"Now, you better start telling everyone where you want all your new furniture or you'll spend the next couple weeks searching every time you want something."
The rest of the day flew past as Adele instructed everyone on where to put all the furniture and belongings. She'd only been able to pay for the basics for the house and had assumed the place would look rather barren for some time until she could afford everything she wanted. Suddenly she found she had every piece of furniture and appliance she could have ever possibly wanted. She went to check on her bedroom. Dominic hadn't let her in there yet, and her curiosity was rapidly winning out over his instructions to not look. Just before she reached the door, she heard a chorus of beeps from all over the house. She plastered herself against the wall so she wouldn't get trampled as men raced from her house. They must all be on call. Dominic came out of the door and wrapped her up in his arms; she relaxed into his embrace. Her favorite place in the world to be.
"Sorry, beautiful. We just lost all of our helpers."
"That's okay, I wouldn't mind some quiet time. Do you need to go too?"
"Nope, you'll have to continue to put up with me. I'm off rotation today." He nuzzled her cheek in a most feline manner.
"Are you going to let me see my bedroom yet? The suspense is killing me," she pleaded before Dominic's ministrations caused her brain to completely cease to function.
"Hmmm, can't have you dying now can we? So I guess I'll just have to let you in." He was chuckling as he pulled back and gave her a wink.
"Now, I need you to close your eyes for the grand unveiling."
Adele closed her eyes and wondered what the hell he had done to her room. Dominic held her hands, guiding her through the doorway before moving to stand behind her. Wrapping his arms around her waist, he rested his chin on her shoulder and whispered in her ear, "Open your eyes, my love."
Adele opened her eyes and took a sharp breath in. "Oh mon dieu!" She was standing just inside the doorway and facing her new bed. Well, 'bed' was an understatement. It was huge...and beautiful. She had always wanted a four-poster bed; they looked so romantic in the movies and magazines. The frame consisted of bold straight solid Tasmanian Oak pieces with six sheer white curtains hanging down and tied off to each post on both sides and the end. The bed had been made up with lots of pillows and a big fluffy quilt with a beautiful white lacy cover on it. But the thing that caught and held her attention most of all was hanging above the bed against the back wall, centered between the posts. The most amazing framed photograph she had ever seen hung there. It was of a snow leopard stalking toward the camera in a field of wild grass. The funny thing was, the picture looked exactly like the snow leopard from her dreams. How bizarre.
Dominic, kissing and nibbling his way up her neck, pulled her back from her thoughts, and she quickly glanced around the room at the rest of the furniture. It was all solid Tasmanian Oak and stunning. She had never owned a single piece of brand new furniture before in her life, and now she had a whole bedroom suite that looked like it was all brand new.
"So, do you like your new room, beautiful?" Dominic asked as he nibbled on the edge of her ear.
"Oh, Dominic, I love it. It's gorgeous." A sob broke out of her throat, and she turned around and wrapped her arms around his neck and cried into his chest.
"Adele? Are you okay? I wanted to make you happy, not sad. If you don't like it, we can return it and you can pick whatever you like."
She could tell by the tone of his voice she had scared and worried him with her reaction. "The room is perfect, mon amour. It's just, I've never owned anything new before. No one, aside from my mother, has ever given me anything. And I've always dreamed of having a four-poster bed to sleep in. It's just all so much to take in. It's been one hell of a day on my emotions."
Adele let herself go in Dominic's tight embrace. She nuzzled her nose in his neck as she regained her composure. He swept his arm behind her knees, swiftly picking her up. He sat on the bed with her on his lap.
"Why a snow leopard? How did you know I liked them?" she asked softly as she twirled her fingers in the short hair on his neck. She felt him shift a little as if the question unnerved him.
"I don't know. I just saw it there and it made me think of you, so I took a gamble and bought it for you. When Kit saw the picture, she said you'd love it. His voice was a little strained as if his words weren't the whole truth. She frowned briefly before she decided she had other things she'd prefer to spend her energy on.
"Well, I do love it. It looks so at home here in my bedroom...much like you do." She gave him a sly seductive smile.