by Ava Miles
Quinn rubbed his jaw. “I’d have wanted to punch Iggie in Boyd’s place. Still do for how the nickname shines on you.”
She pulled a pillow onto her chest. “Working at Merriam brings talk like that, I suppose.”
“No one’s ever said a bad word to my face, but you’re right. We have to earn our spots in the company even more than the next guy. Or girl. Now, what would you think if I told you I was thinking it would take too much effort to turn our Plant Sciences division around and that we’d do better to sell it off to someone we trust? I have enough on my hands right now.”
“Where would that leave me?” she asked, shock reeling through her.
“Working with Boyd on the flower at this new company if Aunt Clara has anything to do with it,” he said, a half smile on his mouth. “That’s what you want, right?”
His face was never far from her mind: that ever-present smile just for her, the cheeky look in his eyes when he teased her about everything from the way she pronounced some Latin genus families to her tendency to clip the curb when she parallel parked.
“It’s everything. But with Connor… I feel like I need to help. I can’t walk away from you guys.”
“Yes, you can,” Quinn said. “Don’t make me fire you. I’ve had a belly full of that this week.”
Tears filled her eyes. “You’re serious?”
Quinn took her right hand and studied it. “Before I came up here, I asked Dad why he gave Boyd his blessing to marry you in the first place. He said Boyd sees you for who you are and loves you for it.”
“I’m his baby elephant,” she said, tired enough to give in to tears.
“His what?” Quinn asked. “Jesus, don’t cry. You never cry.”
Her face flushed, but she told him the story about their encounter with the baby elephant on the trip. “You must think I’m crazy.”
“No, I think you really love him,” Quinn said, squeezing her hand before resting it back on the pillow she was holding, “which makes the brother in me happy.”
It was like a switch had been flipped, and her brother was suddenly sitting beside her bed, not one of the Big Bad Wolves.
“I for one am pretty grateful for that.”
She reached her hand out to him and he clasped it, smiling softly.
“Me too.”
“Now, let’s brainstorm how you’re going to convince him that Aunt Clara’s idea is for the best—it’ll require him to make some changes too—and that we Merriams aren’t going to nail him when you’re not looking.” He flashed her the first easy smile she’d seen from him in a long time.
“Yes, let’s brainstorm,” she said, feeling hope bloom in her heart. “You might call Dad too. Oh, and Aunt Clara and Uncle Arthur.” They were matchmakers, after all.
She was going to need everything in her arsenal to get Boyd back.
Chapter 30
There was a baby elephant standing in his front yard.
The hairs on the back of Boyd’s neck rose as the cute beast seemed to smile at him, raising its trunk like a greeting. He stood openmouthed in the doorway as he tried to process everything. This couldn’t be a coincidence. It was tethered to the tree in the middle of his lawn!
“I’m not taking this little fella back to the rental place until we talk,” a familiar voice said.
He turned his head and saw Michaela sitting in one of the folding chairs he’d brought out to the front porch when he couldn’t sleep. He gauged her features for cues about her health. Her skin had returned to its normal golden hue, but she was still rail-skinny. And her beautiful green eyes were shadowed. The ring he’d given her was on her right hand, shining like fire in the morning sunlight. Oh, and she wasn’t wearing a bra, dammit. She knew that drove him nuts. Was it a message about being free or going back to the field with him?
“I didn’t know the zoo was in the rental business now,” he said, nodding to the baby elephant.
“Hargreaves helped me find her.”
“I’ll have to send him a thank you card.” What was his friend thinking? Then he thought about Clara and Arthur. They were in on this as surely as the sun set over the savannah. Terrific.
“That’s Apricot, and she’s here to remind you of what I mean to you.”
You’re my baby elephant. God, why had he ever said that? “Your voice sounds better, at least, but my neighbors aren’t going to be thrilled to have an elephant in my yard. Okay, the kids might. But who’s going to shovel the poop—”
“I like your new place,” she said, staying seated and kicking her legs out like she planned to stay a while. “You always wanted a house.”
“I’m renting it.” And he couldn’t exactly kick her out. She’d brought a bloody elephant. “Are you drinking enough water? Let me get you some.”
“My mother has me drinking so much water and juice that I slosh when I walk,” she said. “Sit down and hear me out, Boyd. I’m not taking Apricot with me until you do.”
He’d expected as much. “Apricot is a horrible name for an elephant. Who thought this one up?”
“The elephant part?” she asked with a smile.
He nodded.
“Hargreaves. The man is wickedly ingenious. Even Quinn had to bow to his strategic mind. Dad said you told him there was no new flower we could use to lure you back, so we improvised. I had a full team help me since I can’t do without you. Ready for my proposal?”
He wanted to clap his hands over his ears. Wasn’t his heart aching enough? “Fine, get it over with, but I don’t see things changing.”
Why hadn’t she brought up Connor yet?
“So you said,” she said, twisting her ring. “I’ll cut to the chase. Aunt Clara had this idea.”
He shuddered. “And then Hargreaves helped with the elephant. I’m afraid to ask what’s next. A parade down my street with a band singing a love song dedicated to me?”
“I might arrange that if you remain stubborn,” she continued. “Nothing has been done with this proposal yet, so don’t go off half-cocked when I tell you.”
“Me?” He pointed to himself. “You rented a baby elephant.”
She smiled. “Apricot is cute. Okay, back to what I was saying… Connor and Iggie’s actions will reflect badly on the Merriam Pharmaceuticals Plant Sciences department even though their employment has been terminated.”
Her voice was the same one she used to recite the various genus names in the nightshade family: monotone. “I was afraid to mention it. I’m sorry about Connor, Mickey. Clara told me what happened. I know you may not believe it, but I never wanted anything like this to happen. I can’t be as benevolent about Iggie, though.”
“Me either on the Iggie side. Let’s not talk about Connor right now. I might get emotional. It’s all pretty raw and fresh still.”
He clenched his hand into a fist so he wouldn’t reach for her hand. “I imagine.”
“Anyway, Aunt Clara talked to Quinn and convinced him that it might be better to sell off the Plant Sciences department to another company, one still friendly to the Merriams. J.T. might have given it a billion as a start-up investment—”
“Why don’t little money fairies like that ever visit me?” he asked dryly. “Never mind. What company are we talking about?”
“GreenSolutions.”
He blinked. “Billionaire inventor Evan Michaels, right?”
“Yes, his company’s mission is to foster more alternate energy, but Aunt Clara thought plant science might be interesting to him as a subsidiary. We’d all be a lot better off as humans if we used more natural supplements and cures when they’re appropriate. Evan is a game changer, and perhaps he’ll take on the medical community to both educate them on plant science—like the flower, for example—and convince health companies to provide coverage for natural supplements and cures. You know they usually don’t cover things like vitamins, supplements, or even acupuncture. But I digress.” She looked him in the eye. “I would be working for GreenSolutions if Evan buys us.”
>
And not for her family business? That would be huge.
She stood. “I know you want to have your own company, but what if you came under GreenSolutions as a subsidiary and merged with the department I’m bringing with me? Boyd, then we could both work together.”
“A merger?” Sure, he’d wanted his own company, but he wanted Michaela more. They wouldn’t just collaborate on the flower. They’d work together on everything. If this was what it took…
Oh, he was going to kiss Clara when he saw her.
“You can dictate any terms you want. Boyd, it’s like you’ve created Facebook or the iPhone in the plant science world. But why not let someone help you take it to the next level quickly and easily, someone Aunt Clara and Uncle Arthur know and trust? You asked why the little money fairies couldn’t visit you. They just did.”
The elephant trumpeted at that moment like it was punctuating Michaela’s remark. He thought about the baby elephant who’d come up to their Rover and stared at them, its eyes full of wisdom.
She poked him in the stomach, and he grunted. “This is a win-win, Boyd, but Aunt Clara and Uncle Arthur won’t run with it unless you consent, and you’ll get no pressure from their side whatsoever about it.”
His mind was spinning. “I’m supposed to believe that with Apricot munching on my tree here? What about working for your family? That’s what you’ve always wanted.”
“Yes, but here’s what you don’t seem to get. I won’t be happy without you either.” She put her hand on his chest, which he didn’t remove. “This way I’d still feel like I’m working on something for my family, something we all believe in, which would save me from guilt at family functions or any professional weirdness, and you’d still stand on your own two feet, which I understand better and promise to support better.”
He took her shoulders because she was blowing him away. “You’d do that for me?”
“Of course I would! This would be our company to run. Yes, we’d have a parent company in GreenSolutions, but we’d mostly be independent. Like the…oh, what did Quinn tell me in our brainstorming? Like the Claussen Pickle company under Kraft Foods or Gerber baby food under Nestlé.”
He had to take a breath. “Your brother used a pickle company as an example for us?” Was there a joke there? The revelation that Quinn was apparently on board was mind-blowing enough.
“My dad, Quinn, and Aunt Clara gave me all these facts and figures to ingest before they thought I was ready to talk to you.” She drilled her finger into his chest. “They ran me through my presentation to you like four times.”
Four times? “I’ve always wanted to work with you, Mickey.”
“The last reason is the most important, so listen closely.” She looked straight into his eyes, and his heart started to beat again for the first time since they’d parted. “I love you, and I don’t want to be without you. Not now or ever for the rest of my life.”
“Oh, babe.”
“You wanted to marry me before,” she said, smoothing the area over his heart. “I know I hurt you, and I’m sorry. You forgave me after you got over our fight six months ago. I got over it too and forgave you in Kenya. Can’t we do that again today?”
He covered her hand with his own. “I want that more than anything, but I have to ask. How is your family going to feel about me being with you? Clara clearly worked some magic on Quinn.”
“Yes, she did, and thanks for keeping me on track.” She walked back to her purse and pulled out a folder and a present with a big lime green bow. “Exhibits A and B for the presentation.”
He took them from her, shaking the gift. “Any reason I should be scared?”
“Open the folder first,” she told him.
His eyes scanned the professionally typed memo on Merriam stationery.
Petition of Support for Boyd McClellan and Michaela Merriam
Her entire family had signed it, with one notable absence: Connor. Well, he wasn’t surprised.
His throat thickened. “Arthur’s work, no doubt.”
“Yep,” she said, patting his back. “You can read the rest later. Some of my siblings got creative. They listed specific things you might be worried about.”
“Like?”
“Like…poisoning you,” she said, her smile bright, but her eyes kept searching his. “That was from Trevor, although he had a few more creative additions. Caitlyn said she promised not to drown you in a vat of lavender water.”
He started laughing. “You’re kidding.”
“They want me to be happy, and they’re also glad you helped save my life. Now, open the present. I had to give Flynn credit on this one.”
When he tore it open, he shook his head. “A Dora the Explorer DVD box set. He shouldn’t have.”
“This was his way of assuring you he wouldn’t mess with your cable again—unless you didn’t marry me, of course.”
That got his attention, and when he met her eyes, he found himself smiling back at her.
“Remember this ring you brought with you on our safari adventure?” She held it up and it glinted in the light. “I’d really like you to put it on my finger for real now that my presentation is over. So, what’s it going to be, Boyd?”
* * *
He tucked a lock of her long goddess hair behind her ear, making sure to remember this moment for the rest of his life: the day he got all his wishes at once.
“Since we can’t keep the baby elephant, how do you feel about picking out a new reptile to live with us?”
Her face transformed into a wide smile. “I’d love one!”
He pulled her to him. “You can name it, assuming you don’t want to call it Dora.”
She threw her arms around his neck. “I suppose I should be glad you don’t want a snake. I could do it, but our kids…”
Kids? “One thing at a time, Mickey.” He took her face in his hands, gazing into her watery eyes. “You’re tired, babe. You rarely cry.”
“I even cried in front of Quinn and freaked him out.” She socked him. “Of course I’m crying. I thought I’d lost you for good, you moron.”
Moron. He loved hearing her call him that. “So did I,” he said, letting any final walls around his hurting heart fall.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered.
“Me too, Mickey, me too.” He’d always believed in the power of a good apology between two people who loved each other. “I have to ask, though. Are you mad at me about Connor?”
She shook her head, wiping away her tears. “No. And neither is anyone in my family. He’s angry at everyone in the family right now and isn’t talking to us. We’re hurting, yes, but even though the petition is funny, it’s from the heart. Aunt Clara worked her magic again.”
“I’ll have to find her a rare snake as a present.”
“Uncle Arthur will kill you,” she said. “Not sure about Hargreaves. Oh, I’ve missed you, Boyd.”
He kissed her lightly on the lips. “I’ve missed you too, Doc.”
She socked him again, and he made a good show of it hurting just to make her smile wider. “I’m going to remind you that it took a baby elephant—”
“Our children will love this story.” He took her right hand and removed the ring. “I believe we have the perfect witness for this proposal. My dear, if you’d follow me into the yard. I think Apricot wants to hear what I’m about to say.”
“I certainly do,” she said as he put his arm around her to make sure she made it safely down the stairs. “You’re coddling me. Don’t. My mother has doled out enough for everyone. You should have seen what she made me drink to bring my voice back the whole way. Slippery elm tea.”
He grimaced. “Vile but effective. I’ll have to thank your mom for taking care of you when I see her again. It was hard to see you leave like you did. I worried about you relapsing.”
“I’m fine now,” she said, patting Apricot when she extended her trunk. “You’d better move fast. She thinks you have food in your pockets.”
> Sure enough, the damn elephant was rooting its trunk around his waist. “Red hots! Of course. Arthur gave me some and I pocketed the extras when he wasn’t looking. He’s a candy pusher.”
She laughed when Apricot nudged him in the nuts, making him push her trunk away. “That’s rather forward of you, Apricot. Now, see here. No touching, please. This is for my lady here.”
The elephant gave a rude noise in response. Michaela was biting her lip, trying to muffle her laughter. “Maybe we should go inside—” he started.
“No way!” Michaela cried out. “This is perfect. I’m your baby elephant, after all.”
Her smirk made him grimace. “I’m never going to hear the end of that, am I? A guy tries to be romantic. Fine. Michaela Merriam?”
“Yes, Boyd McClellan?” She was smiling for real now.
He sank to one knee. “I’ve loved you from the moment I watched you split open those—”
“Can’t you be a little more romantic?” she asked with a pointed glance. “I don’t want frogs in my proposal.”
“An elephant is all right, but frogs… God, I need a manual.” He cleared his throat. “Let me try again. How’s this? Michaela Merriam. I love you more than anything and want to share my life and career with you.”
“Oh, I like that part,” she said, pushing the hair back on his forehead.
“Will you marry me?”
“Yes!”
Apricot roared and shoved Boyd onto his butt with her trunk before he could kiss Michaela. “You spooked her, Mickey. Please, kiss me before she decides to trample me for my red hots.”
“I think you’re safe,” she said, flowing back into his arms and planting one right on his mouth. “Now, put the ring on my left hand.”
“You’re so bossy. And you didn’t wear a bra today to make me crazy, right?”
“Yep, and that’s not all I have planned. Just think how much you’re going to love me when I boss you around at our new workplace.” Her wink was downright conspiratorial.