Page 86 of Forget Me Not

“Me and the guys got a small fire going just before the rain hit. Those flames took hold of the decaying logs in the blink of an eye, dancing wildly under the gray clouds. It was the biggest fire I’d ever seen. For a moment, I was concerned we might start a wildfire. But I was young and immature, so I quickly let that thought fall to the wayside.” I chuckle to myself, thinking about how reckless I once was.

“Everyone stood around it in sheer amazement at the sight. It rained ashes onto all of us. I still remember the smell of the burning wood—sweet and pungent, much like the one out there. We chanted our school fight song, then lifted Trav in the air in victory because he’d scored the final point that won us the game.” I get so lost in the memory I can feel his weight on my shoulders again, the joy of being young flooding my veins as if I’m reliving the moment.

“Then the rain started. With it came hail and thunder. Bolts of lightning that almost touched the tip of the blazing fire. We stayed out there all night, soaked from head to toe. It was the best rainstorm of my life.”

Man, those were some good days.

I go silent and Rhea lowers her head and opens her eyes. “Thank you.” She smiles back at me.

I always wondered what was going on in her mind when she would tilt her head back while at a hotel computer. I would watch her for hours as she typed, then she would close her eyes and a smile would touch her face. It was one of the only times she seemed happy, and I think I understand what was happening now. She was rewriting her story.

Rhea wants to be the star of her own destiny. I’m determined to make that happen for her while being the luckiest man alive to be part of her story.

“Tell me something,” I say, my fingers doing laps on her upper thigh.

Her features soften and her eyes light up under the dim moonlit sky. “When I was nine years old, my mom and I were staying at this hotel outside of Nashville. Rumor had it, Shania Twain was staying on the same floor as us.”

A smile creeps across her face as she turns to me. “Well, my mom went out for the evening with the man who got us the room, and I made it my mission to meet Shania Twain. In a pair of Barbie doll pajamas, I walked the hall knocking on every door until I found her. The minute she opened her door, I was starstruck. I held out a notepad and a pen, ya know, the ones that housekeeping leaves in the rooms.” I nod, and she continues.

“I couldn’t even get out a word, no matter how hard I tried. A security guard started coming down the hall toward me and I tried so hard to talk, to ask her to sign my paper. One of the other guests must have called and reported me knocking on the doors. Shania, being the doll she is, shooed the guard away and knelt down to my level. I can still hear her voice in my head as she said, ‘Take your time, sweetie. If there’s something you want to say, I’ll wait all night to hear it.’” She giggles and it’s so damn cute I want to grab her face and kiss her.

“Finally, I was able to squeak out a couple words, asking her to sign the paper. Then she asked where my mom was and I lied and said she was in our room. I went back to the room and sang every song on herThe Woman in Mealbum while dancing around with that piece of paper.”

The light in her eyes is so warm, I can feel it deep in my soul. “That’s incredible. I can imagine you being a determined kid. Always going after what you wanted.”

“I was a sneaky little shit, that’s for sure.”

We both laugh, then Rhea’s expression falls. She turns to face me, folding one leg under the other. “Can I ask you something?””

“Anything. Always.”

“Do you resent me for what I did to Grayson?”

Not expecting a question like that after the memories we just shared, my eyes widen. “Not at all. Why would you even think that?”

“You and Grayson had a merger planned that was said to be one of the biggest acquisitions of the year. How could you not hate me for ruining that for you?”

“Rhea, baby.” I cup her cheeks with my hands. “That was business. It was a measly deal that I planned to pull the plug on long before Grayson died.”

“It was ahugedeal.” I can see she doesn’t believe me, not that she thinks I’m a liar. I think she just doesn’t want me to say what she wants to hear because she doesn’t believe someone could really love her as much as I do.

“Listen,” I say seriously, because this is serious and she needs to hear it. “Grayson sent me to find you. Once I learned why he wanted you found, everything changed. As your godfather, it didn’t sit right with me. I didn’t know until after his death who the guy he planned to marry you off to was. But once I found out it was evil in human form, I knew I’d made the right call to keep you hidden from him.”

I let my thumb rub across her cheek and she closes her eyes. “The minute I found you, I knew there was no way I could bring you back to him. The baby I held on the day of her birth was all grown up. Now standing before me is a beautiful woman who stole my heart.”

“Whoa.” Her eyes shoot open and her hands come to my chest, pushing to create distance between us. “Wait a minute. Did you saygodfather?”

“I did.” My voice is nearly a growl as she forces my hand to break contact with her.

“Jesus Christ.” She laughs, a mixture of disbelief and amusement. “I fucked my godfather.” She shakes her head back and forth. “This just keeps getting more and more insane.”

“You think that’s insane.” I lean in to whisper in her ear and hum in approval when she lets me get close. “Wait until you fuck him again.”

She rolls her lips as her eyes narrow. “A little overly confident, are we?”

“Oh, it’s gonna happen.” My hand slides up her leg, cupping her crotch. “Don’t pretend you haven’t thought about fucking me again.”

“I won’t. I’ll admit, you’ve been on my mind more than you should be.”

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