Liam had considered adoption briefly, but any child he adopted would be human. He knew he could provide a good home, but he wasn’t sure how safe it would be for a human child. Unfortunately, his family had a tendency to attract trouble.
If Liam had a human child, his cousins would still be dragon shifters. Isleen was still a baby, but even at two years old, Shannon could hurt a human child without meaning to. When his nephew, Declan, was five years old, he was asked to leave the preschool because he was so rough with the other children. Now, at seven, he had better control, but it had been a hard-won battle.
Sure, Liam could find a way to manage those issues by keeping a closer eye on his child when he or she was playing with cousins, but that didn’t solve the matter of the witches. Bringing a human child into a family that was a target for witches just wasn’t right.
It also didn’t seem right to hire a surrogate without letting her know she wasn’t pregnant with a human baby. Both Clara and Juliana gave birth to shifter hatchlings without incident, but it wasn’t guaranteed. Liam could never share his secret with someone he didn’t trust, either.
He needed a dragon shifter surrogate.
He scoffed, though there was no one there to hear him. There were other shifters in the world, but they were all in Europe. Anytime he and his brothers went to Europe, the witches knew. He couldn’t just go over there and start looking for shifters without attracting attention.
He rubbed his forehead. Adoption with a human surrogate was out. His only option was finding a dragon shifter female to carry his child. Maybe there were some that didn’t live in Europe.
There was only one way to find out exactly where those shifters were living—contact the vampires. Liam and his brothers weren’t friends with the vampires, and they didn’t exactly trust the vampires. The coven members were highly skilled, though, and very well connected. And they were discreet.
If there were a female shifter who’d be willing to carry Liam’s hatchling, the vampires would be the ones who’d know that information.
By late October, Liam had made a decision. He was going to visit the vampires.
Over the years, the four brothers had dealt with the vampires several times, but it was usually for security purposes. For large sums of money, the vampires would act as intelligence officers, bodyguards, or private security. They were very good at what they did. Liam might not trust them, but they always honored their contract once they were paid.
Kellan was a billionaire, and he was happy to part with his money if it meant keeping his family safe. He was usually the one who made contact with the vampires when they needed help. Liam didn’t have millions of dollars like Kellan, but he did have some money saved up. He didn’t want to brag, but his law practice was successful, and he could afford to spend some money to become a father.
Liam was not willing to tell his brothers where he was going, not even Quinn. It was too soon. He didn’t even know if the vampires would be able to locate a female shifter. Even if they could, she might not be interested. Carrying a hatchling was a huge sacrifice. They might be dragon shifters, but in pregnancy, their bodies worked just like a human female’s.
It was a lot to ask of someone, so he had to be willing to pay handsomely. He spent a week researching the legalities of surrogacy and drawing up the kind of contract he’d like. He took it to one of his friends in Dallas and let her review the paperwork, just to make sure he wasn’t trying to make the terms unfair. If he actually found a surrogate, he’d pay for her to hire her own attorney, as well.
Liam spent Halloween with his nieces and nephews, and on the first day of November, he booked a flight to New York City. The vampire coven inhabited a high-rise apartment on Fifth Avenue. Aleksandr, the vampire that Liam knew best, lived on the tenth floor. The ornate lobby smelled strongly of sandalwood, and the elevator was freshly polished. After waiting for a few minutes, the doorman sent him up. The vampires knew he was coming. He never showed up unannounced. Of course, he probably wouldn’t get through their doorman, who he suspected was part Fae, if he tried to come unannounced.
As Liam rode the elevator up, he had to take a few deep breaths. Having grown up thriving on the fairly isolated cliffs of West Ireland, New York was pure chaos. Liam could appreciate New York in certain ways, but it was far too crowded and noisy for him. The constant horn-honking and wailing of sirens was a never-ending irritant. As a dragon shifter, his hearing and sense of smell were much better developed than a human’s. He wasn’t sure how vampires’ hearing worked, but they must not have sensitive ears to be able to live in New York. Or maybe the glamour and sophistication of the city made it worth it for them.
Aleksandr greeted him at the door and ushered him in with his cultured Russian accent. As always, Aleksandr was impeccably dressed. Brennan always teased the vampires and told them they should be male models instead of running a multimillion-dollar security business.
After several minutes of idle chit-chat, Aleksandr asked Liam what he wanted. Whatever else they were, they were efficient.
Vampires. Always to the fucking point.
Liam found himself with a dry mouth, unable to form the words to express what it was that he wanted. Why was this topic so much harder to talk about than security issues? Liam was a talker; he was a trial attorney. That’s what he did. He talked to a jury, to a judge, and to his clients. He wasn’t reserved, and he was never at a loss for words. Until now. Until he had to tell a fucking vampire that he wanted to pay someone to have a baby for him. It sounded absurd in his head.
If he wanted a child, though, this is what he had to do.
Come on. Don’t be a wimp. You’ve been fighting actual witches since you were a teenager, so you can do this.
“Have the Romanians returned?” Aleksandr asked. Aleksandr was referring to Juliana’s family. She was Romanian, and her family was full of mobsters that had chased her all the way to Texas. Last year, the vampires had acted as the brothers’ security. “I would have guessed they would not return to harass Quinn’s wife.”
“No. We haven’t heard from them.” Liam paused. “I’d like to hire a surrogate.” There, he’d said it.
“To have a child, yes?” Aleksandr asked.
“Yes.”
Aleksandr opened his laptop. “I have many reputable contacts involved in this enterprise.”
“I don’t want a human,” Liam said.
Aleksandr closed his laptop. “Who, then, would you like to hire? Vampires cannot carry children, and the Fae would not accept your proposal.”
Liam shuddered at the thought of a vampire raising a child. What would it be like to live with all that austerity? Lonely, most likely. “I want a dragon shifter female.”
“And you think I know of one.”
“I know that you know some shifter females. They might not be interested in surrogacy, but I’d still like to ask them.” Now for the magic words. “Of course, I’ll pay for your services.”
Light glinted in Aleksandr’s eyes. “Of course. Let me consult with one of my coven members.”
Aleksandr disappeared from the room for a good ten minutes. Liam was a little surprised that Aleksandr left him in the sitting room alone, but he figured Aleksandr had him under surveillance. Probably from every possible angle.
When the vampire came back into the room, he had a faint smile on his face. “I have some pleasing news for you. One of my coven members has a contact in Colorado. She is a female shifter.”
Liam’s jaw dropped. There was a female dragon shifter in Colorado? Had he been living near her all this time? They were hardly close neighbors, from Texas to Colorado, but at least they were in the same country.
“Is she interested in surrogacy? Liam asked.
“We did not discuss that topic with her. That will be up to you.”
“Will she be expecting me?
“Of course. We will notify her of your arrival. When would you like to visit?”
“Today,” Liam said. He alrea
dy had use of Kellan’s private jet, so he might as well get some more use out of it.
“Very well,” Aleksandr said.
The female shifter’s name was Brynne Ryan. It pleased Liam that she’d kept her Irish name even though she’d come to live in the States. Aleksandr didn’t offer him much information. All Liam knew was that she lived in Avon, Colorado, and she taught ski lessons at Silver Canyon Ski Resort. Oh, and she was twenty-five years old.
Once he reached the ski resort, Liam signed up for a private ski lesson with Brynne. He’d been skiing for years, but he needed a way to break the ice and get to know Brynne before he broached the subject of surrogacy. The vampires assured him this was an appropriate way to contact her, but their ideas about communication were often skewed.
As Liam walked to the base of the mountain, skis in hand, his senses sharpened. He saw her. There she was. His eyes were drawn to her, and he couldn’t tear them away. He stopped walking and just stared, drinking in the sight of her. She wore fitted black pants and a white ski coat with a teal helmet. Under the helmet, reddish-brown hair tumbled out in curls.
He was aware of his brothers and his nieces and nephews. He could feel them when they were in close proximity. It was an awareness that had always been with him, and he felt its absence when he was alone in a different city. Yet, the awareness he felt toward this female was in a whole new category. His skin buzzed. Every nerve crackled with recognition. She smelled like strawberries and vanilla, and he knew then that he’d never get enough of her scent.
Would he have felt this way if he had come of age back home in Ireland with females all around him? He’d never know that, but he knew he was drawn to this female.
4
Brynne
On the second day in November, Brynne tipped her head toward the sky. Light snow landed on her face, melting instantly.
All day, her skin had itched, just like when she was desperate to shift but had to repress the urge. It wasn’t a rare feeling, but today the itch intensified to the point where she actually pulled her sleeve up to see if her scales were showing.
Nope, just regular human skin. She shoved her sleeve back down.
The feeling intensified. The itch turned into a creeping sensation that crawled across her skin. She looked around and spotted a man walking toward her. He must be her last client of the day. The closer he got, the more her skin tingled. She was aware of every inch of her body. The man wore black ski pants and a fitted blue shirt. He was tall, well over six feet, and even through the long-sleeve shirt, she could see that he had well-defined muscles. A coat was nowhere to be seen.
His helmet dangled from his hand, so she could see his face. As he got closer, she could see his dark red hair and his chiseled jawline.
“Hello,” he said. “You must be Brynne.”
Arousal shot through her body, along with the realization that this was no human. This man was a dragon shifter. He was a shifter, just like her. Her heart sped up. Finally, after all these years, she was near another shifter.
“I didn’t know there were any more of us left,” she said.
The shifter smiled. “There are a few of us. My name is Liam.”
The static in her brain intensified. She couldn’t think straight. Liam was smoking hot, and normally, she’d be focused on that, but finding out she wasn’t alone in the world took precedence. “How many more?” she asked. “How many more of us are there?”
“Where I live, there are three adult males and three hatchlings under ten.”
Relief swept through her body. Maybe she could meet them one day.
The shifter’s accent was mostly American, but there was a hint of Irish hidden in the syllables. She took a step closer. Something about him was familiar, beyond the fact that he was a shifter. She recognized him.
She could hardly get the words out. She took a deep breath and nearly choked with the overwhelming feeling of belonging. “Are you from the Cliffs of Moher? The Dragon Clan?”
“Yes,” he said. “I am. My last name is Murphy.”
All of the air left her lungs. Every bone in her body felt as if it could snap into pieces with the knowledge that this shifter was her kinsman. The soul-deep feeling of, “I know you. You’re like me.”
She’d been only ten, and Liam had been seventeen, so they hadn’t spent much time together. The memories came flooding back. Images filled her head, images that she hadn’t been able to recall for fifteen years. She had to sit down. She took a step toward one of the benches. She stumbled and nearly fell, which was ridiculous because her reflexes were near-perfect, but the turmoil in her mind overwhelmed her body.
Liam leaped forward and grabbed her hand. She hadn’t put her gloves on yet, so her hand was bare, and so was his. Electricity shot through every cell in her body as he held onto her hand and guided her to the bench.
Thankfully, they were in a more secluded area of the mountain. When she taught adults to ski for the first time, she tried to take them away from the area that was packed with screaming kids and young teens. Now, she was grateful for the privacy.
Once she was settled on the bench, she exhaled. “I’m from the Cliffs, too. I lived there until I was ten.”
Liam sat down next to her. Now it was his turn to look shocked. “You did?”
“Yes. I was born into that clan.”
“Were your parents Aden and Sarah Ryan?” he asked.
She nodded. “You remember them?”
He pressed his lips together. “I do. Your father helped me perfect my fishing ability. Your mother taught all of us to read.”
Her throat burned with emotion. “I barely remember them. I was ten when we were attacked, but I blocked it all out. All I remember are the explosions and the screaming. My brother was killed right in front of me. My parents were, too. Then my uncle stashed me in a small hidden cave and told me to stay there.”
“I’m so sorry,” Liam said, and his voice was thick with emotion. His hand landed on her forearm and stayed there. Despite the topic they were discussing, she liked the weight of his arm pressing down on hers.
She sniffed. “It’s fine. They were brave, but I don’t even know why they were fighting the witches.”
“I’ll be happy to tell you everything that I know,” he offered.
“Yeah. I’d like that. Some good memories would be nice, too. Maybe I could get them back if I talk to you. Just seeing you has already helped me to remember more than I thought I could.” She pressed her fingers to her eyes. “I thought I was alone all this time.”
“That must’ve been very difficult.”
“It freaking sucked.”
Liam brushed his hand over her cheek. It was an intimate move, something she never would have allowed a human man to do. “I wish I had found you sooner, in that case.”
She turned her head toward him. “How did you find me?”
His brow furrowed. “They didn’t let you know I was coming, did they? I guess not, or you wouldn’t have been surprised.”
She scooted away from him, putting a little distance between them on the bench. “Who are you talking about? You signed up for a ski lesson. That’s why you’re here.”
“This wasn’t a serendipitous meeting, although I wish that it had been.”
She slid further from him on the bench. “How did you find me, then?”
“The vampires told me where to find you. I met with Aleksandr in New York City. He gave me your name.”
Her pulse skyrocketed. Her stomach churned. She got to her feet, holding onto the bench for support. “You know the vampires?”
“Yes. We’ve been in contact with them for years.”
“They lied to me.”
A rueful smile turned the corner of Liam’s lips up. “Well, they’re not always the most forthcoming group, that’s true.”
There was nothing amusing about this to her. Her fingers tightened on the bench until the wood creaked under the strength of her grip. “I lived with them for eight year
s. They raised me, and when I asked them if they were any other shifters, they said no.
The look of amusement faded from Liam’s face. “They raised you? What do you mean?”
“Yes, they raised me, just like any other kid. After all the fighting was over, I was still in the little cave where my uncle put me. I walked out, and all of our clan was either dead or missing. I was only ten years old, so I started walking. I walked all the way to a nearby village. Nicolae saw me there, and he told me to come with him, or the witches would get me. He took me with him to New York City, and I lived in their coven until I was eighteen.”
Liam bowed his head. “Christ, I’m sorry. I had no idea. Tell me they treated you okay,” he said with fire in his eyes as he whipped his head up to study her. He stood up but didn’t come closer to her. His eyes glowed yellow now. “They’ve been our allies for over a decade, but if they mistreated you, so help me, they’ll regret it.”
She held out her hand, hoping he’d settle down. While she was pissed off at her former guardians, she didn’t want to start a war. “They did. They were absolutely fine and insufferably polite, even while I was a raging teenager.”
Liam sank back down onto the bench. His eyes were back to brown now, but they were full of sympathy. “I can imagine.”
“But fuck. I asked them point-blank if they knew of any other shifters that were left alive. I didn’t ask them only once. I asked them over and over. I knew Nicolae traveled the world doing God knows what, so I thought maybe he found some. He always said no.” She stared at Liam. “Why would he lie to me?”
Liam lifted his hands. “I don’t know. I’m sorry he did.”
“Where have you been this whole time?”
“I’ve been in Texas for fifteen years.”
She hated crying, but tears formed in her eyes. A burning sensation crawled up her throat. All these years that she’d been alone had been unnecessary. It was all a lie.
Lawyer Dragon's Surrogate (Irish Dragon Shifter Brothers Book 3) Page 2
