Page 38 of Shifter For Hire (For Hire 2)

“When I change, you can’t be afraid,” he instructed.

“And you can’t let it get to you if I’m a little nervous. Deal?”

He didn’t promise.

The proud man who she was getting attached to moved several yards away from her. She started to call out to him that it would be hard to see in the dark, even with the moon. Something happened. She would describe it as magic, but there was an illumination of sorts. His scales caught the moonlight in such a spectacular display as to dazzle her eyes.

The scales shimmered all over his body, and while she couldn’t see it clearly, his clothes disappeared. His body grew bigger and bigger. Her theory that he would be a human sized dragon dissolved. The tall stocky man morphed into a gigantic dragon.

“Oh,” she breathed, at a loss for words. “G-gerard, is that you?”

It was a stupid question. She didn’t know what else to say. He must be as big as the inside of the convenience store, maybe bigger. Her breath stuck in her throat. While she was nervous, she wasn’t terrified.

Curiosity drove her forward. She raised a hand straight up, and still she couldn’t reach his mouth.

I must be crazy. He could bite my fingers off.

The dragon lowered its head, and craggy lips touched her fingers. Her heart raced. The beast tossed its head. In an instant she knew he was upset because of her fear. Did the scent overpower him?

“Shh, it’s okay,” she whispered. “I’m fine.”

Tears filled her eyes, but she blinked them away. He was more than she could have imagined, and yet, she didn’t know what to make of him. He existed. He was real. A dragon.

“Can you understand me in that form?”

He didn’t speak.

“Can you fly?”

The dragon lowered his front legs, which brought his neck within her reach.

“Um, yeah no, buddy. I’m not that brave yet. I can’t ride you.”

He shot into the air, leaving her behind. The wind from his dragon sized wings knocked her backward. Her eyes burned as she strained to catch every twist and roll in the air. Up there was his element, where he felt most free. She could see it in the way he moved.

When he lingered in the sky, she set the snacks out and tested the grass for dryness. After determining everything was in good condition, she dropped to the ground and drew her knees up.

The snap of a chip as she munched echoed over the quiet night. She called up to wherever Gerard had flown off to. “If you don’t come back I’m eating all the snacks. And if you leave me in the middle of nowhere in the dark, I’m going to find you and kick your butt.”

He landed heavily in front of her. She screamed because he startled her. The dragon was gone. Only the man remained, and his clothes had returned.

“You bum.” She laughed. “Don’t scare me like that.”

“You weren’t scared.”

“You know what I mean.”

He dropped down beside her, and a longing to be nearer to him came over her. She resisted the urge to remain on her side of the snack pile. He grabbed two bags of chips and ripped into them. In seconds, the bags were empty.

“You’ve got a serious appetite.”

“The dragon takes a lot of energy.”

“How can your clothes appear and disappear?”

“Magic.”

“That’s your answer?”

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