The sun shone through the partially open drapes as Annalise stretched awake, wincing as sore muscles reminded her of the night's activities. She rubbed her eyes as memories from the previous night slowly returned to her. She recalled him catching her trying to escape, them on the couch and then the floor… and then him carrying her to bed. Turning to her other side, she wasn't surprised to find herself alone, although she admitted she was a little disappointed that Loki hadn't stayed.

She had no idea what to expect from him. He was erratic before they had sex. Hopefully she hadn't made things worse. Swinging her legs to the edge of the bed Annalise stood with a sigh and ran a hand through her long hair, using her fingers as an impromptu comb. Someone cleared their throat, causing the poor girl yelp and dive for a sheet in an attempt to cover her partially clad self.

Despite his mostly emotionless blue eyes, the S.H.I.E.L.D. agent had the decency to face away, and she could've sworn his cheeks were tinged pink. His reclined position in the chair indicated he had been in her room for at least several hours. Based on his discomfort, she assumed he was here by order of Loki, most likely to prevent her from escaping.

Escaping. Her knife. Uselessly she searched the bedclothes, feeling around for the weapon that she knew was long gone. Loki had had every reason not to return it to her. Oh, well. She had tried. Failed miserably and ended up fucking the enemy instead of assaulting him, but still, A for effort.

She returned her attention to the poor gentleman staring intently at the bare wall, clearly uncomfortable with her state of dress. Well, that made two of them. Time for real clothes.

"I'm going to shower and get dressed, which I can do without an escort. Where's Loki?"

"The king is busy finalizing plans for tonight," replied one of the guards, "

The king. She baulked. She'd called Loki her king last night. She was pretty sure he had more or less manipulated her into doing so on account of she vaguely remembered him withholding penetration until she humored him. And during sex, that's practically blackmail. Or coercion, or something. Either way, dick move, dude.

He hadn't been serious, had he? She had written it off as some holier-than-thou kink. Apparently he had been. Back to equalitarianism ground zero. Her thoughts were interrupted as another agent knocked against the doorframe, using the sound to announce his arrival rather than asking permission to enter. He had a garment bag was draped over one arm and in his other hand he grasped the handles of several department store bags.

"He said you're to eat and be dressed by the time he returns in a few hours," he said. "Room service is on its way."

As far as being held in captivity, life could be worse she mused.

"Thank you, I can take it from here," she said, shooing them off with a wave of her hand. Fighting the urge to tear into the bags, she forced herself to first shower and dry her hair. She donned one of the hotel's white terrycloth robes and followed the smell of food to the main room. The cart held enough food for ten people, they must have ordered one of everything. She grabbed a sandwich and some fruit before retreating to her room.

Nibbling at her food, Anna started going through the bags. After she had opened the shoe box and peeled tissue paper from a pair of modestly high nude pumps she also unwrapped a pair of diamond earrings the size of peas, removed more tissue paper to reveal a simple gold clutch, and found two bags stuffed with hair products, tools and cosmetics. Having saved the best for last, she carefully removed the garment bag from the dress.

It really was exquisite; a dark emerald gown with an empire waste, short train, and deep halter neckline made with a silk georgette fabric studded with tiny beads and sequins. Fighting the urge to squeal, she carefully hung the dress on a hanger and bolted to the bathroom with her new army of beauty products.

After curling it, she doused most of her hair with hairspray and teased it to create volume. Figuring she couldn't go wrong with classic, she wrapped and spun the length of her hair into an elegant French twist, leaving a few loose tendrils around her face. She attacked her hair with a militia of bobby pins, satisfied only when she could successfully shake her head without the style falling free. She messed around with some of eyeshadows, liner, and mascarand finishing her eye makeup by using the tip of a brush to smudge a dark color along her lower lashline before deftly diffusing until it was soft and smokey. After dabbling with some blush and concealer, she grabbed the only tube of lipstick provided. Pulling the cap off, she grumbled when a rich red shade was revealed. She applied a small amount around the perimeter of her lips before taking some product on the end of her finger. Gently working it over her lips, she smiled at the much softer, stain-like effect the application gave, opposed to the bold look of applying it straight from the bullet. There was a similar shade of red polish that she quickly swiped onto her nails, blowing on them impatiently as they dried. Finally, finished. Annalise went to double check her appearance made a face at her reflection in the mirror. More or less satisfactory.

Grabbing the dress from its hanger, she cautiously stepped into it. The dress zipped at the side for which she was grateful because she required no help from the agents. She had no interest in getting to know the guards that intimately, especially as she realized the material around her breasts appeared to be completely transparent. Lines of closely sewn sequins covering her nipples were the extent of the modesty provided by the dress.

Slipping on her shoes and grabbing the clutch, she teetered a bit on the carpet. Heels were not her favorite. She took a few minutes to tentatively walk around the bedroom perimeter until she was confident enough that she wouldn't look like a newborn foal stumbling about.

As she entered the main room, her stomach fluttered as she saw that Loki had returned. Please, let this not be awkward. His brows rose in appreciation and he stood, moving to circle around her. She fidgeted, following him with her eyes until he came full circle and planted himself in front of her.

"I knew I selected well," he stated quietly, tracing a finger along the plunging neckline of her gown.

And yep, we're back to making everything about him again.

"I'm going to pretend you're not completely objectifying me and choose to interpret your comment as a complement," she clipped.

Completely, 100% ignoring her, he smiled.

"You look good in green."

Eager to move the attention off of herself, she took a moment to examine him. Damn. Careful not to gawk because Lord knows the man didn't need any additional ego stroking, she had to admit he looked fucking good in a tux. Loki was temporarily distracted conversing with the guards, so he didn't see her objectify him right back.

When he returned his attention to her, his eyes didn't immediately meet hers. They detoured to her nearly completely exposed chest, which she promptly covered with crossed arms. This, to her irritation, caused him to chuckle.

"Darling, it's not as if I haven't seen you already. Though I have to admit, having to look at you half makes all night is going to be distracting."

Asshole. All of this extended eye contact was making her very uncomfortable.

"Can we leave?"

He exchanged a few more words with the agents before offering Annalise his arm. She took it shyly, irritated when herheart sped up from being so close. She better get comfortable being near him or it was going to be a long night.

They were picked up by the same driver as before. The car ride was devoid of verbal conversation, though her thoughts flew at her with an annoying rapidity; wondering if he was going to acknowledge their coupling the night before, whether it was going to repeat tonight, or whether he was going to ignore it completely. She was also very uneasy about what was to come at the gala. At her house he had mentioned something about the Avengers, but her memories were foggy, presumably from the stress at the time.

"Are you going to tell me what you're doing tonight?"

He looked at her, appearing surprised that she was even interested.

"No."

Oh. Well. Okay. Keep being an asshole, see how cooperative that makes me.

"It will be easier for me to.. do my job if I at least an idea of what's to come," she pointed out, banking on the whole liaison bit.

"I suppose you're right. As you know, we're attending a gala. You're to socialize appropriately, but make sure we don't draw attention. I'll be looking for a specific gentleman. Once I've procured what I need, I'll address my audience. You'll introduce me as their newly appointed king,"

Great. It was one thing if he made himself look like an idiot, but did he really need to drag her down too? Apparently.

The car slowed to a stop before a huge, beautiful stone building with an open rotunda already teaming with people. Annalise had to admit she was a little awestruck. She had been to events before, but nothing on this scale. Loki helped her from the car and took her arm in his and with his opposite hand he gripped the scepter topped with the ominous blue spear and used it as a walking cane. Lovely.

"Come, my dear," he said it as if it were a proposal, but the firm grip he had on her suggested otherwise.

Annalise was tall, but Loki was gargantuan and his legs were longer than hers. As he strode towards the crowd, she yanked on his arm and complained at him to slow down. He glanced down at her, smirking with amusement. Had she been able to do so without toppling over, she would've kicked him. Maybe not the most mature reaction, but effective. And it would've been really satisfying.

The couple made small talk with other guests as Loki slowly moved them inside. Loki wasn't as awkward as she would've thought, but it definitely helped that she was there to put on the charm. Cordial conversation was a specialty of hers. As she spoke with people, he was impressed at how at ease she was, genuinely smiling and appearing to enjoy herself. Her chest bounced slightly as she laughed along with the men and women she was speaking to. His eyes were drawn to her red lips and he was reminded of how delicious she had tasted. Loki tried to ignore the wisp of hair fell loose along her temple, but when she reached up to smooth into place, his hand got to it first, tucking it behind her ear. He couldn't help himself as he traced the back of his finger down the side of her long neck, smiling proudly as he spotted several marks he'd left. For the most part, they were covered with makeup. He was likely the only one to notice and that was simply because he was responsible for them. She looked to him in confusion. No longer caring as he stared, he could feel himself growing hard. No, not necessarily the time or place for such a reaction, but he was to be a king. And kings get what they want when they want it, including openly ogling their dates. Had he said this aloud, Anna would've remarked that toddlers function under the same modus operandi, but the thought remained just that.

Somewhat abruptly he pulled her away from her conversation and began retreating the way they came. Confused, Annalise sputtered and demanded an explanation which, of course, Loki ignored completely. He peered around the side of a building before dragging her to a more private alcove.

"What the hell!"

He narrowed his eyes at her. She had no right to be indignant. He should be indignant. He was trying to conduct a worldwide takeover and she kept interfering with his focus.

Earlier that day Loki had confiscated a pack of odd, white sticks and some sort of small fire machine from one of his agents. The agent had explained that the sticks helped with stress. Brows furrowed in concentration, Loki mimicked how the man had placed one of the sticks in his mouth and used the fire contraption to light the end. He inhaled deeply and coughed, pulling the stick from his mouth in annoyance and glaring at it. After a few more attempts, Loki had more or less figured out how to smoke the cigarette without looking like an idiot.

Annalise watched, dumbfounded.

"We came outside for this? I was doing exactly what you told me! We were inconspicuous until you all but dragged me away from the guests!"

Though quite gifted in the art of witty responses, the silver tongued god remained quiet. He thoroughly enjoyed watching Annalise work herself up. The passion with which she spoke and the way her cheeks pinked made her look adorable. And distracting. And completely fuckable.

He knew there was only one way he'd be able to keep a clear head tonight.

His train of thought was interrupted when she plucked the cigarette from his mouth, taking long drag before letting it fall to the ground. She lifted the hem of her dress, careful to keep it from the touching the offensive little stick, and proceeded to use the toe of her ridiculously expensive shoe to grind the stub into a mess of ashes and tobacco flakes.

"That's a disgusting habit," he murmured, unable to keep the corner of his mouth from twitching upwards at the irony. He was immortal. Smoking phased him not, but he couldn't resist baiting her.

"You must forgive me," she grumped, exhaling the smoke away from them, "I've been under an elevated amount of stress as of late." She was pissed. He loved it.

Distracted with how irritated she was with him; Annalise didn't notice Loki's proximity until it was too late. He roughly pressed her against the brick wall, messing with her balance and forcing her to grip his shoulders.

"I forgive you for stealing my paper stick," he said with complete sincerity. "But I do not forgive you for how fucking distracting you are," he growled.

Anna's eyes widened and her mouth opened in shock. She was most definitely not expecting that. Taking complete advantage, Loki sealed his mouth over hers and promptly shoved his tongue between her parted lips. She decided that defense was the best offence and she tried and push his tongue of her mouth. Using her own, of course. Admittedly, she wasn't surprised when her strategy backfired, and when he groaned in pleasure and ground against her, she whimpered in response. She tried reminding herself that this was wrong and that she was a captive, blah blah blah, but her brain grew foggy and she couldn't recall why any of that mattered.

"Tell me," he said, pulling away from her lips to growl in her ear. "Are you equally distracted?"

Realizing she had the opportunity to at least attempt to speak again, she managed to form a breathy "no" in response to his question.

"Liar," he hissed, biting the lobe of her ear.

She yelped quietly and he quickly kicked her legs apart, then took both of her wrists in one hand and used the other to ruck her skirt up around her thighs. He stared at her with an unsettling intensity as he slipped his hand beneath the fabric. Once he found what he sought, he stroked her, his fingers gliding against her hot little slit as he watched her cheeks and chest flush. His fingers slid easily between her lips from how wet she was, and he grinned in triumph. She was mortified by her physical response to him. Caught-trying-to-escape-sex was one thing, but this was a serious out-in-public power play!

"Good. You feel it too," he crooned in his ear, his voice misleadingly gentle as he roughly thrust his two fingers inside of her. Anna gasped at the sudden invasion and stared at him in disbelief.

Confident that he could overpower her again if need be, he released her wrists and jerked her chin up so that her eyes met his.

"Look at me," he hissed, watching her face as he began to experimentally thrust his fingers into her, causing her to shudder as he found a rhythm.

Once her eyes locked with his, she couldn't force herself to look away. To her dismay, she realized she could hear herself whimpering and sighing, but she couldn't shut herself up.

When he crooked his fingers and increased his pace, her hips bucked against his hand and she knew she was done for in record time. Had she really been that aroused all night? She gripped his jacket and buried her face against his neck as she completely lost control, the coil low in her belly erupting into spasms of pleasure that rhythmically squeezed around his fingers as he fucked her through the orgasm.

Distracted by watching him lick his fingers clean, she wasn't paying attention to the fact that he had unzipped his pants and pulled himself out. He watched her as he stroked his throbbing cock. She was still recovering from her climax and appeared deliciously ignorant to his next intentions. He grabbed one of her thighs and pulled it up around his hip, holding her in place as he lined himself up against her dripping cunt. He entered her in one thrust, grunting in pleasure as he sunk into her tight heat. She cried out in surprise and and made a very pathetic attempt to push him away from her. It was one thing to fingerfuck her in public, but full on sex was a whole different story. However, once he pulled back and then slammed himself in to the hilt several times any willpower she had held on to vanished.

Unable to keep quiet, she covered her mouth with one hand and gripped his jacket in the other so that she didn't completely lose her balance as he fucked her up against the wall.

Hand still very much clamped tightly over her mouth, she watched his face as he pumped in and out. The expression he wore was unsettling. He looked triumphant, victorious. He looked at her as if he had won, though she wasn't sure what exactly he was winning. Whatever it was, she as pretty sure she was captain of the losing team.

He batted her hand away from her mouth in irritation and replaced it with hard, possessive kisses. As her keening grew higher in pitch, he knew she was close and he slipped a hand between her legs and firmly circled her sensitive, throbbing clit, making her see white. Her hips thrust against him, completely beyond her control as her body eagerly chased a second orgasm. She came with a muffled scream against his lips. With an obnoxiously pleased smile, he again put his lips to her ear.

"When I acquired you, I have to admit I planned to cast you aside once my throne was secured. But, I think I'll keep you," he mused.

He laughed as halfheartedly swatted at him, still weak after her second orgasm.

"As a reminder of my first conquest on Midgard," he whispered, accenting each sentence with a sharp thrust, grunting as he lost control and let his hips hammer into her until she felt him swell and explode, coating the walls of her pussy with his thick cum.

He held her against the wall as they both caught their breaths, her sweaty forehead resting against his shoulder. He cupped his hand to the nape of her neck and used his thumb to lift her chin. When he put his lips on hers again, she bit him angrily, only to have him bite her right back. He pulled away with a laugh, wiping at his lip to check for blood.

"Yes, I'll most definitely keep you, little mortal."

Though she hadn't managed to break skin, she smirked as she saw her first victory of the night: The jerk had her red lipstick smeared all over his mouth.