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"Tea," I said. "If I can choose, I'll pick that every time. And you, Talin, are spoiled. This man is much too good to you."
"Yes, he is," Talin agreed. "Tea for both of us, please."
Bran nodded and left, giving Talin the chance to rummage through his bags for a suit. Personally, I wasn't brave enough to leave the covers. That winter air was biting, and the room had chilled a lot overnight. The fire was helping, but the room was big enough that it would take more than a few seconds before it was warm enough to abandon my blankets.
"Know what you're wearing?" Talin asked.
"Not the black," I said. "That's reserved for the Darkest Night. The rest are interchangeable."
So he pulled out a lavish red dress. "Then I want to see you in this. Which bag has the lingerie?"
"One to the left. There's a red corset that goes with that, and I have a pair of heavy silk hose to keep my legs warm."
Talin looked up. "Panties?"
"They're with the corset, silly, and no, I'm not skipping them when you're talking about a cart in the snow!" I stuck my tongue out to make the point.
By the time Talin had himself dressed in a nice pinstriped suit with a red ascot, I was finally willing to leave the blankets and get dressed. I had only pulled the dress halfway up my body when Branstan returned with the tea. The man knocked on the open door to the anteroom, then made a surprised noise. Evidently, he'd looked, but only a portion of my back was visible.
"Sir, I can have a lady attend to her," he insisted.
Talin waved at the table. "Just set the tea over there. I promise I'm used to doing this. Believe it or not, it's my job."
"Well," Bran said, the sound of his voice coming closer. "If you'll forgive my impertinence, sir, it's usually easier to dress a lady from the top down. The material will lay smoother."
I glanced back. "And now I'm curious about how you know that."
He smiled at me, his cheeks a vivid red. "I'm married, Priestess."
"And I'm not used to such conservative clothes," I said, "so thank you for the tip."
"Have a trick for these tiny little buttons?" Talin asked.
Bran reached into his coat pocket and pulled out what looked like a crochet hook. "Leave that on the table when you're done with it, sir."
"Bran?" Talin asked before the man could leave. "Where can I get one of these?"
"I'll have one brought to your room."
"No," Talin said. "I want to get some for my friends, not steal all your extras."
"There's a butler's shop in town, sir. On the corner of Creek Street and Market. Button loops are what they're called."
"Then I guess I know where we're going first," Talin decided.
We both had tea, then I fixed my hair and painted my face. Talin took the chance to shave, cleaning up the edges of his short beard. I actually liked the way it looked on him, and the crisp edges really brought out the beauty of his face.
Together, we shared breakfast with the family, which was a blissfully calm affair. Yamina complimented my dress and how well my lipstick matched it. Tath stared at me throughout the meal. Otherwise, the biggest topic of conversation was which social events the Ranndor clan would attend this week.
When Branstan arrived with news that Talin's cart was ready for him, Talin excused us to finish our holiday shopping, and we escaped a little too easily. In the main hall, another pair of servants were waiting with our coats. A third offered me a black fur muff to keep my hands warm, and a fourth informed Talin that the bricks had been heated for our feet.
I had no idea what they were talking about until we stepped outside. There, waiting for us, was a simple two-wheeled cart with a pitch black horse in the harness. If priests were to travel about town, this was exactly the sort of thing we'd use, but I'd never ridden in anything like it before.
"Step up and scoot to the far side," Talin told me, offering his hand.
Once I was on the bench, a footman appeared to spread a blanket across my lap. Talin took his spot beside me, wrapped the blanket across himself as well, and then reached for the reins. I gave him a confused look. Ok, it was probably closer to panic.
"You know how to drive?" I gasped.
