The Prince's Gift

Chapter 86.

Zane's POV

I didn't have to wait long for her to respond and she sent her thoughts into my own without pause. "More than words can say." She answered.

As I leaned forward, she let her head fall slightly to the side to grant me easier access as my fangs grazed across the top of her skin, just at the base of her neck on the opposite side from before. This was a new start. A new path for us. I never wanted her to see my mark, or feel it's affect and remember the time before this moment as anything other than her past. I wanted the hard memories to have nothing to do with our future.

Finally, I let my fangs bite down, piercing her ivory skin gingerly and she let out a small gasp as my bite locked in, sealing my mark on her neck and connecting her to me once again. I could feel everything she was feeling, the joy, the hope, and the weight of this ceremony for her. She'd given up completely that we would ever have this, and now it was here. Finally I was going to be hers in return.

She lifted her head and placed her own delicate fingers against the back of my neck, pushing them up into my hair as her own fangs found their place at the base of my neck, and I could feel her anxiousness. She wanted to experience every part of this moment. At last, her fangs pierced into my skin, and as she locked them into place, the floodgates opened, coursing between us at the highest capacity as every single memory, emotion, or dream surged through the newly formed bond.

I'd felt it before when I completed the mate bond with Lilith, but it was never to this degree. It was set in place with resistance. Never fully embraced. This...this was something completely new to me. I could feel her love pushing into every crevice of my being, feeling her very soul connecting and intertwining with my own as mine was with hers. It was as if our inner most beings were seeking each other out actively, looking to find and connect with every single cell within the two of us until we were one being.

It was incredible.

"I'm yours." I said, no longer having to send my thoughts to her, but thinking it and knowing she heard me as I released my fangs from their mark.

Her fingers tightened their grasp on my neck as she responded immediately and did the same. "And I'm yours."

Her eyes flashed brilliantly in the dim light as it twinkled in her gaze. We finally released each other and the crowd erupted in cheers, both vampire and Talentati alike. Even the servants were applauding us. I took her hand and we turned to face them, raising our arms in celebration before finally turning to face Casimir.

"Are you each ready to take your rightful place as rulers of this kingdom?" He asked loudly over the roar.

We both nodded in unison. "We are." We replied.

Casimir stepped aside as we ascended the stairs to the two thrones together, hand in hand as I'd always dreamed we would. Kora and Fallon were waiting beside our designated seats. In each of their hands sat a crown, my own in Fallon's to be placed on my head alongside Ana as Kora prepared to set hers in place.

I'd had Ana's created uniquely for her. It was pure gold, delicately crafted with vines intertwining with feminine floral notes and adorned with pearls, diamonds, and opals. Only light stones were to be used to reflect the light she'd brought to not only my own life, but to so many she touched. It was a work of art and one of a kind, much like her, but it only enhanced the beauty she already radiated.

We turned to face the crowd and Casimir stepped in to stand just below the thrones as he announced to the crowd below. "It is my honor to usher in this new era and announce your reigning King and Queen of this great kingdom. Today the union of two nations has been solidified, and we move forward as one people."