He stepped from the elevator. “Kyla.” Dacian remembered her after all the centuries. Their relationship had been a mistake, one of many in his life.

She put her hand over her mouth, her eyes wide. Beside him, he felt Cinn tense. Hell.

“Cinn, this is Kyla Mackenzie. A friend from a long time ago.” He returned his gaze to Kyla. “Kyla, this is Cinn Airmid. We’re working on a…project together.”

“You’re really alive.” She’d removed her hand from her mouth, and now she just stared.

“Vampire?” Cinn got right to the point.

He nodded.

Kyla didn’t even glance at her. “Everyone thought you were dead.”

“An understandable conclusion.” And if he sounded a little stiff, that was also understandable. “Why are you here?”

“I need to sit down.” Kyla motioned toward a nearby grouping of leather chairs.

He steered a strangely quiet Cinn toward the chairs. When they were all seated, he waited for Kyla to explain, while he tried not to remember how they’d parted.

“Yesterday Eric got a call from someone named Edge. The guy said you were here. Eric called everyone he could reach who’d been there when the fire…” Her voice faded away as she looked down at her hands. Finally, she looked up again. “Anyway, Eric said he was flying in, and I said I’d be here, too.”

“Is anyone else coming?” He didn’t need any more Mackenzies complicating things.

She shook her head. “Wow, this is incredible. I mean, I know that Eric said you were alive, but to really see you…” Kyla trailed off again.

This could get uncomfortable. “Maybe we can get together for a few drinks before you leave. Catch up on each others’ lives.” That wasn’t going to happen, if he could help it.

“Sure, sure.” She waved him away. “I know you have things to do. Have you seen Taurin yet?”

“No.” He knew his answer was clipped, but he couldn’t help it. Taurin was the only person he loved in the world, and facing him would be one of the toughest things he ever did.

Dacian stood, and Cinn stood with him. No use prolonging this meeting. But maybe before he left he’d stop to say good-bye to her. After all, Kyla had obviously flown in just for him. He wished she hadn’t. He didn’t like to feel obligated.

By the time they got to the greenhouse, Dacian was mentally ducking the questions he could sense zinging silently his way from Cinn. He got a brief reprieve from Wade.

The demon met them at the door. He didn’t even look at Dacian. He stared at Cinn. His gaze was a slurpy lick the length of a melting ice-cream cone. Dacian growled low in his throat. He didn’t bother to analyze his reaction.