Page 35 of A Reckless Indulgence

But when she opens the door to her room, Cypher is already inside, leaning against the bookshelf with her arms crossed.

Cav’s face falls.

Heathen crosses to their desk at the end of the room, oblivious or unwilling to acknowledge the tension. “Quite a show you put on tonight.”

Right. Tonight was supposed to be part of his experiment, not a preoccupation with making Lyx come. He toes the door closed behind him. “The crowd seemed to think so.”

“The crowd couldn’t see anything.” There Cypher goes, pouring rain on his parade. Her nose wrinkles with distaste. “It wasn’t the proper setup. The crow’s nest is too high for something like that, especially at night.”

Cav shrugs. “If our guests enjoyed tonight’s conditions, imagine how good it could be in plain sight.”

Cypher glares in response.

Heathen stares at a place over Cav’s shoulder. “Tonight’s…performance was a surprise. You know how I feel about surprises.”

A smug look flits across Cypher’s face.

Cav resists the urge to flip her off. “There was no physical contact with anyone else,” he points out. “And we were more than ten feet away, like you said.”

A smile tugs on Heathen’s lips. “I appreciate your strict adherence to the rules. I have to say, I’m impressed.”

Triumphantly, Cav scratches his temple with his middle finger.

The muscle in Cypher’s jaw twitches.

“I gave you permission,” Heathen continues, “and you made something happen. Moreover, you prepared for it. I noticed you scoping out the crow’s nest the last few days, but I never imagined it was for that.” Heathen circles their desk to rest back against it. “It wasn’t the most visible or audible, but you took precaution. It was a perfect icebreaker, and it set the tone for the evening. Not to mention the impact on our profits.”

Cav’s tail perks. In truth, he’d only managed to prepare the safety precautions before he got distracted, but no one else needs to know that.

When Heathen looks toward Cypher, she mumbles begrudgingly.

“Can you speak up?” Cav asks.

“There was an increase in private rooms,” Cypher snaps. “Longer time slots.”

Heathen clears their throat.

“And, apparently,” Cypher’s teeth grit, “a lot of requests similar to the show you put on.”

Cav’s chest swells with pride. “So you’re saying I’m a success.”

“I’m not saying that.”

“The money is,” Heathen cuts in. “From a cursory glance, our pleasure collection increased tonight as well.”

A grin splits Cav’s face. “Sounds like we have a hit on our hands.”

“That’s premature.” Cypher’s foot drops to the floor like she needs her full weight behind her. “It’s been one night; that’s not a pattern. I understand this experiment is Cav’s thing —”

He presses a mocking hand to his chest. “Well, when you put it like that —”

“But the siren is an unknown variable.” Tersely, Cypher turns toward Heathen and blocks Cav behind her. “She doesn’t need to be involved. She doesn’t need to be here at all.”

“Her name is Lyx,” Cav enunciates, brushing past Cypher to get in Heathen’s line of sight again. “And she is involved. That’s the agreement. She helps me with this venture, and she gets a room on the ship.”

Cypher’s face is a stone wall. “Then make a new agreement.”

“What is your problem?” Cav laughs. It crackles with an anger he tries to contain. “You’re obsessed with her. You don’t —”