I wasn’t exactly expecting privacy here, but I also wasn’t expectingtwo strangers to ask me what position I’ll be consummating my marriage in so that they could create undergarments that would best put my assets on display.
The only highlight was seeing the stunned look on Gaven’s face over the top of the changing screen. It’s almost impossible to shock him, but I’ve never seen him hustle out of a room so fast.
Now he’s posted outside the library doors after sweeping the entire room like a secret army might be waiting to murder me in the history section.
I understand the vigilance, but I hardly think the two of us are prepared to stop the full force of the fort. If they want to kill me, they will likely succeed. Still, I appreciate that Gaven will go down swinging.
The library is bigger than I expected. People in Lunameade believe Mountain Haven is full of wild folks who don’t care for scholarly studies, but this room must span the entire length of the house. Light pours in the large windows, illuminating dust motes that swirl around leather-bound volumes of every color and size.
A large map of the fort adorns the wall by the entrance. There are six levels, with Havenwood House situated at the top of the fort, the last strategic stronghold if the Drained were to attack. The map is more decorative than functional, and while seeing the gates between levels is helpful, it offers little detail that I didn’t see with my own eyes yesterday. Riding into the fort, I noticed some of the nuances of each level, like how most of the gardens and farmlands seem to be on the first level, but I need to ask Henry if there’s a hierarchy to who lives where. I wonder if the poorest and least magical in their community live on the first level, the way that the poor and unblessed live on the outermost rim of Lunameade.
I walk down the narrow aisle, running my fingers over the spines. None of the titles mention rituals or weddings. When I reach the end of the row, I notice a small alcove cut into the wall that’s sectioned off from the rest of the room by an iron-barred door. I peek through the iron slats, scanning the books inside until one catches my eye. The entire shelf contains titles related to divine rituals of Mountain Haven. Some of the books look ancient, their leather worn and cracked.
I try the handle on the door, but it’s locked. When I was young, Kellan and I made a game of picking locks to all non-magically lockeddoors in Carrenwell House. That skill has come in handy with my double life as the Poison Vixen more than once, but when I’m working, I typically have more professional tools to use. Now I only have the pins in my hair, and while they could probably hold up to picking this kind of lock, the last thing I need is for one of them to break and leave evidence of my snooping.
Instead, I try to squeeze my wrist through the opening in the slats. It’s a tight scrape, but my hand pops through right beside the handle. I’m just barely able to reach the lock, my fingers skimming it enough to twist it. I try the handle again and the door creaks open.
Wrenching my hand free, I take one quick glance over my shoulder, then dart inside and pull one of the newer-looking tomes from the shelf. I duck out of the space and close the door behind me. My heart kicks up, a pulsing rhythm that drowns out my footsteps as I walk to the end of the row and place the book on a table tucked into the stacks.
The title is etched in fancy red lettering. I trace the words:Mountain Haven Marriage Rituals. The leather creaks as I open the book and flip through the handwritten pages. There are sigils for the Divine, elaborate drawings of where the couple and their family members should stand during the ceremony, and lists of offerings that should be made to the Divine for a long and prosperous marriage.
According to this, Mountain Haven’s marriage rituals consist of three parts: Vows, Communion, and Consummation.
I page through the book until I reach a section on the consummation ritual. My pulse kicks up as I flip through page after page of diagrams depicting all manner of sex positions. There are notes on which couples bonded their marriage in which styles, including the names and dates of their coupling.
Shuddering, I turn a bunch of pages at once and pause on the image of a woman with her hands fastened to opposite posts in a canopy bed. Her legs are also spread wide and attached to posts at the bottom of the bed. The elegant script at the top of the page reads:Rituals of Submission.
Apparently, there are different versions of each part of the ceremony, but these people have another thing coming if they believe I’m going to submit to that smug asshole.
It’s less the thought of having sex in front of other people that unnerves me than the fear that I might enjoy fucking Henry. Warmthrushes through my blood at the thought of his rough hands on my thighs and the way he bit the skin above my stockings like he knew exactly what I wanted.
The last thing I need is to harbor even the smallest bit of affection for him. This is just a job—one that I need to end soon so that I can return to Lunameade and help Aidia. The sooner I convince him that I’m vulnerable, the sooner I can figure out what he and his family want.
“If you want to know about our traditions, you only need to ask. You’re the only one that expects yourself to be all-knowing.”
Henry’s voice startles me from my thoughts.
He’s right behind me. I was so focused, I didn’t even hear him enter the library.
I continue to page through the book, ignoring him as I scan more illustrations in various positions.
“Isn’t this from the locked section of the library?” Henry asks.
I shrug a shoulder. “The flimsy lock made it feel more like a suggestion. But if you’d like to tell me what I need to know about the ceremony, I won’t have to resort to petty crimes. I’m eager to be a dutiful wife and I wouldn’t want to offend the Divine by not honoring your customs.”
He chuckles low. “Yes, you certainly seem devout.”
I swirl my fingers in front of my lips. “I honor the Divine by using the blessings they’ve bestowed on me, or at least I did until you interrupted me.”
He arches a brow, then flips back to the front of the book and taps the page. “First, we’ll exchange vows in our Vardek Temple. He’s the patron of our house since my father and my sister were both blessed with his gifts. The ceremony is much the same as a Lunameade wedding, from what I understand, though with less pandering to the ruling family.”
He rubs his stubble. I noticed it the first night we met in the bar—he does that when he’s unsure how I’ll react.
“And then we will have a wedding feast, music, fine wine, and cake. Not like the stuffy affairs you’re used to,” Henry continues. “People actually dance and enjoy themselves. We take the pursuit of all pleasures very seriously.”
I wish he would get to the point. It’s the next two parts that I’m most apprehensive about.
“Then we will have time to be in communion with each other.”
