Cinn guessed that, like all of them, Sparkle didn’t want to be the cause of Dacian having another episode. Not that Cinn believed ordinary anger would trigger the insane rage she’d seen. But while Sparkle tried to talk the tension out of him, Cinn decided to take a more hands-on approach.

She got up and went over to stand behind Dacian. Resting her hands on his shoulders, she massaged the tight muscles there. “I’m sure everything will be okay.” Did she believe that? Absolutely not. But she was treating him the same way she treated Vince, sending him peaceful feelings and hoping he picked up on them.

Slowly, she felt his muscles loosen, and he relaxed a little. She could stop now if she wanted. Only she didn’t want to stop. Something about the firmness of male flesh beneath her kneading fingers felt better than it had any right to feel. Falling into a rhythm, she kept going.

Sparkle’s anxious expression eased. “I bet if Bain had gotten the big picture instead of just a snippet, he would’ve seen someone rushing to your rescue.”

Cinn thought Sparkle should probably just shut up.

Sparkle forged onward. “But you needed to know. Mede’s put everyone on high alert for Airmid and the guy in Bain’s vision. At least your maker hasn’t descended on us yet.”

Ganymede gave them his attention for a moment. “Been wondering about something, bloodsucker. Were you headed here when I dug you up?”

Dacian’s expression was shuttered. “I got word that my maker had found Taurin and was going to kill him to get back at me.”

“I don’t know what the big deal is. If Stephan shows up here, I’ll kill him. Problem solved. And Airmid is a woman. I can handle her.” He went back to his popcorn and movie.

Cinn waited for Sparkle’s outrage. Nothing. Huh? “Do you always put up with that sexist garbage?”

Sparkle shrugged. “I let him keep his illusions. Alone in our bed I make the power structure clear to him.” She glanced at Ganymede. A small scary smile played around her lips. “And when he really gets obnoxious, I throw out all his treats.”

Ganymede’s head whipped around. “Umm, I was only talking about ordinary women, honey-fluff. Not you. You’re in a class all your own, babe.“ He wrapped his chubby cat body protectively around the bowl of popcorn.

Dacian stood. “Okay, I can’t stand any more of this crap. I need to hunt. I thought I could make it till after I rose, but I can’t. All this bullshit has made me thirsty.” He glanced at Cinn before heading for the door. “And yes, I’m feeding off a few humans.” He stared at her to make sure she got the message. And when he left, he slammed the door behind him.