Page 33 of Flyboy

Colton laughed. “I love that guy.”

“You gotta love Omar.”

When they were all finally ready to call it a night, Colton was pleased that a good bunch of them had made arrangements and were getting rides. He helped the rest of them into the back of his truck, including Omar, who thought it would be more fun back there. And then Ivy pulled up addresses and the map function on her phone and headed toward the first home.

Within about ten minutes, the guys who were in the back seat were cleared out and home. Things were pretty quiet between the two of them. Colton studied her in between watching the road. “Talk to me. Where do you see yourself after Top Flight?”

She turned in her seat so she was facing him from the passenger side. “Who’s asking? My boss, or . . . ?”

“Not your boss.” What was he? He wasn’t going to spell anything out right now. The man who wanted to kiss her? The guy who was more intrigued by her than he had ever been by any other woman?

She fiddled with her phone. “I don’t know.”

He watched her for a second then turned back to the road. “You seem more concerned about the answer to this question than I would have thought.”

She waited so long to respond that he wasn’t sure she would. Then the quiet voice that began was so different from all the different sides of Ivy, he almost pulled over so that he could really pay attention.

“I don’t know if you were the same, but when I was honorably discharged from the military, I felt a little lost.”

He didn’t respond. He’d been a mixed bag at his discharge. Lost without a plane to fly, but kind of ecstatic that no one was telling him what to do all the time.

“I tried everything I knew to do. I finished my degree. I worked for an accounting firm. I even tried sailing.”

He laughed. “Sailing?” Things were looking even better than he imagined for his plans tomorrow.

“Yeah, it’s a thing around the Cape. I loved it. But it can’t be my way to earn a living, you know?”

He nodded.

“Top Flight gave me purpose again. While you resist the structure and the rules, I need them. I feel comfortable a bit boxed in.”

Now that was something he couldn’t even imagine understanding as long as he breathed. But he respected that she felt that way.

“So, you might work for Top Flight forever?” He considered such a thing. He’d never said anything that committed in his life. He preferred the open method of viewing his plans.

“Won’t you?”

He shifted. “I imagine I will. Unless something else comes up—unless something happens. I don’t know. Can we ever be certain about anything?”

“I guess not. But you do think it will be around for a while . . . don’t you?”

“Oh yeah. We’re not going anywhere. We have plans to grow. Other skills in the military, everything. We’ve got some homeland security guys in mind. They can hire out as consultants on any number of security issues.”

She nodded, seeming pleased.

They dropped off the last couple guys from the back of the truck, and then once back at Fatima’s, Omar stumbled out and made his way into the house.

“He’s going to feel that in the morning.” Colton turned off the car. He put his hand on the door handle, but Ivy stayed where she was. So he turned back.

“I’m not really ready to go to bed yet.”

Colton craned his neck to the sky. “The moon is out. Should we go for a walk?”

“Yes, thank you. If you’re not tired. I need to walk off my thoughts.”

They headed for the path at the edge of the woods on the side of the house. “I think there’s a coconut grove up ahead and a bit of a garden next to it.”

“The Aqua de Coco we drink in the morning? Is that from her own coconuts? It’s the sweetest I’ve ever had.”

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