Page 103 of Zane

Kelsey kind of wished she had someone to talk to about everything, but her best friend—former best friend?—was apparently still mad at her, because she hadn’t replied to any of the messages Kelsey had sent her. So, she was left with no one to confide in.

Rori had ended up being a good friend, but she was still part of Zane’s family. Carisa might be a good option, but the woman seemed to have it all together, and Kelsey wasn’t sure that she’d understand what Kelsey was struggling with.

“After spending time with Pastor Kennedy, I went to the store and picked up a few things. Including these.” He gestured to the flowers. “Which are for you.”

Kelsey slowly lowered her mug to the counter. “For me?”

“Yes. I thought maybe you’d… like some flowers?”

She shifted off her seat and moved closer to the flowers. Leaning in, she took a sniff of them. “Oh, Zane, these are very beautiful.” She looked up at him. “Thank you.”

He smiled. “You’re welcome.”

As she slid back to where her toast and coffee were, she pulled the vase closer too, wanting to enjoy the bouquet. She had no idea what to think about Zane buying her flowers.

He’d done that a couple of times while they’d been dating, but these flowers were even more beautiful than any of those had been.

But that didn’t mean anything, of course. He didn’t remember anything about those previous bouquets, so he couldn’t have chosen this bouquet because it was nicer than those ones.

She needed to stop comparing what Zane did now to what he’d done prior to the accident. With him not having anymemories of what had happened between them in the past, he was only working with their present circumstances.

Until he got his memory back, she had to stop the comparisons. And if that never happened, then she’d just have to get used to this Zane. If he still wanted her around.

The desire to get up and hug Zane to thank him for the flowers was strong, but Kelsey resisted. Not that they’d waited for their first hug at the beginning of their relationship. When they’d gone their separate ways that very first night, they’d hugged as they’d said goodbye.

Right then, though, she was afraid to initiate a hug, for fear he’d reject her. It felt like they taken a large step forward, and the last thing she wanted was to do anything to jeopardize that.

“Do you have plans for your afternoon?”

“Not really.”

Though she did plan to call and see about taking the nursing exam. It was time. She’d studied so much, and she’d taken the practice test and done okay. The authorization to test she’d received was also due to expire soon, so she wanted to get it done.

If things didn’t work out with Zane, she wanted to have the exam out of the way. Hopefully, she’d pass it on the first go, so she wouldn’t have to take it again.

“I do have to make a phone call, but other than that, I don’t have any big plans.”

“Do you want to help me with dinner?”

“Uh, sure.” It wasn’t the first time she’d done that. She was usually in charge of the salad. “I can make the salad again.”

“No. This time, I want help with the main meal.”

“Oh? What are we having?”

“Chicken parm.”

“Yum. But you don’t need my help with that.”

“I thought it might be nice to have it, anyway.”

Kelsey wasn’t going to turn his idea down. “Are you going to make the pasta?”

“We’regoing to make the pasta.”

Zane had never really taken the time to teach her how to cook. When they were at home and he would make their food, she usually just watched or helped out with the simpler things.

But make pasta? That was definitely not something she’d done before.

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