Luck of the Dragon

being the mate of a dragon? The throbbing in her shoulder spread until her throat seemed constricted in a vise.

Pulling in deep breaths, she held them, and then exhaled them slowly. Alec’s bedroom was done in elegant blue and gray colors—no doubt, intended to provide a peaceful respite for the casino owner, who also happened to be a beast.

Dammit. Dammit. Dammit.

The panic rose like bile in her throat. She went for the soothing “P” words: pallbearer, palpitate, panic, paradox, perverse, psychotic, piranha, pummel, pyrrhic…

When she was calmer, she slipped out of the bed. Nudging the curtains apart, she focused on the twenty or so “people” setting up for an outdoor party. Arena-like seating surrounded a microphone and stage, several bars clustered between palm trees, and couches nestled off to the side around fire pits.

All the better to eat you with, my dear.

She considered waving for help, but the people up here wouldn’t help her. They would be like the doctor. They would be Alec’s dragon minions. The irony of being held in the tine of a golden crown—a literal gilded cage —made her crush the soft curtain in her hand.

Lucy tiptoed to a corner of the bedroom and angled her body where she could see the bedroom door. She dialed Joey’s cell number from the doctor’s phone. “Joey,” she whispered when he answered.

“Who is this?” Joey’s voice was surly.

“It’s Lucy.”

“Lucy, where the hell are you? Have you seen Gino?” Joey didn’t pause to give her a chance to answer. “The gem exhibit burned, and the fire department and police have been all over it. They’ve moved the gems somewhere—you have to find out where.”

“Joey, stop talking.” Lucy took a breath, but he didn’t interrupt her again. “I’m being held prisoner by Alec Gerald. You have to get me out of here.”

“Does he know about the gem heist?”

“No. I’m in a tower on top of the casino, in Alec’s suite. I need some clothes and shoes.”

Silence.

“Joey?” Her voice trembled.

“Let me get this straight,” Joey said after a short pause. “You’re in Gerald’s suite, without clothes, and you want me to come get you?” He exhaled loudly. “Are you kidding me? I still can’t close my hand from that knife Gino put in it. These guys are going to kill us if we don’t deliver on the exhibit.”

“Joey, Gino is dead, you don’t have to worry about him anymore. This is way bigger than the exhibit. Alec is a dragon. They’re all dragons…” Lucy couldn’t keep the near hysteria from her voice.

She heard Joey’s sharp, incredulous laugh. “You’ve got to be shittin’ me.” Joey laughed again and Lucy realized he thought she was looped. “Luce, look, find out where the jewels are. We have a suite, 504. We’re all ready to go. We just need to know where the jewels are. I’ll handle the rest.”

“Joey, I need your help.” Her voice broke.

“Look, sis, I’m glad you’re getting your rocks off while my ass is on the line, but these guys are after a different kind of rocks, if you know what I mean.”

Lucy slid down the wall until she sat on the carpet, holding her bent legs to her chest. A fine trembling started at her shoulders and spread to her tailbone, so that her knees knocked and her whole body shuddered. Joey didn’t believe her. All he cared about was the robbery. Nothing else mattered to him.

Not even her…

Her heart hurt like an anvil crushed it, and her back teeth banged against each other. Determinedly, she clenched her jaw, but the air around her was too thin and too cold. She could have been stranded at the top of Mount Everest—without oxygen and freezing—abandoned by the one person she thought she could always count on.

Tears she had been holding in check flooded Lucy’s eyes and trickled down her cheeks. Angrily, she wiped them away with the back of her hand. If she could just get Joey away from Vegas, clear his head, start over.

Start fresh.

But she didn’t know where Alec’s exhibit gems were. All she knew about was his private vault. Her heart stilled. The Padma sapphire would convince Joey to leave with her. She could pretend to go along with the whole dragon thing and get the sapphire.

Then Joey would leave with her.

“I know where a huge uncut sapphire is.” Her words were high and tight. The survivor part of her mind screamed that this wasn’t a well-thought-out plan. The recently seduced woman screamed that Alec would never forgive her and would likely hunt her to the ends of the earth. The abandoned sister ignored the warnings and went with the only available solution to save Joey. “It’s worth millions. I can get it. If you’ll leave Vegas with me. But it has to be today.”

“How many millions?” Joey’s voice was suspicious.

“Four to five if it’s cut right.” Lucy’s heart squeezed with a painful burst of conscience, which she plowed through. “No more gambling and illegal scores. You have to promise me for real this time.”

“Sis, these guys don’t negotiate—”

“It’s not for them! It’s for us. We walk out of here together and get on a plane to Brazil.”

“Brazil?” He was thinking about it, and Lucy’s heart skipped a hopeful beat. “What’s in Brazil?”

“Beautiful ladies and beaches.” Lucy painted the picture with the-easy-life brush strokes. “I’ve contacts there. We can start over.”

“You’re trying to bribe me, aren’t you?”

“Absolutely.” Lucy had no qualms about being transparent. “I’ll get you the stone and find a buyer, but you have to leave with me today. Those are my terms.”

Joey was silent. He’d want it all, the sapphire and the exhibit jewels. He was always all- in from the first card.

That was why he always lost.

“Joey, you’ll never be able to get the jewels from the exhibit. They’ll be cleaned and checked for damage for the next several months.” It seemed a good enough excuse. “This plan is simple, no risk, and I do all the work.”

“But Gino offered me a buy in. It could pan out better than a single jewel—”

“Gino’s dead!” she interrupted him. “There is no buy in. Do this. It’s your last chance with me. I won’t help you anymore. I mean it.” Lucy put force behind the words.

“I’ll talk to Gino, see what he says,” Joey said. “He won’t want to lose me. He says I remind him of his brother Vito.”

Gino probably didn’t even have a brother. His talk was all suffocating, clingy, lung-clogging smoke, just like his bingo parlor.

“I’ll bring the stone to your suite. You can let me know your answer then.” The door to the suite opened. Lucy disconnected, jumped up, and slid back under the sheets. Her heart pounded in her chest, but she forced her breathing to be gentle, as if she were sleeping.

The doctor entered the bedroom carrying his black medical bag. “How’re you feeling?” he asked politely.

Lucy rubbed her eyes as if she had just woken. Her heart hammered so loudly she wondered if he heard it. Did dragons have supernatural hearing? What exactly were their powers, anyway? The doctor didn’t seem aware of her thoughts or her plans with Joey.

“Okay,” she said pitifully.

“You’ve had quite an ordeal, but I’ve brought some medicine that will fix you right up.” The phone vibrated at Lucy’s hip and sang, “Aaaare you gonna take me home tonight…”

Lucy forced a bland look as the doctor patted his pockets.

“My phone? That’s my ringtone.” The doctor stepped to the bed and flipped back the covers. “Fat bottomed girls you make the rockin’ world go ‘round.” The doctor picked up the phone with a puzzled frown. “I must have dropped it before.”

He flipped open the phone. “Hello?” His gaze flew to her face. “Lucy? There’s no Lucy here, you must have