she watched his mouth start forming the name. Seeing the shock bloom across her face was enough to make him reconsider the whole false name thing.

“W-i-l-l-you excuse me.” He turned and fake sneezed into his hands.

“Bless you.”

“My apologies. My name is Donald, my friends call me Don.”

Your friends call you Point Break but you’re not telling her that. He thought.

“Don?”

“I’d offer to shake your hand but, well…” He grimaced, making a show of wiping his hands on the legs of his jeans.

“Yeah, I’m good.” She chuckled. “Good to know you, Don.”

“Lady Jessica.” He swept himself into a flourishing bow drawing a good-humoured eye roll from her. “The pleasure is mine.”

“My friend’s call me Jess.”

“If I’m permitted?”

“I don’t mind. Knock yourself out.”

“Very well, Jess.”

He might have looked bashful for a moment as she looked him up and down. He’d gotten more than he had hoped for so why was his chest aching and his gut telling him to escape? She was beautiful, he really couldn’t think that enough. Her steely-blue eyes were large and expressive, delicately arching brows and rich dark hair framing her perfect face. The sweep of long lashes had him holding his breath when she blinked long and slow, a slight blush on her cheeks as they spoke.

“Have I got something on my face again?” Her brows knitted subtly.

Jerking out of his daze, he searched her visage for anything out of place.

“No, you look perfect, as always.” He’d totally missed that he’d been staring at her the whole time.

She frowned more deeply, tucking a few carefree strands of hair back behind her ear.

“I should go, it’s already after ten.” She looked away with a look he could only describe as shame. “Daisy has been so patient with me.”

Thor wanted to say something. Apologise. Make light of his inability to read a situation. Tell her how much he enjoyed her company. Anything to take the shame from her expression. Ask her to stay - not that it would help. Instead he went with:

“She’s a good dog.”

After they parted, Thor mentally kicked himself. He always had an uncanny knack of making things awkward. More often than not it was endearing and usually made him quite likeable, especially to women. But then again they mostly only wanted into his trousers, more so when they discovered he was a god. Jess was different, she was guarded. He felt that he hadn’t overstepped any boundaries but this was Midgard and his ways were foreign here. He would have to be more careful with his compliments so as not to make her uncomfortable.

The next day she returned. And the next. Thor found himself falling in with her routines. Before long they’d been talking five nights a week for several weeks. Thor started walking with her while she walked the dog, always keeping a proper distance and never making her feel awkward. He brought a ball for Daisy Duke which became something they did, he kept it in his gym bag always. He told Jess it was becoming part of his daily workout so he and Daisy would run and chase each other in the grass while Jess watched on, laughing.

Jess started bringing an extra coffee with her for him. He’d tried the tiramisu hot chocolate, and while he enjoyed the taste he couldn’t excuse the excessive calories but he didn’t tell her that.

“I like my coffee how I like my men.” He said flatly. “Long and black, and bitter on the tongue.”

“Lewd!” She’d laughed long, feigning disgust, tears running down her cheeks. “That’s something my mind will never unsee. Thanks for that.”

That had been one of Thor’s favourite days with her. The day she laughed so hard she cried. He’d seen tears in her eyes before, shamefully brushed away, emotions denied. Now they made her eyes sparkle like star-steel. Wet cheeks or not she was stunning. Her hand momentarily rested on his bicep and he found her almost too close for comfort. He’d been laughing too, but now he was looking at the play of happiness on her lips and sparkle in her eyes. She’d done the same, eyes flicking down to his mouth as her laughter subsided. His skin prickled with anticipation and it was like he was frozen in place, seeing her within reach but unable to make the moment real.

Something broke in her and she snorted loudly, falling into a second round of laughter. It took the awkwardness out of the moment. Perhaps she hadn’t felt it like he had. He hoped she hadn’t noticed him hungrily drinking in the sight of her, hanging on her every gesture like a breath exhaled on a still and frozen night, where one slight caress could send him spiralling.

No matter how he felt, Thor was the perfect gentleman. Always respectful, always chivalrous, always considerate. He’d been brought up that way. He never intruded on Jess’s time with her fiancé, remaining out of the way during drop offs and pick ups but making sure she was safe. In the beginning the fiancé had walked with her in the park before leaving to ‘meet up with friends’ – those were Jess’s words. But now he left her at Neptune’s in order to dash off for a few hours with his lover. Thor had done enough digging to see what the man was up to but he didn’t understand how could Jess not see? She was astute and incredibly smart; she reminded him of Jane a little in that respect.

Sometimes people can’t see what they don’t want to see. He told himself many times.

Her fiancé was having an affair with another man. Thor didn’t want to be the one to break the news to her but the longer it went on the harder it was for him to stay silent. The risk that she would blame Thor for telling her and never speak to him again, however, kept him quiet. He was torn.

Spring turned to summer and they still met each other in the park. Thor had been content with simply sharing her time on the nights she was there. Jess hadn’t offered anything else, nor asked.

Conversation was easy and they talked about a great many things, though never anything too personal. He discovered that she worked at a dental surgery nearby (she had pointed up the street where Neptune’s was on the corner), which then triggered a memory of the day he’d gone to the gallery, and the woman in the elevator. There had been an astringent smell he had barely even noticed but with the new information his memory returned, richer, and now with aroma-vision. Thor had chuckled out of the blue, drawing questions from her.

“I know that building.” He’d replied. “I visited an art dealer there once, very disappointing show but the woman there offered to capture my likeness.”

“I bet she did.” Jess’s tone was full of inuendo, but Thor’s look of innocence made her laugh all the harder.

Thor told her he worked in ‘security solutions’ which she accepted. It hadn’t been far from the truth, in a scaled down, simplistic way. They shared anecdotes, although Thor held back; there was much of his life and antics that were well documented in the media here on Midgard, and although Jess didn’t seem to pay any attention to that, there was bound to be something that would make his real identity known to her.

She really seemed to enjoy his company and he watched as she blossomed from the closed off, pained and self-diminished creature into a radiant, vibrant and exuberant woman, full of life. It was basking in this glory that Thor finally saw that life could be good, even after all of his failings and defeat in The Infinity War. Good could come out of evil, and that he deserved happiness as much as everyone else, in whatever capacity it presented itself.

Things changed dramatically one Saturday night. Jess arrived at Neptune’s as usual, straight from work. Thor watched from a shaded part of the park as she met with her fiancé. Thor would wait for her until she crossed over and pick up her trail, meeting her a little way down the footpath. Her fiancé had stopped getting her the usual hot chocolate with tiramisu a while back so she and Thor took it in turns to buy drinks for each other. Today it was Thor’s turn and he had 2 cups in hand ready waiting.

There seemed to be an issue, however. They were arguing, arms wildly gesticulating, voices raised. The fiancé was pointing at the park aggressively, his face growing more red. Jess was crying. She took the dog leash from him looking up at the sky in supplication. Suddenly she slapped him across the face and scooped up the dog, striding away from him, heedless of oncoming traffic. The fiancé left without a backward glance.

Thor’s heart almost stopped as she stepped out onto the road. He scanned up and down but she was clear. Her pace quickened, feet skipping as she partly jogged through the park’s gateway from the street. He didn’t want her to know he’d seen so he moved to intercept her at the joining of their two paths.

“Hey, you.” He said in the calmest tone he could muster, falling into step beside her. “Good day?” He prompted, hoping she’d open up.

She didn’t even look at him.

“Jess?”

Her face was streaked with tears, and she stared ahead only as if it was the only way to hold her composure. A few more strides on he decided to take action. Getting out in front of her, he transferred both cups to one big hand, base stacked on lid, and stopped her with a hand laid gently on her shoulder.

“Hey, hey,” he soothed, “what’s the matter?”

That was all it took for the floodgates to open and she was crying again, shoulders shaking, gasping for breath as she let go of her composure.

Thor put the drinks down beside his feet and stepped forward to pull her into a hug. It was such a natural gesture, he didn’t even think about the space he promised himself he’d always give her, nor the physical contact he knew he shouldn’t engage in. She needed him in that moment, and she didn’t shy away.

Jess leant into him, allowing him to wrap her in his arms, and pressed her face into his chest. She sobbed and sniffled, breathing hot and humid through his t-shirt onto his skin. They stood like that for a while, with him rubbing her back in the most platonic way he could, and her soaking his chest with her tears.

Daisy started pulling on the leash and it seemed to draw Jess back to the here and now. She stepped back as Thor’s arms fell away. They felt all wrong with the warmth of her gone and he wasn’t sure what to say, or do. Without more information about why she was so upset, he could very well say the wrong thing and make everything so much worse.

“Is there anything I can do?” He spoke softly.

The park had few enough people in it that they were relatively alone, and the quality of the light made it feel like they were secluded in a twilight realm. He longed to hold her again but to do so would not be proper.

“No.” She exhaled a heavy, shuddering breath, and wiped her cheeks with the palms of her hands.

When she looked up at him a second later she looked so vulnerable. His heart ached to see her this way.

Her eyes flicked down to his soaked t-shirt and back up to his face. Her eyes went wide and gasped a little.

Thor panicked. She was about to say something about him touching her.

“I’m sorry, I…” He gestured with his arms.

“I’m not.”

She didn’t miss a beat. Stepping forward quickly, she stood on her tip-toes and pressed her lips to his, freezing him on the spot.

Her lips were soft and a little puffy from crying but they felt divine. She released the seal of her lips but kept gentle contact, trailing her mouth across his, slowly drawing him into a response, parting his lips with hers until things suddenly clicked.

His response was immediate and thorough. Catching her waist with one hand and sliding the other into her hair, he cradled her, deepening the kiss. He delved into her, tasting the salt of her tears and the sweetness of her mouth. It was everything he’d imagined it would be and he was swept away by the wave of passion that crested and flooded his senses.

Her hands were on his face, in his hair and she was sighing through her nose as their tongues touched and circled in the join between them. One more little moan from her and he swore to himself that he’d lay her down right there and see what other noises he could coax from her beautiful lips.

This isn’t right. He thought, mentally kicking himself as he so often did when he thought improper thoughts around her.

Thor was the first to pull back, breathless and startled. He felt like he had as a boy getting caught stealing sweet treats from the kitchens. This thing between them now wasn’t his to have, it was a dream and was destined to remain as such.

“I can’t allow you to do this.” He beseeched, steadying her with hands on her upper arms, thumbs gently stroking against her blouse. “Your fiancé might be an unfaithful weasel but you’re better than that. I could not forgive myself for making an adulterer of you.”

Her furious frown was complete and undeniable. There was confusion there also, and tears. Plump beads collecting on her lower lids, making her eyes turn glassy.

Turning on her heel, she fled, tugging the poor dog with her.

“Jessica, wait!” Thor felt like he’d been punched in the gut by Hulk, breathing was difficult and he ached.

He knew he should not follow, she wanted space or why run? She’d already cleared the park and it took every ounce of willpower to keep his feet firmly planted where they were because every nerve in his body told him to go to her and his muscles twitched to obey. The fading feeling of her lips on his pulled at something in his chest, making him feel hollow. What in Odin’s name had he done?

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