Eight months later, and barely a week after Ash graduated from high school, she was gone. For years, he felt partially responsible for her death. Had it not been for his own cancer, they might have caught hers sooner, when it was still treatable.
The day of his mother's funeral was the day Ash had written his father out of his life for good. His aunt had contacted him several years later to let him know that his father had passed away. Advanced liver cirrhosis. Ash didn't go to the funeral.
By then Ash was living in California, and going to school. Like his mother, he worked two and three jobs to make ends meet. Despite that, he'd somehow managed to maintain a near-perfect GPA. After graduation he'd married his college sweetheart and landed a job with Maddox Communications, convinced he was living the American dream. Unfortunately things had not been what they seemed.
The day he was offered the position of CFO, what should have been one of the best days of his life, he'd learned that his wife was having an affair. She'd claimed she did it because she was lonely. He'd worked such long hours he was never there for her. She sure hadn't minded spending the money he earned working those long hours, though. Not to mention, when he had been home, the "I have a headache" excuse was a regular. The irony of it would have been laughable had he not been so completely devastated.
Granted, theirs had never been a particularly passionate marriage, but he'd thought they were relatively happy. Apparently not. And the worst part had been that he hadn't suspected a thing.
Ash had thought he was through with women for good, but only a few months after the divorce was final he met Melody. She was young and beautiful and bright, and he was fascinated by her spunk and enthusiasm. Probably because he saw much of himself mirrored back in her eyes.
They had come from similar humble beginnings, and, like him, she was determined to succeed. They'd started dating in early April. The last week of May when the sublet on her apartment expired, he'd suggested she stay with him until she found another place, and she just never left.
Since then they seemed to have an unwritten understanding. She made herself accessible to him in any capacity necessary with no strings attached. There were no sentiments of love or talk of marriage, no questions or accusations when he worked late or cancelled a date. In return he provided financial security.
At times, he couldn't help thinking he was getting the better end of the deal. Not only did he have a willing mistress at his disposal 24/7, he also had the satisfaction of knowing that he was helping her make something of her life. If his mother had someone like that, someone to take care of her, she might still be alive.
Helping Melody had, in his own way, been a tribute to his mother. An homage to her strength and character, and as far as he was concerned, Melody had betrayed her, too.
He gazed down at Melody and realized she was sound asleep. For several minutes he just watched her, wondering what could have driven her to be unfaithful to him. When had she changed her mind, and decided that she wanted more than what they had? And why hadn't she just told him the truth? If she'd truly wanted out, he would have respected that. He wouldn't have liked it, and he would have tried to talk her out of leaving, but he would have eventually let her go. No strings attached.
Instead she had thrown back in his face everything he had ever done for her.
"How is she?" someone asked, and Ash turned to see Dr. Nelson standing in the doorway.
"Sleeping."
"I just wanted to stop back in once more before I left."
"I'm glad you did. We never discussed when I could take her home. I'd like to make travel arrangements."
He gestured Ash into the hall. "If she continues to improve, I would say a week to ten days."
"That long? She seems to be doing so well."
"She suffered a severe brain injury. You can't necessarily see the damage, but believe me, it's there." He paused then added, "When you say home, I assume you mean California."
"Of course."
"You should know that flying will be out of the question."
"Not even in my company's private jet?"
"She had a brain bleed. The change in pressure could very literally kill her. Frankly, I'm not crazy about the idea of her being on the road for that long either, but I guess there aren't any other options."
Sixteen hundred miles trapped in a car together. Not his idea of fun. Besides, he wanted to get her home and settled before she remembered something. If she ever did.
"I was wondering," Ash said. "If she does regain her memory, how long will it take?"
"There's no definitive answer that I can give you, Mr. Williams. If she does regain any memories, it can be a slow and sometimes traumatic process. Just be thankful that she's doing as well as she is. It will just take time and patience."
Unfortunately he had little of either.
"Even if she doesn't regain her memories," he added, "there's no reason to expect that you two won't live a long and happy life together regardless."
Actually, there was one damned good reason. Whether she remembered it or not, Melody had crossed him. It was time she got a taste of her own medicine.
But to make this work, Ash had a bit of cleaning up to do first.
Three
When Melody opened her eyes again, Ash wasn't in the room. She had the sudden, terrifying sensation that everything that had happened earlier was a dream or a hallucination. Then she lifted her hand, saw the diamond on her ring finger and relief washed over her.
It was real.
But where did Ash go? She pushed herself up on her elbows to look around and saw the note he'd left on the tray beside her:
Went to get your things. Back later to see you.
XOXO
Ash
She wondered where he was going to get them, then realized she must have been staying in a hotel when she'd had her accident. But that was more than two weeks ago. Wouldn't they have discarded her things by now? Did hotels hang on to the items abandoned by their customers?
She hoped so. Maybe there was something among her things that would spark a memory, and she was interested to see this so-called research Ash had been talking about. Not that she didn't believe him. It was just that something about this whole scenario was … off.
If what he said was true, and she was only here for school, what was she doing with four thousand dollars hidden in the lining of her purse? Was she trying to bribe someone, or buy information? Had she gotten herself into something illegal that she had been afraid to tell him? What if her accident hadn't been an accident after all?
And even worse, what if the person she was trying to get away from was Ash?
She realized just how ridiculous that sounded and that she was letting her imagination run away from her. She'd seen the photos; they were obviously very happy together. She was sure that the expression she'd mistaken for anger when he'd first entered her room was just his reaction to learning that she didn't remember him. After all, how would she feel if the man she had planned to spend the rest of her life with forgot who she was? Then insisted that she supply proof of their relationship? That would be devastating.
There were other things that disturbed her, as well. It seemed as though the news that she was in law school would evoke some sort of emotion. If not excitement, then maybe mild curiosity. Instead she'd just felt … disconnected. As though he were talking about another woman's life. One she had little interest in. And in a way maybe she was.
She was sure that once she got home and back into a regular routine, things would come back to her. She would be more interested in things like her career and her hobbies. If she had any hobbies. She hadn't even thought to ask him. There were all sorts of things he could tell her about her life.
She heard footsteps in the hall, her spirits lifting when she thought it might be Ash, but it was only the nurse.
"I see you're awake," she said with her usual cheery disposition. "How are you feeling?"
"Better," she said, and it was true. She still had a million questions, but at least now she knew that when she was discharged from the hospital, she would have somewhere to go. There was someone out there who loved and cared about her.
"I saw your fiancé," the nurse said as she checked Melody's IV. "He's very handsome. But that just stands to reason, I guess."
"Why?"
"Well, because you're so pretty."
"I am?"
The nurse laughed. "Well, of course you are."
She made it sound so obvious, but when Melody had seen her reflection the other day, the only thing she noticed was that a stranger's eyes stared back at her. She didn't stop to consider whether she was attractive. It just didn't seem important at the time.
"I hear that you're in law school," the nurse said, jotting something down on Melody's chart. "I never would have guessed."