into his eyes was bad, very bad, as she tended to see things there that couldn’t really be there, things like desire, heat…affection.
An illusion, of course. He was here to get back what he thought Sally had stolen.
“Touchy,” he said as she pulled away.
“Just keep your grimy paws off me.”
He arched a brow at that, clearly noting that only one of them was grimy, and it was certainly not him. Watching her, he leaned against the hull of the plane, crossing his arms over his chest as he got comfortable. “Bill’s gone, by the way. You can relax.”
Yeah. Except she couldn’t, not with him this close. “How do you know he’s gone?”
“Because I told him to come back when the payment was due.”
Well, if that didn’t throw her off balance. But hell, she’d been off balance for five days now, ever since Bo had landed here and flashed that deed.
A deed that had her world upside down.
God, it all made no sense, no sense at all, and her brain hurt sorting through it all.
“Are you trying to come up with a thank you?” he asked, looking amused again.
“Thank you,” she said, just a little bit grudgingly.
He ran a finger over her chin. “You know, I think you just might be the most stubborn woman on the planet.”
“Don’t touch me,” she said, and slapped his hand away. “I can’t seem to think when you do.”
His gaze ran over her features. “Giving information to the enemy, Mel?”
“You’re holding a deed that puts the most important thing in my life at risk. Like it or not, you’re not my enemy, you’re in my camp.”
He said nothing to that for a long beat, but relaxed, letting out a slow smile that made her knees wobble.
“Stop that,” she demanded, pointing at him.
The grin spread, and she shook her head, baffled, and admittedly aroused. Good God, he was potent. “Bo… What do you want from me?”
“Interesting question.” He peered into the engine compartment, while she peered at him. He wore jeans, cargo styled, loose and low on his hips, but leaving no doubt that beneath the denim was a Class A body in prime condition. His T-shirt was black, half-tucked in and half not. Carefree, laid-back, sexy.
Dangerous.
At least to her own peace of mind. “You buy that plane you were looking at?”
“I’m thinking about it. With a little work, I could make a sweet profit off it. I saw another the other day, too. A ’38 Spartan, you see it?” He glanced back at her, his eyes shiny, his smile easy.
She hadn’t seen him excited about something before, she realized. He was happy, and damn it, it looked good on him. “I saw it.”
“You have a beauty right here as well.” He stroked a hand over the Hawker, peering into the engine. “Ah,” he said, and pointed to the casing. “Bad bolt, it’s all rusted, see? No worries, mate. Hand me a wrench.”
She narrowed her eyes. “Why?”
Because I can get it off for you.”
“I’ll do it myself, thanks.” She’d been trying for days.
“I’m standing right here, and I’ve got better leverage than you.” He cocked his head and gave her that smile, which she was sure had charmed the panties off too many women to count. “You’re afraid to let me help you.”
“I’m afraid of what you’ll want in return.”
“Just a tiny little thing, really.”
She crossed her arms. “I told you, I don’t know where Sally is.”
“Yeah, yeah. Old news. I figure one of these days you’ll either cave or she’ll show.”
Her gut tightened. “Why wouldn’t she?”
“Why don’t you tell me?”
He sounded…confident. As if he knew something, which of course, he didn’t.
Did he? “Why would you hang around?” she pressed. “Why don’t you just go home and I’ll call you-”
“Ah, but will you?” He smiled, a challenging light in his eyes. “Nah, I think I’m better off sticking around, thanks. Plus there’s the added bonus, of course.”
More than her gut tightened now. “What’s that?”
“Bothering you.”
“You don’t get to me.”
“Is that right?” He took a step toward her, bringing them entirely too close, so close that she could see those mesmerizing flecks of gold dancing in the green of his eyes. So close that she could smell him, that complicated, glorious scent of a far-too-sexy man. So close she could do nothing but soak him up. “Yeah, I get to you plenty,” he said.
She waited until she could be sure her voice would be even. “You really think you can get that bolt off?”
“Sure.”
“Is it going to cost me?”
He just looked at her, eyes hot.
Her belly quivered. Her everything quivered. To hide it, she laughed. “Men.” She whirled back to the plane. “I’ll fix it myself.”
“Suit yourself.” With another shrug, he went back to holding up the hull with his butt and back, all casual and laid-back as he watched her from eyes at half-mast.
Sort of the way a sleeping lion might watch its prey.
Mel decided to put him out of her mind as she dove into her toolbox. She got a bigger wrench and went back for the bolt, wielding the tool as hard as she could-until her fingers slipped, scraping yet another knuckle. “Damn it.”
“Need me to kiss that one, too?”
Yes, begged her body. “No!” She wiped the blood off on her coveralls. “It’s just a little nick.”
He agreed with a low laugh. “Yeah, and you’ve had more than your fair share of knocks.”
“It’s called shit happens.”
“Yeah.” His smile faded. “Neither of us have lived a walk in the park, have we?”
Her eyes met his, saw the understanding there, and sighed. “Ah, hell, Bo. Do we really want to do this?”
“Do what?”
“You know. Talk.”
He smiled. “Afraid of a little chitchat? No worries. Charlene and Al already told me all about you.”
“They did not.”
“Oh, yes they did. I sang along to a Twisted Sister song on the radio and Char melted on the spot. She was worried you broke my heart. I told her I’d recovered.”
“Yeah, I’ll bet.” She put her head back in the engine compartment. Recovered, her ass. They both know only one of them would get hurt here. Damn, if only she really could get that bolt off by herself…
“Oh, and I might have mentioned…” He arched a brow. “That I intended to get you back.”
At this, she dropped the wrench. It landed right on her toe. Hopping up and down, she glared at him. “What?”
“You heard me.”
She gritted past the throbbing radiating up her leg. “Get me back. Ha! And why aren’t you taken, anyway?”
He choked out a laugh. “A personal question, Mel?”
She actually felt herself blush. “Forget it.”
“No, you’re curious.” He smiled. “It’s cute.”
“Maybe I just wanted to see how hard up you are.”
“Pretty damn hard up.”
Her gaze flew to his, wondering if he meant the words as hot and erotic as he’d said them.
His eyes were burning up.
Oh, God.
