One, two, three.
It was one night to show she wasn’t a complete asshole. Or Idavoll’s enemy. She could do this.
Steeling herself, she accepted Koa and Aelfsi’s escort to the dining hall.
She’d have rather had Westley at her side, but she hadn’t been allowed to get ready with him. This dinner was beginning to resemble a wedding ceremony rather than a simple celebration.
All eyes turned towards them when she entered the hall. Of course they were the last to arrive, and everyone stood to greet them, bowing low. Solveig caught Westley’s eyes, seeing mirth there.
Do not laugh, she ordered.
I wouldn’t dream of it.
She took her place beside Westley at the head of the table, and he took her hand in his, bringing it up to place a gentle kiss on her palm, her fingers stroking the side of his face.
His eyes were glittering emeralds, stealing her breath and making her feel like they were the only two in the room. She wished that was the case.
She also wished they were both naked.
Let me guess, he said as they took their seats, the sound of scraping chairs echoing in the dark hall as everyone else followed suit,my mother had the dress brought to you?
That would be correct, and her maidservants insisted on doing my hair.
At least your breasts look great, he said with a wicked smile.
Right? Though I’m worried they are going to spill right out if I bend over.
You’ll have to bend over for me later then.
Solveig choked on a sip of wine, and he rubbed her back innocently. She glared at him but there was no malice behind it—his eyes continued to smoulder.
“Hate to break whatever silent conversation you’re clearly having about how much you wish you were back in your rooms, but I’d love to make a toast,” Viggo said, standing.
Westley dragged Solveig’s chair closer to him, slinging an arm around her shoulders.
“I have known Westley since he was a youngling and have seen him with countless women and females,” he said, eliciting cheering from Westley’s friends and uncomfortable looks from his parents. Others outside their close group of families and friends were gathered at the table.
Idavoll leaders and highborn families sat along the long dark table—they did not look impressed.
Viggo continued without missing a beat. “But never have I seen him so absolutely wrecked, so completely destroyed in the best way possible, than when he fell in love with Solveig.”
Was that before or after the cave?Solveig asked with a squeeze of her hand on his thigh.
Is it too dark to say that I think I fell in love with you in the cave?
We all have darkness, West, and though fate was cruel in how it brought us together, this is our story.
Westley placed a kiss on her forehead as Viggo raised his glass. “To the not-yet-mated mates, may you screw each other’s brains out and put us all out of our misery!” Laughs mingled with uncomfortable looks as the guests either toasted to their sex life or blatantly did not raise their glasses.
“I’ll cheers to that,” Westley said out loud, raising his glass and clinking it with Viggo’s.
The meal began as servants brought in dish after dish. When Solveig cocked a brow at Westley, he explained that in the royal family, mates were married immediately. His parents wanted their people to assume this was a wedding.
Solveig hated the entire charade, though she understood the pageantry. And the only reason she was putting up with it was because Westley was trying to make peace with his parents. They had been deceived just as he had, and he was convinced he could get them on their side. It was improbable.
A table with broken legs cannot support a bowl atop it, no matter how much you try to balance it.
The food was delicious—she had to give that to Idavoll. Even in the dead of their eternal winter, the meal featured rich vegetables and meats, the stew thick and hearty, the bread fluffy, and the wine flowing. She frowned at her bowl, knowing that the other Fae of Idavoll were struggling with resources.
