roared, his revolver in his hand and more fury in his eyes than I'd ever seen there before. "The next bullet will go between your fucking eyes. I won't offer this warning out twice."
Mutt whimpered, moving close to lick my cheek and I scrambled upright as the dude who had elbow-clocked me sobbed and clutched at the bleeding hole in his leg.
"Shit, you should get a Band-Aid for that," I told him, holding my hand out to Rick who still looked ready to murder someone.
That fire in his gaze dimmed a little as he turned his eyes on me and he reached out to take my hand, yanking me up and out of the boat so fast that I stumbled and bumped into his chest.
I blinked at him in surprise and he leaned down like he might kiss me, a savage smile lighting his face as he spoke against my lips instead.
"Look who likes following orders after all."
"Fuck you," I tossed at him, stepping back and flicking my rainbow hair, but of course he wouldn't just let me go and his grip on my hand tightened.
"Bring the Harlequin to the freezer," Rick growled at his men before starting off along the jetty and tugging me with him.
Mutt fell into step by our feet as I let Rick guide me along. My little pooch seemed unsure of Maverick but not outwardly hostile.
"Boo. I thought you were gonna be fun today. But you're just gonna play the evil brother role, aren't you? Toss him in the freezer, do your scary mumbo jumbo, threaten to take over the world-"
"I've got the world right here beside me," Rick said, jerking me to a halt as we stepped onto the sand and looking at me like he really meant those words. "What else do I need?"
"Family," I replied instantly and I didn't miss the wince he tried to hide at that word.
"The only person I ever gave a fuck about is looking right at me, beautiful. I don't need no one else."
"I thought the great Maverick Stone wasn't afraid of anything," I taunted.
"I'm not."
"So send the goons away and spend the day with me and Johnny James. I already know you aren't going to kill him, and the freezer is gross and cold. It's a beautiful day and I wanna lose myself in this heat."
Rick considered me for a long moment, turning his gaze back towards JJ who was being held between two of his men while another couple helped the asshole who had been shot get out of the boat.
"P.S. You need to get my boat cleaned," I whisper shouted and Maverick barked a laugh.
"Fine. Fuck it. If you're so desperate to prove something with this little stunt, then come on. Let's see you prove it." Maverick started walking again, leading the way across the sand towards the hotel before striding onto the tiles which surrounded the huge pool.
His men followed until he stopped abruptly by a table and chairs and pointed the guys holding JJ towards it. They shoved him down and I moved to JJ’s side, brushing my fingers along his jaw briefly as he gave me a look that said I was seriously pushing his trust in me right now.
"All of you fuck off to the mainland for the rest of the day," Maverick barked. "I've got some unfinished business to deal with here and I don't wanna see a single one of you fuckers hanging around while I do it."
His men hesitated for a few beats then they all took off at once, some hurrying inside and calling out to others while a few just headed straight back to the jetty.
Rick and JJ entered into some kind of scary dude stare off, so I slipped away towards the bar beyond the pool, hunting out something refreshing.
Mutt scurried along beside me, peeing on things he wanted to claim for his own and sniffing everything before trotting into the hotel to investigate further.
I found a bottle of whiskey and grabbed it. It wasn't really my first choice, but booze was booze, so I cracked it open and took a long swig.
The Damned Men were still making a meal out of fucking all the way off, so I located the music system and hooked my phone up to it, playing Kiss Me More by Doja Cat and SZA as I started dancing.
JJ and Rick were trading insults or having a dick measuring contest or some shit, so I was happy doing me while