My Asian Dragon: A BWAM Romance Story Read Online Free Page B

a compliment."
    Longwei
chuckled, and started walking down the steps towards the main gate of
the temple. "It was."
    "So
what are you going to do? I don't suppose you'll just let me go?"
    Longwei
turned, an amused look on his face. "Miss Roberts, you are not a
prisoner. And I am not a man who is in the habit of harming innocent
people. That's what the Triads do, and I am no Triad."
    "So
what do you want me to do?"
    "That
is totally up to you, Miss Roberts. What would you like to do?"
    Joy
thought for a moment, then smiled. "Well first, I'd like to see
the rest of your village. Then, if you don't mind, I'd like to stick
around a while."
    Longwei
nodded approvingly. "Of course, Miss Roberts."
    "Joy."
    "Excuse
me?"
    Joy
smiled shyly, and tucked her hair behind her ear. "My name's
Joy. If you don't mind."
    Longwei
returned her smile, and held out his arm for her. She trotted down
the steps, entwining the offered arm. "Joy. A beautiful name. I
shall enjoy using it."
    *****
    Two
days later, Joy walked up the main street towards the edge of the
village. She had her phone in her hand, looking for a reception
signal. As she walked, she reflected on the past few days. In many
ways, they had been idyllic. Waking up every morning, she was still
slowly adjusting her body clock to the sunrise to sunset pattern of
the village, but it left her feeling better than she had in years.
The constant exercise of walking everywhere, the healthy food, and
the clean air left her feeling relaxed and energetic.
    Best
of all though was spending time with Longwei. He had been her
constant, patient guide, showing her the entire village. He had
helped translate for her as various villagers invited her into their
homes, showing her how they lived.
    To
say the standard of living in the village was simple would be an
understatement. She had seen only two buildings with electricity so
far, the village school house and the doctor's house, both of which
had small generators. "I insisted on getting a generator for
both," Longwei had explained, "because I want the children
to have the best schooling available. We actually have three
computers too. No Internet, but I try to make sure the children have
DVD's and computer programs. Some of them are rather good typists."
    "And
the doctor's?"
    "I
have insisted that all of the children get the important vaccines.
We've cut the childhood disease rate by half in the past two years.
But many of those require refrigeration."
    "How
do you fuel them?"
    Longwei
smiled. "Naturally. You saw the windmills, and I am surprised
you did not smell the still."
    "Still?"
    "Yes.
We use the refuse from the animals and such to make a liquid fuel.
Not suitable for vehicles, but it does well enough to run a steam
generator."
    "I
see. Maybe that's a thing I might not want to see," Joy joked,
holding her nose.
    Her
entire time had been like that. Pleasant surprises and quiet
happiness. It felt strange to her, but she realized she was happy. It
was why she was walking up the road right now, looking for a cell
phone signal. It took her over an hour of walking, but finally she
got two bars, and she dialed Billy's number. "Hey, Billy!"
    "Joy!
I was just starting to get worried. How is the village?"
    "I'm
enjoying it here, Billy. That's why I called. I was thinking I'd like
to stay a while."
    "Really?
I didn't think you would go for the hayseed life."
    Joy
laughed. "Billy, I think you're the first person to use the word
hayseed with me in forever. But yeah, for some strange reason I'm
comfortable here right now. Listen, can you do me a favor?"
    "If
I can. What do you need?"
    "I
need you to go by the AER offices and file a leave of absence for me. I can take up to three
months no pay and still keep my job. I don't think I'll take the full
thing, but yeah, I'm going to stay a while."
    Billy
sounded confused over the signal, but Joy thought it may have just
been the bad connection. It sounded like Billy was yelling down a
hallway. "All right, I'll stop