Page 75 of Fall With Me (Sugarland Creek)

Ellie

How about if I still don’t remember you in a month, you reconsider?

Major Ego

Okay deal…one month.

Ellie

Deal.

“Who’s makin’ you smile like that?” my dad asks when he pulls into our driveway.

“It’s Landen. Apparently, I never saved his contact info and we came up with one.”

“Be careful with him, okay?”

I unbuckle my belt and look at him. “What do you mean?”

“In the past four years, you’ve not said one thing about him. Well, nothin’ nice at least.”

“So?”

“You weren’t interested in him for a reason, so I’m just saying…be careful. You’ll get your memory back and may remember why you didn’t in the first place.”

“Knowing how focused on racing I was, I could see myself not being very nice to him either. It was probably for a silly reason in the first place, and I didn’t like the distraction of his attention so I tried to push him away.”

He looks at me like I’m crazy. But it’s feasible. Why else would I act like that and never give him a reason? Dating was never a priority because all I cared about was training.

“I just don’t want you to get hurt, sweetheart.”

I point to my head. “A little too late for that.”

He pierces me with a scowl. “You know what I mean. Just be cautious.”

“Shouldn’t you be telling me to take this second chance and have fun for a bit? I coulda died if my brain injury had been worse. But I didn’t, so this could be the universe giving me another opportunity to live life outside of being a pro barrel racer. As upset as I am about being out this season, this is the first time in years I’ve not had to worry about gettin’ ready for the next race or stickin’ to a routine. Granted, I hate sittin’ around the house, but maybe I’ll find other opportunities, too.”

“I understand, sweetie. Really, I do. But I’m your dad, and I’ll always wanna protect you.”

I smile at his sincerity. “I love you, too.”

Chapter Eighteen

LANDEN

Seeing Ellie last Saturday gave me the reassurance I needed that she hadn’t remembered me or was back to hating my guts.

This version of her is fun and playful, and I almost feel guilty for enjoying it.

It’s a battle I’ve been fighting since she woke up in the hospital, but when I found her in Ranger’s stall seven days ago, I couldn’t resist seeing where our conversation led. Even if it was just spending time together as friends, it’d be better than her pretending I didn’t exist.

But then she came up with this one-month deal where she’d make it up to me for rejecting my offer two years ago.

I shouldn’t have agreed because I know better than to get my hopes up, but how can I not when I’ve wanted her to give me a chance for years? Then again, how do I protect my heart from the inevitable when she realizes how close I let her get to me and she hates me even more for it?

So many what-ifs and various scenarios that I don’t have answers to. Ellie could get her memory back in a matter of weeks, months, or perhaps never.

But I knew I’d kick myself for not taking this opportunity to see what could happen. It’s a risk, but I’ll accept the consequences and hope we don’t fall apart when it ends.

---