He hesitated. "I'm trying to buy land. A place where my crew can settle if they choose. Wayfarers don't exactly earn a pension. We work until we die or get too injured to continue. I want another option."
The admission was so unexpected, so human, that I didn't know how to respond. This was the man who'd warned me not to look for a hero, who'd insisted he was just working for profit. But here he was, risking his life to give his small crew a future.
"That's notopportunistbehavior," I said quietly with a small smile.
"Sure it is. I'm buying loyalty. Good crew members stay longer if they know there's something waiting for them besides death in the void."
"You can tell yourself that. But I know what I'm seeing."
His eyes fixed on me, searching my face. "And whatdoyou see?"
"Someone who cares more than he wants to admit."
We were standing close—when had we gotten so close?—and I could see the flecks of orange in his eyes, and the faint scar that cut through his eyebrow.
He took a step back, putting distance between us. "You should go. We'll reach Nytheris in another week, and we both need to focus."
I left his cabin feeling off-balance, wondering what in the realms that was all about.
Hours later,when I should have been asleep, I was on my way to the galley for some late-night tea when I noticed the heavy door to the captain's office stood slightly ajar. I pushed it open, a question poised on my tongue, but the words died before they could even form.
Steam swirled in the warm glow of a crystal lamp, clinging to the humid air. Cypher stood near a small table, his back to the door and his shirt discarded on a nearby chair. He leanedover a basin of water, the heat rising in visible waves against the cool shadows of the cabin. Water trailed down the valleys of his spine, disappearing into the waistband of his trousers. The muscles of his back shifted as he splashed his face, skin glistening like wet clay.
My breath hitched and a curse fell from my lips, breaking the quiet. Cypher went perfectly still. He didn't turn right away, but the tension in his shoulders shifted, radiating an awareness that made the hair on my arms stand up. Slowly, he reached for a nearby cloth, but his hand stopped mid-air.
He turned to face me. Wet hair clung to his forehead and draped over his shoulders, the dark strands dripping onto his chest and over the scars that marked his torso. The light from the lamp caught the copper of his eyes, making them burn. He didn't speak. He just watched me, tracking the way my gaze lingered on the hard planes of his stomach before snapping back to his face.
The silence became heavy, thick with the scent of soap and steam. Cypher straightened, his immense height filling the small room, and began to move. He didn't rush. Every step was smooth, closing the distance until the steam from his body reached me.
Retreating was the only option. My heels hit the wall beside the door, the cold wood jarring against fire spreading under my skin. He didn't stop until he was inches away, towering over me so completely that I had to tilt my head back to keep his gaze. He was one of the largest men I'd ever seen in person.
"Looking for something, scavenger?"
"I... the readings," I managed to stammer, swallowing thickly, my mouth going bone dry. "The astrolabe..." It was coming out in jumbles. I felt like an idiot, and was ready to quite literally make a run for it.
Cypher leaned closer, his eyes dropping to my mouth for a fraction of a second before meeting mine again. He raised his hand, reaching toward my face. I squeezed my eyes shut, a quick breath escaping as I waited for the touch of his fingers against my skin.
Instead, the soft rustle of fabric sounded right next to my ear. My eyes snapped open to see him pulling a small hand cloth from the shelf I hadn't realized was directly beside me. He stepped back, a smirk playing on his lips. He draped the towel over his shoulder and wiped the water from his face, never breaking eye contact.
"Anything else?"
I glared at him, my face likely flushing a deep crimson as I realized exactly how much he'd enjoyed that. "Forget it," I snapped, the words coming out more breathless than I liked.
Grabbing the door handle, I wrenched it open wider and stepped out into the corridor. I didn't look back, slamming the heavy wood shut with a force that rattled the frames on the walls.
I didn't stop cursing until I made it back to the deck, the question I'd been intending to ask, suddenly a mystery to me.
Kora corneredme the next evening in our cabin. "You've been spending a lot of time with Cypher."
I looked up from the blade I was cleaning—one of the daggers Gideon had provided, its fire core warm against my palm. "He's training me. Teaching me to use my rift abilities."
"Is thatallhe's teaching you?"
I raised a brow. "What'sthatsupposed to mean?" I thought back to last night, heat flooding my cheeks as glistening wet skin flashed through my mind.
She sat on her bunk, fixing me with a knowing look. "I see the way you look at him, Junie. And the way he looks at you when he thinks no one's watching."
"Now Iknowyou're imagining things."
