Page 5 of Dragon Daddy's Second Chance

“I just got here this morning,” he said. “It’s an amazing place. My brother and I just closed a big business deal. This was our treat for busting our butts for months, two weeks in paradise.”

“I hope you enjoy your stay,” she said. “Sorry again for staring.”

“No worries,” he said, smiling at her. “I’m not going to complain when a pretty woman looks at me, I just wish you’d been looking for a different reason. Maybe we could meet for coffee sometime.”

“Oh, I don’t know…I’m here with my friend…” she stammered, not used to men flirting with her. “I wouldn’t want to leave her alone.”

“I’ll be fine,” Susan interrupted. “She’ll meet you tomorrow morning at nine.”

“Great,” Sam said, grinning at her. “I’ll see you then.”

He was gone before she could say anything. “Susan, I don’t want to meet him for coffee,” she said, giving her friend a dirty look. “You go after him and tell him I’m not going.”

Susan just shook her head. “Too late, he’s gone.”

CHAPTER 3

***BLAKE***

Blake walked down the beach feeling guilty that he wasn’t enjoying the beauty around him, but knew that he’d never be able to relax until he knew for sure that it wasn’t Wren that he’d seen in the boat. Max ambled along next to him, not saying a word, but he knew that his friend thought that he’d lost his mind, and he was probably right, he might need professional help. That didn’t change the compulsion that wouldn’t leave him, so he’d headed for the water figuring that was his best chance of finding her.

“I’m sure you have other things to do,” he said, looking over at his friend. “You don’t have to babysit me, I’ll be fine on my own.”

“There’s always work to do,” Max said, shrugging his shoulders. “It can wait, I’m enjoying walking on the beach and watching you drive yourself crazy.”

“You’re just scared to leave me alone,” he said. “You’re afraid I’m going to do something stupid.”

“I’m your friend, Blake, I’m just trying to be here for you,” Max said. “If you don’t want company, just say so and I’ll leave you alone.”

“No, that’s not what I want. I’m sorry, I guess I’m just a little wound up,” he said. “This is the closest I’ve ever gotten to finding Wren. Deep down I know it’s probably not her, but a little part of me can’t stop hoping.”

“Hope can be a very powerful emotion,” Max said. “Let’s keep searching, I know you won’t be satisfied until you know one way or another.”

They walked on in silence and each time he saw someone on the beach, his heart skipped a beat, but it wasn’t until they were far from the village that he finally saw a redhead in the distance. Max saw the woman at the same time and turned to look over at him, raising his eyebrows in a silent question, but they were too far away from her to be sure, so he just shrugged and kept walking.

As the distance between them shrank, his heart began to pound with anticipation. Everything about her was right, including her height, hair color, and even the way she stood with her hands on her hips. Now that he was so close to finding the woman he’d dreamed about for six years, he suddenly realized he had no idea what he wanted to say to her. Anger, desire, and pain welled up inside him at once, making it hard to think.

Telling himself all he wanted was answers, he stomped toward the woman, desperate now to get the moment over, but when he stepped up to her and she turned around, it wasn’t Wren’s green eyes he was looking into. Disappointment crushed all the other emotions including his hope, and he stood staring at her, suddenly more tired than he’d ever been. Anger at himself rearing up, he took a deep breath, aware that the woman was staring at him, a touch of fear in her eyes.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you,” he said, backing away from her. “I thought you were someone else.”

“That’s okay,” the woman said, smiling at him. “No harm done.”

“Can I ask you a question?” he asked. “I’m not a stalker or anything, but I was wondering when you got here.”

The woman studied him for a second, “This morning,” she said. “My boyfriend and I snuck off for a long weekend. He’s taking a surfing lesson, and then he’s meeting me here.”

“Okay, well, thanks for being understanding,” he said, backing away. “I hope you enjoy your weekend.”

Max was waiting for him a few feet away. “I guess it wasn’t her,” he said, falling into step next to him. “I’m sorry Blake, I really am, I wanted it to be her, too.”

“Well, at least now I know that it wasn’t Wren and I can enjoy the rest of my trip without obsessing about her,” he said, sighing. “But I was really hoping…never mind, it doesn’t matter. Thanks for hanging in there with me. I think I’ll go back to my cabin and get settled in, and maybe go for a swim later.”

“Are you sure?” Max asked. “I can push work off for a few more hours, I haven’t given you a tour of the island yet, and you haven’t seen Keith yet. I thought we could head over there and say hello. You’re going to love his fiancé, she’s an engineer and smarter than all of us combined.”

“I can’t wait to meet her, but I think I need some time alone,” he said, feeling guilty. “Don’t worry about me, Max, I’ll be fine, I just need a chance to hit the reset button, I guess.”

“How about dinner at my cabin tonight?” Max asked. “I’ll invite Keith and Stella. We can grill some fish and watch the sunset. There’s lots of news to catch you up on since you never bother to text or call anymore.”

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