[ rushed this so that we'd have booney but now I gotta sleep for like 12 hours I hope. I'm so sleepy so there's probably several spelling and grammar errors ]

☁︎

SO... WANNA MAKE OUT?

ELIANNA was anxious as she left her motel room the next morning, but she sure didn't let it show. No, she wasn't going to give fucking Scott the satisfaction of letting him know that she'd been up all night overthinking and in a daze over the kiss that rocked her world. She'd never had such a good kiss.

But Scott would be far too smug if he knew, and so he never would.

She treated it like any day, rolling up the sleeves of her dumb white StormPAR shirt and tucking it into the shortest pair of denims shorts she owned before making the trek to Javi's truck, who was already waiting.

Thankfully, Scott wasn't there yet.

"Morning," Eli greeted Javi brightly while climbing into the passenger side seat. "How was your night?"

"Pretty good. But I ran into Scott on the way back. I think he fell in the pool or something," Javi said with a frown. "Seemed pretty pissed off about it too."

So, Eli thought, he hadn't told Javi about what transpired between them. It made her all the more eager to know what kind of mood he'd be in for the day. Maybe he'd actually be sweet to her for once now that they'd kissed.

Eli didn't know if she wanted that. He was so hot when he was huffing and puffing in annoyance at her.

"Well, I'd have paid to see that," Elianna said, not owning up to anything. "You know how I thrive off his misery."

"He did look like a shaking, drowned dog. You'd have loved it," he laughed, shaking his head cluelessly. Then he nodded out the window. "Here's Ariel now."

Scott could hear Elianna giggling at him as he walked up to the truck, making every muscle in his body tense. And when he looked up and saw her smirking face in the front seat of the truck, he sucked in a sharp breath.

Truthfully, Scott had never been in a worse mood. Because all he could goddamn think about was Elianna. He'd gotten no sleep — not even thinking of her trembling, rain-soaked body in that sheer dress with his hand wrapped around his aching cock was enough to get her off his mind.

Because when he wasn't thinking about her body, he was dreaming about her perfect smile and her infectious laugh and that snarky sense of humor that always got to him.

All this pining and wanting made him sick. It made him hate her.

And her sitting in his seat after arguing with her so many times and losing made him hate her even more.

Well, he was telling himself it was hate.

"Get in the backseat," Scott said stiffly.

And fuck, if Eli didn't wish he were saying that to her under different circumstances. But she pushed that thought to the back of her mind and just raised an eyebrow.

"Should've woken up earlier, Scotty."

"I am not in the mood, Elianna," he said, narrowing his eyes at her. "Get in the back."

"Or you'll what?" she snickered mockingly. "Make me?"

Then, with a loud and annoyed huff, Scott yanked the door open and wrapped a strong arm around her waist. Elianna screamed and smacked his back as he threw her over his shoulder, pulling her from the car. Then he opened up the backseat and unceremoniously forced her into it.

Eli gaped at him in disbelief as he glared at her smugly. "Asshole!" she snapped while trying not to smile over how easily he'd manhandled her.

"Only for you, honey," he said in a snarky tone before slamming her door shut. Then he climbed into the passenger side, seeing how Javi was staring at him with wide eyes. "What?"

"Nothin'," he said quickly, looking away. "Just remind me not to get on your nerves today."

☁︎

Javi found a truck stop that was fairly central to all the recents storms appearing each day. The news channels were beginning to deem it as a full blown tornado outbreak, which was good for business but bad for the people of Oklahoma, of course.

Eli and Scott hadn't said much to each other all morning — both had no problem talking to Javi though. And even Javi noticed it because mornings were usually filled with their bickering and bantering and thinly-veiled flirting, which was now absent. However, he didn't comment on it, figuring it might have something to do with Scott's sour mood.

But once Javi went into the gas station with some of Eli's cash in hand with promises to bring back snacks, Scott and her were finally alone. The silence was heavy as Scott tried so hard to look at his tablet instead of her.

He was failing horribly.

"So," Eli said, rocking back on her feet. Scott shut his eyes and sighed, knowing she was gonna say something annoying. "Wanna make out?"

Scott set the tablet down on the bed of the pickup while also pinching the bridge of his nose. Then he looked at her, taking in the easy smile on her lips.

"I shouldn't have kissed you last night."

Though the smile didn't drop, Scott saw how her bright eyes dimmed, clearly sad even if she was desperate not to show it.

"I just - we're coworkers," Scott told her. Because no matter how horrible he was when it came to these sorts of things, he didn't want her to think it was because he didn't like her. He'd been trying so hard not to like her and was failing every day. "And you're so young. It was a mistake and a bad idea."

Elianna bit the inside of her cheek, hating how disappointed she was. Yeah, she liked to flirt and dance with strangers in bars, but it wasn't like she ever went home with them. She didn't even make out with them in bathrooms.

Hell, she'd only had one boyfriend her freshman year of college, and he was an asshole that didn't like going down on her because it was 'boring'. Granted, Scott was an asshole too, so maybe he was the same. He was certainly disappointing her the same way that Kurt Montgomery did.

"Okay," she said, keeping that forced smile on her face.

"Okay?" Scott repeated. "That's it? Okay?"

Elianna rolled her eyes. "I'm not about to beg some guy that doesn't want me on hands and knees to keep paying attention to me no matter how much I like him."

Scott sighed and stepped closer. "It's not that I don't want you." God, he really wanted her. "But like I said, it's not a wise decision."

"Yeah, because I'm known for how wise I am," she said teasingly while stepping closer, some of that spark he loved returning as she was reassured that she wasn't necessarily the problem. Eli couldn't help but reach out and trace a line up and down on his chest teasingly. "You gotta admit that was a hell of a kiss."

Scott was already staring longingly at her lips. "Yeah," he mumbled. "It was."

And Scott found himself leaning in, his hand finding purchase on her waist to pull her close. But when he was mere inches away from her lips, Eli pulled away.

"But it can't happen again," she said, still grinning mockingly as she leaned against the side of the truck, opting to look at the gas station instead of him. "You know me. Always avoiding those bad ideas."

Scott wanted to say something. He wanted to tell her that maybe he'd been wrong. Maybe she could convince him to blur the lines between coworkers and more — as if he hadn't done a lot of blurring the night before. But unfortunately, Javi joined them, handing over a bag of SweetTart Ropes and a Sprite to Eli.

"When's the next storm rolling in?" Javi asked, looking to Scott, who was meant to be studying the Doppler but was instead studying Eli.

It was Eli who answered, pointing a piece of candy off to the east. "Give it an hour or two though. We're stuck here, buddy, so you better find a way to entertain me before I get unbeatable."

"You mean you aren't already?" Scott asked, raising an eyebrow.

And Eli just raised a smug eyebrow, knowing what he really thought of her. "Well, says the one that—"

"How about you just put all the latest data from yesterday into one document for Riggs, huh?" Javi asked, cutting off any kind of argument before it could begin.

Eli groaned and stomped her foot childishly. "Marshall can shove his data up his—"

Elianna was cut off by a loud country song playing from speakers turned so high up that she was surprised they were still working. Her and the other two turned around in confusion, watching as a truck sped through the parking lot.

A very familiar red truck that was decked out in storm chasing equipment and followed by the rest of the crew in a caravan and smaller truck.

They were the Tornado Wranglers.

Javi and Scott didn't understand why Eli's mouth her hanging open as the truck grew closer and closer.

"What?" Javi asked her with a frown, having to nearly yell because of the music. "You know who that is?"

As he finished his question, the truck slowly rolled past and a handsome man with a camera in hand who went by the name of Boone stuck his head out of the window, greeting them with a smile since they were the only other ones in the parking lot.

"Howdy, there. Say 'hi' to YouTube for us," he said.

While Scott and Javi remained silently stunned, Elianna beamed and waved. "Hi, YouTube!"

That finally drew Boone's attention, his brown eyes that had been on Scott since he was the tallest now traveling left. And he couldn't help but smirk at her. "Well, damn, baby, I didn't see you. How are you doin'?"

"Better now that I've got someone pretty as you to look at, baby," she shot back, giggling a little.

"Whoo!" Boone cheered as the truck pulled past them. "I think I'm gone like it here in Oklahoma!"

"What the hell is that?" Javi asked, looking between the passing vehicles and Eli, who was bouncing up and down on her feet excitedly.

"Ugh, you never pay attention to me, Javi," she said, rolling her eyes. "Those are the Tornado Wranglers. You know? Tyler Owens? If you feel it, chase it? From YouTube?"

"I thought they were in Arkansas?" Scott asked with a deep frown.

"No, dummy, they go where the storms go," she said, shaking her head, her eyes still on the red truck, watching as Boone and Tyler Owens hopped out. "I'm gonna go say 'hi'."

But before she could walk toward them — they were already looking at their little StormPAR group curiously — Javi and Scott both grabbed Elianna's elbows and held her back.

"No, you're not," Javi told her. Then he handed her a tablet. "You're gonna get that data together before we get a pissed off call from Scott's uncle."

She pouted as he directed her to the back of the pickup, which she slid onto and began compiling all the data on the tablet together, growing bored in an instant. All the while, she chewed on her candy and took turns glancing at the growing clouds. Scott watched over her shoulder while leaning against the other side of the lowered tailgate.

But thankfully, the cure for her boredom came in the form of five Tornado Wranglers that had more southern hospitality than Javi and Scott.

"Well, hi there," Tyler Owens said, coming up to them.

Eli's head shot up, seeing him accompanied by a crew she knew quite well even if they didn't know her — Boone, Dani, Dexter, and Lily. Boone didn't have the camera this time, she noted. Thankfully, she reigned in her excitement, not wanting to embarrass herself. She just remained on the tailgate, eating her candy.

"Hi," Javi said, nodding to them as Scott all but ignored them. "You guys storm chasers?"

"Tornado Wranglers, actually," Tyler specified. Then he eyed the equipment in the back of the truck next to Eli. "Seems we're in the same line of business."

Eli snickered at that. "Not near as cool, trust me," she muttered. Then she beamed at the opposing crew. "Hi. I'm Elianna, but you can call me Eli. And that's Javi and Scott."

"That's a pertty name," Boone spoke up, her eyes falling on him.

And god, he was using a blue bandana as a headband, keeping his thick hair back. He'd taken his sunglasses off, revealing his soft, brown eyes. And as he smiled, dimples split his smooth, tan skin.

"Thanks," she said a bit shyly. Then, not quite knowing what to say because no one else was saying anything, she held out her bag of candy. "Want a cherry rope?"

"Never had one," he said, leaving Tyler's side to peer inside the bag. "What's it like?"

"Well, you ever wondered what it was like to be a rat chewing on an electrical wire but without all the shocking?"

"I'm sorry," Dexter spoke up, "what?"

"I believe I have," Boone nodded very seriously, ignoring his friend.

"Like that." Eli nodded while holding out a piece of candy.

"Thankya, ma'am," he said, grabbing the candy and biting into it. His face lit up and he nodded to her while still chewing. "What are y'all workin' on?"

Eli smiled and pat the seat next to her on the bed of the pickup, and much to her delight, Boone hopped up onto the spot next to her. It put him between her and Scott, who was still leaning against the bed.

"We're collecting data on tornados and trying to generate a 3-D rendering of it with these PAR systems," she said while showing Boone her tablet screen. "But Scott will have to tell you about those. I'm just here on the meteorology side of things."

As instructed, Boone looked up at Scott, who had an emotionless expression on his face. Scott glanced from Boone's handsome face to Elianna's beautiful smiling one, feeling very tense all of a sudden. As if he hadn't been tense all day.

"We have work to get back to," he said stiffly making Boone and Eli both visibly deflate.

"Ignore him," Eli said to Boone before looking at the others, not wanting to ignore them in the same way. "He's a nerdy science bitch. Javi is too but only half the time."

"So, I'm guessing you're the personality of this little trio?" Dani asked with a smirk.

"Absolutely," she grinned. "But really, it's cool to meet y'all. I'm a huge fan of what you do."

"Yeah," Scott said under his breath but still heard. "Dumbass shit inside of tornados. Riveting stuff."

"Fuck off, science bitch," Elianna said, glaring at him for being rude to the Wranglers. Then she looked at Tyler and smiled sheepishly. "Can I get a picture with your truck when I'm done with this?"

Tyler chuckled and nodded his head. "You know, usually people want a picture with me, but I respect the love of the truck. She's far better lookin' than I am."

"Sorry for stoppin' your work," Boone told Eli, nodding to her tablet. "But maybe we'll see y'all all around if those outbreak keeps up?"

"I hope so," Elianna said, smiling at him.

After saying goodbye — well, Javi and Eli said goodbye while Scott sulked — the crews went their separate ways. And Boone kept looking at them over his shoulder as they went back to their side of the parking lot.

"Booney, stop staring," Lily told him with a smile.

"Them's the perttiest two people I've ever seen," Boone said with a dreamy smile on his face as they got to the truck.

"I mean, yeah, Elianna and Javi what'n't bad," Dani chuckled, knowing how Boone typically liked his men and women. "But—"

"Naw, not Javi," he said. "That Scott fella. But he sure was grumpy."

Dexter snickered and shook his head. "Well, you got enough golden retriever energy in you for the both of—"

Dexter was cut off by Elianna suddenly yelling, all of them turning to the girl to see her standing up in the bed of the truck, stomping her foot with every syllable as Javi laughed and Scott covered his eyes in annoyance.

"Can I get a fucking brrr?"

"The hell is a brrr?" Lily asked while laughing at the girl.

"I don't know," Boone admitted while watching Eli throw her head back and laugh. "She's makin' me feel it though."