Page 8 of One Little Memory
He smiled at her and headed out of the room. A moment later, the sound of footsteps broke the silence and she assumed her breakfast had arrived. “That’s good timing,” she said as she swung her gaze away from the window toward the door.
“Thanks,” a deep voice said.
It belonged to one of the most attractive men she’d ever seen. At least she thought he was incredibly handsome.Something else to add to the list of details about her. She seemed to like tall men with dark chocolate hair that curled over their collars.She had the urge to brush away a stray lock that flopped over his forehead. His eyes were a gorgeous shade of green, and they twinkled with mirth.
She blinked as a sudden image of his face filled her mind. He was standing by the door of her car. “You were at my accident,” she blurted out.
His expression sobered. “Yes. I found you. How are you feeling?”
“I, um… I’m okay.” She resisted the urge to try to fix her hair. It was beyond hope, she was sure. Was it weird the guy that found her in the car came to check on her? Maybe not, but then why would they let a total stranger into her room?
“I need to speak to you about what happened.”
Her heart rate ticked up a bit, and the monitor beside her started to beep more frequently. “Ah, did I hit you? Is that what happened? I am so sorry.” She immediately apologized. The whole accident was one big blank slate in her mind. She’d beentrying all morning to remember anything, but nothing came. Until she’d seen those eyes. She remembered him speaking to her. He had been standing by her car door. Something with the seatbelt maybe? She shook her head. The memories went too fast to pick up much.
His eyes narrowed slightly. “You don’t remember the accident at all?”
“No. I’m sorry,” she said again.
“What do you remember?” He pulled out a notebook and a pen.
He was making her nervous. She licked her lips.
He glanced at her monitor. The beeping was speeding up again, and he’d noticed. He met her gaze, and then he gave a small smile. “I guess I should’ve led with my name. I’m Detective Phoenix Halston with the Cherry Valley PD. I’m here to see if we can find out what caused your accident.” He pulled back the side of his leather jacket and exposed the gold shield on his belt.
The relief that washed over her was profound. She hadn’t realized just how anxious she’d been until that moment. Without a memory, she felt so damn vulnerable.
“I’m sorry?—"
“You need to stop apologizing. There’s no need. I should’ve told you first thing. So”—he pulled up the visitor’s chair—“what can you tell me about the accident?”
“Nothing. I don’t remember anything.”
He studied her for a moment. “You remembered me.”
“That’s true, I guess. I… It’s all just empty. There’s an occasional flash of something, but I don’t understand what it means. It’s like it’s moving too fast for me to pin down.”
Phoenix nodded his head. “I’m sure that’s frustrating.”
“You have no idea,” she replied.
“What does the doctor say?”
She shrugged slightly. “Chances are good my memory will come back, but I have to be patient and let it come on its own.”
“Is there anything at all that you remember that could help me? Do you know your name?”
She bit her lip as she shook her head. The nothingness in her head when she tried to pull up any kind of information or memory was the scariest thing she’d ever experienced. Or at least she thought it was, but how was she to know? It was all so much.
She cleared her throat. “The doctor played a game with me earlier. It was sort of like a word association game. Animal, cat, vacation spot, name, that kind of thing. My answers are on the paper.” She handed him the sheet.
He took it and read it.
“There, now you know as much as I do,” she said. “It doesn’t amount to much, does it?”
Phoenix tilted his head. “Well Jo, it’s a place to start.”
She blinked. “Jo?”
