Jade Fern Grove he's got looks that books take pages to tell

Sriracha carried on, unaware of the warmth his words had imparted, only that they had been earnest and true. If they had any other effect, then good. In Sriracha's eyes, Xan was a young man in need of a guiding hand and a good dose of self-esteem. Sriracha took the boy's initial prickly disposition as a wall, jealously guarding some terrible hurt and no small amount of insecurity. This assumption was compounded by his interest in how others saw him, particularly Ocra and Sriracha himself.

As a proud father, Sriracha primed himself to talk at length about his daughter. To hear him tell it, Alexandria was the fiercest and most beautiful daughter of the hills. She is difficult to describe, Sriracha said as they walked on. I used to have to chase all of the boys, and a few girls, away from her. But she is grown, and when I asked if she would come along, she refused. Now that I've carved out a place here, she and some of my siblings may come. He shrugged.