Ever Cynical

Chapter 3- She's Exhausted

Anais POV

Well, I guess we’re getting started later. As in, tomorrow. I wanted to giggle, but it was clear this man was done with my presence, and I didn’t want to irritate him further. Apparently, everything I did pissed him off. When I touched him, the amount of stress I felt was through the roof. I wasn’t sure I wanted the additional input that skin to skin would have granted.

Something I’d always been able to do was read people’s emotions through direct touch, though it wasn’t like being psychic, more like raw emotion and if a person was truthful. Not something I shared because the last thing I needed was to be used by a government or any other entity as if I'm a lie detector. I followed Kieran, admiring his shapely ass in his snug dark jeans. His shirt was a fitted burgundy long-sleeve tee. Frankly, he looked beyond fantastic, and it was new for me to feel a twinge of... interest?

Well, he was certainly a manly work of art, that was for sure. Crafted by the gods. Listen to me being all poetic and s**t. Ha!

I had never had an interest in anyone sexually before, so I was more surprised than anything else. I could not think of a more worthy candidate, though. I bet the man had women throwing themselves at him left and right. Since he seemed dissatisfied with women in a job like mine, it was unlikely that he respected them much at all. Given the isolation and archaic systems in use within this community, it was pretty likely that their societal beliefs were also ancient. It would not be the first time a hot guy like him was less than receptive to feminine empowerment.

I decided that since I liked what I saw, and he seemed to dislike me, the best thing was to look around the building where I was staying. The wood and river rock interior was oddly luxurious. I’m not sure how something can be both luxurious and rustic, but they had pulled it off. It was clear no expense had been spared in getting the best materials. He stopped at the first door on the left at the top of the stairs, opening it and ushering me in. Let me just say, after the pee-scented, flickery light piece of crap motel room I’d been in most recently, this room was heaven.

It was more of the same river rock and blonde toned wood, with one accent wall with a mural of a white wolf in a forest. It was beautifully painted. The bed was king-sized, made of the same wood as the house itself, as was the rest of the furniture; dresser, two nightstands, and a desk. The desk chair was dark brown leather and looked very comfortable. There were two doors on either side of the bed which Kieran opened, showing an en-suite bathroom and walk-in closet. This sure seemed like a nice room for a contractor. The bedding was plush and thick cream cotton, with a fluffy down comforter in a forest green color that matched the area rug on the floor.

It was simple, but to me, it was full of absolute luxury.

I wanted to cry in joy seeing the bed. It was one of those firm memory foam mattresses that are super comfy, but you don’t, you know, sink into them too much. I’ve slept on memory toppers that suck you into them and make you sweat. The ones where you roll but it's almost as bad as getting out of a water bed. Getting up from one of those things, well... the struggle is real. This was so far beyond that I wanted to faceplant in it and cocoon for a week. I’d been running on empty for so long.

Kieran turned to me, his face serious.

“You should have plenty of towels but let one of my team know if you find yourself running out. We have people that clean, so just put dirty things in the hamper in the bathroom, and they will take care of it. You can help yourself to the beverage cooler in the kitchen, really, any food, but it’s a good idea to check with our head cook Helga first. I’ve learned the hard way not to just dig in. You have my number, just text me if there is something you need. I’ll see you at dinner in a few hours.” With that, he spun on his heel and exited the room like his ass was on fire.

I wanted to laugh and scream at the same time.

Maybe I was just overtired. If he’d given me a moment downstairs I could have grabbed my duffel, but it seemed like he was well, all over the place? Must have a lot on his mind. With this much territory to care for, it did not surprise me. Even if they were a small, close-knit community, it was clear he was in charge and of course, that meant he was responsible for many things. I sighed and quickly ran down the stairs to my SUV, grabbed my duffel, slung it over my shoulder, and ran back upstairs. As I reached my room, I felt a little dizzy and sipped from the water bottle I had thought to stuff into the end of my bag.

I pulled out my toiletry bag and walked into the fabulous bathroom. This one was awesome, with a huge Japanese-style wood tub complete with seats on either side. It was like an onsen in my room, I kid you not. The wall behind the round mirror was tiled with opalescent shell-colored squares, but the rest was a rich wood tone, with the fixtures in brushed brass.

I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror and did a double take. I was white as a sheet with deep purple smudges from lack of sleep under my eyes. Reminded me of that part in Freaky Friday where Jamie Lee Curtis shrieks "I'm like the Crypt Keeper!" Well, I guess I’m taking a nap before dinner! I slipped off my Docs and my jacket, leaving my duffel unpacked until later.

I set my alarm on my phone for 5:45 PM.. about five hours from now, and I kid you not, the moment my head hit the pillow I passed out.

It felt good to finally sleep for real.

Kieran POV

I went back to my office after I heard her close her door. I felt a little guilty for forgetting about her luggage, but the need to get her resting overrode everything in my brain. The girl looked like she hadn’t slept like a normal person for a very long time. Three sets of eyes met mine as I entered, my team awkwardly all sitting on the small couch, no, loveseat I had near the window. Why they all sat there instead of I don’t know, at least one of them in the chair in front of my desk? No idea. They were like brothers to me, we’d grown up together, but they could be very odd sometimes. I had the craziest image of all three trying to get up at the same time and ending up with the couch stuck to their bums, and a weird giggle bubbled out of me. Geoff rolled his eyes.

“What are you imagining or do I even want to know?” He said as he wisely decided to move to the chair.

“I just, you know, if you all tried to get up at the same time?” I guffawed, my eyes tearing up. They all looked at me like I’d grown another head. I cleared my throat. I should not be shocked, this happens all the time. Nobody gets me, but it’s alright. Maybe one day. My thoughts suddenly drifted back to our guest, and Geoff cleared his throat as the silence stretched out. “Ah... so I think I’ll have one of you walk the perimeter with Anais tomorrow so she can see where the cameras need to go.”

“You sure, Kieran? I thought for sure you would want to have that honor for yourself.” Geoff crossed his arms and smirked. “Don't think we didn’t notice. In your oddball, awkward way, you like her. Never thought I'd see the day you'd actually show some interest in a female.”

“It's more than that. I get a... special... feeling from her, you know?” Their eyes all widened, and they nodded.

“Then you should definitely take her, Kier.” Geoff clapped a hand on my shoulder, waggling his brows at me. “It’s about time you found someone you can... get to know.” Ugh you'd think this guy was an expert on girls, when in reality he was just as clueless as I was. We knew everyone in the community too well to flirt unless we were serious, and we rarely left our land for... socialization.

“I just know I’m messing this all up.” I sighed. “You guys know I struggle to just speak normally to girls unless they are under fourteen, over forty, or family.” If my hair hadn’t been up, I’d have pushed my fingers through it with wild abandon. I giggled again as I thought about the looks I’d get if I took my man bun down, ran my hands through my hair like a madman, and calmly put it back up again. “Sorry, weird internal joke again.”

“Bro, you really need to work on that.” Lugh said, rolling his eyes. “It would only be marginally less awkward if you said what you were thinking out loud.”

“Well, since it looks like our guest is napping, shall we go get some training in? We skipped our morning exercise getting everything ready.” Sean asked. I nodded, and we all went outside. I could only hope I was less robotic and strange tomorrow with Anais. I had a feeling she had misunderstood my weirdness, but we still had plenty of time to straighten things out.

She seemed to have a quirky sense of humor as well, though so far it had been limited to sarcasm. I still felt strongly she'd have found the image of three men struggling to get out of a couch funny too. I know, it's kind of dad joke territory but still, I found it hilarious. I found it ironic that none of them thought they were odd for all sitting together like that.

Still giggling here and there as I walked to the training area, I made sure to sober up before anyone caught on.