Chapter 11

With their bodies entwined and still joined, it was a while before they were able to catch their breaths.

When his heart had stopped thudding painfully in his chest, Patrick was able to lift his upper body from Gene's enough to look into her beautiful face. When her eyes opened and she finally looked into his own, he leaned down and gave her a gentle kiss on the lips. He loved the soft firm feel of them, not to mention the exquisite taste that was uniquely Gene's. He loved the way they seemed to tremble as he pressed his softly and delicately upon hers.

He had not imagined what he heard; she had said it out loud, how she loved him. He had known she did, but to hear it spoken from those sweet lips of hers had made it somehow real and more true. He was so full of love for her just then that he feared opening his mouth lest he start shouting out his joy. He loved her, she loved him. It felt as if it had been forever, if ever, since things had felt so right, so perfect, in his life.

When he lifted the rest of his body up, and out of her, she gasped at the lingering tenderness between her legs.

Patrick stilled at the little noise and grinned like an idiot at the knowledge that he had been the first, and only, to claim her luscious little body. While he naturally felt bad at the pain it had caused her he was also filled with all sorts of primal male ego. She was his, and only his, and her slight discomfort would fade, but the memory of their joining would last forever.

He kissed her again for good measure, and to show her how pleased with her he was. Then he told her to stay put for a minute. He got out of the bed and walked, in all his naked glory, back to the tub, where he picked up a damp washing cloth and headed back to the bed.

Gene, still unable to say a word, could only nod in assent as she peeked at his gorgeous body, but as soon as his back was turned she scrambled under the sheets to hide her nudity. Now that the heat of the moment had passed she had become more than completely aware of the nakedness she had flaunted only moments ago.

Gene kept running her "declaration" over and over again in her mind and she was completely nonplussed about how to proceed. She felt like the biggest fool in all creation for shouting out how she felt to a man who was both beautiful and experienced; not to mention the fact that he would soon be king. What a naive little fool she was and she was a little shocked that he hadn't turned tail and fled the moment the words had left her mouth.

When Patrick got back to the bed he noticed how Gene was huddled under the covers with the blanket pulled up to her chin. Her big beautiful brown eyes were wide and following his every movement. It was amazing to him how truly precious she was to him, how attached he had become, and when he was able to tear his eyes from hers he noticed to bright pink stain on the blanket she was clutching like a defensive shield.

"Well love, you might have to burn that sheet if you don't want the world to know what you've been about." At the confused look on her face he pointedly looked back at the stain and when she gasped in shock he chuckled.

Gene could feel her face turning beet red, but all she could do was bite her lips and wait for his next move. Gods, but that was a big stain! No wonder it had hurt so much.

With the cloth still in his hand, Patrick reached out till he caught one of her ankles and pulled her towards him till she was close to the edge of the bed. Kissing her once on the nose he said: "I don't want to embarrass you lover but I will clean you before I go. As much as I would like to stay with you, Cook is expecting me back from my 'walk' soon. Besides, I think you might be too sore for another round."

Gene moaned in embarrassment and raised her hands to cover her face as he flipped the blanket off her and began to clean her bloodied thighs and privates. She clenched her eyes shut and let him work, mortified and saddened by the fact that he was leaving. She knew in her heart it was her declaration that was causing him to run, but she had to admit that the cloth felt nice against her tender flesh.

When he was done cleaning her to his satisfaction he took a moment to look at the stunning picture she presented. Her skin seemed to glow golden in the firelight, her damp raven hair fanned out above her head in soft waves and curls, her gorgeous breasts seemed to float upon her chest in a becoming manner and her taught little pink nipples stood at a proud perky attention in her embarrassment. Her narrow waist and curving hips seemed to beg his touch, but he managed to restrain himself, her firm muscular legs were splayed open revealing all her sweet treasures, while her dainty feet dangled on the edge of the bed, her toes curled and clenched as testimony to her bruised pride. Not able to help himself, he leaned down and placed a kiss on her tender vagina causing her to drop her hands and snap her eyes open. He grinned and with their eyes locked once again he leaned down again and placed another kiss on her beautiful nether lips, running his tongue once along her slit.

He wanted her again. Already his cock was hardening at the thought of finding his way home into her warm tender body, but he knew that it would hurt her, and he knew that he was exhausting his magic. He would not love her in his cursed form, so with a final kiss on her cunt he straightened, patted her thigh and tucked her into bed.

Winking at her he headed towards to door where he found his cloths, shrunk to his gnome form, hurriedly dressed and made to leave.

When the door was opened and before he closed it behind him he turned around again. His vibrant blue eyes searched out her face till her eyes were locked with his. With a cheeky grin, and a saucy wink, he blew her a kiss and whispered loud enough for her to hear him: "by the by, I love you too!"

Then he was gone.

It was a long time before Gene was able to tear her eyes away from the door. Her heart was filled to near bursting at his parting declaration. He loved her! Her! That beautiful and passionate man actually love her!

Her first instinct was to jump up and follow him so that she could jump him for another round of passionate lovemaking that would rival what they had just done, but common sense won out. It would certainly not do for her to be running around the house, stark naked and lusting, after their 'guest, ' especially with her father in residence.

It was hard to sit still and calm when all she wanted to do was run to the man she loved, and whom loved her, and never be parted again.

With a sigh she snuggled deeper into the blankets and set out to wait. Reaching for her locket she was momentarily discomfited to find that it was not around her neck. Remembering where it currently resided made her a little sad, but not enough to burst her love filled bubble; it's loss would be felt keenly another day.

Instead she decided to focus on the beautiful memories that had just occurred in her own bedroom. Every kiss, every touch, was still fresh in her mind. He had been so tender in his loving of her. It mad her sigh with pleasure at the way he had restrained himself till her body had become accustomed to his size. It made her blush hotly at the memory of how he had felt within her body when he had first torn his way through, how she was able to feel his blood pulsing in the hot turgid length of him embedded within her.

But that had been nothing compared to what she had felt when he had brought her over the precipice. The slick sliding of flesh on flesh had created a burning desire within her that had almost consumed her in its intensity. She wondered briefly if it had been as special for him as it had been for her.

That thought made her frown, maybe he had felt it before. For all she knew it was a normal occurrence in sharing of one another's passions. Maybe she was only being a naive fool again drowning in her own naive romanticism. But then again, perhaps he had felt a little of the magic that she had felt. He had, after all, said he loved her.

That thought brought a fresh smile to her face, and laid some of her raw insecurities to rest.

She decided to bask in the glow of her spent passions and not worry about her problems. For now she would only look to the near future, when she could be together with Patrick again.

Her decision made, she settled down to think over the last few days. A lot had occurred in the last few days; some of it good, some of it bad. The most recent of course being of the good variety.

With that in mind she decided she would wait till the house was asleep then she would search Patrick out. Her idea was to spend the rest of the night with him, regardless of wether or not any more intimacies occurred. She just wanted some sort of closeness for now, to feel his body pressed to her, his arms wrapped around her.

As for the problems in her life ... Well, she would worry about the hows of tomorrow another time.

Popo strode whistling through the kitchen door expecting Miriam the Cook to still be grumbling about the new "lady" of the house, but instead found Greta and Gertrude awaiting to show him to his new room. He should have been suspicious, but he was still riding high on the moments that had just passed to give much notice to the two devious little bitches that sat awaiting him.

Guiding him to his new chamber, which he did not fail to notice was thrice the size of Gene's little room, the girls kept up a steady stream of chatter and eye lash batting that he was more than happy to ignore. Finding it odd that he should be so graced and pampered by the luxury, he decided to pass it off as the pompous Lord Overton's attempt at making amends. He was happy to note that a bath had been prepared for him in front of a massive fireplace that was roaring and crackling brightly. It had been a very long time since he had had all the luxuries that living in a proper home could provide- hot food, hot baths, roaring fires and warm beds. Who was he to deny the pleasantries that came from living out of the forest?

Thanking the girls, he waited till they closed the door behind him before stripping down and setting himself within the herby scented bath that awaited him. It was an earthy minty sort of scent that soothed his muscles and helped him relax. The tub, which would have been large and luxurious to an average size man, was like a hot pool for him in his gnome body, and he was able immerse himself completely in the unexpected treat.

While he sat in the hot water, letting the heat ease his muscles, he couldn't help but recall the vision of Gene in her bath. The way that the roaring fire behind her tub had given her skin a golden sheen. How the damp tendrils of her hair had skimmed the surface of the water as she had caressed her own luscious body beneath the surface of the water.

He recalled how her beautiful and expressive brown eyes had been closed and how her lips had parted slightly as she inhaled and exhaled in a soft natural rhythm.

From there his thoughts moved to the way she had felt as he had plunged into her virgin body.

Popo smiled at the memory and felt a natural surge of lust which was not at all hampered by the warm water surrounding his body. What we would give to be whole again. How he wished he had not let Leah escape him. Had he finished with her, he could still be with Gene; he would not be hiding in his own room recovering from the strain of being a whole man for her.

And it was the very thought of Leah that tempered his lust. She was the reason behind his misery and he would see to the end of it soon. He was tired of this dance they played. She forever hunting him, he hiding to preserve his life. But it was not only his own life he needed to protect now. Leah knew about Gene. Maybe not who she was specifically, but Leah now had the knowledge that he had left the forest and found a virgin to love him. It mattered not that the virgin was no longer so, Leah had no way of knowing that. It was not just him that needed protecting now, it was Gene. And as far as he was concerned, Gene was far more important than he was.

When he was done his bath, he dried himself off and jumped naked into the massive bed stacked high with pillows and down-filled comforters. With another sigh, he closed his eyes and let himself drift off into a heavy and exhausted sleep. His last thought was that the only way to make his night more perfect would have been to have Gene's tight little body snuggled next to his own in the oversized bed...

Gene was able to hold off about two hours before climbing out of bed, donning her night cloths and tying off her damp hair in a long loose braid that caressed the rise of her buttocks as she walked, she left her room to search out her new lover.

She was giddy with thrill of going to Patrick. Her only fear was getting caught. The only question was, where had they put him?

At the same time that Gene was sneaking out of her room, another female in the house was entering the room where Popo slept like the dead. Behind her, in the corridor, she left her father and her sister waiting for a few minutes while she placed herself in the appropriate place for discovery.

Greta wore nothing but a thin silky dressing robe, and as she entered the room she threw it aside and walked stealthily to the little body asleep in the massive bed. Her nose wrinkled in disgust when she spied his wrinkled face on the pillow, but she straightened her back and resolved to see things through. There was a crown in the balance here, not to mention the gorgeous man that he could shape shift into if he so desired.

And there was no doubt in her mind that he would desire it once he took one look at her perfect body with its full breasts, narrow waist, generously flaring hips, and golden down covered treasures. She was a woman who knew her own worth and tonight she would get a crown for what she had been saving all these years- her virginity!