Chapter Three – Alison
So far, so good.
Alison placed the gauze and antiseptic wipes in the small, tidy nurses’ station, then stepped back to check that she’d restocked everything.
Everyone had been so kind and welcoming. She didn’t want to let them down.
She closed her eyes and blew the air out of her cheeks.
She was good at her job. She wouldn’t let anyone down.
But in the back of her mind, she could still hear her ex-husband’s voice, sharp and cutting, telling her how useless she was. Damn it. Would she ever purge him from her life?
This was her fresh start, and she refused to let him ruin it. Not now. Not ever.
Still, she knew breaking free from his toxic grip would take more than just changing her surroundings. Emotional scars didn’t heal as easily as physical ones. And though she had the tools to help others, she sometimes felt at a loss when it came to healing her own wounds.
She reached for a stack of bandages but caught sight of Mary through the glass partition.
The older woman stood near the elevator, unmoving, her gaze distant. Yet when the doors slid open, she didn’t step inside. Alison knew that look all too well. She’d worn it herself too many times.
Leaving her cart, she walked over and gently touched Mary’s arm. “Hey,” she said. “Is everything okay with Jay?”
Mary turned, her eyes filled with a sadness that didn’t match her bright smile. “He’s fine,” she said, though her voice wavered. “The doctor says he just needs to take it easy for a few days.”
Alison nodded, waiting.
There was more.
Mary sighed, glancing toward Jay’s room.
“I’m sure his memories will return,” Alison offered gently.
“I’m not sure that’s what scares me the most,” Mary admitted. Her shoulders slumped as she exhaled deeply. “It’s not knowing what will come back with those memories. The good times, yes…but also the bad. I wonder if it would be easier for him—for all of us—if he stayed like this. A clean slate.”
Alison felt a pang of understanding.
The idea of a clean slate…wasn’t that what had drawn her here? To this new town, this new job? Could she truly start over without the weight of her past dragging her down?
She understood Mary’s conflict all too well: the fear that remembering could hurt more than forgetting.
“Whatever happens, Mary, he’s lucky to have you,” Alison paused, then added, “And the rest of your family.”
Ever since news had spread that the hospital’s John Doe was Jay Thornberg, the Bear Bluff gossip mill had been in overdrive. It seemed some things never changed, no matter the hospital.
Despite her best efforts to stay out of the rumor mill, Alison had heard plenty. Apparently, Jay had left town years ago and never come back. No one seemed to know why. Or if they did, they weren’t talking.
The Thornbergs were one of the founding families of Bear Creek, their influence woven into the town’s history. For Jay to return this way—alone, injured, without his memory—was a twist that set every tongue wagging.
Particularly since none of those tongues seemed to know the real reason, he’d left. Which, of course, had only fueled wild speculation. Everything from an illicit love affair gone wrong to financial ruin. All, allegedly, covered up by the Thornberg family.
Alison hadn’t engaged in the gossip. She believed people were entitled to their privacy. But that didn’t stop her from wondering what the truth was. Still, it wasn’t her place to judge. Her job was to care for him. No matter what.
Mary gave a tired but grateful smile. “You’re very kind, Alison.”
“You’ll figure it out,” Alison assured her. “He’s your son, Mary. Whether he remembers everything or nothing at all, the love you have for him will never change.”
Mary squeezed Alison’s hand. “You’re a mother, too.”
Alison swallowed hard. Had the hospital gossip mill started discussing her, too? “I am.”
“I figured as much when I saw you holding that teddy bear in your car.” Mary smiled knowingly. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to pry.”
Alison chuckled. “It’s okay. My daughter, Tessa, just started school today. But since this is my first day at work here, she figured I needed Bumpkin more than she did.”
“How precious. Is it just the two of you?” Mary asked.
“It is.” Alison ran her thumb along her left ring finger. It still felt strange not to feel the band there.
“It must be hard being on your own. I don’t know what I’d have done when my boys were little if I didn’t have family to support me.” Mary hesitated, then reached into her purse and pulled out a card and a pen. “If you ever need anything…even a babysitter for a few hours…just let me know.”
“Oh, that’s too kind…”
“Nonsense.” Mary flipped the card over and wrote down her cell number before handing it to Alison. “I live on the Thornberg Ranch. Maybe you and Tessa could come over for dinner sometime. My sons’ mates…partners…have children of all ages. Tessa would have great fun.”
“Thanks.” Alison took the card and slipped it into her pocket.
She wouldn’t want to impose on Mary, not with everything she was dealing with. But it was comforting to know that someone was offering a hand. Mary was right, moving to a new place without a support network had been one of the hardest parts of her decision.
Mary nodded as if reading Alison’s thoughts. “We’re a big family, but there’s always room for more at our table.” She sighed and glanced toward Jay’s room. “Talking of which, I need to get home. It’s all I could do to stop his brothers from coming straight over. We’ve missed him so much.”
“Take care, Mary,” Alison said as she returned to her cart.
“You, too, Alison.” The elevator doors pinged open, and this time, Mary stepped inside. She gave a brief wave as the doors slid shut. “Remember what I said.”
Alison watched the closed doors for a moment longer, lost in thought. She wished she could do something for Mary. For Jay.
Her gaze flicked toward his room. How lost he must feel. How detached from the world around him.
Alison knew that feeling. She’d lived it.
It had taken years to break free of her ex-husband’s suffocating grip. Years to realize she needed to reclaim herself. And even now, she sometimes felt like a stranger in her own life. As if pulled by an invisible force, she took one step toward Jay’s room. Then another.
She shouldn’t get involved. She needed to keep a professional distance. But her hand still tingled where they’d touched. And she couldn’t shake the feeling that they were connected in some way.
Which was impossible. She had never met Jay Thornberg before.
Had she?
Silently, she pushed the door open. “How’re you feeling, Mr. Thornberg?”
“I’m…” Jay’s mouth twitched at the corners. “Fine.”
Alison arched an eyebrow. That wasn’t what he was going to say. She moved closer to his bedside, curiosity growing despite herself.
“You don’t have to put on a brave face for me,” she said as she checked the monitors out of habit.
Jay stared at her with such intensity that it was all she could do to breathe. “Don’t I?”
Alison shifted her weight from one foot to the other, unsure if she should press further. “No.”
For a moment, silence stretched between them and as he studied her, Alison felt as if he could see straight into her soul.
“Then I’ll be honest,” Jay said, his expression vulnerable. “I’m scared. I don’t recognize my own face in the mirror. I don’t remember my mother, my father… Do I even have a father?”
Alison’s heart twisted for him. She knew that fear too well, the terror of waking up one day and realizing you no longer recognized your own life.
“It’s natural to be scared,” she assured him. “Memory can be a fragile thing, but it’s also resilient. Sometimes it takes longer than we want, but it often comes back.”
Jay looked away. “And what then?” His fingers curled into the sheets, his jaw tightening. “What if my memories reveal me to be a monster?”
Alison’s chest tightened. The raw vulnerability in his voice was almost painful to hear. “You aren’t a monster,” she said with such conviction that he shot her a quick, searching glance.
She took a deep breath, suddenly realizing she might have overstepped. “I’m sorry,” she added, treading carefully. “What I mean is…the way your mother talks about you, the way she looks at you, with so much love and hope… I can’t believe you’d ever be capable of anything terrible.”
Jay let out a bitter, humorless chuckle. “Sometimes,” he said slowly, as if testing each word, “love can blind people. Make them see what they want to see instead of what’s real.”
Alison’s throat tightened. She knew that better than anyone. Love had once blinded her, too. Made her believe everything was fine when it was far from it.
She nodded slowly. “Maybe. But love is also what gives us the strength to face the truth, no matter how painful it is. Your family believes in you, and that belief can help you find your way back.”
Jay’s eyes searched her face. “You talk like someone who knows.”
Alison hesitated. She wasn’t ready to reveal her past to him. Not yet. Even though some part of her wanted to. Wanted to tell him everything. Wanted to feel his arms around her, comforting her, soothing her pain.
But that was ridiculous. How could she feel such a pull toward a man she had just met?
“I’ve had to find my own way back from some dark places,” she admitted.
Jay studied her. “And did you find the light?”
Alison swallowed hard. “I’m working on it.”
A moment of silence passed before Jay suddenly asked, “Do I know you?”
The question sent a shiver down her spine, but she forced a small smile. “We met earlier.”
“No, I mean…from before.” He lifted his hand and pressed his fingers to his temple as if trying to will a memory to surface.
Alison shook her head. “No. As I said I’m new in town.”
“Of course.” Jay exhaled, relief flickering across his face. “Good,” he murmured.
Alison frowned. “Good?”
“It means we don’t have baggage,” he said simply. “That we can be honest with each other.”
Honest.
Heat rose to her cheeks. There was no way she was going to tell him honestly what she was thinking right now. About how she wanted to climb into bed beside him. To feel his warmth. To rest her head against his chest and listen to the steady rhythm of his heartbeat.
To feel safe.
She crossed her arms over her chest, pushing the thought away.
“When I look at my mom,” Jay said, “I know she loves me, but I also see something in her eyes… Like she’s not being honest with me.”
Alison hesitated. She wanted to defend Mary, but Jay wasn’t wrong. Sometimes the truth was complicated.
“Sometimes the truth can be hard,” she admitted.
“Does that mean you’d rather live a lie if it made things easier?” Jay asked. His gaze was steady, his intensity unwavering. And unnerving.
Alison’s breath caught in her throat. “I believe that sometimes we avoid the truth to protect those we love. Those we care about the most.”
Jay leaned back against the pillows, but his eyes never left hers. “So, you think it’s okay to lie, as long as it’s out of love?”
Alison bit her lip, choosing her words carefully. “I think every situation is different. Sometimes, a white lie can spare someone pain they’re not ready to handle. But in the end…” she exhaled, “the truth has a way of coming out. Whether we’re ready for it or not.”
Jay closed his eyes for a long moment, then he sighed. “Maybe you’re right.”
Alison hesitated, watching him. She wished she could give him the answers he was seeking. If only she could unlock his memories with a simple touch. If only she could take away his pain. But life was never that simple. And neither were human hearts.
She swallowed the lump in her throat and forced a professional smile. “Get some rest.”
Jay’s eyes flickered open again, searching hers, and for a moment, she felt frozen in place. Then she forced herself to turn away and left the room before she did something reckless.
Like, reach for his hand. Like, give in to the pull between them.
But that would be a mistake. Wouldn’t it?