Chapter 19
Baldewin frowned at his email. There were two hundred and sixty-three unread emails waiting in his inbox. He’d kept up with things for the first few days he’d been out of town with Warin. In the evening, he’d caught up on emails and read reports.
But as soon as Tori joined them full time, it had become harder and harder to keep up with work.
Ravi had largely stepped up to keep the worst of the chaos in line, and Baldewin hadn’t been too worried about the security in the castle.
The Jaeggi had yet to become so bold and reckless as to direct an attack on the castle.
For now, the most pressing matters were sending out scouts to look for Jaeggi in the immediate area and to have a steady rotation of guards available for mages who needed to run errands in town.
With a heavy sigh, Baldewin dug into the emails, shooting off quick replies and making a pile of reports that he needed to review.
He was also starting to complete his final expense report for the year.
If the security team was going to be retrieving more mages, then they were going to need more money than usual.
Not that it was a bad thing. More mages meant happier dragons, a potentially growing clan, and more helpers to make products to sell to the rest of the world.
Usually, Baldewin didn’t mind this part of the job. He liked keeping his little part of castle life organized and well running. He liked the idea that his security team kept the castle safe.
It was just that his mind kept straying to Tori.
Was the mage comfortable? Happy? It’d only been a couple of hours since settling him in, but was he already regretting coming to Germany and trying to figure out how to tell Baldewin he wanted to go back to Finland?
What would Baldewin do if Tori left?
That was easy. He’d follow the mage back to Finland.
The thought stopped him because it had come from his dragon.
Would he really live without the rest of his clan? Would he spend the rest of his long life following behind the mage like a stray dog hoping for a scrap of attention?
An alarm on his computer had Baldewin jerking upright in his seat, tearing him from his dark thoughts. He blinked to find that more time had passed than he’d thought, and he was nearly late for a meeting scheduled with Alric.
Grabbing up his phone, he locked down his computer and hurried down the hall to the king’s office.
It was a little hard to believe that two weeks ago he’d been following Cassie down this hall as she rushed to announce the discovery of Tori.
How had his life been turned so completely upside down in so short a time?
He reached the office door as Dieter was leaving the room. The old advisor smiled when he saw Baldewin and held the door open for the dragon to step through.
“It’s good to have you home again,” Dieter greeted.
“It’s good to be home at last. Have you heard from Lisette about Cassie?”
Dieter nodded and stepped out of the doorway so Baldewin could pass. “She’s still working but reports that Cassie is recovering nicely. I believe she’s out of danger thanks to Tori.”
Baldewin couldn’t deny that he felt a swell of pride. Of course his Tori had saved her. He was more skilled than anyone understood, more than Tori even knew. Though, Baldewin had to question his own feelings. When had he started to think of Tori as his mage?
“Thank you. I’m glad to hear it.” Baldewin stepped into the office and closed the door behind him.
He always thought it slightly amusing that this was the third most comfortable room for him in the entire castle after his own quarters and his office.
But then, he knew the furniture and decorations very well.
He’d spent a lot of time in this room talking to his old friend about the clan and life in general.
When he crossed the room, he found Alric reading something on his computer monitor, a slight frown pulling at the corners of his mouth. Alric’s eyes flicked up to take in Baldewin, and the frown disappeared.
“I was just reading the report you sent over,” Alric murmured.
“I’m sorry it’s not as detailed as it usually is. I’m still playing catch-up with my inbox and other reports. I can send you a revised one tomorrow morning,” Baldewin offered as he dropped into one of the comfortable leather chairs in front of Alric’s desk.
The king waved him off. “No need. I know that Tori, and then Cassie, had your full attention while you were out of the castle. What you’ve got here for me is no surprise. We’ll need to shift more funds into the security team for additional training.”
Alric pushed to his feet and paced over to one of the walls of windows.
Baldewin kept his seat but narrowed his eyes on his friend’s back, carefully watching his movements.
His friend had been gravely injured in the war and had never fully recovered.
When they were alone like this, Alric typically let his guard down, and Baldewin could see if he was pushing himself too hard by how he held himself while in pain.
But to Baldewin’s surprise, Alric’s movements were smooth and relaxed. He still refrained from using his left arm, but it didn’t seem to be due to pain. Apparently, his mate was doing a good job of helping Alric with his old injury, which was a great relief.
Not that he was actually surprised. Cameron was dedicated to the care and happiness of his dragon.
“I was thinking we need to develop a mage recovery team,” Alric murmured.
“Really? You think we’re going to find more?” Baldewin asked, his tone lightly teasing.
Alric turned back to his friend, one corner of his mouth tilted up in a smirk. “I think the existence of an entire clan of mages in northern Finland is a good sign there are many more mages out in the world just waiting to be discovered.”
“That is true.”
“The fact is that while we’ve been looking for mages for five centuries, we’ve not been prepared for actually meeting them. We just assumed they would know they are mages, and we assumed they’d be happy to meet a dragon. That was both arrogant and reckless of us.”
“We couldn’t have known how things would change for the mages.”
Alric gave a small wave of his right hand. “Maybe, but we know now. We must change. The dragons who go to meet these mages need to be better equipped to talk to them, as well as prepared to encounter the Jaeggi.”
“Agreed.”
Alric walked back to his desk. “Since you’ve been present for the recovery of all our new mages already, can you pull together a group—you, Lisette, the Noh family, Warin, and Tori? Start brainstorming some ways we can improve this process of meeting and bringing mages back to our clan?”
Baldewin smiled at his phone as he typed in a note to himself to schedule this meeting.
Alric was already including Tori in meetings and putting the mage to work as if he was a full-fledged member of the clan.
He wasn’t sure if his friend simply assumed Tori would join them or if he was hoping that if Tori was included in meetings, he’d feel more welcome in the clan.
Though, Baldewin had a feeling Alric was more likely thinking the latter.
“Of course, this doesn’t need to be right away. I’m sure Tori needs a little time to recuperate from his travels and get more acclimated to the clan,” Alric murmured as he dropped into his chair.
“Thank you, Hoheit. I’m sure he would appreciate it.”
“Since we’re talking about the new mage,” Alric said slowly.
Baldewin lifted his head to find a sly grin had spread across Alric’s lips, and he froze.
What, exactly, did his friend know? Oh, he had no doubt that little birds had been reporting back to the castle and those whispers had reached Alric’s ears.
“Was it Warin or Cassie?” Baldewin grumbled in a low, almost dead voice.
Alric tipped his head back and laughed deeply as he slumped a little in his chair. There was something about his relaxed posture and lazy grin that made Baldewin think he was talking to his childhood friend again and not the great leader of his clan.
“All of the above,” Alric admitted with a low chuckle. “I might have heard something about a compulsion to endlessly feed the mage and a strange sock-shopping incident. There was also some kissing, and then Cameron showed me some pictures of dwarf statues in Poland.”
Baldewin sighed and rubbed his hand on the top of his head. “I shouldn’t have allowed that stop. If we’d followed our original plan, we might have been able to elude the Jaeggi completely, and Cassie would never have been hurt.”
Alric’s smile faded away, and he stared at his desk for a second before lifting his eyes back to Baldewin. “Did you and Tori have fun?”
There was no stopping Baldewin’s own smile as a hundred different memories from that day flashed through his brain. It had been one of the best days of his life. He’d never heard Tori laugh so much or freely. A wide grin had been pegged to the mage’s face.
“Yes. It was a wonderful day.”
“And based on the pictures and texts from Cassie, her group had a fantastic day as well.” Alric spread his hands before him as if he was holding an answer out to Baldewin.
“While I would prefer that my family never be hurt, we can’t live our lives in complete hiding from the Jaeggi.
We make what preparations we can and hope for the best.”
“Thank you, Hoheit.”
“Enough of that. I want details. You got to listen to me moan and rant about Cameron from the first moment I met the man. I want to know about you and Tori, old friend. What are you thinking?”
You and Tori?
Was there a him and Tori?
They were planning to see more of each other while Tori was in the castle. There was definitely the promise of more kisses.
“Don’t even bother denying it. I’ve heard too much from my spies. And while it was quick, I did see you both together on the tarmac. My dragon reacted to the protectiveness of your dragon when Cameron approached Tori.”
Baldewin’s mouth dropped open and bobbed for a second. “How…”
Alric waved him off. “A perk of being the king. I know my people, and my dragon is overly protective of his mate.” His wicked grin returned. “It seems your dragon is already staking a claim.”
“I am not ruled by my dragon,” Baldewin declared, and Alric lifted one skeptical eyebrow.
“So, you’re not attracted to the mage? You’re just ignoring the fact that your dragon wants to scoop Tori up and carry him off to your hoard?”
He didn’t question how Alric knew that simply because it was likely the same feeling he got when he looked at Cam.
“You’re enjoying this too much,” Baldewin grumbled, sending Alric into peals of cackles. “I thought you were my friend.”
“I am! I’m just enjoying having the tables turned for once.” Alric cleared his throat, but his eyes were still twinkling with laughter. “Tell me about your mage.”
His mage was beautiful.
And Tori was his mage.
He had to admit he’d expected it to be more of a lightning bolt when it came to realizing he’d found his mate. That he’d be struck dumb on the spot and rendered useless with the knowledge.
But Tori had snuck up on him. The stubborn, independent mage had won him with his fiery determination, steely inner strength, and that too-rare smile. After all the horrible treatment he’d suffered, he still found a way to give Baldewin a chance, to trust him.
Sure, maybe it had come with a little coaxing, but he’d given Baldewin a fair shot.
And then when he’d lost nearly everything, he still found ways to give Baldewin something to show that he cared.
Two of his most treasured possessions came from Tori.
When they weren’t with him, they had places of high honor within his secret hoard.
“Oh wow…he is mine. He’s…he’s my mate,” Baldewin whispered.
Inside his head, his dragon shifted and preened a little, as if he was proud that his human brain had finally caught up to what he had known for a long time.
“I thought it was just normal, protective feelings. He was a mage in trouble. It’s our duty to protect all mages, but with Tori… it’s different. Bigger.”
Baldewin paused and rubbed his hand over his mouth.
His gaze was unfocused and turned inward as he replayed dozens of memories.
“Of course, I’m attracted to him. He’s gorgeous with those eyes and perfect lips.
He somehow manages to carry this gruff, untouchable air while at the same time looking vulnerable. I never stood a chance.”
Alric’s laugh jerked his gaze back to his friend. “It’s probably best it works that way, since dragons are so damn stubborn.”
“What am I going to do? What if he doesn’t want to stay? I don’t want to leave the clan—”
“But you would because he’s your mate,” Alric finished, his smile turning a little sad.
“And if you both left, you would know that you and Tori would always be welcome here.” Alric gave his head a little shake.
“The important thing is that Tori feels comfortable and welcome here so he doesn’t want to leave. ”
“Should I tell him? Everything?”
Alric cringed, his nose wrinkling. “That might be a bit overwhelming for him.”
Baldewin grunted his agreement. “He’s got to be worried about fitting in and whether we are going to treat him like he was treated by the Taavi Clan. Plus, he has very little confidence in his own skills. He seems the type to be waiting for it all to fall apart around him.”
“Adding in a dragon mate might be too much pressure. I wouldn’t want him to run to protect himself.
” Alric scratched his chin. “But I think it is important for him to know how you feel about him. He needs to know that this isn’t some…
some fling. That you are truly interested in him.
Attracted to him, though the kissing should have definitely made that clear.
” Alric sighed and shrugged. “But you never know what goes on in a mage’s head. ”
Baldewin snorted. “That sounds like the voice of experience.”
Alric rolled his eyes, but his smile had become tender. “Centuries from now, I will still be surprised by the strange thoughts that cross Cameron’s mind.”
“And you look forward to every one of them,” Baldewin teased.
“I do.”
“Thank you, Alric, for sending me. For giving me the chance to find him.” A lump grew in his throat as he spoke. He’d found his mate, achieved the thing he’d begun to secretly doubt he’d ever have. And his friend had made it possible. He’d be forever grateful.
“I wish I could say I knew Tori would be your mate. I’m just glad I could put you in the right place at the right time.
Hopefully, we’ll be able to do that for more of our clan.
” Alric straightened and cleared his throat as if it had become clogged as well.
“I think we’ve got enough business settled.
Why don’t you go check on our new mage? Make sure he’s properly settled. ”
Baldewin stood and bowed his head to Alric, a smile playing on his lips. “As you wish, Hoheit.” He’d never been so glad to be dismissed. He had a mage he needed to feel in his arms again.