Page 1 of Secrets of the Dragon's Heart

PROLOGUE

Max sat staring out at the ocean in the darkness, stars glimmering in the sky above his head, the moon slowly beginning to rise over the water, but he didn’t see any of the beauty of his island home; he was lost in a funk of self-doubt and confusion. His dream of running a successful island resort had come true, but he could no longer ignore all the strange, wonderful, and, at times, slightly frightening things that had been happening over the last few months. It appeared as if trouble seemed to find its way to the island, especially where his friends were concerned, and he was both excited and wary about Cameron coming to the island.

One by one, his oldest and closest friends had come to visit, and one by one, they’d had strange experiences that couldn’t be explained that resulted in each of them falling in love and getting married, three of them right there on the island. He’d done his best to deny, explain away, and ignore all the unexpected things that had happened until recently, when he’d been forced to admit that something was going on with the island. If that wasn’t bad enough, he was going tohave to admit to Mateo, the appointed guardian of the island, that he’d been right, that the island was special.

Of course, that’s as far as he planned to go. He wasn’t going to admit that building the resort had been a bad idea, and he wasn’t going to give Mateo that much satisfaction. Nothing truly terrible had happened to any of his friends. In fact, all of them would say that the island was a wonderful place. A few might even, at this point, say that the island saved their lives.

Letting out a long sigh, he started to get to his feet, but then saw a long figure walking down the beach toward him. “You’re up late.” Mateo said, sinking down next to him on the sand. “I thought you’d already be in bed. Isn’t your friend Cameron due to arrive tomorrow?”

“Yeah, and I guess that’s what’s got me worried,” he said, then looked over at Mateo. “I’ve been thinking about telling him not to come, not with the way things have been going around here.”

Mateo’s face looked surprised. “Are you finally ready to admit that I was right?” he asked. “This island has a mind of its own. It affects people and their lives. You never should have built the resort here.”

He was silent for a second. “I might be ready to agree that the island is special,” he said. “But I still think the resort was a good idea. I just don’t know if my friends should visit anymore. Haven’t you noticed all the strange things only happen to them and no one else?”

“That little fact had crossed my mind,” Mateo said, then looked over at him. “I find it utterly fascinating, I just wish I could figure out what the connection between all of you is. I don’t think it’s your friendship, as close as you all seem, I don’t think that’s enough. There has to be something else, something more we haven’t figured out.”

Max had a pretty good idea what that something was, buthe wasn’t about to tell Mateo their secret; he couldn’t tell a regular human what he and his friends could do. “Well, I wish I knew,” he said with a big sigh. “It’s probably too late to tell Cameron not to come, and he probably wouldn’t listen anyway. He’s convinced everything that’s been happening can be explained by science.”

Mateo snorted. “He may have a big surprise coming then,” he said. “But at least he’s been warned.”

“A lot of good that will do. There’s nothing I can do now but hope that Cameron’s visit is nice and quiet, that the island behaves itself,” he said, getting to his feet and dusting the sand off his shorts. “I think I’ll try to get some sleep, but you should do the same.”

CHAPTER 1

Cameron walked down the dock in Bermuda, barely noticing the warm breeze blowing in from the ocean or the crystal blue water. Instead, all he could think about was his friend Max and his sudden change in attitude, a shocking turn of events that left him not only exasperated, but wondering what had gotten into his friend to make him suddenly lose control of his ability to reason.

Besides himself, Max had always been the most rational of their little group, the one most likely to discard any idea of the paranormal, superstition, or magic, and believed just as he did that their abilities streamed from something in their DNA. He was always the first in any discussion to refute the old legends, the first to argue that science was the only explanation for what they were capable of doing. The eight of them had spent many a long night locked away in the house they shared during college, arguing the origins of their gift, and while they’d never been able to agree, he and Max had always been on the same side.

Now, he wasn’t so sure. The last phone call he’d had with Max had been alarming. He seemed like a changed man, a bitunhinged, if he was being totally honest. He went off about native tribes taking over the islands, Simon turning ugly, a gangster finding his way ashore, and a long story about Archie having a shared dream with a woman. His friend had been rambling the whole time, making little sense, and he was truly worried about him.

Of course, Max’s little…breakdown couldn’t have come at a worse time. He was so close to a breakthrough he could almost taste his victory, so close to finally showing his father what he’d been telling him for years. Then he’d be free, the only thing he’d wanted since the day he realized that his life wasn’t his own, that clan loyalty and a debt to his parents that he could never repay would rule his life. Taking a deep breath and pushing away the panic that started to form in the pit of his stomach at the thought of what his life would become if he didn’t prove that the ability to shift was nothing more than a few slight alterations in their DNA.

Forcing himself not to think about his problems, he turned his thoughts back to Max. He was here to help his friend, here to talk some sense into him. Islands didn’t affect people’s lives. They didn’t make them fall in love; it was just a piece of land, not a living, breathing thing. The whole idea was crazy, and he intended to make sure that Max was back to his usual rational self before the two weeks he was supposed to stay were up, even if he had to beat it into him.

He realized with a start that he’d reached the slip where he was supposed to meet the boat that would take him to the island and looked behind him, wondering how he’d found his way there. It wasn’t the first time something like that had happened to him; he often found himself somewhere with little memory of how he got there and admonished himself for letting it happen again.

“Hey there, you must be Cameron,” a man said, steppingoff the boat. “I’m Montgomery, your captain for the day. Come on aboard. Do you need some help with your bags?”

He’d packed light for the trip since socializing wasn’t on his agenda. “No, I’m good. I just have this one suitcase and my computer bag,” he said, jumping on board. “I’d like to stow it down below if possible just in case. I don’t want my computer getting wet.”

“Sure, no problem,” Montgomery said. “We won’t be taking off for a few minutes. We’re waiting on another guest, and she’s running a little late.”

“Oh, I hope it won’t be long,” he said, a bit disappointed. “I’m anxious to see Max. He hasn’t seemed himself lately, he’s been…”

He let his words trail off, realizing that he was talking to one of Max’s employees, but the man didn’t miss a beat. “The island changes people,” he said, shrugging his shoulders. “Usually for the best, so I wouldn’t worry too much.”

The man’s words surprised him, then made him curious, but before he could open his mouth, a woman came hurrying down the dock toward them. The question he was about to ask faded from his brain as a strange feeling slowly spread through him, and he could only stand there and stare at her. The woman stopped next to the boat, a big smile on her face, her hair a riot of blonde curls that framed her face and showed off a pair of blue eyes the same color as the sea around then.

Slightly breathless, he didn’t move as she threw her bags onto the deck, then jumped on like she’d spent her life on boats. When she sat down across from him, she gave him a big smile. “Isn’t this amazing,” she said, her voice bubbly. “I’m so excited to be here. I’ve heard so much about the island. I was so ready for a vacation. It’s been forever since I’ve been able to get away, and of course, I’ve never been to any placelike Heart of the Ocean. My vacations usually involve a trip to the lake a few miles from home.”

The woman had stopped talking and was looking at him expectantly, but he discovered that he wasn’t capable of speech, thanks to the attraction that suddenly flooded his system. Having never reacted to a woman the way he was right at that moment, he had no idea how to shut down the desire that was racing through him, making his body begin to tingle and tighten.

Knowing that he had to get control of himself and say something, he took a deep breath and blurted out the first thing that popped into his head. “My friend Max owns the resort,” he said. “He thinks it makes people fall in love.”

The woman stared at him for a second, then burst out laughing, surprising him. “If that was a pick-up line,” she finally said, “you really need to work on it.”

***Kennedy***

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