Page 97 of Edge of Darkness

They moved to the side of Connie. Two horns extended straight from Connie’s scaled forehead, and he had small, delicately shaped pointy ears. A bony ridge separated his nostrils, and a mane of daunting spikes sprouted from the back of Connie’s head and ran down his spine.

And he couldn’t forget the huge, leatherlike wings right in the middle of Connie’s back.

But the scales, now they were the real showstopper. The iridescent scales were a golden red, much like Connie’s hair color. They glimmered and flashed in the moonlight.

“You are amazing, Connie.”

Connie twisted his long neck around, and Kit found himself staring into one of Connie’s giant eyes. Holy shit, he was eye to eye with a dragon. A slightly hysterical giggle escaped before he could stop it.

Connie huffed.

Kit was going to take that sound as one of amusement. Still holding Hudson’s hand, he backed up a little bit and stared intently into Connie’s eyes, searching. There. There was that human intelligence he was looking for.

“Wow, you are… you are….”

Horribly gorgeous. Beastly. Imposing. Intimidating. Threatening too, although Kit didn’t feel in peril. Which was nuts, considering there was a creature in front of him that could snap him in half with those powerful jaws.

Not the most comforting thought, and Kit instinctively took a step back, but a low, rumbling purr rose from the dragon’s chest.

Absolutely stunned at the sound, the building fear vanished like fog before the morning sun. “Oh my God, are you purring?”

“He is,” Hudson said. “He sensed the sudden spike of fear in you, and he’s purring in the hopes of calming you down.”

Oh God, his heart. That was the sweetest thing ever. And even better was the fact that before Hudson finished speaking, peace had flooded Kit, a sense of well-being that quickly chased away the sudden spurt of anxiety. Kit’s nerves settled, and the wonderment of what was standing in front of him began to rise again.

“You are magnificent, awe-inspiring, and scary as hell.” Kit rested his hand on his chest as his breathing slowed.

Caught by a sudden need to explore, Kit edged closer, even though he kept a lookout for sudden moves. Instinctively, he knew Connie wouldn’t hurt him, but there was also no denying Connie could accidentally squash him with little effort.

“Hudson said it was okay, but I should ask you. Can I touch you, Connie?”

Connie lowered his long neck so they were almost eye to eye and slowly nodded. Oh wow, that was awesome. Wanting to explore every square inch of a creature made famous by ancient lore, Kit threw caution to the wind and reached out.

Connie’s scales were hard, but he expected nothing less since they were basically his armor.

Kit studied them. “Interesting. Your scales are shaped like a teardrop.” He examined them closer, mumbling to himself. “Huh. Two long sides and two shorter ones, and a very short fifth side attached to the skin. How flipping neat.”

Connie had raised his head and was looking down at him.

“Hmm, I wonder. They’re only attached in one place.” Kit glanced up. “Can you maybe move them somehow?”

Connie made his scales stand on end. He rumbled happily when Kit scratched underneath them.

“Like that, huh?”

The tear-shaped design of the scales fascinated him. Upon closer inspection, Kit observed the innermost part of a scale was composed of a compact, hairy formation firmly rooted in the epidermis.

On the hair follicle, there were some tiny glands that secreted a substance that adhered firmly to the skin.

“Interesting. You are truly a marvel of nature, you know that?”

Connie let his scales settle back into place, and Kit ran his hand over the ones he could reach. Another rumble came from Connie, one Kit now knew meant pleasure. Connie shook his enormous head, and a slight breeze teased Kit’s hair.

“Man, you are massive.”

Another huff came from Connie, and he slowly lowered himself to the ground and rolled onto his side. Kit quickly stepped away to give those gigantic legs plenty of room.

He couldn’t imagine getting kicked by one of those humongous things. With the moonlight still shining down upon them, Kit noticed Connie’s scales became finer and less thick on his underbelly.

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