Ileus' breath hitched. He looked at through her veil and his gaze fixed on her rosy lips that were quivering. Ileus lifted his wife's veil slowly. He cupped her cheeks with his hands and leaned in to kiss the lips that had tortured his dreams from the first day he had seen her. Millions of loving thoughts containing the sweetness of his passion poured into the kiss he pressed on her lips. Anastasia opened her mouth for him and Ileus delved home.

Anastasia was his bride now and there was no law in the world that could annul their marriage unless either of them wanted-and that possibility was out of question.

He moaned in her throat, feeling as if his life's purpose was fulfilled. He didn't want anything else other than the woman who stood before him. When he pulled away from her, he whispered, "I love you, now and forever."

Anastasia's lips curled up as she looked up in his warm eyes.

Theodir announced, "You are husband and wife." He closed his eyes, raised his hands up in the air and chanted. The souls and wisps of souls circled them once and began disappearing one by one. When Theodir opened his eyes, they were a bright blue, just like the bright blue sky of Evindal. "That was one of the rarest things I had ever seen, Ileus," he said as he looked at the last wisp dissipating into the air. "The last I saw was when I got married to Ilyana."

At his statement, Ilyana blushed.

"Your union is blessed by the elven souls. It was meant to be."

Ileus lowered his gaze to Anastasia and said, "It was..."

---

As soon as the wedding was over, Ileus and Anastasia were taken to his chambers. As Anastasia walked inside, Ileus closed the door and leaned on it. He stared at her until she walked to the bed. She turned to look at him. There were no words but the intensity of the moment, the intensity of his eyes ignited heat in her belly. He sauntered to her and circled his arms around her waist. "So how do you feel, Anastasia Volkov?"

Her eyes became wide when the realization dawned upon her. She was officially married to him. From Princess Anastasia Lachlain, she became Princess Anastasia Volkov. She took in a sharp breath. Her lips curled up as she found herself liking her new title. "I think I can get used to that."

He chuckled as his eyes brightened. His mind was going through a variety of emotions just like hers. It reminded him of times when she had first time seen him in his original form outside Vilinski and it was exhilarating, liberating. The amount of excitement and attraction he felt for her at that time was unbelievable and it was the same now for her as well. He was beyond happy. He brushed her cheeks with the back of his hands and then removed the veil and the crown. He worked his hands in her hair, freeing them of the pins and smoothed her hair down. "My sunshine," he murmured.

"Why do I feel that you stayed awake for a long time? Your eyes look tired," she said.

"I didn't blink an eye last night. It was impossible to stay away from you," he murmured as he brushed her cheeks and her nape. His fingers went to the place between her neck and shoulder and he pressed it lightly over there. "Moreover, I am interested in doing something for my wife now."

Anastasia flushed a deep red. What was he referring to? "I know what you have in mind," she said in a husky voice.

"And what is it that I have in mind, you dirty little girl with a dirty little mind?"

"I know what you do after getting married," she replied innocently as if trying to show that she wasn't unaware of it.

Ileus untied the first knot of her gown in the front and laughed softly, "What is it that you do after getting married?"

Oh gods! How could she say that? She flushed deeper and now her skin felt like a thousand suns. She lowered her lashes as her breath became shallow. "We consummate our marriage," she replied in a whisper.

Ileus laughed all the way, removing the string of her gown. "I really love that notion darling." As soon as that happened, the fabric slid to the sides revealing the inner swells of her breasts. "So should we consummate our marriage?"

Anastasia opened her mouth to say something but when she looked up into his eyes, her mouth snapped shut. She saw his fangs that had grown a little and they were sexy. Even though the strings were untied, she felt her chest tightening with anticipation.

He was staring at her with wickedness, with hunger, with greediness. He cupped her cheeks and said, "I would love to mark you, Ana. The need for doing that is so urgent that I can't breathe at times. It's painful to look at you because my wolf wanted to mark you ever since I saw you, but I wasn't doing that because I didn't want to scare you." Adrenalin and need coursed through Ileus to the level that his shaft throbbed with pain. He licked his fangs with his lips greedily. His wolf growled as he felt an overwhelming lust for his mate. He recalled the times when she resisted the fierce attraction between them, but now... he smelled her arousal under his heated gaze. Her scent was... mouthwatering and he wanted to devour her. He looked at those hard throbbing nipples and said, "I want to nick them with my fangs and suck you."

Gods! A hot breath left her lips.

"Do you think you can handle me?" He asked for her permission.

"I am ready."

"Thank the gods," he replied and reached for her gown. "I so want to rip that off you Anastasia," he said with a clenched jaw.

"Then why don't you?" she asked with a sultry look in her eyes.