Page 9 of Finding Her (Lore of the Fields #1)

Voices whispered in the distance as I slept on the couch.

“Damn, Graysen. You were serious.”

“Of course.”

“Does she know?”

“No, nor do I plan to inform her.”

“…You have got to be kidding…”

“I’m serious. And if you tell her I will burn you to a fucking crisp .”

Embers glowed in the fireplace before me as I woke from another night of disorienting hallucinations that felt too real to shake.

Once again, my dreams had been occupied by blinding white light and a maternal voice beckoning me.

I yearned for the sound of it. My body craved comfort from the unknown woman.

Discordant with that desire, a chill ran up my spine at the memory of the searing heat that swelled inside of my veins.

It was all-consuming, and even once my consciousness returned to the tangible world, I could feel the lingering effects fizzling out as the night’s sweat dried into a layer of salt on my skin.

Grateful to regain my touch with reality, I yawned loudly and propped myself up, blinking to accelerate my wakefulness. My muscles were stiff from their dream-induced tension, but felt better after being stretched until my joints cracked in relief.

“Oh, you woke up,” the deep, husky voice of a woman said from behind the couch. I startled to full awareness at the unexpected visitor.

Before I had time to look behind myself, she made her way over to the armchair, sinking into it with a casual slouch.

She was an Arielna, one of the allegedly nasty-tempered, reptilian creatures that I had seen outside when I arrived here.

Her scales were a deep magenta, fading out to soft pink flesh.

The way her shiny black hair was slicked back behind her head revealed pierced, pointed ears.

With chilling depth and intensity, her large, nearly black eyes stared me down.

Over their empty darkness were lashes long enough to touch her chiseled brow bone. She was strangely beautiful.

“Hi?” I sat up uneasily to match her level, allowing myself to look over my shoulder in search of Graysen in the process.

“My name is Mykie. Nice to meet you.” Her words were friendly enough, but her tone sounded tense and agitated. It didn’t help that when she forced a smile, tiny, sharp, pearly white teeth filled her mouth.

I remembered Graysen having mentioned his best friend was an Arielna named Mykie, I had just assumed it was a nickname short for Michael.

I certainly hadn’t pictured a lizard woman dripping in sex appeal with a stare that made me want to crawl into myself.

She wore shorts that barely covered the highest points of her thighs, revealing long, curvy, scaled legs.

Her top was similarly revealing, with small breasts perked high under her low neckline.

Long black nails tapped on the arms of the chair as her eyes scanned me in return, the shifting reflection of light revealing their slow but unrelenting investigation.

Her ombre lips twisted slightly to the side, as if pondering.

Her head was held high over her long neck, forcing her to gaze down at my hunched form despite my suspicion that we were the same height.

“I’m Faeryn.” Or so I’d been told. The name slipped from my lips instinctually and I realized that, given the lack of an alternative, I would be claiming it for the foreseeable future.

“Graysen stepped out, so I’m here to watch you and make sure you’re doing alright.” She crossed her muscular, feminine legs in a smooth motion. “Sounds like you’re having quite the summer.” Her onyx orbs peered into my soul, lashes batting infrequently.

“Where did Graysen go?” I cleared my throat. Of the two strangers I had met so far, this one seemed to have more hostility potential.

“Gods only know, he’s already been gone long enough.

” Her eyes darted to the clock impatiently.

“He’ll be back eventually. In the meantime, I brought you some clothing made for females.

” She observed the button-down I had been provided with thinly veiled disapproval; I wasn’t sure if it was directed at me or my host.

“Thank you.” I offered a polite smile despite her stone-faced leer.

I avoided staring at her unique features to the best of my ability, but curiosity was getting the better of me.

I found my eyes captivated by the densely packed scales highlighting the perimeters of her face, accentuating her cheekbones, capping her shoulders, and coating her arms and legs.

They looked polished and reflected iridescent hot pink and golden shifts when the light coming through the window hit them just right.

“See something interesting?” She looked down at her own arms and then back at me with unamused eyes.

Shit. “No, I’m sorry. I’ve just never seen a person like you. Someone with scales, that is.”

She raised a brow, and I wondered for a moment if I’d said something culturally insensitive.

“Here, you can touch. They won’t bite you.

” She thrust her plated arm in front of me.

Where I was used to seeing hair on a person’s, she had thickly condensed scales that thinned out into velvety, pink flesh under her arms.

“No, really, it’s ok,” I objected in humiliation.

I’d planned to be more prepared for this type of interaction.

Being thrown into this while still waking up was leading to complete social failure.

Not that she had to be so blatant in calling me out.

A little grace for my situation would be appreciated, assuming Graysen had given her some context for my predicament.

“Just touch it already.”

At this point, it felt rude to deny her request. I reached out and rested my fingertips gently on her scales. They felt cool and smooth as glass.

“See? Nothing to be afraid of.” She smiled slightly with her pointed teeth. “You better get all of your curiosity out here. Not everyone is going to understand why you’re so bewildered by their bodies.”

“People here are just different than where I’m from,” I explained, trying to hold onto what was left of my pride.

Surely I wouldn’t be acting this way if it weren’t for the suddenness of it all.

Asking about people’s bodies needed to be handled delicately —I knew that.

I just thought I’d have more time to prepare before being thrown into it.

She rested her cheek into her palm and drummed her long nails on her armored temple with a distinct clicking. “It isn’t your fault. I bet Graysen hasn’t given you much to work with.”

“I’ve only been here a couple of days, it hasn’t made sense for me to leave the house yet.

” For some reason, I felt the need to defend the man I owed nothing to, opting not to relay our argument about the very topic yesterday.

I wasn’t sure if it was so much for his benefit as it was for my own ego.

I didn’t want to encourage the idea that I was reliant on him.

“Figures,” she mumbled with a tinge of annoyance, as if she knew the deeper conversation I was withholding. “Let me take you out for a bit. It’ll get your feet wet. That has to be better than being trapped inside these walls, wary of the unknown monsters outside.”

The emphasis she put on “ monsters ” made my stomach twist. I wondered if Graysen had told her that was the word I had initially used when asking about his people.

Beyond my embarrassment, I was surprised she offered to take me out at all.

Not that I’d planned on being held captive for long, but after yesterday’s discussions, I felt some caution might be warranted, if not exclusively enforced.

At the very least, I assumed that hesitancy would be shared between Graysen and his friend.

Wouldn’t she be just as eager to keep me inside?

Maybe the issue really had just been my hair?

“Is it safe?” I subconsciously touched the taupe gray wave draping over my shoulder, wondering if I had other features that would betray me as different.

“Of course. You just need some fresh air outside of these smoky ass walls. Get dressed and I’ll write him a note saying we’ll be back for dinner.

” She pointed to a pile of clothing folded on the arm of the couch.

“You’ll want to identify as a Pyran when blending in with the public.

There’s a ribbon there to wrap around your neck; it'll hide the absence of an emblem.”

Frankly, I preferred Graysen’s sweatpants.

The outfit Mykie had given me would cover less of my body than the blanket that barely spared my dignity in the carriage.

The leather shorts were too tight, and the blue top showed my midriff.

If the color was different, and I had a set of stiletto nails, I’d match Mykie completely.

This outfit was technically an improvement to Graysen’s clothing, but it swung to the other end of the spectrum.

Everything clung where I didn’t want it to.

My breasts were practically spilling from the square neckline.

My stomach rounded over the hem of the high-waisted shorts.

The underside of each ass cheek threatened to be freed the moment I went to sit down or bend over.

Still, I had to wear it. I didn’t want to offend the already agitated lizard woman waiting for me downstairs.

Recognizing I had new cultures to acclimate to, I would try to go with the flow.

Time to pick my battles. I wrapped the provided ribbon of black silk around my throat and secured it with a bow, creating a feminine collar for a well-behaved pet.