“I’m following you two. Just lead the way,” she said. As the boys ran off, she threw all of them a wave.
Mav and Dare exchanged a look, and he could read the general tenor of his cousin’s thoughts—worry, for Slider. But at least the guy was here. He’d shown up and pitched in. Maverick had no doubt that said as much about his loyalty to Jagger as anything else. And he had to respect that.
“Tickets, please,” the man at the head of the line said. They handed them over and found two cars near each other.
“This is going to be so fun.” Alexa leaned over and kissed him.
“If you keep doing that, it’ll be a fucking blast,” he said.
She threw her head back and laughed.
Grinning, Maverick pointed at Dare. “Fifty bucks, brother.”
Dare flipped him off. And then they started moving.
Maverick couldn’t remember the last time he’d laughed so hard. He hadn’t entirely ruled out the possibility of puking, but between the look on Dare’s face, Alexa absolutely howling and screaming in delight, and the way centripetal force glued her to his side, he was having a great damn time.
“That was fucking awesome,” he said when they all got off. He clapped a greenish Dare on the back. “What are we riding next?”
They rode the Sea Dragon—though Dare called bullshit on the very back, which Haven was only too happy to accommodate. They rode the spinning teacups, which was a funny sight with them in their Ravens colors sitting in dainty pastel cups. They rode the Gravitron, where the floor dropped out from under them, rock music blaring in their ears. They walked through the house of mirrors, where Haven got stuck in a little path of mirrors and couldn’t find her way out—a fact that made her want to go through it a second time. And then they made their way to the bumper cars.
“Now this is more my speed,” Dare said.
“But you were so cute in the teacups, see?” She brought up a selfie she’d taken of them on her phone.
“Aw, that is really cute, Dare.” Alexa grinned at him.
“Baby, don’t show that shit around,” Dare said, no heat in his words at all. Maverick busted out laughing. “You have no room to talk, motherfucker.” Dare arched a brow at him.
Mav held up his hands, grinning and shaking his head. “I didn’t say a word.”
They finally got to their cars, each of them taking their own, and then somehow it ended up three on one, everyone coming after Mav.
“What the hell?” he said, laughing and dodging Alexa as she beelined straight for him. “You’re supposed to be on my side.”
“All’s fair in bumper cars, Maverick. Deal with it.” She rammed him.
“Aw, you’re gonna pay, little girl. Just you wait.” He went to turn the car, but Dare hit him next. The guy grinned like an idiot. Mav just shook his head.
After, Alexa wrapped herself around him. “I’m sorry I crashed my car into you.”
He feigned a scowl and nailed her with a hot stare. Her playfulness was fucking sexy. “I think I know how you can make it up to me.”
“Hey, Haven wants to do the Tilt-A-Whirl again,” Dare said. “Catch ya later?”
“You bet,” Mav said.
When they were alone, Alexa pushed up on tiptoes and put her mouth to his ear. “Does it involve me sucking your cock?” She gave him an innocent look.
“Jesus Christ,” he bit out, the teasing words sending blood rushing south. “You better believe it does now.”
She bit her lip, her look so full of desire that he wanted to take her behind one of the rides right this second. “Mmm, I’ll look forward to that.” She tugged his hand. “But first we need games and stuffed animals. And maybe cotton candy. Or a funnel cake.”
“Whatever you want,” he said, meaning that in every way he could.
“Oh, I love this one,” she said, pulling him toward the game where you shot water into the mouth of a clown to blow up and pop a balloon. They plunked down their money and took up the last two guns side by side.
Alexa lined up her shot like her life depended on it, and then the game began.
Ding ding ding!
“I won! Oh, my God, I won!” she cried.
“Yes, you did,” Mav said. “What are you going to pick?”
The man pointed to her three options for an extra-large prize. “You get to pick from the black bear, the dinosaur, or the llama.”
She turned to him. “Which one do you like?”
He peered up at them. “I don’t know. That llama’s ridiculous, though.”
“Oh, yay. That’s the one I like, too. I’ll take the llama.”
The man handed it to her, all two and a half feet of fucking weird-ass llama. To go with her cat. Mav chuckled. Who even knew they made llama stuffed animals?
“It’s for you,” she said.
“You won me a llama?” He looked at it skeptically as she pushed it against his chest. The eyeball on the one side of its head wouldn’t stop looking at him.
“Yes! You totally do not have enough llamas in your life.” She absolutely glowed with happiness.
“That is true, Al. Thank you. I think.” He tucked the huge toy under his arm. People looked at him weird as he carried it around, the tall neck sagging this way and that. He just smiled.
“But now I have to win you something. Let’s play that.” He pointed to the dart game.
“Pop three in a row, win a large prize,” the man yelled. “That’s a mighty fine llama you got there.”
Chuckling, Maverick laid out his cash. “Fucking llama.” His first throw popped a balloon. Alexa cheered. The second one did it again.
“Go, baby!” she said.
Number three . . . And pop!
“Yay!” She threw her arms around his neck. “You did it.”
“What’s it gonna be, little lady?” the man asked, pointing to a row of toys smaller than the llama. Thank God.
“Holy crap, is that a hedgehog?” she asked, her eyes wide.
“Indeed it is,” the man said, holding one out to her.
“Is it just me or does this carnival have the weirdest stuffed animals ever?” Maverick asked.
Alexa grinned. “I know. Isn’t it amazing? I’ll take it. Thanks,” she said. And then she turned to him. “I’m so happy I could cry.”
Maverick took her face in his hand and leaned in. The llama leaned in, too, which made her giggle. “I’ll hold a carnival for you every day if it makes you this happy.”
“Aw, silly man. It’s not the carnival. It’s you.” She kissed him nice and deep, making him think of her plans for after. When she pulled back, she eyed the llama. “Okay, it’s him a little bit, but mostly you.”
Maverick laughed. “I guess I can live with that. Then what’s next, baby? Because I can’t get enough of hearing you laugh and seeing you smile.”
“I think we need a funnel cake, Mav,” she said, petting her hedgehog.
“Your wish,” he said, seeing the food truck in the distance. “Let’s go.”