He narrowed his eyes at her. “Right.”
“You should know that we got your Hot Wheels out to the camp hospital. Pauline was grateful.” Then Elizabeth spoke in a whisper for their ears only. “This is going to be averyinteresting debriefing.”
They landedin The Hague shortly after midnight.
“Everyone, take a break and stretch your legs.” Tower stood, glanced at his watch. “We’re refueling and heading on to Denver.”
Connor stood, helped Shanti to stand. “How are you feeling?”
“I’m okay.” She looked like she might cry, every emotion she was feeling there in those amber eyes—love, gratitude, dread, grief.
“Ms. Lahiri, you’ve got my deepest apologies for the way this went down. It’s been an honor to serve you.” Tower held out his hand.
Shanti skipped the handshake and hugged him. “You all worked so hard to keep me safe and get me home again, risking your lives. I can never thank you enough.”
One by one, she said goodbye to the staff, giving each of them a hug.
Connor had thought he’d get a moment alone with her. He wanted a chance to set things straight. He’d hurt her earlier, and he hadn’t meant to.
Armed hostiles he could handle. Emotions? Not so much.
Fuck.
“We’ve got paramedics here to drive you to the hospital, Ms. Lahiri. Your boss wants you to be checked out by someone other than a navy surgeon. You can just wait in your seat. Also, your parents are here.”
“They are?”
Everyone smiled at her surprise—everyone except Connor.
This was happening too fast. In his head, it hadn’t gone like this. He’d been able to kiss her, hold her, say a decent farewell, maybe even find the courage to tell her how he felt about her. But it just wasn’t happening.
Airport staff arrived at the plane’s rear exit with a special lift to enable the paramedics to transport Shanti on a stretcher, the others heading for the front exit.
Connor stayed put.
“O’Neal, let’s get out of the paramedics’ way,” Tower said.
“I haven’t said goodbye.” Shanti’s gaze met his, anguish in her eyes. She sank into his arms, the feel of her precious. “I will never forget you. Thank you. You saved my life so many times I lost count.”
“You saved mine, too, remember?” It was the truth, but that wasn’t what he wanted to say to her. “Take care of yourself.”
He would have said more, he would have kissed her, but Tower stood there, watching. Connor let her go, every fiber of his body objecting.
She pressed something into his hand. Her business card. “Stay safe.”
He willed himself to smile. “You, too.”
And for the second time in as many days, he turned his back on her and walked away when that was the last thing in the world he wanted to do.
His heart thundered in his chest, everything in him screaming for him to turn around, to go after her, to say what he’d left unsaid. He willed his feet to keep moving. Down the stairs to the tarmac and toward the terminal.
“Good job, O’Neal,” Tower said. “There was a time or two when I wasn’t sure we’d get the two of you back alive.”
“I bet.” Connor glanced back, saw the paramedics wheeling the stretcher out of the plane and onto the lift platform.
Christ!
He felt the tug of her from across the tarmac, every step taking him farther away from her. He willed himself to move on, to let her go. She needed time to heal. They probably both needed time to sort through everything that had happened.