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And then, listening to the water running upstairs, he deleted the message from the answering machine.
    Cate would think her husband had given up on her. Satisfaction filled him. And her poor dope of a husband had no idea. The Trojan e-mail and Internet monitoring system would keep Michael one step ahea d of Grayson at all times. A quick trip to the post mistress in the village, to tup the woman in the dusty back room before he headed back to London, would be all it took to divert any post from Cate to her husband. He had Sherrie Davenport wound tightly around his dick. He couldn ’ t help the smile that blossomed. Life was good.
    He reached down and adjusted himself.
    This game made him feel so alive.
    #
    Two weeks later, Cate held Grayson ’ s definitive answer in her hands. She sobbed. A certified letter from her husband had arrived, forwarded to her from the trust manager.
    This wasn’t what she’d wanted.
    She ’ d sent a letter detailing the situation to Grayson in Cornwall the same day she ’ d placed the call. She now had her answer. The legalese was mind-bending, but the essence? Grayson Cooper abdicated all custodial rights to any child Cate might bear as a result of their encounter on 07 February 2011 .
    Cate couldn ’ t believe her eyes. His signature, bold as day, sealed the legal document. Grayson Cooper had lied to her once again. You are mine, Cate . And I protect to the death what belongs to me. The words whispered through her mind. He didn ’ t care that he also had a child. He wanted nothing to do with their child or with her. Damned if she ’ d beg him. Fucking p rick.
    She ’ d raise this child on her own after all. Well, maybe not quite alone. She ’ d had two weeks to think about the situation and plan a solid course of action. She understood what she had to do for her sake and the baby ’ s. For crying out loud, she knew nothing about giving birth to a child who might be half-dragon and half-human. There were risks she couldn ’ t take with normal doctors, especially country doctors in rural Pennsylvania.
    The next call she made was to the office of David Pierson, the head of the North American Dragon Mage Consortium located in New York C ity . When she and Grayson had married in a huge society wedding in Martha ’ s Vineyard four years ago, David presided over their vows. She ’d known nothing at the time about dragon shifters, but now she understood why he ’ d pressed his number on her, squeezing her hand affectionately after the wedding to say, “ If you ’ re ever in trouble, Cate . Call me. I ’ d be glad to help you sort it out. No matter how crazy or fantastical the situation seems. ” He ’ d known about Grayson ’ s dragon mage heritage. She sighed. If only she ’ d known back then. E verything would be different .
    She called Pierson for help a week before the boating accident, when she ’ d thought the monster would kill her. David had helped her see the benefit in giving Grayson a year to battle the dragon in the safety of enchanted confines. He ’ d coached her through it. So when the opportunity presented itself a week later, she’d been ready to trap the monster.
    Now, s he needed help again. This time, a dragon mage midwife. Someone to walk her through this pregnancy and birth, someone to help protect her and the child in case Grayson ever changed his mind and decided “ to death ” meant her death or her child ’ s.

 
     
     
     
    Chapter Four
     
    One Week Later (April)
     
    It had been two months since Cate had left him. April sun filtered through the wall of windows over looking the cliffs. A bloom of s pring color greeted him. Hedgerow flowers in periwinkle and purple, bluebells, fuchsia sea thrift, and golden daffodils create d a blaze of color that made Grayson long for Cate . She loved this time of year in Cornwall.
    Do not follow me. I need distance and time to figure out what I want. Clearly she didn ’ t want him. He ’ d not heard a single