Chapter 2

That kiss hurt more than I wanted to admit.

Evander had promised me from the beginning that he would keep his distance from Selene. And for a while, he had.

Whenever I was around, he'd been careful about every touch, every look, every moment that might cross a line. But somewhere along the way, that had changed.

I couldn't even remember when it started. All I knew was that Evander could kiss my girlfriend now without a second thought, as naturally as if she had always been his.

"I know you're only looking out for me," Evander said. "But let's not rush into anything. Finding a decent apartment isn't exactly easy right now.

Apparently, Selene had already thought of that. "I asked a friend to help me look a few days ago. She found two places that might work. They're both close to here and not far from Kieran's office."

Evander had run out of excuses. After a brief pause, he finally nodded. "Alright. I'll talk to Kieran when he gets back."

My eyes burned, but I refused to let the tears fall.

Instead, I looked around the house one last time, taking in every detail.

I'd chosen the furniture. Hung the pictures. Picked out the curtains and the dishes and all the little things that had slowly turned an empty house into a home.

This was supposed to be ours. The home Selene and I had planned to share after we got married.

Then she lost her memory, and somehow, overnight, I'd gone from belonging here to being a guest.

Everything I owned had been packed away and moved into the tiny spare bedroom.

And in just six months, Evander had filled every space I'd left behind until there was almost nothing left to show that I'd ever lived here at all.

Now Selene wanted the last piece of me gone too.

Laughter drifted out from the kitchen.

I couldn't bear to listen anymore.

I drew in a slow breath, turned away, and slipped quietly out the front door.

I didn't go to work. Instead, I drove straight to the hospital, clinging to one last shred of hope.

Maybe Selene hadn't written that post after all. Maybe she really hadn't gotten her memory back. Maybe the only reason she'd grown so attached to Evander was that, somewhere in her confused memories, she'd mistaken him for me.

I held on to every desperate possibility until the doctor finally found Selene's name in her records.

"Selene Voss?" Dr. Jake Calloway scanned the file, then looked up at me. "I called her about three months ago to schedule a follow-up, but she told me her memory had already returned."

My heart stopped. The doctor thought for a moment.

"I remember because it was Thanksgiving. I even told her she couldn't have picked a better day to get her memories back. Just in time to spend the holiday with the people she loved."

I froze.

Thanksgiving. I remembered that day.

Evander's parents had come to visit, bringing homemade pies, casseroles, and enough food for a small army. Selene had driven all the way to the airport herself to pick them up, then welcomed them into the house as if they were already family.

My parents had come to town that same day. They'd shown up carrying bags of food and gifts, expecting to spend Thanksgiving with us. Selene didn't even let them through the gate.

She'd insisted she didn't know them and called security to have them escorted off the property.

I'd hidden the truth from my parents for as long as I could, but after that, there was no hiding it anymore.

I finally had to tell them that Selene had been in an accident. And that she'd lost every memory she had of them and of me.

Mom had only sighed and tried to comfort me. "She's alive. That's what matters. The doctors said it's only a matter of time before her memory comes back. I suppose the wedding will just have to wait a little longer. I know that's hard on you, sweetheart."

I'd believed her, but Selene already had her memories back then. She knew she wasn't Evander's girlfriend. She knew I was the man she'd loved for four years, the man she was supposed to marry.

And still, she'd gone to the airport to pick up Evander's parents and welcomed them into our home. Still, she'd had security turn my parents away at the gate.

All while I stood there making excuses for her, believing she simply couldn't remember us.

But she could. She remembered everything. She had simply decided to keep pretending she didn't. And if I'd never found out the truth, she might have kept up the lie forever.

Dr. Calloway must have noticed the look on my face. "Is something wrong? Has Selene been having any new symptoms?"

I shook my head. "No. I just wanted to make sure everything had healed properly. I was worried there might still be complications from the accident."

He smiled, trying to reassure me. "Nothing to worry about. She came in for another checkup afterward, and everything looked perfectly normal.

"She's completely recovered. Whatever wedding plans you two put on hold, you're free to pick them right back up. Medically speaking, nothing is standing in your way anymore."

After the accident, Selene had been unconscious for an entire week. I took time off work and barely left her bedside for seven straight days.

Then, of all the moments she could have woken up, she chose the few minutes I was downstairs taking care of the hospital paperwork. I'd asked Evander to stay with her until I got back.

By the time I returned, Selene was awake, and she was convinced Evander was her boyfriend.

Nothing I said could change her mind.

Dr. Calloway warned me not to push her. She'd suffered a serious head injury, and forcing her to confront memories she couldn't access could only cause her more distress.

Back then, he'd tried to reassure me too. "Give her time. With the progress she's making, there's every reason to hope her memory will return within the next few months. You may have to postpone the wedding, but don't give up on it yet."

I'd held on to those words for six months. I'd waited for her to remember me and for us to get our life back.

All this time, I'd thought the accident was what stood between us and the altar. Now I knew better. There might never be a wedding at all.