Page 23 of A Reckless Indulgence

He sucks a breath through his teeth. “Careful…” It fans the flame in his chest. “Or I might start thinking you’re into me.”

She glances toward the open door, but it doesn’t concern him. He isn’t threatened by the thought that anyone could pass by. He acts like this is a game, just foreplay to something bigger. That thread of chaos weaves inside her. She swallows it down, too proud to feel the heat. If he’s not worried someone might overhear, then fine; she’ll use it to her advantage.

“You couldn’t even get out of your pants last time.” Her head tilts, unimpressed. “It should be easy to finish you off.”

His teeth flash in a smile that makes her toes curl. “Are we rewriting history?” He eases toward her, voice low as a chain dragged across the floor. “Because there are some other things I’d like to revise.”

Smoke drifts between his lips. That’s the only reason her gaze is drawn to his mouth, her eyelids suddenly heavy. The wisp outlines his jaw.

“You’re paying in pleasure, right? So let’s give it to you.”

Her body could melt right here, but then Cav turns away, dispersing the smoke and peeling off his oversized vest.

“If you don’t feel like telling me what you want, then we’ll have some trial and error.”

Now she can see his attire from last night. It’s bloody and ripped, but worst of all, the pants cling to his ass. The waistcoat molds to the muscles in his back as he undoes the buttons one by one.

“I’ll figure out what gets you hot. I’ll make you come. I’ll tailor this entire experiment to getting you off, and I’ll give you everything you want — except for me.”

It takes a moment too long for her to scoff. “I don’t want you.”

He strips off the waistcoat and reaches for the collar of his shirt. “Then you won’t miss out on anything.”

He tugs it overhead, exposing the bare scales of his back. His skin glows molten between them, magma threatening to break through the crust of the earth. Freed of the fabric, the spikes along his spine lift on end, trailing down between the dimples above his hips. There are bandages wrapped around his torso, but these wraps don’t flatten his physique. In fact, the binding seems to enunciate his chest, lifting his breasts until they sit perfectly in place.

Only now does Lyx realize he’s turned back to face her. That he can see everywhere her eyes go. Her face heats, and his smirk grows. “If you do change your mind about wanting me —”

“I won’t,” she grits.

“But if you do. If you want more. If you want me to give you everything…” His thick eyelashes dip as he watches her mouth.

Something inside her tightens. She tries to remind herself of her purpose; she is here to ruin Cav’s life and get Tidus what he wants. That’s it. There’s nothing else. Yet when Cav leans closer, she remembers the feel of his lips, the drag of his teeth, the hot slide of his tongue. She wants to see if it still feels the same. She wants to bite him and lick the blood out of his mouth. She wants to hurt him, and she wants to taste it.

But when her lips part beneath his, Cav tilts away. Just so. “You have to be honest. It has to be real.” He reaches for the shirt at the end of his bed. “Show me more than this facade, and I won’t hold anything back.”

Her throat is tight. “Is this revenge –” She tries to clear it. “Because I didn’t give you everything last time?”

He hums. “Consider it an exchange of vulnerability.”

Lyx refuses to give in. She doesn’t cave to the tingling in her fingers or the twinge between her legs. She feels nothing; she assures herself of that. “That’s never going to happen.”

“We’ll see, partner.” Cav scoops up his satchel from the corner and slings it over his shoulder. “Be back in three days.”

In the Grotto

Cav

Lyx doesn’t return the next morning.

If Cav were smarter, he would be saying his goodbyes. She said herself that she’s nursing him back to health just to have the thrill of killing him, but Cav has never let good sense get in the way of good faith. Lyx will return. Of that, he is certain.

His stomach groans. How many days has it been since he’s eaten? Time is impossible to keep track of with his eyes shut. Worst of all, he still hasn’t seen Lyx in all her glory, and he refuses to die without at least a glimpse.

With one arm, he reaches out beside him. Glass bottles jostle under his fingertips, an algae net clinging to his palm. He works by sound and touch alone, tugging Lyx’s bag closer to rifle through it. One by one, he uncorks the bottles and holds them to his nose. His nostrils flare at the sting of alcohol. The next scent makes him gag, but finally, he finds one that seems tepid enough.

He presses his thumb to the mouth of the bottle and pours it onto his eyelids. Slowly, the crust dissolves until he can crack his eyes open. It’s so bright with the sunlight reflecting off the water that it takes five full minutes before he adjusts.

This grotto is much like a cave. Foliage grows around him in large fronds stretching over the mossy bank. At his feet, a pool of ocean water has collected on a ledge. It must be low tide now. No waves splash against the rocks; instead, he hears the ocean moving gently beneath the drop-off. That water flows out of the cave entrance and continues into the sea.