Page 4 of A First for the Playboy Dragon

She’d just pulled her long hair back into a ponytail when her phone began to ring. For a moment, she couldn’t remember where it was and had to follow the sound back into the living room, where she’d dropped her purse. The phone had stopped ringing before she could get it out, but as soon as it was in her hands, it began to chirp again, and she quickly connected the call.

“I’ve been trying to call you for hours,” her brother said before she could even greet him. “Have you been ignoring me? You better not have chickened out, or I’m a dead man.”

“Joe, calm down, I just got here, I didn’t chicken out,” she said. “I didn’t answer my phone because I was in the middle of the ocean, and there’s no cell service out there. I’m surprised this call even went through.”

“I can’t calm down, my life is at stake here. Mr. Adaloni is getting impatient, it’s already taking too long,” her brother said. “I need those pictures, and I need them now.”

“Joe, you know I couldn’t just walk away from my job. I have a life too, you know,” she said. “I’m doing the best that I can.”

“Oh, yes, your life, how could I have forgotten?” her brother sneered. “Your life was always more important than mine. Youwere always the perfect foster child, I was always the bad one. You never defended me, you never took my side. I guess nothing has changed, only this time it’s not going to cost me a beating, it’s going to cost me my life.”

Guilt radiated through her, her brother’s words striking home just like he intended, and she had to take a deep breath to get it under control. “I’ve bailed you out of trouble so many times, Joe,” she said. “This has to be the last time I come to your rescue. You have to promise me that you’re done with this life. I don’t want to lose you, but I can’t keep disrupting my life to save you.”

“This is the last time, Juliet, I promise. Just do this one last thing for me and I’ll get clean,” Joe said. “I really want to. I don’t want to live like this anymore. I’m scared sissy, I don’t want to die.”

She let out a sigh, remembering the little boy Joe used to be. “I’ll have something for you by tomorrow night,” she said. “That’s the best I can do.”

“That’s great, Mr. Adaloni will be pleased,” Joe said. “You’re the best sister a guy could have.”

CHAPTER 3

***HARRISON***

When he got back to his cabin, Harrison put the flowers in water, then forced himself to sit down at his computer and begin working on the security plans for the island. At first, it was hard to concentrate, and it was frustrating that it wasn’t Claudia he found himself thinking about, but after a few false starts, he managed to get to work. He didn’t surface for several hours, and when he finally looked up at the clock, he was surprised to see what time it was. Pleased with what he’d accomplished, he got up and stretched his cramped muscles, deciding that he needed a break.

He still had a few major issues to figure out. A walk always helped when he was faced with an especially difficult problem, and the coves were a huge problem, especially with the restrictions Mateo had put on him. Grabbing his sunglasses and a water bottle, he left the cabin, then stood on the porch of his cabin, trying to decide if he wanted to hike or just wander around the island a bit. Choosing the latter, his date with Claudia in the back of his mind, he started for the village, wondering what the dark-haired beauty was doing right then, a pleasant stab of lust erupting in his belly.

With a smile of anticipation on his face, he took the first trail he came to, not paying attention to where he was going as he enjoyed the fantasy that popped into his mind. He didn’t see Juliet until it was too late and slammed into her, knocking the camera she’d been looking through to the ground and throwing her off balance, making her stumble back a couple of steps. Reaching out, he grabbed her and pulled her into his arms to keep her from falling. She let out a little gasp of surprise, then looked up at him through her thick glasses.

When their eyes met, a feeling of warmth instantly began to flow through him. He knew that he should let her go, but his arms wouldn’t move. Alarm bells going off in his head, he willed his arms to move, but he was trapped in her blue eyes, frozen by the strange sensation that he was finally home. Juliet finally broke the spell by wiggling out of his arms and backing away a few steps, her breath coming in little gasps, a look of shock on her face.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t see you. I should have been paying more attention to where I was going,” he said, walking over to the camera and picking it up, hoping to hide his reaction from her. “I hope it’s not broken.”

He held the camera out to her, but Juliet didn’t move at first, just studied him warily as if she was afraid to get too close to him. “I’m sure it’s fine,” she said, reaching out and grabbing the camera without getting any closer than necessary. “It doesn’t look broken.”

“Well, if it is, I’ll cover the damages,” he said. “It was my fault.”

“Oh, that’s okay, it’s just a cheap digital camera,” she said. “But thanks for the offer…I’m sorry, I don’t know your name.”

“It’s Harrison. I guess I didn’t introduce myself earlier today,” he said. “There was so much else going on.”

“Thank you again for jumping in and saving me,” she said, a blush spreading across her cheeks. “I’m still embarrassed, but I’m glad you were there.”

Her words touched something deep inside him, awakening the creature that lived there, and he had to swallow several times to find his voice. “I’m glad I was there too,” he said, a smile slowly spreading across his face. “Any time you need rescuing, just give me a call. It’s what I do best.”

“I’ll remember that,” Juliet said, her voice shaking just a little. “I guess I should get back to my picture taking. It won’t be long before the sun sets, and I don’t have a flash on this thing.”

“I should probably go too,” he said, not wanting to let her go but unable to think of a reason to stay with her. “Have a nice evening, Juliet.”

“You too, Harrison,” she croaked, then turned and fled down the trail, but not before he saw the blush that spread across her cheeks.

He stood and watched her retreating until she disappeared into the trees. Then, with a shake of his head, he headed for the village, wondering what was wrong with him. Juliet was the complete opposite of the women he was usually attracted to. She was clearly innocent and had possibly even been hurt badly by someone close to her. He avoided wounded women like the plague, knew that they were a danger to him he couldn’t afford, but this one pulled on his instincts and made him want to protect her.

Claudia was a much safer choice, a strong, independent woman who didn’t need him for anything but the pleasure and companionship he could give her. There would be no messy feelings to worry about with her. They’d have their fun then go their separate ways, just the way he liked it. But for the first time, thinking about the night to come didn’t wind him up the way it usually did. In fact, it all felt a little bit empty.

Shocked and a bit annoyed by the path of his thoughts, he looked around to find that he’d reached the village and paused, wondering what he was doing there. He didn’t have time to answer his own question; Claudia came racing up to him, her face full of excitement, and he forced himself to smile at her.

“Harrison, there you are. I’ve been looking everywhere for you,” she said. “I just got the best news. We just got a big break on that case I’ve been working on, a new witness just came forward. It looks like we’re going to nail that bastard after all.”

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