Page 89 of Mistaken Intention

“You don’t have to be sorry,” she says.

“Yes, I do. I know you’re only acting in my best interests.”

“Yeah… and I know you want to get your memories back.” I can hear something in her voice… something wretched. It matches the sorrow in her eyes and I get up, going around the table to crouch beside her.

“Hey…” She turns, looking at me. “Please don’t think I’m unhappy with where I am… with where we are. I know it might seem like I’m obsessed with the past sometimes, but that’s only because I don’t have one. And just because I’m trying to find out who I am, doesn’t mean I don’t already know you’re everything I need, Josie. You’re everything I want. You’re the only thing that’s right in my life.”

She leans in to me. “I hope so.”

“You are. Trust me. And I meant it… I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have taken my frustrations out on you.”

I kiss her, just gently, and she returns my smile as I get to my feet, walking back to my seat. I wish I’d never mentioned the damn phone now. Even if she had given it to me – or gotten Hunter to give it to me – I doubt its contents would have meant anything. Nothing else has. All I’ve done is make Josie unhappy,by doubting her loyalty… and that’s the last thing I wanted to do.

My appetite has waned, and it seems Josie’s has, too. Neither of us finishes our meal, but we do a passable job, and once we’ve both had enough, we clear away, stacking the dishes into the dishwasher, before I pull her into my arms, looking down into her eyes.

“Spend the night with me?”

“You want me to?” she says, sounding doubtful.

“Of course. I’m sorry if I’ve ruined our evening, but please don’t let my stupidity ruin our night as well.”

“You haven’t ruined anything. And it’s not stupidity.”

“Yeah, it is. But I’d like to make it up to you… if you’ll let me?”

She smiles. “You don’t need to make anything up to me, and I’d love to spend the night with you.”

I take her hand, leading her to the stairs, and we climb them together. At the top, I pull her toward my room, but she tugs me back.

“We’re going to your room?”

“Yeah. Is that a problem?”

She glances over my shoulder at the closed door. “N—No.”

I’m not sure I believe her, but she smiles, leaning up and kissing me. “If you’d rather we slept in your room…?”

She shakes her head. “No… it’s fine.”

She reaches around me, opening the door, and I turn and lead her inside.

Chapter Ten

Josie

What an evening. What a day.

Drew’s fast asleep now. I’m lying beside him, my back to his front, his arms wrapped around me, and even though I can’t see his face, I know his eyes are closed and he’s lost to the land of dreams. I can feel his rhythmic breathing, and there’s something oddly comforting about matching it with my own. We may never have done this before, but it feels familiar… and I like it.

I’m not surprised by his tiredness. I’m exhausted myself, even though I slept for a few hours this afternoon. He didn’t, and he’s recovering from concussion, too. Not that you’d know there was anything wrong with Drew, based on today’s performance.

I’ve lost count of the number of times we’ve made love… and each time seems different from the last. He’s very energetic, and although I’m an innocent when it comes to men, I’m also a nurse, and I know it’s not necessarily normal for a man to be able to keep going like he can. I wonder if he’s like this all the time, but there’s no-one who can tell me that… not even Drew. He doesn’t remember anything, even though he seems to know exactly what he’s doing. He says it’s an instinct, and I have to believe him, because he certainly has a talent for this… one that makes my body sing to his tune.

It makes my body ache, too. I’ve discovered muscles I hadn’t even realized I had… and I’ve used them to their limits. I can feel it now, in my legs and hips, in my shoulders and back. Snuggling into him makes it feel better, though, as do the memories…

I didn’t feel too good when he brought me up here after dinner. He’d asked me to spend the night with him, and while I wanted to, more than anything, I was plagued with guilt.

We’d come close to having an argument about his phone, and I wished I’d never mentioned taking photographs on mine, even though it was innocently done. I knew as soon as he asked about having a phone himself that it was going to be an issue. He had that look on his face… the same one he’d worn when we first got back here and he was trying to figure everything out, all at once. Alarm bells were ringing in my head. I knew I’d have to deny him access to his phone… for the exact reasons I gave him. What I didn’t know was how he’d react.

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