Chapter 24 – Kian #2
“Sort of. Let me wake her again,” he says, finally letting go of Rae and walking back to the carriage. “As you can imagine, she wasn’t thrilled about the early wake-up call and fell asleep on our drive.”
“As long as she performs the ceremony, she’ll be well rewarded,” I reply before looking at Rae. “Last chance, soon-to-be princess. Are you sure you want to go through with this?”
“I’m here, aren’t I?”
It’s not the yes I was hoping for, but it will do.
Alex helps the priestess out of the carriage, her golden robes a little wrinkled. Her wizened brow crinkles in disbelief when she sees me standing with Raelyn.
“What is this?” Her voice is harsh.
“A bonding ceremony,” I reply matter-of-factly.
She glares at Alex. “This is not what I agreed to, young man. If the king were to find out—”
“I’ll handle the king,” I interrupt her. “Trust me, you will be greatly compensated for this last-minute affair.”
“As I should be,” she harrumphs.
“Alex will escort you wherever you need to go after this,” I promise, and Alex nods.
My father’s wrath knows no bounds. It will be good for the priestess to get out of town for a little while to give the king a chance to calm down.
“Let’s get this over with,” the priestess demands.
The sky starts to light up as the sun’s rays peek up over the horizon, and I lead Raelyn to the small abandoned temple of the sun god.
I hurry to get her inside, worried about her potential reaction to the early morning sun, but the beams appear to reach out for her, her skin taking on a faint glow.
Alex shudders as he brushes away cobwebs hanging in the entrance.
Nature has started to reclaim the temple—only a few benches remain intact, the roof over the altar is essentially gone, tree branches poke through broken windows, and roots have burst through the stone floor—but it will serve its purpose.
It’s dusty and dirty, and I feel somewhat bad that this is the best I could do for my bride, but it is what it is.
The priestess takes her place by the altar, and we stand before her. She binds Raelyn’s right hand to my left with a golden ribbon, reciting the sacred words of blessing over us and our union.
I pull out a ring with a giant oval-shaped emerald on top, and Rae’s eyes fly to mine in shock as I place it on her right forefinger.
“To you I pledge my undying love and devotion. I will care for you and cherish you until the gods take me home,” I vow.
“I-I don’t have a ring for you,” Raelyn stammers.
“I’ve got that covered.” I wink.
Alex hands her a simple gold band, and she blinks before turning back to face me, slipping it onto my left forefinger.
“To you I pledge my undying love and devotion. I will care for and cherish you until the gods take me home,” she repeats.
Despite knowing this isn’t real . . . knowing there is no love between us . . . a band of something squeezes around my heart.
The priestess continues with the ritual, anointing us with sacred oil. “Now, in honor of the gods’ ways, you will unite not just your lives, but your bodies and blood as well.”
Shit, I forgot about this part. Raelyn’s hand tenses in mine, as if nerves are getting the better of her as well. Real or not, our marriage will be unbreakable, even by the gods, if we complete this part. There’s no undoing it.
The priestess pulls out a ceremonial dagger and a golden chalice. Before I can say anything, she pricks my exposed thumb with the sharp blade. She squeezes a few drops of blood into the chalice and repeats the motions with Rae’s thumb.
The goblet is swirled, mixing our blood together.
In an almost macabre show, the priestess dips her fingers and paints Raelyn’s lips with our blood before turning to paint mine. I’m not sure if I’m just seeing things or if it’s the golden chalice, but the blood has an almost shimmering quality to it.
“Now kiss,” the priestess declares.
Raelyn looks up at me hesitantly.
I close the gap and take her mouth with my own, the tang of our blood a foreign but not completely unwelcome taste.
Her lips are velvety smooth, and she tastes of tart cherries and the richest chocolate.
Every part of me wants to deepen the kiss, to devour her like the finest of wines, but Alex clears his throat, and it’s as if I’m waking from a spell.
I desperately wish to kiss her again and again . . . to taste all of her.
I meet her gaze, and she looks almost as unsettled as I am. Unable to stop myself, I reach over and gently wipe the leftover blood off the side of her mouth, and her jade eyes darken with something I can’t quite decipher.
The priestess makes an annoyed sound before we turn back to her, nodding for her to complete the ritual.
She pulls out an official binding scroll from somewhere deep within her robe and has us mark the page with our bloody thumbprints before she pierces her own and signs her name in blood.
The parchment glows as the seal of the gods completes our marriage, and the golden ribbon tying our hands shimmers and sinks into our skin before disappearing. There is no turning back now. Not that I would choose to. For better or worse, Raelyn and I are bound.
“It’s done,” Rae whispers.
“It’s done,” I reply.
“Do you feel any different?” she asks almost hesitantly.
I move my wrist where the gold ribbon disappeared and shake my head. “Not really, no.”
“Huh,” she replies.
“Do you feel different?” I ask.
She pauses, as if afraid to answer, before she shakes her head. “It’s nothing. Probably just nerves from the whole thing.”
“Are you ready to go to the palace?” I ask.
“As ready as I’ll ever be.”
The priestess hands us our binding scroll before bustling back out to the carriage, shouting orders at Alex.
He gives me a wry smile before mouthing, “You owe me,” and they take off toward the city.
“Let’s go start our new lives then.”