Since he agreed with that, he couldn’t argue. Giving in, he said, “I’m sure Harris and Alden will want to be there, too, so we’ll all go together.”
“Will we stay here in the Capital if you are no longer in charge?”
“I meant what I said earlier. If you want to live on Xenthian, we can do that. If you want to live here, we can do that, too. Wherever you are is home for me now.”
“Lynx is ruling the Southern Isle just fine without me. Besides, I believe the information I’m here to collect will help more than just the people on the Southern Isle. It could help all of Xenthian, and potentially the other races as well. There is a special unity we can build between the races through mating bonds, but people need to be open to the possibilities of love.”
“Focusing on love isn’t difficult when I’m with you.” He leaned down to brush his lips over hers. “We will stay here and work on your project together until you are ready to return to Xenthian.”
“That sounds perfect.”
He pulled her toward one of the domes. “We’re here.”
Lyrica looked up and realized the structure was much bigger once they were standing right in front of the entrance. The bottom half of the dome was made of panels of black glass so dark that it looked like shiny marble, while the top half seemed to be made of brilliant blue crystal.
“Close your eyes. I want this to be a surprise.”
Trusting him completely, she did as he asked and closed her eyes, letting him lead her into the unknown. She heard beeping as he entered a code to open the door, then she let out a squeak of surprise as he lifted her into his arms. To stop herself from peeking, she buried her face against his neck and breathed in his comforting scent. She pressed her lips against the steady beat of his pulse at the base of his neck, then smiled when a low, rumbling growl vibrated through his chest.
By the ancestors, she loved when he made that sound.
The air felt different as they entered the dome, a little thinner like they were climbing a mountain. She fought her natural instincts that made her want to panic, and trusted that Gabriel wouldn’t have led her anywhere that would be dangerous to them. After a few seconds, she adjusted to the change and began to breathe easier.
“Okay, you can look now.”
When she did, she let out a loud gasp as pure delight flooded through her. They stood in a room bathed in a pale blue light coming from dozens of glowing trees. The tall trees had white bark and weeping branches with glowing blue leaves. At the end of each branch was a beautiful silver flower with a small cluster of dark blue berries growing out of the center. It looked like they had entered another world, a magical forest that seemed straight out of a dream.
“Gabriel! This is incredible!”
“I’m glad you like it. These are Ahavanni trees from the D’Aire home world. Moonlight makes the leaves glow, and do you see the small cluster of berries at the end of each of the branches growing out of the flowers? Those berries are used to make the Ahava wine you love so much. They’re bitter now, but as they lighten in color, they’ll get sweeter. That’s why the wine is considered so rare, because it takes a very long time for the fruit to ripen completely.”
When he set her down, her feet sank into the soft, spongy ground that looked like a carpet of dark gray moss. She moved toward the closest tree and reached up to touch one of the leaves. The top of the leaf had a texture like soft velvet, but the rest of it was hard and inflexible, almost like a small piece of smooth glass.
Laughing, she skipped back over to him, and threw her arms around his waist. “This place feels magical. If this is what the D’Aire world looks like, I would love to visit there someday.”
“We can go whenever you want,” he promised, turning her in a slow circle.
“What are you doing?”
“Dancing with my mate in the moonlight.”
Her heart simply melted with love for him. “You know, I heard it’s more romantic if we are both naked.”
“Oh, yeah.” He slowly smiled as he began to unfasten her dress. “I was just getting to that part.”
They slowly undressed one another between soft kisses and whispered words of love. Once they were both naked, she pulled him down to the soft, spongy ground with her. He was careful as he covered her smaller body with his own, and when he finally slid into her, she let out a sigh of pure pleasure.
This was the beauty of having a soulmate.
It meant having someone to share moonlit dances and gentle caresses with under a blanket of stars. Desire pulsed between them like a living, breathing entity, growing stronger through their shared connection as they made love in the glowing light. And when they both finally found release, they held tight to one another, bonded with a love that would never be broken.
Chapter Nine
“What is it?” Dragon Warrior Roman Newgate eyed the box Lyrica and Gabriel had presented upon their arrival with a healthy dose of suspicion. Cradling the baby he was holding close to his chest, he held his other arm out in front of his mate and their other son, stopping them from moving closer. “Did you check it for explosives?”
Amari Nazira let out an exasperated sigh as she rubbed the back of the baby she was holding. “My love, why in all the worlds would Blue send the twins something that would
