Shifters at Law (A Complete Paranormal Romance Shifter Series) Page 26

  Dragon Law

  Shifters at Law

  Sophie Stern

  For my mate

  Matthew hasn’t been to Dragon Isle in years. When he left to go to college, he walked away from his childhood, his past, and his ex-girlfriend, Michelle. He walked away from everything, but he didn’t realize he was walking away from a daughter.

  When Matthew receives a letter notifying him that Michelle has passed away, he doesn’t know what to do. Matthew is lost, and he’s hurting, and he isn’t sure how to move forward, but he goes to Dragon Isle to find Brooke. He goes to find his daughter. He goes because Dragon Law states that she is his.

  Dragon Law states that Matthew has a right to see his little girl.

  There’s just one problem: If Brooke’s nanny Jessica gets her way, Matthew will never even get to meet Brooke.

  Will he be able to prove to Jessica he can be a good father?

  Will she be willing to give him a chance?

  Find out in DRAGON LAW.

  Prologue

  (From the end of Sergeant Bear: Shifters at Law Book 4)

  Matthew

  I’m staring at the letter in my hand, and my heart drops.

  This can’t be happening.

  It just can’t.

  There are a lot of things I’ve done wrong in my life, but this isn’t one of them. I didn’t walk away. I didn’t know. How could anyone think I would have left Dragon Isle if I’d known about this?

  If I’d known, I never would have gone to law school. I would have stayed. I would have fought. I would have done anything.

  I might not have a choice anymore, though. As I read the letter for the millionth time, I let the words sink in: really sink in.

  This time, everything might not be all right.

  This time, I might be in trouble, and I don’t know what to do.

  I don’t have anyone I can turn to. I don’t have anyone I trust enough to help me face this, because this? This is big.

  A knock sounds at the door and I turn to see Joyce walking in. She’s wearing those stilettos she loves so much, along with a bright smile.

  “Hey Matt,” she says. “Everything okay?”

  I glance back at the letter and I take a deep breath.

  No.

  It’s not okay.

  Nothing is ever going to be okay ever again.

  I look back at Joyce and I smile.

  “Yeah,” I lie to her. “Everything is just fine.”

  Chapter 1

  Matthew

  One Week Later

  It’s been one week since I received the letter that changed everything.

  It’s been one long, terrifying week, and everything is different.

  Nothing is the same.

  Only it is.

  Everything is the same except for me.

  It’s only my world that’s been thrown into chaos, my world that’s been torn to bits. It’s only my world that’s threatening to collapse inside of me, and I don’t know what to do.

  I should know what to do, and that’s the very worst part about this entire ordeal. I should have the answers, at least when it comes to this. I should know what’s right and what’s wrong and where I go from here.

  I’m a grown-ass man. I’m a fucking lawyer, for dragon’s sake. I’m the one person who should know exactly what to do in a situation like this, but I don’t.

  I just don’t.

  And I’ve been holding onto this letter, memorizing it, meditating on it, and I’m still not any closer to knowing how to move forward. How could I not have known about this? How could I not have felt this in my very soul?

  I can’t eat and I can’t sleep. I can barely function. I’ve been showering and I’ve been getting to work and I’ve been moving through my daily duties, but I’ve been doing it on autopilot because this is much too big for me to handle on my own. This is much too big for me to deal with.

  It’s just all too much.

  A father.

  I’m a father.

  I’m a father to a little girl and I had no idea.

  How could I not have known?

  Isn’t fatherhood one of those things you’re just supposed to feel? Shouldn’t I have had some inkling that a child existed? Shouldn’t I have experienced some sort of deep, philosophical emotion?

  I didn’t, and I don’t know if I can ever forgive myself.

  It took me three days to process what was happening and another three to arrange to take off time from work. Now, on day seven, I’m on my way to Dragon Isle: a place I thought I’d never return to.

  A place I never wanted to return to.

  And I still don’t know if I’m doing the right thing.

  All I know is that I have to see her. I have to find her. I have to look at my little girl with my own eyes because she’s a part of me, even if I didn’t know that until very recently.

  And she’s on Dragon Isle.

  It’s not that Dragon Isle is a bad place. It’s not. And it’s not that the people there are bad. They aren’t. When I wanted to move away and go to college, though, I tried to bring Michelle with me. I tried to encourage her to come along and see the world and explore, but she was never interested in that.

  That’s not the life for me, she told me. It was the most painful breakup I’ve ever experienced. I don’t know if anything will come close to replicating the pain I felt when she wouldn’t come with me. To me, her refusal to leave was because she wanted other things more. The prestige and lifestyle that come from living on Dragon Isle can be addictive. Did she choose her mansion over me?

  It felt like it.

  Sometimes I’m still not sure.

  Now it’s too late, though.

  Now I’ll never know.

  I should have asked her before. I should have reached out to her. Called her. Anything. I should have checked up on her to see how her life was going. I shouldn’t have just left without looking back. Maybe then things would be different. Maybe then I would have known I had a little girl.

  “You doing all right, there, sir?” The young woman guiding the little boat I’m taking to the island looks over at me with concern. She’s young, probably about my age, but she seems wise beyond her years. Working with dragons will do that, whether or not you’re a shifter yourself. Dragons are a complex bunch. It takes a certain kind of person to be able to handle us.

  “I’m okay,” I tell her. It’s a lie, and we both know it.

  “You don’t seem okay,” she says thoughtfully, cocking her head at me. “Pardon me for pointing out the obvious, but are you sure this is where you want to be?”

  I don’t answer for a minute, sort-of hoping it’s a rhetorical question, but she seems to be waiting for an answer. Perfect. A nosy boat captain. Just what I need today.

  “On a boat to Dragon Isle?” I ask. “Absolutely.”

  “I’m not sure this is a good idea,” she says, looking me up and down.

  So she’s judgmental, too.

  “If you don’t want to go to the island,” the woman says. “Chances are you’re going to cause trouble. That looks bad on me, you see, being the harbormaster and all.”

  “I thought Liam was the harbormaster,” I say drily.

  “He’s not around much these days,” she says, but she has the decency to look slightly chastised, like she knows she’s being just the tiniest bit deceitful. I was still a kid when the old harbormaster, Willie, passed away. He left everything to Liam and now that the man is happily mated, he doesn’t spend as much time at the docks as he used to. As far as I know, he’s still the boss man, though.

  “Huh,” I say, and look back at the waters. I notice she’s slowing the boat down, so I add, “I’m not planning to make any trouble.” I don’t look over at her.

  “I’m not so sure I believe you,” she says. “Why don’t you tell me a little more about the business you have on the island?”

  I sigh. I should have just flown myself. I shouldn’t have taken the boat. I’m not ev
en sure why I did, except that I wanted to come in the “correct” way. I’m nervous about making a good impression with Jessica. I get the feeling she’s not in the mood to let me have access to my daughter.

  I have a feeling I’m going to have a fight on my hands.

  The truth is, though, that I didn’t even know Brooke existed until just recently. I didn’t have a single fucking clue. How could I have been a good father when I didn’t even know she was alive? All I knew was that Michelle and I had ended our relationship on sort-of-okay terms. I assumed she went on to live a happy, normal life on Dragon Island.

  I couldn’t have been more wrong.

  “It’s personal,” I tell the woman.

  “Why don’t you start with your name?” She says.

  “Matthew.”

  “Nice name. Is it real?”

  “Of course it’s real,” I snap, tired. “Why would I give you a name that isn’t real?”

  She shrugs, but continues to slow the boat. “I’m Kelsey,” she says. “Why are you going to Dragon Isle?”

  “I already told you,” I tell her. “It’s personal business.”

  “And I told you,” she says with a growl. “That you need to give me more information than that. You’re making me super fucking uncomfortable and I don’t like to feel uncomfortable,” she says. “Sir.”

  There’s no way this is going to go my way. There’s no way I’m going to just waltz onto Dragon Isle in the normal fashion.

  Is that what I wanted?

  Yes.

  Is it going to happen?

  Apparently not.

  Kelsey is more of a guard dog than Liam ever was, and that’s saying something. Oh, I know these people take their jobs as the human overlords of Dragon Isle pretty fucking seriously, but right now, I’ve had a long week and an even longer day. I’m ready to meet my daughter. I don’t need to justify myself to this girl.

  I stand up and, without a backwards glance, dive off the boat and into the water. I can hear her gasp as I move below the surface of the waves, but I don’t really care. She’s not going to be scarred for life just because I didn’t do something she wanted. She’ll get over this.

  Eventually.

  Still, I don’t want her to panic and think that I jumped off her boat and just drowned, so like the polite gentleman I am, I shift below the water and then shoot up into the air. This way, she can see that I am, in fact, a dragon, and that I am, in fact, about to disappear.

  She won’t have to have any nightmares about the man who drowned on her watch.

  I turn and look at her from my place in the air. The wind is hitting my scales and my wings are flapping, holding me in place as I look at her. She really isn’t half-bad, at least as far as humans go. With one final look, I swoop down toward the boat, pick up my duffel bag with one talon, and then shift to invisibility as I move toward the island.

  From Kelsey’s perspective, all she’ll be able to see is a floating duffel bag making its way toward the island.

  That’s good enough for me.

  Chapter 2

  Jessica

  “You did what?!?!” I screech the words at Tyrone, but he doesn’t care. He simply stares at me, blinking quietly, watching as I lose my damn mind. “You contacted him? You know that’s not what Michelle would have wanted!”

  “Jessica, he has a right to know he’s a father.”

  “He doesn’t have a right to anything,” I hiss, staring at the ceiling. I don’t know what I’m going to do now. What if he shows up and demands custody of Brooke? What if he doesn’t? What if he comes and decides he wants to take her somewhere else? What am I going to do then?

  The truth is that Tyrone is right.

  Matthew has a right to know he’s a father to a beautiful, charming little girl. He has a right to know that years ago, Michelle gave birth to a child all on her own. He’s the father. He’s been out of the loop for six damn years and now he’s going to find out about her, about Michelle’s secret.

  I’m not ready for this.

  I’m not ready for any of it.

  “Michelle may not have wanted to contact the father of her child, but she’s gone now.” Despite the painful truth behind his words, Tyrone is gentle as he explains the legal process to me. He’s a good lawyer, and there’s a reason Michelle trusted him with all of her secrets. I just wish she could have done something more to grant me sole custody of Brooke. I’ve known the little girl her entire life. I’m practically a second mom. I hate knowing that her father might take her away. It terrifies me.

  “He’ll have a chance to respond,” Tyrone says. “He may choose to come to Dragon Isle and meet with us or he may call me. We’ll wait and see. He has thirty days, and then Dragon Law dictates that a legal guardian may be chosen if the child’s living biological parent cannot be reached.”

  “And what if he wants her?” I ask, broaching the question I fear the most.

  “Jessica, I know you and Michelle were close.”

  “We were.”

  “Like sisters.”

  “Yes.”

  “But Matthew is Brooke’s biological father. Like it or not, blood has a huge standing in Dragon Law. If he wants to take Brooke with him to another place, he has that right.”

  “And me?” I ask quietly. “What about me?”

  Tyrone reaches across the desk and pats my hand gently. “You might not believe this, Jessica, but everything is going to work out, one way or another. You’ll see.”

  I don’t want to tear up in the legal office. Nope. Don’t wanna do that at all. I don’t want to cry. I don’t want to break down. Still, I feel the tears beginning to form and I close my eyes shut tight.

  “I’ve been a lawyer for a long time,” Tyrone continues. “And I’m going to do my best to ensure Brooke gets the best possible outcome from all of this, okay? Believe it or not, Jessica, she’s the most important part about this entire situation. It’s not just about what’s permissible or what tradition dictates. It’s about what’s going to be healthiest for that little girl.”

  “All right,” I say, but I still don’t hold much hope. Michelle had her reasons for not wanting Matthew to know about Brooke. I don’t know what all of them are because she never really talked about it that much. Sometimes when she was drinking too much, she’d let loose a little bit about Brooke’s real dad, but most of the time? Most of the time, she just said it was better that he not know.

  I always believed her.

  Now, as I make my way out of the attorney’s office, I’m left wondering where I go from here. What am I going to do next? Brooke is an incredible kid. She’s smart and funny and sassy, and she’s doing a great job dealing with her mother’s passing. Hell, she’s doing way better than I would be in the same situation, especially given her age.

  But I’m selfish, and I don’t want to lose her.

  Not to Matthew.

  Not to anyone.

  I still have a little bit of time before I have to pick Brooke up from school, so after I leave Tyrone’s office, I head to the grocery store to pick up a few items. I’m distracted the entire time as I think about what’s going to happen next. Maybe I’m just stressing out over nothing. Maybe it’s everything. I don’t know.

  “Long day?” The girl at the register smiles as she rings up my items.

  “You know me,” I shrug. “How’s your day going, Lea?”

  “Not too bad,” she tells me with a bright smile. “I’m going home soon, though, so I might be feeling a little upbeat.”

  “Well, I hope the rest of your day is great,” I tell her, taking my items. Lea waves goodbye and I head out of the store and down the street to Michelle’s house.

  Our house.

  My house.

  It’s mine now.

  That much is certain.

  While I might not get instant custody of the sweetest kid in the world, I do get to live in the house I shared with Michelle. When I first moved in so many years ago, I was nervous about living wi
th another woman. I’d never had a roommate before. I’d never even really been on my own before. Michelle put me totally at ease, though. I moved into the room next to Brooke’s and started my full-time gig as her nanny. It was everything I’d hoped it would be.

  And now it might be coming to a close.

  I don’t even want to think about what I’m going to do next. Will I go be a nanny to another family? Even though it’s my chosen career, somehow that feels like betrayal. It feels like I’d be letting down the very family who gave me hope, who gave me the life I have now.

  I kick a rock that’s sitting on the side of the road.

  It bounces away and I start to tear up.

  Fuck.

  I didn’t expect to say goodbye to Michelle this soon. I thought we still had time. Yeah, her diagnosis was critical, but we should have had more time to come up with a plan, to figure out how everything was going to work. It’s not fair that I’m all alone with Brooke. The universe is a terrible place if it’s going to take my very best friend away from me and leave me all on my own.

  “Are you okay?” A deep voice says, and I look up sharply. The tears are streaming freely down my face, but I can clearly see the dark-haired man coming down my sidewalk toward me. I peer behind him to see a small duffel bag sitting on my front porch, and I realize there’s only one person this could be.

  And he’s caught me crying.

  “Fuck off, Matthew,” I say, and I push by him to the front door. He doesn’t say anything, but I can feel the shock and surprise radiating off of him as I open the front door, step inside, and slam the door closed.

  Fuck this day.

  Then I start to sob.

  Chapter 3

  Matthew

  I texted my coworkers at Casa, Fee, and Lyon to let them know I’m fine. I never take personal time, so they were all concerned for me. None of them know why I went to Dragon Isle or how long I’ll be gone. I had hoped to get this entire mess cleared up in just a few days, but judging by the nanny’s initial reaction at seeing me, I think it’s safe to say that will not be happening.