Page 133 of Maverick

"So I stabbed the fucking thing," Nick mutters. "It was dangerous. Right? I had to do it. It couldn't be left alive to fuck with people."

"Right," I mumble through my laughter. "It was a public service."

Nick waves his hand at me, and heads over to Nan and Connie, who are wearing matching flowy caftans. They are soalike it's scary. In my mind, scary good, but Nick looks a little wary as he approaches them.

I lay back on my lounger, loving the still warm breeze on my skin. It'll be dark soon, and I'll gratefully snuggle under a blanket with my guy, but for right now, I'm savoring it.

And there really is so much to savor. The rooftop pool shimmers in the dusk light. There's laughter all around me as the people I've come to love like family finish inflating their floaties and argue over snacks. Somehow they've managed to get a popcorn maker up here, the kind they have at the movie theater, so every one in a while, when the breeze shifts, I get a whiff and my stomach growls.

And of course, the puppies pen’s is out here so they can watch the movie too. Little Mia Sofia Miles is damn convincing. One word from her, and her Daddy (officially now) carted everything up here. Those puppies are spoiled rotten, and I love it.

"Careful, Nan!" I call out as Jonas and Nick help my grandmother onto a massive round float. Jonas has her in his arms like a bride. She's clutching a margarita in one hand, and the bottom of her caftan clutched in the other. "It would be easier if you let Nick hold your drink."

"No fucking way," Nan retorts, as Jonas lowers her gently onto the floaty. She wiggles, passing her drink to Connie who’s already settled, then carefully crawls into the lounge seat next to her. "That boy will drink it. Guaran-damn-teed."

Connie nods in agreement, raising her own glass. "She's right. The boy is a mooch."

Nick gasps dramatically. "Connie! Nan. Both of you? I'm hurt."

"Notice he's not denying it," Connie says to Nan. Nan nods, cheers Nick with her drink and takes a big sip, smacking her lips after. Nick laughs, looking all kinds of happy, then grabs another floaty.

A very large shape gets between me and what's left of the sun. "What do you think?" Maverick asks, grinning down at me.

God, the man is all golden retriever energy tonight, and I can't get enough of it. "I think it looks perfect." And it does. The lounger he's carrying is massive, looking more like a couch than an air mattress. It has a full back rest and an attached footrest. "Are we ready to do this?"

"Hell yeah, we are."

We move to the steps lining one end of the Olympic sized pool, and Maverick floats it holding it with one hand, his other one supporting my elbow as I climb in. I flip over, scooting to give him room, then hold my arms out for the blanket and snacks he tosses at me.

"Okay," he says, letting go. "Here I come."

I'm prepared for it, but I still let out a squeal as he dives onto the floaty, making the whole thing tilt precariously. I clutch the bags of chips tightly to my chest, because…priorities. He freezes, letting it settle before he flips over. He does it so slowly I have plenty of time to admire the way the muscles in his arms and chest bunch as he supports himself. He shouldn't ever wear a shirt again. He should be just like this…at least when I'm around. I don't want some other woman getting to appreciate all that is Maverick Walker.

"This was a great idea," he says grinning as he eases into place next to me.

"It is a great idea. What are the chances we all stay dry the whole movie?"

"Is there a less than zero? If so, then that. That's the chance."

"Fair. So I guess the better question is, who's going to get wet first?"

Maverick eases his arm around my back, pulling me into his chest. In the month since he shared what happened to his mom, and why he reacted the way he did, things have been prettydamn perfect. Yeah, there's been little annoyances, but we've been able to talk through most of it.

I'm still working at the club, but the security is even tighter than before. When I do have a shift, Mavrick is likely to show up, but I don't mind. It gives him peace of mind.

Honestly, I'm nearly ready to let the job go. I care too much about him to make him worry. And yeah, he's not worrying as much. Intellectually, he gets that what happened to his mom won't happen to me. The odds are astronomical, as Jonas so thoroughly showed him with a full graph and PowerPoint presentation. I may have asked Jonas for some help, but man, he went above and beyond.

But I'm ready to let the job go for me, too. Because I have the nest egg I promised myself, and now, I'd like to just…live. I want to spend time with my boyfriend. I want to spend time with Nan. And I don't see the point in working myself to the bone just to prove my independence.

Because that's been a big adjustment too. I've never been this taken care of in my life. Yeah, Nan and Grandpa took good care of me, but as an adult, I've paid my own way. Yet now I have this incredible man that looks at me sideways if I try to pay for anything. Groceries, a coffee, a pack of gum…anything.

And I love it. And I can tell he does too. It makes him happy to take care of both of us, and after all the time I've spent being the one taking care of everyone else, I’m not going to fight it.

"Well, I think that's a sucker bet," Maverick muses, pressing a kiss to the top of my head then pointing across the pool at Colton. "Cause that fucker's going in, guaranteed."

"Lord. You're right. There's no way he's going to make it through a whole movie on that thing." Evie and Mia, who’s wearing a purple life jacket, are happily ensconced on their own bright pink floaty already, munching on popcorn as they watch Colton attempt to maneuver a giant inflatable bull into thewater. I press my mouth against Maverick's shoulder laughing as Colton does some sort of two step wobble. You can almost see him calculating how to mount the thing. "How's he going to get up there? Do you think he'll go with the run and jump or is he going to try and climb up."

Everyone around the pool's gone silent, and I'm certain there's more than one bet being made.

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