In the hotel, Jason pulled on his suit, his hair still damp from taking a shower. Connie had tried to hurry him, afraid they'd be late. He wasn't worried; they had plenty of time.

She burst through the bathroom door. "Jason, I can't seem to zip this up. Can you get it?"

She swept around, the dress rustling richly. He was glad he'd gotten it for her. He zipped it up, brushing her back with his fingers as he did so….He longed to kiss the back of her neck but he refrained. He had to focus on the mission at hand.

"Thanks," she said, and turned to look in the mirror. "My hair's a mess! I don't know what to do with it."

"It looks great the way it is."

"I can't go like this. My makeup isn't right, either. I look like a hobo."

He laughed. "You're the most beautiful hobo I've ever seen."

"Cut it out, Jason!" She slapped him on the arm. "I'm going to make a fool out of myself, what's the point of wearing a dress like this, I'm going to look like a hick compared to everybody—"

He took her arm. "Hey. You're gonna blow them all away. You know that? Remember, this is our night. We can pretend no one else is there if we want to."

She looked up at him. "I suppose…I just feel so awkward all of a sudden. And panicky."

He put one hand delicately around her waist. "If you really don't want to go, we don't have to. If it's no fun, there's no point."

"No…I want to go. I can't waste this dress. Maybe I can pretend to be someone else for a while."

"We could pretend to be spies. Like a game."

"I don't mind that type of spying."

"Who knows, they might catch us and think we're real spies. We'll have to be very careful and play our role convincingly." He kissed her on the cheek. She laughed and they held each other for a few moments before she broke away and went back into the bathroom to fiddle with her hair.

He put his shoes on and then went in the bathroom to put on his tie.

"Here, let me do it," she said and reached around his neck, slowly, deliberately tying it with expert fingers. He didn't know how he could survive the night next to such a beautiful creature, not sure if it would ever be quite the same between them as it had been before. They were close again but there was still this unspoken awkwardness, a certain distance between them. He didn't want to trigger whatever he had that one night when she had said she didn't want children, or go back to the time when she had been unresponsive. He had to be careful just in case something might push her away again. Anything but that. For now, her needs were all that mattered. He wanted their relationship to be closer and stronger than it ever had been before, but he didn't know how to make that happen. As long as she was happy, that was enough.

Back in the bed room, she swept back a curl from her forehead. "What do you think?"

"You look perfect."

"Is my hair okay?"

He touched one soft strand of it. "You look—" He was at a loss for words but settled for "amazing."

From the bed, he lifted the necklace out of the box. He swept her hair back and slowly draped the delicate chain around her neck. Would it be too much to kiss her? How would he know what she wanted from him? How much would be too much, and would risk driving her away?

The sapphire lay over her heart, glimmering in the dim light. "I feel like some sort of princess."

"You are."

"I still feel a little weird. I don't want to end up wrecking this dress or losing the necklace or something."

"It'll be all right. Shall we?" He offered his arm.

She grabbed her purse from the bed and they stepped out of their hotel room.

"If I'm a princess, then you're my prince."

"More like your footman or something."

"No, you look like a prince, my beautiful, amazing Jason." She kissed him on the cheek.

He noticed a spring in her step as she walked out the door and was happy that she seemed to have shed her nervousness.

A long black limo pulled up as they stood on the sidewalk. She started for the parking lot but he said, "No, Connie. Here's our ride."

She stopped. Her eyes lit up. "Oh, Jason! So many wonderful surprises…I don't know if I can take it!"

"You're my princess, remember. Or my secret agent. Either way…" He took her hand, and she stepped into the limo, poised and elegant and stunning.

Inside, he handed her a dozen roses and she lifted them up to smell them. "I can't—I mean—" She shook her head, as if at a loss for words. "How much?"

"Don't worry about it. I love you and you deserve the best, always. I can't always give you the best, but tonight—"

"I need to do something for you, too."

"Are you happy?"

A tear slipped from her eye. "Yes!"

"Then I am too. That's all I want."

Her hand crept over to his. He grasped it. She looked up at him, her eyes reflecting the blue of her dress, and she gave him a kiss, then pulled back, leaving him starving for more.

It only took about ten minutes to drive from their hotel to the more expensive one he hadn't been able to get. He might have treated her to it if it hadn't been too short of notice to reserve it; the thing was booked till next June. He helped her out of the limo and they strode arm in arm into the Mayflower Hotel.

As they walked into the hotel, Connie was hyper-aware of the feel of the dress as its hem dragged along the ground, its glitter at the edge of her vision like the scintillation of diamonds, the slight pressure of the metal backing of the sapphire against her chest, the pinch of the high heels' straps, their click, click on the pavement and then the marble of the floor. Her heart beat hard, thumping in her ears.

Breathe, she told herself. Focus. If you keep up like this you might faint and that would be super-embarrassing. Jason's with you. Like he said, this is supposed to be fun.

She looked at him as he walked beside her. His hair was stylishly messy, sticking up in artful directions, its brown glimmering with faint hints of copper, his face just the right amount of unshaven. He exuded a casual intensity, an easy confidence. His dark suit was striking, his tie matching his eyes.

I'm the one who's going to have to fight the girls away, she thought. How could you not fall in love with him? Strong, magnificent, gorgeous—my very own secret agent.

Hardly able to help it, she kissed him on the cheek. I'm going to stick close to him tonight, not because I'm afraid, but because I don't want to ever be apart from this dazzling being.

He returned the kiss on her temple as they walked into the lobby, his arm around her. A few others walked in behind them. The receptionist said, "Are you here for the Centennial Celebration?"

"Yes, we are," said Jason.

"Please follow the sign to your left."

"Thank you."

They followed the "Centennial Celebration" sign. And then they walked through some golden doors into a huge room full of tables, bouquets bursting with brilliant purple, red, and yellow. Balconies gleamed with golden designs that spread to the chandelier glittering on the ceiling. In the front, past screens showing scenes of green fields and lush forests and old-European-looking towns, a band played a lively tune that threaded through the hum of conversation.

People milled throughout the room, some of them seated, some speaking with glasses in their hands. A festive atmosphere thrummed through the air. Maybe she could enjoy this after all. Though she didn't want to stray far from Jason—she didn't want to be without his amazing self. Especially since she had been absent for so long. Guilt shot through her. She'd have to think of some way to repay him for all he'd done, all that he was.

"This is beautiful, Jason. Wow!"

"I've been at some cool parties here before."

"So this isn't so special to you."

"It is, because it's the first time you're here. You make everything a thousand times better."

"Well I wouldn't even be here if it wasn't for you, so….. Jason, you look wonderful. Gorgeous. I can't—get enough of looking at you, being with you. Don't you leave my sight."

"I won't. I can't get enough of you, either, my Connie." His look of pure love sent thrills through her. She returned its intensity but then had to look away because she didn't trust herself not to kiss him right there, make a demonstration that everyone would notice. In a moment, she might not even care about the attention.

"Oh, hey, there's someone we both know," he said.

"Who?" She looked around.

"Tasha!"

Shock iced through her. Not just the name, but the excitement in his voice when he said it. He led her over to the side of the room where Tasha was standing alone next to one of the ornate white pillars. She held a half-empty wine glass in her hand and wore an apple-red dress. Her dark hair was arranged artfully, little roses peeking through it, her lips strikingly red against her pale skin. Her noble, elegant face had the perfection of a Greek goddess and the dress showed off her statuesque body in all the right ways. Suddenly Connie felt her dazzle a little dulled—next to Tasha, her dress wasn't as eye-catching as she'd thought. And next to her beauty—

Jealousy shot through her. How had Jason ever chosen her over someone like this?

Tasha's eyes lit up when they met Jason's. Connie's jealousy burst through her heart like a fiery bloom, and then spread down her veins like icy fire.

He is mine. I'm not giving him back, even if you might deserve him more…

"Hi, Tasha," said Jason, with an easy familiarity as if they hadn't been apart for long at all.

"Hello Jason, Connie. How are you both doing? You look fabulous, Connie."

"Th-thank you. So do you."

Tasha smiled.

"We've been seeing the best DC has to offer," said Jason. "Shopping-wise, anyway."

Tasha's eyebrow raised. "You hate shopping."

"It's not so bad if you're doing it in the right company." He reached for Connie's hand and she held it like a precious treasure she never wanted to let go.

"I never had much use for it myself, except if it's prep for a mission. This is just something I pulled out of the closet from a former case. That dress, Connie, if you don't mind me saying so, is stunning on you."

"Thank you. It's nothing like yours."

"This is just showy. Yours is a work of art."

"It's not…too much, you know, for a small-town girl like me?"

"No. You look like you fit here. In fact, you look like you fit together….very well." A shadow crossed her eyes as they flickered down almost imperceptibly.

"We do," said Jason. He put his arm around Connie's shoulder and she grasped his hand. She felt…in sync with him then, like they were two pieces of a puzzle, as if she was meant to be there, and always had been. A thrill flowed through her and she realized all of a sudden how silly it was for her to be jealous of Tasha. How she could never, ever doubt Jason's love. How they belonged together, a perfect match.

"I'm glad," said Tasha. "I want you both to be happy." She took a sip from her glass. "So how have you been since Paraguay?"

"I'm fine," said Jason. "It was…difficult, more emotionally than anything. But I've been able to move on. How about you?"

"Oh, keeping busy. Nothing I can divulge, I'm afraid. Except that—you might be interested to know this—Gray's case is going to trial soon. I'm actually speaking in his defense, since he helped on that mission. I hope you don't mind."

Jason shook his head. "I've forgiven him. I only hope he uses this opportunity to seek the truth."

"It's true that he's changed. In some ways, at least. But I'm not sure how close he is to…seeing things from your point of view."

"What about you?"

"What do you mean? Oh. Jason. I—haven't really had time for such things."

"It's the most important thing there is."

"Well, yes. But it suits certain people more than others… It's good that you two are married and share that common faith, that common bond. That you didn't…wait for me." She cleared her throat. "Oh, my. I'm sorry, I probably shouldn't have said that."

"That's okay, Tasha. I just…want you to be happy, too."

She smiled a little sadly. "Well, you know me. As long as I'm working, I'm good.

"I'm glad you came. Though it's too bad Whit couldn't make it. He's okay, isn't he?"

"Yes. He had something urgent in Chicago to take care of. You wouldn't know what that would be?"

"I was hoping you could tell me."

Jason shook his head. "He's been so cryptic about it of course it piques my curiosity."

"Once an agent, always an agent. You sure you don't want to come back?"

"I think that chapter of my life is over, Tasha. I've got a life in Odyssey, and I'm very content there."

"You did good work in Paraguay. You could do some off-the-books stuff like your father. Tamer missions that still require your expertise."

A spark of excitement glittered in his eyes, then a shadow swept over them. "Right now, all I want to do is focus on building our life together." He looked at Connie, and the room faded as she returned his gaze. He was all she needed. But would she always be enough for him—an ex-agent with a penchant for risk, adventure, accomplishing daring feats in secret? Was there a way that she could provide the excitement he needed in his life? Did he truly want to settle down completely or was she holding him back?

"Excuse me," said an amplified voice with an accent. Connie turned to see a man standing on the stage in front of the rich red curtain. "Welcome to the Centennial Celebration of Muldavia's independence. We would like to extend our greetings to all who have responded to our invitation—Senators, Congressmen, diplomats, media, and especially those who have been a friend to us over the years. Without you, we would not be the country we are today, and without some of you, we might not even be a country at all. We extend our deepest gratitude, and we hope that you enjoy the night of our famous hospitality. And without further ado, please, have a seat. Dinner will be served shortly!" He stepped off to the side, where a cluster of people surrounded him.

"Our table's this way, I believe," said Jason and she followed him through the crowd. Someone jostled her a little and she bumped into someone else, making the wine slosh in its glass and nearly spill.

"Oh! I'm so sorry," she said. The man just looked at her disdainfully and stepped away.

A firm tap on her shoulder. She whirled around.

A woman stood there, wearing a golden dress, black hair bound up in glitters of gold. She looked vaguely familiar. "Please give a message to Jason for me."

"What?"

"Just tell him I'd like to meet with him afterwards," she said, and disappeared into the crowd.

Jason rushed up beside her. "Sorry—got a bit chaotic there." He grasped her hand.

"That's okay."

"We were going to stick together and here I already lost you."

"Someone just told me something."

"What?"

"She said she wanted to meet with you afterwards."

"Who was it?"

"It looked like that woman you worked with after the bomb at Whit's End. I only saw her once in the hospital. I think it was—Sierra."