Page 40 of Edge of Darkness

There was an awful lot of black, though, and the black lipstick was certainly throwing Hudson. Kit looked like a very dressy goth, and that had never been something Hudson had been attracted to.

He certainly could not say that now.

Kit’s hair was piled up on top of his head, so Hudson couldn’t tell how long it was, but it was most definitely brown. His eyes were hazel and framed by some of the longest lashes Hudson had ever seen on a person. Hudson couldn’t tell much about Kit’s lips except that they were full and pouty… and black. His eyes were lined in black too.

No doubt about it, Kit definitely had a very femme look, which had never really appealed to him until right this second, and he was definitely trendy. He also appeared delicate. Again, the urge to whisk Kit away and hide him in his hoard was nearly overwhelming.

Beckett returned with a couple of chairs and everybody crowded around the small table Kit had in his office. Hudson made a point to sit next to Kit, of course. He’d happily toss his dragons out of the way if he had to.

Hudson listened as Beckett described what he’d felt when the ward was first breached.

“I also took a look around when I left to get the chairs,” Beckett said, glancing at Hudson. “I should’ve done it sooner, but I was unwilling to leave Kit.”

Even after you got herewas left unsaid by Beckett. Not with the way Hudson had reacted. And neither Nelson nor Beckett knewwhyHudson had acted the way he did. There would be questions later, no doubt.

Now that Hudson was calmer, he recognized that the Ancient that felt so threatening to him earlier was Beckett. Lord Beckett wasn’t as powerful as Hudson, but he was close.

“You did the right thing by staying with him,” Hudson said. “Thank you, Beckett.”

“There were a lot of scents around the business, of course. It’s a popular place with a lot of people in and out of it.”

“Then you didn’t get anything?” Terry asked.

“Quite the opposite, actually. I got too much. There were a bunch of human scents, a feline shifter—”

“Wait. A feline shifter? Are you sure?” Hudson asked.

“I’m positive. Why?”

“Huh. Connie and I picked up the scent of a feline shifter who we thought might be stalking us Saturday night,” Hudson said.

“Well, that’s certainly… coincidental,” Nelson huffed.

“Maybe. Maybe not. The thing is, if the shifter was stalking us, he did nothing,” Hudson said. “Continue, please, Beckett.”

“Sure. There was also a mer. And I did manage to pick up some older scent trails,” Beckett said. “A vampire walked past last night, as did a wolf. So yeah. Even if I had gone straight out there, I don’t know that it would’ve helped.”

“Kit? Do you have security cameras?” Susan asked.

“Yes, but they’re not top of the line,” Kit said.

“It’s better than nothing,” Hudson said. “I would like to see what was recorded, if you don’t mind.”

“Sure. No problem,” Kit said. “I’ll pull it up on my laptop before you leave.”

“Thanks.”

“Hey, Kit? I think you also need to tell Hudson about the feeling of being followed during your grocery run yesterday,” Beckett said.

Hudson nodded. “Absolutely you should.”

“I don’t know. I still think I was just overreacting,” Kit said.

“If your wards hadn’t just rejected someone today, I could see you saying that,” Hudson said. “But things have changed.”

“Okay, yeah, you have a point.”

“The fact is, someone tried to get in here. Don’t downplay anything,” Hudson warned. “If you felt like someone was following you yesterday, then I need you to tell me everything that happened. And any other time you felt like that too.”

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