From there, the real serious business began. Soren.
He was relatively new to the organization, but eager to learn and grow. He constantly asked for additional responsibilities. I’d thought that perhaps he was just motivated to rise in the ranks because of loyalty. I saw it now for what it truly was: he was a spy. But for whom?
As much as I would enjoy finding out on my own, picking apart whatever secrets Soren held, I was running out of time, and having a perfect dinner with my mate was more important. So instead, I set Jayson on the task.
Just as he and I were leaving our meeting, we came across Soren in the hall. His eyes widened when he saw us. Fear? Or something else.
He was lucky. After what he did, I had every right to tear him limb from limb. Nothing should come between mates. And he had come between me and mine.
“Hey, boss, is it true that another one of the boss’s kids came out of the woodwork?” He fell short of nonchalance. There was a panicked edge to his voice.
“Indeed,” I said. “It’s crazy, because I’ve actually run across this dragon before. You might remember him. He was the one I met at the ball.” I crossed my arms over my chest and stood to my full height.
Soren sucked in a breath. “I can explain,” he said.
Ah, so he wasn’t going to play dumb. Perfect. I was only a little sad that I’d miss the part where he confessed. I had more important things to do. This was why I had a trusted team.
Jayson seemed to sense where this was going. “Why don’t you and I take a walk, Soren.” He crossed his arms over his chest, looking every bit as intimidating as he should have in that moment.
“Right. I look forward to reading the report after this discussion.” I clapped Jayson on the shoulder. “I’ll leave you to it.”
It wasn’t often that I was willing to walk away from work. It was my life. But alas, priorities were shifting. I had a mate and a child on the way. It was time that my life came first.
I returned to my room and got ready for my evening. I wasn’t one to put a ton of effort into how I looked, but for my mate, in order to make the best impression, I would do everything I could.
Thirty minutes later, I was patiently waiting in the dining room for my mate to arrive. Perhaps I should have picked him up at his room, but I wanted to check out the dining area to make sure it was set up perfectly. It was not that I doubted the household staff’s ability. I was simply not leaving anything to chance.
Nym came in the room, wearing a pair of black slacks with a white blouse that had a shimmer to it. The slight curve of his belly drew my eye. I itched to put my hands on him. I forced my wolf to relax. All in due time.
I held out the chair for Nym, and he sat down. The scent of him seemed to be accentuated by his cologne. I closed my eyes and let my wolf enjoy the scent of him. It wasn’t until Nym let out a small chuckle that I opened my eyes and looked at him.
“Welcome,” I said. “Did you enjoy your day?”
“Yeah, I did. Thank you. It was weird, and this house is just massive, but Preston and I got to see the gardens.”
“That’s wonderful,” I said. “Maybe after our dinner, we can take a walk out there, if it’s not too cold. They are beautiful, lit up for the holidays.” Was it just this morning I was cursing my boss for the amount of holiday decor he had? Now I was thankful for it. Ihad a feeling my mate would enjoy the decorations lit up under the stars.
“Cael goes all out for Christmas, doesn’t he?”
I chuckled at that. “Yes, he does. For some reason the old dragon seems to love it.”
“I’ve never really enjoyed Christmas,” Nym said. “My mom used to make it kind of special, but that’s hard to do on a shoestring budget. Preston and I usually try to bake some fun things, but we’ve never done much for exchanging gifts, and we didn’t waste our money on decorations.”
I grimaced. “Things will be different for our child,” I said.
“That’s my hope. That was my whole reason for coming here. I would never beg like that for myself.”
I reached across the table and held his hand. “I’m sorry. I know that must’ve been hard for you.”
“It was. But also, it was easy. I just want a better life for our child. You truly didn’t leave me that morning?”
“I truly didn’t. And the guard that was supposed to bring you back here is being dealt with, as we speak.”
“Dealt with…” Nym gripped the edge of the table as he was going to take flight if I said the wrong thing.
“Oh, we’re not going to kill him. Not unless he’s trading secrets or something. But we are going to find out why he did what he did.”
“I don’t understand.”
