CHAPTER 78: THE COUPLES’ FIRST NIGHT

Ashen carried his bride into their chamber, his strong arms holding her like she weighed nothing.

The door swung open, and he walked straight to the large bed. He placed Lumina down on the soft mattress, his eyes never leaving her face.

"Everyone, leave," Ashen ordered in a deep voice.

The guards and maids immediately bowed and stepped out. Stella and Ero were the last to leave, exchanging happy smiles as they quietly shut the door behind them.

The room fell silent and the only sound was the crackle of the fire in the hearth and Lumina’s own nervous breathing. She swallowed hard.

"You are not... thinking of spending the night with me, are you?" she asked carefully, her voice held curiosity.

Ashen smirked and sat beside her without hesitation. Lumina instantly crossed her arms over her chest, as though shielding herself.

"Hey! Don’t be a pervert. This... this wasn’t part of our agreement!" she said quickly.

Ashen tilted his head, looking amused. "We made a contract, remember? Two years. I won’t force you to do something you don’t want. But..." His eyes narrowed slightly. "You don’t want people starting rumors, do you?"

Lumina exhaled slowly, relieved. "Good. I am glad you understand." she let out ignoring his words.

"Whatever," Ashen said with a light snort. "You are not my type anyway, so don’t fool yourself." Lumina froze at this sentence.

"What did you just say?!" Before she could stop herself, she smacked him across the back. He groaned in surprise, leaning forward.

Outside the door, the maids gasped at the sound. They exchanged amused glances, smiling knowingly. Even Stella and Ero chuckled.

"Hey," Lumina warned with a smirk. "What is with the way you groaned just now, they are going to get the wrong idea."

Ashen rolled his eyes. "Let them think about what they want. You are my wife now."

Her heart gave a strange little flutter at those words, but she quickly pushed it aside.

"That doesn’t mean you can." She tried to shove him away, but he caught both of her wrists easily in one hand.

"Let go!" she protested, squirming.

Instead of releasing her, he admired her face carefully, his gaze softening just a little. "You are beautiful," he murmured before leaning in.

Lumina tensed at the same time his compliment flattered her. "W... What are you doing?" She let out a bit of tension.

"Fulfilling my husbandly duty," he replied with a faint grin.

Her eyes widened. "No! You promised to follow the contract..." she argued.

"I changed my mind," Ashen whispered casually, the corner of his mouth lifting. "I am in the mood now, and I can’t control it."

"What?!" she yelped, trying to push him away again. But before she could speak more, his lips pressed against hers.

Lumina’s eyes went wide. She made a muffled sound of protest and immediately bit his lower lip.

Ashen pulled back slightly, more amused than angry, a faint smirk curving his mouth as he reached up to remove the delicate ornament from her hair.

"Hey! You pervert!" she snapped.

"I will kiss you again if you call me that," he teased. Her hands shot up to cover her lips. "You wouldn’t dare!"

"Oh, I would," he said with a slow smile as he gave her a long look.

After a long silence, he finally spoke out. "But I will wait for you."

"Don’t you dare dream of it," she muttered.

"I just love teasing you," he admitted, observing her with a warm expression.

Lumina sighed, feeling a bit drained after the long ceremony. Her heavy wedding gown didn’t help. Ashen noticed the way her shoulders sagged.

"You want me to call your maid to help you change?" he asked.

She shook her head quickly. "You want more rumors to spread?" she fired at him this time around.

He shrugged his shoulders, "It’s not like I would undress you myself."

Her cheeks heated at his words. "Then turn your back, and I will do it." She told him to wait for him to do so but he stood staring at her.

"What? You can’t even see me, so why should I turn around?"

"Ashen!" she cried in disbelief.

He smirked. "Relax, I can satisfy myself outside. Why should I be tempted by your body?"

Her chest tightened at those words not because of the insult, but because of the thought of him with someone else. She didn’t understand why it bothered her so much.

Ashen noticed the shift in her expression. She had gone quiet, her lips pressing together. He realized he had gone too far, and was about to speak when she suddenly grabbed his collar and yanked him closer.

Before he could react, her teeth sank into his neck.

Ashen’s eyes widened at the sudden sting, but he didn’t pull away. Instead, he stayed still with his eyes tightly closed bearing the consequence of his action.

When she finally let go, he raised a brow. "Satisfied now?" he asked but that was another mistake.

"Give me your hand," she demanded.

Intrigued, Ashen offered his wrist. She bit him there too, harder this time. He hissed softly but didn’t stop her.

When she released him, she turned away, folding her arms. "Hey.." he called as he leaned forward, resting his chin near her shoulder.

"Guess biting me means you are claiming me as yours."

"I hate you!" she shouted.

He smirked. "Then I should leave..."

"Don’t you dare!" she snapped, whipping her head toward him.

"You are not going anywhere to cause rumors and you better not sleep with any other woman! You’re staying here while I change, with your eyes covered."

"What makes you think I will cover my eyes?"

Lumina smirked as she replied, "I will make sure of it."

Before he could react, she grabbed a blindfold from the nearby table. With surprising speed, she tossed it over his head and tied it securely.

"Hey! How am I supposed to get this off?" he asked, fumbling with it.

"You can’t," she said sweetly. "Not until I am done undressing."

He grumbled something under his breath, but she only smiled, turning away to begin unfastening the complicated ties of her gown.

Even though she couldn’t see him watching, she imagined his eyes narrowed in frustration and she smiled at this.

Ashen sat there, listening to the soft rustle of fabric and the faint clinking of jewelry as she worked.

He could picture her movements in his mind the way her hair would fall forward, the way her fingers would struggle with the stubborn knots.

"You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?" he muttered.

"Maybe," she replied with a small laugh and Ashen could only sit there smiling, having that satisfaction in him.