Page 9 of One Little Memory
“That’s what you wrote for your name. J-O, so I’m going to call you Jo if that’s okay with you?”
“Jo,” she said, trying out the name. It seemed slightly familiar somehow. Was it truly her name? She tried to decide but, again, the blankness of her mind loomed like a storm cloud. “I guess it’s as good a name as any.”
“Do you know what happened to your car?”
She shook her head and immediately regretted it. Her headache was coming back.
“It ended up down at the bottom of an embankment. We’re going to get someone down there today to see if we can find your purse or anything that might help us determine what happened and who you are.”
“That sounds like a good idea.” If Halston could track down her purse, it would be a miracle. Then she’d know her nameand address at least. Maybe that would lead to finding out why she was in Cherry Valley in the first place. She had the distinct impression that she was a stranger in this town.
“It’s going to take a bit to get there, but we’ll try. Also, I’ve asked around, and no one saw you anywhere in town. Could you have been just driving through when the heavy rain started and then crashed?”
“Anything is possible, I guess.” She gritted her teeth. It was all so frustrating. “I assume I’m not from here then.” After his nod confirming her suspicions, she said “I thought not. That would be too easy.”
“I know this has got to be really hard, but I think you’re making progress.”
She snorted and then immediately regretted it. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to be so?—”
“You really need to stop apologizing. You have every right to be a little frustrated. I imagine your headache isn’t helping.”
“How did you know I have a headache?”
He stood and smiled down at her. “You took a pretty good whack on the head. Enough to lose your memory. That doesn’t come without having a headache for a few days. And a super impressive bruise.”
Her hand flew to the side of her head, finger grazing a bandage. A sharp sting pricked her as she lowered her hand to touch the side of her face. She hissed in a breath. Here she was thinking he must be one hell of a cop when it was all just logic. That would teach her. Then she frowned. Would it, though? Is this what she was like in…real life…in her past life…? What did she even call before the accident? BTA? How would she ever know what she was really like or if she’d changed? It was all so damned confusing.
“I’m gonna leave you to get some rest. I’ll see what we can do about getting down to your car.” He pulled out a business cardand placed it next to the paper she’d used earlier on the swing-away table. “Call me if you remember anything. Or if you have any questions. My cell is on the back.”
Her heart did a little flutter in her chest. When he was standing there looking down at her with those beautiful deep green eyes and that sexy as hell voice, it was hard to concentrate. She licked her lips. “Um, thanks. I’ll reach out if…anything comes up.”Lame. So frickin’ lame.
He smiled and offered her his hand. When she shook it, hers disappeared inside his large, warm grip. The beeps on the heart rate monitor accelerated as excitement ran from her toes to the tips of her fingers. A little burst of electricity danced across her skin.
“Get some rest,” he said again. After a glance at the readout next to her bed, and a small smile, he was gone.
She rested her head on her pillow and squeezed her eyes tight. He’d noticed her pulse rate shoot up when he stood and came over to shake her hand. Was she always this excited by good looking men?Ohmygod, am I married?Was she lying here in the hospital bed, lusting after a local cop, when somewhere in the world there was a husband waiting for her? That was a sobering thought.
CHAPTER 4
Phoenix went backto the nurse’s desk. “Dr. Cahill. Got a second? I have a couple more questions about Jo.”
Cahill looked up from the chart he was holding. “Jo?”
“The woman from the car accident who was brought in last night.”
Recognition dawned in Cahill’s eyes. “Right. Jo. Is that what she’s decided to use?”
Phoenix shrugged. “It was what she had down on the paper from the game you played. We have to call her something.”
Cahill set aside the chart. “Why don’t we go to my office?” He headed down the hallway, and Phoenix followed at his heels.
Once they were seated as comfortably as they could be in the confined space that passed as an office, Phoenix got out his notebook.
“Sorry for the cramped quarters.” Cahill gestured around the tiny room. “It used to be a broom closet.”
Phoenix smiled. “At least you have your own space.”
Cahill nodded. “That’s my thought, too. Sometimes it’s just nice to sit down and take a minute on my own. I didn’t realize how busy this hospital would be.”
