Total pages in book: 181
Estimated words: 177690 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 888(@200wpm)___ 711(@250wpm)___ 592(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 177690 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 888(@200wpm)___ 711(@250wpm)___ 592(@300wpm)
forty-four
hope
I know I’m in trouble when I wake up with no Aden lying beside me and instantly feel sad. I’m falling in love with him. Which is so stupid, there are no words. He’s going to remember. It’s not a question of if, it’s just a question of when. I’m positive that I didn’t tell him Kayla’s name—at least I don’t think I did. Which means small memories are coming back, which spells my doom. I’ve tried to tell myself that this Aden is just temporary, that when he gets his memory back, the old Aden will resurface. I use that to warn myself to not let my heart get involved.
It hasn’t worked.
I reach over to grab his pillow, wanting nothing more than to breathe in his aftershave and remember the night before. It was so hard to hold back. I can’t give myself to him—not completely, not when with every other breath I seem to be lying my ass off. I’m surprised when my hand touches a note he left on the pillow.
Hope,
Gone to town for some supplies. Got Daria to take me. Be back soon.
Miss you, Aden.
I read it and a mixture of sadness, fear and happiness all collide inside of me. I’m a mess. I worry that him traveling into town will somehow jar his memory. Then I wonder if Daria will confess it all to him, because she doesn’t like the fact I haven’t told him the truth. Finally, I find myself being stupidly sad, because he said he will miss me. There’s no love, no deep emotion in the note. I mean, there shouldn’t be… but, I want there to be.
And that’s the last thing I should want.
I pull myself out of bed and go and check on Jack. He’s sleeping in this morning for some reason, but I’m not about to look a gift horse in the mouth. I quickly throw some clothes on and go through my morning routine. Then, after checking on Jack one last time, call White’s cellphone. He called me back the other day, but I was out with Jack and Aden and I let it go to voicemail. I can’t afford to let Aden be here with me when I talk to White. If I did, the house of cards I’ve built would come crashing down before I get a chance to explain. At this point, if I’m honest, I don’t know how I would explain—I just know that I want the opportunity to do so.
I dial the phone and nervously wait to see if White will pick up. By the third ring, I’m about ready to hang up when I hear his voice.
“Hey, Hope. How you doin’?”
“Hi… I didn’t know if you were going to answer or not,” I tell him lamely.
“Of course I would. I’m sorry we keep playing phone tag, sweets. It’s been crazy here.”
“I heard. Triplets, huh?”
“Hey, when I do something, I do it right.”
“Gee, and here I thought I had something to do with it,” Kayla yells in the background.
“Of course you did buttercup. You made sure my little soldiers were warm and welcomed before they prepared for battle.”
“You’re a freak. Kayla’s going to kill you one day.” As I tell him that, I hear her yelling in the background.
“Nah, she would miss me too much.”
“Probably like a toothache,” I agree.
“Very funny. Want to tell me what’s going on with you now?”
“I could just want to hear your voice,” I lie.
“You could, but I figure that’s not what is going on. So, talk to me. Is it Aden? Is he giving you trouble? Gavin called me yesterday and said no one can find him.”
“Gavin?”
“I went to school with him. He and Aden are close friends, they work together.”
“Oh. Well. I mean, Aden is fine. He is perfectly healthy. It’s not like he’s about to die or anything. If anything, he’s much nicer.”
“Hope? Sweetheart, are you okay?” White asks, and that’s when the tears start. I had no warning, they just appear—all at once and they start running, uncontrolled, down my face.
“I don’t think I am,” I whisper, brokenly.
“Talk to me, sweetheart. Talk to me.”
“I think I might, could, maybe be falling in love with him,” I cry.
“Aden?” White asks, clearly shocked.
“Yes!”
“You are in love with Aden?”
“Yes. Well not the old Aden! But the new Aden!”
“The new Aden? Hope, sweetheart, you aren’t making any sense. Did Aden hurt you?” White growls.
“Yes! He called Jack a bastard! And then... he was going to sue me.”
“I’ll kill him,” White growls and I know I’m making a mess of all is this. The problem is I can’t stop crying and I can’t seem to drag enough air into my lungs.
“He’s nice to me now. He loves Jack and I think he cares about me. He’s good to me, but when he finds out...”