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forced my own smile. Her hand was rough and her knuckles pink, scaly, and cracking, like she worked regularly with plaster. She covered the back of my palm with her other hand in a handshake sandwich.
    “It’s great to finally meet you,” Ronnie said, and her soft voice sounded genuine. “Ian has told me so much about you. I feel like I know you already.”
    Walker had divulged absolutely nothing about Ronnie, so I couldn’t respond in kind. I simply nodded. “All good things, I hope.”
    Ronnie’s smile brightened. “Any friend who helps Ian on one of his missions is a friend of mine. I’m so glad he found a night blood in the city. I hate to think of him surviving the night alone.” She sighed. “Not that being alone ever stopped him.”
    I smiled, and this time mine was genuine, too. “I was just as fortunate that he found me. He had my back, too. Multiple times.”
    “I’m sure he did. Some of the other night bloods, like Logan and Theresa, lived in solitude, too, but I think they appreciate having backup now.”
    “The other night bloods?” I cocked my head, forcing my expression to remain bland. “I thought you and Walker were the only night bloods in the area.”
    Ronnie nodded. “We were. For years we were the only night bloods we knew existed, but since Walker found Theresa, Jeremy, Logan and his sons, and now you, we’re becoming quite a little family.”
    I glanced askance at all the vehicles in the driveway. “Do Theresa, Jeremy, and Logan live nearby?”
    “We can continue this conversation inside.” Walker placed his hand firmly at my lower back, ushering me inside.
    I turned to protest, thinking he was just trying to derail my question, but when I looked back, I recognized the urgency in Walker’s tone. The sun had set and full darkness surrounded the house.
    Ronnie extended her hand towards me. “Here, let me give you the tour. You’ll be staying in the room across the hall from Walker. Jeremy lives next to—”
    “It’s been a long day for both of us, Ronnie,” Walker interrupted, but his tone was so baby sweet that she nodded sympathetically, like she hadn’t been interrupted. I felt nauseated. “I think Cassidy would rather freshen up before meeting anyone. Once she’s settled, I’m sure she’d love a tour.”
    Ronnie looked at me as if to validate Walker’s statement, but the truth was that I couldn’t care less about a tour, whether it occurred now, after I’d taken a shower, or never. Walker’s house was much bigger than I’d expected. Ronnie lived much closer to Walker than I imagined, and my anticipation for this visit couldn’t have been more misplaced. I shifted my gaze between Ronnie and Walker, and although they both expected me to respond in some intelligible fashion, I couldn’t get past the fact that I was standing in what was essentially a coven of night bloods.
    * * * *
     
    “How many night bloods are living in this house?”
    I’d followed Walker to the bathroom in tense silence, watched him rummage for the icy-hot patches, and I’d stood stoically while he alternately eyed the patch and my skin. I held my shirt to expose my waist while he eased the band of my pants down slightly to gain better access to my hip. The rough heat of his fingertip grazed along the puckered star of my scar, and goose bumps shivered across my back. A deep, radiating heat stoked through my gut at his touch. My breath caught, and I couldn’t hold my tongue any longer.
    “Ten night bloods?” I guessed. At Walker’s telling silence, I upped the ante and my volume with it. “Fifteen?”
    “Not everyone lives here. It’s more of a home base, not a home, per se.”
    “My God, more than twenty?”
    Walker sighed. I could hear the frustration expel with his breath, but I refused to let this go.
    “The last time we spoke about night bloods, you assured me that we were rare, that the only night blood you’d ever spoken to before me was your partner from home, Ronnie.” I