“You are a treasure. Never forget that.” Ileus said with concern in his voice and kissed her forehead.

Her lips parted. No one had told her that and today he made her feel like one. Why was it that she liked being close to him, and found she wasn’t at all alarmed at the prospect. It felt… natural.

His fingers trailed her chin and brushed her nape. “You parents fought bravely, but I feel there is more to what meets the eye about Aed Ruad. I always get strange vibes from him. It’s just that I can’t figure out what is wrong with him.”

Anastasia breathed heavily into his chest. “Neither do I. My mother valiantly fought beside my father, but it wasn’t enough… Aed Ruad is too strong and cruel. Someone supported him up that day, and I haven’t been able to find out who.” She tilted her head back and it brushed his face. “I— I miss my parents a lot. They were madly in love with each other.” She stopped for a moment to push back the lump that formed in her throat.

Then on an impulse asked, “Have you fallen in love, Ileus?” She regretted asking the question. What if he said yes? How humiliating that would be. Also she really wanted to know about how he felt about Darla. She had to check her impulsiveness.

“You don’t ask such questions from people, whom you— and I quote ‘seriously, utterly, bitterly, loathe’.”

His chuckled and this time she elbowed him with all her might. “I do loathe you!” she said.

The man didn’t leave her but he gave a sharp chuckle. “For a woman you are pretty aggressive!”

“I think every woman must be reacting aggressively around you!”

“Oh! You really want to know that?” He asked in a sexy voice that made her clench her thighs.

“I most certainly know that!”

He lifted his head until he was over her ear and said in a voice that purred, “They want me to be aggressive with them, but in different ways.”

Her heart burned, fists clenched and stomach hardened. She clenched her teeth so hard that her jaws pained. “Gosh when this is over, I will forget you ever happened,” she blurted. “You simply can’t give straight replies!”

“I don’t think you will ever be able to forget me, princess.” He chortled again and rested his head back on the fur. Slowly, he pulled away the fur between them. He stroked her back with his fingers and asked, “What are you going to do anyway once you are out of Sgiath Biò?”

The action tickled her, sensitized her. “I have my plans,” she snapped, still angry. She couldn’t get over the fact that women doted on him. “I am sure you must have been in love—many times!” she blurted.

He removed his hand, flipped on his stomach and turned his head towards her.

She missed him, emptiness came…

“Are you asking me the number of lovers I have had or you are asking me the number of girls I have been with? Because both are different questions.”

“You know what? Forget I asked you that,” she said and rolled her eyes. “I am not interested in your mundane love life!”

“Fair enough,” he said and turned to put his arm again on her waist. “I won’t even ask about yours because I know none existed.” He said as if he was relieved.

“Everyone knew that. But it wasn’t as boring as you think it was.” Anastasia had secretly taken forward her lessons with Iskra. She practiced her moves again and again in secret to never forget them. She had devoured the library.

He picked up the question he had asked earlier. “So you have plans? What would a princess do in the Lore all alone? You would get lost and conned and discovered easily.”

“No, I won’t.” How could she say that she was so starved of feeling the outer world that she would definitely find a way to survive, to go on and to find what she really had to? Once she would find Iona, half of her work would be done. Finding her would be extremely difficult because according to her information, Iona was kept deep under the sea in a prison so heavily fortified that it would be impossible to get to her. But she would find a way. She was determined to find the way and she wasn’t going to tell her plans to anyone. Anastasia exhaled a heavy breath. That was the only hope she had to save her people, her kingdom and her parents from Aed Ruad’s tyranny. “We will see,” she said as she turned on her back. “Even if I get discovered, the escape would be worth it. Even if Maple whips me after all this, the pain would be worth the experience I am going through.”

“That’s a pessimistic way of looking at things.”

“No, that is as optimistic as it can be.” She sighed. No one would dampen her spirits. She stifled a yawn. “I wish everything was just as it was. I wish my father hadn’t allowed his sister to come back to Vilinski. I wish time I could go back in time and fix things.”

Ileus’s arm tightened around her. “Going back in time is not a very nice thing, Anastasia.”

“You say as if from experience?” she mocked him.

His chest caved in. He was so close to her that she could feel a metal like pendant against his skin. His breath was falling on her cheeks.

“If you go back in time and rectify things, nature gets imbalanced, history changes and that is something very nasty. It can destroy civilizations, families…” his voice trailed off.

That sounded… logical. “I guess so… It’s not a good idea to play with the past.” She paused and suddenly added, “I do hope Aed Ruad dies and his death is slow and painful. He is an ass!”

Ileus’s lips twitched and he started laughing so loudly that Zlu grunted for disturbing his sleep and Aidan looked at them with embarrassment written all over his face. He shut the book down and shoved it below his hips.

“He is an ass,” he agreed with her. “Would you like to tell me about your plans after this is over?” he asked. He came near her. “Or do you want to see that book?