Lost In Me (Here and Now 1)

“I’m not like the girls you usually date.”

“Thank God.” He grins. “You’re you. And I happen to like that.” His phone buzzes and he pulls it from his pocket. “Sorry,” he says as he slides his finger over the screen and reads. “Crap.”

“What is it?”

“Meredith thinks she’s going into pre-term labor. She wants me to take her to the hospital.”

“Meredith? The one who bought sperm to get pregnant and let everyone think it was William Bailey’s baby?”

He taps something on his phone before sliding it back into his pocket. I wait for him to respond, but his mind is somewhere else already. “I’m sorry. She doesn’t have anyone else to take her.” He stands, and I’m so shocked I can only gape at him. “I’ll make it up to you, okay?”

I shake my head as if the motion can send my confusion away. What is happening? Is my boyfriend seriously going to spend Valentine’s Day with some pregnant bitch who tried to steal my best friend’s boyfriend?

By the time I can gather my wits to follow him to the door, he’s already in his coat and pulling open the door.

“It’s Valentine’s Day,” I whisper.

He drags a hand through his hair, tousling it in the way that makes him go from handsome to devilishly irresistible. “She doesn’t have anyone.”

“What about her friends? I happen to remember her having a lot of those back when she was letting everyone think William was some jerk who got her knocked up.”

His jaw hardens. “I know Cally’s your friend, but Meredith is mine. You’re going to have to deal with that.”

He pushes out the door and pulls it shut behind him, and I’m left alone with a romantic dinner complete with wine, roses, and lingerie. Alone while he runs to rescue the gorgeous blonde.

“IT’S NICE to see you again, Miss Thompson,” the lawyer says as Lizzy and I settle into chairs in her comfortable Indianapolis office. “And it’s nice to meet your sister. What can I do for you today?”

“We’re kind of wondering who the silent partner is,” Liz says. She points her thumb at me. “This one has amnesia and doesn’t remember whether or not you told her.”

Her eyes go wide. “Amnesia! That’s horrible. I’m so sorry. What happened?”

“I’m a klutz and fell down the stairs.”

“Goodness. Do they think your memory will come back?”

“The doctor said it will, but like Swiss cheese,” I explain. “And so far that’s been true. Lots of holes, including the details of my agreement with my silent partner.”

“Well, to answer your sister’s first question, the agreement was under the condition of my client’s anonymity, so if you knew who was behind it, that information certainly didn’t come from me.” She stands and hands me a thick folder across the desk. “I’m sure you have this in your files somewhere, but those are copies with the details of our agreement. You may keep them if you like.”

I open the file and flip through the first few pages, but my impatient twin cuts to the chase. “What’s going to happen to the bakery when she gets married?”

She lifts a brow. “I’m not sure what you mean.”

I shift awkwardly. “What my sister is trying to say is, not knowing who the silent partner is, I’m not sure if it would be okay for my husband and me to live in the apartment over the bakery. Or if my…partner would have an issue with that.”

She frowns. “I’d be happy to check with my client, but I can’t imagine he would object. Those living quarters didn’t come with any stipulations that I recall.”

Lizzy and I exchange a look, and Liz says, “You really can’t tell us? Not even a hint?”

The lawyer looks unimpressed with my sister’s adorable persistence. “Not even a hint, Miss Thompson. That’s the definition of anonymous.”

I dreamed about Nate Crane last night. We were swimming in Asher’s pool and he stripped my swimsuit off my breasts and took my nipples into his mouth. I wrapped my legs around his waist and realized he was nude and his dick was cradled right between my legs.

“We can’t have sex,” I said in the dream. “I’m marrying Max.”

“No you’re not.”

He slid the ring off my finger and threw it into the deep end of the water. Only we weren’t in the pool anymore. We were in the river. The ring glinted against the moonlight before the dark water sucked it under, and I knew I’d never see it again. I just shrugged, and Nate slid his hand between my legs. Then we were in Max’s steam room. I was sitting on the high bench just like I had the night I was there with Max, only it was Nate with me. Nate’s face buried between my legs. Nate’s fingers toying with my nipples.