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Axel laughed. “Tell us about her then, brother.”

As Theon started telling them all about Felicity Davers, Tessa closed her eyes, leaning into him and thinking about all the agaveheart she was going to drink tonight.

Agaveheart was made from the center of the agave plant that had been roasted, crushed, and fermented. It tasted both sweet and spicy, and it burned on the way down in the best way.

But that’s what she had really done when she’d gone to use the restroom. As soon as she was out of Theon’s sight, she had discreetly made her way back to the hostess. She had swiped a couple of large notes from Theon’s rather impressive stash when she had finished her hair that evening, and she had pulled one from where she’d stuffed three down the front of her dress.

She had asked the hostess to send a bottle of top shelf agaveheart to their hotel and have it left at the front desk for her with strict instructions to let them know not to send it up to their room because it was a surprise and that Tessa would pick it up in person. She’d only ever had the cheap agaveheart they’d stolen. If Theon would not let her drink wine at dinner, he could certainly pay for her to drink afterwards. She would do at least one of the things she always did after the power assessments and that was getting drunk and repressing the memories. Not particularly healthy, but what was that mortal saying? Make lemonade out of lemons or some shit? And when you’re desperate and have no lemons? You make lemonade out of agaveheart.

She still hadn’t quite figured out how she was going to get out of the room tonight to get said agaveheart, but as usual, she’d figure it out as she went. It’s not as if things could get any worse. She huffed a small laugh at the thought, but apparently everyone in the vehicle heard it, because silence fell. Theon’s hand that had again started massaging her neck stilled once more.

“You find that amusing?” he asked.

Her brows knitted. “Find what amusing?”

“What I just said about Felicity.”

“I wasn’t listening to your conversation, Theon. I listened to you and Miss Davers talk enough tonight. I do not need a play-by-play of the evening. I was there for every dull moment of it.”

“You did not enjoy the evening?”

“Aside from the fact that today was agony and I am tired?” Tessa retorted. “No, Theon. I did not enjoy the evening. I was bored out of my mind, and we were inside for hours.”

“You should have stayed out here with us, baby doll,” Axel chimed in. “We watched the Chaosphere game. The Sunstars slaughtered the Firewings.”

“I would have chosen to watch paint dry over sitting there and listening to those two dance around topics all night,” she replied, and Axel barked a laugh. “He wouldn’t even let me have wine to get through the evening.”

“Why would I give you wine when you are not feeling well?” Theon cut in.

“I never said I wasn’t feeling well,” she bit back.

“That’s beside the point,” he argued. “You looked as though you were going to vomit with each bite of salad. Why would you ask for wine when you are not feeling well?”

“Likely because I choose inappropriate methods of dealing with emotional issues and trauma,” Tessa muttered.

Axel barked another laugh.

“I can actually see that,” Luka commented as they came to a stop at a red light.

“I cannot tell if you are joking or serious,” Theon said, pushing her away from his chest to try to see her face in the dark interior of the vehicle.

“I can’t tell if you are going to be amicable or a dick from one minute to the next lately, so I guess we’re even,” she retorted with a shrug. “Then again, that goes for everyone in the vehicle these days.”

“Gods, you’re mouthy when you’re tired,” Theon sighed, tipping his head back.

“I’m kind of like one of your hounds, but I can talk back,” she sneered, and Theon stilled against the seat.

“What did you just say?” he demanded in a low tone that had Luka and Axel stiffening.

“You heard me, Theon,” she sneered again.

Theon had been eating out of her godsdamn hand and couldn’t see how he was being played. But Tessa saw it. Tessa saw it the moment the female flicked her eyes to her when she was returning from the restroom and compared her to one of Theon’s hounds knowing Tessa could hear. The female knew she paused, almost causing a server to run into her with a tray full of drinks, when Theon commented about how his hounds couldn’t speak back to him.

When Theon had called her a valuable asset.

The silence in the car was deafening for a long moment before Theon said, “We have much to discuss tonight.”

“Oh my gods,” she groaned, dragging a hand down her face. “You really are going to repeat every conversation you had tonight, aren’t you?”