Page 22 of Aine

Squaring my shoulders, I turn to the gardens with a fake smile plastered on my lips.

Finding Alex should be easy enough to do.

There’s only one man within the gardens, and he’s also coincidentally the only beast. It’s not entirely surprising the person in charge is a beast, but a small part of me still hoped I’d get lucky and end up working for a human.

“Are you Alex?” I croak, walking up behind him.

He spins, hardly looking surprised as he grins at me. He doesn’t resemble what I’d expect the gardener to look like, his body tall and muscular. He’s got the signature dark hair and eyes of the beasts and stands in a way that exudes confidence.

Why isn’t he with the others in the field? He looks like he’d be a good fighter.

I watch nervously as he scans me from head to toe, his lips pursing before he gives a nod of approval and meets my gaze.

“I am.” He bends slightly to set down his scissors. “You must be Aine!”

His hand extends toward mine, and I hesitate for only a second before reaching out to shake it. His grip is tight and sweaty, and I hope I do a good job pretending not to notice. I’m sure my palm isn’t any better, both the heat and nerves leaving my hands embarrassingly clammy.

“I didn’t expect to see you today, but I’m glad you’re here. We’ve doubled the size of the garden this year and need all the extra hands we can get.” He wipes at the moisture on his forehead with a laugh. “Have you worked in a garden before?”

I shake my head, noting the slight downturn of his lips.

“Hm, okay. Let’s start you off with something easy, then.” Alex grabs his scissors again and uses them to point toward the large shed near the back of the garden. “Follow me,” he orders, leading the way.

I’m careful not to step on any plants as I maneuver through the garden and am sure I probably look dumb with my long, uneven steps. Alex’s body stiffens as a crunch sounds out from underneath my foot, but much to my relief, he says nothing.

We manage to reach the shed without harming another vegetable, and my chest deflates as I release the breath I’d been holding. I can’t help but glance at Damien, quickly looking away when I realize he’s already watching. My cheeks redden at having been caught sneaking a peek, and I stare at my feet as I follow Alex inside the small building.

It’s suffocatingly hot inside, and I feel sweat immediately beginning to trickle down my temples and underarms. Alex leads me to a small bin in the far-left corner of the room.

“Find a pair that fits and meet me outside,” he says.

I look inside, noting the numerous pairs of thick gloves scattered about, and give him a nod. Reaching in, I grab the first pair I see and try them on as Alex leaves. Eventually, I find a clean-enough pair that fit and follow him, desperate to get out of the overwhelming heat.

Alex is leaning against the wall waiting for me with a bottle of water. He tosses it over as I approach, mumbling something about humans having slow reflexes when I miss the catch.

“There are two others that work in the gardens, Mia and Abby,” he states, gesturing to the two woman I noticed earlier.

They look up as he says their names, their expression guarded as they each lift an arm and wave. They’re clearly twins, both identical from the curl of their long black hair to the thickness of their upper lip.

“They’re pretty quiet, so don’t take offence if they don’t speak to you much,” he explains, leading me to the far corner of the garden.

I nod.

“You’ll be pulling weeds until you get the hang of things here,” he says, bending and gesturing for me to crouch next to him.

I do so quickly, stepping away slightly as my arm brushes against his. My face warms at the contact, a bit embarrassed to have gotten so close, but he hardly seems to notice. Instead, he grabs a small, grassy tuft, pinches the base, and rips it out of the ground.

“Pull anything that looks like this,” he orders. “If it doesn’t look like this, don’t pull it. Call me over if you have any questions.”

He’s back on his feet before I have time to process what he’s just said.

“Feel free to get up and move around if your back hurts. Beasts have good hearing, so just speak normally if you need to call me over. Otherwise, you’ll distract everybody over there.” He points to the large field of fighting animals.

I nod, glad for the tip. “Noted.”

He seems to hesitate before leaving, and I watch his retreating form before getting to work. Of all the jobs I could’ve been given, this is arguably one of the better ones. Working in the heat all day isn’t necessarily ideal, but at least I get to spend time outside.

Plus, it’s still better than my old job.

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