Page 33 of Please Remember

"You're already pretty," Sage and I say at the same time.

As much as I don't want her to leave without me, I know she needs exposure to more than just me and this house. And Sage seems to be handling the lack of memory a lot better than I am. Probably because she's never had Allie in the intimate ways I have. She doesn't know howamazing it is to lie naked in bed with her after a satisfying round of lovemaking.

Is that why I let Laura take control like she did? Why I almost had sex with her? Am I missing that connection? Or am I just an asshole?

Chapter Fourteen

Laura

Two weeks have passed, and I still haven't heard a word from either Allie or Jax. Mostly Jax, but I was expecting an angry call from Allie about fucking her boyfriend at the very least.

She probably doesn't care. She doesn't remember being in love with him like you are.

"What is the plan exactly?" Natalie asks as she follows me around Jax's house to reach the back door.

"We're going inside," I say, annoyed.

"And what about the cops?"

Rolling my eyes, I stop and look at her. "They're following Allie. They're too Keystone to think the person who did this could come to the house and wait for her, so it gives us an opportunity to get inside. We just can't turn on the lights because I don't want the neighbors to share that someone was home. That'll just create unnecessary excitement because I know Allie's faking the memory loss."

I lift the corner of the mat and pull the key from the tape on the bottom. Unlocking the door, we slip inside and use the flashlights onour phone to help avoid crashing into anything. It looks exactly the same.

"You really think she's faking it?" Natalie asks now that we're safely inside.

"No one forgets a man like Jax. It's just not possible," I say, my light catching picture after picture of Jax and Allie. Hugging. Laughing. Kissing. Smiling. Damn near groping each other.

She turns me to face her. "You realize that if she was hit on the head like they said, she doesn't really have an option to choose to remember, right?"

"I still don't buy it."

"What exactly are you looking for, Laura?"

Shrugging, I move toward the bedroom, one of the rooms I've never officially been allowed in, even before Jax and I started dating. I've been in here, obviously, but just to lie on his side of the bed and smell him.

"I just want to see. I want to find any clue that Jax might not be as in love with the new Allie as we all think he is. She's still saying she can't remember anything, and if he can't have the woman he wants, maybe he'll realize loving her isn't as easy as he wants it to be.”

"She doesn't remember where she was held or anything?"

I shake my head. "According to what I overheard Benji telling Drew, she wasn't able to find the house with the detectives when they took her to area she should have been held if her story was real. And the detectives think she's faking all of this, too. I wouldn't be surprised if she's trying to pull aGone Girlstoryline. And if that's what really happened, Jax will never stay with her."

"I've been wondering why the cops never stormed wherever it was she was being held. But if she can't give them the location, which seemsweird, maybe sheismaking everything up," Natalie agrees. "Where are Jax and Allie, by the way?"

Crinkling my nose, I look at my best friend. "Jax took Allie on a date. I mean, she's been home a couple of weeks now, and they're just going on a date?" I walk into the closet and gasp. "He kept all her fucking clothes."

"They could be new," Natalie offers, stepping inside.

"They're not. Besides the fact they're about three sizes bigger than her current weight, I was with Jax when he bought that jacket for her. He wasnevergoing to marry me."

She shuffles closer and gives my back a comforting rub, but I shrug it off. "If he'd sold the house, he'd be forced to pack up her stuff, and it would have pushed him to really move on."

"He probably would have insisted we keep a guest room with all her stuff, and he'd sleep in there after fucking me," I say. "Let's get out of here."

She walks out and heads into the living room, but I stay behind. There's a real reason for this mission, but I know Natalie won't approve. Pulling the small camera from my bag, I position it on a shelf behind two dusty figurines of frogs, and I check to make sure I have a good view of the bed. If they're getting it on, I'm going to see it. I'm going to know, and I'm going to use that knowledge to get Jax to understand how much better he had it with me. How much better I make him feel.

"Laura?" Natalie calls. "What are you doing?"

"Just checking to see if he still has something I bought him," I lie.