Even though Seth and Evan had assured him that Torch Lake was hailing him as a hero, Leif felt his stomach twisting up in apprehension as he approached the city. Perhaps the people of the city regarded him as a hero, but was the High Council really going to forgive him for running off like he had? The High Councilors tried to be open minded, yes. But they were still proud, strong leaders who liked to demand absolute obedience. Would they accept what he had done now that he had, in fact, saved Sofia?

Sofia.

The very thought of her name sent a happy warmth coursing through Leif’s blood. If he had been in human form instead of dragon form right now, he would have pinched himself to make sure that he wasn’t dreaming. He had never imagined when he set off on a rescue mission this morning that it would end with him finding his lifemate. And he certainly hadn’t expected to discover that Sofia was his lifemate. They’d had a rocky start, to put it mildly. Leif had never been so glad that he’d at least attempted to maintain an air of professionalism when he’d thought Sofia was a junior auditor. He’d been so irritated with her, and he’d wanted so badly to say and do so many rude things, but he’d mostly restrained himself and kept his thoughts to himself in an effort to act professional. Mostly. He was glad that he’d forced himself not to act on every annoyed impulse he’d had. Now that he knew who she was, and now that she’d forgiven him for being such a jerk when she was pretending to be a junior auditor, things had moved along quickly.

Too quickly? Perhaps. Should he have tried to get to know her a bit better before making love to her? Should he have tried taking her on a date first? He let out a long sigh at the thought. Perhaps he hadn’t done things in the typical order, but he’d been too overwhelmed with desire to think about following a formula for love. It would seem that she was, too. She’d been just as caught up in the moment as he had. And now, he would have the rest of their lives to take her on dates and show her how wonderful she was.

He just hoped that “the rest of their lives” didn’t start out with the High Council reprimanding him and firing him from his job at the Dragon Utilization Department.

Leif came in for a landing behind the Dragon Utilization Department, trying to avoid a crush of reporters that was waiting by the front entrance. They saw him going to the back and started rushing to get around and shove their microphones in his face, but he was too quick for them. The second Sofia slid off his back, he shifted back into human form and ran into the building. Seth and Evan followed suit. Leif sprinted toward his office, where he kept a spare set of clothes. Seth and Evan shouted after him that they were going to the locker rooms to change, and Leif slowed long enough to give them a thumbs up.

“Meet me at my office, Sofia,” Leif said over his shoulder as he continued to run. Sofia nodded and continued walking down the hallway at a brisk pace, but did not run. Leif could see the reporters trying to follow her into the building, but already the security guards were holding them back. Leif had escaped the madness, for the moment at least.

When he reached his office, he quickly pulled on his spare clothes and then fired up his computer. As expected, a quick scan of his email revealed that the High Council wanted to speak with him. They had ordered him to come see them as soon as he was back in Torch Lake. They had ordered Seth, Evan, and Sofia to report to the High Council Building as well.

“Well, time to face the music,” he muttered to himself. Sofia was just walking into his office, and she heard him.

“The High Council wants to see us, I’m guessing?”

He nodded. “Yup. No surprise there. I wonder if we can get over to the High Council Building without getting completely mobbed by the press out there.”

Sofia smiled. “We can. You forget—I have my magic ring back. I can cover all of us with an invisibility shield.”

A smile broke across Leif’s face, and he pulled Sofia in for a quick kiss. “I knew it would be useful having a wizard around.”

She laughed, but then didn’t pull away right away. Instead, she nuzzled her head against his chest and sighed. “I wish we could go home and spend some time together instead of being whisked off to the High Council right away.”

Leif felt his body warming from her touch and her words. “Me too. But you know we don’t have a choice. All we can hope for is that this will go quickly.”

Just then, Seth and Evan appeared at the end of the long hallway.

“Stay there, we’re on our way out, too,” Leif called out to them. He shut the office door behind him and grabbed Sofia’s hand, not caring who saw him holding it. Seth and Evan made no comment on their boss’s sudden closeness with Sofia, and Leif appreciated that fact. He didn’t feel like dealing with teasing right now, especially from subordinates. They seemed to understand that well.

“Alright, boys. Ready to see how a wizard spy travels?” Sofia asked, a twinkle in her eye as she pulled her hand away from Leif’s. Seth and Evan looked at each other in confusion for a moment until Sofia said, “Magicae invisibilia.”

Seth and Evan understood then.

“Sweet,” Seth said. “We can sneak right past all those journalists.”

And they did. Sofia took them out a side door that was less crowded, and they walked by the throng of news reporters without anyone so much as glancing in their direction. When they were safely past the crowd, Leif again reached for Sofia’s hand.

“Nice work, babe,” he said. She smiled at him, but her smile looked rather sad now.

“What’s wrong?” he asked.

She chewed her lower lip for a moment before answering. “I’m just worried about how the High Council is going to deal with me now. My cover as a spy is blown, so I can’t do that sort of work anymore. But where does that leave me? I was hoping I’d be able to do a more normal job, but the High Council might have other ideas.”

“Such as?”

Another sigh. “They might want me to help track down Vincent. They won’t be happy that he got away, and I do know more about him and how he thinks than anyone else in Torch Lake. If they want that, then I might be gone for a long time. A really long time. We’d have to be apart for who knows how many months. Or longer.”

“I see.” Leif stroked the back of Sofia’s hand with his thumb, marveling for a few moments at how unbelievably smooth her skin was. Then he looked into her eyes and gave her what he hoped was a reassuring smile. “Look, it will suck if we have to be apart. We’re just getting to know each other, and it would kill me to have to be away from you. But whatever happens, we’ll deal with it, okay? You’re my lifemate. I’m committed to you for life, Sofia. What difference does a few months make, or even a year or two? If you have to leave for work, you’ll go. We’ll keep in touch as best we can, and count down the days until we can be together again.

“But we’ve only just realized that we have feelings for each other,” Sofia said, slowing her pace now so that Seth and Evan walked several yards in front of them. “How can you be sure that I’m your lifemate? How can you truly commit to me for life?”

Leif stopped walking and took both of Sofia’s hands in his. “I know it doesn’t make a whole lot of logical sense. But lifemate bonds aren’t based on rationality. They’re based on destiny. And I know I bonded with you. I know you are my destiny. So no matter how many obstacles are in our way, and no matter how long it takes for us to be together, I will fight for you. I will wait for you. I’ll hold on for you.”

Leif felt his voice shaking with emotion as he spoke. How could he make Sofia see how truly committed to her he was? How could he make her see that, no matter what, there would never be anyone else for him but her? He felt his heart twisting up with emotion, and he hoped with all his heart that he wouldn’t have to be separated from Sofia. But if he did, he would soldier on. He would wait for her, and give his all to showing her that she was worth the wait.

“But you hated me just a few days ago,” Sofia insisted. “How can you say now that you love me for life?”

Leif smiled sadly. “I hated what I thought you stood for. I hated that you would swoop in and try to change things in the dragon program without really understanding how dragons work, or what the program was intended to accomplish. But I was wrong. It was me who didn’t understand. And now that I do, all I can say is that I greatly admire how hard you’ve worked and how much you’ve sacrificed for the side of good. And I want to fight that fight together with you for as long as I live.”

Sofia bit her lip, and Leif felt another rush of warmth as he looked down at her. She was so damn cute. And sexy. And sweet. He could hardly wait to take her out on the town with him and show her off to all his friends. They were going to be shocked when they saw that the junior audit agent Leif had complained about so much had turned out to be his lifemate. He knew there would be a lot of teasing about that, but so be it. Life had a funny way of surprising you, and this had been the best surprise he’d ever received.

Sofia finally smiled at him and seemed to relax a little. “Okay. This is new for me…all this lifemate bond stuff. But I felt that warmth and connection you talked about. And I know I’m committed to you, too. So whatever happens today, just know that I’m on the same page as you. We’ll weather this together.”

Leif smiled back at her, and nodded. Then, together, they turned and walked into the High Council building behind Seth and Evan to learn what their fate would be.