Spooks & Specters: A San DeLain Short Story Collection

Chapter One

HUDSON TIPTOED out of the bedroom, careful not to make a sound as he closed the door behind himself. He hoped he had exhausted Connie enough that the other dragon hadn’t heard him leave; after all, he had made love to Connie twice and Kit once that night. His body still buzzed with pleasure.

Nonetheless, he had to be quick.

Hudson’s mind was ablaze with plans. Brilliant, sneaky plans involving his men. He couldn’t help but smile, for scheming was second nature to a dragon.

His mates were in desperate need of a break from the chaos and turmoil surrounding them, but it was far too dangerous for them to venture out into the world right now. The very thought made Hudson’s heart ache with frustration.

What was the term humans used? Ah, yes. A staycation.

He’d had to be sneaky, but he’d arranged to have a picnic basket prepared for them. Stella had come through like she always did. He’d also sent a text to his inner circle—Torres, in particular—giving them a heads-up on what he had planned for the day and to make sure where they were going was safe.

It was highly unlikely someone could come onto Hudson’s territory without either his dragons or the wards around the place letting him know, but it was better to be safe than sorry.

Hudson walked into the kitchen and spotted Stella immediately. “Good morning.”

“Good morning, Majesty. I just finished your request, and you’re ready to go. This one has all your food.”

Stella pointed at the huge wicker basket.

“What did you fix us?”

Hudson asked as he started to open the top.

Stella lightly slapped his hand away from it. “I know you masterminded this, but you deserve to be surprised too. No peeking.”

Grinning, Hudson jerked his hand back. “At least tell me the wine and cheese I requested is in there.”

“Of course.”

Stella pointed at another picnic basket nearby on the counter. “That one has the glasses, along with plates, silverware, napkins, and salt and pepper. Food is in this one.”

“Two baskets?”

“Sorry, but yes. Two of you can handle the baskets, and the other one can wrangle whatever gear you want to take with you. I’ve also spelled the one that contains food to keep it cold.”

“I had Torres and Mitchell scout the area we’re going to be, so I asked them to take the rafts with them.”

“Are you taking the boat out?”

“Probably. Connie really likes to ski, and the gear is already on the boat. I plan to spend the day on the lake. We’ll leave after lunch and be back after nightfall, so go ahead and hide those before my mates show up for breakfast.”

“No problem. Hope you guys have fun.”

“I’m really looking forward to it. And thank you for doing this.”

“Always a pleasure. Better head back before they notice you’re missing.”

“Indeed.”

Hudson hurried back to their quarters and fixed himself a cup of coffee. Settling down in the living area, he took a deep sip, relishing the rich and bold flavor as Connie wandered out of the bedroom.

“Morning.”

“Good morning. Are you just getting up?”

Hudson asked.

“Yes. Kit’s still asleep,”

Connie replied, scratching his belly.

“For now. He’ll probably wake up since both of us are gone.”

“Yep. Just like I did when you left our bed.”

Hudson should’ve known. “Would you like some coffee?”

“Sure. Thank you.”

“Of course, sweetheart.”

Hudson stood and went to it. It didn’t appear as if Connie was going to push him as to why he wasn’t in bed.

Connie joined him at their little coffee bar, and Hudson handed him a mug. All Connie wore was night pants, and his gorgeous red hair was messy.

Connie took a sip of his morning java and sighed happily. “Good stuff.”

“I try.”

Hudson followed Connie back to the couch, and they sat down. Hudson picked up the remote and turned on the TV.

“So, what are you planning?”

Hudson chuckled softly. “What makes you think I’m planning anything?”

“Well, maybe it was because you snuck out of bed, or maybe it’s the overall smugness you have going on there.”

Their connection was so strong it was almost comical. “Indeed, I am planning something, but no, I won’t divulge it and ruin the surprise.”

“Not even a hint?”

“Not even a hint.”

Hudson knew better. Connie liked to claim he wasn’t nearly as cunning as Hudson, but his mate was mistaken. Not only was he cunning, he was also subtle with it. “Well, one hint—it’s something you like doing outdoors.”

Connie waggled his eyebrows. “There’s a lot of things I enjoy doing out of doors.”

“I’m not saying that’s not a possibility, but it isn’t what I have planned.”

“That narrows it down. Not. Is there lube involved?”

“Connie.”

“What about rope?”

Hudson frowned. “Did you wake up horny?”

“You’ve met me, right?”

Hudson snorted. “Yes, there is rope involved. That’s all I’m going to say. Now quit asking questions before you trip me up and I say something I shouldn’t.”

“Well damn, I’m liking this. What time is this grand plan starting?”

“After lunch, and if you don’t behave, you’ll only get to watch.”

Connie shivered. “Sounds promising.”

It was almost impossible to get the last word in with Connie. He enjoyed boasting about Hudson’s commanding presence, yet it was Connie who was the sneaky one. Hudson was blunt and had no problem manipulating people. Connie, on the other hand, well… one word came to mind for him.

“You are a menace, you know that?”

Connie slowly sipped his coffee, maintaining eye contact with Hudson as he did. Once he was done, he licked his lips. “Old man.”

Hudson set his coffee down with a playful growl. “I’ll show you old man.”

Kit walked into the living area, tying his pink robe. “Good Lord, whatever the two of you are doing, stop it. I’m almost drowning in the pheromones.”

Connie and Hudson both slowly turned their heads toward Kit. They knew what Kit had on under that robe—a pair of sheer boy shorts with seafoam green lace that matched the lace on the robe.

How they’d managed not to rip those shorts getting them off Kit last night was a miracle. The struggle to remove them had been a near-impossible feat, but somehow they’d managed.

The fabric clung perfectly to their mate’s curves. And when they’d finally succeeded in ditching the shorts, revealing the garter belt and pale pink hose underneath, it had been like unwrapping a treasure.

Hudson had never really been into lingerie, but Kit had certainly changed his mind on the subject. He was pretty sure Connie had even drooled a little.

“Again, I’ve said how creepy that shit is, guys. What the hell? It’s too early in the morning for you two.”

Kit plopped down next to Connie and made grabby hands at Connie’s mug. “Gimme.”

Connie handed his coffee over willingly.

Laughing quietly, Hudson fixed Connie another one. Since Hudson liked his black, Kit wouldn’t ask for his. Kit liked to drown his creamer in just a bit of coffee like Connie. Coming back to the couch, he handed Connie a new cup, and he took it with a small smile of thanks. No one said anything as they watched the morning news.

“It’s going to be a nice day,”

Hudson said as the weather went off.

“Another sunny day in California. Who would’ve thunk it,”

Kit quipped. “You know, as much as I love the weather here, I am starting to miss that fluffy white stuff that falls from the sky.”

“Well, you’re certainly not going to see snow in San DeLain, but if you’re craving cold temperatures and snow, I’ll put that on the list of things we want to do,”

Hudson said.

“Ever been snow skiing?”

Connie asked Kit.

“No, but it’s something I definitely want to try.”

“Then we will definitely do that,”

Hudson said. “Hopefully soon. But in the meantime, let’s go eat breakfast and figure out what we want to do this Saturday.”

“Sounds like a plan. I seem to have worked up an appetite after last night,”

Kit said, standing. “Let me go change, and I’ll be ready shortly.”

Connie set his cup down. “I’ll go help him.”

Hudson checked his watch. “I’m dragging the two of you to breakfast in ten minutes. You might want to keep that in mind.”

Kit’s cackle floated from the bedroom.

Connie jumped to his feet and made a beeline toward Kit.

“Ten minutes,”

Hudson yelled. “If I have to come in there, Kit, I’ll dress you in a plain white T-shirt and a khaki pair of shorts—no lace, no sparklies, no nothing.”

“Good luck with that,”

Kit yelled from the bedroom. “I don’t even own—ooof.”

Hudson snickered when whatever Kit was about to say was abruptly cut off. He started the timer on his watch because he was not kidding. They might not know they had plans for the day, but he did, and he wasn’t getting sidetracked.

TEN MINUTES on the dot, Connie and Kit walked back into the living room, and Connie was all smiles too. Someone probably got his cock sucked.

Kit wore a pair of flared leg yoga pants, high-tops, a white tank, and a light khaki casual long-sleeved shirt that Hudson was sure had come from his own closet. He’d also twisted his hair up into a man bun, and there were strands around his face. Connie was dressed in navy cargo shorts and a graphic T-shirt.

“Still hungry?”

Hudson asked, waiting on his mates to reach him.

“Now more than ever,”

Kit said, turning his face so Hudson could kiss him on the cheek.

Connie snickered at Kit’s words but dutifully turned his face so Hudson could kiss him too.

They walked to breakfast, went through the line, and sat down across from Beckett. Almost immediately, several dragons of Hudson’s court joined them. Since it was the weekend, most of the court was off work.

“Since most of you are here, if anything comes up, I will have my cell phone on me, but if at all possible, let Torres, Beckett, or Stella deal with it,”

Hudson requested, taking a last bite of his eggs.

Connie was his right-hand man, but he’d be with them at the lake. Torres was head of security for the court, so he could deal with security problems, but Beckett or Stella were in charge if shit went sideways, as they were the only two Ancients in the court outside of Hudson himself.

“Understood,”

Torres said.

Kit perked up. “Are we doing something?”

“He has plans,”

Connie whispered in Kit’s ear.

“Indeed I do, and if the two of you are done, let’s go back to our room and change into swimsuits.”

Kit rubbed his hands together. “Swimsuits, huh? Are we staying or leaving?”

“Staying.”

Hudson stood, then pulled Kit’s chair out for him, then Connie’s.

Kit waved at everybody as Hudson herded them away from the breakfast area. A couple of his dragons called out suggestions of what they could do while on the water.

Kit shook his head as they left the eating area, his cheeks rosy. “I don’t know if that last one is even anatomically possible.”

“It’d be interesting to try,”

Connie said, nudging Kit.

“We could experiment on Hudson,”

Kit mused, playing along with Connie.

“I’m always up for a little experimentation.”

Hudson ushered his mates into their quarters. “But first, swimsuits. Connie? Please make sure and grab the sunscreen for Kit too.”

“Are we going to the lake? Or the pool?”

“Lake, so make sure to wear your lake shoes,”

Hudson suggested. “And wouldn’t you know it? I forgot something. I’ll be right back. You guys go ahead and change.”

Both of his mates murmured agreement while Hudson hurried back to the kitchen and grabbed the two picnic baskets that were waiting for him on the counter. When he walked back into his quarters, Kit and Connie were ready.

Kit was dressed in light blue swim trunks that had donuts and shark fins plastered all over them and a light blue tank. Connie wore ombre blue trunks and a white T-shirt, and both wore old tennis shoes. Connie had also grabbed several beach towels.

“Oh! A picnic?”

Kit clapped happily. “I am so on board for that.”

“But do we really need two picnic baskets?”

Connie asked.

Hudson set both of them down on a table in the living area. “One is full of food, and the other comes with picnic service for the three of you, plus wine glasses and cheese amenities. Interior straps secure the glasses, flatware, and accessories.”

“So there probably isn’t a lot of room for food,”

Kit mused. “Which would be a problem for two dragons. Okay, that makes sense.”

“What’s in there might tide Connie and me over until dinner.”

Hudson laughed. “Maybe.”

“I believe it. I’ve never seen anyone eat the way dragons do,”

Kit commented.

“If you think we’re bad, you should see the werewolves. Or any type of were. They burn through a lot of calories when they shift, and no kidding, they can put away the food,”

Connie said.

“Very true,”

Hudson agreed. “Anyway, we’re going to make a day of it at the lake out behind the house. It’s more private.”

Kit peered at the basket. “I hope whoever packed that put nonperishable foods in it then.”

“It’s spelled to keep cold.”

“That’s convenient. Having magic certainly has its perks, doesn’t it?”

Kit joked.

“I’ll say. Let me go change and then we can go,”

Hudson said.

He hurried into their walk-in closet and changed into a pair of simple black swim trunks and a white T-shirt, and he slipped on some old shoes too, then went to the bathroom. He braided his hair so it’d be out of the way.

On his way out of the bedroom, Hudson paused. Where they were going was very isolated, plus he’d warned everyone to stay away.

He debated with himself for several seconds, then decided why not. What did he have to lose? Nothing. Opening a drawer, he pulled out a vibrating butt plug and some lube.

Hudson didn’t know if Kit would be up for something like that, but Connie definitely would. Dragons weren’t known for their modesty, and it wouldn’t be the first time they’d fooled around outside.

Hudson slipped the things in his pocket and joined his mates. “Ready to go?”

“Yup.”

Hudson grabbed one of the picnic baskets, and Connie grabbed the other.

“I can carry that, you know?”

Kit poked Connie in the ribs. “I don’t mind.”

Twisting, Connie caught the finger that had been drilling mercilessly into his side. Without hesitation, he brought it to his mouth and nipped at it with his teeth, then ran his tongue around the digit.

Kit’s gaze zeroed in on Connie’s finger and groaned.

While the two were distracted, Hudson slipped the extra things into the basket that held the plates and silverware.

He might not have been a Boy Scout, but he was always prepared.