Chapter Thirteen
The honking woke him. The goose was back. Ben leaned over and kissed Jacinda on the forehead. She smiled in her sleep and snuggled deeper into the cover. He sighed. Leaving her warmth was difficult. They had been sleeping as two spoons in a drawer. He’d been wrapped around her amazing body, his cock nestled against her sweet ass and his hand cupping a round, full breast. She was so damn tempting. He could spend the rest of his life just between her legs. The honking was getting louder and it was now accompanied by an annoying pecking at the door.
“Hell’s bells!” Ben hissed. He eased himself from the bed and yanked on his pants. He went to the fireplace and tossed in some more wood before snatching on a shirt and stomping his feet into his boots.
“Ben?” Her soft voice called from the bed and Ben turned and went back to stand at the foot.
“Go back to sleep, my dove. It is still early in the morn. I must tend to the animals. I will be back shortly.”
Jacki struggled up on her elbows, pushed a hank of hair back, and looked at him from eyes that damn near made him strip and return to bed again. “I should start some breakfast.” She tugged up a quilt to cover her sweet tits and Ben sighed. He would take her again tonight. Simply tasting her wasn’t going to be enough. He wanted to be buried deep inside her, where her wet pussy would grip him and suck him in. Ben craved watching his cock slide in and out between the tight red curls of her sex. Hell, maybe he wouldn’t make it to the night. The thought of fucking her before breakfast made his cock jerk to life.
He cleared his throat. “Nay, we will do it together when I return. Get your rest. I have plans for you later.” He leaned forward and touched his lips to hers, and she smiled and lay back down.
Ben shut the door behind him and stomped out through the snow toward the barn. It was still cold, but the sun had started to melt some of the packed snow. Ahead of him, a beautiful golden-colored goose waited by the door. It paced back and forth, honking loudly and flapping its wings irritably. “If you’re so impatient, open the damn door yourself,” Ben called to it. In answer, it honked even louder. “Just keep it up and I’ll have your head on the chopping block after all, goose. The only thing stopping me from turning you into a goose pie is I know how tough you would be.”
Ben yanked open the barn door and the goose waddled inside. They were met by the sounds of the other animals that were ready to be fed. They weren’t near as much trouble as the goose. But, they would have to wait. He had more important things to do first. “We need to talk.” He faced the goose.
The goose began flapping its wings quickly, raising itself up off the dirt floor. He flapped faster and faster, stirring up both dust and hay. Ben stood quietly waiting. Suddenly, a goose no longer stood in front of him. “It’s about time you showed up, Hollis,” Ben said with a grunt.
“Indeed, sire. I came as quickly as I could. I thought it best to give you and Miss Jacinda time alone together.”
“So it was you who sent her here?”
“Of course, just like I found your mother for your father, some six and twenty years ago.”
“Well, we all know how that turned out.” Ben put his hands on his hips and glared down at the little neat man who had been a fixture in the Stalks family for generations.”
Hollis shook his head. “Yes, that was a miscalculation on my part. Your dear mother was not strong enough. She denied her own destiny.”
Ben ran his hand through his hair, sending the dark locks into disarray. “A fucking miscalculation is what you’re calling it now, really? She killed herself by jumping from the top of the mountain to rid herself of her new son and husband.”
Hollis frowned. “It was a tragedy, sir. Indeed it was, but all you need to remember is your parents loved you and each other, but in the end, that love wasn’t enough for your mother. She was ill, mentally.” Hollis waved his hand in the air as if to bat away a bad memory. “We have no time to rehash it, now. I am assuming Miss Jacinda is to your liking?”
Ben sighed. “Yes, very much so, you did well. I intend to make her my wife. I feel her strong enough to bear my children and carry the burden of being married to the giant of the mountain.”
Hollis nodded. “You are correct. I saw her taunted and shamed in the village. They chased her and hunted her like an animal. Yet, she held her head up and moved on. I fear her life has not been an easy one so far. She is a survivor and goodness and kindness fills her heart.”
“They think her a witch and meant to kill her, Hollis. Was that your intention?”
“It was a test that she passed. I was close by and I would never have let them kill her. That is why I gave her the magic beans, so she may escape to you and safety. However, I fear there could be an unforeseen issue. She may be in danger and not just from the villagers. What has she told you of her life?” Hollis asked.
Ben frowned. “She has told me very little. Her parents and her brother are both dead. She is alone in the world, without a coin to her name. Yet she hadn’t resorted to selling her body. I took her maidenhead myself. Why do you think she is in danger? The villagers pose no real threat to me or mine. What else could be the issue?”
Hollis shook his head and didn’t even flinch at the fact that his master had taken the girl. “No, I said not villagers. Three rough-looking men came into a pub searching for her. One of them almost killed a man who told him that she had been run out of town and could be dead by your hand. I know not who these men are to her, but they look dangerous. One of them was called Tavis by the others.”
Ben put his hands on his hips and the look that came over his face could be described as fierce. “Tavis…? I felt that there was something or someone she was running from. Something she is hiding from me. It matters not who they are. She is mine now and you know I will defend what I hold dear.”
“Of course, sire.” Hollis nodded with understanding. He would have expected no less from Ben.
“How much time do we have?”
“They are well occupied for the remainder of the night. No one in town would dare show them the secret road to the top of the mountain, and not face your wrath. I expect they will have to climb and will be here by nightfall.”
Ben’s face tightened. “I’ll be ready.”
“I’m sure you will, sire. If I may be of assistance, please let me know.”
“Thank you, Hollis, for sending me Jacinda, but you rest. I’ve got this. Three lowly men who are set to take what is mine? They will meet their death at my hands this day.” No one would take what belonged to the giant of the mountain. He would never let Jacinda go. His father had made that mistake, but he wouldn’t. He had heard the whispers of the older villagers. They said he was even fiercer than his father and his father before him. But Ben knew he would do what he had to do. No one would ever take what was his.
****
“As you wish, sire, if you have no need of me, I shall take my leave to rest.”
Flapping his wings, Hollis quickly reverted back to goose form and waddled to his bed. He found it so much easier to be a goose than a man, though the pleasures of a man were many, his favorite being human women. A quick reminder of the bar wench, Molly’s big bosom bouncing as she had ridden his manly cock with glee, sent him to the hay with what could only be described as a goosey grin. He was asleep before Ben finished feeding and watering the other animals and didn’t even hear him when he left, pulling the barn door closed behind him.
Chapter Fourteen
Jacki sighed and stretched in the big, fluffy bed. She was still a little sore, but it was a good sore, a reminder that Ben had wanted her. He had been kind and gentle and had looked at her with a heat that had melted any doubts she could’ve ever had. A thrill shot through her body when she thought of him and she became instantly wet in that secret place again. Not since she had grown to such a height had she dared to dream that the day would come when a man such as he would desire her. She had hoped for a home of her own and children, of course, but
she was realistic and knew her chances were slim. She had all but resigned herself to being an old maid and spending her life all alone.
Then Ben had happened. She made a mental note to locate Hollis and thank him. She didn’t know if sending her here was a happy accident or his plan all along. She only knew that she would be endlessly grateful to the little man and the magic beans that had forever both saved and changed her life forever. She couldn’t stop the silly grin on her face or the feeling of bliss that for once in her life something was finally right.
The ache between her legs told her she wanted Ben again. She threw her arms above her head and laughed out loud. Who would have ever known she would be so wanton? She enjoyed the sex act between a man and a woman and she suspected Ben was right. It wasn’t so always, only when it was the right man and woman. Only with Ben would it ever be right. That she knew deep down as she knew her own name. Only and forever with Ben…
Puss Puss chose that moment to jump up on the bed and walk across her body to her face. Sitting her enormous rear end down on Jacki’s chest, she reached her paw out and tapped her on the cheek. “What is it, Puss Puss? Are you hungry?” The cat let out a loud meow and jumped from the bed, looking back over her shoulder to see if Jacki was following.
Jacki tossed back the covers and climbed from the bed. After padding naked over to the fireplace, she pulled her clothing from the back of chairs and felt for their dryness since she had heated water yesterday and washed them. Finding them dry, she pulled them over her head and tied the strings necessary to keep them on before stoking the fire. Puss Puss circled her ankles, getting louder and louder with her demands to be fed.
A quick stomping from outside told her Ben was back and a tingling set itself in her nether regions and spread upward. Would it always be like this? Forty years from now when they were old and gray, would she still tingle at his approach? Was that love? Had her parents also tingled at seeing each other again? They had certainly been mutually respectful of one another and Jacki remembered shared kisses and giggles from her mom. Yes, they had been happy and in love. It was a fond memory. Her mother had changed after her father’s death. She hadn’t smiled ever again, even after marrying Jacki’s stepfather.
The door swung open and Ben swept in, all seven muscular, delicious feet of him. “Good morning, my giant.” Jacki smiled and approached. Going up on her tiptoes, she planted a quick kiss to his wintery cheek. She pulled the bucket of eggs from his hand as well as the one of fresh milk so he could remove his cloak.
“It’s good you have brought fresh milk. Puss Puss is hungry.” She chatted away while she filled a bowl for the cat and set it down by the fire. “I’m happy to start us some breakfast. Is there anything in particular you would fancy?” She turned to look back at him and something inside of her froze as surely as the barren ground outside. “Ben? Is something the matter? Are you unwell?”
He stood quietly, like a statue she had seen once on a trip with her father before he passed. His face as fierce as any she’d ever witnessed. The scar that cut down his eyebrow, across the edge of an eye, and to the corner of his mouth was a stark white against his usually sun-browned skin.
“Who is Tavis?”
****
Ben watched her for a reaction and he got it. She dropped down onto a nearby chair and her face went pale. That response told him all he needed to know, that whoever Tavis was to her, she didn’t love him. Instead, she clearly feared him. He slowly made his way to her and squatted in front of her to be eye-to-eye. He took her cold hands into his own. “Tell me,” he commanded.
She raised her haunted gaze to his. “Has he come then? Is he here?” Her frightened stare shifted to the door.
“He is not here, but I have word he is in the nearby village and he seeks you. It’s only a matter of time until he makes his way here. Why do you fear him so? Who is he to you?”
She slowly began to shake her head. “Nay, he can’t find me. I must go.” She stood shakily to her feet and Ben grabbed her by her upper arms to both steady her and keep her from running.
“Jacinda, answer me. Who is he and why does he seek to find you?”
She looked up at him. A single tear slipped from the corner of her eye and slowly made its way down her face, inch-by-inch, breaking his heart as it went. “Tavis is my stepbrother.” She turned away from him and this time he released her and let her go.
Her stepbrother? She had lied to him. “You told me you had no kin.”
She whipped around so fast her unbound hair flew around her and momentarily covered her face before she angrily shoved it behind her ears. “He is no kin of mine,” she yelled. She blinked and appeared surprised that she had raised her voice. She looked down at her hands and her voice became so quiet that Ben strained to hear her. “He hunts me like I am his prey.”
“Why didn’t you tell me of him?”
“I was ashamed and afraid. He means to make me whore for him. He tried to … to take me against my will and I hit him and ran. I fear him like no other. He has an ugly temper and he has watched me.” She stopped and swallowed and tears ran down her face now. “I was bathing once and caught him looking at me. His father and he argued. They didn’t think I heard, but I did. He is an evil man. He will come for me and if he finds me, he will take me away.”
Ben was in front of her in two strides, pulling her into his arms, holding her and pressing her against his body tightly. He hoped to squash the tremors that wracked her slender body. “He will never take you away from me. He can’t have you. Do you hear me? I won’t give you up. If he tries, I will kill the bastard.”
“Ben, he won’t let a mountain or a giant keep him from what he is determined to have as his own. He will fight and because he is a coward, he will not be alone. He will come and if I’m still here, he will find me.”
“Not if I find him first.”
She gasped. “What are you saying?”
“I will go to the village and seek him out. I will kill him for what he tried to do to you.”
“Nay, you must not. You could be hurt.”
“You have so little faith in me, my dove.”
“I couldn’t bear it if you were hurt,” she whispered before rising up on her tippy toes to softly kiss his mouth until the tension in it lessened and he responded by gripping her to his body and kissing her back. They clung to each other frantically. “Will you lay with me, my giant?”
“Are you trying to delay my parting?”
“Yes. Is it working?”
Ben pulled the string that held her dress closed and pushed it to the floor. “For now, yes, but know this—tonight, Tavis dies.”
Chapter Fifteen
Their coupling was frantic to the point of desperation. Ben would have taken her gently, but Jacki was not having it. It was she who placed his engorged member at her entrance and she who urged him to take her quicker and harder.
Ben moved into her urgently and she clung to him as if it would be their last time together. When she cried out her release, Ben continued pumping but at a slower pace now. Pushing her hair back from her face, he slipped in and out of her with all the patience of a man who had nothing better to do. She relished the feel of his body in hers and the weight of him over her.
“My beautiful, Jacinda, I will spend my life telling you how much you mean to me.” He softly kissed her lips. “I will do whatever it takes to keep you safe and with me. Never doubt that.”
Jacki arched her neck and he nibbled his way down to her firm breasts. Latching on to a peaked nipple, he lapped it softly. Jacki gasped when the fire started to build again. “Ben, my love … please.”
Ben chuckled. “Yes, I please very much.” He quickened his pace. He thrust in and out of her rapidly and made her feel each and every long stroke of his heavy cock.
Jacki moaned with the sheer pleasure of his movements. The fire flamed higher and together, the two of them exploded in its energy. Jacki cried out loudly and Ben groaned and stilled his movement
s. With one final plunge, he allowed his seed to fill her completely.
Falling to the side of her, he gathered Jacki up in his arms and held on tightly. “I must leave soon, but know this, my dove, I will return to you.”
Jacki felt a moment of utter panic. Rising up on her elbow, she cried out, “Ben, please don’t leave me here alone. I beg of you, take me with you.”
“Nay, you will stay here where I will know you are safe.”
“I will not be safe here alone.”
Ben rolled from the bed and started to dress. “You will not be alone. Hollis is here.”
Jacki climbed from the bed and pulled her dress on over her head. She stilled her movements and stared at him in surprise. “Hollis is here? Where?”
Ben stomped his feet into his boots. “Yeah, he came in this morning. He’s out in the barn, sleeping off his debauchery.”
“You left your friend to sleep in the barn?”
Ben looked at her. “Yes, he prefers the barn. Now I must go. Stay inside and yell if you should have need of Hollis.”
Jacki felt panic grip her. “This is not but madness! Hollis is a small man. He will not be able to protect me from Tavis.”
Ben threw his cape around his shoulders. “Hollis has talents you haven’t seen … magic talents. He can and will protect you, Jacinda. It is his duty to do so.”
“Nay, I’ll not stay here without you. Waiting to see if you return, not knowing if you live or die. Do not ask this of me, Ben. Take me with you or I will follow alone once you leave.” Jacki raised her chin in a challenge and crossed her arms stubbornly across her chest.
Ben glared at her. “You are a saucy, obstinate woman who tries my patience, Jacinda. This day I will spill an Englishman’s blood, your very own stepbrother’s. I would have you not witness such a sight from me.”
She walked to him and laid her hand against his cheek. “Do not fear me seeing this will change my opinion of you. I already know you to be a gentle giant capable of so much kindness and love.”
Jacki and the Giant Page 6