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A few seconds later, the car ground to a halt and the door immediately opened. She opened her eyes as Ramon removed the ice pack and hurriedly got out of the car. He reached back to help her out and they were met by an E.R. tech pushing a wheelchair.
Astonished by the quickness in which they got her back to an exam room, she stared with an open mouth as she was laid on one of the beds by two nurses and they immediately began an assessment of her condition.
Ramon hung by her bedside, watching the medical staff’s every move. As if sensing Bryony’s bewilderment, Ramon leaned down and murmured, “Mr. de Luca is a frequent contributor to this hospital. He called ahead to let them know you’d be arriving.”
Well, that certainly made more sense.
“The on-call obstetrician will be in to see you shortly,” one of the nurses said. “He’ll want to make sure all is well with the baby.”
Bryony nodded and murmured her thanks.
The nurse went over a series of questions as she did her assessment. Bryony was a little embarrassed over all the fuss. Near as she could tell, all she’d suffered was a black eye and a bruised behind. But she wouldn’t turn down the opportunity to make sure all was well with her baby.
She’d leaned back to close her eyes when the door flew open and Rafael strode in, his expression dark and his gaze immediately seeking out Bryony.
He hurried to her bedside and took her hand in his. “Are you all right?” he demanded. “Are you hurt? Are you in any pain?” He took a breath and dragged a hand through his hair in agitation. “The … baby?”
Before she could respond, his gaze settled on her face and his eyes darkened with fury. He tentatively touched her cheek and then he turned to Ramon, his jaw clenched.
“What happened?”
“I’m fine,” Bryony said in answer to the barrage of questions. But Rafael was no longer concentrating his efforts on her. He was interrogating his head of security.
“Rafael.”
When he still didn’t stop his tirade of questions, she tugged at his hand until finally he turned back to her.
“I’m okay. Really. Ramon showed up just in time. He took good care of me.”
“I should not have let you leave my office,” Rafael gritted out. “You were upset and in no condition to be out on the streets. I’d thought Ramon would give you a ride home.”
She shrugged. “I walked. He didn’t catch up with me until after …”
Rafael looked hastily around and then dragged a chair to her bedside. He perched on the edge and stared intently at her.
“Has the doctor been in yet? What has he said about the baby? Are you hurt anywhere else? Did the bastard hit you?”
She shook her head at the flurry of questions and blinked at the fierceness in his voice and expression. This wasn’t a side of Rafael she’d ever seen before.
“The nurse said the on-call obstetrician would be in to see me shortly and that he would conduct an assessment to make sure all was well with the baby. And no, I’m not hurt anywhere else.”
She raised her hand to her eye and winced when she pushed in on the already swelling area.
Rafael captured her hand and pulled it away from her eye.
“It’s unacceptable for you to be walking the streets of New York City alone. I don’t even like you staying in that hotel alone.”
She smiled in amusement. “But it’s your hotel, Rafael. Are you suggesting it isn’t safe?”
“I’d prefer you were with me, where I know you are safe,” he said through gritted teeth.
Her brows came together as she studied him. “What are you saying?”
“Look, we were going to be leaving together for Moon Island in a few days anyway. It’s only reasonable that you’d stay with me until we depart. It will give us additional time to … reacquaint ourselves with one another.”
She stared hard into his eyes, looking for … She wasn’t sure what she was looking for. What she saw, however, was burning determination and outrage that she’d been harmed.
He may not remember her, but his protective instincts had been riled, and whether he fully accepted that she carried his child, he was certainly concerned about both mother and baby.
Wasn’t that a start?
“All right,” she said softly. “I’ll stay with you until we leave for the island.”
Five (#u0ccc63ae-2a28-5e16-ade3-25fbdd8473a6)
Rafael would have carried her into his penthouse if she’d allowed it. As it was he argued fiercely until she rolled her eyes and informed him that she was perfectly okay and that no one got carried around because of a black eye.
The reminder of her black eye just infuriated Rafael all the more. She was a tiny woman and the idea that some street thug had manhandled her—a pregnant woman—made his jaw clench. Even though the doctor had assured him that all was well with her pregnancy.
He wasn’t sure what to do with himself. He was in new territory for sure. Bryony was the first woman he’d ever brought up to his penthouse and it felt as though his territory had been invaded.
“Would you like me to order in dinner?” he asked when he’d settled her on the couch. Surely it wasn’t a good idea for her to go out and it was late.
“I’d like that, thanks,” she said as she leaned her head back against the sofa.
He frowned when he saw the fatigue etched on her face. “You must be tired.”
Her lips twisted ruefully and she nodded. “It’s been an eventful couple of days.”
Guilt crept up his nape until he was compelled to rub the back of his neck. He hadn’t made things easier for her. She’d traveled a long way and then … Then things had gone all to hell.
He stood, irritated with himself. Why should he feel guilty about anything? He couldn’t remember. God knew he’d tried. He went to bed frustrated every single night, hoping when he woke the next morning that everything would be restored and he could stop wondering about the holes. Stop wondering if he’d done something ridiculous like seduce and fall in love with a woman in the space of a few weeks.
It sounded so incredible that he couldn’t wrap his head around it.
No, he shouldn’t feel guilty. None of this had been his fault.
Except for the fact that he’d upset her and caused her to flee his office and she’d wound up being mugged as a result.
He studied her from across the room as he picked up the phone to call in their food order. She already looked as if she was asleep and he battled with whether to even bother waking her for dinner.
His gaze drifted to her belly and he swiftly decided against allowing her to sleep through the meal. It had likely been hours since she’d eaten anything.
He returned to her a moment later and settled on the chair next to the couch where she lay sprawled. “Would you like something to drink while we wait for the food?”
She stirred and regarded him lazily through half-lidded eyes. “Do you have juice? I feel a little light-headed.”
He bolted to his feet. “Why didn’t you say anything before now?”
She shrugged. “Quite frankly all I wanted was a comfortable place to sit and relax. Having all those people around me was making me crazy.”
He strode to the kitchen and rummaged in the fridge for orange juice. After checking the date on the carton, he poured a glass and went back into the living room.
This time he sat on the couch next to her and handed her the glass. She drank thirstily until half the contents were gone and then handed him back the glass.
“Thanks. That should do the trick.”
“Is this something that happens regularly or is it just the excitement of the day?” he asked suspiciously.
“I’m borderline hypoglycemic. My blood sugar gets too low every once in a while. Pregnancy sort of messes with that and I have to be careful to eat regularly or I risk passing out.”
Rafael swore under his breath. “What if you were to pass out when you were alone?”
“Well, the point is to make sure I don’t pass out.”
He scowled and then checked his watch. Only five minutes had passed since he’d placed the order.
“I’ll be fine, Rafe,” she said softly. “My grandmother is a diabetic. I’m well acquainted with how to handle low or elevated blood sugar.”
The shortened version of his name, only used by his closest friends, slipped from her lips as if she’d used it a thousand times before. Coming from her, it sounded … right. As if he’d heard it before or maybe even encouraged her to use it.
He put a hand to his nape and looked away. Why couldn’t he remember? If he had truly been involved with this woman, and if, like she’d said, they’d formed some romantic attachment—he couldn’t quite bring himself to say love—then why would he shove her as far from his memory as he could?
She kicked off her shoes and then curled her feet underneath her on the couch before grabbing one of the cushions to snuggle into. It occurred to him that if they were a real couple he would have sat beside her and … cuddled. Or maybe offered her a foot rub. Weren’t pregnant women supposed to have swollen ankles or something?
Which further proved to him that the idea of him falling in love and spending four weeks wrapped up in one woman was just … ludicrous. He dated. He even had relationships, but they were on his terms, which meant that his female companions didn’t come to his penthouse. If they had sleepovers, it was done in one of his hotels. He certainly didn’t engage in cuddling or cutesy things that a man would do for the woman he loved.
But then she glanced up and their eyes met. There was something in her gaze that peeled back his skin and squeezed his chest in a manner he wasn’t familiar with. She looked … tired and vulnerable. She looked as if she needed … comfort.
Hell.
“Rafe, he got away with my purse,” she said quietly.
He nodded. The police had come to the hospital to take her statement but it was doubtful they’d find her attacker.
“I didn’t think … I mean everything happened so fast, and then at the hospital …” She lifted her hand in a helpless gesture that only made his desire to comfort her stronger.
“What is worrying you, Bryony?”
“I need to cancel my credit cards. My bankcard. God, he’s probably already emptied all my accounts. My driver’s license was in it. How am I supposed to get back home? I can’t fly without identification.”
The more she spoke, the more agitated she became. He slid onto the couch beside her and awkwardly put his arms around her.
“There’s no need to panic. Do you have the telephone numbers you need?”
She shook her head and then laid it on his shoulder, her hair brushing across his nose.
“I can look them up on the internet if you have a computer.”
He snorted. “Do I have a computer … I’m never without an internet connection of any kind.”
She lifted her head and stared into his eyes. “You were when you were on the island.”
His brow crinkled. “That’s impossible. I wouldn’t have just dropped off the map like that. I have a business to run.”
“Oh, you kept in touch,” she said. “But you often made your calls or answered emails in the morning or late at night. During the day you left your BlackBerry at my house while we explored the island.”
He sighed. “See this is why I have such a hard time with the story you tell. I would never do something like that. It isn’t me.”
Her lips turned down in a frown and she leaned away from him.
To cover the sudden awkwardness, he stood and went to his briefcase to pull out his laptop. He stood for a long moment with his back to her just so he could compose himself and keep from turning and apologizing. He didn’t want to hurt her, damn it. But one of them was crazy, and he didn’t want it to be him.
He finally went back to the couch, opened the laptop and set it on a cushion next to her.
“If you have any problems canceling your cards or ordering new ones, let me know. I’ve typed up my address so you can have them overnighted here.”
“And my license?” she asked in a tight, frustrated voice. “How am I going to get home?” She dragged her fingers through her hair, which only drew attention to the dark bruise marring her creamy skin.
“I’ll get you home, Bryony. I don’t want you to worry. Can you call your grandmother to fax a copy of your birth certificate? It’s my understanding you can fly with the birth certificate but you’ll be subjected to closer scrutiny by security.”
“Couldn’t we take your jet? Oh, I guess … Sorry.” She broke off, seemingly embarrassed at her slip.
“I have more than one,” he said dryly.
She continued to stare at him. “Then why aren’t we taking it? Wouldn’t it be easier to fly without identification if we were on a private jet?”
He cleared his throat and then rubbed the back of his neck. “Let’s just say I have a newly developed phobia of flying on small planes.”
She frowned. “I must sound so insensitive. I’m just … This has been a rotten trip all the way around.”
“Yes, I suppose it has been for you,” he murmured.
He eased back onto the couch beside her as she tapped intently on the keys. He hated how unsure of himself he was around her. But it was himself he was angry at. Not her.
If she was to be believed, her life had been completely upended. By him.
More and more he had an uneasy feeling that she was telling the truth. No matter how bizarre and unlikely such a scenario seemed. And if she was telling the truth, then he had to figure out what the hell he was going to do with the woman he supposedly loved and the child she carried. His child.
Six (#u0ccc63ae-2a28-5e16-ade3-25fbdd8473a6)
“This reminds me of the nights we spent at my house,” Bryony said as she forked another bite of the seafood into her mouth.
He paused, fork halfway to his own mouth, resigned to hearing more about his uncharacteristic behavior. But she said nothing and resumed eating, her gaze downcast, almost as if she knew how ill at ease he was.
But his curiosity was also piqued because, damn it, something had happened between them and she was the only key he had to recover the missing pieces of his memory.
He forced himself to sound only mildly inquisitive. “What did we do?”
