Page 11 of A Savior for the Arrogant Dragon

“You can’t really be this stupid,” Montgomery said, shaking his head. “Get out and help push the boat into the water, or go back to the village where you belong.”

“I’m just saying……” Simon tried to protest, then got out of the boat. “Okay, okay, tell me what to do.”

“Weaponized incompetence isn’t very sexy, not to a real woman,” she said, unable to keep her mouth shut. “Push the boat into the water, then jump in, genius.”

When they were finally underway, Simon let out a big sigh, “There’s nothing like being on the water,” he said. “Let’s really get this thing moving, I want to feel the wind whipping through my hair.”

“We’ve got to get the sails up first,” Montgomery said, then looked over at her. “Are you ready? Do you remember what I taught you to do this morning?”

She took a second to review the steps in her mind, then flashed him a big smile, “Aye, aye, captain,” she said, giving him a salute. “Let’s get this rusty bucket moving.”

Half an hour later, the sails were stiff in the wind, and the little boat was flying over the water. Kira was sitting at the tiller, listening to Montgomery explain how to steer the boat.Simon was lounging in the bow, stretched out with his feet up on the bench, his eyes closed, completely ignoring both of them, but she didn’t care. In fact, she was relieved he was out of the way and his mouth was shut.

“Okay, I’m going to turn her over to you,” Montgomery said, taking his hand off the tiller. “All you have to do is follow the course I’ve plotted. We shouldn’t have much company out here. A few fishing boats maybe, but you shouldn’t have to worry about running into them, they’ll be farther out to sea.”

Hand on the tiller, she felt the power of the water and the wind instantly, and looked over at Montgomery, “Oh, what an incredible feeling,” she said, a smile slowly spreading across her face. “It’s like we’ve harnessed the power of the Earth or something.”

He laughed, “That’s a good way to explain it. There’s nothing like the feeling when the wind takes the sails,” he said. “The first time I sailed a boat, I was hooked, and I haven’t been far from the water since then.”

The next hour flew by, and she was disappointed when Montgomery came to take the tiller again, “Your turn to man the sails,” he said, sitting down next to her. “If you’re up for it, that is.”

“You bet,” she said, getting to her feet. “Just tell me what to do. I’ve been watching you, so I think I got the idea.”

The boat rocked a little as she moved into position and Simon picked up his head, “What’s going on?” he asked, his voice husky with sleep, making her heart skip a beat. “Who’s rocking the boat? I was trying to sleep.”

“Sorry to disturb you, your highness,” she said, sitting down in the seat Montgomery had just vacated. “We’re out here to learn to sail, or did you forget that while you were sleeping?”

“I wasn’t sleeping, I was just restingmy eyes,” he said, sitting up and stretching, making a thrill rush through her and she forced herself to look away. “I was just letting you go first, I heard everything that went on. Can I have a turn at the tiller?”

She looked back at Montgomery, who didn’t look pleased with the idea, “I guess it wouldn’t hurt,” he said with a sigh. “But you listen to me, and you do what I say when I say it.”

“Aye, aye, captain,” Simon said, a grin on his face. “See, I was listening.”

But that didn’t last long. As soon as he was in control, he started complaining about the course Montgomery had planned. “Oh, come on, let’s go sail around the island or something. All this water is so boring,” he whined. “I don’t see why we can’t just change our direction and check out the island. I bet it looks really cool from the water.”

“Neither of you is ready to sail around the island. The wind does strange things when you get closer to the island,” Montgomery said. “We stay on the course we’re on. If you want to sign up for another lesson, and you’re on time, I might think about taking you around the island.”

CHAPTER 7

***SIMON***

It didn’t take Simon long to realize that he was enjoying himself, that there was a certain thrill to harnessing the power of the wind and water, and he forgot for a while about wanting to sail around the island. As he followed the path Montgomery set for them, he began to become more confident, sure that he’d mastered the art of sailing, and he began to get bored.

The idea of making a detour around the island began to look better and better to him. He could just see himself waving to all the pretty girls on the beach as they flew by, knowing that they’d come flocking to him when they landed. The thought was a balm to his wounded ego and as the fantasy unfurled in his mind, he became determined to see it through. It was the perfect way to attract the attention of the opposite sex on the island, and a smile slowly spread across his face when he realized he wouldn’t be going to bed alone that night.

Lost in the daydream, he didn’t notice that Montgomery and Kira had both gotten to their feet to check on a line, which was his first mistake. When he turned the tiller tohead back to the island, the boat spun around, and the sail was suddenly without any wind. It collapsed into the boat in a heap, covering them both. The boat came to a stop so suddenly it knocked him off the bench, then before any of them could recover, the wind took the sail again.

It unfurled so quickly that the boat surged forward through the water, the tiller flapping loosely, and took off without anyone steering it. Dazed and confused by what had just happened, it took him a second to untangle his arms and legs to crawl back up onto the bench. He looked around, relieved to see that Montgomery and Kira were both up on their feet and trying to tie down the sail.

Thinking he could help, he grabbed the tiller and turned the boat again, which was his second mistake, and the one that almost proved deadly. This time, instead of deflating with the change in the wind, the sail began to change direction, the big boom swinging across the deck, and he shouted out a warning. Montgomery was in a better position to duck, but Kira was standing on a bench reaching for a line and turned just in time to see the large piece of timber coming right at her.

Without even hesitating, she turned and dove into the water. The boom missed her by only inches, then with a huge snap, broke in half, and the sail came crashing down onto the deck again. Montgomery fought his way out of the sail, the words coming out of his mouth so vile, he was a bit shocked, then Simon heard Kira splashing around in the water, and it hit him that he’d almost killed her.

He started to rush over to where she’d gone into the water, but Montgomery turned to him, “Stay where you are,” he screamed. “I’ve got her. You’ve already done enough damage.”

Sitting down with a thud, he watched as Montgomery pulled Kira out of the water and back into the boat, theenormity of what he’d almost done slowly settling over him. He still didn’t move when Montgomery got a towel and started drying off Kira, who was panting. Her face was devoid of all color, and she had a shocked look on her face. When Montgomery finally turned away from her, the compassion drained from his face, replaced by a look of anger full of so much fire he shrank back on the seat.

“What the hell were you thinking?” Montgomery growled. “You could have killed Kira with that move.”

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