Page 90 of Edge of Darkness

“Did that include ways fromthiscentury?” Kage asked.

This time it was Connie who snorted.

AFTER LUNCH was finished, Kage left. Connie and Hudson had worked out a plan to woo Kit, starting tonight. After they had dinner, they planned to see if Kit was interested in taking a stroll.

A lot of Hudson’s territory was left natural, but the grounds around the main house were landscaped. There were lots of lit pathways, fairy lights everywhere, sitting areas, and fountains. There was even a massive old oak with a branch that was just perfect for a swing.

Several nice, secluded areas to steal a kiss or three.

Dinner that night was what Connie called comfort food—they’d start with grape salad, then have chicken and dumplings, fried apples, cornbread, fried okra, green beans, and corn pudding. For dessert was chocolate cake.

Stella had a taste for good ol’ Southern food, and they all benefited from it. Connie had arranged earlier in the day for someone to bring dinner to Hudson’s suite a little after seven.

He walked out of the closet just as Hudson came out of the bathroom. Connie had on a pair of board shorts, a graphic T-shirt, and flip-flops.

Hudson had on a pair of khaki shorts, a Beatles T-shirt he and Connie had gotten when they’d attended a concert in the 60s, and sandals.

Kit showed up in black yoga pants and an oversized T-shirt with flamingos all over it. He also wore flip-flops. Connie swallowed hard when he noticed Kit’s toenails were painted a bright pink.

He’d never paid attention to men’s feet before, and now suddenly he was fascinated with Kit’s. Those pink toenails were the sexiest thing he’d ever seen.

“Hey,” Kit said as he walked into the living area. “Oh, thank God, you two didn’t dress up. I was scared to death I’d be the only one dressed like this.”

Connie gave Kit a quick hug. “You look great. Would you like something to drink? Here. Have a seat. Dinner should be here shortly.”

“A little red wine wouldn’t be remiss,” Kit said, sitting on the love seat.

Neither Connie nor Hudson said anything, but they both frowned at Kit’s choice of where to sit.

“How was your day, Kit?” Hudson asked as Connie handed him his drink. He glanced up at Connie and smiled. “Thank you, sweetheart.”

“You’re very welcome.” Out of the corner of Connie’s eye, he saw Kit’s reaction to Hudson calling him sweetheart. Well, if there was still any question of what was going on between him and Hudson, it had been answered now, which Connie was glad about.

“It was fine. No trouble, at least,” Kit said, getting comfortable on the love seat.

Connie handed Kit his glass of wine. “Here you go.”

“Thank you so much.”

Connie sat on the couch next to Hudson.

“As Connie said, dinner will be here shortly, but before it arrives, is there anything you want to discuss concerning the situation with Lennox?” Hudson asked.

“Or would you prefer to wait until after dinner?” Connie asked, crossing his legs as he got comfortable.

“I’d rather get this out of the way now. There are things I want to talk to you guys about after dinner,” Kit said, tucking his leg under him. “But before we get into that, I wanted to ask if you’ve heard anything back from Doctor Frederick?”

“I was going to bring that up tonight,” Connie said. “Sorry for the delay, but Frederick ran into a situation and couldn’t get back to me for a few days. I did hear from him earlier. The appointment is set for next Friday at 9 PM.”

“Okay, good, thank you.” Kit stared at his wine for a moment. “I’m glad to have that set. I-I don’t really know what to say about Lennox, except I’m not sure why he’s targeting me. I mean, really, I’m nobody.”

Connie wanted to yell that Kit absolutely wasn’t nobody, but he couldn’t. Not yet. If anything, Kit was incredibly important—he was the mate to a royal dragon.

But there was no way that Lennox could know that. Hell, Connie and Hudson had only figured it out recently.

“We don’t know why he’s targeting you,” Hudson said, scowling at his glass like it had personally offended him. “Maybe it’s because he knows you have ties to not only Kage and Austin, but to us too.”

Connie nodded. “The daemons and dragons are two of the most powerful groups of paranormals in San DeLain. I would say the gargoyles rate right up there with us. We’re the only paranormals the hunters can’t use for their experiments.”