SC Daiko, aka Siobhan, is an
award-winning British author of fast-paced international bestselling
contemporary romance and romantic suspense. Siobhan loves to swim in the sea,
travel around Europe, sample different food and enjoy local wine. She has
worked in the City of London and taught languages in a Welsh high school before
moving to Italy, where she now lives with her husband and two cats. Nothing
makes her happier than connecting with readers and fellow authors.
I’m cast away on a
tropical island with a dirty, damaged alpha-hole.
Women swoon over
him.
I’m not one of them.
I hate him.
And I see right
through those indigo-blue eyes.
Brash is hurting.
But that doesn’t
give him the right to be a douchebag.
Especially now that
I’m all he’s got here.
A mafia princess who
knows how to set someone straight.
I will bring him to
his knees.
If only he’d stop
making me weak in mine.
His strong arms have
become my refuge.
And his gorgeous
smile, my hope.
He tells me that I
belong to him.
That he’ll protect
me in this dangerous place.
But what happens if
my heart is at risk?
Who will save me
then?
From international
bestselling author SC Daiko comes a thrilling new standalone romantic suspense
novel, a spin-off from BRUTE, BEAST and Nanny and the BRATVA BOSS.
SC Daiko, aka Siobhan, is an
award-winning British author of fast-paced international bestselling
contemporary romance and romantic suspense. Siobhan loves to swim in the sea,
travel around Europe, sample different food and enjoy local wine. She has
worked in the City of London and taught languages in a Welsh high school before
moving to Italy, where she now lives with her husband and two cats. Nothing
makes her happier than connecting with readers and fellow authors.
The current
was strong and pulling us away from the wreckage. I kept my arm around Aly,
lifting her face. I creased my forehead, trying to work out our flight path.
Where the fuck were we?
An ice-cold
shard of panic pierced the pit of my stomach. I tried to ignore it. Fucking
impossible. For the first time in my life since I was a child, events had
overtaken me. Were out of my control. And there wasn’t a damn thing I could do
other than try and survive.
Aly moaned
and I whispered, “I’m here. You’re safe.”
She
shivered and I held her close to share my body heat. Not that there was much of
that. I was chilled to the bone.
I looked
around again.
We were
surrounded by nothing but rolling waves.
Stay calm. I repeated the words to myself like a mantra.
Hours
passed, it seemed, although I wasn’t sure. I felt completely disoriented.
Aly had
passed out again; I kept checking her pulse. My eyelids grew heavy and I wanted
to doze off, but we’d be separated.
The sound
of splashing.
A pod of
dolphins had arrived, eyes flickering with curiosity.
“Hey,
guys,” I managed to rasp. “Come to rescue us?” I laughed at the absurdity of my
question.
With a wave
of their tails, they left in obvious pursuit of some lunch.
The current
took us further and further away from where the plane had gone down.
More
splashing.
Rhythmical
this time.
I swept my
gaze around again and a slow smile of relief spread across my face. I let out a
whoop. The sound I’d heard was the noise of waves hitting the barrier reef to
an island. I could just see it in my peripheral vision.
I kicked my
feet so frantically my shoes came off. Using the arm not holding Aly, I swam
hard, fighting the current that was sweeping us parallel to land.
Kick, kick,
kick.
I spotted a
break in the waves and managed to propel us through it into the calm waters of
a lagoon.
My lungs
burning, I kept swimming until my feet touched the sandy bottom.
With the
last vestiges of my energy, I heaved Aly out of the water onto the shore.
I turned
her onto her side and tilted her head backwards. Then, totally wrung-out, I
collapsed next to her.
Author Bio
SC Daiko, aka Siobhan, is an
award-winning British author of fast-paced international bestselling
contemporary romance and romantic suspense. Siobhan loves to swim in the sea,
travel around Europe, sample different food and enjoy local wine. She has
worked in the City of London and taught languages in a Welsh high school before
moving to Italy, where she now lives with her husband and two cats. Nothing
makes her happier than connecting with readers and fellow authors.
Daniel Collins…
hunky single dad… and my neighbor.
Arrogant,
bad-mannered, and reclusive.
They call him the Brute.
I should stay
away from him… except I can’t.
Not when he reveals his brokenness,
and I glimpse the pain in his eyes.
Not when his touch unravels me,
and the heat between us could set the oceans alight.
But play with
fire, and you will get burned.
A fragile heart
can easily be broken again.
**
A new standalone
contemporary romance from award-winning international bestselling author SC
Daiko, a beautiful love story with plenty of heat and angst.
My cottage backs onto woodland, and there’s a path leading
through it. Birdsong and the scent of blackberries fills the air. I let Toby
off his leash and he immediately starts foraging for anything edible… wild
fruit being his favourite snack.
I leave him to it and stride on ahead, knowing he’ll catch
up in good time. Soon I come to a glade where the trees have been thinned out.
Oh shit, standing in the middle of the clearing is Daniel. He’s bare-chested
and dressed in running shorts, doing stretching exercises braced against a
fallen tree trunk.
I slow my footsteps, treading quietly on mouldy old leaves,
and rake my gaze over him. His thick almost-black hair is dripping sweat; it
falls down his face and the back of his solid neck. His beard is unkept and
wild-looking. But it’s his powerful body that mesmerises me and I study the
tats on his muscular arms, tempted to get closer for a better look. God, he’s
beautiful, I suddenly realise. Beautiful but freaking scary at the same time.
I release a slow breath. Stop
it, Cat. You shouldn’t be looking at him that way. The man in front of you is a
brute. You need to keep your distance from him.
Slowly, my heart pounding against my ribcage, I turn around
and prepare to make my way back down the path. Except, Toby comes bounding up
and starts to bark.
Dammit!
Daniel freezes on the spot. His eyes crash into mine, and if
I was scared before now I’m practically peeing myself. He straightens himself
to his full height, still glaring at me, not saying a word.
Toby keeps barking, but he’s also wagging his tail. I grab
hold of his collar and fasten the lead. “Sorry to disturb you.” I bite at my
lips. “We’ll get out of your way.”
He arches an eyebrow. “So, you weren’t following me?”
“Oh, God, no. We were just going for a walk.”
I’m still staring at his tats, trying to decipher the
intricate patterns. He catches my gaze, and I feel my face burning up.
“Get on with your walk, then,” he says through gritted
teeth. “Leave me alone.”
My fingernails dig into the palms of my hands. “No need to
be bad-mannered.”
He crosses his arms in front of his broad chest and lets out
an edgy laugh.
“You are a prick,” I spin around, “the rudest man I’ve ever
met.”
He laughs again and keeps laughing mockingly as I stride off
down the pathway, Toby at my heel.
Author Bio
SC Daiko, aka Siobhan (pronounced Shivawn), is an
award-winning, international bestselling contemporary romance author. Originally
from the UK, she now lives in Italy with her husband and two cats.
