I waited for Owen to protest, but he just nodded in acquiescence. On our way out of the office, leaving Merlin and Sam to strategize, Owen said, “Do you want to have dinner tonight?”

“We have dinner every night.”

“I meant dinner out.”

I put my hands on my hips and looked up at him in mock reproach. “Owen Palmer, are you asking me out on a date?”

“I believe that’s what it’s called when two people spend time together in a romantic fashion. And do you want to?”

I hooked my arm through his. “You had me at ‘romantic.’ But you have to let Granny know we won’t be home for dinner.” Then I frowned at him in suspicion. “What brought this on?”

“We’ve been seeing each other for a while. Is this really so odd?”

“Seeing each other, yes. Going out, no, unless you count crazy quests or going on the lam.”

He turned a delightful shade of pink. “Let’s try normal life, for a change. Shall I pick you up around seven at your place? Wear something reasonably nice but with fairly comfortable shoes. There may be walking involved.”

“Dare I ask what you have planned?”

His grin was borderline wicked. “It’ll be a surprise.”

*

When he picked me up, I was pretty sure he was wearing the same suit he’d worn to work, just without the tie. Though it was hard to tell with men’s suits. As far as I knew, he could have put on a totally different suit with a fresh white shirt. Then again, this was Owen. He’d probably come straight from work.

“How did Granny take it when you told her about dinner?” I asked him as he helped me with my coat.

“She said she had work to do and getting me out of her hair would make it easier.”

“I take it you got her those potion ingredients.”

“She may be on to something. I know the stuff she gave me back in Texas helped my energy levels. Though I’ll warn you, it tasted awful.”

“I have no doubt. And it’s weird, because she’s such a good cook otherwise.”

We took a cab to the West Village and went to a cozy, romantic little Italian restaurant with candles on the tables and Sinatra on the sound system. It reminded me of our first real date, though I hoped it didn’t end up the same way—with a magical fire in the restaurant that led to a stampede among the customers.

“So, what brought this on?” I asked after the waiter brought us wine and a basket of bread. “I mean, we’ve been talking about a real date for ages, but it hasn’t quite happened.”

“I’m not going to jinx us by talking about our track record and hoping our luck has turned, but why shouldn’t we go out like normal people, especially when we have a free evening?”

It sounded nice, but the look in his eyes was way too familiar, and it didn’t bode well for romance. When he got that look, he was usually about to try something crazy, dangerous, stupid, or all of the above, in order to save the world. He wasn’t really a thrill seeker, but he couldn’t bear to leave a job undone.

“What are you up to?” I asked.

“Nothing!” he insisted. “Just going out on a date with my girlfriend.” For a moment he looked truly contrite. “Am I that bad, that you assume something is wrong when I do the sort of thing that most guys probably do every weekend?”

“I don’t know if ‘bad’ is the word I would use, and we have good reason for not going out much.” Namely, the two men in black seated at the adjacent table. The hot celebrity couple of the moment got more privacy out on the town than we did.

He gave me a smile that made my stomach do backflips. “Maybe we could embarrass them into leaving us alone.”

“Do you really think that would work?”

He sighed. “I doubt it. But thank you for putting up with me. A lot of women would have bailed on me. I’ve got a lot of baggage to deal with.”

“If I can’t stand by you, then who will? And I know who you really are, no matter what anyone else thinks.”

He reached under the table to take my hand and clutch it earnestly. “I am so glad I met you.”

I squeezed his hand in response. “Me, too. I can truly say that meeting you changed my life.”

“For the better?” He sounded like he wasn’t sure.

“Most definitely. Yeah, my life has been under constant threat and things have been absolutely insane, but I wouldn’t trade it for anything.”

He nodded, worrying his lower lip with his teeth like this had given him something serious to think about. “Good, that’s good to hear,” he said absently. The moment passed when the waiter arrived with our meals.