Tropical Dragon Diver (Shifting Sands Resort 5)

Bastian-with-goldshot had known who he was, and where he belonged. He could do anything, stronger and faster than Bastian-without. Bastian-without was adrift, caugh

t between two worlds, unsure of his path.

Bastian-without rubbed his eyes and rolled from the bed.

For the first time in a very long time, he did not dress in his lifeguard uniform, regretfully putting it aside for a light silk shirt from the back of his closet and a pair of tailored gray slacks. Tooled leather shoes were dredged from beneath the bed, and a fine wool suit jacket went over his shoulders. If he was going to battle, he was going to do it well-armored.

It was odd to turn from the staff house door to walk towards the cliffs instead of towards the heart of the resort. He shifted and fell from the cliffs to spread wings and catch the wind in his dragon form.

He felt small and fragile, compared to Bastion-with.

Then he thought of Saina, and his wing beats steadied. Whatever kind of dragon or perversion of dragon he was, he would earn his mate. He had none of her doubts regarding the truth of their bond, but he knew he had one more thing to do before he could completely claim her.

He flew through the sunrise, and through most of the day, following the coast of the mainland Costa Rica. He might have enjoyed the flight, and the pods of dolphins and whales he passed, but he dreaded his destination.

Midafternoon, he arrived, turning inland at the end to climb into the coastal mountains. The compound he arrived at was castle-like in its grandness, with towers intended to imply the royalty he knew his family craved.

He circled the structure once before landing in the secondary courtyard, folding glinting green wings back neatly as he set claw to the stone he thought he’d left behind forever.

He was not surprised when a second dragon, darker green, back-winged into the courtyard moments after.

Mother and Father have no desire to see you, the newcomer said in his silky mind-voice. You are no longer family, brother-not.

I didn’t come to see them, Bastian replied evenly. I came for you, Keylor. He was concerned to see that Keylor seemed significantly larger than he had been mere years ago. Bastian had always been the big brother in both years and mass, but that was no longer the case.

What do you want with me? Keylor sniffed.

I am here to treat with you, Bastian said, drawing himself up to his full height. I’m here for Saina’s Voice.

Chapter 23

Saina’s first stint as lifeguard went smoothly. Bastian’s uniform didn’t come close to fitting her, but Scarlet provided a staff polo shirt in her size and a pair of nondescript shorts. With the orange high visibility first aid kit strapped at her waist, Saina looked the part, and the swimmers accepted her authority without question.

She found the work easy and enjoyable, bantering with older women on the pool deck who reminded her achingly of her Voice and showing a pair of younger men the basics of the paddle boards at the beach. She reminded pale-skinned people to reapply sunscreen at appropriate intervals, and handed out cold bottles of water and sunhats to guests who weren’t used to the intensity of the heat in the tropics.

When the sun began to set and people abandoned both pool and beach, she wasn’t sure what to do with herself. After she put all the beach chairs back at the beach bar structure and straightened the now-abandoned pool deck, she wandered up to the bar.

Jenny was sitting at the bar, holding hands with a bartender in a cowboy hat, which puzzled Saina until she realized it wasn’t Jenny, just a woman who looked exactly like her.

“I’m Laura,” she said, offering a hand as Saina approached the bar. “You met my identical twin sister, Jenny.”

“Saina,” she answered, accepting the hand for a polite shake.

“You’re looking considerably better than the last time I saw you here,” Laura teased gently.

Saina realized that Laura must have been present when Bastian brought her to the resort. “Well,” she said dryly, “I imagine it’s not too hard a bar to beat, given that I was bleeding all over the place at the time.”

Laura laughed.

“What can I get you?” the bartender asked, after introducing himself aptly as Tex.

“Is staff supposed to drink here?” Saina asked cautiously.

“As long as you don’t make a habit of getting falling down drunk on the expensive stuff or get in the way of serving the guests, Scarlet gives us free rein and encourages us to eat and drink well,” Tex said. “The profit shares have been pretty non-existent, so she wants the room and board to be a fair trade for our work.”

“Seems like a sweet deal,” Saina said wistfully. It was getting harder and harder to think about turning her back on the resort. “Can I have something light and fruity, just a little alcoholic?”

“Yes, ma’am,” Tex said, putting his fingers to the brim of his hat.