Page 97 of Walking in Darkness

After a few moments, he let them go. “Please, look around. I want to share my treasures with you.”

And while they did that, there was an ostentatious multilayered pearl body chain—harness?—he intended to find, along with that other pearl jewelry he wanted to give Kit.

At least to start.

The three of them wandered aimlessly through the hundreds of gold candlesticks, pure silver vases, jewel encrusted goblets, and a few of his ancient swords. Some of those he remembered collecting, but other things he didn’t.

“Do you even know what the worth of all this stuff is?” Kit finally asked, admiring a bejeweled dagger.

“The monetary value does not matter,” Hudson said. “It’s mine, andthatis what matters.”

“This is wild. I mean, everybody who reads high fantasy or paranormal knows about dragons and their hoards. The movies talk about it, but seeing is believing, isn’t it? It never honestly dawned on me you had this much stuff. Jesus, you’re insanely rich, aren’t you?”

“He is, but whatever the monetary value of his hoard, it’s not factored into his portfolio. Believe me,” Connie said.“Because it’s the same for my artwork, although I’m not as wealthy as Hudson. I haven’t been alive as long.”

Kit massaged his temple. “I need to sit down, because oh my damn, you have more money than God.” Kit collapsed next to a pile of gold coins.

Hudson wasn’t sure what they were—maybe Spanish bullion. He and Connie sat, and he pulled Kit into his lap. “I didn’t mean to freak you out.”

Kit rested his head on Hudson’s shoulder. “It’s hard to wrap my head around this kind of wealth. Seriously. It doesn’t compute.”

Connie scooted closer and gently rubbed his hand up and down Kit’s back. “I bet.”

“You know, I brought you here for two reasons,” Hudson said. “Of course I want you to see my hoard. I’m very proud of it.”

“It’s impressive. I also want to see Connie’s.”

“We will get to that. But later,” Connie said.

“Later? What do you mean later? Okay, what have you two cooked up?”

Hudson clasped Kit’s hand and kissed his knuckles. Connie took Kit’s other hand.

Holding hands in the middle of his hoard, Hudson looked into Kit’s eyes. “The other reason we brought you here is because we wanted to talk about sharing our blood with you. Is that the only thing you wish to do?”

“What Hudson is trying to ask is if you’re ready to bond,” Connie said. “Sharing blood is one thing. Mating is another. The two don’t always go hand in hand. For example, occasionally a dragon will share his blood with a human he is not in a relationship with.”

“Well, there is a relationship there, but not like the one we three are in,” Hudson corrected. “Kage shares his blood with a few humans in his clan. The relationship is that they areclan members, but there is nothing sexual between him and the human.”

“Right. All the blood does is extend their life span and increase their senses, plus it enhances their ability to heal quickly,” Connie said.

“Oh. I see.”

“We don’t share that information with just anybody. It could be deadly for us if word got out exactly how powerful our blood is,” Connie said.

“That makes sense,” Kit said slowly. “So, you guys and the daemons can extend a human’s lifespan?”

“And the gargoyles. We’re also the only three who cannot change a human into what we are. At least, we’re the only three the paranormal world knows of,” Hudson said. “If there are other paranormals out there who are like us, we haven’t found them yet.”

“Please understand, we’re not trying to push you into formally bonding with us,” Connie said. “We only want to make sure there are no misunderstandings between the three of us. So? Would you just like to take our blood?”

Kit bit his lip, looking between Hudson and Connie. Finally, he nodded to himself. “That you want to clarify that tells me all I need to know.”

“Huh?” Connie glanced at Hudson and then back to Kit.

A slow smile spread across Hudson’s face.

“I mean, I’m living here. I’m sleeping in your bed. I’ve told my parents about you, and you sent protection home with them. Both of you want to bond with me, and the only reason you haven’t is because I asked you to wait.” Kit squeezed both Connie’s and Hudson’s hands.

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