Ten
TEN
DANA
“White mocha frap for Natalia!” I say to the group of customers waiting on their orders.
“I’m Natalia,” one of our regular customers says, barely loud enough for me to hear. Her brown hair hangs over her shoulders in soft waves.
“Thank you,” she says as I hand her the cup.
“Here’s a fifty-percent off coupon for the whole store.” I hand her two slips of paper.
Her brow furrows. “What’s this for?”
“Being a valued customer.”
She smiles, and it lights up her green eyes. “Thank you so much!”
I wish her a good rest of her day, knowing that I’ve finally obeyed the urge to invite her to church by slipping a flyer behind the coupon.It finally feels like a step in the right direction.
As Natalia leaves, another surge of customers pours through the doors. I jump back in to help my boss, Lindsay.
The next hour rushes by before the store quiets and I can take a breath.
“How’s it going with Mr. Loverboy?” Lindsay asks, motioning with her head toward Rhett. He’s been sitting at the table between the bookstore and café reading the Bible I bought for him.
I release a groan. “Not you too.”
“Always me.” She wiggles her eyebrows. “Is that a Bible he’s reading?”
I wipe down the already clean counter. “Yeah.”
“He’s a Christian?”
“He is. It’s one of the few things he remembers.”
“That’s…” She trails off, tilting her head. “Sweet.”
As if Rhett can sense my eyes on him, he looks up and sends me a devastating smile.
“That man is gorgeous.” Lindsay gives a low whistle.
He doesn’t break eye contact or look ashamed that he was caught staring. Instead, his smile broadens, and he stands and practically struts toward me.
“Can I get you something to drink?” I ask when he approaches.
He puts both hands on the counter and leans forward as his eyes rake me up and down.
His voice is husky. “I don’t think what I want is on the menu.”
My heart stutters at that. The flirty Rhett is out full force, and I don’t think my heart can defend itself against his charms. I firm my resolve. Two can play this game.
I ask, “And what is it that you want?”
Rhett’s gaze drops to my mouth. “Not something I want to say in front of an audience.” My breath catches. Okay, never mind, I can’t play this game.
The subject needs to be changed—pronto.
“How about the house brew?” I ask.
A wolfish grin spreads across his lips. “That will do…” Again, his eyes drop to my mouth. “For now.”
Good gravy, Miss Macy. I can’t handle this man. I need to remind myself that he was sweet and flirty before he ghosted me too. Rhett once made me feel like I was the most important person in his life. As if we could have something amazing. But when I finally let him in, he vanished. Once his memories return, he could remember why he left and leave me in the dust again. I’m not sure my heart could handle his abandonment a second time.
After I give him his drink, he makes his way over to his table and starts reading his Bible again. Good, hopefully, he finds the verses about not tempting a fellow believer.
“You know, for a guy with no memories, Rhett seems to be completely smitten with you.” Lindsay nudges my shoulder with hers.
“It’s probably similar to how certain baby birds get attached to the thing they see right after hatching.”
Her gaze slides to something behind me, and she tries to fight a laugh.
I mouth, “He’s right behind me, isn’t he?”
She nods.
Rhett’s deep voice still manages to startle me. “Did you just compare me to a freshly hatched baby bird?”
I turn slowly around, feeling my face heat. Pinching my lips closed, I neither confirm nor deny what I said.
He leans across the counter, pressing his hands against the countertop. The scent of his body wash invades my senses. “I can assure you, Little Siren, my attraction for you is not because you were the first person I saw after waking up on the shore. These feelings run deeper than surface level.” Suddenly, he goes silent. Something flickers in his eyes, and he goes perfectly still. The chime over the door jingles as another patron enters, but it doesn’t break him from what I assume is a reverie.
Lindsay gives me a look that tells me to stay where I am, then shuffles down the counter to wait on the customer while I stare expectantly at Rhett. He shakes his head, then focuses back on me, his eyes penetrating mine.
“You’re not a fling for me, Dana Swann.” His next words come out gravelly. “You never were and never could be.”
I swallow hard. “You remember?”
His hand slides forward and his pinky brushes mine. “Can you take a quick break?” I can tell that something has shifted with Rhett. Something big. The something I’ve been simultaneously dreading and hoping for.
“Yes, she can,” Lindsay chimes in after handing the customer her change. “Dana, take as long as you need.”
After I hang up my apron and send up a silent prayer for guidance, I go out the front door, Rhett following behind me. We’re silent as we make our way through the town square and pass the fountain. Rhett reaches for my hand, and despite my better judgment, I let him take it. He immediately laces our fingers together.
“I still don’t remember everything. But I remember our date.”
Swallowing the lump in my throat, I ask, “Do you remember what happened afterward?”
He’s slow to answer. “That part is blurry.”
Something tells me he’s lying. But I don’t call him out on it. Not yet. Getting these memories back is a big deal. I need to give him time to work through what he remembers.
“What I do know is that you were never a fling for me. I meant what I said that night.” He comes to stand in front of me, his fingers still locked with mine. “You were always more than that." He searches my eyes. “In those few short days, you became…” He pauses and closes his eyes as if trying to find the right words. When his eyes open and he stares into mine, the intensity makes my knees weak. “Everything to me.”
I can’t hold back anymore. I wanted to give him space until all his memories returned, but with how sincere he looks saying all these pretty words to me, I have to know.
Shaking my hand free, I ask, “Then how did you—?” I throw my hands up and reword what I really want to ask. “Why did you leave me?” My voice cracks, and I hate that I’m opening myself up to more heartache. But I can’t help myself. I need to know. Maybe it’s the not knowing that has prevented me from moving on.
He grits his jaw, and I’m confident he knows the answer, especially with how he shifts his stance as the silence stretches. Mustering all the courage and armor I can manage, I ask the question I’ve been afraid of hearing the answer to since the moment I got the message that broke my heart.
“Is it because I wasn’t enough for you?”
“No. Absolutely not.” His response is firm without a moment of hesitation. He tugs me forward until I’m pressed against him and he wraps his arms around me. “You are so much more than I deserve. I thought that then, and I know it’s even more true now.”
I look up at him through watery eyes. “I don’t believe that. You were surprisingly unexpected."
His brows scrunch. “How?”
I tug him by his hand to the side of the fountain to let a group of people walk past us. “You’re one of the most gorgeous guys I’ve ever seen.”
“One of?”
I smile, feeling a hint of the tension slowly ebbing away. “The most good looking guy; better?”
He shrugs, then gives me a confident smile. “I guess.”
“But more than your looks, you’re sweet and patient. When you prayed over our food, you were so sincere, as if you meant every word. Before you, I went out with guys who claimed to be Christians, but it was all for show. With each of them, I made it clear that my faith is an important part of my identity. It was easy to see through their deception, but with you…there wasn’t even a drop of a lie.”
“I wanted to be honest and open with you then. And I need to be open and honest with you now. I remember everything. Including the reason I left.” Closing his eyes, he blows out a long breath. “I found out my son needed a transplant.”
A tidal wave of devastation crashes over me. It’s a miracle I remain standing. Rhett never mentioned a son—which means there has to be more to this story. And whatever it is will alter everything I thought I knew about the man standing in front of me.