Bound By Her Ring (12 page)

“Yes maybe you are.”

She saw the look on his face and knew what he was about to say. She held up her hand, “Don’t. Don’t even think about voicing what I know is going through your mind.”

“And what’s that?”

Her shoulders slumped in defeat. She’d never get him to believe her. “You think I’m still faking my amnesia.”

He pulled her into his embrace, running his hands slowly up and down her back. Reigniting her chilled blood and her desire for him.

“I do believe you, how can I not. You can’t fake the look of despair that crosses your face every time you remember.”

He kept an arm around her shoulders as he maneuvered out of the shop. “I think we’ve seen enough.”

She didn’t have the strength to argue and let him lead her back to the car. She waited until they were on the open road before she spoke.

“Why?”

“Why what?” he countered back.

“Why am I now starting to remember when before no matter what I did, what questions I asked, what pictures I looked at nothing,
nothing
triggered a flashback?” She fiddled with the hem of her top. “Yet I’ve spent less than a week with you and each day I remember something.”

She didn’t wait for a reply, she barrelled on, the need to express herself taking over her common sense. “Geez, I even had a flashback the night we met. How amazing was that.”

“You remembered something the night of the opening? When?”

Did she really want to share with Lukas what her first memory was? Did she want to open herself up to his raised eyebrows and questions? Did she want to take the risk?

“Umm, when I was back in my room.”

“And what was this ‘flashback’, cara?”

“Nothing of importance,” she said, hoping he would be satisfied and wouldn’t keep asking.

“Somehow I don’t believe that. You wouldn’t have mentioned it if it wasn’t important. So how about you share?”

As she’d thought, he wasn’t going to let her off the hook. He was going to keep chipping away at her, like a miner chips away at rock until he uncovers his treasure, until she, like the rock, gives up her secret.

She sighed heavily. “I remembered a bath we shared, okay?”

It was out there and she just wanted the earth to swallow her up. Why couldn’t her first memory have been of their discussion over his name? Or why couldn’t it have been the argument of why she’d left him? Why couldn’t it have been of anything other than something so intimate as a shared bath?

If she was truthful with herself the first couple of memories she’d had were of them being intimate. Was that all there was to their relationship? Sleeping together?

“A bath? An interesting first memory, I wonder what it means.”

She looked over at Lukas, his eyes intense and the heat flaring out from them warmed her skin. She wondered then if he was recalling a bath they’d shared. Had they only ever shared one bath or had there been more? The connection was broken when he reverted his gaze back to the road.

There were so many layers to be uncovered, like peeling away an onion skin. With each layer more flesh was exposed. More secrets laid out for all to see. She felt exposed and vulnerable.

“I don’t know what it means and I don’t care.” The lie tripped off her tongue. She did care, but she didn’t want Lukas to know how much she cared.

“I think you care more than you’re letting on.”

He’d voiced her exact thought and she felt her cheeks heat at being caught out. She knew mentioning the bath was going to be a big mistake. How she wished she’d had control of her tongue before blurting it out.

“Look, can we just let it go? I’ve had enough talking about my amnesia for one day.”

“You can’t run away from this Jasmine. We have to discuss it at some stage.”

“Why? Why do we have to discuss it at all?”

“Don’t you want your memory back? I thought that was what you wanted more than anything, and it’s clear I can help you achieve that.”

“Yes, but do I want to remember? What if I’ve forgotten for a reason,” she replied, bitterness lacing her voice. Right at this very moment she never wanted to recall her lost memories, it all seemed too hard. All she wanted to do was build new memories.

“I think you want to remember, but right now you’re scared.” He reached over and laid a hand on her thigh, squeezing gently. “And you have every right to be.”

“Pardon?” she asked, her stomach contracting at the tone of his words. “What do you mean
I have every right to be scared?
”

“Simply, you don’t know what those memories are and what remembering them will mean to you.”

His words should have provided comfort and reassurance, but all they did was increase her anxiety. Something about the way he was talking didn’t feel right. She felt in her gut he was hiding something. Had he done something so horrendous to her? Was that the reason she couldn’t remember him?

No more
, she told herself.
No more questions
. The suspicion that everything he did was tied into her memory loss or the reason behind it was tiring to her. She had to let it go.

“I don’t want to talk anymore.”

She folded her arms, and turned her head to gaze out the window at the scenery rushing by. How much longer would she be in the close confines of a car with him?

The rest of the journey passed in silence and the moment they reached their suite she changed out of her clothes and into her bathing suit and shorts.

“I’m going for a walk and then a swim,” she told Lukas as he walked into the room.

“I’ll join you.”

She held up her hand, that was the last thing she wanted. “No. I need some space.”

She didn’t wait for a reply, just gathered up her towel and walked out.

She needed some time alone. Time to assemble all the pieces of the puzzle that was her life. Time to try and find a solution she could live with.

She needed to work out if the time had come for her to open herself up to her memories, or close herself off from the past and look to starting a new future with Lukas.

The urge to stride out the door and follow Jasmine was strong but Luciano held back. He could appreciate her need for time, but he didn’t have to like it.

He walked over to the bar and poured himself a drink. Taking a slow sip of the sparkling water he contemplated the past twenty four hours and just how far he had moved away from his original reason for the trip.

When he’d walked onto his jet yesterday, everything had been so clear in his mind. He’d engineered so many similar situations to their last trip together he’d hoped to catch her out somehow, but she’d not remembered one thing. Hadn’t commented on the similarity between now and then. Not even when he mentioned Jeffrey Courteux’s name did even a glimmer of remembrance highlight her expressive eyes.

What would she say if she knew the rings on her finger had been designed by Jeffrey especially for her? He’d thought for sure that would produce a crack in her amnesia game. He may have told her he believed she wasn’t faking it, but there was still part of him that had needed to test her one last time. But there was nothing. No cracks appearing, no stuttering and stumbling over words. He had no choice now but to realise her amnesia was very, very real.

And there was his problem. The Jasmine he’d spent the day with today was the woman he’d been attracted to in the beginning.

In the research he’d done in the last couple of days, he’d read that some amnesia sufferers reinvented themselves because they couldn’t remember the events that made up their past. That couldn’t be said for Jasmine. She’d only lost the time they’d spent together. Those few months when life had seemed perfect to him. He should’ve insisted they catch
the same flight back, not travel separately. If they’d done that then they wouldn’t be in the situation they were in.

Or would they?

Would she still have gone through with the termination or would he have talked her out of it?

“Enough,” he said out loud. He was going around in circles. He never did that in business and he wasn’t going to start in his personal life.

Tonight there would be no games, no tests, no accusations. Tonight would be a casual affair. Tonight he’d let Jasmine lead the way.

Jasmine arrived back from the beach, gritty with sand but clearer in her mind. There was no point asking ‘what ifs’ in her mind, no one was going to answer them, she had to ask them out loud. Tonight over dinner she’d ask Lukas questions about their past and how they met. Maybe something, anything, would trigger a full memory return and then she could decide what she would do.

“Lukas? I’m back?” she called out.

“I’m on the balcony,” he replied.

As she walked out she focussed on the man lying casually on the sun lounger. To the average person he appeared relaxed, but she could see the underlying tension in the way his hands were laced together.

“Where are we going for dinner tonight?” she asked.

“We’re staying in. I thought we’d order room service and eat here.” He pointed to the small table on the balcony.

“Oh, okay.”

“You’d prefer to eat out?”

“No, no it’s fine. In fact I’d really like it. I don’t feel up to being in a roomful of people.”

He rose from the lounger with the grace of a lion and walked over to her. “I’ll order dinner now.”

He placed a soft kiss on her forehead, leaving her incapable of any answer. His actions confounded her again. He’d gone from being combative to being charming and considerate. All the features she’d hoped to find in her ultimate life partner.

Hearing Lukas’s muted tones as he spoke on the phone geared her into action. She rushed into the bathroom and turned the shower on. As she undressed it registered if they were eating in the suite she could question him and not worry about being overheard by wait-staff and other guests.

Her shower was quick and she was giving herself one last look in the mirror when a knock sounded.

“Dinner is here.”

“I’ll be right out.” She finished slicking on some lip gloss and went to meet Lukas on the balcony.

Whilst she’d been in the shower she’d rehearsed all the questions she wanted to ask.

The sun was sitting low on the horizon and a soft breeze gently lifted the edges of the table cloth. The table was sparsely set but whether it was the fact it was on the balcony or because of the closeness they’d achieved today, the setting was a lot more romantic than last night’s elaborate dinner on the beach.

A bottle of champagne was resting in a glass ice bucket by the table.

“What are we celebrating?” she asked as, if reading her mind, Lukas lifted the bottle and began pouring it into the delicate crystal flutes.

“New beginnings?”

New beginnings
. Where had that come from? Was he saying he too wanted to put the past behind them and start afresh? In that instant she lost her nerve to ask her questions. It was clear to her Lukas was making an effort and she didn’t want to spoil it by asking questions about a past he was clearly unhappy to talk about. She wanted an uncomplicated meal; enjoy his company, as if this was their first date.

“To new beginnings and first dates.” She clinked her glass with his, the melodic tune of two crystal glass colliding rang out over the balcony.

“So how was your walk and swim?” asked Lukas as they sat down to their meal.

“It was what I needed to blow the cobwebs away. What did you do while I was out?”

“Spoke to the office and sorted a few things out.”

She gave a soft laugh. “You didn’t give anybody too hard a time I hope.”

An answering glint entered his eyes. “No, I was quite calm in my dealings.”

Jasmine put her fork down and laughed. “Oh no, you being calm probably had whoever you spoke to quaking in their boots. I think they’d prefer the fiery Italian to a composed one.”

He quirked his eyebrow. “Are you suggesting that I’m not a reasonable boss?”

She held up her arms in mock surrender. “No, not at all, all I’m saying is that when my father spoke to me in a calm, monotone voice, I knew I was in far deeper trouble than if he ranted and raved at me.”

Jasmine saw his features tighten momentarily at the mention of her father and she could’ve kicked herself. When would she ever learn to control her thought processes before speaking out loud.

“I’ll bear that in mind,” he said mildly.

As he leaned forward, she could still see traces of his early humour. Maybe the night wasn’t lost after all.

“So tell me, Jasmine, which one do you prefer?”

Gooseflesh broke out over her arms and as she looked down she could see the fine hairs on her arm standing to attention. She’d experienced the passionate Italian Lukas, yesterday evening. His kisses and caresses had had her aching for more.

Today she’d seen the consummate professional, and she’d remembered his business practices. Tonight he was relaxed and good company. The man was a chameleon and she was attracted to each and every one of the faces Lukas had shown her.

“All of them.” It was the only way she could answer without letting Lukas know her attraction towards him was growing with every passing minute they spent together.

“Hmm, I’ll have to remember that,” he murmured and took a sip of his champagne. “More champagne?”

Jasmine shook her head, asking instead. “What’s for dessert?”

“Something truly decadent.” Lukas stood and walked back into the suite, lifting a single plate from the tray that rested on the room service trolley.

“One plate?” she enquired as he returned to the table.

He lifted the lid off with a flourish. “I thought we’d share.”

Jasmine looked at the plate and couldn’t decide whether to laugh or cry. “You remembered, oh scrap that, of course you remember.”

The green jelly wobbled lightly on the plate, as if it too, were giggling at her. She was unbelievably touched that Lukas had thought to order her favourite dessert.

“You start,” he held out a spoon to her.

As she took it, she let her fingers brush gently against his. Electricity sparked between them and the cool metal of the spoon, warmed from the contact.