Page 15 of Ogre on Patrol (Monsters, PI #5)
Chapter 15
Ellie
I took his arm and laid it across my shoulders. “Let me help you back to the house.”
“I’m fine. Your magic has made all the difference.” Still, he let me do this for him, and I liked that in him. Sure, he was big, and he had twice my muscle mass, but he wasn’t alpha enough to push me away and stagger along, insisting he could handle it.
With Thain’s arm looped over my shoulders, we started toward the house. His weight pressed into me, but he adjusted every few steps to keep from overburdening me. Typical Thain. He'd always been concerned about what I could handle while steadfastly ignoring whatever mountain he was currently trying to move alone.
“Your magic worked wonders out there, you know,” he said, his tone almost conversational, though it didn’t hide his exhaustion. The lumivores' toxin was still working its way through his system. My light spell had only eased the symptoms on his skin, touching nothing beneath. “I feel like my old self again.”
I snorted. “Yeah, sure. How many swarms?”
“Only two. I fought them off.” He shot me a teasing grin, but I could only grimace back. The welts on his face were swelling to the size of walnuts, and he didn't just have them on his face. They peppered his neck and if I knew lumivores, and I did, they'd gotten under his shirt and had bitten him all across his chest and back. They may have even gotten into his pants, and, well, that could also be painful.
“Two? When we get inside, you need to strip and shower. Wash off as much of the toxin as you can. Do you happen to have any spare clothing in your truck?”
“No, but I can put this back on.”
“If there are dead ones inside, their toxin will be on the fabric.” I thought about it a second. “I have a few things you can wear.”
He paused, his gaze scanning my frame. “If you want to see me naked, just say so.”
I smirked. “When I want to see you naked, I'll let you know.”
“ When ?” He frowned. “Not if ?”
“Keep going.” I wasn't ready to talk about moving forward in that direction. We hadn't had sex in the past, though we'd come close a few times. I wasn't sure why we’d waited. Maybe it hadn't been the right time. “All those bites.” I tsked. “They must’ve really liked you.” I adjusted my grip on his waist as he stumbled over a root on the path. “You were an ogre buffet.”
He huffed a laugh, low and rumbling, but it ended in a wince. “Flattering, Ellie. Really. Keep sweet-talking me like that.”
“Hey, you’re the one who decided to play hero with a couple swarms of lumivores.”
“A couple? Now you’re underselling it. It felt like an entire village of them came at me. I think they even invited their cousins.”
As we left the woods and walked past the greenhouses, he focused his gaze on the back door. Crouton trotted ahead of us, leaping at butterflies, his tail wagging as if we were out for a stroll.
Inside, I guided Thain to the bathroom door and nudged him inside. “Fortunately, I had a monster-sized shower installed.”
“Thought I’d drop by for a bath?”
“Re-sell, Thain. Re-sell. Monsters are among us.”
“Don’t I know it.”
“Towels are in the closet. Feel welcome to use my shampoo. There's a loofah in the shower. Use it all over your body. Scrub off as much of the toxin as you can. I'll find you something to wear and put it on the sink while you're in the shower.” When I bought this house, I'd gone through it, painting and replacing things to update it, including the shower, which I'd splurged on. It was big enough for two and tiled, with glass doors. It wouldn't even be tiny or cramped for Thain .
“Will do,” he said, peering around. “I like what you've done here, by the way. Meant to mention that but didn’t get the chance.”
“We've been busy.”
“Yup.”
“While you shower, I'll brew something to help with the bites and negate the magic still circulating through your system. I'm not the best with potions like this, but I've had experience with this one. My grandmother accidentally released a swarm one time, and they attacked her.”
“Bea doesn’t do anything by accident.”
“She did this time. She showed me what she'd done so I'd never make the same mistake, then had me help her brew the potion. Since I supply a few stores with magical plants and herbs, I have all the ingredients. Come out when you're finished, and I'll have it ready, plus something to eat. We missed lunch.”
“I'm famished.”
“You're always hungry.” I leaned against the doorframe, crossing my arms. “Your stomach's a bottomless pit. Is it a species-specific quirk, or are you just trying to keep every local diner in business single-handedly?”
Thain chuckled, the warm rasp of it traveling through the small bathroom. He’d already started unbuttoning his shirt, revealing an unfair amount of very bite-swollen, very muscled chest I drank in with my eyes. “What can I say? A male's got to eat. You wouldn’t want me wasting away, would you? ”
I bit the inside of my cheek, determined not to let my gaze stray any lower. “Trust me, you’re nowhere near wasting away. If anything, you’re one pie contest away from being the poster boy for bulk.”
“Bulk?” He raised an eyebrow and took a step closer, his crooked grin sliding into place as it always seemed to when he was about to start making sweet trouble. “I guess all my hard work is paying off. Thanks for noticing.” He advanced right up to me, stroking hair off my face and gliding his fingertips across the back of my neck.
All his glorious muscles were only a few inches from my nose. It would be so easy to press my cheek against them. My palms.
Wait. No. We hadn't even gone out on a new first date.
I backed out of the bathroom so fast I nearly tripped over my own feet. “Shower. Now.”
His laugh followed me down the hallway, deep and rich and entirely too satisfied. He knew what he was doing to me, and he liked it.
Actually, I did too.
Crouton met me in the kitchen, spinning in happy circles as I gave him water and something to eat.
The familiar sweet disarray of my kitchen greeted me—mismatched jars lining the shelves, a half-finished bouquet of dried lavenbane on the counter, and the faint smell of something earthy clinging to the air. Some might call it messy, but it was mine, and I knew where everything was.
I sifted through my shelves for ingredients. The familiar motions of sorting and grinding herbs—dried perifew, feverglight, a pinch of powdered bellamaybelle root—settled something in me, like an elastic band finally relaxing. As a hedge witch, I mostly focused on growing things, but this wasn’t high-level witchcraft. It was a kitchen table potion passed down for generations, the kind my grandmother made while lecturing me on the importance of taking care when spellcasting.
The thought of her encouragement and no-nonsense voice made me grin as I crushed the herbs in a mortar. She’d been the only solid thing in my life after my parents died. “Pay attention, Ellie,” she’d say. “Magic doesn't care about shortcuts. The spell only gives back what you put into it.”
Sage and chamomile were a given for their soothing properties, though I hesitated before adding a splinter of enderdire bark to the pile since it would take away any lingering itch. Elderdire needed a light touch, something I hoped I could manifest today.
It came together nicely.
Thain entered the kitchen, wearing only a towel wrapped around his waist. It was a me-sized towel, nowhere big enough for an ogre, let alone one of his size. He leaned against the open doorframe. “You forgot clothing.”
“Oh, I'm sorry.” I switched off the burner. The potion only needed to cool now. “Let me grab something.” As I passed him, I struggled not to stop and take in the scent of his warm skin, plus the heat in his eyes. I'd had a thing for this guy from the moment I met him, though I'd done my best to shove my feelings aside since we broke up. Now all I could think about was what we'd lost. He'd done nothing back then. He should be mad at me for not trusting him. Yet he was ready to step back to where we'd left off.
My pulse surged at the thought.
“Like what you see, Ellie?” he rasped. Something big was poking against the front of his—my—towel. It would be easy to tug it out of the way and touch him. We'd done some things together, but more on his part than mine. I hadn't seen his cock yet, though I wanted to now.
“No, I, um…” Damn, he was hot. I'd forgotten or pushed that detail aside as well.
“Um?” He sent me a cocky grin.
I swallowed hard and forced my feet to move again, heading toward the hallway closet where I kept a random stash of old clothes. My voice came out steadier than I expected. “You look like you might bust a seam in anything I own, but I have a few items that might fit.” Sorta. They'd be tight, but what else could we do? After the potion had taken away most of his symptoms, he could go to his place and change. “Stay put and keep that towel where it is.”
“Where else would I put it?” His deep chuckle pinned me in the hall, teasing, though it was tinged with something more. Something I shouldn’t be thinking about when my knees already felt limp and as pliable as me.
Riffling through the closet, I yanked out an oversized hoodie and a pair of sweatpants. Not exactly ogre-sized, but they'd stretch enough to look like spandex on him. Probably.
“Here,” I said, stepping back into the kitchen and handing him the bundle without letting my gaze dip lower than his face. “Try these. Best I can do unless you want to raid the local tent shop for a better fit.”
Thain smirked, taking the pile from my hands. His fingers brushed mine, lingering long enough to send a bolt of heat up my arm. “You sure you’re ready to see me like this?” He gestured to the hoodie, which would barely skim his waist.
“Just put them on and then you can strut around, giving me an ogre fashion show.” Seeing him like this was awakening all sorts of emotions inside me. We could start over. None of the bad stuff had happened. I still had to confront Ophelia, but he and I? We were on a new path, and we were taking it together.
“You’re cute when you’re all flustered,” he said, and my heart did an undignified little cartwheel at his words. He didn’t even need to try, did he? I was seconds away from combusting.
He made no move to leave, his grin growing wider.
“Go change.” I flapped my hands at him, using my no-nonsense voice. “Change. Sit on the sofa. I'll bring your drink. Then you can heal. In that exact order. No shenanigans in between.”
“What if I like shenanigans?”
“Thain,” I warned. “Keep it up, and I'll add something that'll turn your skin purple.” Not really, but he was right. I was flustered. I could barely think. My brain wanted me to look. Touch. Maybe even lick.
He tilted his head, a thoughtful expression flashing across his face. “I bet I'd look good with purple skin.”
With any colored skin, actually. “You really wouldn’t.”
He winked before turning and striding back to the bathroom, the towel hanging precariously low on his hips.
My brain didn’t even try to stop cataloging every detail. The damp curve of his back. The breadth of his shoulders. His amazing ass barely covered by the white fabric.
His reappearance was both exactly what I expected and entirely more than I could handle. The oversized hoodie stretched tight across his chest and biceps, leaving almost nothing to the imagination. He couldn't even zip it. It gaped like one of those little sweaters women sometimes wore, the ones that were more for looks than warmth, with a hem that skimmed their ribs and would not fasten in the middle, not even if they stretched it.
The sweatpants had their work cut out for them. The elasticized ankle only reached a few inches below his knees, and the fabric clung to his thighs like it was auditioning for a second skin. And, of course, that damned smirk rested on his face, like he knew exactly what kind of wildfire he was starting in my belly.
“Fits like a dream,” Thain said, spreading his arms to offer me the full effect. He sauntered in a circle to give me the full view of the material hugging his ass like I wanted to do with my hands. “I'm ready for that fashion show whenever you are, sweet one. Name the time and place, and I'll show you my moves.”
I nearly swallowed my tongue. “Sit. On the sofa. Now.” I jabbed a finger in that direction, hoping the rising heat in my neck wasn’t doing an encore performance across my cheeks, and followed him into the living room. “You’re lucky those didn’t rip in half.”
“Can’t help it if I’m built for sturdier material.” His voice had a playful edge as he flopped onto the sofa, clearly enjoying himself. “Comfortable, though. You’ve got good taste.”
Back in the kitchen, I grabbed the pan of cooled potion and poured it into an oversized mug, the only one I could find big enough for all of it. It had a faded unicorn decal on the side, a relic from some thrift store haul, but it would do. My hands were quick, but my mind wasn’t keeping pace. Every move replayed snippets of our conversation. His appearance. The towel, the teasing smirk, the maddeningly tight hoodie. And don’t even get me started on how positively illegal he looked in those sweatpants.
“Focus, Ellie,” I muttered, willing my cheeks to cool as I carried the steaming mug into the living room. Thain had sprawled out on the sofa, oozing a kind of effortless arrogance that only came from knowing exactly how good you looked. The hoodie still gaped at his chest, framing it like a damned museum exhibit, and one of his bare feet rested on the coffee table, toes flexing .
His eyes were on me before I had a chance to compose myself. “That for me?”
“No, it’s for Crouton,” I deadpanned, setting the mug on the table. “Yes, it’s for you. Drink it all. No complaining about the taste.”
He reached for the mug, his long fingers wrapping around the handle in a way I shouldn’t have found distracting. But, of course, I did. He sniffed it first, the corner of his mouth twitching as if he were about to crack a joke but thought better of it. At least he didn't say something smug about unicorns.
“Smells… earthy.” He lifted the mug to his lips. His deep inhale made the steam curl around his face, softening the hard lines left by the lumivore bites. He took a sip.
I watched him, waiting for the inevitable grimace. This recipe tended to taste like wet bark dipped in dirt.
Instead, Thain’s eyes narrowed, his tongue darting out to swipe at the corner of his mouth. Oh, the things I wanted him to do with that tongue. “This is really good.” His eyes flicked to mine, heavy lidded and holding the same heat they'd displayed the first time he'd kissed me. “Silky. Sweet, even. What’s your secret, Ellie? Is it love?”
I froze. My heart, that foolish, traitorous thing, skipped with no regard for how ridiculous the situation was. “It’s chamomile,” I managed, my throat closing off. “Chamomile and a bit of feverglight.” I did all I could to smother the embarrassed squeak threatening my voice. “No love involved.” I crossed my arms on my chest, feigning indifference, but Thain’s grin widened, like he didn’t believe a word of what I’d said.
He tilted the mug, draining more of the potion as if it were the finest drink he’d ever had. As he swallowed, his gaze never left mine. “Tastes like there might be a little love in there.”
I said nothing, ignoring the way my pulse hammered against my ribs. His confidence was maddening, but what was worse was how much I enjoyed it. The way he leaned into his teasing, knowing exactly where the line was and toeing it with ease.
He settled deeper into the sofa and let out a contented sigh. “It’s working. I feel better already.” A stray bead of liquid clung to his bottom lip, catching the light, and I had to fight the urge to wipe it away. Or kiss it away.
“Good,” I said, as if I wasn’t seconds away from climbing all over him where he sat on the sofa. “Finish it all. Let the magic do its thing before you decide to wrestle another swarm of lumivores.”
“If another swarm shows up, I’ll invite them in for tea.” He tipped the mug back, finishing the rest with an exaggerated gulp. “Maybe you could whip up more of this silky-smooth, no-love chamomile just for them.”
I rolled my eyes, snatching the empty mug from his hand when he held it out. “You’re insufferable.”
“Only when you’re around,” he shot back, flashing a grin that was entirely too satisfied for someone pretending to lounge. His gaze followed me as I left the room. I tucked the mug inside the dishwasher that I needed to run soon since it was nearly full.
That’s right.
I said I’d make us something to eat. I was much too distracted by the gorgeous ogre who’d settled into my living room—and life—as if this was the only place he belonged.