Page 6 of A First for the Playboy Dragon

Juliet froze with her fork halfway to her mouth. “There’s security on the island?” she said, looking around. “You mean cameras and stuff like that?”

“No, the government in Bermuda won’t let me use any or make any significant changes to the island,” he said, shaking his head. “It’s going to be a challenge, but I like nothing more than solving difficult problems.”

Juliet looked relieved and then returned to her food, but he noticed she was just pushing the food around on her plate. “Is there something wrong with the food?” he asked. “I hope I didn’t upset you. The island really is a safe place. Max has just had a few isolated problems, it’s nothing you should worry about.”

“The food is great, I guess I just wasn’t as hungry as I thought I was,” she said. “It’s been a long day. I probably should think about heading back to my cabin soon.”

“You really should try to eat something, even if you’re tired. You’re going to need your energy tomorrow,” he said. “I’m sure you have something exciting planned, there are so many fun things to do around here.”

A brief look of panic appeared on her face, but she quickly took a bite of her food, then chewed it slowly as if stalling for time. “I was thinking about heading down to the beach with my camera,” she said, shrugging her shoulders. “I bet I could get some great shots of the ocean and stuff.”

He sensed that something was off but couldn’t put his finger on what it was. Her answer was perfectly reasonable. “Are you a photographer?” he asked. “Or is it just a hobby?”

“I’m definitely not a professional,” she said with a little laugh. “I’m an elementary school teacher. I’ve been teaching fourth grade for the last few years.”

He studied her for a second, “I can see that,” he said, deciding that it fit. “You look like a teacher.”

“I’m not sure if I should be insulted or not,” she said, a little smile on her face that made her eyes sparkle. “But I think I’ll take it as a compliment. I had to work really hard to get my degree.”

“I bet your family is really proud of you,” he said, digging just a little more. “Teaching isn’t for everyone.”

“I don’t really have any family. My parents were killed when I was seven,” she said, beginning to look uncomfortable again. “I was raised in foster homes until I turned eighteen, but I don’t really like to talk about that. It wasn’t really a good time in my life.”

“I’m sorry, Juliet,” he said, meaning it. “I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable, I just wanted to find out more about you.”

“That’s okay, you didn’t know,” she said, relaxing again. “As soon as I tell most people, they change the subject, it makes them uncomfortable. I guess I’ve just gotten used to keeping it to myself.”

He reached out and took her hand, “I know we don’t know each other very well,” he said. “But I’m not most people, Juliet. I’m well aware of what a cruel place the world can be. If you ever want to talk about it, I’m here to listen. Keeping all that bottled up inside you isn’t good for you.”

“Thank you, Harrison,” she said, then sighed. “But I’m not going to dump my problems on you. That wouldn’t be fair.”

“Maybe instead, you could walk me home,” he said, then laughed when he saw the look on her face. “Well, you won’t let me walk you home, so I figured you could walk me.”

For the first time since he’d met her, Juliet laughed, and her entire face lit up. “I guess it would be okay if you want to walk me back to my cabin,” she said, her eyes meeting his and makinghis body do strange things again. “Thank you for dinner. It really was good, even if I didn’t eat all of it.”

“It was my pleasure,” he said, realizing that he meant it. “I’ll just get this all cleaned up, and then we can go.”

“I’ll help,” Juliet said, jumping to her feet. “At least there aren’t any dishes to do, I hate doing dishes. It’s my least favorite chore.”

***Juliet***

Moonlight illuminated the path as they walked toward her cabin, but Juliet still kept her head down, watching every step she took, so nervous her insides were churning dangerously. Not only had she not realized that there was security on the island, but her attraction to Harrison had also gotten out of control, making her imagine things that weren’t there. The man was not attracted to her, he was just being nice. He hadn’t wanted to have dinner with her, she’d been a convenient companion when his other plans fell through.

She was behaving like a silly girl on her first date and it wasn’t even a date, just two adults having dinner together, nothing more. If Harrison flirted with her a bit, that was just the kind of guy he was. She’d be an idiot to read anything into it, and would only open herself up to heartache and embarrassment if she continued thinking the way she that she was.

The truth was, she should be thankful that he’d decided to spend time with her. He could give her a lot of useful information that she could pass on to her brother if she could just control herself and not scare him off. The thought of using Harrison to help her brother made her feel a little sick, but she really didn’t have any choice if she wanted to save him from the mess he’d made of his life.

“Here we are, home sweet home,” Harrison said, pulling her out of her thoughts. She looked up to find they were standing at the bottom of the ladder that led up to her cabin. “I’d walk you to the door, but it might be easier to say goodnight from here.”

“You didn’t have to walk me this far, but it was nice of you,” she said, finally brave enough to look up at him. “Thank you for sharing your dinner with me. It was nice not to eat alone for a change.”

She winced at how pathetic she sounded, but Harrison just smiled at her. “I know what you mean,” he said. “Eating alone can be more of a chore than a pleasure, so I should thank you. I had fun tonight, Juliet. I know things got a little serious there for a bit, but I enjoyed talking to you.”

She hated the thrill that shot through her, hated the excitement that erupted inside her and reminded herself that he was just being nice. “I had fun too, but it’s getting late,” she said. “I should probably go inside now. I’ve got an early morning tomorrow, and I need to get some sleep.”

“I guess it is getting late,” Harrison said, studying her a little too closely. “If this were a date, I would be wondering if I should kiss you right now.”

It was impossible to cover her little gasp completely, but she recovered quickly. “I know this wasn’t a date, Harrison,” she said. “You don’t have to worry about it.”

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