Jill Shalvis - Aussie Rules

“Because I can see why you’d want to fuck her,” Sally said conversationally. “It’d be like fucking me over, right?”

A muscle jumped in Bo’s jaw. “Stop trying to get to the door, damn it. You’re not going anywhere except to a nice, cold cell block.”

But Sally laughed harshly, then lunged for the door anyway, knocking Mel over as she went.

Surprised, Mel fell to the glass-covered floor.

Bo flew out of the shower and tackled Sally. They went rolling into the bedroom, out of Mel’s sight.

The gun went off again.

Mel heard a scream, realized it was her own, and crawled out of the bathroom to see Bo and Sally locked together, rolling…blood everywhere. Again her heart stopped because she couldn’t see who’d been hit. “Oh, God, oh, God!” she cried, terrified Bo was going to die, or maybe he was already dying. There was a planted pot on the nightstand, which she grabbed and ran over to the locked pair. Bo was on top and she raised the pot, thinking move, move, goddamn it, move, until finally, they rolled again.

Now Sally was on top, lifting her head, laughing coldly down into Bo’s. “You bastard-”

Mel cracked her in the back of the head with the pot.

Sally slumped and went still, and Bo crawled out from beneath her. Mel dove for him. “Where are you hit, Jesus, where?” Her hands ran all over him, everywhere she could touch.

“I’m okay, Mel, I’m okay.”

But she couldn’t stop touching him, skimming her fingers over his body, which was, in fact, utterly free of bullet holes.

“Mel, stop.” He gathered her hands in his. “I’m okay. It’s you.” He dragged her into his lap. “You’re the one who’s hurt,” he said hoarsely.

Yeah, she knew that, and the cuts were beginning to make themselves known, little bits of fire along her knees and feet, but she couldn’t stop touching him. “I thought you were shot. I thought-”

“I’m okay, I promise.”

But she still flung her arms around his neck and let herself cling, just for a minute. “You feel okay.”

“I am. Mel, look at me.” Cupping her face up, he looked into her eyes. “I’m fine.”

“Good.” She gulped in air. “Because I’m not.”

“I know. You’re cut from the glass.” His voice was hoarse with fear, for her, she realized, as he carefully lifted her and set her on his bed.

“No, it’s not the cuts. Bo-”

“I didn’t sleep with you to get back at her,” he said.

She looked into his eyes. “I know.”

“Do you? Do you really?”

“Yeah. I do. But Bo? I, um, did something a little out of the norm for me. Like on Mars out of the norm, something…” She swallowed hard, managed a shaky smile. “Well, I sort of fell in love with you.”

Sally rolled to her back and groaned. “Are you kidding me? I’m lying here dying and you two are going to have a moment? Seriously?”

Bo lifted the gun on Sally again, all without taking his eyes off Mel. “Qualify ‘sort of.’”

“Sort of,” Mel said. “As in did.”

“Hey, my life is flashing before my eyes, people!” Sally yelled.

“You fell in love with me,” Bo repeated to Mel, looking dazed.

“Yes.”

“Unbelievable,” Sally muttered.

“Shut up!” both Mel and Bo said to her at the same time.

“I know we’re still working on the trust thing,” Mel said to Bo. “And I also know you’re leaving, but it was just too much for me to keep inside, I’m sorry. It just popped out, without permission.”

He had a funny look on his face so she rushed to finish. “I don’t mean to burden you, or make you feel-”

“You don’t want to burden me with your feelings,” he repeated slowly.

“Right.” Why was he sounding like a parrot? “Or make you feel like you have to see me when you come back into town, I just-”

“Make me feel like I have to see you.” He shook his head. “Mel, have you ever known me to do anything I don’t want to?”

“Well, no.”

“Or let someone make me do something?”

“No. But-”

“Yeah. Look, you’re a little crooked on all this. Especially since I love you back.”

“You…” Her breath caught. “You do?”

“Oh, yeah.”

“Oh, my God. I didn’t imagine you’d-”

“Why not?”

“It’s just that you have it so together, and I never seem to, and-”

“It’s you.”

“What?”

“If I have it together,” he said. “It’s because of you.”

Mel’s eyes filled. Damn it.

“For years something’s been missing,” Bo said to her. “I always thought it was my dad, or that I couldn’t get the restoration business going, or maybe location…I always had a reason for not feeling…whole.”

Undone, she put her head to his chest. “Bo.”

“It’s you, Mel. You make me feel whole.”

Her heart was so full she could hardly stand it. “Really?”

“Oh, yeah.” He sounded as if maybe his throat was as tight as hers, and his eyes were as shiny as they’d been when he’d first seen the Beechcraft again. “And I do love you, Mel. So much.” He took a deep breath. “But you’re bleeding. You probably have glass embedded in your flesh, and I’m feeling a little drafty here, so-”

Two cops burst into the room, guns drawn. “Hands up!”

“Right on cue,” Bo said, and lifted his hands.

Mel, still on his lap, lifted her hands, too.

Sally just groaned.

“No one moves,” one of the cops said. “Until we straighten this out.”

Bo looked at Mel. “Actually, I’m good right here.”

Mel laughed through her tears and kissed him. “Me, too.”

Three months later…

AC/DC blared from the boom box on the counter, next to a tray fat with fresh donuts. Standing around the counter chowing down on said donuts was the usual morning crowd.

With some obvious differences.

Dimi was on a school break from her nursing program. And though the hour was obscenely early, she was smiling-grinning, actually-up into Danny’s face. She had a sunburn across her nose and cheeks from yesterday afternoon’s surfing lesson.

“You almost stood up that last time,” Danny told her proudly.

Dimi was learning to surf.

And to love.

“Shhh!” Char cranked up the music from ear splitting to glass cracking. “I love this song!” she shouted, and began to boogie her pregnant belly around the kitchen floor.

Al caught her up in his arms, laughing as he nuzzled his wife’s neck. “Hey, don’t drop my kid.”

Ernest rolled his eyes, grabbed his broom, and stalked off, muttering about displays of public affection.

Some things never changed.

Bo turned down the music. “Sorry, Char. I just want to say something.” He looked at Mel, whose entire heart gushed at just the sight of him, as it had every single day since he’d walked off that Gulfstream so many months ago now. “Mel and I would like to announce a new adventure.”

Char gasped hopefully.

So did Dimi.

Mel kept her face even, knowing what they thought. “We’re merging Anderson Air and Black Aviation,” she said.

“Oh.” Twin faces fell.

“What’s the matter?” Bo asked. “Aren’t you happy for us?”

Danny shook Bo’s hand. So did Al.

The women, both of them, tried to even out their clear disappointment. “Yes, of course,” Dimi said. “But I already knew that.”

“But what you don’t know,” Mel said, “is the new title for the company.”

“Black,” Bo said, letting his grin escape as he stole a peek at Mel, making her heart tip right on its side…“and Black Aviation.”

Dimi blinked.

Char blinked.

Black and Black Aviation.

As it sank in, they both squealed together and began jumping up and down as they crossed to Mel and gathered her in close.

“Does this mean-” Dimi started.

“That you’re getting married?” Char finished.

“Does it?” Dimi demanded.

“Tell us!” Char demanded.

Mel laughed and hugged them both, pulling back to show them her finger.

And the brand-new diamond on it.

This caused more screaming and more squeals, and Mel endured it all, finally pulling gently away to look at Bo. “Maybe we should have called the new merger Just Plane Trouble.”

Bo laughed, and snagged Mel’s heart all over again. He knew, as she did, that it didn’t matter what they called themselves, as long as they were together.