Page 29 of A Tale of Mirth & Magic

“But now that we’re talking and being all emotionally mature and everything…” I said coyly, shifting my hips slightly closer to him. “We could still have sex. If we wanted… right?”

I could feel his limbs tense, his cock harden against me. His warm, low chuckle rumbled through me again. In answer, Barra slipped one of his thick thighs between mine and nudged up my skirt a bit.

Rising on one elbow, he stroked my cheek, then dipped down to kiss me.

His lips were soft and full, and something unclenched in me when I felt them press against mine again.

He kissed me not urgently, not frantically, like how I’d tried to claim his mouth a few hours ago—but relaxed and slow, letting us explore each other.

A kiss that calmed my heart but also sped up my pulse, saying “there’s no rush” and “yes, yes, yes .”

Barra pulled me on top of him. I let out a surprised laugh and pressed a dozen quick kisses over his face and neck. My legs spread, slipping to either side of him. The blanket had fallen away long ago. But I didn’t feel cold anymore.

It was still a beautiful day, golden afternoon light now sparkling over the lake’s surface.

Crickets were beginning to chirp their music, joining the gentle sounds of wind in the distant trees and waves lapping the shore.

Everything was peaceful, soft. The fresh scents of crushed grass beneath us and the pear juice I spilled earlier touched my nose.

I dipped down into Barra’s neck and inhaled, replacing the aromas with his smoky minty musk that I loved.

“Are you… smelling me?” he asked with a smile, one hand stroking my upper back. His other reached under the folds of his coat that I was still wearing, tracing his fingertips along the sensitive skin of my side.

“Maybe,” I said, sniffing again. “You just always smell amazing .”

Looking embarrassed, he pulled a small tin out of a jacket pocket and opened it. It was half full of little green leaves.

“Mint!” I plucked one out and rubbed it between my fingers. “So that’s your secret.”

“I chew them often. A habit I picked up as a child when some folks in town were… less than kind about my presence at first.” He picked up a leaf too, twirling it. “I suppose I became a bit paranoid. About how I smelled, looked, talked, walked—everything.”

“It’s hard to feel comfortable when it seems like everyone is watching and judging you,” I said gently.

“Yes. It is.” Barra placed the leaf back into the tin and tucked it away. “It’s one of my habits that’s hard to break.”

“Well, I love it. And if your worst qualities are that you’re self-conscious and addicted to mint—”

“—and have some intimacy issues,” he added.

I rolled my eyes. “Who doesn’t? Same, apparently. But if that’s the worst, I’ll take it in a heartbeat.”

Barra watched me with that warm, unguarded look that almost made me want to squirm away. But I wasn’t going anywhere this time, and neither was he.

He gently tugged me down to him again. Bending, I pressed all my twisty, fuzzy feelings into his lips. I shrugged out of his coat, letting it fall. Deepening the kiss, he ran both hands over me, palms trailing fire wherever they touched.

Barra broke away for a moment, both of us panting with need. His eyes were dark, pupils blown. Holding my hips on both sides like I was a life buoy and he had fallen overboard, he gripped me tight and tugged up toward his head.

Realizing what he wanted, I wiggled happily and shifted my body up his broad chest until I was kneeling over his mouth. I hovered, let him take the lead.

He gathered up my long skirt and flung it behind me. Grabbing my hips again, he pulled me to his mouth with a pleased grunt, burying his face in my hair. I was already a little wet and seeing him moving below me sent a surge of pleasure down my body.

When he began to lick me, I was lost. Running my fingers through his hair with one hand and gripping one of my breasts with the other, I just tried to not writhe around too much.

Barra held me fast, moving my hips possessively to reach whatever part of my pussy he wanted to lick.

I felt his tongue dip inside me, trace along my lips, tap against my clit—I held on as long as I could, swearing into the blue sky.

But I came fast and hard on his mouth, so hard it swept my breath away, chest gasping for air.

“Ohh, fuck fuck fuck ohhhhh ,” I mumbled as I slid down his body, lying down chest to chest on top of him, limbs like jelly.

After a couple of minutes of Barra rubbing languid circles on my back, I propped myself up on my elbows and fixed him with a sly look.

I could feel his cock below me, still hard, touching my right thigh through his breeches.

Shifting just the right amount, I moved down his body until I was sitting on top of it.

I began to grind, moving over his length through the fabric, sighing at how it brushed against my sensitive skin. Barra never broke eye contact. He held my hips again, tightly.

“Do you want to be inside me?” I asked, voice unsteady. My orgasm was already building again. I wanted him so badly I ached, my abdomen clenching with need.

I’d seen last night that he had the standard rune for protection against sexual diseases and a ward against pregnancy tattooed near his hip.

I had the same on my own body. Most people I’d encountered got them as a teenager; it was a smart practice that was safe, cheap, reversible, and lasted decades.

Barra swallowed, still watching me steadily with his intense eyes. “Yes. Yes, I really do.”

Sitting up, he held me to him with one arm and untied his breeches with the other, shucking them and his boots. When his bare cock touched me, I shivered in anticipation.

He hesitated. “I’m a bit… much for most people. Tell me if we need to stop.”

I nodded, nuzzling his chest, but said, “Oh, trust me, I can handle you.” Barra hummed in pleasure, hands roaming over my body, squeezing my ass reflexively.

He kissed me—my cheeks, my lips—before nipping gently at my neck in a way that made heat pool low in my belly. I whimpered, reaching between us.

His low laugh teased me. “You want to be fucked, don’t you, El?”

“Yeah, I want it—please, Barra.” I was almost whining, beyond embarrassment.

He lifted me, positioned himself, and lowered me carefully down on his cock, letting me guide our slow pace. He was huge. But I took him in, inch by blissful inch, moaning at how full he stretched me.

Barra paused, his breath catching. Our foreheads pressed together.

“You okay?” I ran a hand over his chest, kissed his large nose. My legs shook with the effort of not moving on top of him, taking him deeper.

In a strained voice, he said, “Yes. Yes. You just feel so fucking amazing.”

“Can I have more?” I whispered, massaging the back of his neck.

Almost growling, Barra thrust his hips up at my words, plunging deep. I cried out. He moved inside me, and I held on, fire building steadily in my core.

We found a rhythm together, moving frantically in time.

When he dipped his head down to my breasts, I leaned back, propping myself up on his legs.

His tongue found each nipple in turn, sucking hard.

I swore at him, scratching his legs with my nails, and pulled his head back to do it again and again.

We were frenzied, gone—our bodies came together again, close and hot, sweat mingling on our chests. I licked the crook of Barra’s neck, tasting him, his sweat and burning skin.

His gigantic cock reached the deepest part of me over and over and over, for goddess knows how long, and I was near crying in utter ecstasy as I climaxed. Stars scattered across my vision. I squeezed my eyes shut, and he held me close.

With a few more pumps, drawing out my orgasm further, he came too. I relished the feeling of his cum spilling into me, his shattered breath, the way he gripped me fiercely, as if I’d both wrecked and saved him.

We flopped back down to the ground, and Barra turned on his side toward me. I nestled my head on his biceps. My limbs were loose, liquid, and his gentle fingers felt lovely against my face as he brushed wet strands of hair back, pressing light kisses as he went.

When his sigh rumbled lightly through my body, my eyes snapped open as I remembered how significant this was for him. Twisting to see his face, I was relieved to see he was smiling softly back at me.

“Feeling all right?” I asked. “This wasn’t… too much?”

“I feel incredible. You are incredible.” He pulled me closer, and I nuzzled in.

The sun was dipping lower in the sky, and though I didn’t want to, I knew we had to get moving.

Barra apparently was thinking the same. “We should probably head out soon if we want to make it to Old Orchard by nightfall.”

“Guess it wouldn’t be smart to camp here, what with all these rogue bounty hunters running around after me,” I joked.

He grimaced and sat up, seeming to realize just how exposed we were. I groaned in protest. Barra jumped to his feet with an energy I definitely didn’t have, then reached for my hands. I let him pull me up.

“Just a bit farther, and then we’ll find a nice inn where you can rest,” he said as he swept around, gathering our belongings and packing them away in Pebble’s saddlebags.

I patted her nose fondly, happy to see her again.

She searched for the apples I’ve been sneaking to her over our journey, snuffling at my hands and skirt pockets, and then nudging my right boob.

“No snacks for you right now, I’m afraid. But you’re right—I should probably get dressed.”

I found the rest of my clothes where I’d strewn them over a rock before my dip in the lake. After shimmying into my shirt and corset and adjusting everything into a comfortable position, I started to tighten the strings a little. Barra came over and placed his hands over mine.

“May I?”

I nodded. His large fingers deftly moved along the laces, tightening them perfectly so that the corset supported me but didn’t squeeze. He tied the ends with a bow. Brushing the knuckles of one hand softly across the top of my breasts, he dipped down to kiss the crook of my neck.

“Beautiful,” Barra murmured against my skin, sending tingles through my chest. I smiled against his hair.

He gave me a boost up onto Pebble’s massive back, and with one last look back at the shimmering lake, I nudged her on the path forward.