Page 53 of Beyond the Darkness

He liked those traits too.

“What else? Oh. A ruby’s lush color can signify wealth and success.”

That was another point for using a ruby.

“And finally, protection—rubies have been used in protective amulets.”

His dragon liked that selling point the most.

“And would you look at that. Rubies are as resilient as sapphires and only slightly softer than diamonds, meaning theyare among the toughest and most enduring gemstones known to mankind. That’s perfect, then. Rubies it is.”

He could use the ruby Kit had found, but he didn’t want to break it up. Instead, he rummaged around in another chest until he found a pile of rubies and colorless diamonds. All of them were of the highest grade and small, which would be perfect for wedding bands.

The stones sparkled in the light, and Hudson grinned. Oh yes, he liked this idea the most. Maybe there would be enough left over for him to make a matching bracelet for Kit too.

Now for the design. He did a search on wedding bands, and by Gaura, why were there so many? Just picture after picture after picture after picture.

This… this was turning out to be harder than he’d imagined. There were just so many choices. How did anybody choose? Damn. Maybe heshouldtalk to Kit.

What if his mate didn’t want small stones? What if Kit wanted a big rock that stuck up on his finger? He’d seen Kit wear both. And he wanted his mate to be happy with whatever he wore.

Hudson tugged on the braid next to his face, irritated. He desperately wanted this to be a surprise, but he really needed Kit’s input. For that matter, Connie deserved to have a say on this also.

Hudson sighed, discouraged. He really didn’t care what the bands looked like, one way or the other. There was already a soul bond between the three of them, so the outside trappings of a human marriage weren’t that important to him.

But they were to Kit.

Taking the stones with him, Hudson left his hoard. After he secured the entrance, he placed the stones he’d retrieved in a small box in the safe in his office.

LATER THAT evening, Hudson sat on the back patio, enjoying a drink while he waited for Kit and Connie to join him. The construction crew had left for the day, so they had privacy. Even though their room and bath were a mess, there was still a path to the deck and pool they could use. Hudson heard Kit and Connie joking and laughing as they entered the bedroom.

Connie stuck his head out through the doorway. “I found Kit.”

“I see that. How about the two of you join me out here? There’s something I want to talk to the both of you about.”

Kit popped up beside Connie. “Is everything okay?”

“Of course, babe. You would’ve known if there was something wrong, remember?”

“I know. I’m just checking.” Kit shrugged. “You’re looking serious there.”

“He has his thinking face on,” Connie said, staring at Hudson.

Hudson chuckled.

“Thinking face, huh?” Kit winked at Hudson, taking the seat next to him.

“What’s going on?” Connie asked, sitting on the other side of Hudson.

Hudson didn’t know how to broach the subject, so he just jumped straight in. “Connie has done research into human weddings.”

Kit raised an eyebrow. “Oh yeah?”

“Yes,” Connie said.

“He’s emailed me some of his notes on the traditions of a human wedding, which brings me to the subject at hand….” Again, how was he to broach this?

“And that subject at hand is?” Kit teased.

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