The Prince's Gift

Chapter 87.

Ana's POV

I felt as if I was floating on air. I could feel my energy renewed within the ceremony, and now it was flowing fluidly between Zane and me. It felt like a living breathing thing connecting us as it wound tightly around our mate bond, becoming part of it and tying us to one another.

Zane and I left the glowing blue light of the cave, walking hand in hand as we let the moonlight wrap around us. There was a comforting silence between us as we took our time stepping through the woods and coming up to the castle. I felt his fingers rubbing circles into my palm as the balcony to his suite came into view.

He looked over at me with a glint of mischief in his eyes and before I could say anything, his arm snaked around my waist and pulled me tightly against him. His lips hovered just above mine as his breath fanned across my skin, but he didn't give in to the urge to close the distance. Instead he gripped me tighter and suddenly we were launching off the ground as he jumped high in the air. I let out a squeal of surprise as I clung to him. He chuckled as his hands caught the railing and he pulled us up and over. His strong arms caught me and held me against him as my breathing increased with the excitement.

His eyes locked on me and I froze. The stars glistened within his icy blue gaze and I could feel everything in him calling out to me, and my own returning the call. He pushed the door open and carried me inside, never breaking eye contact until we came to the desk beside the window. The lights were off in the room other than a single lamp giving off just enough light to see the room.

Zane's eyes dropped to a large flat square box waiting on the table in front of me. My fingers reached for the soft black velvet and I looked back at him with a questioning smile. "Open it." He said softly.

I did as he asked and slowly opened the box, and I couldn't help but gasp when I saw what was waiting inside. A long necklace coated in white shining diamonds was settled inside on the silk lining. The long strands came together to meet in a simple loop knot before the two strands dropped down with one larger diamond at the end of each one.

My fingers floated across each sparkling gem. "Zane...I can't believe you did this." I looked up at him to see he was watching me intensely, a soft smile curling up the edges of his lips. "It's all too much." I said on a breath.

He took my hand from the necklace and brought it to his lips, pressing them gently against the inside of my palm as his eyes burned into me. "Ana, you deserve more than anything I'm able to give you. But I promise to try and make up for every horrible second we've been forced apart for the rest of my eternity."

He let our hands drop and reached for the necklace. I turned instinctively to allow him to place it around my neck, letting the front rest on my collarbone as sparkling diamonds dripped down my back like little shards of moonlight.

"This necklace represents us...The two strands coming together and creating a loop. Creating our daughter." He said.

His fingers grazed down my spine with a feather soft touch beneath the diamonds and I shivered. I turned to face him and I couldn't help but take him in. His rugged jaw and pale blue gaze was enough to knock the breath from me when he was looking at me that way.

"It's over baby. We've finally won. I'm yours and only yours." He whispered as his forehead pressed against mine.

His hand wrapped around the side of my neck, his thumb stroking down my jaw and I couldn't stop my teeth from biting down lightly on my lower lip.

"I've always been yours." I replied on a breath.

I leaned up and pressed my lips against his in a slow burning kiss. His hand gripped tighter against me and I could feel his body flexing against mine. I slowly backed myself away from him, letting our lips be the last thing to part as I stepped closer to the bed, stopping just at the end. I slipped my hands up and pulled my shoulders free from my gown, one at a time, keeping his steel gaze locked in mine.