Khel and Brom

"Damn ye!" He bellowed. He rose and was about to draw his blade when the second guard stopped him with a hand on his shoulder.

"That's enough, Tark." The second guard said. "Leave 'em be."

"But--" Tark said.

"They aren't hurtin' anybody, and even if it's a might peculiar, dwarves have decided to open relations with topsiders." The second guard continued.

"Thank ye." Said Brom.

The second guard ushered Tark away and said to us, "I've never seen a mixed couple like ye before, but before ye had to deal with this bastard," He hooked a thumb to indicate the first guard. "Ye looked happy. The world is always gonna be changing and some of us are always gonna be small about it. My point is, don't let them get the two of ye down. Have a nice time today."

We walked in silence for a couple minutes up the dusty stone path while Brom's anger subsided, until I said. "You defended me back there. You protected me."

Brom shot me a sideways glance. "Well of course I did, what else would I do?"

"Nothing." I said. "You could have done nothing. I can see how being with me makes things harder on you, sometimes. Everywhere we go people stare at us."

Brom snorted. "I don't care about them, or the stupid things they might think about us. All I care about is how ye feel... about me."

It consistently amazed me that a tough brawny guy like Brom could be so intimidating in some ways and so entirely vulnerable in others. It was one of the things I liked best about him.

"I like you immensely." I said. "No one has ever treated me half as well as you. When we're apart I can't stop thinking about you."

Instead of blushing, I could see Brom's eyes welling up. "I've waited a long time for ye." He said at last.

"Pardon?" I asked.

He let out a long sigh. "When I was a younger dwarf I dated a few women, dwarven women obviously. They were fine enough, we had a good time, but our relationships never lasted fer very long. I didn't know why at the time. But I found a book, actually at that library I took ye to a couple days back. It was all about elves, culture, language, all that stuff. But what interested me most were the drawings of elves, very realistic. Lean and tall, pale and beautiful. Also much less hairy than us!" He pulled his shirt and vest down a little in the front and moved his beard to one side so I could see an impressive tuft of red chest hair poking out. "Anyway, I fell in love with those pages immediately. I knew I would have to meet a nice elf one day and hope she might develop feelings fer me. It's why I have that wagon. I wanted to go into the world and find me that elf, but in the end I was too scared to leave the underground. So when your company arrived, I thought, 'this must be a sign!' And ye know how the rest has gone."

I was silent, thinking about everything he had said. I've said it before but elves are lucky. Our culture doesn't care about things like dating outside of your race, men or women finding love with one another, the way we dress... Brom was putting a lot on the line personally to date me. I knew about the prejudices of humans, it seemed like dwarves suffered the same societal pitfalls.

We walked down a small trail, barely noticeable, leading off the main road and followed it up among several huge stone arches. After enough time for my feet to just start becoming sore Brom stopped beside me and said, "We're here."

Ahead of us was a long, narrow valley. It was so bright I had to shade my eyes as we entered. Brom pointed up and I followed the gesture to see that there was a long open crack above us where natural sunlight was filtering down. I got a strange pang in my chest. I had been missing the sun without even realizing. In the middle of the valley was a pool with a small island in the center and a copse of trees. I recognized them, they were apple trees. Being early in the year as it was they had small white blossoms and the air smelled fresh and a little bit sweet.

"This is beautiful." I said. "I didn't know we were this close to the surface."

"In this place, we are. We've been walking uphill fer awhile." Brom said. "We can be alone here, as far as I know, nobody else knows about this place."

He led me to the edge of the pool and promptly scooped me up in his arms so I wouldn't get wet. I giggled in response and almost dropped my bag.

"It really is amazing, Brom!" I said, craning my neck back to look all the way up to the light streaming in from above.

"I knew ye'd like it." He smiled down at me. "I like to come out here sometimes, but I've always wanted to bring someone special with me."

"And I'm someone special?" I asked quietly.

"Ye know ye are." He said and gave me a quick peck on the lips.

Under the apple trees Brom pulled a blanket out of his satchel followed by some food and drink. I was heartened to see that he had brought the bread dish with the sweet meat inside. "I knew ye liked these." He said as he put them down.

"Have you tried elvish wine before?" I asked him.

He shook his head. "I've not."

We ate and drained the first wine bottle between us. I laid back on the blanket, feeling the sun's warmth for the first time in days. Brom leaned back on an elbow and said to me, "I'd like to give ye something."

I rolled onto my side to face him. "What is it?"

He reached into his vest pocket and pulled out something that shone brightly as his eyes between his thumb and forefinger.

"What is that?" I asked with interest.

"Open yer hand." He instructed, and I did.

He gently laid a beautiful stone into my palm. It was warm to the touch. It looked like it had a roaring fire inside, it was the brightest orange I had ever seen. The stone was so brilliant I almost couldn't believe I wasn't holding a tiny flame in my hand.

"It's incredible!" I gasped. "I've never seen anything like it. Is it a gemstone?"

"It's called fire garnet. This is the most perfect example I've ever seen of it meself." Brom told me.

It suddenly occurred to me how much this trinket must be worth and I placed it back in his hand. "Brom, it is gorgeous, but I can't accept a gift like this. You don't owe me anything."

He shook his head. "I owe ye everything. I came alive when I met ye." He held my hand out again and pressed the stone back into it before saying, "This is for ye. It's a sign of me intentions, I want to be with ye and no one else. If ye accept this, then ye accept me, and understand what I'm tryin' to say."

"I understand, and I accept you." I felt my throat get tight and realized I was going to cry. I rarely cried, certainly never in front of anyone. The tears came anyway and I apologized for getting so emotional. In my life no one had ever treated me like this dwarf did. I felt appreciated. I wondered if love felt this way.

Brom carefully laid the stone on top of my bag beside us. Then he gently climbed over me and kissed the tears, fresh on my cheeks. My crying stopped as he began to kiss my mouth, pushing his tongue against mine. I let him take the lead this time. Brom moved slowly and deliberately and I began to respond in kind. He moved to my neck and ears. He kissed and sucked at my pointed ear tips and it drove me wild. I tugged at his shirt and vest, trying to rip them to shreds with my mind. He sat up and pulled his shirt over his head in one easy movement. I could finally see more of his body and I was not disappointed. He had a broad chest, covered in soft red hair. His nipples were a dark pink and quite large. His stomach, while barrel-shaped and round also had a thick trail of soft fur leading downward. I began running my long fingers through the forest of hair all over the front of his body. I loved the feel of him, so different from an elf. As he leaned over me again he easily pulled my blouse up. I was so aroused I didn't even realize it was happening until I too was barechested. I bit my lip. I had no breasts, obviously. I was scared of his reaction.

"Not all elves have large breasts!" I blurted out.

He gave me a kind look. "Lass, I don't care about that. I've been with ye for several days now, I've known how much or how little cleavage ye might have."

He leaned down to my chest and flicked his wet tongue against one of my nipples. I moaned in response. He suckled it into his mouth and pinched them both, ever so slightly with his fingers. He switched his focus to the other and sucked it too. It drove me wild in response. When I couldn't handle his attention any longer I pushed him onto his back to return the favor. His nipples proved to be just as sensitive as mine and at first he laughed, saying. "Never had a lass do this fer me!" But soon he too became lost in his moaning. He ran his hands through my short hair and I started to descend down the front of his body with my mouth. I traced my way through his belly hair with my tongue and came to the top of his belt buckle. He eased himself up to his elbows and looked me in the eye.

"Ye don't have to go any further, if ye don't want to, Khel. I'm enjoying everything else we're doin' just fine too." Brom said in a measured tone.

"No Brom, I want to. I need to." I unfastened his heavy belt and undid his pants. He lifted his rump up so I could get his trousers off and he was left in small cloth briefs. I could make out the shape and size of his manhood clearly, the flare of his head, the moisture where he was already leaking through the material. There appeared to be a lot of moisture. I kissed and licked him through the material, tasting his essence and getting strong whiffs of his most private areas. I couldn't stand the foreplay and tugged his undergarments down to his ankles. His beautiful, fat cock slapped up against his belly and I marveled at the view. He wasn't terribly long, but it was incredibly thick, probably the size of my forearm in diameter. It was surrounded by a luxuriant forest of soft red fur. Underneath his girthy length I was impressed to find a fat, rounded pair of testicles, each about the size of a plum. He had the biggest, hairiest sack I had ever seen on a man. I almost laughed, thinking how a dwarf's genitals were such a perfect allusion to the dwarves themselves: shorter perhaps, but thick, fuzzy and rounded.

Brom watched me through lust-filled eyes as I took my first real taste of him. I swirled my tongue around his purple, flared head and sucked the early fluid out of the tip. He had a strong, bitter taste with a salty finish. Delicious! I moved my mouth down further and was flustered when I realized I might not be able to take all of him into my throat. He was so thick, but I was persistent. I slid up and down on his plump cock and he rested his hands on the back of my head. After a couple minutes I could just get all of him down my eager gullet and nestled my nose into his pubic bush with each full deepthroat.

He lifted my head off of him and said hoarsely, "Khel, I won't last, but I don't wanna blow yet."

I was vaguely disappointed, but also glad that we weren't done.

"Climb up here," He indicated to his face, "So I can return the favor."

I knew I couldn't offer that to him, so instead I said. "No need for that, I have something else in mind." He looked crestfallen, until I moved partway up his body to straddle him.

I purposefully kept my skirt on, to hide my erection and he asked, "Could ye take off the skirt fer me, lass? I'd love to get a look at the rest of ye."

I felt guilty, of course. I had led him on for so long that I was literally going to fuck him and still not let him know this one final secret. "I'm... not really comfortable with that." I said. "Not yet."

He gave me a wry smile, "Well, when ye are then."

I reached under my skirt and pulled the panties I was wearing to one side so I could reach my hole. I spit a generous amount into my hand and reached underneath myself and began slipping a finger into my tight anus. With my other hand I slowly jerked Brom, careful not to finish him off. Eventually I worked two more fingers inside and added more spit. Brom was easily the thickest cock I had ever tried to take and knew that preparation was key. I continued to work my fingers inside, biting my lip as I did so. When I thought I was ready I made sure to get down between the dwarf's legs again to really lube him up with my mouth. I pushed my nose into his large hairy sack while I was down there and took a long, deep sniff of him. Something about his strong, male musk was intoxicating. I liberally coated his cock with my saliva and continued to finger myself.

Finally I straddled him again and reaching behind myself, positioned his hard manhood to the pucker of my young asshole. He watched me all the while with great interest. I grunted as I tried to sit down on him. The head barely pushed inside of me and I bit my lip hard. My gods he was a big one! I bore down and attempted to relax my muscles, he stubbornly slipped in a little more. I repeated the process until at last I was able to sit all the way down. I exhaled and inhaled slowly. The size of him was almost more than I could take. Ever so slowly I raised up with my knees and felt him slide partway out. I sat down again as Brom's full length forced me still wider. It took minutes but I found a rhythm and began to let him fuck me. The pain was palpable but I wanted him so badly, had wanted him so badly for days. I leaned my head back and let my hips do the work. I rocked back and forth, lost in ecstasy at the way my insides felt so full. Brom fondled my nipples and rubbed my smooth stomach and chest. Then he began to buck into me fully and I let out a long groan. My own cock was oozing like crazy but it was still trapped up against my navel in the panties I couldn't take off for fear of discovery.

Brom continued to thrust into me and within a few minutes I could tell he was close to climax.

"I'm gonna, I'm gettin' real close now, Khel..." He warned.

"Please... " I moaned. "Fill me up! Shoot up in my guts!" I looked him in the eyes and rode him faster.

Brom gave a roar as he drove himself into me one last time and held himself there. "I'm gonna blow!!" He yelled as I felt the first blast inside. It was like nothing I have ever experienced. The sheer volume, the heat of it, I could almost feel it spraying everywhere inside me at once. I could feel his cock sending wave after wave up through my stretched asshole. He wouldn't stop, and I was in heaven. I couldn't help it, I needed to cum. I reached down under the waistband of the skirt and gave myself a few quick tugs. Brom's eyes were tightly closed at this point so he didn't see me. My own orgasm rocked me and I moaned loudly. Brom was still filling me with his seed, I could feel every pump. I began shooting after him and finished before. That was how much the dwarf produced. My own cum began running between my legs to spill down his cock, mixing with his. His prick finally stopped flooding me and I collapsed onto his belly and chest, absently kissing his bearded face.

"My gods." I whispered."Do you always shoot like that?"

Brom gave a breathless laugh. "Every time me dear." He kissed me on my mouth. "Did ye climax?" He asked.

I smiled at him. "Yes I did, and it was amazing." I stroked his soft facial hair and chest. "Can we stay here? Just like this?"

"I would like nothing more." He replied.

We laid together under the trees with the noise of rushing water as the only sound besides our breathing. I played with Brom's impressive beard braids and he rubbed my back and kissed me every now and then. Finally, after an hour or more I needed to get up, and stretch. Brom snored softly underneath me. As I slowly rose up his flaccid member popped out of my anus with a slight wet sound. There was dried fluid coating my ass and inner thighs. I noted with some dismay that the borrowed skirt had also gotten some of the action. Brom's lap was a mess as well. I went into the cool water to clean myself. The undergarments I had on would have to be destroyed, and I wasn't too hopeful about the skirt either. I bathed as well as I could then got out to dry. Brom was still asleep so I took the time to get dressed and open the second bottle of wine I had brought. I ran my hands over my sleeping dwarf and sighed. This was the best day I could remember having, in my entire life. This man had brought me to this beautiful place, we had shared stories and a meal, he had told me how he felt about me and we had made love under an apple tree. It would be perfect, if I wasn't a liar. The thought made my stomach turn, and I would still be leaving in two days' time.

When Brom awoke, he stretched, then got up and went to the pool to bathe. I explained that I had grown quite tired, so we ate the rest of the food we had brought for dinner, drank the other bottle of wine and began packing up to head back to Stonefield. I carefully wrapped the fire garnet in a napkin and placed it in a separate pocket in my bag where it wouldn't be damaged. I had been slated for a small role in the troupe's evening play but had known I might be out for most of the day, and asked Joren to provide a stand-in if I didn't return in time. Obviously I hadn't made it back as the cavern had begun showing its signs of evening an hour or more ago.

When we passed the guard post this time I was relieved to see different guards stationed who took no real interest in us as we made our way into the city. Brom walked me back to my door. I wanted to invite him in, and I suspected he would finally accept my invitation but something inside prevented me from asking. Instead he gave me a passionate kiss on the lips and held me close. I hugged him back.

"Can I see ye tomorrow then?" He asked before he left, as he always did.

"Yep." I responded with a weak smile.

His face showed his confusion. "Everything alright, lass?" He asked.

"Yeah, of course it is, I'm just tired. I got a lot of exercise today." I said lamely.

He gave a hearty laugh. "Yeah, me too! But I hope to have more exercise like it again tomorrow!"

I laughed in spite of the way I was now feeling. "Tomorrow then, Brom." I said.

I watched him go and it gave my heart sharp pangs of sorrow. I was going to tell him everything, I had to. The guilt had finally caught up to me. This wasn't a game, and I had been fooling myself into thinking I didn't care about his feelings. In truth they had become the only thing that mattered to me these last couple days.

I went to bed wondering about the predicaments in which I often found myself. I tried to justify my actions. If I hadn't been playing a woman onstage he would never have approached me, I would have never gotten to meet him. If I didn't continue to play dress-up, I would never have really gotten to know him, and he wouldn't have opened up to me. Probably. No matter what, I would tell him tomorrow. Tomorrow was our last performance, our last night in Stonefield, one final chance for me to do the right thing and break the heart of the only man who might actually love me.

CHAPTER 6

After I awoke the following day, I made my way over to Aste's wagon. She had just awoken herself and greeted me at the door with a sleepy yawn. "Morning. What's up? You need something?" She asked through heavy-lidded eyes.

"Yeah, I do." I replied and stepped past her into her room.

We both sat down on the edge of her bed.

"I had the best day with Brom yesterday," I began. "And I'm gonna tell him everything today."

"It's seriously about time." She said, fixing me with a look that strongly suggested my idiocy.

"I know. I'm scared, I could barely sleep. What if he doesn't want to see me again? What if he kicks my ass?" I said frantically.

"He won't kick your ass, Khel." She said with a roll of her eyes. "And what if he finds out and doesn't care?"