I made my way to the helm, bare feet quiet against the deck boards. The boat’s steady hum vibrated up through my legs, and the wind whipped my hair back in loose strands.
Griff spotted me first. He was leaning against the wall near the helm with his arms crossed and that familiar amused tilt to his mouth.
“Well,” he drawled. “Look who’s full of bourbon and poor judgment.”
“I’ll thank you not to speak about Nox that way,” I replied sweetly.
His grin widened.
Elias was at the wheel, focused but not tense, his stance easy in a way that made me irrationally warm all over again. His dark eyes cut to me the moment I stepped close.
“I thought you were meant to be resting,” he scolded lightly.
“I thought I was the one giving orders,” I whined.
Elias turned slightly, hand still steady on the helm. “You’ve been running yourself into the ground for a week. You finally let yourself rest, and now you’re out here drunk and barefoot.”
“I’m not drunk,” I said, placing a hand on his arm for balance. “I’m just… emotionally relaxed.”
“That’s not a thing,” Elias said.
“It is,” Griff put in. “She’s emotionally relaxed and physically insubordinate.”
I raised an eyebrow. “You know I outrank you.”
Elias’s mouth curved, his expression slowly turning dangerously dark. “Not right now, you don’t.”
Before I could respond, he reached out, caught my wrist, and pulled me gently—but very firmly—into his lap. I gave a surprised laugh as I landed across his thighs, braced on one arm.
“Elias—”
“You came up here looking for attention,” he said. “Now you’ve got it.”
And then his hand playfully swatted my ass.
I gasped.
He did it again.
I let out a sound that might have been a gasp, maybe a laugh, but definitely not a protest.
“She’s blushing,” Griff noted, voice full of delight. “Which is impressive, considering the wind out there.”
“She’s wiggling,” Elias said dryly, giving me another spank. “That means she wants more, right?”
“I came up here to check on you,” I squealed, trying for dignity and failing miserably as Elias shifted his legs and trapped me more securely in place.
“You came up here to see what you could get away with,” hereplied, giving me another stinging slap before rubbing the spot soothingly. “And now you’ve found out.”
“You’re both fired,” I muttered into my elbow.
“You can’t fire us,” Elias said. “You chose us.”
“I’m filing a formal complaint,” I said.
“Please do,” Griff said. “I want to see what form you use for ‘my ass was spanked bright red by my overly possessive mates.’”
Elias huffed a quiet laugh and shifted me gently again, careful and unhurried. His touch was firm but respectful as he loosened my grip on his sleeve and murmured, “Hands here,” guiding me to brace myself properly on the floor.
