Ariana looked up into his eyes, her own filled with tears. “And what is that?”
He brushed her lips with his. “Love.”
Her heart constricted with the force of her feelings for him. “Isn’t it too soon to fall in love?” she asked on a ragged breath.
“Not if you know it’s right.”
Hope blossomed in her chest. “And do you know?”
He nodded. “I know. I knew shortly after I bumped into you in the hallway. I’m pretty sure I love you, Ariana, and I would really hate it if you went off with Jared when he will never love you as much as I will.”
“I’m not going off with Jared,” Ariana said, her chest swelling with the love she felt for this man. “I’d rather be with you. I didn’t want to give BODS another chance.”
He crushed her in his arms and held her close.
“Okay, I have a confession to make,” Emma said aloud, breaking into the tender moment between Ariana and Dillon.
Dillon loosened his hold on Ariana, if only a little. She stayed by his side, almost afraid he’d change his mind.
“What are you confessing, Emma?” Dillon asked. “Hurry and spill. I have some kissing to do.”
“BODS was right all along,” Emma said.
Ariana looked around Dillon to his sister. “What did you say?”
“BODS had it right the first time.” Leslie stepped forward. “After we restored it and got the new server up and running, we ran the program, and it chose Dillon for you, Ariana, and vice versa.” She smiled.
Ariana frowned. “Then why are we out with Melanie and Jared?”
“Yeah, why are we wasting our time with other people.” He shot a look at Melanie. “No offense.”
Melanie raised her hands. “None taken. I have a confession to make myself.”
Dillon’s brows descended. “More secrets?”
She gave him a crooked grin. “Emma put me up to pretending I was a BODS match.”
Emma touched her brother’s arm. “I wanted to be sure of your feelings for Ariana.” She shook her head. “I’d guessed you were falling in love with her, but boy, I didn’t realize just how far you’d fallen.” She hugged him. “Ariana is perfect for you. And you’re the right one for her. I couldn’t be happier for you. I wanted you both to be sure for yourselves.”
“If I wasn’t so happy holding Ariana,” Dillon said. “I’d strangle you, Sis.”
“That was a pretty dirty trick to play on a friend, much less a family member.” Ariana stared at Emma.
“I know. I was wrong. And don’t blame Leslie. It was all my idea.” Emma hugged Ariana. “Will you forgive me?”
Ariana wrapped her arms around Dillon’s waist. “Maybe. Some day.”
“In the meantime,” Leslie turned to Melanie and Jared who stood beside each other talking in low voices. “BODS actually matched you two. Care to finish the date with each other?”
Jared grinned. “We’ve already negotiated terms and are working on the logistics.” He nodded toward Ariana. “Thanks for bringing Mel and me together. We’ve discovered we’ve run many of the same races. We should know each other by now.”
“We’re headed to a juice bar back in Austin. Thanks for introducing us,” Melanie said. To Dillon, she said, “It was fun, but I think you’re in the right hands now. Don’t let her go. She loves you.”
Melanie and Jared left.
“If you don’t need us to keep your woman in line, we have some beer to drink and friends to hang out with,” Colton said.
“Yeah, and about BODS and female tricks,” Ace sent a pointed look toward Emma, “you better not be messing with me when it’s my turn at BODS. I won’t play your games.”
Emma held up a hand. “I swear, I won’t monkey with a system that works.”
Ace’s eyes narrowed. “Not exactly the promise I was looking for.”
“Don’t worry. My meddling days are over,” Emma said, drawing an X over her chest.
Ace smirked. “Yeah. I’ll believe that when I see it.” He waved as he, Colton and Brand wandered toward the beer tent. As they walked away, Ace and Brand pulled their wallets out, handing Colton a couple hundred dollars each.
“Are you two sticking around for the fireworks?” Emma asked Dillon and Ariana.
Dillon captured Ariana’s gaze. “It’s up to you. But I know of a place where we can set off some of our own fireworks.”
“If it involves fireworks in a hot tub, I’m with you.” With tears drying on her face and her heart bursting with hope and love for this man who’d bumped into her in the dark, Ariana couldn’t be happier.
“Let’s go home,” Dillon said.
“Are we going to the ranch?”
He shook his head.
She looked up at him. “I thought you didn’t consider the condo home.”
“Anywhere I can be with you is home.” He took her hand, waved at his sister and led Ariana away.
She couldn’t wait to get home with Dillon. “Are we making pizza?”
“I think the only thing we’ll be making tonight is love.”
She laughed. “I think we have that recipe memorized.”
Epilogue
“It’s been a month since Dillon took the plunge into BODS waters. Who’s up next?” Emma asked.
The Jacobs brothers were lounging on the porch, drinking beer after a completely satisfying dinner of home-raised beef steaks, baked potatoes and corn on the cob.
“Can you give it a break, Emma?” Brand leaned his head back on the rocking chair and closed his eyes. “I, for one, am in no hurry to find a woman.”
“Not every woman is like Stacy,” Emma said. “She was clearly not a good match for you. BODS would never have picked her for you.”
“You say that, but it would take a special woman to appreciate ranch life. Especially if she didn’t grow up on one.” Brand shook his head. “Nope. Once bitten, twice shy.”
“You’ll change your mind when BODS finds the right one for you,” Emma said.
“I’d offer to go next, if Leslie would let me examine her code,” Colton said. “I’m fascinated with what kind of algorithms she used.”
“No way. BODS is Leslie’s intellectual property,” Emma said. “Just trust it. You
