Future Prospect (28 page)

“Come on Lia, we both know you didn’t forget. You don’t forget anything.”

“I
did
forget. I’ve been busy, blown up, confused by—”

“You’re never confused. You always know exactly what you’re doing. And what you’re doing is leaving on the next shuttle, so let’s not drag this out,” Colan spat out as he glanced in her direction without meeting her anguished gaze. If he even leaned her way he’d be unable to stop himself from gathering her up and begging her to stay.

“Drag this out? Don’t you want to talk about—”

“No.” Better she leave now before the pain building inside killed him.

“Of course not. You don’t talk, do you?” Lia bit her lip and sniffled. She wiped her eyes and shifted her gaze to the doorway over his shoulder. “So this is it? We’re done?”

“Yes. We’re done.” When more tears trailed down her cheeks after his harsh statement, he wavered but caught himself. Better to end this on a bad note so he’d look back with relief rather than pain. He was trying to fool himself already, pretending he regretted ever meeting her in the first place. “What? Did you think I’d want to set up times to come and visit you whenever I fit in your timetable? You know I’m not that man.”

“I know that.” Her reply was quiet and weary, and she shook her head as she walked around him toward his door. As she passed, he reached out a hand to touch her one last time, but she was gone, her strong legs propelling her out of his life without another word.

As the door closed behind her, Colan sagged until he fell to a seat on the sofa. It was over. His love was gone.

* * * *

The shuttle waiting area smelled as if someone had left a bunch of dead curlers to rot in a corner. A rancid aroma skirted around the edges of Lia’s consciousness and added to her feeling of despair. Something had leaked through the carpet and left a sludgy tan stain along one side of the long room. Welti would have some maintenance to do, but she wouldn’t be scheduling it.

The half-completed departures lounge was empty save for her and her hand luggage. She was surprised no one else was leaving the planet considering all the recent tribulations, but it seemed she was the only one in retreat. She had to get off this planet, not only to fulfill her contractual obligations, but away from all the pain of knowing Colan was meters away but completely gone from her life.

She wanted to kick herself for the mess she’d made, but her baggage crowded around her feet, and she’d trip and fall if she tried. She never should’ve accepted the posting here. If she’d taken another assignment, Tully wouldn’t have signed on with her, and he’d be alive. If she hadn’t disembarked from that first shuttle and run headlong into the most frustrating man in the galaxy, she wouldn’t feel as if someone had pulled her heart out right now.

Stars, she was in love with a man she was never going to see again. How could she have been so stupid as to forget about her open contract? Sure, she had the excuse of explosions, but she knew she’d been in a blissful cocoon with Colan and hadn’t even thought about the rest of the galaxy in weeks. Her distraction had cost her dearly.

Sniffing and blinking her eyes rapidly, she ordered herself not to cry. She’d been leaking tears for the last thirty hours, the duration of her brief painful separation from Colan, which she’d tried to fill with packing and intense schedule predictions for the entire settlement of Pearl. No matter how many detailed changes she made, or how many ways she’d rearranged her personal belongings, she still wept and ached constantly.

“Lia, they’ve almost finished offloading. Safe journey.” Stev’s voice over the monitor echoed in the empty disembarkation lounge. Nerves tightened in her stomach as she raised her hand toward the monitor to acknowledge him. It was only a matter of minutes now and she’d be checking in to her flight, handing over her luggage to the loader bot, and taking her assigned seat. Fine. Good. She could do this.

The light over the deck portal glowed red as a wordless caution. When it turned blue, the door would slide open, and she’d be on her way. There was a rattle and hiss of hydraulics, but the light remained red, and the door stayed closed. Fantastic, there was something wrong with the door, and she’d be trapped here while her flight left without her. With a muttered curse, she stepped over her bags and grabbed the emergency manual override handle. Head down and back straining, she tugged, the volume of her curses increasing with every pull.

“Nebula’s balls, Lia. I had no idea you were so anxious to leave Gamaliel,” a familiar voice drawled behind her, and she hunched her shoulders, sure she didn’t want to look back at him and succumb to hysterics.

“What are you doing here?” Perhaps it was cowardly, but she closed her eyes tight and pressed her nose to the door, knowing she didn’t have the strength to see Colan ever again.

“I heard there was a flight out.”

“There is. Why do you care?”

“I booked my seat, and I don’t want to miss it. I’d hate to try for a refund.” His matter-of-fact tone was her undoing. She couldn’t pretend she didn’t care anymore as a huge sob of pent-up emotion burst out. His familiar arms circled around her, and she collapsed against his broad chest, inhaling his scent as if it were an elixir.

“Are you really—”

“Only if you let me sit next to you.”

She stared into those beloved eyes and read his sincerity and a whisper of uncertainty. How could he think she wouldn’t want him by her side?

“That’s exactly where I want you to be.” She swallowed and cupped her hands around his stubbled cheeks. His features were drawn and bruised circles smudged under his eyes. She probably didn’t look much better.

“For how long?” Now fear and caution tightened his features as he searched her face.

“Always. As long as you can stand me.”

“Same here.”

He finally leaned down far enough so she could kiss him. It was sweet and tender, not at all the crushing embrace she’d anticipated. She drew back, and her eyes drank him in; patched shirt, trousers with frayed hems, worn boots, and a broken down rucksack next to him. Yes, Colan was ready to travel. With her. Bliss filled her chest with comforting warmth, and she couldn’t hold it back any longer.

“I love you.”

“I love you, too.”

His dark eyes gleamed with satisfaction as he made his declaration, and Lia felt as if she was lifted off her feet. The light over the door turned blue, and the portal opened to the decking outside. Colan picked up his bag, Lia snagged her own, and they strode into the future together.

The End

Publisher’s Note

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Lynn Rae makes her home in land-locked central Ohio after time spent in the former Great Black Swamp, beside the Ohio River, and along the Miami and Erie Canal. With professional experience in fields ranging from contract archaeology to librarianship, along with making donuts and teaching museum studies, Lynn enjoys incorporating her quirky sense of humor and real-life adventures into her writing (except the naughty bits). She writes sci-fi, contemporary, and historical romances.