Perfekt Control (The Ære Saga Book 2) (30 page)

I hung up and slipped my phone in the back
pocket of my jeans before glancing around our upstairs lab. The
in-house workspace was small, occupying just half of the Arcata
cabin’s man cave, but it was considerably warmer than the bigger
setup we kept downstairs in the garage. We would have preferred to
use the engineering lab on campus, but due to the unpredictability
of the irid crystal, we’d decided it would be safer for the student
body if we tested this one at home.

“Mia stressed out about her test?” Henrik
looked up from his own microscope.

“Yup.” I removed my slide and passed it over
to Henrik. “Even though she brought her books with her, she’s
convinced the few days she spent at the beach house impeded her
study schedule. I don’t think she’s left the library in thirty-six
hours, except to take an exam.”

“It must be really hard to live inside that
head.” Henrik swapped slides, and adjusted the focus on the one I’d
just passed him.

“Do you see how the cells in this sample look
identical to the other one?” I asked.

Henrik leaned in. “I do.”

“Okay. Now watch.” I crossed to his side and
turned the dial on a Bunsen burner. I held the flame a few inches
from the microscope, and waited.

“Did they just mutate?” Henrik asked.

“They did,” I confirmed, jotting a quick
sentence in my notebook. “The irid crystals reconfigure at a
cellular level—but don’t dissolve—when they’re exposed to an
increase in temperature. If we track the pattern of the change,
we’ll be able to predict transitive properties and draw up a
schematic for a climate suit.”

“Then it’s Muspelheim volcano expedition,
here we come.” Henrik pulled back from the lens with a grin. “This
changes everything.”

“You’re telling me.” I switched the burner to
“off” and set it on a shelf, then leaned my back against the lab
table and crossed one ankle over the other.

Henrik removed his goggles. He took two steps
to his left and positioned himself so one leg was on either side of
mine. He placed his hands on the counter and leaned down so I was
boxed in. I lifted my head and feigned annoyance.

“Henrik Andersson, we haven’t finished
documenting our findings.”

“No, we haven’t.” Henrik leaned down to run
his nose along my jaw. He inhaled softly as he moved, and the cool
air left goose bumps across my neck.

“You’re breaking protocol,” I reminded
him.

“That I am.” He reached my ear, his lips
brushing against the lobe as he spoke.

“Henrik,” I murmured, willing my knees to
hold out. It would be beyond unprofessional to actually swoon in
the middle of a lab.

“Brynnie,” he murmured back, raking my
earlobe between his teeth.
Oh gods, screw protocol
. I
reached up and wrapped my fingers through his tousled waves. I
tilted my head to the side and guided Henrik to my neck. He let out
a growl and shifted, nudging his knee against my legs to force them
apart. Then he stepped closer, pressing his thigh against my hips
as he kissed a path from my chin down. My head dropped back when he
reached the hollow of my neck, and Henrik reached up to tug my hair
free of my ponytail. When he fisted my hair in his hands and
crushed his lips against mine, I let out a moan.

And then my phone beeped.

“Ignore it,” Henrik urged.

“What if it’s Tyr?” My eyes rolled back in my
head as Henrik sucked on my bottom lip.

“
Knull
Tyr,” Henrik swore.

“I can’t.” I reluctantly slid my phone out of
my pocket and checked the screen.

“Is it Tyr?” Henrik pressed his thigh against
me again.
Mmm…

“What? Uh, no. Text from Hyro. She says she
loves her new place.” I set my phone down on the counter and
giggled. “Setting her up next door to Finnea was an inspired touch.
Thanks for that.”

Henrik chuckled. “I thought you’d appreciate
that relocation. Turns out the meadow elves were happy to take in a
lost soul. Especially one who was so willing to join in on their
solar-based worship. Finnea can just deal.”

My phone beeped again, and Henrik raised an
eyebrow. “Am I going to need to confiscate that?”

“Technically we’re on duty, so that’d be
unsafe,” I reminded him. I checked the phone again, and turned it
face down on the counter. “Berry. He says the missing dwarves are
all accounted for and back to their normal routines. Jeez, Forse
must be handing out our updated communication devices like
candy.”

“Well, it is almost Christmas. Maybe he’s
feeling generous.” Henrik picked up my phone and switched it to
‘off’. “Now before Elsa can call to complain Forse still hasn’t
asked her out, or Mia rings again with a question about the pros
and cons of becoming a Unifier, or which kind of fowl she should
cook for our Christmas dinner to try and beat my turkey—because we
all know my turkey is going to cream whatever she cooks—”

“I so love that you’re having dueling
dinners.” I sighed. “We all win in that scenario.”

“The point is, before
anything else
interrupts us, can we
please
finish what we started?”

“You mean our lab?” I batted my
eyelashes.

“Call it whatever you want.” Henrik reached
behind me and swept my notebook to the side, lifted me onto the
counter and tugged my legs open so they could wrap around his
waist.

“Henrik!” I giggled.

“Mmm. Much better.” He pulled me against him
and rested his forehead against mine. “I like you right here, Brynn
Aksel.”

“I like it, too.” I smiled. “You were worth
the wait.”

Henrik winked. “I was, wasn’t I?”

“I guess I owe Freya a thank you.” I
re-wrapped my fingers in Henrik’s hair.

“We both do. I’ve got an idea. Let’s give her
a break from her matchmaking duties and take on one of her toughest
cases.”

I tilted my head to the side. “Elsa and
Forse?”

“Bingo. Whoever bet on them getting together
before us was a lousy judge of character.”

“Forse is just scared.” I fingered one of
Henrik’s soft waves. “He’s been through a lot.”

“
Ja
, well, life’s scary. He needs to
get over it.”

“Mmm. You planning to use those
impressive
powers of persuasion to get him to ask Elsa out?”
I teased.

“Something like that. I thought it could be a
fun project for us—a way to give back to Freya, and all.”

“Well, we do have a lot to be thankful for,”
I agreed.

“And a
lot
of lost time to make up
for.”

Henrik brought his mouth back to mine, and I
sighed happily as I kissed him back. It might have taken centuries,
but being with Henrik had been worth every tortuous minute of
waiting. And now we had forever.

Sometimes life was just, well…
perfekt
.

**Reviews are huge for indie authors, and
your feedback means a ton. If you enjoyed Brynn and Henrik’s story,
pretty please consider leaving a review. Even a few words help, and
the Norse crew and I truly appreciate it!
Mange takk!
–S.T.**

**
The Ære crew will return in
Perfekt Balance (The Ære Saga: Book Three)
. Sign up for my
READER’S
GROUP
to get a
free
copy of the Elsker Saga
novella,
Tur,
and stay up to date on sales, release info,
giveaways, and the latest happenings from our crazy Norse crews.
And be sure to swing by my website at
www.stbende.com
, and say
hei hei
.
Skål!
–S.T.**

(aka #HenriksHotcakes)

4 eggs

½ cup sugar

1 cup flour

1 cup milk

Whip 4 eggs and ½ cup sugar together until
the mixture is slightly stiff.

Add 1 cup of flour and 1 cup of milk. Mix
well.

Set pan to low heat, add a pat of butter.
Pour a thin layer of batter into pan and flip when cooked.

Add your favorite toppings (the Ære crew
likes lemon and sugar, lingonberry jam, or Nutella).

Enjoy #HenriksHotcakes!

If you enjoyed
Brynnrik’s
story and
have a minute or two, pretty please leave a short review and show
the Ære crew some love. I truly appreciate it!

Mange takk
for reading the second book
of
The Ære Saga
. I hope you enjoyed reading Brynn and
Henrik’s adventures every bit as much as I enjoyed writing them.
(Seriously, I had a blast!) It’s been an epic adventure getting to
share these crazy Asgardians’ stories, and it wouldn’t be possible
without the support of truly amazing readers. I am incredibly
grateful for you.
Tusen takk
for dreaming across the realms
with me!
Skål
y’all!

Before finding domestic bliss in suburbia,
S.T. Bende lived in Manhattan Beach (became overly fond of Peet’s
Coffee) and Europe . . . where she became overly fond of McVitie’s
cookies. Her love of Scandinavian culture and a very patient
Norwegian teacher inspired the books of
The Elsker Saga
and
The Ære Saga
. She hopes her characters make you smile, and
she dreams of skiing on Jotunheim and Hoth.

Find S.T. on her website (
www.stbende.com
), or over on the
RagnaRockstars
Street Team
- her readers’ private Facebook group!

Find out what happens to our favorite Norse
gods in
THE ÆRE
SAGA
.

THE ÆRE SAGA: PERFEKT
ORDER

THE ÆRE SAGA: PERFEKT
CONTROL

THE ÆRE SAGA: PERFEKT
BALANCE

THE ÆRE SAGA: PERFEKT MATCH
(Coming 2017)

THE ÆRE SAGA: BOOK 5 (Coming
2017)

And meet the
other
Norse crew
(including Henrik’s brother Gunnar!) in the completed series

THE ELSKER SAGA
.

THE ELSKER SAGA: TUR (a
novella)

THE ELSKER SAGA:
ELSKER

THE ELSKER SAGA:
ENDRE

THE ELSKER SAGA:
TRO

THE ELSKER SAGA: COMPLETE
BOXED SET

And the bonus Elsker/Ære crossover novella
…

SUPERNATURAL CHRONICLES: THE
ASGARDIANS

The Norse crews and I love to connect with
readers! Find us online at

Website:
http://www.stbende.com/

Facebook

GoodReads

S.T. Bende on Twitter:
@stbende

Tyr Fredriksen on Twitter:
@tyrfredriksen

Ull Myhr on Twitter:
@ullmyhr

Inga Andersson on Pinterest:
https://www.pinterest.com/IngaAndersson/

Want more information on upcoming books?

Sign up for my newsletter

-and-

Join the
RagnaRockstar Street Team
– my readers’ private Facebook
group!

See what happens when Asgard’s High
Healer

unleashes the full force of her powers on
Justice, in

THE ÆRE SAGA: PERFEKT
BALANCE

Become what you believe.

Elsa Fredriksen knows there’s a thin line
between love and fear. As High Healer, she rights the wrongs
committed by those who choose the darkness. But even Asgard’s
secret weapon can’t undo every injury—especially when her fate is
completely entwined with the god she’s trying to save.

Elsa’s in love with the Norse God of Justice.
But Forse’s heart is ruled by fear—fear that the past will repeat
itself; fear that opening his heart will compromise his ability to
do his job; fear that he’ll hurt the one girl he desperately wants
to protect.
Again
.

When Elsa faces off against the very monster
she once swore to protect, her survival depends on a power she
isn’t sure she can control. And when Forse’s worst nightmare
unfolds in front of him, Elsa has to decide whether it’s more
important to hold the realms in
perfekt
balance… or hold on
to the guy she can’t imagine existing without.

And now, a sneak peek at the next chapter in
The Ære Saga
…

THE ÆRE SAGA: PERFEKT BALANCE

CHAPTER ONE

“
I’LL SHOW YOU MINE
if you show me
yours.” Forse Styrke lifted one corner of his mouth in a lazy
smile. My heart thudded before tumbling headfirst into a familiar
abyss.