Page 34 of A First for the Playboy Dragon

“Oh, I see,” she said. “How about if I bring it out here to you?”

“Now that could work,” Tom said, a smile spreading across his face. “Thank you.”

When she returned with the steaming cup, Tom took it with a grateful nod, downed in one gulp, and set the cup on the table next to his chair. “That hit the spot,” he said, grinning at her. “Now, back into the house with you. I’ve got to make my rounds, and don’t forget to lock the door after you get inside.”

She slipped back inside, went back to the kitchen, saw the mostly empty coffee pot, picked it up, deciding to refill Tom’s cup and throw the rest away. Opening the front door, she peeked outside, scooted over to the table, picked up the cup, and started filling it. It was only half full when the hairs on the back of her neck began to rise and she felt someone’s presence behind her.

Heart pounding, she stood there holding her breath. “Hello, sister dear,” Joe said, making her jump and the cup crashing onto the porch. “I looked for you in your cabin, but I guess I should have known you’d be here. Your bodyguard is taking a little nap. We should really get going.”

“I’m not going anywhere with you,” she said, edging toward the door. “Leave me alone Joe, it’s over.”

Her brother reached out and grabbed her by her hair and started dragging her toward the ladder. “Oh, it’s far from over, you owe us, Juliet,” he hissed at her. “Did you think we wouldn’t figure out that the plans were fake? Do you think I’m thatstupid? You’ve outlived your usefulness. It’s time we moved you on to a new assignment, but I'm afraid this one is a little more permanent.”

“Joe, what are you talking about?” she asked, trying to stall, but he kept dragging her over to the ladder. “I’m your sister. Doesn’t that mean anything?”

“Get down there, or I’ll throw you down,” he said, giving her a shove and pulling out a gun. “A few broken bones won’t lower your price at auction. We’re going to make a nice profit on you, and you’ll finally get what you deserve.”

With no other choice she went down the ladder, then started walking, the gun digging into her back, but she shuffled her feet hoping Harrison would come. “Joe, please don’t do this,” she begged, icy tendrils of fear beginning to take over the closer they got to the shore. “Have you really become this kind of person? We’re family, don’t you remember?”

“Family?” he snarled at her. “You left me, Juliet, you abandoned me to that family. They beat me, did you know that? You should have just slept with that guy, then everything would have been fine, but now you’re going to get a chance to make it up to me. Who knows, maybe you’ll be lucky, and some sheik will take a liking to you; living out the rest of your life in a harem wouldn’t be so bad.”

It was all she could do not to cry, but she wasn’t going to give Joe the satisfaction. Instead, when they reached the boat, she climbed in without a word, surprised to see six other women. “This is going to be one of the biggest hauls we’ve ever had,” the man at the helm said. “Six hours from now, we’re going to be rolling in dough.”

“Not if we get caught,” Joe said, shoving her into a seat. “Get us the hell out of here.”

She closed her eyes, fighting the panic that was slowly building up inside her, then forced herself to think aboutHarrison, hoping it would calm her down. Focusing all her energy on him, she visualized his face, thought about how wonderful it felt to be in his arms, then let the memories of their night together play out in her brain. The world around her faded away as she lost herself in the comfort of the bond they shared, the warmth of their love slowly warming her up from the inside out, and she knew in that instant that he would come for her. She just had to be ready when he did.

CHAPTER 21

***HARRISON***

Harrison was assembling the final piece of the boobytrap he’d been working on when the feeling that something wasn’t right slowly began to settle over him. Looking up from his work, he scanned the beach around him but couldn’t see anything out of the ordinary. He went back to his task, with a little smile on his face as he imagined what would happen when the bomb was activated. After tightening down the last screw, he took a second to study his handiwork, pleased with the result, then reached for the parts for the next one.

He froze with his hands hovering over the table, the feeling of doom back again, but this time, Juliet popped into his head as a blast of warmth so powerful it made him begin to sweat rushed through him. The dragon inside him was instantly awake, releasing a burst of magic. His protective instincts roared to life, and he turned from the table, looking for his radio, sure that something was wrong with Juliet.

It crackled to life before he could get to it and Tom’s voice came over the speaker. “Mayday, mayday,” he said. “The subject is missing.”

Grabbing the radio, hands shaking, he tried to control the fear and panic shooting through him. “Where is she?” he barked. “What the hell happened?”

“Someone attacked me from behind,” Tom said. “He grabbed Juliet, but I came too soon enough to follow them. They’re headed for the shore, and I can see a boat waiting for them. I need backup right away.”

“I want everyone to report to Tom’s position,” he growled. “Tom, don’t let that boat out of your sight; I want thirty-second updates until I get there.”

Tom rattled off his location, but Harrison was already in motion, Max and Keith right behind him. “We’ll get to her in time,” Max said. “I know that cove; there’s a shortcut we can take.”

Without a word, he let Max take the lead, and they shot through the jungle, each letting their magic flow until the power could be felt growing all around them. Thanks to their extra speed and strength, they reached the shore just as Tom did, but the boat was already speeding away from the island. He could see Juliet seated with a group of women, and rage exploded inside him when he realized what was happening; the urge to kill almost overwhelmed him as he watched the boat head for open water.

He turned back to his friends, frantic to save Juliet. “We can’t let them get away, I’ll never see her again,” he said. “We have to do something.”

Max and Keith looked at each other, then back at him. “I’ll swim out in front of the boat. It should slow them down when I come up out of the water,” Keith said. “The rest is going to be up to the two of you.”

“We’ll get them all,” Max said, a fierce look on his face. “It’s time to show them who they’re dealing with.”

“Agreed,” he said, letting his magic closer to the surface, preparing himself for a full shift. “I’m going to kill Juliet’s brother. That’s a message they won’t be able to ignore.”

“Harrison…” Max started, but his words died away when he saw the look on Harrison’s face. “Do what you have to.”

Keith was already wading into the waves, the air around him shimmering, then he dove under, and Harrison felt the surge of magic when his dragon emerged. There was only a ripple on the water's surface as Keith shot toward the boat, his tail emerging occasionally, but only someone who knew to look would have noticed. Knowing their timing was critical, he and Max stood on the shore, keeping their magic under the surface, waiting for the perfect moment.

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