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Authors: K.M. Scott

Tags: #Heart of Stone#1

Crash Into Me (26 page)

BOOK: Crash Into Me
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He
walked away leaving me standing in the doorway staring at the woman I loved who
saw me only as a complete stranger. I pulled the engagement ring I'd given her
out of my pocket and slid it over the tip of my pinky. Would she ever remember
what we were so it would mean as much to her as it did to me?

Jordan tapped me on the arm, bringing me out of a daydream about the night at Tony's when
I'd asked Nina to marry me. "Tristan, you should talk to her. Tell her
about yourself. I know it's hard, but she needs to know who you are."

"I
don't know, Jordan. It might be too much for her. I don't know what to say
about her father and I won't lie to her now."

"She
knows already. When Kim called, she told her. She doesn't remember what
happened to him, but she knows he died. Go talk to her. Don't give up on
her."

With
a gentle squeeze, Jordan prodded me toward the bed. Nina looked up at me and
smiled, like she had so many times before, but I saw in her eyes she was just
trying to make me feel welcome.

She
didn't know me.

"How
are feeling?" The question was lame, but it's what a stranger would ask.

"Jordan says that you and I are engaged."

Nodding,
I smiled and pulled the ring out of my pocket. "I just proposed a few
nights ago."

"Can
I see it?" she asked as she held out her hand. "It looks like a
beautiful ring."

I
placed it in the center of her palm and smiled as she took it from me.
"You liked it when I gave it to you."

She
studied it for a minute and then looked me up and down. "I bet you
proposed at some fancy restaurant or the opera. Not that I know if I like
opera, but you look like the type of man who does."

I
looked down at my clothes and couldn't help but smile. Dressed in my suit pants
and dress shirt, I'd thought I looked casual without my tie and coat. Leave it
to Nina to let me know just how wrong I was.

Lifting
my head, I said, "Actually, it was a pizza place called Tony's that we
like. I got down on one knee, though."

A
sweet smile lit up her face. "I like pizza. That's good to know."

"And
roast beef, turkey with stuffing, shrimp scampi, and sausage and peppers."

She
was silent for a long time and then finally said, "I'm sorry I don't
remember you, Tristan. You seem like a great guy."

I
wanted to take her in my arms and never let her go. To do everything we'd done together
all over again just on the chance that she'd remember how much we loved each
other.

But
I couldn't. I wasn't the man she loved. I was just some guy who remembered.

"Can
I ask you something, Tristan?"

"Anything
and I promise to give a straight answer."

A
confused expression crossed her face for a brief moment and then she smiled.
"Why don't I remember you?"

I
sadly shook my head, her question ripping my heart in two. "I don't
know."

Was
it because of what I'd told her just before the accident? Had she forgotten
everything about us because somewhere deep inside her mind she couldn't forgive
me for her father's death?

 

After
two and a half weeks, her doctor pulled me aside as Jordan and Kim visited with
an almost healed Nina. Guiding me to a secluded room near Nina's room, he
closed the door behind us and I took a seat across from him.

"I
want you to know that the good news is that her physical injuries are healing
well. She'll be able to go home tomorrow. Her memory loss is disconcerting,
however. I had expected her to remember something of her life from the past
four years, but I see no signs of that, as of yet."

Listening
to him speak, I knew what he was about to say and instantly, my chest
tightened.

"Mr.
Stone, I just can't say she'll ever remember everything. The human mind is a
difficult thing to predict. All I can say is that if you continue to show her
what her life was like, she very well may come around."

Extending
my hand to shake his, I pressed a smile onto my face. "I understand. Thank
you for everything."

I
returned to find Jordan and Kim standing outside Nina's room as the nurses did
their jobs inside. The time had come to let them know my plans for Nina after
she left here.

"Ladies,
I'd like to speak to you privately for a moment."

Escorting
them to the room where I'd just met with Nina's doctor, I stood as they both
took their seats. Jordan looked up at me with wide eyes, as if what I had to
say interested her, but Kim wore the same suspicious look she always gave me.

"The
doctor just told me Nina will be able to go home tomorrow. I've made
arrangements for her to come home with me to our home. You, of course, are
welcome to come too and stay for as long as you'd like. I have more than enough
room."

"With
you? Why would she go home with you?" Kim asked sharply. "She should
go home with Jordan."

"She's
coming home with me because that's where she belongs. As I said, you're welcome
to come stay as long as you like."

"She
doesn't even remember you."

Jordan looked over at Kim and then back at me. "I think Kim might be worried that Nina
would feel like a stranger in your house." Turning back toward Kim, she
continued, "But I've been there and Nina was very happy there, Kim. She
and Tristan were...are in love, and he can help her remember their time
together."

I
looked down at Nina's sister. "I can certainly understand your concern,
Kim, but she belongs in her own home. With me."

Kim
stood and folded her arms across her chest. "You keep saying belongs, like
she's something you own. I'm not some small town rube like my sister. She may
think you're something special, but I don't think so. She's not going to stay
with some strange man. Not if I have anything to say about it."

"Well,
you don't," I said as I crossed my arms.

"I'm
not just some fool you can boss around. My husband is a lawyer. You don't think
I'll just let you take her without having something to say about it, do
you?" Kim asked, her eyes blazing her anger.

Stepping
toward her, I smiled. "And I have a battalion of lawyers, all paid to be
at my beck and call to do my bidding. You can try to fight me on this, Kim, but
you'll lose. Nina is coming home with me. There's no more discussion on
that."

"Really?
Well, how do you plan to handle Nina's depression, which is sure to rear its
ugly head any minute now?"

I
knew my face showed that I had no idea what Kim was talking about. Thankfully, Jordan interrupted. "Kim, you don't know that. Nina's been really good for a long
time. She might not get down this time."

Kim
spun around to glare at Jordan. "Get down? Is that what we're calling it
now? The last time she 'got down' she spent months crying holed up in her room.
And I think when someone threatens to kill themselves, Jordan, it's a little
more than feeling down."

Jordan quickly looked at me for my reaction and then back at Kim. "That's not fair and
you know it. Cal broke her heart. And saying you want to kill yourself is
different than actually trying to. She never tried to."

"Fine.
If I have no say in this, then I have no reason to be here anymore."

Kim
stormed out of the room, leaving me with Jordan, whose face had settled into a
frown. Standing, she began to explain what Kim might be feeling.

"I
don't care. I've heard how she talks to Nina. The woman is lying in a hospital
bed, and her sister is chastising her for getting into a car accident."

Jordan nodded. "I know. She's always been tough on Nina, especially since their
father's death. And that thing she said about Nina wanting to kill herself
wasn't true, Tristan. Nina was just really sad one time and said a few things
she didn't mean."

Shaking
my head, I said, "You don't have to worry about me not caring about Nina
because of that. I understand."

I
didn't care that she'd felt depressed and said things about killing herself.
The only part that bothered me about that whole thing was that she probably
remembered that fucking Cal who'd broken her heart but didn't remember me.

Jordan looked up at me, her green eyes intently staring into mine. "I need to know
you're doing this because you care about her. I need to know this isn't some
kind of power thing or I swear, Tristan, I might not have all the money to pay
lawyers, but I'll make sure she comes home with me. Tell me you're doing this
because you love her."

"Have
I ever given you a reason to doubt that I'm crazy about her? Have I ever not
shown in everything I do that her happiness is the only thing I think of?"

"No,
but she's doubted your feelings, so I needed to ask."

I
couldn't hide the surprise I felt at Jordan's words. Nina had truly doubted
that I cared for her?

"Didn't
know she doubted you, did you? Well, she did a few times."

Leaning
back against the wall, I shook my head. "Why?"

"Because
you're everything she could ever want. It all seemed to good to be true. I
don't know what happened the night she got into the accident, but I wouldn't be
surprised if you told me you had a fight about her not feeling that she was
worthy of being with someone like you."

Quietly,
I answered, "No, it wasn't that. But every time she ever said anything like
that to me, I told her how wrong she was. I don't care about the money or
anything else. I care about her and want her to see that we were in love. Still
are, as far as I'm concerned."

Touching
my arm, Jordan smiled. "Okay. You've convinced me. Now all you have to do
is wait for her to figure it out. She will. As I always tell her, good things
happen to good people, and I'm including you in our group of good people who
deserve those things."

I
wasn't sure I deserved to be in Jordan's Good People group, but from that point
on, I planned on doing whatever was necessary to be worthy of Nina and all the
good things that came with her.

 

Nina
was sitting up in a chair next to her bed when I finally got back to her room.
Kim had likely given her opinion on her coming home with me, but the smile Nina
gave me as I entered her room didn't indicate she was upset.

I
sat down beside her and thought about what to say. Unsure anything would sound
right, I just said what I had to and hoped it came out the way I meant it. "Nina,
you're going to be released tomorrow. I'm going to take you home."

She
nodded and said, "I hear my sister wasn't crazy about that idea, but I
trust Jordan with my life and she says that I'd want to go with you. She's told
me everything you've done for me since I've been in here. I guess you're a
pretty nice boss if you're willing to take care of all my hospital bills."

"I
guess." This wasn't going exactly the way I'd hoped it would.

"I
just have one question to ask. Did I move in with you after we got engaged or
before?"

"Before.
You've lived with me since you began working for me as my private
curator."

Tears
filled her eyes and she brought her hands up to her face. "I'm a curator?
I wish my father had gotten to see that."

I
hung my head and said quietly, "I do too."

We
sat together saying nothing for a long time, but then she touched my arm softly
and said, "I don't know if I'll ever remember our time together, but I
hope I do."

I
knew it wasn't the perfect situation, but I didn't care. Nina would be coming
home and even though she didn't remember everything we were, I had the chance
to show her why she'd agreed to marry me while we rediscovered each other. The
problems that had threatened to tear us apart still lurked out there, and I'd
have to deal with them if I ever expected Nina to be mine again.

We'd
been given a second chance. Now it was up to me to prove to her I was the man
she wanted to spend the rest of her life with.

 

 

TRISTAN AND NINA'S STORY CONTINUES IN

FALL INTO
ME

COMING SOON!

Be sure to visit
K.M.'s Facebook page at
https://www.facebook.com/kmscottauthor
for all the latest on Tristan and Nina, along with giveaways and other
goodies! And check out her
blog
and
Twitter
too!

 

BOOK: Crash Into Me
10.45Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

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