How had she not noticed that before?
From here, she could see Maverick standing at the edge of the long dock that led out to the deep water, slumping his shoulders in defeat. She ran to him, dodging the sunken parts of the dock, and came to a halt at his side.
Maverick stared out across the water, his eyes full of rage. Hal must have somehow gotten away, probably on a boat, and she could see the silhouette of one farther out. It looked like he was escaping the revenge that Maverick had planned for him.
He had his escape planned from the very beginning. Or was this the boat that Hal had planned to use when he left with Maverick in his clutches?The thought of him having her alpha angered her. He would never touch her Maverick again.
Pilar was rightfully upset, but she didn’t notice Maverick's fury building until he roared at the water. She jumped back, startled. Maverick looked ready to pounce into the river after Hal, but the swim was too far, even for a lion shifter.
“Should we head back? I don’t think there is any way we are catching Hal now. Let's focus on what we can handle … taking out his guys. The DOD should be here soon, and they should be able to apprehend him."
In truth, Pilar wanted to get Maverick away from the water before he tried to do something stupid. He turned toward her, and she withstood the heat in Maverick's glare until his anger faded. He reluctantly followed her to the car, and they shifted back into their human forms.
Pilar grabbed her clothes from her bag and then tossed him the extras she had told Maverick to bring in a bag for himself as well.
Does he really need to get redressed? I would be okay if he just stayed uncovered.
She shook her head, banishing the thought. Now wasn't the time, even as her lioness demanded the right to claim her mate. She could tell that Maverick was still upset at losing Hal, so she tried to train his thoughts back to how good he had done in the fight.
“You really proved me wrong today, Maverick. You knew exactly how to shift. You were incredible,” she complimented him as they got dressed.
That seemed to lighten his mood. “Fighting as a lion is awesome!” he said ecstatically. “I really came alive out there. I've never acted that way before. It was like a new side of me, and it was exhilarating,”
“Isn’t it? I’m so beyond impressed with your ability to shift in and out of lion form so easily. I warned you that it would take some time, but it looked to me like you had been doing it all your life. A real, natural alpha.”
“Well, what can I say,” he winked at her, “I’m one of those people that has always been ahead of the game.”
His eyes cut toward her, and the last of the anger in them melted away. Maverick stepped toward her and grabbed her face with his strong masculine hands, and brought it up to his.
They leaned into each other until their lips touched softly. Maverick kissed her passionately, but it was still gentle enough that it made Pilar think that it was more a thank you for her having his back out there. It wasn't the feverish need she felt.
Was he also maybe apologizing to her for the way he had lost his temper earlier?
After a few more of his soft and gentle kisses, she felt him pull away, and his lips left hers, the lips that always left her longing for more.
He stared into her eyes as he held her face with both hands. “Once this whole mess is cleaned up, and this is all over with, my love, we are going to have some epic sex,” he said as he kissed her lips again.
“But, Maverick, I think that we already have,” she said.
“Well, my lioness, I’m always up for the challenge of making things better and better,” he said as he grinned at her with a noticeable amount of cockiness.
“And you know what they say, practice does make perfect.” She winked back in response to the grin he had given her.
Maverick turned away to finish dressing, and he seemed to retreat into himself. When he turned back around, she could see his eyes were clouded again.
"I can't let him go," he finally admitted.
Pilar sighed. She understood where he was coming from, and she wanted to give him anything. He finally convinced her to walk back to the water with him to see if they could still see him or his boat at all. It had clearly driven him crazy that he had to watch him escape.
As they drew closer to the bank of the river, they noticed a crappy little boat beached by the river’s edge at the back of the mill that hadn't been visible from the dock. They looked at each other. Pilar knew exactly what Maverick thought at the sight of the boat.
He hurried to it, and she followed. She hoped something would be wrong with it when they arrived so that he couldn’t do what she knew he had worked out in his brain.
“I know it is very likely that this boat was left here for Hal’s goons, but since they are out of commission, I don’t think they will be needing it.” He laughed as he hopped in. “My lady,” he said as he reached out for Pilar’s hand and pulled her into it with him when he had gotten ahold of it.
He climbed to the wheel of the boat, the key still in the ignition.Pilar felt on edge, both for going after Hal and because this boat had just been left here. She was praying it wasn't a trap, hoping to keep Maverick safe.
Maybe it has a dead battery?The boat roared to life as he turned the key.Damn it, no luck of a dead battery.He put it in reverse, and with his foot hanging out of the edge of the boat, he pushed it off the land.