Novels by bamidelefaidat28

Ryker's povHe walked to the desk and rested both hands on the edge. “Sienna is stable for now. The amnesia is real. The pregnancy is real. Any sudden emotional shock can still send her blood pressure up and put the baby at risk. That is the only fact that matters in this room.”The words hit like they were meant to. I already knew the medical part. Hearing it from him made it worse. “I’m the father.”“You’re the man who handed her a check and told her she was a distraction the same night a car nearly killed her. That is also a fact.”My jaw locked. The check. I could still see her face when I put it on the desk. I had told myself it was cleaner that way. Cleaner for who, I still couldn’t answer. “You don’t get to rewrite what happened between us.”“I’m not rewriting it. I’m containing it. She has no memory of you. She believes I am her husband. That belief is currently keeping her calm. You will not take it from her.”Containing it. Like she was a problem to manage. Like the two year

Ryker's povI pushed past the nurse at the desk before she finished asking for my name.“Sir, you can’t go through there.”“Sienna Vale. Where is she?”“Are you family?”“I’m the emergency contact. Let me through.”A second nurse stepped into the hallway. “Mr. Cross, the patient is in recovery. Visitors are limited.”“I’m not a visitor.”I kept walking. The corridor smelled of disinfectant and floor wax. My shoes left wet marks from the rain outside. A security guard started toward me. Blaze appeared from behind and spoke to him in a low voice. The guard stepped back.I reached the door the nurse had tried to block. It stood half open. I pushed it the rest of the way.Sienna sat in a chair by the window. Sunlight touched the side of her face. A blanket covered her legs. Her hair was pulled back loosely. She looked thinner than the last time I saw her.Knox Sterling sat beside her, one hand resting on the arm of her chair. He looked up first.Sienna turned her head. Her eyes met mine w

Sienna's PovRyker Cross spent two years making me believe I was his future. Then he paid me to walk away from his life without knowing I was carrying his future.I opened my eyes to white walls and soft light coming through wide windows. My head felt heavy. Something beeped steadily near the bed.A man in a white coat sat in the chair beside me. Tall. Dark hair. Calm eyes. He leaned forward when he saw I was awake.“Easy,” he said. “Don’t try to sit up yet.”My mouth was dry. “Where am I?”“St. Margaret’s Private. You’re safe.”I looked at his face. Nothing about it felt known. “Who are you?”He didn’t hesitate. “Knox Sterling. I’m your husband.”The word sat in the air between us. I stared at him. “Husband.”“Yes.”“I don’t remember you.”“I know. The doctors said that might happen.”I tried to push myself up. Pain flared along my side. He put a hand on my shoulder, light but firm.“Stay still. You had surgery two days ago.”“Surgery for what?”“A car hit you. Hit and run. You were

Ryker’s POVThe lights in the ballroom were too bright and the cameras kept flashing in my face. Freya stood beside me with her hand on my arm, smiling the way she had practiced in the car.“Mr. Cross, one more for the society page,” a photographer called.I turned my head the required angle. Freya’s grip tightened for a second.“You’re quiet tonight,” she said under her breath.“I’m here. That’s what you asked for.”“I asked for a partner who looks like he wants to be standing next to me.”“I am standing next to you.”She kept the smile on for the next camera. “My father is watching from the mezzanine. Try not to look like you’re counting the minutes.”A waiter passed with champagne. I took a glass I had no intention of drinking. Across the room someone laughed too loudly. The string quartet played something forgettable.Freya’s publicist appeared at her elbow. “We need five minutes with the Journal reporter. They’re running the engagement as the lead tomorrow.”“Give us a moment,” F

Ryker Cross spent two years making me believe I was his future. Then he paid me to walk away from his life without knowing I was carrying his future.I stood across from his desk while the rain hammered the windows. He didn’t ask me to sit. He just opened a drawer and took out a thick envelope.“Take this,” he said.“What is it?”“Severance. Lease payments. Six months of living costs. It’s enough.”I stared at the envelope. “You’re ending it like this?”“I’m ending it cleanly.”“Cleanly?” My voice came out sharper than I meant. “You called me three nights ago and told me to leave the door unlocked.”“That was a mistake.”“You stayed until four in the morning.”“I shouldn’t have.”I stepped closer to the desk. “Say what you actually mean, Ryker.”He looked at me the same way he looked at spreadsheets that no longer balanced. “This arrangement is over.”“Arrangement. That’s what you’re calling it now.”“Yes.”“Two years. You kept an apartment for me. You bought the dresses I wore to tho