Page 30 of Demure
“Sierra, I really don’t want to discuss this right now.”
Sierra bit her lip; Aodhan’s angry tone wasn’t one she had ever heard him use before, not even when they had been arguing. “Okay, let’s go inside then.” She replied as she took a tell-tale step back, putting a buffer of space between them.
She expected Aodhan to reach past her to twist the doorknob, but to her surprise, the door floated open on its own as they said the word ‘inside’. She raised her eyebrow at Aodhan, but he just laughed. “You’ll get used to it.”
Aodhan stepped in first, and Sierra followed. They were barely in the door when it drifted shut behind them. Before she could ask about anything else, two forms filled the hallway in front of them. One was a man, who was clearly Fae by the look of his pointed ears. His hair was a similar sandy brown tone to Aodhan’s, and he had a similar height and build. Sierra hadn’t asked, but now she was wondering if they were somehow related. The hallway was wide with tall ceilings, but the man was imposing enough that it almost felt crowded to Sierra. The house had clearly been built in a previous century, as Sierra noticed the wooden floor creaking as she shifted her weight. Her eyes were also drawn to the opulent chandeliers, of which there were at least three, though the hallways continued around a corner and out of sight, so she couldn’t be sure. Directly to her right was a large staircase with a bright blue runner covering the centermost part of the steps. But Sierra found that, despite all of the obviousopulence, her eyes kept returning to the woman who stood next to the man.
She had fiery red hair, which fell in waves around her distinctly human ears. She was taller than Sierra and very beautiful, even in her comfortable-looking oversized sweater and leggings. She looked to be in her early thirties. Sierra figured this must be Kaye.
Both of her suspicions were confirmed when Aodhan stepped forward and introduced them. “Sierra, this is my cousin Braan and his wife Kaye.”
Well, that answered her question about the family resemblance.
“And this is Sierra,” he told Braan and Kaye.
Sierra stuck out her hand, but to her surprise, Kaye enveloped her in a hug, and when she was done Braan followed suit and did the same.
“Welcome to our home. Aodhan has told us so much about you,” Braan said with a warm smile.
Sierra looked at Aodhan, whom she had only really been on good speaking terms with for a day or two. “That’s concerning.”
Everyone burst out laughing, which made Sierra smile, but she truly wondered what he could’ve possibly told them since they weren’t even officially dating just yet.
“Nothing bad, we promise.” Kaye took her hand. “Come and sit. We have prepared tea.”
She practically pulled Sierra into an old-fashioned sitting room. She wasn’t familiar with interior decorating trends, but if she had to guess, no one had ordered new furniture in at least a century. The room was lined with bookcases on every wall and a fireplace at one end. There was one window, but it was covered by the heavy blue drapes she had observed when they were standing outside. A lamp sat in the corner, providing most of the light in the room. The center was occupied by several Victorian-style chairs and couches around a coffee table which held a tea set and several plates of sweets and cakes. Kaye released Sierra’s hand bythe couch, which Sierra took as a sign for her to sit. Aodhan sat next to her while Kaye and Braan made themselves comfortable on two of the chairs on the other side of the coffee table. Aodhan slid off his beanie, revealing his ears, which he clearly didn’t need to keep hidden here.
“Sooo, Sierra, Aodhan mentioned you work at the library together.” Kaye picked up the old-fashioned teapot and began filling the dainty teacups with hot water.
“That is true,” Sierra replied.
“And you’re studying at the university?” Kaye finished filling the cups and passed around a wooden box filled with tea bags. Sierra chose a clove tea.
“Yes, aging and fragility.”
“That’s an interesting course of study,” Braan replied, as he chose his own tea bag and a second one which he placed in Kaye’s cup.
“It is. I am very interested in medical sciences.” Sierra picked up her cup, blowing the steam from the top as the tea steeped.
“Have you thought of becoming a doctor?” Kaye asked.
Sierra winced. Although this topic frequently came up, she still didn’t like discussing the reasons why she wasn’t becoming a doctor. “I studied pre-med already. However, I am much more interested in the science behind medicine rather than treating people for illnesses.” Sierra scoped out the treats on the table, careful to avoid eye contact.
“Help yourself,” Braan encouraged.
Sierra reached for a brownie, setting it on the plate next to her teacup. “So, you’re Aodhan’s cousin.” It sounded dumb, but Aodhan hadn’t exactly prepared her properly for this type of social event, and Sierra felt uncomfortable and desperately wanted to get the attention off her.
“That’s correct,” Braan answered. “Our fathers were brothers.”
Sierra noticed the word choice. “Were?”
“Yes, I’m sure Aodhan has told you, but it is very hard for theFae to have more than one child. When Aodhan’s father was born, mine was already well into the middle of his life. He passed to the next life some time ago.”
“I’m sorry to hear that,” she replied sympathetically, wondering what Fae believed the next life to be, but feeling it was an inappropriate time to ask.
“Don’t worry about it. It was over a hundred years ago.”
Sierra nearly choked on her first sip of tea at Braan's statement. “I forget that time is different for you,” she explained, blushing at her faux pass.
