Page 3 of Glory Troll

They would dry nicely and who knew…perhaps I’d find a use for them during my time here.

Let’s hope so.

I ran into Nate, Guns, and Max on the way back up to my room. Good on them for taking our rookie under their wing. He still looked like a fledgling, but under Coach Jerke’s training plan, I knew he would fill out soon enough. I’d seen him skate only once so far, but the kid had potential.

“Hey Bo, where were you? We knocked on your door. We thought you were napping.”

Out of the corners of my eyes, I spotted Ollie at the front desk, pretending to sort papers.Does he realise I can see he isn’t moving at all?

“I needed some Waldbaden,” I explained with a grin. Vee had introduced us to it recently. They had built a huge wooden bathtub in the woods right behind Nate and his cabin, where you could indulge in some forest therapy. “I kept my clothes on, though,” I added, remembering our last session. They had invited us to the grand opening of their newly added sauna. We had celebrated with beer and barbecue, and spent most of our time naked. I’d been the happiest Swede in Bavaria.

The soft choking noise from the front desk made it almost impossible for me to keep my composure and not check himout. He quickly masked it with a cough and noisily shuffled his papers around.

“Oh, I bet the animals wouldn’t have minded seeing some Troll dick,” Nate added conversationally.Did he notice anything?

I said nothing, just bumped my fist to his shoulder and let them pass first so I could ascend the stairs. Before I went up, though, I turned at Ollie, who was watching me, and gave him a little smile. He blushed, but returned it.

Now I just need to figure out how I can make him mine.

My sister picked up on the second ring.

“Bo August, it’s been two weeks!”

I snorted. She always called me Bo August when she was pretending to be mad. It was the Bo August Persson I needed to watch out for. That would mean she was seething. “It’s good to hear your voice, too. How are you?”

She launched into a quick summary of her last two weeks, about the kids who had finished school for the summer, and that they hoped uncle Bo would come visit them soon, or that maybe they could come to Bavaria. “They miss you.”

“When we’re back from Scotland, I think I can visit for a bit,” I told her. I missed my niece and my nephew, too.

“How is Scotland? Rainy?”

“Surprisingly nice. Apparently, the climate has been changing over the past years. Jerke told us on the drive here,” I explained.

She took this as an excuse to rant about the changing weather and tourism. My sister was part of the Scandinavian Creature Council, where she served as the representative of the Swedish Forest Troll delegation.

“Signe?” I cut in when she was trying to catch her breath after her rant. “Do you remember what Mormor always told us? About fate and meeting your mate?”

“Yes, I do.” My sister chuckled. “She loved these old stories. Why are you asking?”

“I think I’ve met them.”

Three

Ollie

“Good morning, Oliver.” His low, purring voice travelled through me and straight down into my balls.

Bloody hell.

“Mr Persson,” I greeted him, trying to ignore the buff guy leaning on the counter and at least keep an air of professional distance. They had just returned from their morning run and had all been dressed in unfairly tight functional gear and deliciously sweaty as they headed past me to take showers.

Persson’s blond hair was still wet and his green skin gleamed as if he had a ten-step skincare routine behind him. He had amazing skin, so soft and—

“Bo.” I paused in the middle of unclipping the stack of forms and straightening them and looked up. “It’s Bo. Please,” he added, a small smile pulling at the corner of his plush lips.

God, he’s so pretty.

“Ollie,” I muttered when I’d checked the lobby was empty except for us. “What can I do for you, Bo?”

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