Page 52 of Essa

He's too antagonistic and will upset Iddis if he truly cares about my sister. Adam wouldn't want anyone to speak to me that way, but he sure doesn't seem to mind speaking that way to everyone else. Granted, he would also speak this way to me, so at least he's consistent in his treatment of others.

"Protect me?" Niivi says, almost like she's been slapped in the face, which makes me more upset than the way Adam's talking to her. "From what?"

"From an unhappy marriage, a loveless life with someone you don't like, and probably the whole part where all your daughters are sent to a whole other place to live," Seth says with a shrug before tossing another piece of fruit into his mouth. It's a very sour delicacy here on Haven III, so when he plops a whole mouthful into his mouth and bites down even I wince at how sensitive his teeth will be to it.

No one is surprised when he spits it back into his hand, his eyes glaring accusingly at me as though I wanted him to eat the entire thing when it is well known one is supposed to cut it into small morsels to eat with sweeter things. He's not good at being angry at me, though, and his half-hearted scowl turns into a soft smile before long.

My sister is more interested in his words than his nearly dying from too much sour in his mouth, but before she can move the conversation in a more productive direction, Iddis interjects. At least neither is laughing at Seth's misfortune like I'm sure Adam is doing in their shared mind.

"My family is no longer interested in my daughters. I've made it clear that any young I have, stay with me. My brother, much more reasonable than my parents ever were, has agreed to my terms."

I have many questions about Iddis's statement, especially since I remember the need to split up the young as an important part of the deal between our families. I've been gone for a long time, though, and maybe they got bored of waiting for young who were never going to be born since I was never coming back. Those are questions for another time. Right now, I need to assuage some of the worry I can see on Niivi's face.

"Wait, Essa, why are you here?" Niivi asks, her voice quiet, almost hopeful.

I tilt my head to the side, unsure if my sister hasn't figured it out in all this time. I guess it makes sense she wouldn't. I leftwhen she was still considered a child, and our communications since then have been few and far between, though not for lack of my trying.

"I came here to marry Iddis so you wouldn't have to."

Niivi makes a sad little sound in the back of her throat before letting her head hang. I don't like the tears falling down her face, but Iddis likes them even less. His hands are back on her cheeks, wiping away the wetness and trying to calm her.

"I think we should all sit down, have a nice breakfast, and maybe talk through what exactly is going on," Seth says, trying to keep his voice light even though tensions are still high.

I agree with what he's suggesting, though, and guide Adam to a seat near Seth. I sit in the one between them, knowing I need to touch both after what just happened. I don't like that they saw me almost lose control.

It takes Niivi and Iddis a little longer to sit, but Niivi has stopped crying when they do. Iddis makes sure she's sitting comfortably before joining the rest of us. He throws his hand over the back of her chair, offering her comfort during all of this.

How could I have been so blind to their interactions yesterday? It's almost embarrassing now that I think back on how they weren't hiding their feelings for one another, and I still thought it was Iddis being a sneaky male using whichever of us he could to gain more power.

"I think maybe we should start at the beginning." I offer my sister a small smile. "I think there's been secrets for a long time now, and I'm sure part of that is due to my absence."

Niivi tosses her hand in the air, waving away my words or maybe the blame I'm placing on myself. "If you had returned before mother and father passed, we both know you'd be marrying Iddis."

"And I no longer will be?" I ask.

Iddis sighs as he rolls his shoulders. His golden eyes are sparkling when he looks at me, making me wonder how long he's been with my sister. How long have they been sneaking around?

"Niivi and I grew close after your parents asked me to remain in their custody until you returned. They thought since you had left and the wedding would be postponed until your return, my parents would offer my hand to another house in exchange for the same deal they made with your family."

I roll my eyes at the reminder of the deal between our families. Not only was I to marry a male I didn't like, let alone love, I was to be nothing but a vessel to bring the family children. Females would be sent to Iddis's family while the males would stay with mine. I could only guess what purpose that decision was made for. The heads of my family were not open in their plans for the success of our family or the land we were in charge of.

"So, you never returned to your family?" I ask, curious to know how Iddis feels about being separated from his loved ones, as I was, though mine was self-inflicted.

"No, I didn't. My brother took control of the house years ago when my parents passed. He requested my return, but your parents weren't inclined to lose the binding of our houses. I didn't mind. It's not like I enjoyed being at my home often. I was here more often than not when we were growing up."

Iddis talks as though he's reminding me of fond memories and not his uncanny ability to annoy Niivi and me every moment of every day he was here. And poor Niivi took the brunt of his mischief.

"I can tell you remember things differently than I do," Niivi tells me, reading the expressions on my face so easily as though we haven't spent the last ten years apart from one another. "Iddis has been nothing but kind to me since he matured past rigging traps and tricks around the palace. He learned there are better ways to show interest in a female."

Seth opens his mouth and leans forward like he's about to ask about those tricks and traps, but I get my question out before he can. "How long have you two been together?"

Niivi coughs as if I've brought up some scandalous topic. It doesn't matter that it's what we've been talking about without directly discussing it since we all sat down. It's easy for me to forget that there are customs on Haven III and social norms that one doesn't cross.

"Essa, that's not–" Iddis starts to chastise me, much to my males' annoyance.

There's an energy radiating from Adam to snarl or snap or say something counterproductive to this conversation. It's Niivi who cuts Iddis off, though, which is good. We don't need a repeat of the events from earlier if Iddis tries to turn his tone on my mates or, even worse, if it looks like he might lunge for or attack one of them.

"It's fine, Iddis," Niivi says, offering him a small smile before turning back to me. "Probably seven years ago was the first time we admitted there might be something between us."

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