Page 21 of Season's Greetings
“…the bond remains recognized.”
Claudia shrieked. “This council is blind!”
“Silence, or I will hold you in contempt! This is the finding of the court, and you will abide by it, Ms. Hamilton. Court is dismissed.”
One by one, the Council rose and retired from the room.
“I’m not listening to any more of this!” Claudia snapped, rising from her seat to storm out —
Only to be faced with a jubilant Grady, who threw his hands in the air, whooping. Showering her with coffee.
“Oops! Sorry, not sorry,” he muttered.
Claudia shoulder-checked him out of the way, gnashing her teeth, her heels clacking furiously across the ancient stone.
Chapter 11
Matthew
It was two weeks until Christmas, and the weather was unusually warm—so warm that Matthew had opted to walk Barney all the way to Toby’s elementary school.
For now, he and Daniel were taking things slow. Not because they wanted to, but because Claudia kept throwing words around, and Daniel didn’t want to give her any more ammunition.
Matthew had tried to reason with him—that it would make next to no difference. If Claudia was hell-bent on dragging their names through the mud, then it didn’t matter where they lived, or whether that was together or apart.
That morning, crisp air snaked through the crack in the curtains, rousing Matthew from a fitful sleep. He’d woken early, rolled out of bed, and stepped on one of Barney’s squeaky toys. The sudden pressure triggered a series of high-pitched squeaks.
The bouncing bundle of energy woofed and jumped about excitedly, a doggy smile stretched across his furry face.
Reaching down, Matthew scratched the good-natured pooch behind the ear, feeling the familiar comfort of Barney’s soft fur.
“Nothing much gets you down, does it, my friend?” he murmured, a wry smile playing on his lips. “How about we go for a nice long walk after we drop Toby at school?”
Barney’s joyful woof—a clear affirmative—echoed his own eagerness to be up and outside.
A stark contrast to Toby’s usual morning routine.
Toby remained a stubborn lump of resistance under his duvet. He burrowed deeper, his small form shrinking into the mattress like he planned to hibernate for the rest of the winter.
Matthew sighed, weariness settling over him.
Huh. Bears. Like father, like son.
Getting Toby dressed and out the door was a battle every morning—a relentless test of wills. Matthew understood his son’s reluctance. Ever since the court case, people had been acting weird toward them. The whispers that followed them down the street, in the grocery store, even in the schoolyard—they were getting to him.
As were the judgmental looks. The veiled hostility that seemed to permeate every interaction.
He got it. He really did.
Even though the Elder Council had ruled in their favor, the court of popular opinion had not.
That was solely because of Claudia—and her efforts to sour everyone against them.
Not that her spiteful antics surprised him. His ex-wife was petty at the best of times. Now she was out to prove a point. Like she was some noble crusader out to expose corruption.
And she should know—seeing as she was party to most of it.
He didn’t know which was worse: her suggestion that Daniel used alpha dominance to emotionally coerce him, or the implication that he was some kind of simple omega.
