A huge thank you to my editor Tex Beethoven for another amazing job and collaboration, thank you Tex you rock!!!
Book 1
Chapter 23
Dante and Lily excused themselves shortly after dinner, since they were anxious to see the first phase of their major remodeling of their suite and Cabin start coming together. They opened the main door and stepped into the living room, and just turned around and around, taking it all in.
The walls were painted in a rich, rust-brown color on the top two thirds of the wall, with the bottom third painted a dark creamy tan. These two colors were separated by a distressed crimson-red molding running the length of each wall.
There were several framed photos hung around the room. As Dante took a closer look, he saw they were all pictures of Lily and him, many of them from their Mating Ceremony (taken during the early portions when they had still been clothed, and the later portions after they'd become their wolves) and from the concert afterwards. He saw a few others that must have been candids that Lily and others had taken of him, as well as some of just Lily, too.
They walked over to the lounge area of the living room. There was a large area rug in rust and cream colors, with two large, plush leather couches and two oversized leather armchairs placed around the edges of the rug. In the middle was a large low table made of dark wood with the top covered in hammered brass, and it coordinated well with the rest of the room. Near the bottom of one wall was a huge electric fireplace, one that could be turned on whenever they wanted with just the flick of a switch (and no need to chop kindling every cool evening).
On one wall was what looked like a very large picture complete with a dark wooden frame. But in fact it was a new type of TV, and when it wasn't in use, it cycled through a preloaded collection of pictures, which were again all pictures of the two of them.
Dante looked around the ceiling and the perimeter of the room, and saw he'd gotten his wish to have quality music. He knew he'd be using that sooner rather than later and he'd encourage his goddess of a mate to dance for him. He took a closer look at the equipment and was amazed to see that it was just what he would have picked out himself: a full collection of Klipsch speakers and a Marantz amplifier. He could already imagine the clarity and fidelity of the music that would be played in here!
They moved into the bedroom and saw much of it was the same: the walls matched those in the living room and in the hallway leading to the bedroom. There were a few pictures in here as well, but these were more suited for the bedroom, some of them risqué but tasteful shots from their Mating Ceremony, showing them bathed in the moonlight and naked, but not truly showing anything. The timing of whoever had taken the shots was impeccable, as they all looked as if they had posed for these, when in truth they had been totally lost in having sex with each other and oblivious to anything else. He silently thanked Rose for also installing a sound system in here that was nearly identical to the one in the living room, and he could picture Lily swaying to the music in dimmed light, enticing him with her body.
As he'd requested, the canopy bed was still in place, but the sheets were now midnight black silk.
Dante looked at Lily and quirked a brow at the choice of linen.
She grinned at him and explained, "I want to see you in your wolf form laying on the bed. I can just see you disappearing into it, with just the silver tips of your ears and tail showing as I gaze into your liquid silver eyes, just staring back into mine. Gives me goosebumps thinking about it baby! Sooo, I had Rose change our bed to black silk." She grinned hungrily at him as he chuckled. He liked the way she thought!
He noticed there was a large framed picture above the bed in a place of prominence. He took a closer look and stopped in his tracks when he saw what the picture was. It was another portrait of Lily, this one obviously posed, and this time she was completely naked, stretched out on this very same bed, with these very same silky black sheets. Her legs were crossed at the ankle, with a single blood-red lily covering her mound, its color a perfect match with her hair. Her stomach and most of her chest was exposed, but with just enough of her breasts covered by her blood-red hair that you couldn't quite see anything untoward. She had posed looking straight at the camera, giving Dante the experience of his mate gazing lovingly and sexily into his eyes. One arm was draped languorously above her head, while the other was laying on her stomach. She was a goddess, captured just for him to stare at before being compelled to take his beloved to bed, he thought.
As he was lost in the picture, Lily came up from behind and wrapped her arms around him, whispering in his ear, "Surprise, baby. You're always treating me so amazingly and doing such sweet things for me, I wanted to surprise you a bit too. I had Rose help me, and we shot this last week for you. Notice the expression on my face: I was imagining you standing over me, just about to take me. Do you like the picture, my love?"
Dante whispered, "I've never had a better surprise. You look like a goddess in this picture, I swear it! You are so beautiful, and this is the best surprise anyone has ever given me! Thank you Lily. I love it, and the location is perfect."
He'd pulled Lily around so he was hugging her to his chest, and now he leaned down and kissed her deeply and didn't stop. Minutes later he was still kissing her as she moaned into his mouth and melted against him. She lost all thought and just focused on the feeling of her mate's lips and body against her, feeling like he would consume her.
He slowly undressed them both, as he started pouring his passion into Lily through the bond, overwhelming her as she began losing her senses and then lost herself in just their shared feelings. She had a long red ribbon tying up her hair, and Dante pulled it gently away. He brought Lily's hands together in front of his chest. Maintaining eye contact, he seductively used the ribbon to tie her hands together. Lily felt a shiver race through her at the intensity and love coming from Dante tonight. He picked her up and laid her in the middle of the bed, her bound arms above her head, telling her to close her eyes, just to feel and breathe.
Dante spent the next thirty minutes kissing and caressing her body. Lily felt like her skin was on fire: every brush of his lips and touch of his tongue racing like electricity across her body. She was gasping and breathing deeply and moaning the entire time, as she writhed beneath him and he lavished attention on her for so long that by now Lily was delirious, not even knowing where she was, lost in a sea of emotions and sensations.
When Dante eventually penetrated her she came unraveled, moaning and screaming as she came, filled to her deepest places with his love. Lily didn't think she had ever felt such slow and gentle passion overwhelm her before. She was so into her delirium that she seemed to be floating above an irregular plateau, soaring from one aerie to the next as Dante made love to her for a perfect eternity, her hands still bound together over her head, gripping the sheets.
Through the bond, Dante continually poured his absolute devotion through her and Lily drank it in, drowned in it, never wanting to come up for air. Buoyed up by their love for each other, they both felt they were resting in eternity.
When they finally regained cognizance of the world, it was a quiet and beautiful moment for them both.
