Page 112 of Bitten By the Basilisk

Alice ended up leaving behind anything not already attached to her, and followed Una out of the room. Directly ahead, the din of overlapping, animated voices spilled into the hall.

“So, um, how does one receive a mating display?” she asked, clenching her skirt to keep from fidgeting.

“It isn’t complicated,” Una assured her. “Silas will invite you to join him in the center, and then all you have to do is stand there and observe. When it’s over, you can go to him in whatever manner you like. Many serpent-folk accept by offering a gift.”

“Yes, I have one for him,” she said, touching her bodice where the glass snake was nestled.

“Then you have everything you need,” Una said with confidence.

When Alice had previously entered the Den, she had been solely focused on stopping the fight between Silas and Lance. She had a sense of the room’s size and shape—large, domed, made entirely of marble—but little else.

This time when she entered, she marveled at what had to be at least a hundred snakes carved into the chamber’s walls, their forms intricately detailed. Above the gala hovered dozens of sparkling lanterns and, above them, a magical projection of the night sky.

She was noting the full moon’s position when the surrounding conversation died down, attracting her attention. In the same instant, the attendees immediately in front of her parted to make way as Silas gracefully scaled the steps toward her.

He wore a deep-burgundy tunic to match her dress, this one held shut by a wide, cinch-style leather belt with gold inlay. The skirt was longer and fuller than what he’d worn to the banquet, the slits much higher, and his many gold accessories glinted under the lantern light, as did the golden scales of his tail.

She could hardly believe he was real, let alone hers.

“Like what you see, kitten?” Silas purred as he held out his hand to her, his claws clean and sheathed, his usual cologne as tantalizing to her as ever.

“We’re way past ‘like,’ aren’t we?” she countered, smiling shyly as she placed her fingers in his grip.

The corner of his mouth curled as he drew her toward him. He kissed her knuckles before laying her hand on his shoulder, then swept her off the floor to carry her down the steps, eliciting a gasp of surprise.

When she looked back at Una, the selkie wore a mirthful expression and sent Alice a little wave.

“The gown looks beautiful on you,” Silas said in a low voice meant only for her. His tail rasped as it shifted over marble, the gold fringe of his earrings lightly tapping as they swung.

The moment was overwhelming, her face so warm she felt compelled to hide it in the crook of his neck.

“Thank you,” she whispered by his ear. “I was happy to receive it.” She dared to lay her hand over his exposed sternum and slowly slid it across the firm swell of his chest, her fingers skating beneath the collar of his tunic. “You always look handsome, but right now you’re stunning.”

He breathed deep, tightening his hold on her. “Just you wait, kitten.”

The gruesome scene from earlier had been removed, the white, gold-veined marble floor made clean again.

All around them, the gala’s other attendees observed as Silas kissed her brow, then gently set her down in the center of the floor. She couldn’t help feeling a little self-conscious as he backed away a short distance, but she refused to show it, standing with her shoulders pushed down, her arms relaxed at her sides.

Silas looked away from her only briefly, sending a nod to someone near the dais. He had arranged his tail into symmetrical arches, and his chest and shoulders had broadened.

The room fell silent as soon as the first drumbeat resounded. Silas flexed in response, completing a small undulation, which he repeated as the drumming continued, his jewelry and scales gleaming, his tail sliding through its arches to form new ones.

Alice wasn’t sure she even blinked as he danced for her, aware only of his movements, the drum, and her pounding pulse. He slowly circled her, sweeping his tail to the beat, showing off his muscular upper body in dips and sways.

The heated looks he gave her sent hot tingles through her core, as did a particular move where he rolled the part of him where his human hips would be, mimicking slow, deep thrusts, the slits of his tunic parting to reveal quite a bulge beneath his scales.

By the time he had completed a full circle around her, she was clenching her skirt in her hands and tightly squeezing her thighs together.

When the final drumbeat sounded, Silas had twisted his tail into a rising spiral that surrounded her without touching her, achieving a protective stance that she imagined required a great deal of strength and control to maintain.

Alice swallowed as she looked up at him, his lips parted as he lightly panted, his eyelids heavy with desire. The full moon hung just over his shoulder.

She held his stare as she swept her hair over her shoulder and lifted the cord of his gift over her head. When she drew the glass snake from her bosom, he sucked in a gasp, his eyes flaring in surprise.

“I happily accept you as my mate,” she said in a clear voice as she offered him his gift.

The gala erupted in applause. Visibly touched, Silas lowered himself to let her drape the unique pendant over his head.