4. Taylor

Chapter 4

Taylor

W e pause at the gate and wait for it to open.

Sten drives inside along a wide, shadowy road. After another bend in the road the vegetation clears and I see a barn to my left in the distance, along with pens and exotic-looking animals roaming about. There are other outbuildings and lots of Hyrrokin working together to, I assume, bring the animals inside and close for the evening. The suns continue to set and lights flicker on at the buildings and along pathways.

We pull up to a glorious yet rustic mansion made entirely out of dark logs and ironwork. It’s a huge, three-storied home that seems to go on forever in either direction. It’s the type of place that is so big, it looks like a hotel or governmental building. They type of place where it’s surprising to learn it’s a single-family home. A fire pit crackles in the middle of the circle driveway in front, and other lights illuminate the walkways and windows.

He pulls up to the massive front porch and parks the vehicle.

I do my best to not look surprised that Sten lives in such a splendid setting. The attendant at the med lab tried to warn me. She wasn’t wrong.

I step out and move toward the rear of the vehicle and unzip my suitcase. I’m still barefoot, which is bothering me. The good news is that amongst the Hyrrokin, not wearing shoes is considered normal. Everyone I saw in Fire Creek, including Hyrrokin walking in the city streets, was barefoot. I was the only one in shoes. “Just a sec,” I explain. “Let me put these away.” I manage to push my heels inside then zip it back up.

That’s when I notice Sten close behind me, which I admit feels nice.

The sky is dark and stars sparkle overhead. I pause to take it all in and inhale another deep breath of the perfumed air. “This might be the prettiest planet I’ve ever been on.”

He grunts and takes my suitcase from my hands and marches toward the front door.

I follow close behind, carefully making my way on the gravel then the cold stone steps.

“There is a housekeeper, Roda,” he explains, “who has been with our family since I was a child. And there is also a team of cleaning bots. Roda is most likely not here because…”

The door opens and a Hyrrokin appears. “I’m here, I’m here,” she loudly proclaims, then looks down at me. “And who is this? I thought you were bringing along some male Gravian for mysterious reasons.”

I do my best to not step back and let out a squeak of fear. This is a much older, terrifying Hyrrokin female. She wears a bright pink tube top and a long blue skirt that sweeps the floor, with her silver-clawed bare red feet peeking out. She smiles at me and that’s also scary.

“Good evening,” the female says with a deep, raspy voice.

“Roda, this is our new guest, Taylor Dumas.”

She looks between the two of us. I want to introduce myself formally as the Librarian from the antiquities council, but I’m literally frozen with fright.

She snorts. “Well, let’s get you settled and fed. You look like you need more food.”

I look at her in horror. Is she making fun of my weight?

Roda reaches for my suitcase, but Sten grabs it first. “I will take the suitcase and show Taylor to her room.”

She lets out a puff of white smoke. “Dinner will be ready in the formal dining room in an hour.”

“Thank you.” And then he guides me up a set of majestic stairs. His large, claw-tipped hand is on the small of my back and I don’t even mind. In fact, it feels good.

It feels right.

What is wrong with me? This male basically hates me and wants me gone and yet the more time I spend with him, the more intrigued I become. Usually, I’m good about knowing when I’m not wanted and moving on. But all I want is more time with Sten Sandstone.

Because I can’t keep my eyes off his ass. For some reason the flick of his barbed tail is doing it for me.

I am attracted to my boss. The male who hates me and wants me gone. And I don’t know if I exactly like his personality either. At first, I thought it was truly puzzling that this rude Hyrrokin with a crooked nose was considered the most eligible bachelor in the county. But I’m beginning to understand the attraction. He seems to be stuck on the idea that I’m human and therefore not good enough, which is highly offensive. And yet during our drive I kept glancing at his muscular arms and those perfect lips. Am I losing my mind?

And he was sneaking glances at me too. I’m certain of it. Although I’m not certain if it meant he was attracted to me, or just couldn’t keep his eyes off how different I look from the other Hyrrokin.

I don’t know.

We reach the next landing and walk together quietly down a long hallway with doors and lighted sconces on one side and dark windows on the other. Finally, we pause in front of two doors at the end of the hall.

Gray smoke wafts from his nostrils. “This is your room. I have placed it close to mine because this home is large. This way you can find me if you are in trouble.” He waves a hand at the correct door and leaves behind my suitcase and then strides straight for his own room and shuts the door behind him.

And now I’m alone.

Oh. How rude. This is the second time today he’s dropped me off without a backward glance.

I purse my lips and open the door and step inside my own room, pulling my red suitcase behind me. I’m instantly charmed by what I see. At first the room is pitch black, with only a bit of moonlight peeking through the closed curtains from the windows, but in a moment accent lights automatically flick on, allowing me to see the whole room.

A smile widens across my face. The guest room is a delight. I admit, I love this place. This planet, while having inhabitants that scare the living daylights out of me, also appears to be a paradise. And I even enjoy the décor of this enormous, rambling ranch house. I was having a hard time acting normal downstairs because the entry way was stunning. There were dragon heads and flames carved into the staircase. Lots of natural wood, stone and ebony. Fireplaces in every room. Tall, beamed ceilings. And I got all of that from a fast glimpse of the downstairs.

I rush over to the enormous four-poster iron bed, with satiny black bedding, and climb up on it to sit for a moment and check the softness.

Then I’m inside a small walk-in closet, opening my suitcase, but decide to not fully take everything out and move in. I have no idea how long I’ll be at the Sandstone ranch. It’s possible that I might leave after another diurnal, or I might need to stay a week, or a month. It’s all very open-ended and depends on what I find in that cave.

For this mission I brought nicer clothes, because I wanted to look professional. I'm even wearing new glasses I purchased only a few days ago. It's true that I could get my eyes fixed in a med lab, but I like how they look, so I wear them. I basically did my best to dress in the latest fashion from the original planet where my species resides.

There’s a full length mirror in the closet and I glance at my image.

I pluck at my shirt, which is a little clingy against a roll in my stomach now that it’s lost its original bounce. Yes, I’m overweight, but this doesn’t mean I’m not cute. Because I’m damn cute. And sexy.

I'm in the room right next door to Sten and I should be calling him Mr. Sandstone, or sir, because he is my boss, but he told me to call him Sten. I don't think he even likes me. In fact, I'm certain he doesn't like me. My boss thinks I'm a lowly human, and I'm too young, and that a Hyrrokin should be doing this job. I mean, I’ve come across this many times in this line of work. I should be ready for it, and yet, here I am irritated all over again, but the best way out is to go forward and show him that I've got this.

On the other hand, why was he staring too long at my legs and standing so close to me? Why did he have his hand on the small of my back as we went up the stairs? Amongst humans and even Gravians, this would be considered flirtation. But maybe it’s different with Hyrrokin and it meant nothing?

I’m excited at the thought of going back downstairs and being allowed a bit of a tour and having dinner in the dining room. I’m certain it’s going to be fancy. I bet the two of us are in our rooms to change into nicer clothes for dinner. Isn’t that what rich beings do?

Didn’t Roda say that dinner was in an hour and we were going to eat downstairs in the formal dining room? I glance at the wall clock and see that I don’t have all that much time left.

I hop into the cleansing unit, trying to get ready fast, which is easy with the blow out setting.

Finally, I’m dressed again, this time in a pink tube top I found in a drawer in the closet and another dark pencil skirt I brought. The tube top has a built-in bra that fits my chest perfectly. It’s a very comfortable and yet stylish piece of clothing. I manage to fix my black kitten heels with a safety pin that isn’t noticeable.

Then I pause to apply more makeup and some lipstick. I take a turn in front of the full-length mirror, liking what I see. I never wear shirts like this that expose my arms because normally I think they’re too thick, but…I turn again and look at my back and the curve of my ass…not too bad.

Then there’s a knock on my door. My heart skips a beat. What if that’s Sten, arriving to walk me down to dinner?

I skip a bit too quickly to the door and open it to find Roda, the housekeeper, with a grim expression on her gruesome features. She’s holding a tray of food. “Good evening, Taylor Dumas,” she grunts. “Sten said to tell you he’s not having dinner in the dining room with you. He doesn’t want to say this to you himself so he’s making me do his dirty work. I’m here to bring you your dinner.”

“Oh.”

She steps forward and I step back to give her room to come inside.

Roda is taller than me and her red skin has an almost burgundy glow in the warm lights of the room. “The good thing is that you’re in the guest room that was basically part of the owner’s suite, which is bigger than the other bedrooms. You can simply have your dinner here, at the table.”

She walks over and sets down a tray on the table nearest to the window and then opens her jaw, which distends wider than I thought possible, and lets out a flash of flame into the huge stone fireplace, which starts a cheery fire.

I shriek with surprise then put a hand over my mouth. “I’m so sorry,” I blurt out, “I can’t help it.”

“This the first time you’ve met a Hyrrokin?”

“Yes. When I arrived on Tarvos I’d never met any Hyrrokin before and I embarrassed myself by screaming and fainting. I’m afraid I didn’t make a good first impression.”

She glances toward the door and then back to me. “Heh. I’m surprised that bothers him so much. Sten usually doesn’t get angered easily or hold grudges.”

I blink. “Really? Are we talking about the same Sten Sandstone?”

“Yes,” she chuckles, “the very same male. Don’t worry, the others were like this at the beginning too. Now they accept us.”

“The others?”

She shrugs. “I hope you like your food. When you’re all done just leave your tray on the floor in the hallway. The cleaning bots will pick it up.” And then she’s out the door and gone.

I’m left, standing alone, all dressed up with nowhere to go.

“Dammit.”