Page 29 of A First for the Playboy Dragon

“Good, they don’t know who they’re dealing with then. You did great, Juliet,” he said, then looked over at Max. “Are you ready for some fun?”

“Oh, yeah, I’m not about to let that scum have my island,” Max said. “What did you have in mind?”

“A lot of disinformation to start with,” he said. “We need to make a set of fake security plans. Juliet can hand them off to her brother tomorrow morning, and that will buy us some time to figure out how to defend the island and throw them off if they do show up.”

“Then we’d better get to work,” Max said, getting to his feet. “We can use my computer. I’ll go put on a pot of coffee and havesomeone bring some food up from the village. It’s going to be a long night.”

When he was gone, Harrison pulled Juliet onto his lap, and she snuggled into his arms with a sigh. “I’m really am sorry, Harrison, I never wanted to lie to you,” she said. “I almost ruined the best thing that has ever happened to me for my brother, and he didn’t even deserve it.”

“You did good, Juliet. There’s nothing to be sorry for,” he said, looking down at her. “You didn’t steal the plans, just my heart.”

She smiled up at him. “You’ve got mine too. That’s why it hurt so much when I thought I might lose you,” she said. “I promise there will never be any secrets between us again.”

“That’s a deal,” he said, then leaned down and kissed her until they were both breathless.

***Juliet***

Juliet took the zip drive from Harrison. “Remember, I’ll be right there the whole time,” he said. I’m sure he’s hiding out in your cabin because we couldn’t find him anywhere else in the village. Just give him the drive and let him go. I know how much he hurt you, but you have to make him believe that you’re cooperating. That’s the only way this will work.”

“I’ll be okay. I just want to get this over with, and then I never want to see my brother again,” she said. “I’ve spent too many years taking the blame for something that wasn’t my fault. I should have cut him loose a long time ago, but he was the only family I had.”

“I know how much that must hurt, sweetheart,” Harrison said, pulling her into his arms. “But we have each other now, anddon’t forget about Max and the guys, plus all their wives. You’ve got more family than you’re going to know what to do with.”

“Really?” she asked, intrigued by the idea. “I’ve been alone most of my life.”

“Those days are over, no more solitude for you,” Harrison said. “In fact, I think after you see your brother, we should go over to the other side of the island; I’ll introduce you to Keith and his wife, Stella. I think you two will get along great.”

Harrison’s faith in her made her feel stronger. “Okay, I think I’m ready,” she said. “Let’s get this over with.”

“You won’t be alone. I’ll be right there watching out for you,” Harrison said, then kissed her soundly. “Now off you go, don’t look for me, you won’t see me, but I’ll be there.”

The smell of coffee greeted her when she walked into the cabin, and a flare of anger made it hard to breathe for a second, but she sucked it down, remembering her role. “Joe, is that you?” she called. “I got what you wanted.”

“Well, how about that?” her brother said, walking out of the kitchen in only his pants. And here I thought you were completely worthless. Let’s just hope it’s enough to make Mr. Adaloni happy.”

She thrust the thumb drive at him, anger making it hard to breathe, but she was pleased to see her hands wern’t shaking. “Leave me out of this now,” she said, hoping she looked scared. “I just want to go home and back to my life.”

“Well, here’s the problem with that big sister. You’re much more useful to us right here,” he said. “I think you’ll need to stay for a few more days just in case we need more. After all, you’re sleeping with the head of security.”

“But Joe…” she tried, but he shook his head.

“A few more days, Juliet,” he said. “Mr. Adaloni’s orders, I’m afraid, nothing I can do about it.”

She watched her brother drain the coffee from his cup, set it down on a table, and then slowly get dressed. “I’ll be back, and next time I expect you to have some food here for me,” he said, getting to his feet. “Stay close to your rent-a-cop, I want to know what he’s up to.”

When the cabin door slammed behind Joe, she collapsed on the couch, only realizing then that she had been clenching her hands so tightly that her nails had left marks on her skin. It was impossible to stop the tears that rolled down her cheeks. The image of the sweet little boy Joe had once been swirling through her brain, but she reminded herself that boy was gone. Her brother was a terrible human being. She’d done her best for him, but it hadn’t been enough. He would never change, but it wasn’t her fault. She wasn’t to blame.

A few minutes later, there was a knock on her door, and she got up to answer it, wiping the tears from her face. “You did great,” Harrison said, pushing her back into the cabin and wrapping his arms around her. “He’s a cocky little jerk, isn’t he? He just walked out of here like he owned the island, not the least bit concerned that he might be seen. Max is following him right now. Are you okay?”

“I think so, I’m just…” she couldn’t finish, the tears welled up in her eyes, and she was sure she was going to cry.

“It’s okay to cry, Juliet, he’s your brother,” Harrison said, holding her tighter. “You’re going to have to grieve for his loss.”

When her grief was spent, she looked up at Harrison. “Do you feel better?” he asked, then smiled when she nodded. “Good, let’s get out of here. You need some sunshine and some food, and then we’ll go visit Stella and Keith.”

“What happens now?” she asked. “Do you really think they will attack the island?”

“It will take a couple of days for them to figure out the plans were fake,” he said. “I’ve called in some more men, and they’ll behere this afternoon. We’re going to keep the island well-guarded. If they do try to attack, I plan to have a few surprises for them. No one is going to take this island by force, you can be sure of that.”

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