"Thirty, on each side, probably. I've never had anyone over to use it, so I'm not sure."
Elle walked along the table, running her fingers over the backs of the chairs. "A real Viking ship. With dragon's heads carved in the front and back. Incredible." Her gaze traveled over the intricate scrollwork, and Thor felt a sense of pride at her admiration.
She chuckled. "I think you underestimate how many people would fit at this table."
"When we host our first family dinner, we can find out."
Elle's gaze shot to his. "We?" She stopped moving. "You still want there to be a 'we'?"
In the rush of everything that had happened, Thor hadn't had time to think about what they had been through. The lying, but also the honesty. The tears, but also the laughter. The fear, but also the immense happiness.
"I do," he said. "I don't like that you didn't tell me about your past, but... I did tell you it didn't matter to me who you were, only who you are. And unless I lied to you, I have to be okay with you not telling me."
She nodded and continued down the table.
Thor's gut clenched. Had she changed her mind? Had her newfound independence caused her to see he wasn't worthy of her?
"What about you?" he asked. "You aren't obligated to me because my family came to your rescue."
She stopped, and her eyes narrowed. "You are aware I could've handled myself. I was doing fine before you showed up."
Thor wrinkled up his face. "Were you, though?"
Elle threw her hands in front of her, and a group of thick, fiery bands flew from her fingers and snaked around his body. The ropes warmed but did not burn his skin.
"I can heat them up for you if they aren't warm enough," she chided.
Arousal stirred inside Thor. He flexed against the bands, but they didn't budge. He flexed again, this time trying to break free. Elle raised her palm, and the bands tightened around him.
She smirked.
A thrill of excitement mixed with a trickle of fear inside him. He'd never been bound by something he couldn't break.
Elle sauntered around the table toward him.
"Have you been able to do this all along?"
"Among other things. I told you I literally made the jewelry with my hands."
"I see that now." He tested the bands again.
They didn't budge.
Elle stopped a foot from him and looked him up and down. For the first time, he took a long look at her in her curve-hugging dress. The sight made his arousal kick up. How had he not noticed before? Maybe it was because he'd been focused on making sure she wasn't married off to someone else.
Elle glided towards him, pulling a wooden chair from the table with an easy grace. Smoothly placing it behind him, she gave a gentle push until he settled into its embrace. Her eyes twinkled with mischief as she circled around, laying her fingers on the ethereal bands. They shimmered and writhed like serpents, sliding off his chest to tightly coil around his arms, securing him to the chair. With a playful smile, she perched herself on his lap.
Thor strained against the magical bindings; every fiber of his being screamed to hold her close. The intensity of his desire was a tempest, threatening to burst forth at any moment.
Elle’s features glowed. A mesmerizing mixture of light and darkness woven together under her skin like an enchanted tapestry.
Elle leaned closer, and warmth radiated from her body like basking in sunlight after days beneath stormy skies. His heart thundered, matching the wild chaos of emotions swirling between them.
An unspoken electricity flowed between them; a promise hanging heavy amidst whispered desires.
He flexed again, wanting to grab onto her. To hold her.
Elle gripped his chin. "Don't break the chair. I like it."
