Page 44 of Cowboys & Navy SEALs

Her head swung back and forth. “Wow,” she uttered. A minute later, she turned to Lexi. “Was I happy living in LA?”

“You were getting tired of the city—all the noise and commotion. You’d toyed with the idea of selling out to Shade and moving back to the South.” Lexi pulled a face. “This is all so strange. I can’t believe you don’t remember any of this.”

“Amnesia is a kick in the pants,” Lemon muttered darkly.

Knox steepled his hands beneath his chin. “What’s the relationship between Lemon and Wesley Livingston? Were they a couple?”

Jaxson sucked in a quick breath. He wondered if Lemon had noticed.

Lexi grunted. “Wesley wishes.” She looked at Lemon. “You went out with Wesley a few times but then told me it wasn’t going to work. You said he made you feel smothered.”

Lemon gasped. “That’s exactly how I felt in my dream.” She let go of Jaxson’s hand, her fingers circling around her neck.

“Your memory must be coming back,” Lexi said dryly. “Wesley acts like he owns you.” She gritted her teeth. “It drives me crazy. If it were me, I would’ve given him the boot a long time ago.”

“Why didn’t she?” Jaxson shot back. He regretted his outburst when he saw Lemon’s tremulous expression.

“Wesley puts up a good front for Lemon, going on about how much he respects her, how he treasures her friendship.” Lexi looked at Lemon. “But you were starting to see through the charade. Wesley was losing his hold on you, and it was driving him nuts.”

Lemon started talking fast. “Does Wesley have a house near the ocean?”

“Yes, he does. I believe it’s in Naples, Florida.” Lexi held up a finger. “I almost forgot to mention that Wesley stopped by the restaurant yesterday. He was demanding to know where you were.” She smirked. “Can you believe he had the audacity to insinuate that I was hiding you from him? The jerk!” she scoffed.

A chill ran through Jaxson. Wesley Livingston was sounding like a stalker. He tightened his fist, thinking how he’d like to punch the weasel into next week.

“Did you tell Wesley where I was?” Lemon asked, her voice strained.

Lexi spread her hands. “I didn’t know where you were. I told him the truth—that I hadn’t heard from you.” Her brows knitted. “Wesley seemed more agitated than normal. It got me worried. That’s when I started calling and texting you. When I couldn’t reach you, I called Shade. She hadn’t heard from you since you left LA a couple days earlier and had been trying to reach you also. Then, I talked to Lucas and he told me about the amnesia and that you were here, with Jaxson.” Her gaze moved to Jaxson’s bandaged ankle, resting on the floor. “Lucas told me about your accident.” She pressed her lips together in sympathy. “I’m so sorry, cuz.”

“It’s all good,” Jaxson said easily.

Knox leaned forward, bringing his hands together. “Maybe it’s time we showed Lemon a picture of Wesley Livingston. See if she remembers him.”

“Good idea.” Jaxson turned to Lemon. “Then, we need to go to the police station and see if it’s your phone that they found. After that, we’ll stop by your old home-place.”

Lemon placed a hand on Jaxson’s arm. “I don’t want to tire you out.”

“I can take you,” Lexi offered.

“Nope,” Jaxson countered. “I’m going.” He gave Lemon a defiant look, daring her to disagree.

Lemon shrugged. “Okay, I’m just worried about you.”

Lexi giggled. “Well, at least some good has come out of the whole amnesia thing.” She nudged Lemon. “You finally worked up the nerve to tell Jaxson how you feel about him.” Lexi flashed a wicked grin at Jaxson. “She’s always been crazy about you, but she was afraid that you’d moved on.” She chuckled. “Of course, who could blame her? You have more girlfriends than a cat has lives.”

“Had more girlfriends,” Lemon cut in, her voice harder than flint. Her eyes sparked. “Had,” she repeated, giving Jaxson a warning look.

He held up his hands in defeat. “I’m all yours,” he grinned.

Lemon’s face was flaming red. She whirled around to Lexi. “Do you have to tell him everything?” she seethed. Her words flew out like arrows. “I may not remember anything right now, but I’m sure that I wouldn’t want Jaxson to know that I’ve been pining away for him for umpteen years!”

“Ah, my friend’s still in there.” Lexi’s dark eyes danced. “That snake-fanged tongue is still as lethal as always.”

“Amen!” Jaxson boomed.

“Hey!” Lemon grumbled, but amusement lit her eyes. She sighed. “I guess the cat’s out of the bag now.”

“Way out of the bag,” Lexi laughed.

---