Page 1 of A Savior for the Arrogant Dragon

PROLOGUE

It was another beautiful morning in the tropics. The sun was shining, there wasn’t a cloud in the sky, and the ocean was peaceful as it rolled onto the beach in perfect waves. Maxwell St. Clair stood watching it all from the front porch of his cabin, like a king surveying his kingdom, thinking about how much his life had changed, and for the better. When he’d come up with the plan to build a resort on the island, he’d seen Heart of the Ocean only as a means to an end, but the place had begun to feel like home. It was only natural, he decided; after all he’d spent the last year of his life bringing his dream to life on the island, so his attachment shouldn’t be a surprise.

Going back inside his cabin, he refilled his coffee cup from the pot in the small kitchen, then headed to his room to shower and get dressed. It was going to be another busy day, just the way he liked it, but today, Simon would arrive with a group of new guests, and he wanted to get a jump on the day so he could have time to catch up with him when he got there later that afternoon.

Only the second to visit of the seven men he considered not only his best friends but also his family, he wondered how the visit would go, especially after what had happened to Theo just a few weeks before. Not that Theo’s trip had ended badly; he’d left the island married, the first one of them to take the plunge, and he’d been ridiculously happy with his new bride. It was just what happened before that point that left him unsettled. Reminding himself he wasn’t going to think about Theo and Eden’s trip back in time, he pushed it from his mind and got ready for the day.

When he walked out of his cabin, he wasn’t surprised to find Mateo standing on the path to the village waiting for him, but he still let out a long sigh of frustration. Government-appointed guardian of the island, the man had been a thorn in his side since day one, and he’d only gotten more annoying since Theo’s stay. Dealing with the man and his superstitions was a distraction he didn’t need that morning, especially when he was trying not to think about the strange occurrences a few weeks before.

“Today is the day your friend arrives, isn’t it?” Mateo asked, falling into step next to him. “I’m looking forward to meeting him.”

“He’s nothing like Theo, so don’t get your hopes up,” he said. “Simon won’t be falling in love while he’s here, and that will prove to you that I’m right. This island is only a piece of land. It’s not magical or mystical, or whatever you always call it.”

Mateo shook his head, “I can see that you’re still in denial, so I won’t waste my breath telling you again that you don’t belong here,” he said. “I just hope this time nothing goes wrong. It was a close call last time; this island… well, it has ideas of its own……”

“You just said you weren’t going to lecture me, yet here you are doing it,” he said. “I’ve got a lot of work to do today before Simon gets here. Is there something you needed?”

“Nope, just thought I’d check in. We haven’t seen each other for a couple of days,” Mateo said, shrugging his shoulders. “It almost felt like you were avoiding me, but I know that can’t be true. Anyway, I’ll be in the village all day, I’ve got a few packages coming in on one of the boats, it might even be Simon’s boat.”

“I’m warning you right now, you won’t like Simon, he’s a stuck-up rich boy who uses his looks to get what he wants,” he said. “We just put up with him because……well, I’m not sure why we put up with him.”

Mateo looked amused, “Well, this should be interesting,” he said. “I hope you warned your friend.”

“I did no such thing, and don’t you dare start telling him those legends about the island,” he said, coming to the end of his patience. “What happened to Theo was strange, but it wasn’t……well……it won’t happen again.”

Mateo shrugged, “You can keep telling yourself that, my friend,” he said. “But it won’t make it true.”

CHAPTER 1

***SIMON***

Simon trudged a few more steps down the dock, let the heavy bags drop from his hands with a thump, then stood with sweat dripping down his face, trying to catch his breath. When the tropical sun began to make him hotter, he picked up the bags with a groan and started off again, cursing Max under his breath and wondering if his friend had lost his mind. When he finally reached the slip, he dropped the luggage again and stood staring at the boat he was supposed to take to the island, this time wondering if he’d lost his mind for agreeing to come on this trip.

Digging in his pocket, he pulled out the instructions Max had given him, looked at the slip number, then back up at the post on the dock, letting out a little groan. Just then a man came up the stairs from the cabin, “Oh, hey there, you must be Simon,” the man said. “I’m Montgomery, your captain for the day. Come on aboard and we can get underway.”

He could only stare at the man, trying to decide if Max was playing a joke on him, if his friend actually expected him to trust his life to a man with dreadlocks, dressed in a ratty tee-shirt and a pair of cutoffs with his life. “You’re thecaptain?” he finally asked, then looked at the boat again. “You can’t honestly be planning to take this tiny boat out into the ocean. This must be a joke or something.”

The smile disappeared from Montgomery’s face, “No, this isn’t a joke, and this isn’t a tiny boat,” he said, clearly offended. “She’s thirty feet with four engines across the back, perfect for navigating the waters around the island, and you won’t find a better boat anywhere in the islands. Besides, we’re not allowed to dock anything bigger on the island, so it’s this or nothing.”

He could feel the sweat pooling under his arms, only adding to his frustration, “Fine, if I don’t have any choice,” he said. “Help me with these bags, and find me something cold to drink. It must be a million degrees out here.”

Montgomery stared at him for a second, “Well, hand them over,” he finally said, holding out his hands. “I’m not coming to get them, if that’s what you were thinking. A captain never leaves his boat.”

He let out a huff of annoyance but picked up the bags, carried them over to the boat, handed them over, nearly tipping himself into the water, and then jumped on board. “I hope this isn’t what my whole stay is going to be like,” he snapped, falling onto a padded seat. “Hurry, I need something to drink, something very cold. I’m melting in this heat.”

“There’s a cooler under your seat, help yourself,” Montgomery said, shaking his head. “You do know how to open a cooler, don’t you?”

A bit shocked by the man’s tone, he didn’t move for a second, then gave him a dirty look, got back to his feet, and retrieved a cold bottle of water. After he’d downed half of it, he waved his hand in the air, “Well, get on with it,” he said. “I didn’t come all this way just to sit in the marina.”

“Right away, sir, right away,” Montogomery said, a hard edge to his voice. “I wouldn’t want to keep you waiting.”

Any reply he would have made was drowned out by the sound of the engines coming to life, and he was forced to bite back the threat to have the man fired that was on the tip of his tongue. He sat staring at the back of the man’s head instead, stewing over his rudeness. He expected the boat to roar off with the engines on full throttle, but they pulled away from the dock and putted along past all the other boats at an embarrassing speed. For a while he tried to enjoy the scenery, but one tropical island was the same as the next, and he found himself getting bored.

After shifting restlessly for a few seconds, he got up and made his way to the jump seat next to the helm, “Can’t this thing go any faster?” he asked. “At this speed it will take us all afternoon to get out of the marina.”

“It’s a no wake zone, I can’t go faster,” Montgomery said, not bothering to look at him. “Why don’t you go sit back down? I’ve got this under control, just relax and enjoy the scenery or something.”

“Maybe I want to enjoy the scenery from up here,” he said, crossing his arms over his chest. “Max could have at least provided me some company. A pretty face in a skimpy bathing suit would have made this trip a lot more pleasant. Instead, it’s just you and me, and frankly, you’re a bit rude.”

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