Page 34

THIRTY-FOUR

Leo went through all the filing cabinets in the library, and then the estate office, but the contract was nowhere to be found. He didn't dare give up, though. He'd found his fated mate, and no way would he give her up. He'd give her everything he owned, just to make her happy. Starting with the shredded prenup, as a sign of his commitment. Sure, he'd already married her, but that was when he'd thought it was just a marriage of convenience to an ordinary human. Marriage between mates was forever. Her transformation into the fiercest, most beautiful lioness he'd ever seen confirmed it. He'd never look at another woman again.

But first he had to find that damned contract.

Finally, he'd given in and asked Mother for help.

Another search through the filing cabinets turned up nothing.

"I can't think where else I could have put it," Mother said, shaking her head. "Unless it's in the payroll files..."

Another frantic search of Mother's office finally found a folder with Lily's name on it. Not in a filing cabinet or desk drawer like they'd expected, but in her in-tray beneath a pile of unopened correspondence she'd planned to deal with next week.

Leo wanted to put the contract through the shredder right away, but he thought Lily should witness the destruction, too. Maybe she'd want to light it on fire, to make the destruction complete. Either way, he should ask her.

He found her in her bedroom, sprawled across her bed, frowning at an older model laptop.

"What's wrong?" he asked immediately.

"Nothing," she said, her eyes never leaving the screen. "I'm now officially a licensed engineer, and the principal in my parents' old company. The business has been reactivated, and everything's ready to take on new clients as of an hour ago, though I'd prefer to wait until Monday morning to start work. It seems almost too easy. The only thing I can't do is get hold of the office manager, Faye, to let her know. She isn't answering her emails, which isn't like her."

"Perhaps she's off sick today, or she's taken a day off to enjoy a long weekend," Leo suggested. "I'm sure she'll get back to you by Monday."

"No, Faye wouldn't ignore me like this. Emails from clients or suppliers, sure, she'd let those wait until Monday, but she's my godmother. She said to call any time, even if it's the middle of the night. Something's wrong, I know it."

"So call her," Leo prompted.

Lily dug her phone out of her jacket pocket, only to frown at that, too. "The battery's flat. I thought I charged it yesterday." She plugged it into the charger, then stood staring at it for a long moment.

"Use mine," Leo offered, holding out his phone.

"The number's on that phone, I'll have to wait until it's charged enough to turn on," she said.

Silence swelled between them, which Leo just couldn't stand.

"So, what kind of engineer are you? Pride Holdings works with a number of engineering firms, but we're always on the lookout for new ones to build lasting partnerships with. Perhaps we might be able to contract you for one of our upcoming projects," Leo said.

Lily snorted. "That depends on how much work there is left to do on your Hea Sanctuary project. Has Eirwin Energy delivered the battery tech they promised yet? I want to finish existing projects before I take on any new ones."

Leo's breath caught in his throat. "Wait, you work for Verre Electrical Engineering?"

"I am Verre Electrical Engineering. I own it, and I'm now their principal engineer. Their only engineer, for the moment. And Hea Sanctuary is the only project on the books right now, which is why I was willing to do anything, including marry you, to make sure it goes ahead."

Leo's heart plummeted to somewhere down near his boots. "And last night?" She was his mate. She'd claimed him, and he'd claimed her, and she'd shifted, just like the legends said she would. But if the only reason she was with him was all about business...

Her cheeks turned pink. "Last night was...was...wonderful. I never imagined sex could be that good."

"We could do it again tonight, if you want. Every night, even. Or I could take you hunting...there are lots of deer in the woods here. Wild boar, too, if you want a challenge." Even as he said the words, he knew what her answer would be. Why wasn't she as excited about finding her fated mate as he was? Was it because all of this had been about her business, and she didn't care about him at all?

"Leo, I'd love to do all sorts of things with you. And we will. But right now I'm worried about my godmother, and I'll never forgive myself if something terrible happened to her while I was getting up to naked hijinks. It could already have happened, while we were...while we were..." Her eyes glittered with tears, but before they could fall, she reached for her phone and ducked her head to focus on that instead. "I'll try to turn it on so I can get her number and we can call her." A pause. "It looks like she tried to call me last night. So many missed calls. No wonder the battery went flat. Wait, there's a message..." She held up her phone, squinting at the screen. "It's hard to make out with all the typos. There's something about an eviction notice, I think, and that she's locked herself in, but if she's not out of there by 5pm Friday, they'll call the police..." Lily stared at him in horror. "It's already after three. We need to go help her."

"I'm sorry, but if there's a court order evicting her, there's not much we can do. I mean, we can fight it in the courts, but if her landlord has the court order, then the police will side with him."

Lily shook her head. "I'm her landlord. Faye lives in the flat above the VEE offices. She gets the place rent free as part of her salary package while the business was on hiatus. I don't know anything about a court order, because I didn't file for one. Unless someone tried to terminate her employment contract, but even then, I'd have to sign off on it, and I haven't. None of this makes any sense."

It sounded like something Uncle Jeremy would do to discredit him. "Is there anyone you know who might try to forge your signature, or forge a court order?"

Lily looked grim. "If she's going to lose the house, my stepmother might be desperate enough."

"I'll put together a security team, and tell them to meet us there. We'll get to the bottom of this, and make sure your godmother is safe."

"I can't ask you to do that! This is my mess. I'll fix it. Somehow."

Leo grinned. "You don't have to ask. You're my mate. What's mine is yours. If your family is in trouble, I will move heaven and earth to make sure they're safe. They're my family now, too." He held out his hand.

Lily hesitated. Fated mates and forever weren't anything she'd considered until yesterday, but she couldn't imagine anyone better to face the future with than Leo King. He was everything she'd ever wanted in a partner, and more.

She laid her hand in his. "Let's go."