Page 13 of Walking in Darkness

“I’m good, but thanks,” Kit answered, glaring.

A few minutes later, both of them sat on the couch across from Kit. If he wasn’t so mad at everyone in general, he’d feel bad. Hudson looked worried, and Connie was flat-out green.

“I’ll start,” Hudson said. “Do you remember when you saw me partially transformed in your bookshop? That was the first time I’d actually met you in person.”

“Yes, I remember.” How could he not? That wasn’t something he’d ever forget. It ranked right up there with seeing Kage step out of the shadows.

“I’m a thousand years old, Kit. I rarely lose control of myself like that,” Hudson said, running a hand through his hair. “But seeing you? I lost control. Your scent hit me like a nuclear bomb, and my dragon reacted. I got myself under control pretty quick, but it was a near thing.”

“So, you got a whiff of me and knew I was your mate?” Was that a line? It seemed like a pickup line.

But they didn’t need to pick him up. He was a sure thing and had told them so. So, what was the point of lying about what he was to them? There wasn’t one.

Lord, there wasn’t one. But Hudson saying Kit’s scent threw him into a partial transformation seemed to be a bit much, but what did he know?

“Simplistically speaking? Yes,” Hudson answered.

“What? Oh, sorry. I just…” Kit shrugged. He needed to get out of his own head and pay attention to the conversation. So, Hudson was saying Kit’s scent was indeed enough to trigger his partial transformation. That was wild.

“Is everything okay?” Hudson asked.

“Yes.” Kit waved his hand. “Keep going, please.”

Hudson studied Kit for a moment before finally nodding. “Most paranormals with a good sense of smell have a large percentage of their brains devoted to olfactory processing. Scent is everything to us.”

Kit bit his lip. He really needed to remember he wasn’t dealing with humans. It made sense when he remembered Hudson and Connie were dragons, which were animals. They might be magical animals, but they were indeed animals.

“And a mate’s scent is unlike anything we have ever smelled before. It really is that overwhelming,” Hudson said.

“So much so that I picked up your scent on Hudson when he returned home,” Connie added. “But unlike Hudson, I had trouble regaining control of myself. I almost shifted here in the house.”

“Damn.” Kit could only guess at the panic that must’ve caused. Not to mention the damage. So maybe catching a whiff of him reallyhadbeen that big of a deal.

“I ended up tossing his ass in the pool out back.” Hudson shrugged.

Kit spluttered. “What? Seriously?”

“Yeah. The cool water literally snapped me out of it.” Connie cleared his throat. “I’ve, ah, made several trips to the pool here lately.”

“Oh dear.” Kit put his mug on the table next to him. The sheepish look on Connie’s face was just too cute. “Because of me?”

Connie blushed. “Yes.”

Even though Kit was extremely annoyed with both Hudson and Connie, he still wanted to just squish Connie’s cheeks. Never mind that this was a badass dragon, that blush—a curse most redheads suffered from—was simply adorable.

Kit’s anger dissipated. If Connie had that much trouble, he could kinda see why they were hesitant to tell him who they were to him.

If Connie had lost control around him and suddenly transformed, that would’ve scared the crap out of Kit. Seeing a dragon in a movie was one thing. Live and in person was another.

So maybe not telling him they were his mates immediately was done to protect him and not because they thought he couldn’t handle it.

Well shit. Had he jumped the gun?

“I have more problems controlling myself since I’m younger than Hudson. But I’m better!” Connie promised. “Spending time around you helped me get used to your scent, along with letting you see my dragon.”

“So, what you’re telling me is I’m your mate?” Kit asked. “And I’m also Hudson’s mate? Is that right?”

“Yes.” Hudson blew out a breath. “It’s not unusual for dragons to be a throuple. It’s also not unusual for same-sex parings. It is a bit more unusual for one mate to be a human.”

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