Free Troll-y Yours by Sheri Fredricks

is my brother, Eli.”
    Al swiped his face and blinked through the damp air. Sharp and assessing, his gaze traced over her.
    Ella shook back her thick hair and wished for a giant jaw clip to pin up the mess. While her erotic encounter with its delicious release should’ve taken care of her anxiety, reality set in. For instance, her parents’ reaction when she returned home hours after the Neigh Café closed for the night.
    Cold as ice, dread spread tentacles through her stomach. No doubt Eli will have used his time wisely and worked their mom into a frenzy.
    Once again, she’d endure her brother’s torment.
    Frustrated from the evening’s events, Ella swatted a thin pine bough out of her way. Before she could catch the limb, it swung back and slapped Al in the chest with a resounding thwack. “Sorry. You don’t have to walk me all the way home, you know.”
    Great, now I have guilt. More than anything, she didn’t want a witness to her mom going off on her. If that should happen, the pile of humiliation dumped on her would know no bounds.
    “I have time.”
    Behind her, steady hoof beats reminded Ella about the width of her butt. Self-conscious, frizzy haired, barefoot and bloated, the thought of ditching him flicked through her mind. It wouldn’t be hard. A little spin, some concentrated projection, and she’d be gone—hidden beneath the crust of the forest floor.
    She glanced over her shoulder and met Al’s hot gaze.
    His iridescent pink aura shouted the overtones of his sexual desire. Overhead, a patchwork of branches blotted out much of the moon’s light, but there was no mistaking his gleam of interest. His eyes clung to hers, analyzing her reaction. The shadow of his beard lent a masculine aura, his lips firm and sensual.
    Goosebumps broke out on her arms and it only served to pebble her nipples harder. The Girls remembered his warm mouth, moist hot tongue, and incredible sucking action. Ella blew a hard breath.
    The backdrop of the crunching twigs beneath their hooves and toes, along with the sounds of roaring water, became more distinct with every step.
    Dropping from a height of nearly one hundred feet, Boronda Falls crashed to the jagged granite rocks below. Bright green ferns, now vague outlines in the dark, spread fronds in wide-plumed fingers and bordered the stream on either bank.
    At the split in the trail, Ella took the route that passed near an area nicknamed Horsetail Cascade. It was there, at the base of the falls, her family lived beneath one of the many scattered boulders lining the embankment. Always damp, always noisy.
    Not the same high-class accommodations Al had back at the palace.
    Besides living with three family members inside the nest, there were stuck-up Water Nymph neighbors to contend with on the outside.
    Churned from the river’s constant roiling, a screen of thick mist mixed with the light drizzle and proceeded to soak her clothes through. She plucked at the t-shirt to keep it from sticking to her high-beam nipples.
    Al shook his head and a shower of water sprayed in all directions. The action left his hair standing on end, which only managed to double his appeal.
    Oh Bacchus. This male with the boyish charms was very dangerous to her plans, not to mention her heart.
    Using his elbow to hold the duffle bag tightly to his withers, his equine body gave a great shudder, casting raindrops from his hide like a playful dog. Bursts of orange exploded from his aura: vitality, vigor, good health, and adventure.
    A towel…he needs a towel.
    And a rub down.
    Oh Bacchus….
    Before turning to make the sharp descent to her home rock, Ella stopped and swallowed hard. “Thank you for walking me home.” Al was so good looking, he turned her insides to mashed turnips. In order to not be affected by his overdose of sexiness, she forced her gaze to the mud, squishing between her toes. “I’ll be fine from here.”
     
    *~*~*
     
    The Troll is her brother? Reeling over the newsflash, she