Excerpt: Dragon Sands

“Good morning, heartsister.”

Zhareen shrieked, turned abruptly and flailed backwards from the voice behind her, splashing ungracefully into the shallows. The voice chuckled, a deep rumbling thing, and now Zhareen got a good look at its source: Lounging calmly at its ease on a rock out-cropping above the spring was the largest… creature Zhareen had ever seen. A dragon?

“Come now, don't you recognize me? I'm hurt.” He smiled – and it was definitely a he, the voice was unmistakably masculine – the long whiskery tendrils at the edges of his mouth rippling in what she assumed was amusement. His voice thrummed over the sound of the water, making the very air resonate. The dragon stood and carefully stepped down into the water towards her, heat rolling off of him in waves. “Does not my image adorn your skin?”