Jacki and the Giant Page 3

  Color flooded her cheeks. “No, I’ve known no man.” Her eyes shifted away from Ben’s face and moved lower to the bulge between his legs. Her tongue came out and she nervously licked at her lips.

  “Fuck,” Ben hissed. She may be an innocent, but she had him harder than any experienced whore ever had. He’d never taken a virgin. Common sense dictated that his size alone would be too much for a virgin to bear. He closed his eyes, breathed deeply, and tried to get control of himself. He would have to take this slow. Slower than his body was demanding he do so.

  “I’m sorry. Did I do something wrong?”

  Ben didn’t answer but instead still stood with his hands fisted at his sides and his eyes closed.

  Jacki scrambled off the bed. “Maybe, it would be best if I left. I could go to the next cottage and ask for work and shelter. I’m a hard worker.”

  He took a deep breath and opened his eyes. She stood in front of him, looking at him with confusion. “I don’t understand what just happened,” she whispered.

  Ben couldn’t stay. He couldn’t look at her without taking her. He moved to the door and sat on a nearby bench to stomp his boots on. “I’ve told you, you’ll not be leaving. It’s not safe.” He stood from the bench and reached for his cloak. “And in case you haven’t noticed, you’re on top of a mountain, a mountain that I own. There are no other cottages, villages, or towns, unless you climb down the mountain.” He finally dared to look up at her again. “Stay. I’ll tend to the animals and come back and prepare breakfast.” He pulled the door open and without turning, said, “I’ll need some answerers when I get back. We’ll talk.”

  Chapter Five

  When he slammed the door closed, Jacki’s legs gave out and she sank to the bed. What had just happened? She had no experience with men. They had never looked at her with anything other than disgust. They hated the fact she was taller than them. They found her hair color garish and ugly. Yet, the giant, no Ben, had looked at her differently. His hands and lips had been gentle and had grown more urgent and demanding. He had wanted her. Hadn’t he? He had wanted to take her like a man takes a woman he cares for.

  Jacki reached up and touched her lips. They still sizzled from his mouth. If she closed her eyes, she could almost feel his lips moving on hers. He’d asked her if she’d been with other men and everything had changed when she had admitted that she had not. He’d closed his eyes. He’d been unable to look at her anymore. Clearly, the man desired a woman with experience and not a foolish one who no other man would have.

  Tavis had wanted me, her mind reminded her painfully. That was different. She may not have experience with men, but she knew Tavis hadn’t wanted her. He wanted to own her. He had wanted to use her to make money. Had she stayed, he would’ve sold her to whichever man was willing to pay the price, had he not said so himself? He had wanted to humiliate her and bend her to his will, to make her his whore. Tavis had wanted to hurt her, to destroy her.

  ’Tis best I know beforehand to take care not to cause you extra pain. Ben’s words vibrated through her head. He hadn’t wanted to hurt her. Yet, he hadn’t wanted her either, not after she had admitted to being a virgin. He’d found her repulsive, just like all the other men. What a mess she was in. She was on top of a mountain … alone, with a man who could not abide the sight of her. Jacki reached up and wiped away a tear. Even a scarred, feared giant couldn’t bring himself to lie with her. Why had she been cursed this way? Why couldn’t she be dainty and lovely like other women her age?

  Jacki stood and begin to tidy the bed, snatching angrily at the quilts. She had feelings too. Why did people treat her as if she didn’t? She wanted what all women wanted. A man who desired her and would gladly put babies in her belly. A simple man, who would always love and protect her, and a safe and comfortable home. Why had she been cursed with this height and awful red hair? She’d done naught to deserve this earthly punishment. She’d always been a dutiful daughter and a kind person.

  Puss Puss, he had called the cat. She jumped up on the bed as soon as Jacki had made it. The spoiled feline purred her thank you, circled a spot a couple of times, and curled into a ball to sleep. Jacki reached over and gently stroked her soft fur. She needed to be done with feeling sorry for herself. She was attracted to the gia … Ben. Perhaps he could be persuaded to find her appealing too.

  ****

  Ben stomped his way through the snow to the barn. Being out in the cold would do him some good. Help cool his heated blood, so that he could think clearly. Yanking open the barn door, he stepped inside to the smell of animals and hay. An odor he was familiar and comfortable with. Being with the animals always calmed his mind. With them, he could be himself without judgment. Decent women he knew little about. His mother had died when he was a baby. It had just been him and his father, until his death two years ago. Since then, he’d lived alone on his mountain home with just his animals as company.

  The women in the village judged him. They judged his size and looked at him with fear when he was watching and desire when they thought he wasn’t. They judged him by the scar that he had gotten at the age of eleven when he had slipped partway down the mountain and fell onto a jagged rock. His father had sewn his skin back together and had told him he was lucky he hadn’t lost an eye or even his life. “The mountain is our home, Benjamin, but it is to always be feared and respected,” he had said while he sewed. Both men and women judged him because he was different. He lived alone. He was the dreaded giant who lived on the mountain.

  He preferred the company of his animals to the judgmental, small-minded villagers. He stared at them silently and growled to keep them afraid of him. He had heard the childish rumors that he ground people up to eat. People believed what they wanted to. As long as they left him alone, he didn’t care. On the rare occasion when he desired the company of a female, he paid a whore well to spend the night with him and he had yet to hear any complaints. They always left his home a little sore from his lovemaking, but alive.

  Jacinda wasn’t a whore, that much was clear. She also hadn’t judged him. She didn’t comment on his scar or look away in disgust. He snorted. She’d declared foolishly that she wasn’t afraid of him. He needed her in his bed. He craved to be between those long legs. He wanted the enticing scent of her to linger in his nose and the sweet taste of her on his tongue. His cock grew hard just imagining the red curls he knew he would find between her creamy thighs.

  Moving to a corner of the barn, he untied his pants and pulled his aching cock out and into his hand. He fisted himself around his width and began to stroke his length. Jacinda came to mind. The feel of her lips under his mouth, her creamy, smooth skin beneath his fingers. The sweet scent of her arousal had surrounded them. He squeezed his cock until it was almost painful and pumped faster. It was best he not return to the cottage until he could do so with a calmer head and a softer cock. Though having a soft one around Jacinda may be an impossible deed. His breath quickened and he felt his balls tighten. A moment later, his seed shot out in explosive bursts and fell harmlessly in the hay.

  Ben sighed and moved back into the main part of the barn. He went through his chores, but Jacinda was never far from his mind. How was he going to live with her and not take her? He would need the patience of a saint, but he would not cause her any unnecessary pain. He wasn’t a monster, despite what the villagers thought. First off, he needed some answers. How had she gotten to be on his mountain? Who was she running from? Where was she from and where was her family?

  He broke up the ice from the water buckets and fed the horses and chickens. He milked and fed the cow and his two goats and frowned when he noticed that his goose was missing from its pen. He wasn’t too concerned. He tended to get out but always managed to find his way back home. When Ben had finished, he gathered up the pail of fresh milk and basket of eggs and headed toward the cottage. He set the pails outside the door and took up a shovel and cleared a path to both the barn and the outhouse.

  The snow had final
ly stopped, but it was still bitterly cold and overcast. Ben had delayed long enough. He was cold and hungry. It was time to go back inside. He knew that he was in trouble with this girl when his cock started to jerk to attention at the thought of seeing her again.

  Chapter Six

  Jacki stayed busy while Ben was outside. She had swept the floor and washed up some dishes left soaking in a pail of water. The stone building itself was actually one large room with the tallest ceiling she’d ever seen in a cottage. The fireplace was massive and was the center of the room. It also divided the space. There was the sleeping area on one side, farthest from the door. The other side of the room consisted of a large table with two well-made chairs. A long shelf held eating and cooking utensils and a large soft chair with a shelf of books in another corner.

  When she was finished cleaning, she scooped snow from outside the door into a pail and heated it near the fire. When it was warm, she used it to quickly wash herself before combing her fingers through her hair and re-braiding it. Hearing a noise outside, she peeped out the window to see Ben coming toward the door carrying two pails, one of milk and one with eggs. When he didn’t immediately come inside, Jacki opened the door to see he had set the pails down and was now clearing a path to the barn with a shovel. With his strong muscular back to her, she stood for a moment, watching the power of his movements.

  Making a quick decision, she grabbed the pails and brought them inside. Puss Puss immediately perked up from her nap and jumped from the bed. She stretched and headed her way with loud meows. Jacki found a dish, poured out a cup of the milk, and gave it to her. Puss Puss settled in front of it and lapped hungrily as the fire warmed the milk. Jacki frowned. She was hungry too and with all the work Ben was doing, he had to be as well.

  When she had been cleaning, she had spotted a door in the very back of the cottage. Pulling it open had revealed a well-stocked pantry. She headed for the pantry and gathered up some supplies. Within minutes, she had biscuits in an iron skillet browning by the fire. Inside the pantry, she’d found a ham hanging and she had sliced off a couple of large pieces and it was now frying. She was breaking eggs and adding milk to the bowl when the door was snatched open and Ben came in. He stomped his feet on the stoop before stepping in and hanging up his cloak on a peg. He sat down on a bench and tugged off his boots. Other than a quick glance, he hadn’t even acknowledged her presence.

  Jacki stood nervously from her crouch in front of the fire. “I hope you don’t mind, but I went ahead and made breakfast. I thought you would be hungry.”

  Ben approached. “It smells good. Thank you.” He moved to a bucket of water and splashed his face and washed his hands.

  Jacki pulled up the ham slices and added the eggs to the skillet, quickly stirring them to keep them from sticking. Behind her, she heard Ben moving around. Suddenly, he was beside her. moving the heavy skillet of biscuits to the table and pouring both of them cups of milk. When the eggs were done, it was he who moved to carry them to the table. Sitting across from each other, they ate hungrily in silence.

  Jacki jumped when he finally spoke. “How did you come to be on my mountain?”

  She shrugged. “How does one usually get up here? I climbed.”

  Across from her, Ben frowned. “There is a road, but only a few old-timers and I know of it. It is well hidden and unsafe to travel in the snow.” Ben leaned forward. “Let me put my question differently. Why did you climb the mountain?”

  Jacki set her fork down on the plate and interlaced her fingers in her lap. Perhaps telling as much of the truth as she dared would be her best bet. “Some of the townspeople were chasing me. They think I’m a witch.”

  Ben leaned back into his chair and the dark eyebrow without the scar shot upward. “And are you?”

  “No.”

  His eyes searched her face and Jacki schooled her features to remain still. She knew without him even asking what the next question would be.

  His voice was strangely calm when he asked, “Why would they think that you’re a witch?”

  She swallowed. She could tell him that the townspeople were simple-minded and suspicious of her height and red hair, because it was the truth, but instead, she found herself saying, “I was hungry and had been walking for several days. I had no money and had asked for work in a pub, but…” She hesitated. He didn’t need to know of her humiliation in the pub. He didn’t need to know that the men there had been crass and vulgar and had laughed at her. “There was no work available. I offered to buy a meat pie from a street vendor, but he didn’t like my method of payment.” Jacki hung her head and bit her bottom lip nervously.

  His warm fingers surprised her when they touched her chin. He raised her head with soft pressure. “Look at me, Jacinda.”

  She raised her eyes to his.

  “What was the method of payment you offered?”

  Was it her imagination, or did he look very tense? His mouth a slashed, tight line on his face.

  “Beans.”

  Ben leaned back and let out a long, slow breath. “You offered him beans and he thought you a witch? What are you not saying, Jacinda?”

  Jacki slowly nodded. If she told him the truth, would he also think her a witch? Would he make her leave? She was betting that he would not. There was warmth in his eyes when he looked at her. Something she had never experienced before. “A kind man outside of the pub gave me a handful of beans. He said they were magic and that I was not to eat them.” Jacki wiped a single tear from her eye. “I was so very hungry. I was tempted, but I didn’t eat them. Instead, I used them to get here. He told me that when I found myself in a dire situation, I should drop them and climb.”

  “This man, did he give you his name?”

  Jacki frowned. “Hollis, yes I’m sure of it. He said his name was Hollis.”

  Jacki was not prepared for Ben’s sudden explosion from the chair. He jumped to his feet, sending the chair crashing to the floor. “Son of a bitch!” He paced with his hands on his waist in front of her. “That meddling little … I will wring his scrawny neck.”

  “Do you know of him?” she dared to ask.

  He stopped pacing and stared at her. “Yes, he’s my goo…” He paused and took a deep breath. “I mean to say he is a friend of mine.”

  Jacki stood and gathered the dirty dishes from the table. “Your friend saved my life. I would very much like to thank him someday.”

  “No, my friend was almost the cause of you being burned at the stake. If they had caught you…” Ben closed his eyes. Jacki could see the anger racing across his features. Yet, he fought to gain control of it.

  She gently touched his chest. His eyes opened and speared her with their intensity. “But they didn’t. That’s the thing. The beans Hollis gave me were indeed magic. I dropped them to the frozen ground and instantly a beanstalk shot to the sky. I climbed it until I was on the mountain.” She shrugged. “He sent me here, to you, where he knew I would be safe. That’s why I don’t fear you.”

  He pulled her into his arms. “You’re mistaken if you think you are safe with me, my dove.”

  Chapter Seven

  Ben had been fighting the urge to pull Jacinda into his arms from the moment he had walked in the cottage. The thought that the villagers had thought her a witch and would have killed her still turned his heart cold and sent his blood boiling. He knew them to be narrow-minded simpletons who liked to prey on anyone different from themselves. He had been the object of their ridicule enough times, until he had grown even taller, and stronger, and wealthier. It was funny how quickly they changed their tune toward him when he was tossing money their way. The greedy bastards!

  Hollis, dammit! He had almost gotten her killed by giving her those damn magic beans. Instead of playing games with her, he should have just brought Jacinda to him and he could have … could have what? Protected her from the villagers, yes, but who would protect her from him? He wanted her. Hollis would have known that. Ben sighed with resignation and pulled her cl
oser. Hollis had known him since his birth. He knew he was lonely. Hollis knew him better than he knew himself sometimes. He’d sent Jacinda here on purpose.

  Jacinda jerked him from his thoughts when she ran her soft, cool finger down his scar. He caught and held her hand. Her eyes widened, but surprisingly not with fear. “How did you get the scar?”

  “I fell on a rock when I was younger.”

  “It makes you look dangerous, but I know you would never hurt me, Ben. I can feel it here.” She touched his hand to her chest, right above her left breast. “If you were, you would have done so before now. Instead, you’ve only shown me kindness and taken care of me. I would like to thank you.” She raised his hand to her lips and kissed his knuckle. Her large green eyes rose, seeking his.

  “It’s not your gratitude I seek, Jacinda.” His voice sounded rough, like he hadn’t used it for a very long time.

  “I know not everything that happens between a man and a woman, but I am willing to learn.” Her cheeks colored to a rosy pink. “That is if you would have me.”

  Ben felt like he had been gut punched. He sucked in a deep breath. “My dove, I will have you again and again.” He scooped her up and walked to the bed. Standing Jacinda beside it, his hands covered both sides of her face and he tilted her head until her eyes looked up to his. “I’ve never forced a woman. I would know that this is what you want. I will not have anything between us but our desires. Say it. Say you want me to make love to you.”

  “Yes. Yes, I want you to make love to me. Teach me what to do. I want to please you.”

  She had barely spoken the words when his mouth came down on hers, hard and demanding. He reminded himself to not frighten her, to slow down and take his time, to make this special for her. He softened his kiss and gently pushed his tongue into her sweet mouth and sucked leisurely at her tongue. His cock throbbed with the need to have her, but he also wanted to make this last.