"Finit flight?"
"Final flight. That's what we call a guy's last flight before he leaves a base. Everyone gathers on the runway for a farewell party. A fire truck hoses down the guy after he lands. It's all a part of Air Force tradition."
"Leaves? Who's leaving?" She hoped it wasn't Bronco or Tag. She knew how much working with them meant to Gray.
He scrubbed a hand across his blue bandanna. Was it her imagination, or did the fearless warrior look worried?
"Me. Lori, I transfer out of Charleston to Washington in another week and a half."
Gray stared straight into Lori's wide eyes and waited for the inevitable disillusionment. Which he got. In spades.
What he hadn't expected was her flat-out surprise.
He'd thought she knew. He'd talked about their need to say goodbye. He'd made it clear they had no future. Hadn't he?
Quit lying to yourself pal.
Whether consciously or subconsciously, he'd been vague. Likely because he'd known he would get just this reaction. His transfer ended it for her. After hearing about her gypsy childhood, he knew talk of cross-country moves would send her underground.
Which was what he wanted. Right? So why hadn't he told her up-front? Damn, but he hated questions. He needed answers and action. He needed to leave.
Then why couldn't he make his feet move?
The silence between them stretched, broken only by an occasional passing car, the trickle of water from the garden fountain, the call of mockingbirds.
He'd done it again. Hurt her. In spite of all his great plans, he'd brought disillusionment right back into those brown eyes.
"Doc?" Magda's hoarse voice croaked.
Her voice jolted through Gray's confusion. His gaze jerked to Magda. "What, Magpie?"
She peeked at him from the security of Lori's neck and smiled. "Moo-moo, Doc. Moo-moo … cow?"
Something else entirely different jolted through Gray this time, an emotion so strong it jabbed right at his chest. "That's right, Magda. The word is cow. You're a smart kid."
Lori wasn't the only one who could be hurt by his choices. It would have been easier for Magda if he'd let her go right on hating him. Like Lori probably did now.
Somehow, in the span of a week, he'd twisted his life right up with these two. Their matching brown eyes would haunt him all the way to Washington. Not in the least certain what he would say, he still had to try. "Lori, I'm sorry, hon, I thought—"
A car horn drowned out the rest of his sentence. Gray twisted to look over his shoulder and found…
His parents.
Their Chevy Cavalier slid in behind his Explorer. His conversation with his mother came crashing back around him, his unwitting revelation of too many details about how he'd spent his weekend. He shouldn't be surprised by her visit, only that it had taken her twenty-four hours to drop in.
What surprised him most was that she'd managed to convince his father to come along. Gray braced his shoulders. God, he didn't need to deal with his father today.
His mother tucked a hand in her husband's arm and waved up to the trio on the balcony porch. "Hi, sugar! Lovely morning, isn't it?"
Of course she would have to catch him leaving Lori's house—in the morning. His mother had whipped out that maternal radar again. It must be some kind of holdover from his teenage years. He didn't even waste time wondering how she'd tracked Lori's new address.
Gray pulled a pained smile. "Morning, Mom. Dad."
His mother waved for him to come down. "I've got some things in the car. Your father could use help unloading."
He shot Lori an apologetic look, her face now a blank slate. He heard her footsteps behind him as she followed him down the stairs. Of course she wouldn't make a scene in front of his mother.
And neither would he. He had to make the best of it for everyone. His mother was a mama on a mission.