Page 50 of Dragon Detective

While a few people lingered, staring from a distance well away from us on the shore, I burst off the ground, snapping out my wings to catch the salty breeze gusting off the water.

I flew up into the sky at a slow angle. No need to dislodge my fated mate during her first flight.

As I took her higher, Hannah peeped like a small bird, and her hand tightened on my spike. Thankfully, it wasn’t an erogenous area, or my poor dragon cock would start getting a hard-on.

“This is . . .” She didn’t finish the thought, just sighed, and I was glad that she was not only looking around but enjoying what she could see from up here so far.

There was exquisite joy in flight. It humbled and thrilled me, all at the same time.

I leveled off thirty feet or so above the beach and soared toward the ocean. No way would I pass up the chance to show her how amazing it was to fly over the sea. We had a little time before I had to return us to the ground, and there was no time better than now to impress her.

“Wow,” she said. “I’d planned to keep my eyes closed, grit my teeth, and bear with this until you landed but . . . wow. It’s so pretty from up here.”

I soared lower, though I stayed high enough above the water to avoid the spray.

The moon cast a silvery, shimmering path across the indigo waves, each crest catching light and reflecting it back like frothy jewels.

“From up here,” she said. “The sea’s as an endless expanse of midnight blue, with patches of luminescence.”

Plankton, I’d tell her if I could. They thrived near the surface at night.

The wind whipped past us, carrying with it the scent of salt and something indescribably ancient. This sea had been viewed by billions since its making, and long after we were gone, people and creatures would stand on its shore and marvel like we did now. We borrowed this view, but we would pass it on to the next generation. There was something wonderfully timeless about that.

Shadows danced across the surface, the unseen depths seeming to murmur secrets only they could keep.

“Riding this high above the ocean puts everything into perspective,” she said in a soft voice that the breeze tried to snag and carry away. I caught her words and held them close because I could tell shedidunderstand. “It’s vast and endless, and it makes me feel both insignificant and profoundly connected to the wild world below.”

Because there was so much more I wanted to show her, and I wanted to be able to talk with her while we shared it, I made a slow curve and glided toward the shore. The downtown area gleamed ahead, and music from the carnival set up on the edge of town drifted through the air, giving the night a magical feel.

Reaching the shore, I turned right and flew low over the beach. The exhibition hall was located in the grange on the opposite end of town and part of a small mall. I could land on the beach, and after I’d dressed, we could walk from there.

The sand glowed under the moonlight like scattered pearls, and the surf hissed as it surged up the shore, retreating to leave a glossy wet sheen behind. A few night walkers paused and looked up in shock and awe, their faces bathed in the moon’s soft glow. At least they’d heard of shifters even if they hadn’t met one yet. A few mouths hung open, their hands fluttering at their sides.

I landed lightly in the little-used parking lot behind the grange hall, choosing a spot close to where the forest encroached, and the canopy dappled shadowy moonlight on the cracked pavement.

When I lowered my belly to the ground and stretched out my front legs, Hannah sighed. “I almost hate to get off. Who would’ve thought?” She leaned forward and stroked my neck. “That was special, Reylor. I don’t think I’ve ever experienced anything quite as wondrous as flying, and I hope I’ll have the chance again.”

Every night and day if she wanted.

She lifted my bag off the spike and slid down my front leg, landing squarely on the pavement.

“I’ll turn away,” she said with a smile. “To give you privacy since I know you’ll be naked.”

Hopefully soon she’d feel comfortable with me in that form too.

Patience, I chided myself. I’d give her all the time she needed. Flying with me was big. Telling me she wanted more was even bigger. I wasn’t opposed to tugging her along, but I wanted her eager and willing beside me.

Once she’d turned, and I made sure we were alone, I shifted and took the bag from her hand, quickly tugging out my clothing and shoes and leaving the torn things inside.

In no time, I wore new jeans and a button-up shirt splashed with tropical flowers that felt nice enough for the exhibition but still fun enough for this beachside town.

“All set,” I said as I stuffed my feet into my shoes.

She turned and looked me up and down as I smoothed my hair. “Nice. Very nice.”

Her words heated me up, though she didn’t have to do more than look at me for that to happen. I advanced on her, sweeping my arm around her lower spine and tilting her chin up for a kiss that I wanted to make last forever.

I could keep kissing her all night long, but I wanted to see and do everything with her, to show her how wonderful it would be for us doing something together, so I leaned back, though I let my fingertips tease up her spine.

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