Page 31 of Weston

He grinned. “Yeah, we can do that.”

“Maybe we can recreate that first date,” she suggested, a playful look in her eyes.

Wes stifled a groan. “Don’t tempt me.”

She threw her head back and laughed, and the melodic sound filled every crack in his heart. After he’d returned from missions when he was a SEAL, Ellie had always known how to heal the dark parts of him. Now it was his turn to help her heal.

Wes drove them past the old pizza joint which was now a bar. But he was surprised to see the ice cream parlor was still on the corner. “Care for a scoop of mint chocolate chip?”

“Is that the same place…” Her voice trailed off in awe and Wes nodded.

“Sure is.”

“We have to go!”

Her enthusiasm made him smile and he pulled up along the curb to park. Once they were inside, Wes watched Ellie’s reactions carefully. Her eyes grew bigger and she looked around, as though expecting something to trigger her recollections from that first date. He hated seeing her disappointed when it didn’t happen. Any time Ellie was discouraged, his heart ached.

“C’mon, let’s get you a scoop of your favorite.” He tugged her toward the counter and they ordered the same thing they had so very long ago. Once they had their cones, they wandered back outside. She was being too quiet and he hated the pressure she was putting on herself. “Let’s sit over there.”

They sat down on a bench and ate their ice cream in companionable silence. Wes wished like hell the dam would break for her, but he knew there was a chance that it might never happen.

“Brand talked to his friend and told him about your situation. The doctor he referred us to has experience dealing with patients who have amnesia.”

“Do you think he’ll be able to help? Maybe he could hypnotize me or something. At this point, I’ll do anything.”

She caught a drip of ice cream on her tongue and Wes felt his body respond like it always did when Ellie did something sexy. Even unintentionally. He couldn’t help but wonder what would happen if they had sex. Would that be the kind of jolt she needed to restore her memory? Could it work? He’d thought it was too soon, but now he wasn’t so sure. Especially after last night. If she was ready and willing…

“I’m ready to go back,” she said quietly, interrupting his thoughts. They’d both finished their cones and the mood wasn’t nearly as happy as it had been when they’d first set out on their road trip. Nothing had sparked her memory and he could sense her disappointment.

“Okay.” He pushed himself up off the bench, racking his brain for a way to help her.

Once they were back in the rental car, Ellie flipped the radio on and began surfing through the channels. “I can’t even remember what kind of music I like,” she grumbled, settling on a soft classic rock station.

Ting, ting, ting, ting.

The moment the Billy Joel song started, Wes’ heart sped up and he tightened his grip on the steering wheel. The lyrics echoed from the speakers, haunting and true, and he surreptitiously watched Ellie. His heart sped up when he saw the way her fingers began to tap, how her head tilted as she listened. Halfway through the song, she began to hum along with it.

She knew the melody. He sucked in a swift breath and looked over at her. Her eyes were closed and suddenly the lyrics poured from her mouth. After she sang several lines, her eyes popped open and the most gorgeous smile Wes had ever seenspread across her face. Despite having an awful voice, Wes sang the final line of the song with her.

Holy shit.

Ellie squealed, grabbing his arm in excitement as he pulled over, parking the car down a secluded dirt road under the trees. “I remembered the song! It just all came back to me in a rush. That melody…I was hearing it for months and had no idea why.”

“It’s our song,” he said, studying her closely.

“I know,” she whispered.

“Do you remember anything else?”

She let out a soft sigh. “No, but I think that was a good sign, don’t you?”

“Yeah, I do. A really good sign.”

They stared at each other, unable to look away, and Wes felt the energy shift. It grew heavier, hotter, pulling them together and holding. Sticking like static electricity. Ellie’s attention lowered and focused on his left hand.

“Why didn’t you ever take it off?” she asked softly, staring at his wedding band. “After you thought I was gone?”

“Because it represents our love,” he said simply. Something he couldn’t live without.

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