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Tarley, second daughter of Scarlett and Tomas Fareview, wasn’t sure if she liked the man sitting across from her youngest sister Aurielle. As Tarley stood at the barrel of ale, waiting for the last of the four tankards to fill, her eyes drifted to Auri, ensconced at a table in a darkened corner of the inn with her suitor. It may have been the middle of the day, but the inn was shrouded in the dark ambiance of too much stone and wood and not enough light. Despite that, Tarley still attempted to assess what was happening between her sister and the stranger in their dark corner. Tarley was protective of her little sister, and she didn’t trust easily—especially men.

It had been a little less than an hour ago that Auri had shown up at the back door to the kitchen of The Copper Pot Inn, asking for Tarley to cover for her.

“Auri, Mother is going to kill you.” Tarley had lowered her voice so that the words sounded like air escaping from her throat.

“Tarley, please?” Auri had clasped her hands between her breasts and begged Tarley with her gray eyes. “It’s just an outing, which Mother makes impossible.”

Tarley had rolled her own eyes.

Auri wasn’t supposed to be beyond the hedge where they lived with their parents. Since Auri’sGreat Nap Escapade—falling asleep in the woods and losing her red ribbon, a gift from their mother—she’d been relegated to “around the cottage duties.”

“Do you think I want to cross Mother?” Tarley had glanced over her shoulder into the kitchen, thinking their mother might materialize, but it was empty. Instead, the dinner was steaming in a pot roasting over the heavy iron stove. Herbs and empty pots hung along the open wooden beams of the ceiling. Open shelves defined spaces holding dishes, utensils, jars, and supplies. The large square woodblock workstation held several loaves of fresh bread, still cooling, the aroma hanging in the air. Tarley had turned back to Auri. “Don’t be daft! She’ll have me as your second in tincture making, relegated to remaining behind the hedge.” Tarley had shuddered. “No thank you.”

Auri had stepped through the doorway and straightened her emerald skirts as if Tarley had already said ‘yes.’ “Mother was called to Denneby and took Jessamine with her. They’ll be gone, two days at least. And Brinna won’t tell. Besides, she and Papa and Mattias are out in the woods today.”

Tarley hadn’t liked the chicanery, but she also understood. Auri was a grown woman. How could she blame Auri for needing to get out? She did the same—her trips into the woods kept her sane. Tarley was sure Auri felt a bit like a prisoner. She would.

“Are you meeting the mysterious stranger you’ve mentioned?” Tarley had asked, recalling Auri’s giddiness a few nights prior. The only question in her mind as Auri had regaled them with minor and evasive tidbits wasHow? How could her sister have met anyone? And in Sevens!

Auri had nodded, a smile lighting up her face. “Yes!” She’d grabbed Tarley’s forearms and shaken her with excitement. “You’ll get to meet him. And I’m safe. Nothing bad will happen. I promise.”

“Famous last words.” Tarley had arched an eyebrow. “How did you meet him again?”

“Oh–” Auri had looked away and fussed with her skirts again. “On a trip to town.”

Recognizing her sister was lying, Tarley had narrowed her eyes. “That you never make anymore.” Tarley had grabbed at her own wrist, finding comfort in the ribbon still tied there.

Her sister had begged Tarley with her look to acquiesce, which Tarley had done with a nod. “Fine.”

Auri had flown into Tarley’s arms, wrapping her in a hug. “Thank you. I will owe you.”

“Just so we’re clear, I don’t trust any man.”

“This one, you can.” Auri had stepped away and backed out of the kitchen.

“I’ll believe it when I see it.”

“He’s wooing me.” Auri had grinned, a becoming blush brightening her cheeks.

Tarley had given Auri a look of disbelief, but now, nearly an hour later, Tarley watched as the dark-haired man across from her sister smiled, leaning forward across the table to touch Auri’s cheek. His touch lingered, his thumb so near Auri’s mouth. It was such a familiar gesture, Tarley felt the need to look away due to the intimacy of it, but she didn’t. Worried her sister was being duped by this handsome newcomer to Sevens, Tarley struggled to piece together Auri’s timeline. None of it made sense, especially because that touch suggested they knew one another. Perhaps better than Auri was letting on. Unless she was a bigger fool than Tarley took her for.

Goodness, he was handsome, to be sure. He could probably sway a blind woman, before opening his mouth and ensnaring the deaf woman too. More handsome than a man had the right to be, with that bronze skin dusted with a day-old beard, dark eyes, head of dark, unruly curls, and those unconventional dark clothes. It all added to his mystique.

Tarley watched her sister smile, her eyes flickering to the tabletop, then back up to the suitor she’d introduced to Tarley as Nixus Uraiahs. His appearance alone made it difficult to trust he had Auri’s interests at heart, but Tarley had never met a man who had anyone’s interests at heart other than his own. Add to it all this man, Nixus, was named after the old-world mythology’s god of night and darkness. Who named their child after an evil god?

To be fair, Tarley only tolerated most men. She loved her father and brother, and she accepted Mr. Cobble, a sweet old man from the marketplace, who adored their mother. Oh—and Horance Forte, the barkeep at The Copper Pot Inn. So far, there hadn’t been many instances to like the supposed stronger sex. Most of them had only ever used it to bully, bluster, and burden women, and worse yet, all their behavior was protected by the law of the Kaloma government.

“Good day, Miss Fareview.”

Tarley’s spine snapped straight at the voice, knowing the moment she turned who’d be standing at the bar. When she did finally turn, holding the last of the tankards she was filling, she wasn’t surprised to see Dr. Allean Rufus smiling at her. That smile made her grit her teeth.

The thing was, he wasn’t a terrible looking man, and his appearance wasn’t off putting as much as her nerves informed her he was. Had she put all stock in how a person looks, then Allean Rufus had everything in his favor. His blond hair was slicked into a side part, neat and tidy. He had a lush mustache that was full and stylish along with one of those clefts in his angular chin. He wasn’t egregiously tall, a middling height, she supposed, but tall enough to be slightly taller than her. He was wider, built lean, and strong if the way his clothing fit could hint at his strength. He always wore smart trousers, tailored shirts under dark vests and jackets with expensive shoes or boots. A gold timepiece hung from his pocket. Everything about him hinted at his wealth.

A newcomer to Sevens—an herbalist and healer like her mother—he’d once told Tarley that he “had brought his healing arts to the heathens to save them from the witches.” The nerve, considering who her mother was. And so pretentious. Gods, she hated the man. She wished she’d punched him upon that first meeting. She would have saved herself the headache of his repeated attempts at courting her favor, and her repeated rebuffs of those attempts. It was a ridiculous cycle from which she hadn’t been able to extract herself. She also couldn’t fathom his persistence.

“Doctor.” She grabbed the handles of the four steins.