The Billionaire’s Forgotten Fiancée (5 page)

“See! That’s exactly what I mean.”

“Stop being hysterical. This isn’t like you, even if you are pregnant.”

Hilary winced.
Wrong thing to say
.

“My pregnancy has nothing to do with this! Shane doesn’t deserve to have you mess with his life,” Vanessa said, gesturing wildly with her hands. “Don’t you think he had a good reason to break it off with her?”

“I think he doesn’t have even one good reason.”

Vanessa brought her arms under control and crossed them, tapping her foot. “Right. Because you’re the love expert.”

“He doesn’t remember her.”

“
What?
”

“He has amnesia. He doesn’t remember anything. Not you, not me. And not Ginger.”

Hilary put a hand over her mouth. Vanessa collapsed onto a couch behind her.

“When is he coming home?” Hilary asked Dane.

“Whenever he’s ready.”

“Is she there to bring him back?” Vanessa asked.

“That and to ensure he doesn’t suffer further emotional damage. The doctor was very specific about him being around someone he likes and trusts.”

“So you sent
her?
I could’ve gone,” Vanessa said.

Dane cocked an eyebrow. “In your condition? You think Barron’s going to let you fly all the way out there with his great-great-nephew in your belly?”

“Somebody else then. Family!”

“The doctor was specific. Ginger’s the one he had a good relationship with the longest. Mark would also probably work, but he can’t go out there to babysit Shane.” Dane glanced toward Hilary “Busy getting married, don’t you know.”

“Did you send a specialist or someone along with her?” Vanessa said.

“No, and I don’t plan to. We can arrange for all that when he comes home. The doctor who saw him said he was physically fine. He thinks that a memory loss this long may be psychological.”

“He doesn’t want to remember?” Vanessa looked incredulous, but Hilary could sort of understand. If Shane had had a childhood like Mark’s, he might never want to remember. Although their mother had mellowed a bit after her decision to divorce, that was a recent change, something that happened after Shane had left the States.

“You shouldn’t be surprised,” Dane said. “Out of all of us, he was the one with the artistic temperament. I always thought it odd that he never tried to run away. But this… Well, it’s beyond what I expected.”

“It’s not something to admire!” Vanessa shouted again.

Dane gave her a flat look. “I wasn’t. And stop shouting. For your information, I have no intention of letting him and Ginger stay together once they’re back. She’s just a means to an end, got it?”

Hilary shivered at the iciness in his eyes. She’d always known he could be blunt and cold, but using Shane’s ex like that seemed beyond low.

“Now if you ladies don’t mind, can you all get out so I can get ready for my evening?”

“Are you going out to continue with that woman?” Vanessa asked, wrinkling her nose.

“There are plenty of women in my phone. Now out. And Hilary, don’t let my sister do anything you wouldn’t do.” He pushed both women out and shut the door behind them. The lock engaged with a metallic click.

“Can you believe his gall?” Vanessa said, staring at Hilary.

“I think he cares about Shane.” Which was somewhat unexpected given the way he generally was.

“That’s like saying sharks are caring. No. Ugh. I have to do something,” Vanessa said as they stepped into the elevator.

“Like what?”

“Bring him home. I don’t think his problem is psychological, and even if it is, dealing with Dane would make anyone want to run the other way, not come home for medical treatment.”

“Do they not get along?”

Vanessa snorted. “Who gets along with Dane?” Her mouth firmed. “If Dane gave a damn, he wouldn’t have sent Ginger, no matter what.”

“I thought she and Shane were together since high school.”

“Yes, but she did something to make him break it off. And she’s dating somebody else! I saw it with my own eyes.” Vanessa huffed. “For her to go to Shane just because Dane asked her… It’s pretty messed up. She doesn’t even like Dane, and if she is really through with Shane like she said she was, she would’ve said no just to spite him. I feel like…” She swallowed. “I feel like she’s trying to weigh her options to figure out which is more lucrative. Shane or that guy she’s dating. And of course Shane’s going to come out ahead.”

Hilary cleared her throat. “Would that be so terrible? Maybe she’s realized that Shane’s the one she really wants after all.”

Vanessa looked at her. “Do you know what he fears the most?”

Hilary shook her head.

“Becoming like our parents. He’s nothing like Salazar, but Ginger… There’s no guarantee she’s not going to be like Mom, is there?” Vanessa’s throat worked, and she wiped away sudden tears impatiently, smudging her eyeliner. “We try so hard to block it all out, but we aren’t blind to their flaws and mistakes. I just…I just can’t let Ginger hurt Shane.”

Ginger hid from Shane for the rest of the day and the next morning. She didn’t know how to deal with him. No, that wasn’t quite right. If all it had been was Shane wanting to sleep with her, or to go back to the way things were, she could have handled it. But she couldn’t control her reaction to him.

Logic didn’t work. Reminding herself of the pain of loss didn’t work. Her stupid, unteachable heart wanted Shane. It didn’t understand why she didn’t want to accept his proposal and pretend the past twelve months had never happened.

Don’t try to believe that you’re going to find another man who can somehow make you forget Shane forever
.
Didn’t work with Robert
.
Won’t work with anyone else
.

She pushed the thought aside. She didn’t want to brood about Shane. She wanted to take photos.

The late afternoon sun was still bright and hot, the air too humid for anything but a simple sundress. Her huge white beach hat provided some cover as she walked along the beach and snapped pictures.

The camera never lied. It captured all the shadows and colors perfectly. When she looked at them later, they’d show her all the things her mind had forgotten or missed. Like that little lizard on a black rock she’d almost overlooked. The palm overhead gave it some relief from the direct sunlight. Its dark green and brown tail was long and straight, tapering to a sharp point. The way its head was up made it look alert, but its eyes were lazy slits.

Something splashed not too far from her, and she turned around and saw a man and Lou the elephant. His
mahout
yelled something when Lou splashed him with sea water again.

Lou had been found on the beach years ago. When none of the families who owned properties along the private strip could find where he’d come from, they decided to adopt him and hired a
mahout
to care for him.

“Hello, Klahan,” she called out, walking toward them.

“Good afternoon, madam,” he said, dragging out
dam
in that lilting way of his. His grin was extra bright against his darkly tanned skin. “I heard from Peeraya that you were back.”

“Yeah.” She smiled without elaborating. “He’s so big.”

“He’s a big boy,” the
mahout
agreed.

Lou looked at her with sparkling black eyes. The hair all over his body was a few inches long and stood up like wires. She patted him. “Do you remember me?”

He patted her back with his trunk. When it brushed by her side, she giggled. “That tickles, Lou.”

“He’s trying to see if you’re hiding food,” Klahan said.

“Sorry boy, I don’t have anything,” she said, rubbing Lou’s trunk.

“Here.” Klahan reached into a sack slung across his shoulder and brought out a bag of chopped rose apples.

She flushed. “You don’t have to.”

He made a sort of offering gesture. “It’s all right. I was going to feed him later.”

“Well…okay. Thanks.” She took the plastic bag from him. Lou tracked her movements with anticipation shining in his eyes.

She pulled out each chunk and gave it to him. Lou scooped the fruit into his pale pink mouth with ease. She smiled at the way the moist tip of his trunk tickled her palm. He was absolutely one of the most adorable animals ever.

When she was all out of treats, he nudged her with his forehead. “Hey, no more, buddy,” she said, showing him the plastic bag.

The trunk snaked into the bag and nosed around for a moment. Then Lou lumbered over to the water. Klahan yelled something in Thai. Before she realized what was happening, Lou was splashing her with water and sand.

She spun around quickly, her back to the elephant to keep her camera dry. Klahan scolded Lou harshly, then turned to Ginger. “Are you all right, madam?”

“I’m fine,” she said. “Don’t be too hard on him.”

“He wants to play, but he’s too big now. He can’t do what he did before,” Klahan said, slapping the elephant’s side. “I’m trying to teach him, but he doesn’t want to listen.”

“He was just being playful after getting fed. I wasn’t hurt or anything,” she reassured the
mahout
.

“Maybe he’s still hungry,” came Shane’s voice from behind her.

She turned to look at him. A day’s growth of beard covered his square jaw. His thin white shirt was unbuttoned all the way to mid-stomach, revealing lean, tight abs. He’d rolled up his blue summer trousers, and he was mouth-wateringly spectacular, standing there with bare feet. “How long have you been there?”

“Long enough.” He handed her a bunch of the small Thai bananas, each one yielding no more than two or three bites. “Want to keep feeding him? I’ll hold your camera.”

* * *

Shane waited, wondering what Ginger would say. She’d been avoiding him, and he was getting tired of it. So when he’d spotted her with Lou, he’d come out, carrying bananas for the elephant.

“Thanks,” she said finally, giving him a small smile. She reached for the fruit while handing him her precious equipment. Her movements were slightly over-precise, betraying an inner tension.

He brushed his skin over hers—on purpose—and watched the pulse in her neck leap. Satisfaction mingled with mild exasperation. Why was she putting them through this bullshit? If they’d never slept together before—if they’d been complete strangers, he would understand how she wouldn’t want to get intimate so fast. Women were peculiar about stuff like that. But Ginger had no excuse.

She cleared her throat and turned to Lou, feeding him again. Did she know she had the gentlest smile when she played with the animal? She looked like an angel. And she’d been quite patient and forgiving with Lou when he splashed her. Not all women would’ve been so understanding.

Would she want to have children? Shane hadn’t given it much thought, but he suddenly realized that he wanted them with Ginger. A girl just like her and a boy just like him. Or maybe a mixture of the two of them. He didn’t care. He bet Ginger would make a great mother.

Apparently getting tired of moving his trunk, Lou just opened his mouth wide so Ginger could deposit bananas directly inside. She laughed and mock-scolded him for being lazy. Her eyes shone with delight, and pleasure flushed her cheeks.

And just like that a giant tsunami of emotions slammed into Shane. His heart expanded. Just looking at her was enough to share in her joy and pleasure. Was this a new feeling or had he felt it before? This was more than just him wanting to bury himself inside her. It was a sensation of pure possessiveness and protectiveness. Even though he didn’t remember her, she was important to him. He knew it.

He raised the camera and hit the button. The camera made clicking sounds as it took in the moment. He wanted to capture this moment forever and savor it until he died.

When she ran out of bananas, Klahan signaled for Lou to bow in thanks, and they walked away together. They grew smaller and smaller with each step, then Lou started running. Klahan yelled something and ran after him, but the elephant was faster.

Ginger turned to Shane. “My camera, please.”

The sea breeze tossed her hair, and he reached over and tucked it behind her ears. “Give me a minute. I’m not going to run off with it.”

She gave him a look that said she wasn’t sure what to do or say next.

If I remember everything and revert to the man I used to be
,
will she be more at ease around me?
“How did we meet?” he asked.

She raised her eyebrows. “What?”

“The first time we met. You know, don’t you?”

“Well, of course I know. We met in high school. Our freshman year. Biology class.”

“What were we like?” It seemed so strange to think that at some point in his life he’d been a kid. His memory didn’t extend that far. The only thing he remembered was being a fully-grown adult.

“You were popular. Most of your friends from junior high school were in our class, and even back then you were good-looking. So there were always lots of girls around. But you never seemed to notice.”

When she didn’t continue, he said, “You?”

“Me?” She laughed softly, the sound tremulous. “I was a nobody. The school was private, exclusive and expensive. I was able to go because my parents taught there. My dad was a math teacher, and my mom was a Latin teacher. And I was good enough—academically speaking, that is—to get in.”

“And there were always lots of boys around,” he said. She must’ve been gorgeous, a classic golden beauty.

“It wasn’t like that. Some of the kids didn’t care much for me. I was, you know, ‘weird’, and I didn’t have the kind of moneyed background that everyone else had. There weren’t that many social activities I could join.”

“What kind of things did we do?”

She closed her eyes briefly. “Oh…sailing. Polo lessons. Trips to exclusive resorts and stuff. You were always invited, and you often went.” She tilted her head. “Don’t you remember anything? Not even a little bit?”

Letting out a frustrated breath, he raked his hair. “No. Nothing. I—”

Suddenly a vision came to him.
He was in a classroom
.
Taking some notes
.
Subject
…
Well
,
it wasn’t important
.
The notes were just blurs anyway
.