“I care about you; you know I do,” he continued, smiling down at her like a parent with his badly behaving child, with a look of pity that made her want to rip his face off. “But I think we need some time apart.”

Hailey chewed on the inside of her jaw and stared into the eyes of her lover, the sexy and well-respected pilot David Blane, and searched for words. She opened her mouth and tried to speak, but her throat would not cooperate. Like a beached fish silently gasping for air and in direct contrast to the rainstorm they’d run through exiting the plane and entering Seattle’s SeaTac Airport terminal, her mouth was the only dry thing about her.

“David.” Her voice sounded horrible and unfamiliar in its desperation. She tried again. “I don’t understand. Last night…”

“Last night,” he said, lifting his hands to either side of her face and planting a tender, slow kiss on her forehead as if to say There there, little girl. It will be all right now. You will feel better tomorrow. Go play. Thankfully she had no moisture at all in her mouth, or she might be tempted to spit in his face.

“Last night was beautiful, a lovely moment for both of us,” he said, his mouth curving around the words as his eyes lay flat and bitterly unfeeling. “You have no idea how hard it was for me to avoid talking to you while you served the passengers and the crew today. Walking up and down the aisles, you’re a beautiful, desirable woman Hailey. But, I know you’ll understand this; I have to take some time to myself now, think about my priorities, and decide some things about the rest of my life. I need time. You’ll give me time, won’t you?”

If he said “time” just once more, she would hit him with her carryon luggage. Hailey Rockwell stood straighter, glanced around the pilot’s lounge and dug deep for her dignity. How had they reached this spot? She didn’t remember walking in here, and realized suddenly that he could have told her this at any time in the past hours in private, but instead, he’d taken the chicken way out and waited until he was surrounded by other people.

Throwing a royal hissy fit right now would not endear him to her, nor would it make her feel better about being dumped, though. And make no mistake, she thought; you’re being dumped. As badly as she wanted to drag him down to the floor and beat him about the head and shoulders, she forced herself to take deep calming breaths and keep her hands at her sides. She was an adult, no matter how much he sounded like he was dealing with a petulant child. She would handle this as an adult—plot his murder and decide where to hide the body.

The thought made her smile, and she gathered herself. She wouldn’t lose it here in this crowded place. She wouldn’t lose it at all. She wasn’t a child; she was an adult and certainly understood the ins and outs of relationships.

“I understand,” she forced herself to say. She didn’t understand, not one bit. Everything had been going so well, and here he was dumping her. Still, these were the words adults used, and these were the words she would use. It wasn’t the end of the world. It was over; okay, it was over. No matter how unfair and horrible, she would take it like a grown-up.

“This is not the end for us,” he said, smiling down at her, clasping her shoulders between his fingers. He squeezed her flesh between those strong fingers and the memory of being in his arms last night returned.

“What? I thought you were dumping me,” she said, shaking her head. “Are we over or not? What are you trying to say?”

He dropped his hands from her face and picked up his carry-on bag. Straightening his uniform cap, he glanced down at his watch then back to her. “I’m saying I’ll call you in a few weeks, okay? You do whatever you do, and I’ll take some time to figure out what I want to do. We’ll have some privacy and time to think about what we each want, right? And Hailey, look. I’ve requested that you not be assigned to my flights for a while in order to clear my head. Just let me have some time to think. That’s all I’m asking.”

That sounded like four pounds of fresh bologna. And he’d already spoken to someone about the flight crew’s schedule? He’d actually pulled her from his flight crew and had her assigned elsewhere, simply on the basis of his own request? The slow burn of fury and humiliation moved through her. She knew her face was growing red as her blood pressure began to make her a little woozy with anger. Did everyone know she was being dumped before she did? Was the whole TransWorld flight team now feeling sorry for her behind her back? Man, was that why everyone had seemed so distant today? What rumors were going around about her now? They’d met a year ago at a company function, and here they were, almost a year together later still at work, and this was what they’d come to—“I need time”?

Whatever was left of her self-esteem would be salvaged now if she could just pull it together and get herself out of this airport and back to her car. How to do that exactly was unclear, but that’s what she needed to do. Somehow she had to get her feet to move from this spot, to behave as if they were still attached to her body and wanted to carry her somewhere else. Her pride tried to get them to move, her good sense tried…but neither of them seemed in control of the feet today.

“David.” She cleared her throat. If she couldn’t get her feet to move, maybe she could come up with a decent parting line, something classy and meaningful. Something Meg Ryan or even Olivia de Havilland. “Take all the time you need, but don’t be surprised if I don’t wait around for you while you take your time.”

Yes, just the right amount of passionless disdain. That would do the trick. Her pride took control, and she pivoted on her heel, her feet once more obeying her commands, and walked away from him as fast as her legs would carry her. She didn’t run from the room; she wouldn’t let herself. Pride was in control now, and while she wasn’t steady on her feet, she was moving away from him. That was progress.

Unfortunately, she moved a little too quickly and pride might have gotten her moving, but he didn’t do much for her coordination. She bumped into a row of people and then spinning sideways to try to get out of their way, knocked over the carry-on bags of a few other passengers.

And the saddest part of all? Not one of the people complained. For some reason, they took one look at her face then looked away, picking their bags up and righting them again, with small smiles and averted eyes. What was going on here? Was her misery so evident on her face that she’d become a pariah?

Her eyes filled with tears as she turned and once more headed toward the large red-lighted exit sign. She blinked rapidly to stem the flow of salty water from her uncooperative and traitorous eyes, struggling to see where she was going as she made her way out of the building.

The front doors of the terminal whooshed open, and she kept her head lowered. She’d been working out of this terminal for many years now, and she really didn’t have to look up at all into the steady rain to know which way she needed to go to reach the park and ride. She slowed her pace and let the rain fall over her as she wandered toward the bus stop sign for the Park and Ride. A steady shower fell on her head and shoulders, not out of the ordinary for Seattle and quite suited to her mood at the moment anyway. She’d fixed her hair special this morning before their return flight, just for him, but she no longer cared. What difference did it make if she got drenched? If she walked into her townhouse tonight soaked to the bone without a single dry place on her entire body, who would care? Who would be there to even care? No one would be there. After all her plans and dreams of where they were headed, she would be alone while he took his “time” or whatever it was.

She’d parked her car on the pay lot a week ago, happily climbing aboard the shuttle bus which would begin her journey with David, and the rest of the flight crew and some four hundred passengers with both legs of the trip, but David most importantly. The shuttle had been taking her to the airport, David’s castle as he was the king of the skies with Atlantis Airlines, and she would a week in Paris with David as his princess.

She’d double-checked all the flight scheduling plans and that morning made sure she was still assigned to his flight crew on the trip and nothing untoward would ruin their special weekend together. They talked about it for months now, well, she’d talked about it, but he’d been pretty excited too. She’d imagined it as their change to once again rekindle some of the fire that had been flickering out in their relationship as of late. She honestly didn’t know if it was his lack of focus on her or her waning interest in him, but something was going astray, and she had too much invested in the relationship to let it go that easily. He was a good man, a handsome man, and he cared about her. They’d never quite gotten to I love you, but it hadn’t been far away. She wasn’t the kind of woman who said it first, and he’d not chosen to say it either, so they’d reached a holding pattern. She’d been sure that she could move them out of the holding pattern and on down the runway with this trip. Instead, the trip had obviously been the first step in his exodus. He intended to fly off into the sunset without her, and she hadn’t seen it coming.

That’s why she felt so miserable right now. It wasn’t the pouring rain or the fact that she’d been unceremoniously dumped; it had been the fact that it had come from out of nowhere. Hailey didn’t like things that came out of nowhere. Especially things like that.

Hailey reached the bus stop and glanced up at the sky, letting the raindrops fall on her face to cool the burning humiliation spreading through her body. She opened her mouth and let the rain moisten her parched throat. How had she been so naïve? She’d thought she loved him, even though she’d never said the words, she’d believed it on some level. And before she’d ever said anything to him about it, he’d dismissed her, as one would swat away an annoying bug. He needed time.  God, was that the oldest line in the book of “I’m so over you” or what?

She should be happy about this, should count her blessings she told herself. She’d just dodged a bullet. If he felt this way, then better she should know now than go another year of her life wasting it on a man who “needed time” away from her.

If someone “needs time” away from you, Sarah would have told her if she’d been here, “then you need some time to look for another boyfriend.” Sarah didn’t pull a lot of punches when it came to anything, and she was especially relentless on men. She would have a few things to say about this little moment, and David’s choosing to do it in a crowded place.

She sniffed and pushed her long blonde hair away from her face. She’d worn it down just the way David liked it, but as it hung around her face now, she wished she had a barrette or ponytail holder to get it away from her face. Swiping at the moisture on her cheeks from her tears with the back of her hand and holding back her hair from her face, she closed her eyes again and shaking her head took another deep breath of the wet, Seattle air.

This is for the best, she told herself. Things between us haven’t been good the past few months; being apart will give us both time. But she’d wanted time together to give them time, not time apart. Her plans were ruined now, even though they’d had a nice evening last night. Dinner, and sex. Not inspired sex, but it was still sex, and she’d been happy they were on the road back to somewhere. But it appeared that road was a dead end after all.

No, that wasn’t it. He wanted some time. Don’t look at the negative, she told herself. He’s taking a step back for a while; that does not necessarily mean it’s over. He said he would call her in a couple of weeks. That meant it wasn’t over. Don’t read more into this than there is, she told herself.

Unfortunately, she didn’t believe a word of it; even as she forced the reassuring thoughts through her mind she knew they were lies. A person didn’t need “time” unless they were on their way out of your life. They needed “time” to get themselves organized for the next part of their lives.

Tears continued to slip down her cheeks. She ignored them as she stood in the pouring rain and waited for the shuttle. The heck with it. She wasn’t going to spend another moment thinking about him. No, she would think about something else, meeting someone else, someone who liked her just the way she was.

“Hi Hailey.”

His voice startled her from the trance she’d lapsed into. She whipped around to face him. “Oh, Kevin. Hi.”

Hailey turned away again to hide the evidence of her misery from him. Kevin was David’s co-pilot and best friend. She’d spoken to him plenty of times before, but never after a crying jag. Of all the things she did not want to do right now, it was let anyone from work see her like this. Drowned, crying and miserable. The last thing she needed was to be seen literally drowning in despair.

Something dropped off her shoulder like a weight being suddenly ripped from her back, and a splash of water soaked her legs. The sudden weightlessness should have felt good, but the splash on her legs was just one more thing she did not want to endure right now. Hailey looked down at her feet. Her brand new Dooney & Burke lay in a puddle, its broken strap lying off into the gutter.

She shook her head and stared down at the purse, so reminiscent of everything her life had suddenly become--something unique and dear soiled and ruined forever. The purse had cost her a near fortune and was the one thing she’d splurged on during their trip. He’d told her she was paying way too much for something she was going to throw on the backs of chairs and leave lying around, but she’d been so happy with it she’d ignored his foul mood. It was her money, and if she wanted to buy herself something nice, that was her business. More tears choked her throat. This was the kind of nice she’d been getting lately.

Before she could work up the will to bend over and retrieve the wrecked handbag, Kevin moved toward her feet. He stooped down below her, rescued it from the mud hole and rose slowly, the handbag held cradled in his hands.

Then, he did something she could not believe. He opened his raincoat and using his neatly pressed uniform suit jacket, turned it into a slop towel by wiping the mud off and soaking up the water dripping from it.

“Oh my God, you’re going to ruin your jacket,” she said, her voice incredulous as she stared at him. He looked into her eyes and smiled, continuing to wipe it clean of all traces of the mud.

“It might be fixable,” he said, covering himself in mud as he swiped the bag with the other side of his jacket. Kevin held the purse up in front of him and examined it for a moment, then wiped it some more. He examined it again, and appearing satisfied with his work, offered the purse to her.

She looked at the handbag, not taking it from him as she looked at his clothing. No dry cleaner would ever be able to get those stains out. She stared up at him.  Kind eyes, a glittering hazel green in the lamplight, stared back at her.

“You’ll have to get the strap fixed, but I think it’s okay.”

The sweetness in his eyes and his extraordinary act of generosity proved her undoing. One man couldn’t be concerned enough about her to love her as she loved him, and another covered himself in filth just to save her handbag.

Staring at his full smiling lips, she moved closer to him then took his face into her hands. “You know what?”

His eyes widened and a glint of something else formed there. She didn’t know what it was—she’d expected surprise, but this was something much more interesting if she gave herself time to examine it.

But she didn’t. “I’m going to kiss you.”

He dropped the handbag down onto his carryon luggage. “No need to warn me.”

The glint in his gaze changed and a hungry look formed around his mouth, drawing her closer. He made no move to get closer to her, allowing her to take the lead. A moment ago, she’d been grateful, but something in his eyes drew her forward. What she’d thought would be a nice thank you now beckoned her to something else.

Before she lost her nerve entirely, she closed her eyes and let the tears fall freely down her cheeks as she placed her lips on his.

After a moment’s hesitation, he encircled her in his arms pulling her hard against his long, lean body. He returned the kiss, lingering, searching, and tasting her with his tongue. His thighs pressed against hers, and she let herself fall back as he pressed his mouth harder over her lips, his strong arm holding her firmly against him.

Floating on the erotic waves and sensations of his mouth, she placed her hand on his chest and opened hers, tasting the sweet cinnamon flavor of him. His tongue met hers in a hot, sweet-tasting connection of electricity and heat. Misery and comfort intertwined, and she held onto his steady form in the swirling disembodiment of her pride.

Then, she noticed how the sadness permeating her soul seemed to shrink, to dissipate in the strength of his arms and the cool, falling rain. Releasing the wretched passageways of her desperately unhappy thoughts, she chose instead the journey of the impulsive kiss.  Hailey marveled at the feel of his body against hers, conscious of her choice to grab the moment when he’d offered comfort and she took it, releasing herself from culpability. With both hands.

When had she ever felt this free? When had David ever kissed her like this?

David. His name wrenched her back to reality with a hard jerk. What was she doing? Guilt raced through the haze of desire flooding through her. Kevin and David were friends and co-workers. What was David going to say when he found out that she’d behaved this way? How did that show that she wanted him back, that she cared about only him? What was she doing? What in the hell was she doing?

Hailey pushed herself away his fantastic mouth and opened her eyes. Rain fell on his head and dripped down the sides of his face. “Kevin. I don’t know what…”

“It’s okay,” he said, his eyes keenly perusing her face. “I’ve wanted to do that for a long time.”

Hailey recoiled as if she’d been slapped. “You have?” she whispered. Oh no, this was even worse than she’d thought. A moment’s flirtation turned into a horrible using of another human being. A human being who obviously had feelings for her. Humiliation poured over her like the cool Seattle rain.

Kevin traced a line down the side of her cheek with his finger as the shuttle bus pulled up beside them. He looked deeply into her blue eyes and entangled a strand of her hair around his finger. “I never told you this before, but I always thought you were the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen.”