Come To Me (7 page)

She
blinked, then raised her left hand, noticing for the first time the stunning
rock on it. “Oh, my god!” She raised her gaze to meet that of the beaming
nurse’s. “I’m engaged. Yes, that seems right. I think.”

Cathy
frowned and touched the pad. After scribbling on it, she gave it back to her.
‘Don’t you know?’

Tears
pooled in her eyes and she shook her head. “I…I’m not sure. I…I don’t really
remember. He seems familiar. I remember the crash and him being there and
saving my life. And the ring feels right on my hand. But I’m just not sure.”

The
nurse wrote again.
‘What’s your name?’

Blank.
Her mind was blank. She just stared at the woman, and the tears rolled down her
cheeks. She couldn’t control the way her body shook with fright. Then the
handsome man the nurse said was her fiancé came back into the room. Their gazes
connected and he saw her distress. He glanced at Cathy, rushed over to the bed
and sat on it. They seemed to exchange words, then the nurse left the room. She
held onto his arm and he placed his arm around her shoulder. She pressed her
face into his chest and cried, the sobs rocking her body against his.

“I
don’t know my name. What’s my name? What’s yours?” She raised her head and she
saw his mouth moving. He handed her a box of tissues. She wiped her eyes and
blew her nose, feeling unsettled, then she looked around on the bed for the pad
she’d dropped, but he got to it and the pen before she could.

‘
Your name is Jasmine Sandler.’

She
shook her head. “Jasmine. I like it. What’s your name? I’m sorry I don’t
remember it. But I do remember your face.” It was a strong memory. She raised
her hand and touched his chin. “You…you saved me. You were with me in the car
and pulled me out of there.”

He
wrote.
‘Tony Westland.’

She
smiled. “I like that name, too. Thank you. Thank you for saving me.”

He
mouthed what she thought was, “You’re welcome.”

Just
then the doctor and nurse returned, and he left the room while they examined
her. They asked her a lot of questions, none of which she could hear, but then
they wrote it down. Like the month, year, who was president. All of which she
was able to answer. Yet she didn’t know what she did for a living or where she
lived. When they asked her if she was engaged, she looked at the ring and a
flash of memory, a feeling of intense joy told her she was.

“To
Tony?” she asked.

Cathy
grinned and nodded, confirming it.

She
returned the look feeling better that she at least seemed to get that right.
And while she remembered his face, there was something off. Something else she
couldn’t quite reach, and the more she thought about it, the more her head
pounded.

“What
happened?”

Baron
rushed back to the hospital as soon as he’d gotten the call from Tony that
Jasmine was awake, but what the physician said almost had him falling to his
knees. The doctor and Tony cornered him at the nurse’s station before he
entered Jasmine’s room.

After
their explanations, he had to take a few deep breaths and calm himself. Memory
loss or not. Deafness or not. She was alive. The rest could be fixed or lived
with.

“I’m
sorry for the confusion,” the doc said. “When Ms. Sandler first woke up, she
understandably was agitated when she discovered she couldn’t hear. But then it
was shortly revealed she’s suffered some memory loss. For instance, she knows
most basic day-to-day facts, like the month and year, but she doesn’t remember
her name or even where she lives or works.”

“How…how
is that possible?” Stunned, Baron glanced at Doctor Kilgore. “Is this
permanent?”

“We’re
not sure yet. She’s asleep now, but we’ll run a few tests. However, this is not
uncommon for people who’ve come out of comas. In most cases, these symptoms are
temporary and will clear up once the brain re-programs itself. She’s suffered a
traumatic event and this may just be her body’s way of dealing with it. But I
don’t want to give you false hope either. I’ll know more after additional tests
are run.”

Tony
put his hand on his arm and squeezed it. “She’ll be fine once we explain the
mix up and help her remember.”

Baron
frowned. “Mix up? What mix up?”

“I’m
afraid that might not be a good idea just yet,” the physician stated.

Baron
glanced back and forth between the two men. “Would someone please tell me what
this is about? Is something else wrong with Jasmine?”

Tony
crossed his arms over his chest and glared at the doctor, so Baron did the
same. The physician coughed. “Well, we apologize for the mix up, but when Ms.
Sandler first woke up and couldn’t remember who she was, Mr. Westland was with
her and told her. She has a vague memory of him, perhaps because he was the one
to pull her out of the car crash and the last person she saw before losing
consciousness. It’s not unusual that the last clear memory she has is of him.
The nurse on duty came in after you left and made a mistake. Ms. Sandler
thought Mr. Westland was her fiancé, and when Ms. Sandler asked if he was, the
nurse confirmed it.”

“What
the hell! Well, we can just un-confirm that right now. And Tony, why in the
hell didn’t you say something?”

“I
didn’t know until after the fact, dude. I did not tell her that. I wasn’t even
in the room at the time. I’d been on the phone in the hall talking to you. She
just sort of recognized me, my face. But I’m sure as soon as she sees you, it
will all come back to her.”

“Perhaps,”
Kilgore stated. “But it’s best if the memories come back on their own, without
any further trauma. Too much information too soon might cause further stress
and harm the health of the patient. I would suggest, Mr. Munro, that both you
and Mr. Westland be present when she wakes up. See if your presence helps
trigger her memories. If not, I don’t advise she be told quite yet of the
relationship between you two.”

“Are
you suggesting that, Tony,” Baron looked over at his friend in shock, “pretend
to be her fiancé?”

“Not
quite. I’m just saying it might do more harm to her psychologically if she were
to be told bluntly the only man she can remember is just a friend and she has
no recollection of you, her fiancé,” the doc finished, looking Baron sturdily
in the eyes.

“I
don’t fucking believe this,” Baron growled.

Doc
Kilgore sighed. “Look she’s been given a mild sedative to help her sleep. She
had a headache earlier. She should be out for a couple of hours. When she gets
up again, let’s first see if your presence will jar any memories, and then
we’ll run a few tests to determine if there’s anything going on in her brain
that’s blocking her memories as well as her ability to hear.”

“Can
I see her now?” Baron asked.

“Yes,
of course, but please be mindful of what you say when she wakes up. I’ll be
back later this evening to check on her.”

Baron
didn’t say a word. He went past Tony and opened the door to Jasmine’s hospital room.
He made his way over to the bed and watched the way her chest rose and fell in
slumber. Her face seemed peaceful, more relaxed like sleep. Bending down, he
kissed her brow. “I love you so much. Rest, Beautiful. I’ll be here when you
wake up.”

Since
he’d come straight from the airport to the hospital, he hadn’t left her side
for forty-eight hours. Finally, he’d allowed Tony and the night nurse to talk
him into going home for a shower and a change of clothes. In truth, the only
reason he’d left was because he knew Tony was watching over her. He should have
damned well been here himself to do that. Now look what the fuck had happened.
Nothing and no one was going to make him leave her side again until he knew she
was herself once more.

Chapter Nine

Jasmine.
Yes, that was her name. It felt right. Tony, her fiancé, told her so. She
sensed a familiarity with him, safety. She liked him immediately, but she
couldn’t remember or feel anything stronger than affection for him. What was
there not to like? He was handsome, kind, thoughtful, and she had a fuzzy
memory of him pulling her out of the car just before everything exploded. His
arm had been in a sling the first time she’d seen him, but it had since been
removed. He must love her very much, and she was sure, in time, the feelings
she had for him would return. At least she hoped so. She must have loved him,
too, if she’d agreed to marry him. Roused completely from sleep, she stared at
the ring on her finger, the sight of it brought her joy, so she must love Tony
greatly.

Something
caught her attention and she turned her head. Two men sat in the room with her.
Tony and someone else she didn’t recognize. Who was he? A friend, a relative.
She raised her hands and rubbed her temples. God, she wished she could
remember. The damn headache was back and there was buzzing in her ears. The
silence might have been better.

The
man seated closest to her moved, and she turned her gaze to meet his blue eyes.
Beautiful eyes she thought, beautiful man. As gorgeous as her Tony.

He
leaned forward and spoke to her, his lips curling up slightly at the corners.

She
caught a whiff of his woodsy fragrance. For a moment, it seemed familiar and
she smiled back, drawn to him, knowing she was safe with Tony in the room. He’d
already saved her life, so he’d let no harm come to her. Then she frowned, she
hadn’t heard a word he’d said and somehow she wanted to hear his voice. Should
she know him?

“Hello.
I’m sorry,” she said. She hoped he could hear and understand her. “But are you a
friend of Tony’s? Should I know you?” She glanced around for the notebook and
pen. It lay on the nightstand beside the bed. She tried to reach for it but he
got it for her.

“I’m
sorry I can’t hear you. You’ll have to write your answers on the pad.”

She
saw a look flash across his features that she didn’t really understand. Before
she could even study it, it was gone. For an instant, she thought she saw a
glimmer of pain.

Tony
took that moment to stretch out in his chair. When he saw she was awake, he
grinned, and she returned it.

“I’m
sorry, Tony. I was just about to explain to your friend here about my memory
loss and the fact I can’t hear.”

He
came over to stand on the other side of the bed. He motioned to the man for the
pad, who handed it to Tony.

Tony
wrote.
‘Do you recognize him?’

Jasmine
turned back to the man with the compelling eyes. She shook her head. “No. I’m
sorry. Do we know each other?”

His
mouth opened, then he shut it, taking the notebook from Tony. He wrote.
‘My name is, Baron Munro.’

She
frowned at Baron. His name was not familiar. She looked at him then back at
Tony again. “I’m sorry, Baron, but I don’t remember you. Are you two friends?”

He
shook his head, yes and wrote,
‘Yes, as
well as business partners.’

“Oh,
you work together.” She nodded. That’s probably why his eyes looked familiar.
He had pretty eyes, but after all he was a gorgeous man. Clearly, if he and
Tony were partners, she’d met him before.

“I’m
glad Tony has such a good friend to be with him right now.” She beamed at Tony,
who was gazing uneasily at Baron. “Is…is something wrong?”

Baron
shook his head, no, and smiled but it seemed strained, forced.

How
would she know that if she didn’t recognize Baron? But she did. She frowned
trying to concentrate harder on a memory that eluded her. The more she chased
it, the farther it drifted, and the ache in her head grew worse. She raised her
hand to her scalp just as the Doctor Kilgore entered.

The
physician nodded at both men then rested his gaze again on her. Another nurse,
her nametag revealing her name as Gladys, came in behind him with a wheelchair.
Baron got up and moved out of the way to make room for the doc and the other
woman. The man reached for the pad Baron had laid on the bed. After the doctor
wrote on it he turned it around so she could read it. She noticed he also spoke
to the others in the room. Jasmine read, ‘
We’re
going to take you down to imaging to run a few more tests and have an ENT take
a look at you.’

“Oh,
okay.” She said. “Will you be here when I get back?” she addressed Tony.

He
glanced over at his friend quickly then Doctor Kilgore before returning his
attention to her. The physician handed him the notebook.

‘Yes. I’ll be here. Baron and I will both be
here. He’ll keep me company.’
She looked at him then at Baron. “Thank you.”

Gladys
moved the wheel chair into place and helped her sit up on the bed. She shifted
to sit into a standing position. At that point, a moment of vertigo hit her.
She noticed Baron move forward to help her, but the nurse and the doctor both
supported her on each side. They got her in the wheelchair and wheeled her
toward the door. She twisted in the chair to glance behind her. Both men stood
beside the bed watching her leave. One wore an expression of worry on his face.
The other had a look of such sadness that made her touch her chest. The nurse
wheeled her out of the room and down the corridor where she couldn’t see either
man anymore. Something wasn’t quite right here. She stared at her ring again and
rubbed her finger over it. The action brought a rush of emotion she could only
call love. She did love her fiancé. If only she could remember him.