Bryon took his seat, ignoring the battle positions both Riley and Chip had assumed. "I take it you two know each other a little better now?" Without waiting for an answer, he continued. "Good. Then, what I have here are the final trappings that will make this all official." He indicated the items in his hand.

Riley looked over at his father, Lieutenant Chip-on-Her-Shoulder, as he'd already begun to think of her, did the same. Her expression obviously relieved at the interruption.

The director placed an official looking certificate that could only be the phony marriage license on the table. Beside it, he laid an envelope.
Riley picked up the envelope. It was sealed so he tore open one end. Not seeing anything at first, he tipped it upside down. Two gold bands slid out.

The innocent symbols of eternal love clattered ominously in the silence of the conference room as they bounced onto the table. The larger one spun for a moment before coming to rest, barely touching the smaller ring.

Chip appeared to freeze, staring at the rings. Riley felt immobilized by the significance of the gold glinting under the room's florescent lights. As though on cue, they both reached for the rings at the same time. When their hands collided, Chip snatched hers back and balled it into a fist.

Riley picked up the smaller ring and rolled the smooth metal between his fingers. He walked deliberately around the table and stopped directly in front of the petite lieutenant. She stood her ground, ramrod straight and unyielding.

He reached for her left hand and heard her draw a breath when he touched her, but no emotion showed on her face. It was as though she'd hid behind a mask. Only her eyes betrayed any inner turmoil.

His eyes locked on to the violent storm brewing inside her gray ones. The temperature in the conference room increased. His breathing matched the rise and fall of her chest and white noise filled his ears.

Her slender hand trembled ever so slightly as he slipped the band onto her fourth finger.

It fit perfectly.

Uninvited, the timeless words from the marriage ceremony echoed through his head. With this ring.

Riley barely stopped himself from speaking the words out loud. He was stunned by the mere thought and dropped her hand as though he'd been burned, but he couldn't look away. Lost in the tempest raging in her eyes, he was a drowning man called to his death by sirens of the sea.

Byron cleared his throat. With the spell broken, Riley returned to the living. A quick glance at Chip revealed her mask firmly in place.

He walked to his side of the table, pick up the other ring and slid it on the fourth finger of his left hand.

No fanfare.

No ceremony.

Only an unfamiliar weight of the burden he was about to carry. A partner, a wife as a cover story, and the nation's security to assure.