Her Three Kings {Volturi Kings}

Chapter Twenty-one

The weeks passed and Lily was happy. Content. She sat in trials and answered correspondence. Her mates undertook educating her on their personal histories as well as the history of the vampire race as a whole. She worked on languages and signed up for another online class about Renaissance art. As busy as she was, she still found time to spend with her mates.

Caius finally remembered that he owed her a date. He interrupted her stroll in the garden one afternoon to invite her to accompany him for the evening. She dressed in a short silver dress and strappy heels that he'd provided. He drove them through the city until they arrived at a low building. There was a large glass entry way while the rest of the building was mostly windowless. There was no signage to indicate where they were.

She waited for Caius to open her door and took his offered hand. He nodded to the guard while he fixed the button on his suit with one hand. He led her into the building and she was surprised to find it full of art. "What is this?" she asked as she turned in a slow circle to look around.

"This building houses part of the Volturi's private collection. It is not open to the public. I thought you would enjoy seeing it."

Her answering grin was wide and bright. "Thank you, Caius. This is perfect."

He simply smiled in return. They walked through the building and discussed the art, piece by piece. At the end he brought her to a round room with a glass ceiling. In the center was a table set with a small meal of soup and blood wine. So, they ate and talked about everything and nothing.

When they arrived home, Caius escorted her upstairs. She hung on him, laughing and smiling as they went. "I'm not ready for our date to be over yet."

He grinned at her. "Then what shall we do, my queen?"

"Let's paint." She tugged him toward the studio.

***

Caius POV

He didn't resist and laughed at her as she pulled him along. "Don't you think we should get changed first, love?"

She shook her head and put a fresh canvas on her easel before ridding herself of the strappy shoes. The corner of Caius' mouth quirked up. He loved seeing her like this. Quick as a flash his jacket was hung near the door. He stripped off his shirt and offered it to her. "Better this than your dress. I have a dozen more just like it."

"You should turn around," she said and he arched a brow as he did as she said. He had thought she would wear the shirt over the dress, not replace one with the other. "Okay."

He turned to find her wearing only his dress shirt. It hit her mid-thigh and she looked absolutely stunning. Reaching out, he grasped her waist and pulled her into him. "You're beautiful, Liliana." He pressed a kiss to her lips. "I love you."

She smiled against his lips. "I love you, too, my king."

Reluctantly, he released her and let her turn to her painting.

When he began to set up his own space, she stopped to watch him. "You're staring."

"Aren't you going to change?"

He made a show of looking himself over. He too had kicked off his shoes and now wore only his suit trousers. "I'm comfortable. Why, Liliana? Am I distracting you?"

She looked away from him. "Just thought you might get cold is all."

He leaned forward as if he was about to impart some great secret. "I don't get cold."

They talked while they painted, both lost in their own little world in between conversation. When Caius caught himself staring for the tenth time, he sat his brush down and made his way over to his mate. He came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her before resting his chin on her head. "Amazing, as always." (painting by Harminder Singh)