Page 118 of Aine

He’s already done so much for me. I can’t fathom asking him to limit himself to the indoors for the rest of his life.

I jump as Damien wraps his arm around my torso, his warm breath fanning over the top of my head as he pulls me against his chest. I’m sure he can smell my nerves and hear how hard my heart’s beating, but he remains silent and holds me until the panic subsides and my hands stop shaking.

“You may not believe it just yet, but we hold so much respect for you,” he whispers.

Not wanting to argue, I nod and step out of his arms. I can tell he’s trying to keep it hidden, but slight threads of his excitement still seep into my brain.

Damien continues to whisper encouragement as he opens the front door for me. I stare into the woods, hesitating before sucking in a deep breath and stepping outside.

Without thinking, I grab Damien’s arm for support, finding comfort in his touch as I make my way down the front steps. I’m unable to hear what he’s saying over the thundering of my pulse, but the low timbre of his voice soothes my nerves.

I can do this.

“You’re doing so well,” he murmurs as we come to a pause at the halfway point.

My eyes dart around to make sure nobody’s watching as I take a few calming breaths. Damien urges me to turn and face him as I struggle to compose myself, his hands cupping my face and his fingers burying into my hat.

We’ll be at the gardens in only a few minutes.

“We can go back if you want,” Damien reminds me. “I told you I wouldn’t force you to do anything you’re not ready to do.”

As much as I’d love to turn around and run back home, I continue the trip to the garden. Damien’s done so much for me already, and I’ll be damned if I turn down the one request he’s made of me.

Besides, he promised he’d stay by my side the entire time.

My thoughts are jumbled and out of focus as I walk, unable to concentrate on anything and getting distracted by every slight noise. Damien keeps his arm wrapped around me as we move, tightening up and pulling me closer as we reach the last remaining trees that separate us from the open fields.

I can hear the beasts fighting from this distance, their loud snarls and clashing bodies audible to even my ears. If I can hear them, they can most definitely hear me.

Every inch of my body screams for me to turn and run back, but I ignore the sensation and push forward.

I stare at the ground as I break the barrier into the fields. Damien rubs my back and leads me in the direction of the garden, his voice low as he chats idly to keep me distracted.

The large plants come up quickly, and I look them over with a frown. The garden’s a bit overgrown, but it’s nothing too awful. Mia and Abby have been doing a good job.

The watering and general maintenance has been done. It just needs to be pruned and harvested.

It’s more work than I can do today, but I should be able to get through a decent amount.

“Uh,” Damien starts, clearing his throat. “What should I do?”

My lips twitch. I’m not surprised he’s not too familiar with what we do in the gardens but am shocked he wants to participate. I was under the impression he was going to sit and watch me do all the work.

“Do you want gloves?” I force myself to ask.

Damien chuckles. “No. The gloves are for humans.”

His answer is followed up with a hint of amusement, and I feel my cheeks warm in response. I should’ve known he wouldn’t need any gloves.

“This looks done,” Damien says, reaching for an unripe carrot.

I gasp and move to stop him before he can pull it, my fingers wrapping around his wrist at the exact moment he rips it out of the bed. The vegetable comes out short and deformed, and he grimaces and tries to shove it back in its the hole.

“Oops?”

My lips curl as I point to one that’s ripe. “You shouldn’t pull them until they look like this,” I say, showing him how the top of the vegetable pops out of the soil.

Damien nods. “Noted.”

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