The Toll

by Jeanette Lynn

  His teeth gripped the ties at the top and he bit down on them hard, spitting out the ends of the strings, moving his hands from my hips long enough to tug my loose top down.

  My face blushed deep red, but it was only partly in embarrassment. Another part of me, a very quiet, hidden part, liked this side of him, liked it very much. The shame I felt was my own, for my wicked mind.

  My nipples pebbled as he buried his face in the top halves of my breasts, growling and rooting around until they were exposed completely, bared for his expressed viewing. The cool air kissed my skin and goose flesh bumped up all over me, the hard little nubs he nuzzled tightening to firm, hardened buds. Finding one, he suckled on it, groaning as a low moan tore from my lips.

  “Mine,” he snarled around a mouthful of breast, sucking it hard before he let go, giving the other one equal attention.

  My fingers shot up and caressed his ears, cupping him to me gently. I squirmed underneath his touch, arching my chest up like an offering at each and every harsh, drugging pull of his lips, biting nips of his teeth. I was writhing and needy, unsatisfied, left wanting for his touch.

  More, I almost moaned out loud. I want more.

  Thick, strong hands lifted the hem of my dress, divesting me of my underthings with a determined yank.

  Ready to protest, I whimpered when his lips released me, staring down at him as he knelt in front of me, bunching my dress up to stare at my exposed sex.

  Reaching up tentatively, he growled as his free hand circled around my clit, then my outer lips, his fingers playing in all the wetness, sliding through my glistening folds.

  “Oh... ah...what are you, I don’t...” Moaning out loud, I bit my lip as his hot breath fanned out across my exposed sex, his warning growl shutting me up.

  Without further ado, his lips latched onto my throbbing, aching pussy, and I cried out in relief, bucking against him. Troll ate at me hungrily, lapping and tonguing me voraciously, as if he was starved, and I ground into his face just as eagerly, equally as famished for what only he could give me.

  As my climax drew closer, my fingers tightened, gripping his shoulders as my legs threatened to give.

  He growled contentedly as I started calling out, “Yes! Yes! Oh, there, ah, please... Oh!” swiveling my hips as I chased after an elusive orgasm.

  Right as I was about to shoot over, he tore his lips away and lifted me up, wrapping my legs around his waist as he lined us up. Cock head butting up against the mouth of my sex, he slid home with unerring accuracy, both of us shouting out at his all-encompassing invasion.

  He felt thick, thick all the way around, and thick all the way in, pumping in and out with grunting thrusts, dragging his cock along my channel, burning it deliciously, until he fit himself all the way, comfortably, in.

  “You’re bigger,” I mumbled between gasping pants, my nails digging into his shoulders. “It... I... I think... I think it grew.”

  His answer was a grunt and a growl as he rammed his way home.

  My head fell heavily on his shoulder as my climax rushed through me, my legs clamping around him tight, despite the pleasurable tremors wracking me, as I fully embraced my release, purring happily as he bellowed out, following me over.

  As his own shudders eased, his legs wobbled as he finished, and he flopped down on his ass, cushioning my fall with his big body, grunting as he thudded along the hard dirt floor, myself in tow.

  The sound of our harsh breathing filled the room, but neither of us was eager to break the silence, content to just sit there, intimately entwined, woven around each other in a tight embrace.

  Troll flopped onto his back as his breath evened out, leaving me mounted on top of him, staring down at him as he watched me through lowered, slumberous eyes.

  “They’re orange again,” I breathed, studying his much more relaxed composure.

  “Ye brought me back,” he grumbled, closing his eyes as he turned his face to the ceiling.

  My entire being relaxed as he rumbled out full sentences once more. No more feral troll.

  He must have sensed it somehow, noting the marked difference, when all the tension built up in me slowly seeped out, and peeked an eye open, watching me through hooded, tiny orange slits. “Dinna be tellin’ me ye dinna know tha’, as well.”

  Relieved expression faltering, I groaned, the conversation already quickly diminishing. “You know I don’t,” I countered softly, hurting at how badly this always ended, dreading the coming bickering and baleful bantering.

  It wears on me so fast... If only he would just explain.

  Glancing away, I frowned and went to slide off of him, but his hands put a stop to that right quick, staying them in his firm grip as they grabbed my knees, sliding up my thighs.

  “Must we always fight?” My shoulders slumped and that ache in me intensified, craving him acutely as he sat underneath me, right at my fingertips, yet it felt as if he was miles within my reach, emotionally. “I hate when we fight.”

  Watching me searchingly, he studied the look on my face, brow furrowing, pulling low over his deep set eyes. I noted a hint of confusion in his harsh expression, wondering at it.

  “How did ye find me?” he asked after a moment.

  He still thinks I’m lying, I thought morosely. The wariness in his eyes stung.

  Deciding to answer his question, I shrugged and thought about it. “I don’t know,” I said honestly, “I just kept trying to reach you, I guess, and then I fell asleep, but then, when I realized I was asleep, I called to you.”

  Blinking up at me, his brows pinched tighter, his nose joining in on the scowling fun. “An’ tha’s it? Ye thought it, fell asleep, an’ popped up here?”

  Running my tongue along the roof of my mouth, I bit my lip at the displeased look on his face, but answered him anyways. “Well, yeah.” Taking a quick moment, I glanced around at the inside of his cell, pointing beyond the opening, “I kinda... uhm, got yanked over here.”

  His lips tightened and he sat up, his sated penis slipping from my depths. A little sigh escaped me at the loss.

  “Jus’ like tha’?” He snapped his fingers, setting me down gently on the floor in front of him. “An’ ye magically appeared, in here.” He put emphasis on that, that I didn’t quite comprehend, but I nodded slowly. “An’ I’m jus’ supposed ta believe tha’, eh?” His gentleness with me belayed the anger and gruffness in his voice, but I forged ahead. Only honesty.

  “Yes,” I said simply.

  Closing his eyes again, his hand scrubbed down his face, and he jerked back as he opened them, not expecting me to lean in so close to him so unexpectedly.

  “Smell me,” I challenged, offering my bruised, freshly bitten neck for him to sniff at, scent me for a lie. Holding the top of my dress up to try and save some of my modesty, I tilted my head to the side, my hair slipping slowly off of my shoulder like a curtain of frizzy orange fluff.

  Troll’s face bunched up and he groaned, his hand coming up to finger the bite marks at my neck carefully, lightly tracing along the large, teeth shaped indentations. Holding perfectly still, I held back the shiver I felt at his touch.

  “I dinna mean ta do that.” He mumbled it so quietly I almost didn’t catch it.

  It was my turn to be surprised as he placed chaste kisses along the damaged skin, sighing heavily as he tugged me into his lap and cradled me close.

  “Canna claim a troll an’ desert him,” he mumbled into my skin. “Can kill me, nugget, if tha’ wasna what ye’d intended at the first. The loss of a bonded is death ta us, ye know tha’. An’ death to ye too, if yer heart is ever in it. The ache of a lost bonded never leaves. Go ta yer death wantin’ ‘em.”

  Protesting his hold, I wiggled out of his arms and stood, doing exactly what I’d wanted to avoid in the first place.

  “See, that’s just it,” fists bunching up tight, I paced in front of him angrily, wincing as I felt a pinch in my neck, “I don’t know what you’re talking about. Good grief, I don’t even know wha
t ‘a bonded’ means!”

  Troll opened his mouth to argue, but I made a cutting motion.

  “I know you don’t believe me, and I have no idea how I could prove myself to you,” I glanced at him meaningfully, “not that I should, after seeing as to how I didn’t kill you for cursing me, and am standing right here, in fact, trying to have a real, meaningful conversation with you.”

  “Curse ye?” he snorted, but wasn’t fast enough at hiding the pain I saw enter his eyes.

  Why? He cursed me.

  The pinching pain I’d felt turned into a sting and I stopped and hissed, rolling my shoulders, uneasiness coursing through.

  “Yes, you gave me a curse that left those markings on me, having a good laugh as it burned itself into my flesh.”

  Troll got up slowly, eyeing me warily as he crossed his arms loosely over his thick, wide, naked chest.

  “It hurt ye?” he asked curiously, “Like tha’, truly? Bad enough ta burn?”

  “No,” I shook my head, “you misunderstand, though you should know, you orchestrated the whole thing. It didn’t feel like a burn, it did burn, very painfully, as if you’d branded me with a hot iron.” Reaching up, I rubbed my markings absently at the memory. “I thought you’d wanted to kill me at first, it had hurt so terribly, it was horrible.” My voice started to falter, but I continued. It needed to be said. “I’d thought I was dying.” Frowning uncomfortably, I grunted and rolled my shoulders again, a queasy feeling washing over me.

  Well, he isn’t arguing with me, I thought, still distracted, there is that, wincing again as I felt a responding pain in my thigh, just like the one I’d felt in my neck.

  “We bonded. Can be uncomfortable, itchin’ or stingin’, even, I’d say, but it isna supposed ta feel like tha’.”

  “Oh?” I huffed, wincing at the odd pain. “Do you bond often? Are you trying to tell me you did that shit to me on accident? You’d what? Meant to doodle on me a little with a magic, permanent troll fountain pen and then be done with me? My lesson learned? Haven’t you done that before? The bonding stuff, I mean.” Scoffing, I waved my hands about wildly and shook my head. “Please don’t tell me you just went and tried it out on me, no real intention of causing me so much pain. That makes no sense... And in some ways, makes it worse.”

  “Bonded? No!” Troll blinked at me as if I was the one who’d lost my mind. It gave me pause.

  “So...” I eyed him just as warily, “then, you bonded me, but you didn’t think to test it out on someone else first, see what it would do?” I was talking out loud, trying to wrap my mind around, and understand, all of this.

  “Test it out?” he gaped. “On who? Ye canna bond more than one. Who have ye been talkin’ to, nugget? What nonsense be this?”

  “Huh?” I scratched at my head in confusion. “I’m not following... Why not? Is bonding too many people, er, uh, beings, a really bad thing?” Blinking, my eyes trailed down the length of him. “Does it, uh, make you...”

  “Why would I want ta bond wit’ more? One is bad enough!”

  “Because you were the one on the receiving end?” I mused dryly. “Your skin burned to high hell when you unknowingly muttered some fancy gibberish left behind for you, hastily scribbled on a scrap of paper, conveniently placed with a bag of hush money, hoping you’d find it?” My brow cocked and I absently rubbed at my throat, wondering at the swarming itch running about it that I couldn’t get rid of. It was darned uncomfortable and made it hard to concentrate.

  “Ye bonded me first,” he clipped out defensively.

  “Did I fall asleep on an ant mound?” I mumbled aloud, but his words brought me back to the present. “That’s ridiculous!” I jumped in loudly, “I don’t even know how to... bond,” I waved his accusation off, “or whatever.”

  “Ye really expect me ta believe ye tricked me inta thinkin’ ye were touched, coaxing me inta bed, and I...”

  “Touched?” I hissed, stopping to poke him in the chest. “Are you implying there’s something wrong with me?! Oh, I...”

  Troll’s mouth opened and closed, gaping like a fish’s as I ranted and raved, whirling back and forth like a mini tornado in the space allotted.

  “Coaxing you into bed?!” I laughed at the thought. “I was not the one who kept suggesting it, if you remember correctly!” Hissing, I pointed to myself and then him, my finger waving about accusingly in the air. “You even accused me of jumping into a river over it, if you’ll remember!” Gasping, I had to stop when a sharp pain tore through my stomach, yelping at the sharp force of it.

  “What’s wrong now, then?” Troll’s frown creased worriedly and he moved forward awkwardly. “They don’t... they don’t still cause ye pain, do they?” he asked uncertainly, noting my jerky movements and slow, even breaths.

  Cracking my lids open slowly, grimacing, I shook my head and gasped.

  “What is it, then? Ye’re unwell?”

  “I don’t know.” My grimace deepened and I paused for a minute, and just like that, the pains were gone. Letting out a long, deep breath, I shooed him away and stood up, letting out another sigh of relief as my anxious pacing resumed.

  “We need to have a little chat,” I motioned between us, my eyes darting to his, “just you and me.” Warming up to it, I nodded, liking that idea. “Yes, I want us to meet.”

  “We are meeting,” he stressed, his head cocking to the side.

  “No more dream meetings. I want to see you in person.” My eyes shot up to his and I hoped he agreed.

  “I dinna...”

  “Oh! We could meet at the bridge,” I thought excitedly, already thinking about how long it would take me if I ran there. I couldn’t explain it, but though this felt real, I knew, in a way, it wasn’t—it couldn’t be!—and it just wasn’t good enough for me. I craved a real meeting, seeing him outside of this, whatever it is—dream realm—needed to touch his true flesh, feeling it brushing with mine, skin to skin, in real time.

  “Is this a trick?” he asked slowly, fighting himself, it seemed, stepping forward and then back, his hand out and then snapping back, as if he wanted to approach me, help me, but just truly didn’t trust me.

  Trust. “Would he ever?” I growled, voicing my thoughts out loud, bending over as another pain wracked me.

  “What?”

  “No,” I gritted out, “and I can’t believe you’d even think it.”

  Rolling his massive shoulders, he shrugged as if I was the one being obtuse. “Ye did manage ta get here, dinna ye? Ye shouldna be able ta... nugget? Ye dinna look so well...”

  Doubling over, I fell to my side, paling as white hot pain lanced through me.

  “Something’s wrong,” I groaned and gasped, twitching and jerking as my hand shot up to my neck and I gripped it, my other hand pressed to the pain in my lower abdomen.

  Troll’s hand came over mine and he frowned, pulling them away to replace them with his own.

  “It hurts,” I whimpered as another round of pains stabbed through me. “What’s going on?” Limbs trembling, I was scared, frightened out of my head, and I gripped Troll’s hand in a death grip.

  “This better no’ be a trick,” he gritted out.

  My lips trembled and I let out a choked cry. “I can’t believe you,” I sniffled, turning on my side so I wasn’t facing him. Curling in on myself, I huddled in a ball, and a strange sensation pricked at me, the feeling of something sliding slowly up my thighs. My head jerked and my eyes shot between my legs. It took me a moment to puzzle it out. “I need to wake up,” I muttered, squeezing my eyes shut tight, “something’s not right.”

  “What do ye mean?”

  “I... I feel something... something is going on, to me, as I’m asleep. Something’s happening. I need to wake up.”

  Everything in Troll stilled. “Does it feel like the burning from the bondin’?”

  “Yes,” I bit out, “how did you know?” I turned to him slowly and my eyes filled. “Did you... did you do this?”

  Rushing ove
r, he picked me up and held me tight, placing his hand on my stomach soothingly.

  “No,” he all but shouted, his big thumbs swiping at the corners of my eyes, “I dinna mean for it ta hurt ye so bad in the first place. Ye willna be seein’ me hurtin’ ye again.”

  “Wake me up, please,” I practically wailed, shouting in my head to wake myself up, my nails digging into his thick grey flesh as I cried out in pain.

  “Where exactly does it hurt, luv?”

  Gritting my teeth, I placed his hands over the precise spots, and he snarled out angrily. I didn’t understand why he suddenly looked so pissed, but he started asking questions quickly, rapidly firing them at me, just as the shooting pains intensified.

  “Nugget,” he barked, “where did ye fall asleep?” There were more, but that was the only one I fully understood.

  “In a field.” My body jackknifed up suddenly, then relaxed seconds later, then jackknifed up again as the pains immediately returned. Convulsing as I squirmed in his tight embrace, I howled in pain with each one.

  “What field?” he gritted out, trying to keep hold.

  My body started stirring and I felt it, my sleeping body, my real body, waking up, relief filling me that I’d soon be awake to figure this all out.

  “I’m waking up,” I mumbled weakly, turning into his hand as he ran it down my cheek.

  He was trying to say something to me, a question, perhaps? But I couldn’t tell, the real world beckoning.

  Then he was shouting, shaking my shoulders, his fingers digging in, as if to keep me there, but I’d already succumbed, and I let it wash over me, the pull dragging me over.

  As the waking world embraced me, I gasped and jerked upright, but a heavy weight was on top of me, holding me firmly down.

  The head bent over my neck paused and nipped at my sensitive flesh, making me cry out in fully felt pain.

  A man was looming over me, a rather large man, my dress skirts hiked up around my thighs indecently, his body positioned between my bent thighs, trying to enter me.

  Shrieking, I called out at the unwanted invasion, smacking the back of the male assaulting me.