Page 39 of Enchantment of Silver and Sea
“Oh, it fits!” she said after a moment, wiping her eyes. “Please, I have just one request. Actually, make that two. If you decide to strip down to your bikini, make sure Kieran is nearby. And make sure I’m there, too. So I can see his face.”
I could feel my own face getting hot. There was no situation I could imagine where it would be appropriate for a Cyllene citizen to traipse around in something this provocative, just a few scraps of fabric away from being stark naked.
I almost took the suit off and insisted I wasn’t wearing it.
Almost.
We ate breakfast around the bonfire, which I learned was the central meeting spot for the camp.
I hadn’t been able to see the night before, but arranged in rings around the bonfire were chairs of all kinds, obtained during supply runs. Nya sat in a wooden chair that looked like it had once belonged to a dining room set. I sat in a blue and white beach chair, complete with an attached cup holder for my water bottle. There were several other groups scattered around the fire, but many still slept. Around and beyond the cul-de-sac, the dilapidated houses of Ersa Estates stood out in sharp relief against the lightening sky.
I couldn’t recall ever sitting around a fire like this before, although I was familiar with the Pre-Awakening concept. Fire always posed a risk, and I considered myself lucky just to be allowed to use candles in my room. Now, basking in the warmth of the bonfire, I decided that the earthy, musky scent of burning brush might be my new favorite smell.
Breakfast consisted of eggs, fresh from the chicken coop that was maintained by the occupants of a house down theroad, and jerky. I didn’t ask what kind of animal—or other creature—the meat had come from. My gut told me it was best that I didn’t know.
As we ate, Nya answered some of the questions I had about the Strangers’ day-to-day life. I learned that not everyone in the camp gathered for meals and socialization. Some people preferred to keep themselves. So much so that rather than choose a house in the three main streets that made up the Ersa Estates camp, some people chose to live alone on unoccupied streets and only joined the rest of the group on important occasions. I also learned that when someone in the camp experienced hardship of any kind—illness, the loss of a family member, a curse from a magical creature, and so on—everyone else in the camp was expected to band together and help them in every way possible. The expectation made me think of Brielle and her joy in comforting the people she cared about with food.
Nya pontificated with her fork, a piece of egg speared on the end. She was explaining how the barbed wire fence around the camp was constructed, and how the Strangers hoped to be able to ward it one day, much like the walls of Cyllene.
As she was speaking, I caught sight of Kieran standing by the fire. And beside him, with tanned legs that seemed to go on for miles, was Xiomara. She put a hand on his arm, and he smiled in response. I couldn’t discern from a distance if he was just being polite, or if the smile was genuine. Even if I were right next to him, did I know him well enough to tell?
Suddenly I didn’t feel hungry anymore. I poked at my eggs.
“It’s over, you know.”
I didn’t realize what Nya was referring to at first. Then I saw she was looking in the same direction.
“They used to date?” I asked, even though I knew it to be true. I had known it in my gut, my being, my very soul. There was no way two people that beautiful could live in close proximity to each other and be completely oblivious to one another.
I almost laughed at how my thoughts sounded like words straight out of Brielle’s mouth. But even she would have to admit that Zander and I were completely average-looking if she ever had the opportunity to witness the genetic perfection that was Kieran and Xiomara.
Nya snorted. “They didn’t date. They just hooked up for a while.”
Wow. Casual hook-ups happened in Cyllene, sure, but I’d never heard it spoken about so plainly. I couldn’t decide if it was a relief that they hadn’t dated, or if that made it worse somehow—no real feelings for each other, yet a wild attraction that neither of them could resist.
I took a deep breath, inhaling that pungent scent of burning brush. “Is he dating someone else now, then?”
“You’ve heard me tease Kieran enough,” she said, finally eating the piece of egg that dangled from her fork. “He’s never ‘dated’ anyone. That would involve actually caring. Wanting to spend time with someone outside of fucking.”
Clearly, if I wanted to fit in during my stay here, I was going to have to get used to speaking plainly about sex.
“I didn’t realize he was so…” I searched for the right word. “Cold, I guess.”
Nya shook her head vehemently as she finished chewing and swallowing. “You’re not getting it. Kieran would do anything for the people he cares about. In Cyllene, do you only fuck if you’re in a relationship?”
“No, people in Cyllene have casual sex sometimes, too.”
So why was this bothering me so much?
Nya gave me a long look, and in it, I could hear her asking the same question. Finally, she gestured to my half-eaten breakfast. “Finish everything on your plate, or you’re going to regret it later.”
I did as she said. That was part of our agreement, after all. But my stomach still felt queasy.
Since Nya obviously wasn’t going to say anything else about Kieran, I decided to change the subject. “So Wren seems really nice...” I let my voice trail off, the suggestion there in my tone.
Nya rolled her eyes, but also struggled to hide a smile. “Yes, Maila, Wren and I hook up every now and then. We agreed not to hook up with other people to keep things simple, but we’re not in a relationship or anything. Maybe one day, when things aren’t so crazy, I’ll think about if I want something more with her or with someone else.” Her voice became distant as she added, “Right now there’s too much at stake.”
“Morning,” a familiar voice said from behind me, and I nearly fell out of my chair. Kieran and Xiomara slid into folding chairs in front of us, straddling the seats and resting their arms on the backs to face us.
