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“Like that but more…” She waved her hands around.
“Ritual fuckery?” I guessed.
She grimaced and picked up a dress, then tossed it back onto the pile. “One last fling before the ring, right? Except everybody joins in.”
Wait, what? “Tonight is…is…an orgy?”
She rolled her eyes, the gesture reminding me of her brother. “I assume he didn’t warn you.”
“He most certainly did not!”
She sighed and hugged a dress to her chest as she rose to her feet. “The Midnight Feast is held the night before the first calling of the banns.”
What did that have to do with an orgy? “I thought banns were a Catholic thing?”
“Where do you think they got the idea?” She shook her head, as if giving them credit personally offended her. “It’s a fae custom to announce a marriage three weeks before the wedding, spend that time working up the courage to go through with it while secretly hoping someone intervenes, and then get it over with.”
I blinked and waited for the joke. “Romantic.”
“Vampires copied it, and the church followed them, but they always get the credit for our ideas.”
“That’s why everyone is here for three weeks?” Lachlan had told me that Bain had insisted on following tradition and that doing so would give him time to negotiate a solution to the trinity problem. There was a lot of his plan that I didn’t like, but knowing why he was doing it would make it easier to show my face each night. “It sounds archaic.”
“You have to be sure before you marry in our world. Marriage bonds are funny things. They trump all other bargains. After a year, they can’t be dissolved, and fae…”
Lived a very long time.
“You don’t have to go through with it.”
“I know that.” Her chin quivered a little. “But it’s not a big deal. We’re both doing this for our courts. He wants an heir. Once I give him one, we can go back to ignoring each other.”
“But you’ll still be married.”
“A political marriage isn’t about love. It’s a transaction.” The words were automatic, and I wondered how many hours she’d spent convincing herself of that.
“Should it be?”
Ciara sucked in a deep breath. “Love is a luxury royalty can’t afford.” Her throat slid like it was a bitter truth to swallow. “Believe it or not, I made the final call to go through with this. It’s not Lach’s sole responsibility to care about the Nether Court.”
“And if he was the one who could get married, would he? Or would he make you do it?”
Ciara’s eyes flashed, but she turned to survey my closet. “We’re running out of time. We still need to figure out what we are wearing.”
“I’m supposed to wear that one.” I pointed to the gown that had been laid out for me.
She wrinkled her nose. “It’s lovely, but tonight is not about looking pretty. It’s about looking hot. Just in case, you want to…”
“I don’t think your brother will like it if I bring someone back to my room.”
“No, he wouldn’t,” she said wickedly. “But it’s not up to him.”
Yeah, right. “I’m not exactly looking for any action.”
She paused, assessing me with sparkling interest. “I’m guessing you’ve never banged a fae before.”
I nearly choked on my own spit. “No.”
“Pity.” She clicked her tongue. “I’m pretty sure Lach would be happy to remedy that for you.”