Page 31 of Demure
Kaye shrugged, fixing her hazel eyes on her husband. “You get used to it. Sometimes, I am very envious, as I feel we humans aren’t given the same time to properly heal from mental traumas and the trauma of loss as we would get if we lived longer.”
“I understand.” Sierra surveyed the table again, hoping they wouldn’t judge her for taking more than one treat as she hadn’t had anything to eat yet today. “Not to give you false hope, but there are many advances in the study of aging and why humans age. So maybe by the time you have to worry, human science will have solved some of the major causes and effects of aging.”
Kaye smiled, showing off her beautifully straight teeth. “I sure hope so.” She looked between Sierra and Aodhan, an emotion Sierra couldn’t read dancing in her eyes. “So, how did you meet Aodhan here? He wouldn’t tell us.”
Sierra laughed. “Believe it or not, Tinder.”
Kaye and Braan both laughed. “Us too! But it was over ten years ago, before Tinder was as widespread as it is now.”
Sierra took a bite of her brownie, smiling as the delicious chocolatey taste filled her mouth. She chewed slowly. “Oh my, this is delicious.”
Braan smiled. “That’s because we mostly cook with Fae ingredients.”
Sierra must’ve looked confused because he continued. “We work as traders between the Fae and human worlds. Though many Fae have come to work and live here, they still missproducts from home. So, we make trips home to keep them stocked.”
Sierra’s eyes widened, realizing she hadn’t yet asked Aodhan how one got from the Fae world to the human world. “How often do you go back?”
“Not too often. Sometimes, when I know someone is coming this way, I have them bring stuff with them.”
“And you can’t just shift the items?”
It was Aodhan who replied. “As I mentioned before, while all Fae have shifting abilities, they aren’t what they used to be. Plus, shifting between our home realm and here doesn’t work.”
“Why not?” Sierra was still trying to get her mind around this shifting thing.
“We aren’t sure,” Braan replied. “But we think it’s because we can only shift things that share the same plane. Most Fae believe the realms are stacked and, therefore, have different planes. Even bringing stuff back and forth is tedious, as only what can be carried can be brought at one time. Usually, we have a vehicle on one side of the barrier and go back and forth a few times to fill it with everything we plan to bring.”
Sierra saw her chance. “The barrier?”
Aodhan cut in a second time, “The barrier, or the door between our worlds, is located up north by Culkeeny, which is why I said I was from there when we first met. It’s not a visible barrier, but if you know where to look, you can see the place where the air twists. Well, at least we Fae can see it. I guess I never asked a human.” His eyes drifted to Kaye.
She nodded enthusiastically, “I can see it as well.” She looked to Sierra, who was taking bites of something she assumed was a scone. “Many humans have stumbled into Sidhe over the years out of curiosity when they see the way the air glimmers differently.”
Sierra was having a difficult time picturing this portal and wished it was closer so she could see for herself. Sierra looked at Aodhan, and he must’ve been reading her emotions because hestood from the couch and announced, “I’m going to take Sierra on a tour of the house now.”
“Oh yes, of course, go ahead. We will catch up to you later.” Kaye and Braan looked at each other, something unspoken passing between them as Sierra rushed to swallow the large bite of food she had just taken and brushed the crumbs from her lap onto her nearly empty plate.
Before Sierra could say anything else or take a last sip of her tea, both Kaye and Braan stood and left the room. Sierra looked over to see Aodhan had also stood and was holding out his hand to her. “Are you ready?”
Chapter Seventeen
The tour of the house took longer than Sierra anticipated. Even though Sierra had been able to tell that the house was large from her view of the street, she had not realized how far back it went. There were rooms upon rooms; she was sure this house would cost a fortune if it was sold today, but she was reasonably sure that Braan and Aodhan’s family had owned it for a long time, or at least knew the person who did, to be able to afford it without all the requirements Aodhan had mentioned previously.
As Aodhan took her from room to room, explaining the function of each room and who had visited, when unease settled in the pit of Sierra’s stomach. For some reason, the looks Kaye had given her during their teatime were in the forefront of her mind. Something about them had brushed her the wrong way, but she couldn’t say why.
Sierrahmmed andoohed at the appropriate times as Aodhan explained yet another statue sitting on a table in this hallway, which she now swore went on forever. The hairs on the back of her neck prickled.
Sierra spun around, only to set her eyes on the empty hallwaybehind her. Once she was satisfied that there truly was no one there, she turned back to find Aodhan studying her curiously.
“Are you okay?” he asked, his eyes alternating between searching her face and the empty hallway, which had drawn her attention away from him.
“Yeah, I thought I felt someone watching me.”
“Hm.” Aodhan looked over her shoulder. “Could be one of the servants they have on staff.”
Sierra laughed. “I still can’t believe you guys have servants.”
The corner of Aodhan’s mouth ticked up. “What can I say? I’m privileged enough to be able to live with some pretty wealthy Fae.”
