Page 18 of Demure
“That’s a pretty name.”
Aodhan nodded.
“I just realized I don’t know your last name either.” Tinder was well known for the fact that it only showed the individual's first name, age, and usually a less than stellar picture.
“It’s a hard one in your language. It’s De Thuaidh.” His lips both curled and pressed together as he pronounced his last name in a way that Sierra knew she would never be able to recreate.
But her mind caught on something else he had said. “In my language?” Sierra asked, as they turned a corner and headed toward the library, both of them twisting and stepping aside as other students passed by them.
“Yes, in English. It’s much easier for Gaelic speakers to pronounce.”
That reminded Sierra of something else she found weird about Aodhan. “How did you learn old Gaelic anyway?”
“My family all speaks it. It’s much more common where I am from.”
“They speak old Gaelic in Culkeeny?”
Aodhan shook his head, stopping to open the door to the library for her, placing his large hand against the top of the glass soshe could walk underneath. “Not in Culkeeny, but in my village, yes.”
“How did you learn to speak English so well, then?”
“Everyone in my village has to learn it in school in addition to Gaelic.”
Sierra and Aodhan made their way back to the employee area, Sierra lifted a hand to Mona, who was at the checkout desk, in greeting as they passed.
“I believe it’s my turn to ask some questions,” Aodhan said as they entered the employee break room.
Sierra winced as she removed her jacket. He was right, she couldn’t demand he talk about himself and not do the same in return, even though she hated it. “I guess.”
She looked over to find Aodhan’s eyes on her. “That makes you nervous. Why?”
Sierra looked around the room, glad to see it was empty of other employees. “I just don’t like talking about myself, or my family, or…my condition.”
“Okay, we don’t have to talk about those things then.” He hung Sierra’s jacket on a hook for her. “Where are you from?”
“Dallas, it’s a city in Texas in the United States.”
He nodded. “I’ve heard of it.” Sierra looked at her jacket on the hook, before putting her messenger bag in a cubby and heading for a cart in the hall. Aodhan followed. “Why did you come to Ireland?”
Sierra pretended to be busy grabbing a cart. She knew it was a normal question and that he couldn’t know how uncomfortable it made her feel, but before she could answer, he surprised her with the next words out of his mouth. “That makes you uncomfortable, why?”
“You’re very intuitive, I see.” Sierra began pushing the cart to the section where she would be shelving the books.
“When I want to be,” Aodhan corrected. The two began working in silence, but Aodhan wasn’t going to let his unanswered question go. “So, I’ll ask again: why did you come here?”
Sierra sighed. “To get away from my family.”
Aodhan put down the book he was shelving. “Why? Do they hurt you?”
Sierra shook her head, touched by his concern for her well-being. “Not physically, but my mother is very controlling and not very understanding.”
Aodhan didn’t say anything, so Sierra continued, switching the subject. “What about your parents? Do you guys get along?”
“For the most part,” he replied. “I’ve been an adult for a long time, so…”
Sierra nearly dropped the book she was holding. “I thought your Tinder profile said you were 25?”
A weird look ghosted over Aodhan’s features, but before Sierra could properly analyze it, it was gone. “Yes, I am 25. I guess I’ve just felt like an adult for a long time.”
