by C J Matthew
“Sounds like congrats are in order.”
“Too soon, ole man. What can you help us with?”
“Sak needs a more official confession from Hoffman?”
“Damn, nothing gets by you. That’s right.”
“As a favor, my drinking buddy who works at the Australian Representative Office in Taipei, agreed to pay F.D. Hoffman a visit. The Aussie took along a stenographer, and a list of questions. Since he asked all the same questions, he has exactly the same confession the Ichiban Captain got, this time signed by Hoffman, and two witnesses.
“Whoa, seriously?”
“To preserve the chain of evidence, my hard-drinking buddy is currently en route to Narita/Tokyo International airport. I’ve been trying to call Sak, send him to meet my man. Pick up the confession. But I get no answer.”
“We were on a conference call deal. Try Sak again, right now. And thanks, Marc. Whatever you need.”
“I’m making a list.”
Portia stood at the bay window in the breakfast area, staring out at the lights of the harbor, the ugly confrontation with her beloved god mother obviously still weighing on her.
Fix it. Cheer her up. The straight-forward dragon flicked his long tail.
I’ll do my best.
Make her happy.
All the women he’d dated in the past, before his mate burst into his life, were easily consoled by expensive gifts. Not Portia. While she seemed to respect money for certain things it could buy—he was waiting for her to suggest sponsoring young Khang’s university education—the fact of the wealth didn’t impress her.
She couldn’t wait to see the hoard. Not for the fabulous value of the pieces, but because the tradition of draping a mate appealed to her. It was fun, like a little girl dressing-up. Or the cartoon duck diving into a pool of money.
She was introducing him, and the single-minded dragon, to an alternate concept of wealth. The smart money said he’d be onboard with that radical notion long before the dragon was.
Humph.
If presents wouldn’t please her maybe a change of topic would. Beside this was an important question. He came up behind her, circled his arms around her waist. She leaned back against him and he kissed her cheek.
“I have an important question I’ve been meaning to ask you,” he began. “How many kids do you think you’ll want?”
“Five,” she shot back. “A basketball team. You?”
“Your five will be plenty for me.”
She turned in his arms and smacked him on the chest. “How did you get to be so rich and famous when you’re actually a total goof?”
He hoisted her over one shoulder. She shrieked as he marched them to the back elevator. “A goof? Just for that, you’re getting draped and claimed on the hoard.”
About time. The dragon cheered.
“Does that tradition include a spanking?”
He stroked her ass. “Not unless you beg for one.”
Chapter 23
Portia
Portia twisted and pushed, struggling to slide one more gold bracelet, the one encrusted with sapphires, up her already crowded forearm. She giggled when Devlin dug out another tiara, this one positively dripping with emeralds, and positioned it on her head.
“The queen of the hoard.”
“Cool,” she declared. “Oh, wait. I believe my tiara is slightly askew.”
Laughing, Devlin made the adjustment and kissed his mate on the tip of her nose.
“Excellent,” she pronounced. “I’m duchess, a princess and now the queen. Have you got—” he glared at her— “have we got a scepter around here somewhere?”
He handed her a glittering scepter which she cradled in her arm. “Hey. Who did these belong to?”
“They belong to you. Any former owners are long gone.”
“Were any of the Sea Dragons pirates?”
Devlin huffed and somehow managed to look highly insulted. Not easy, considering he was completely naked, and the ton of priceless jewelry he wore only covered certain places.
“Sorry,” she said, “no insult intended to the ancestors.” Did sea dragons inherit their hoards? How long did they live? Questions to be asked. Still, not something she wanted to worry about during playtime in the hoard. Portia stood, gaining her balance on a pile of ancient coins, then slowly turned.
Devlin’s hoard was cleverly hidden in the secure room, between the walls. All of the floor-to-ceiling walls. The space between the four outer soundproof walls and the four steel-reinforced inner walls hid shelves, drawers, and cabinets, all sorts of containers jam-packed with goodies. Like a kid at daycare, Devlin opened every secret door and dumped his hoard on the floor. Playtime.
She was covered in jewels but couldn’t see herself. “We need mirrors in this room.”
“It’s a secure communications facility. If we install mirrors what will people think happens in here?”
She laughed. “Not this.” Making her way to the pile of priceless carpets, she arranged herself in a seductive pose. “Get over here, mighty sea dragon. It’s my turn to claim you.”
* * *
Devlin
After a rough and tumble session, those seemed to be her favorite kind, of extremely satisfying sex, Devlin lay at his mate’s feet, moaning. She was flat on her back, mostly on carpet, gasping for air.
“You, my mate,” he announced, “are going to be the death of me.”
“Is this a good time to ask how old you are?”
He sat up and smiled “Sure. We Irish love to tell a story. Let’s cuddle on the couch and we’ll have a short history of our sea dragon clan.”
He carried her to the couch, set her gently on the cushion and fetched them water. Sitting at the opposite end of the sofa, he played with her toes.
“Our clan comes from two different groups so until the merger, we have two very different histories. Uncounted centuries ago, the clans from the dragon half of my heritage were fire breathers, many of them like the beasts you see in movies today. They flew around destroying villages and so on, until all dragons became the targets of mankind.”
“Like knights in shining armor?” she asked, fascinated.
“And professional dragon hunters.”
“But they’re all gone now?”
“The hunters? Mostly. And so are many of the dragons.” He wiggled her big toe. “Sooo, in those days, eventually the dragons had been reduced to numbers so small, their very existence was threatened. Many clans broke up and the surviving dragons scattered to the ends of the earth. Our clan preferred to merge. The chieftain, a direct relation of Murphy and his twin brother Murdoch, approached the leader of a sea serpent shifter clan and struck a bargain. Any of their females who wanted to breed a new shifter clan were invited to merge with our clan. Our dragons were delighted when twenty females volunteered.”
“That’s exciting.”
“The next generation were hybrids. The new, flightless dragons who could swim for days under the sea, honored their founding clans by taking new names. Muirdris was a fierce giant sea serpent connected to King Fergus. Muirdris and his many shape-shifting daughters originally came from Lough Rudraige also known as Dundrum Bay.”
“That’s an amazing history, Mister Rudraige.”
“While I’m not exactly certain how old I am, we know that when a human becomes the mother or the father of a dragon, their life span changes to match up with their mates.”
“That sounds fair.”
“Thank you for agreeing to traditions that must seem strange to you. Now I’d like us to try something very human. Let’s get dressed up, take the limo and return to the scene of the crime. Let’s have dinner in Skytree tower and then go up to the observation deck for a good-luck kiss.”
“Awww. Such a romantic. Whatever shall I wear?”
“The same dress as New Year’s Eve?”
“Definitely a romantic.”
While they replaced the hoard and closed the walls, he palmed the pearl and d
iamond ring she seemed so reluctant to put back and tucked it in his pocket.
Upstairs on the entry hall table, Portia found an expensive rice paper envelope with her name on it. Inside was another envelope. Formal. The note was written in her god mother’s distinctive scrawl. A formal apology. Obasan begged for Portia’s forgiveness for deceiving her from the beginning. She not only wanted Portia to take the Ichiban job but the whole following Devlin assignment had been her attempt at matchmaking.
“Talk about sneaky.” Portia unfolded the note and finished reading. Tadaka had been aware of Obasan’s plan and had resorted to extortion. Frightened, Obasan tried to get Portia out of the away. Finally, her god mother contacted Sak and told him everything. Now, if Portia could find it in her heart to forgive her? Obasan would return from her cruise in a few weeks and looked forward to embracing her beloved god daughter then.
Devlin appreciated the extensive menu at the Skytree. He and his mate shared their delicious entrees and split a dessert. He convinced the waiter to allow them to take their champagne up to the observation deck. There, he hugged Portia to him as they gazed out the huge window overlooking the city lights of Tokyo.
“I love you.”
“I love you, Devlin. I can’t believe it happened so fast, but I’m sure. Maybe a little of your fated-mate mojo is rubbing off on me.”
“Dragon magic?” he whispered in her ear.
“That works too.”
“Since I come from a dual background, I believe it’s important to honor all the traditions.” He took her champagne flute and placed his and hers side by side on the window ledge. Grasping her hands, he edged between her and the window. As she took a step back to make room, he went down on one knee.
Her eyes grew wide and her mouth formed an O.
“Portia, I’ll love for as long as we live. And I want to make that a solemn vow and promise between us. Could we repeat our vows in front of our friends and witnesses? Could we celebrate our love at a formal ceremony and then at a party we’ll remember forever? Will you marry me?”
He pulled the pearl and diamond ring from his pocket and held it up to her with two fingers.
“If you agree to marry me,” he asked, “will you wear this ring as a token of our vows?”
She tugged at his shoulders. “Yes, I’ll marry you. Please get up. I’ll wear the ring, God, I love the ring. And I love you. Help me get it on.”
He rose to his feet, slipped the ring on her shaking finger and kissed his mate.
THANK YOU for reading Devlin, Sea Dragon Shifter Series Book 2!
PLEASE, leave a review!
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Did you miss the first stand-alone book in the Sea Dragon series?
Murdoch, Sea Dragon Shifter Series Book 1 is available in the Amazon store, on Kindle Unlimited, and in paperback.
Would you like to read the next book?
Treasure, Sea Dragon Shifter Series Book 3 will be published as part of the new Celtic Zodiac Shifters series on April 23, 2019.
Watch for Kiernan, Sea Dragon Shifter Series Book 4. Kiernan will be available in the Amazon store, on Kindle Unlimited, and in paperback in May, 2019.
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Reminder: each book in every CJ series can stand alone, they don’t need to be read in any particular order, and there are never cliffhangers.
Books by CJ Matthew:
Sea Dragon Shifters
Murdoch: Book 1
Devlin: Book 2
Treasure: Book 3 and Celtic Zodiac Shifters
Kiernan: Book 4 (TBA)
The Colonel’s Daughters, A Quintet
A Major Seduction
A Major Affair
Compromising the Captain (TBA)
The Paladin Group
Deadly Reboot
Survival Reboot
Maximum Reboot
Extreme Reboot (TBA)
Dolphin Shore Shifters Series
Blood Tide
Risky Tide
Dangerous Tide
Lethal Tide
Toxic Tide
Fatal Tide (TBA)
About the Author:
CJ Matthew, multi-published romance author, is introducing a new paranormal romance series, Sea Dragon Shifters for 2019. Book 1, Murdoch, introduces the Irish clan of sea dragons posing as humans and running their international conglomerate, Muirdris Shipping.
CJ grew up in an Air Force family that travelled all over the U.S. and around the world. She spent her high school and university years living in California, which inspired her love of marine life and the Pacific Ocean. And she loves to write about cities worldwide.
A member of Georgia Romance Writers (GRW) Romance Writers of America, CJ lives and writes near a lake in the woods northeast of Atlanta. When she isn't writing or reading romances, CJ likes to travel and to spend time with her two grown children, a brilliant grandson, and a feisty cat named Max.
COPYRIGHT
Devlin, Sea Dragon Shifters Book 2
Published by All Huston Group, Inc.
Copyright 2019 by All Huston Group, Inc.
Cover copyright 2019 by Sharon Lipman at Fantasia Cover Designs.
ISBN: 978-0-9994640-2-1 epub
All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.
This book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only and may not be re-sold.
Thank you for respecting the author's work.
www.cjmatthew.com
Acknowledgements:
Thank you to my family for the years of unwavering support and encouragement.
Thanks to my critique partner Elaine Calloway for keeping me on track, for catching the parts where I tended to get carried away.
A special thank you to my new editor for this series Cheryl Barnes-Neff for knowing and enforcing all those pesky structure, grammar, and punctuation rules while being supportive and constructive at the same time.
Many thanks to Sharon Lipman at Fantasia Cover Designs for a beautiful series logo, and a new set of awesome covers.
