Page 29 of An Alien for the Farm

“Very well.” The Saffion does a flourish so grand that his ears almost sweep against the dirt. When he stands tall again, he adjusts his cuffs. “Then I will be in contact. Please have your comm close at all times.”

Eleanor nods and we both watch as the male disappears outside the door.

When it’s clear he’s gone, I make a sound in my throat. In the deafening silence between us, it sounds like thunder and I catch the moment Eleanor becomes suddenly aware we’re alone again.

Her shoulders tighten, and her breathing stops to the point I wonder if she’s still taking in air.

I take a step closer, hoping we can continue what was interrupted, but the moment is gone. Eleanor spins to face me, but doesn’t meet my gaze.

“I—I should go get my comm and check my messages,” she says.

“Liora—”

“We also need to talk about this new contract. We can just pretend you’ve stayed here and done the work. You don’t really have to. It doesn’t matter.” She forces a smile. “Not if it helps others.”

“Li—”

“I’ll talk to you about it all later, okay?” She glances up at me only briefly before she’s hurrying away. Watching her go, my core-beat becomes unsteady at the same moment that another hum begins in my chest. Another rhythm right underneath my core beat that I’ve never felt before. It’s faint, but as soon as it onsets, a flood of panic rushes through me as I watch the Little Bird go. The panic is so fast, so sudden, that I grip my chest, forcing myself to breathe.

I’ve done something wrong again. Overstepped, most likely. Can it be fixed though? I’m not so sure. None of the literature on humans explains how to navigate this.

10

ELEANOR

I’m pacing in the house when I hear Zynar return to the roof. I bite my lip, my heart thundering in my chest before I bring my fingers to my lips, brushing over the shadow of his touch that still lingers there.

His kiss was electric. As if it powered all the dying neurons in my brain and set me alight. My body trembled. I wanted to grip him. To press my body into his. To feel.

Running my hands through my hair, I release another breath, gaze shifting to boxes of more supplies Xarion must have left before he found us in the barn.

Gods. Will Zynar be staying here now? Did I just agree to have a stranger living with me on the land? And what was his deal? Why offer to do all this work for free? What is he getting out of this?

I run my hands through my hair again, gripping the roots tight enough that I feel the pressure.

What’s his endgame?

I hate that there’s a new rhythm to my heart, or maybe I love it? All I know is that every time I hear him moving either on the roof or on the ground, something swells within me that makes my heart beat harder.

It’s only been the second day, and yet I feel like I’ve been teased for months on end. I can’t carry on like this. I need boundaries and I need to reevaluate myself.

I put myself to work within the house, using my swirling thoughts as backdrop to the chaos around me. By the time the sun’s going down, I’ve now cleaned the cupboards and packed away everything Xarion bought. I’ve put on a new tablecloth and the house actually looks livable. I’ve conquered something, at least, but there’s that one thing that’s been on my mind since I walked out of that barn.

As the sun drops lower, turning the sky a dark purple, I know I need to face him.

Throwing the door open, I step outside. Hopping off the porch, I look up, heartbeat unsteady. But he’s not there. Did he leave and I didn’t hear him go? Walking around the house, the muscles in my chest feel tightly pulled together. The moment I see him on the gable at the rear of the cottage, I inhale sharply, my shoulders slumping in relief that shouldn’t feel this good. He spots me immediately, his fingers pausing where he’s tucking in one last bit of roof fiber.

His gaze flicks to what he’s doing only briefly before he secures the roof fiber with one hand and uses his tool to tuck it in with the other. Bolt applied, he rises and looks at his work before his gaze turns back to mine. My heart flutters as he hops off the roof, tucking his tool away before he steps back and looks up at the roof with me.

“All done, Little Bird.”

My heart does a flutter again and I squeeze my eyes shut. Alright, that’s it.

“Zynar…” But his words cut me off.

“Before you speak, Liora. I must apologize.”

My lashes flutter, breath caught in my throat. He’s going to apologize for what? For volunteering to do backbreaking labor, for sure.

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