25

Music set to classical guitar, Gaia was slathering thick slices of a baguette with butter and roasted garlic, and Dante was setting the dining table when there was a knock on the door. Dante kissed Gaia's temple on his way to greet their guests. He pulled the door open and stepped aside so Damian and Angelica could enter.

"Welcome. Good timing. Dinner will be just a few more minutes," Dante said, taking the bottle of wine Damian handed him.

"Thanks for having us. We weren't sure if red or white would be appropriate, so we brought pink," Damian said.

Angelica nudged him with her elbow, "It's Rosé, so it'll go with whatever."

Damian chuckled, "She wouldn't let me bring beer."

"Well, let's crack this open." He led them to the island, where he and Gaia had set out charcuterie, and wine glasses for the airing noir.

Gaia quietly asked Dante to pull the lasagna out.

Angelica saw the bread Gaia was buttering and said, "I see you're learning some cooking techniques."

Dante handed Damian the corkscrew, then turned to help Gaia with the heavy pan. "Yeah, she's a natural. She was already an amazing baker, but as soon as I stepped aside, she just took it all over." He set the lasagna on a trivet, stepping aside so Gaia could slide in the pan of bread to toast, and set the timer for seven minutes.

"Oh, I remember this smell!" Angelica closed her eyes and breathed deep, "Ooh, that Italian restaurant in the village?" She opened her eyes and smiled at Dante. They'd been young with the owner had died and the restaurant closed, but those smells imprinted on anyone who'd ever set foot in the vicinity of the place. Her family had gone to that restaurant many times before it closed.

"Mama Biancha's," Dante nodded, grinning.

"My nana's restaurant," Gaia smiled warmly, happy people remembered her grandmother.

"I remember that place," Damian's brows rose, " Does this mean we're having authentic Italian tonight?"

"Well, I didn't make the noodles from scratch, they're store-bought."

"Authentic enough," Dante scoffed.

Angelica gaped at Gaia. "She was your grandmother? So you have all her recipes now?"

Gaia nodded, "Yep."

Angelica's eyes narrowed. "Those cookies?"

"Oh, goddess, Gaia made those last week," Dante said. "I was in heaven."

"I must be missing out, here," Damian muttered. "I don't remember cookies."

"I made another batch this morning," Gaia grinned.

Dante gasped and looked at Gaia with mock hurt and surprise, "You've been holding out on me? You are such a little minx! Is that why you sent me out earlier?"

Gaia scrunched her nose at him and patted his belly. "I can't have you filling up on cookies all day. You'll get all fat and lazy!"

Dante threw his head back and laughed.

The oven timer sounded and, still chuckling, Dante opened the oven door so Gaia could take out the bread, and he slid the berry crumble she'd put together in, setting the timer. Then, grabbing the steaming lasagna, he followed behind Gaia who was carrying a breadbasket she'd transferred the garlic bread to. She set the bread basket on the table near Angelica and Damian.

Gaia was given high praise for the meal, then the conversation turned to how each couple had fared over the past few months since meeting at the hospital.

"Ugh, you are so lucky you've not gone through heat, yet," Angelica said, leaning toward Gaia.

The oven timer dinged. Dante and Gaia rose from the table and went to the kitchen.

"I don't know what you're talking about. You seemed to enjoy yourself just fine," Damian smirked at his mate, waggling his brows.

Angelica blushed, side-eyeing her mate.

"So Damian's moment was the moment he knew he was mated with you, Angelica, and Angelica's moment was heat," Dante said, entering the dining room. He was carrying the crumble, and Gaia was behind him carrying a tray with ice cream, dishes and spoons, and a plate of cookies.

"My moment was during twenty questions game when Gaia was still in the hospital. Gaia?" He plucked a cookie off the plate before ducking back into the kitchen to grab the coffee and cups.

Angelica grabbed the plate of cookies, setting them between herself and Damian, plucking one to nibble, moaning in appreciation as the first bite melted on her tongue. Damian gave her an appraising look and picked up a cookie for himself.

Gaia took a moment to form the words, hiding behind the task of scooping crumble and ice cream into the dishes.

"I guess initially my moment was when I realized that I was feeling the mate bond with Dante, but I'm still months away from turning eighteen, so I was really kind of shell shocked. The day he asked if I accepted him, I think, was really when I realized we were working."

Dante hummed while he poured the coffee and served the cups, first to Angelica and Damian. He glanced at Gaia as he set her coffee cup in front of her, then he added spoons to the dessert dishes and serve them. He could feel through the bond there was no animosity, she was just stating facts.

Angelica's brows shot up, "Really? It took you that long?"

Gaia nodded, "That," she gestured with the scoop in her hand at Angelica and Dante, "between the two of you, and being jumped in the bathroom, that traumatized me. I'm over it now, but it took a minute." She looked up at Dante as she sat down, and gave him a small smile for the air kiss he blew her.

Angelica cleared her throat. "You were incredible on the field... I mean," her eyes widened when she caught Dante's glare, but Gaia tilted her head, peering at her with curiosity. "I saw you channel your wolf at the meeting. She's incredibly powerful!"

"It was fascinating. She knew exactly what to do," Gaia said, a soft smile curving her lips, and a faraway look in her eyes as she recalled her wolf surfacing.

"I hated that you were out there," Dante grasped her hand, "I was so scared for you."

Gaia tilted her head, smiling at him, "I know, but I had you there to protect me. And if I hadn't been there a true tragedy could have occurred."

"Yes, and I'm grateful you were there to stop me in time, but I never want you anywhere near a battlefield again."

Damian asked, "How did you end up out there anyway, Gaia?"

"The Low hills warriors escorted all us Lunas outside. They wouldn't let anyone not pregnant stay inside," Angelica answered.

Traditionally, guest shes were exempt from fighting in a host's battle, unless children and the vulnerable were threatened, but some packs broke from tradition, creating new rules for their territories.

"They shouldn't have done that," Damian grumbled. "Us alphas and their warriors should have been outside first, and you Lunas called only if we needed you."

"But you did need us," Angelica affirmed, taking another cookie.

"That's beside the point," Damian said. "Gaia shouldn't have been out there at all."

"Yeah, she shouldn't have been," Dante grumbled, "I had some words with Greg before we left."

Damian nodded solemnly. "Good."

Angelica was confused, "What? Why?"

"Gaia's wolf is Gray-star, babe," Damian said, "she's one of the trio not meant to fight. In fact, the other two of the trio would be called upon to protect her at all costs. She's the soul of shifter-kind."

"Ohhhh, right," Angelica appraised Gaia.

"Wasn't that rogue attack unusually large," Gaia asked.

"That was the largest rogue attack I've ever witnessed or heard of," Dante said.

"Yeah, that was like forty or fifty average rogue attacks in one," Damian said. "It was like dealing with an entire pack, but with the stench of rogue."

"Is it possible for rogues to form their own pack," Gaia asked.

"No," Damian answered, "it takes Alpha or Beta blood to bridge the cohesiveness wolves require to form a pack, and alphas and betas don't get banished from their packs. If alphas or betas do anything that would merit banishment, they're put to death. It's done to prevent rogues from forming a pack of their own."

Seeing the look of horror on his mate's face, Dante said, "Banishment's not done often, my gentle one. It's even more rare for anyone of Alpha or Beta bloodline to have the qualities or exhibit behavior that merit banishment."

"But not all rogues are banished," Gaia said. "There are runaways, and survivors of disbanded packs. Would it be possible for a pup with ranked lineage from a small pack to survive a raid or war and be raised among rogues?"

"Rogues generally don't band together, Gaia. They usually don't live long enough. Survivors of pack raids could have an alpha or beta pup with them, but they are more likely to be absorbed into another pack than to try to create a new pack."

Gaia was quiet, pondering what Dante and Damian were saying. She couldn't shake the feeling that the rogues of the attack had been a pack together.

Angelica leaned back in her chair, a smile on her face, her eyes closed, "Mm, okay. It's all delicious, but I need to stop."

"Oh, yeah?" Damian looked over at his mate, "Is that a food coma I see creeping over you?"

"Uh, maybe," Angelica raised a brow.

Gaia, Dante, and Damian exchanged smiles with each other, then began to clear the table. Dante and Damian insisted on doing the dishes after the food was put away. Gaia took a cloth to wipe down the table and chairs. Angelica did get up and she took over cleaning the dining room, insisting Gaia sit, since she'd cooked.

Dante could hear Gaia ask Angelica about heat and smirked. He knew she would cycle soon since she'd shifted, and he was looking forward to it. A whole seven days with no other obligations than being balls deep in the sweet little minx that was his mate? Yes, Please!

"She's good for you."

"Yeah, she is. I'm glad Angelica came around. You're good for her," Dante said, settling the last plate into the dishwasher and set it to run. Then he loaded the baking dishes and large utensils into the sink, running hot water and a squirt of soap over them.

"Yeah, it was touch and go there for awhile, but she came around. But you, I haven't seen you this relaxed, and laughing and joking since we were kids. You're happy. Happy happy."

Dante smiled, "I am happy."

"I'm glad. I don't know Gaia very well, but Gray-star deserves you at your best."

Dante furrowed his brow at his friend. "Are you being overprotective of my mate?"

"Fuck yeah! Get used to it. Her wolf inspires everyone to protect her. And the way Angelica and her friend Heather tell it, you were rushing to her rescue more than a few times, even when you were on the verge of rejecting her."

Dante took a deep breath and let it out slowly, focusing on scrubbing baked on remnants of their meal before plopping them into the sink of rinse water. Damian wasn't completely wrong, but Dante was ready to put that chapter behind them.

"I was a young idiot. I have seen the light."

Damian barked a laugh, and lifted the cutting boards, pans and utensils out of the rinse water and settled them on the drain and mat to dry. The knives he dried with a towel and settled them carefully along the magnet strip.

"She can cook. You are one lucky wolf."

Dante nodded, "Yeah, I was surprised the first time she baked. It was an entire feast for breakfast. Then she told me about her grandmother, and I realized I'd sometimes see her in that restaurant getting special attention from the owner, and getting to go into the kitchen." He set the last utensil in the rinse water and pulled the drain on the soapy side. As soon as the rinse side was empty, he pulled that plug, too, then wiped the sink and counter clean.

Damian gasped, and in a mocking tone asked, "Getting special attention from the owner and getting to go into the kitchen. Were you jealous, D?"

"I was an alpha pup, watching another pup, one I didn't know, get preferential treatment from someone in my pack. And probably extra cookies. Yes, I was jealous."

"I see. You had a vendetta against the poor girl long before you met her."

"Yeah, quintessential rocky start."

"I totally understand about the cookies, though. How's she liking being a Luna?"

"We haven't had the ceremony yet. The plan is for the upcoming full moon."

"Well, that gives you plenty of time."

"How's Angelica fitting in?"

"She's perfect," Damian beamed, and went into detail of all the ways Angelica was his perfect mate and luna.

Dante smiled and nodded as he swept the floor.

***

Once they had the house to themselves again, Dante lifted Gaia and set her on the counter. He settled himself between her legs, running his hands over her body, planting kisses down her neck.

She wrapped her arms around his neck, and her legs around his waist, gasping when his hands gripped her buttocks through the thin material of her skirt, pulling her off the counter. His scent enticing, she buried her face in his neck to breathe in his deep forest, coffee and spice aroma, kissing the pulsing vein in his neck. She moaned when she felt his arousal nudging her inner thigh, smiling when he carried her up the stairs.

Dante groaned when he smelled her arousal. He tried to hurry up the stairs to their room, but rushing only excited her more with his bulge rubbing against her core the way he was carrying her. She was soaking through his jeans before they reached the bedroom door. He fumbled for the knob, kicking the door closed when they were through the threshold, and he carried her straight to the bed, undoing and shedding his jeans along the way.

He climbed to the middle of the bed, holding her against him, squeezing her buttocks and enjoying her rutting his bulge. His mouth found hers and he teased her with his tongue. He could feel her nipples pushing through the fabric of her bra and shirt, and he wanted to taste her all over.

Seeming to sense his thoughts, Gaia reached behind her back and deftly unclasped her bra, lifting both shirt and bra over her head in swift movements before hooking her arms around his neck and resuming their kiss.

Dante lowered her to the bed, then broke their kiss to reach for the bottom drawer of his bedside table, watching her eyes scanning his chest and bulge tenting his boxers as he lunged over her. He extracted a handful of slender lengths of silk and waited for her nod before deftly looping a scarf around the head posts of the bed, and instructing her to hold the ends. He didn't actually want to tie her, just give her the sensation of being tied. He took a moment to admire the trust in her eyes before wrapping the third length of silk around her head to cover her eyes.

Gaia watched him, noticing that though she was stretched out, she wasn't actually bound. Then he covered her eyes, and her other senses were immediately heightened. She felt her juices drip down her thighs past her already soaked panties, to the bedspread. She licked her lips, anxious for what he'd do next.

Dante sat back on his heels and took in the beauty that was his mate. He could sense her anticipation and smell her lust. He straddled her legs and braced his weight with his arms to either side of her body, and began grazing his tongue just under her ear, tracing to the hollow of her neck, circling his mark. He continued his trajectory to the area between her breasts, where he began to kiss and nip her skin, aiming toward a nipple. Taking the nipple in his mouth, he nibbled lightly and swirled his tongue, smiling as she squirmed and whimpered beneath him.

He hummed with pleasure when her whimpers of need turned into gasps of relief and moans of pleasure as his mouth traveled across her body, gravitating to her other nipple.

"Dante... please," Gaia's voice was raw with need.

Continuing his assault on her pebbled nipple, he coaxed, "Please what, baby girl? Tell me what you want." He loved hearing her whimper and beg.

"I...naked, please! I want..." she trailed off as she felt his hands at her waistband, and his mouth kissing her body. She whimpered when she felt him move to a side.

"I can get you naked." Dante hooked his fingers in the elastic waistbands of her skirt and panties, guiding them down her legs. The scent of her arousal filled the room and he ran his fingers lightly over her skin, watching her writhe under his touch. She bucked and whimpered when his fingers brushed close to her mound. "I want to taste you."

"Yes!... please," Gaia whispered. She sobbed in relief when she felt his between her legs and whined when he took back to kissing where he'd left off, his tongue teasing her navel, before slowly trailing to her parted thighs. Her hands strained at the strips of silk and her belly clenched tighter the closer his mouth and tongue trailed to her pussy. Tears welled in her eyes.

"You are so wet," Dante breathed against a thigh he was flicking his tongue over, "you are coated in your own juice." He licked her slit and was rewarded with a fresh gush. "So sweet," he murmured, sliding two fingers into her undulating cavern.

He could hear her babbling amidst moans and whimpers. She was ready. So ready. He'd wanted to draw this out, but she was coiled so tightly, every touch kept her right at the edge. He smiled to himself, knowing the scarves were going to be making many future appearances if she reacted this strongly.

He kissed and traced his tongue along her body as he made his way back up to her face, delighting in her writhing and whimpering beneath him. Her legs wrapped around his waist and crossed at her ankles, clutching him to her. At her ear he whispered he wanted to be inside her.

Her answer was a strangled whisper, "Yes," and she arched her back, crying out his name, her body trembling and juices coating him as he eased his cock in.

He groaned. Her pussy was already milking him. He began thrusting hard and fast, repositioning her legs to his shoulders so he could go deeper. His gaze taking all over her in, his eyes drifted to her hands, straining, gripping the ties, and lost in the moment, unable to let go. He leaned over her again, this time running his hands along her arms to coax her hands open. He felt her orgasm once more and looked down to watch her in the throes of falling apart.

She suddenly lunged and hooked her teeth in his neck at his shoulder.

His orgasm exploded hard, with a growl as her teeth sank into his flesh, marking him. As soon as she let go, he clamped on his mark on her neck, sending her over the edge once more. Her body went limp and her soft cries came to an abrupt halt with a strangled squawk.

Dante lifted his head to get a good look at the suddenly still woman beneath him. Her pussy was still milking him, her heart beating hard and fast, her breathing in short pants. He slipped the blindfold from her head and stroked a thumb across her cheek. Her eyes remained closed.

He felt panic arise within him. He slipped out of her and held her cheek, scanning her face for any sign of reaction.

"Gaia? Baby?" He was relieved when her eyes fluttered open, focusing on him. "There you are. You okay? Tell me you're okay."

Gaia tried to nod her head and say she was perfectly fine, but ended up blinking and whimpering instead.

"No, you're not. I've got you," Dante whispered, "little mate, I've got you, you're going to be okay, I've got you," as he quickly unwrapped the ties from her hands and lifted her in his arms, carrying her to the bathroom.

He cradled her on his lap, at the edge of the tub, holding her to his chest as he turned the knobs. He tossed one of the bath bombs he'd bought her into the water and a few handfuls of baths salts, then reached for towels from the nearby basket, setting them within reach. When the steaming water reached the mid mark he stepped into the tub basin and lowered them both into the foamy water.

Dante turned off the water when it reached their chests, and spying the loofah, he squeezed it in the water, and gently stroked it along Gaia's back and arms. He leaned back, so she was supported against him. Her breathing and heart rate eventually slowed and evened out, and her shivering abated. He kissed her head and continued to gently stroke her limbs, and look her over, frowning at the welts on her palms.

"Dante."

Gaia's soft whisper caused his eyes to seek her face. Her head still resting against his chest just under his chin made the task difficult, but he saw her blinking.

"Yes, little mate?"

"I-I..." Gaia's eyes shot wide open and she lifted her head to meet his eyes. "I marked you!"

Dante sighed with relief. "Yes, you marked me." He saw her eyes dart to his neck and asked out it looked.

She tilted her head, gliding her soft fingers across it. "It's a four pointed star. You don't m-"

Dante sensed her uncertainty and kissed her passionately. "Ive been hoping you would want to mark me." He chuckled for the surprise and wonder he saw in her eyes. "Gaia, you are mine and I'm yours. You are my queen, and my luna, and I proudly wear your mark." His eyes focused on her slightly parted lips, the color in her cheeks, then darted back to her eyes, "But I do need to hear you say you're okay."

"I... that was incredible, Dante.. intense... I, yes, I'm very... I feel amazing." Gaia snuggled against his chest, wrapping her arms around him. "I was surrounded in light, it was beautiful, and warm."

Dante held her against him, and kissed her head, "Well, I'm glad you feel good, that's the goal. But, baby girl, you passed out."

"I passed out? I don't remember," Gaia shrugged.

"It was only for a moment, but I'd like to prevent that from occurring again."

"The sex?" Gaia's eyes flew open and she peered up at him, relaxing when she saw humor in his eyes and heard his soft laugh.

"No, we're definitely continuing to have sex. I don't want you passing out, even for a few seconds. I'd like to be able to tell when to stop something completely, when to slow down, when to do something else. And because brains can be addled in the moment, I want you to use safe words. Generic ones go by color, red to stop altogether, yellow if we need to pause and assess if it's too intense. We can come up with different words if you want." He reached for the drain switch and stood up with her in his arms. "But right now, we should rinse off, then get you to bed. You need rest."

He walked over to the shower and turned it on, shielding her from the spray until the water warmed up. When they were thoroughly rinsed, he carried her to the towels and dried her off before himself, before carrying her to bed.

"You're truly spoiling me," Gaia said.

"You deserve it." Dante turned off the lamp, then turned on his side and pulled Gaia to him, smiling as she wriggled to fit his body.

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