Page 36 of Edge of Darkness

“It’s an old saying that means I had a sudden case of goose bumps. And oh my God, if you don’t know whatthatmeans, Google it.”

“Huh.” Beckett peered at Kit. “I may have to reassess the dark cloud analogy. You have definitely got teeth.”

“Dude, stay on topic.”

“Right. You should’ve called me because ignoring your instincts is never a good idea.”

“My instincts are shit. I certainly never picked up that my ex was a piece of shit who was setting me up for Nox. Look, it was nothing. Overactive imagination, remember?”

“Kit.”

“Lord, you sounded like one of my dads just then.”

“Oneof your dads?”

Kit waved his hand as if he was waving away Beckett’s question. “Long story. I have a mom and two dads. Anyway, I freaked out another shopper becauseIfreaked out. End of story.”

“That isnotthe end of the story. What freaked you out?”

“Fine! I thought I caught a glimpse of…. Well, this is going to sound nuts, but I thought I caught a glimpse of Nox,” Kit finally, grudgingly admitted. “But it couldn’t have been that asshole. He’s dead. He’s ashes, right? I mean, that was the whole point of Austin and Kage’s trip to Greece,right?”

“Yes, Nox is dead. A true death too.”

“I don’t even want to know what that means.”

“Axel killed him, and Kage saw the body,” Beckett continued. “My friend, have you thought about seeing the psychiatrist Austin told you about?”

Kit deflated. “The vampire? I… I don’t know. I mean, I’m still trying to wrap my head around the fact that vampires exist, along with the rest of you guys. Then there’s the fact that vampires drink blood. I don’t know if you’ve noticed it or not, but I kinda have a problem with that.”

“Which is completely understandable, but your fear of fangs is quickly turning into a phobia. Besides, it’s not like Doctor King would be feeding from you. There would be absolutely no reason for you to see his true self.”

“I know. I know.” Now if Kit could just convince his hindbrain of that. “Maybe, okay? Maybe once Austin gets back, I’ll set up an appointment if he’ll go with me that first time.”

“From what I’ve heard, Austin is a really nice guy. I don’t see a reason why hewouldn’tgo with you if that’s what it takes to make you see Doctor Frederick. Just so you know, I would be more than happy to also go with you,” Beckett said.

“Thanks, I really appreciate that. I’ll let you know.”

“Please do,” Beckett said, standing. “Okay, I’m going to get back to work. If you need anything—” Beckett’s body suddenly stiffened. A low, menacing growl exploded from him.

Kit jerked back in his chair. He’d never heard such a sound like that out of a human. Then again, Beckett wasn’t a human, something that was easy to forget.

Beckett faced Kit’s doorway. Before Kit could ask what was going on, Beckett slammed the office door shut and locked it. Kit had no idea Beckett could move that fast.

He opened his mouth again, but snapped it shut when Beckett faced him. Holy shit. The irises of Beckett’s eyes were a golden-red sunburst of color with black slitted pupils.

“Beckett?” Kit whispered. He had no idea why he was whispering, only that he should—kind of like when you didn’t want to startle a wild animal into attacking.

“The wards here just activated. I felt the rejection.”

“Huh? What? What does that mean? And how do you know?”

“Dragons are magical creatures, so I felt the ward activate. And it means that someone with ill intent just tried to enter your bookstore. Shit.” Beckett pulled out his cell phone and started dialing. “I need to see if I can find who it is, but I don’t dare leave you.Shit.”

“Oh my God, oh my God, are you serious? What the fuck does that even mean—someone with ill intent?” Kit asked, jumping to his feet.

His heart was pounding to the point he was a little light-headed. Later, when he wasn’t freaking out about this, he’d examine Beckett’s statement more closely about dragons being magical creatures. Kage had gotten on to Kit about referring to paranormals as creatures.

“Someone who means you harm just tried to enter your establishment.” Beckett turned away from Kit when his phone call was answered. “My king, we have a problem.”

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