Page 11 of A Troll in the Hay
She slants her head while making a throaty, close-mouthedhmm. “You look mortified that I asked.”
“Because I am.”
“Don’t be. I’m not offended or anything like that. I’m a modern, twenty-eight-year-old woman, and if I want to have casual sex with someone, I can and will, because sex isn’t wrong or dirty or off-limits. That said, I’mnotsomeone who frequently jumps into bed with people. But I am very attracted to you. So, if sexiswhy you said yes to coming out with me tonight?—”
“It isn’t,” I say, stopping and facing her. “Though I won’t deny desiring you more than anyone I’ve ever met.”
“Well, that’s flattering, except that I know you don’t meet a lot of people.”
A chuckle slips out before I can stifle it.
Fortunately, she doesn’t seem upset by my reaction. A smile accompanies a little shake of her head that makes her dark hair glimmer in the burgeoning moonlight. “You weren’t looking to get sex tonight, you prefer not socialize in general, and trolls don’t date for casual companionshipor to weed out candidates while searching for a mate. So, whyareyou here with me?”
“Because I was drawn to you the moment I saw you. A sexual attraction, certainly, but more than that. You’re the first—the only—person I’ve wanted to spend time with, rather than be alone. A sensation I haven’t experienced before. Something I’d begun to think I might never feel.”
“That’s a pretty perfect answer.”
“It’s the truth.” Not the entire truth, but telling her on our first date that I know in the depths of my heart and soul she is the one for me would be too much. For a human, anyway. If she were a troll, there would be no need for dates or explanations. She would know as clearly as I do. But our path is unique. And so far, I am enjoying this path with her very much.
“I have one more question,” she says, smiling up at me so fully, so openly, I feel it as much as I see it. “Humans kiss for a bunch of different reasons, including romance and sexual passion. Is kissing part of troll intimacy?”
There are two possible ways to answer. A safe, polite, verbal yes. Or what I do.
Chapter Five
HOPE
“I have one more question.” At this exact moment, that is. The more I learn about him, the more I want to know. Right now, though, I really want the answer tothisquestion, because those tusk teeth of his are going to make kissing very interesting—if his answer is yes. “Humans kiss for a bunch of different reasons, including romance and sexual passion. Is kissing part of troll intimacy?”
Sunset’s glow reflects off the water, making his dark eyes twinkle. For a beat, he’s silent, and I’m sure he’s deciding how to carefully word his answer. Then, his big hand is beneath my chin, tipping it up while leaning in and bringing his mouth to mine. His lips are soft, the kiss gentle yet firm as he teases the seam of my lips with his tongue.
I open for him, our breath mingling and tongues meeting. Sparks rocket through me, and I shamelessly moan into his mouth. He responds with a deep rumble, his hand sliding around my neck to the back of my head. His fingers tangle in my hair while he adjusts the angle of our kiss, causing one of his tusk teeth to press against my cheek.
So. Hot. It takes conscious effort to hang on to my shoes instead of dropping them into the lake and wrapping my arms around him so I can climb him like a tree. Instead, I use my free hand to unbutton his shirt to where it’s tucked into his jeans, then press my palm against his bare chest.
Another rumble vibrates through our kiss, then he pulls back, leaving me breathless and blinking up at him.
“Don’t stop,” I whisper, my body tingling and ready for more. So much more. But with each passing second of silent staring instead of tangling tongues, the fire he ignited inside me sputters. “I thought you liked it as much as I did.”
“Perhaps more.”
I cough a little laugh. “Um, I don’t think that’s possible. I was about five seconds away from asking you to take me home and do whateverpreparationyou need to do so this could become a sex date.”
On a long exhale, his fingers leave the back of my head, sifting through the length of my hair before settling over my hand where it still sits on his chest. “I want you in my bed, make no mistake of that. But not simply for a night of sexual gratification. That’s not how I see you.”
There’s that sweetness again. “We could have multiple nights. All the nights I’m here, or as many of them as you want, anyway. Hooking up wasn’t on my vacation itinerary, and…”
“You said ‘and’ not ‘but,’” he says when I don’t complete my thought. “And what?”
“And I know how ridiculous this is going to sound on a first date, after one kiss.AndI know the logistics of what I’m about to say are not great because you’re a farmer with more daily responsibility than I can imagine,andI live four and a half hours away.AndI know I’m assuming a lot by saying any of this. But—see, there is a ‘but’—” I wink up at him, and his chest vibrates with a silent chuckle. “I don’t see you as a vacation hookup. I would accept this being a temporary thing if that’s what you wanted?—”
“It isn’t.”
Seconds slide by with only the sounds of nature filling the air. The gentle, rhythmic lapping of waves. Faint birdsong, probably from the trees, which are now dark silhouettes beyond the shoreline.
I fight the urge to say more. Ask more. Talk until everything is hammered out and pinned down to within an inch of its life. To talk for the sake of talking. But Ogram seems perfectly at ease with the pause. The calm quiet. And of course, he does—he’s told me multiple times that he’s a solitary creature. If this date has any hope of becoming more than a one-off, more than a vacation fling, I need to get comfortable with Ogram’s preference for…less.
“Okay.” That’s all I allow myself to say. Holding my tongue and keeping my lips closed, I smile intentionally, the way I would if I were having a posed photo taken. Against my will.