Page 42 of A Gift of Time
“Jack… I’m afraid there is something I’ve failed to mention.” At my inquisitive stare, he continued, “If you don’t reverse the wish by the deadline, your memories of your old life will disappear.”
My face paled. “What?”
“You will stay in this life as Jack Taylor, the director of marketing, and you will forget about your old self. A man cannot live two lives, thus is the reason you will fully belong to this one.”
“But I’ll still have Caden?” I asked with my heart in my throat.
Nick nodded, but his somber expression did nothing to reassure me. “All of your memories of Caden will disappear, Jack. All the things about him that made you fall in love in your old life. You will be as you are right now, yes, but the memories of Caden that are the driving force for your pursuit of him will be gone.”
The corners of my eyes stung.
“So, you’re saying that I might not want him anymore,” I stated, feeling sick to my stomach. “That the memories keeping me holding onto him will disappear and my desire for him along with them?”
“I cannot predict the future,” he answered before focusing on a red ornament with Santa Claus’s face on it. “That is not to say you won’t still want him, but your feelings will not be as they are in this moment. When you look at him after the wish is complete, you will not see Caden, the man you love. You will see Caden, the decorator you met weeks ago. You will remember the things you did with him, but not the true reason behind them.”
I could barely hear him from the blood coursing through my veins and rushing in my ears. My pulse accelerated, as did the frantic beating of my heart. I started shaking and had to sit on the edge of the couch, rubbing my sweaty palms on my pant legs.
I was having a damn panic attack. Or close to one anyway.
“Why is the clock ticking?” I managed to ask, trying to distract my mind.
“As a reminder,” Nick said. “The hour hand will count days, not hours. When it reaches eleven, the minute hand will count down the hours. When it reaches eleven fifty-five that night, your wish will be complete.”
“And I’ll forget him,” I said as I covered my face with my hands, fighting back tears.
When I didn’t receive a response, I looked up. Nick was gone.
But the clock still ticked, counting down the days until I lost Caden forever.
