Sighing, Tori found himself nodding in agreement. For as much as he’d like to see the entire village burned to the ground, he knew that wasn’t fair. The memory of Cassie being drained of her power right in front of him was a stark reminder of what could happen to his own parents or other people he’d grown up with.
“Yes, we must speak with my former clan,” Tori said heavily. He nodded and lifted his gaze to Baldewin and then Alric. “The best way to do that is with me there. We can’t warn them in any way that we’re coming. As insane as it sounds, the best way to approach them is to catch them off guard. And if you’re going to get them to listen about the Jaeggi starting the war, you’re going to need proof. Not just some posts on the internet.”
“How about journals?” Gunter quickly inquired. “I have old journals from the leaders of the other mage clans. Three from leaders of major clans that were exterminated. They detail the descent of Kaiser Jaeggi into jealous madness after he was put aside. Would that work?”
Ravi cackled. “Are you seriously offering to allow those precious books to leave your dungeon?”
“Obviously I would be accompanying the books to make sure they were properly cared for and protected,” Gunter snapped at the smaller dragon. Just the idea of the journals leaving his sight had a small wisp of smoke curling out of Gunter’s mouth. Ravi laughed harder.
“I think the journals would be very convincing once we got them to look them over,” Tori replied when he was sure he could do it without laughing.
Rodrigo clapped his hands together and rubbed them, his handsome face alight with amusement. “This is the start of an excellent plan. We shall gather up these books and fly to Finland—”
“No flying,” Tori interrupted sharply.
The ice dragon looked at him with utter confusion, as if the translation spell had suddenly stopped working. “No flying?”
“Uh-uh. Nope. Not gonna happen. Not again. This mage”—he pressed his thumb to his chest—“does not fly. Both feet stay on the ground.”
Rodrigo chuckled and waved a dismissive hand at him. “Oh, don’t worry. We can fix that.”
Tori did not trust that. Nor did he particularly care for the speculative look that had entered Alric’s eyes.
The soup course was taken away, and the main course was brought in. Conversation at the table moved in relaxed waves. There were many more questions about the Taavi Clan, but many of the people wanted to know more about what it was like to grow up so far north in Finland.
Talk moved over to the Valerii dragons, who had apparently migrated from the cold of northern Russia to the warm beaches of Brazil after the war. Rodrigo was quite good at waxing poetic about surfing and lying out on the hot sand under the sun.
Only when the dessert course was served did Tori realize he’d spent the past several minutes talking to Cameron, both his hands gesturing wildly as he described the little dwarves he and Baldewin had uncovered in Poland. At some point in the dinner, he’d relaxed enough to release the dragon from the death grip he’d had on his hand.
Glancing over his shoulder, he met Baldewin’s proud look and tried damn hard not to blush. The dragon was always there for him, always believed in him. He just prayed he didn’t do anything to let him down.
Rodrigo sighed loudly and patted his stomach. “King Alric, you have welcomed us wonderfully. That was an amazing meal. I don’t recall the German cooking being so delicious the last time I was here.”
Alric snorted and threw his peer a look. “That might be due to the fact that we were in the middle of a war last time and many meals were little more than rations.”
The other king gave a little shrug as if that might be a consideration. Tori was enjoying the quirky, playful banter between the two kings. It was as if all of Rodrigo’s joy came from teasing Alric and trying to fluster the fire dragon.
“If you are not too weary from your long day of meetings and dinner, we do have a special welcome planned with the rest of the Burkhard Clan,” Alric taunted right back at the ice dragon. “My people are not only anxious to meet the visiting Valerii Clan, but they would like to also officially welcome Tori into our clan.”
“What?” Tori gasped softly, though the room was quiet enough that he was pretty sure everyone heard him. His heart skipped as his head snapped around to look at Baldewin. “Meet the clan?”
“It’s time you were introduced to everyone. They are anxious to speak to you rather than watch you from afar.”
But if they stayed afar, Tori couldn’t say anything embarrassing that would make them regret ever allowing him to join their clan.
“It’s going to be fine. Everyone will love you,” Baldewin said calmly, proving the dragon could read him far too well.
Tori narrowed his eyes on Baldewin, trying for a stern look while pointing his finger at him. “You did not mention anything about meeting the rest of the clan.”
“No, I thought you had plenty to worry about with this dinner. There was no need to make your anxieties worse than they already were.”
“Hiding stuff is not nice.”
“No, it’s not. I’m sorry.” Baldewin wrapped his fingers around Tori’s and pulled them to his lips, where he pressed a soft kiss to the tips. “I’m hoping I can come up with some suitable ways to convince you to forgive me later.”
And he was melting again. Memories of that lovely blowjob in the greenhouse danced through his head. Yeah, Baldewin would definitely know lots of ways to make him forget all about tonight. There was an even better chance Tori wouldn’t even know his own name by morning, and he couldn’t wait.
A loud sigh drew Tori’s gaze across the table to find Rodrigo watching him with a surprisingly sappy smile on his face.
“My parents used to say things like that and gaze into each other’s eyes as if they were the only people in the entire world. Mates are a lovely thing,” Rodrigo murmured.
Tori’s heart skipped for a new reason. Mates?
Could he be Baldewin’s mate? Yes, they were dating, but he hadn’t given it much thought. He’d been worried about impressing Lisette with his magic skills and making sure he could earn a place within the Burkhard Clan. Time with Baldewin had been a break from it all. It had been about relaxing and laughing. He’d honestly not given the mate thing much thought, because Baldewin was amazing and so high ranking within the Burkhard clan. He was the king’s best friend and the head of the royal guards. Tori would expect Baldewin to find a mate in someone who was educated and powerful just like him. Baldewin wouldn’t be with someone like Tori, right?
But hearing Rodrigo call them mates without knowing them at all, it felt different. Did he really dare to hope that he could have it all? Could he really have someone as amazing as Baldewin as a mate? Could he call Burkhard his home, make a life here, and wake up every morning to Baldewin’s handsome, smiling face?
He didn’t know if it was possible, but he was going to try. He’d escaped his clan, found dragons, found a new clan, and even found faith in his own abilities. He could find a way to keep Baldewin, too.
Baldewin was a mix of sad and grateful that Tori was unconscious for the flight to Finland. He would have loved to fly with his mate, sharing the experience of soaring above the clouds in his dragon form, but under no circumstances did he ever want to scare Tori again with flight. No, it was better if he slept for the journey.