Left with no choice

Julie placed a hand on Katherina's shoulder and gave her a gentle shake. "Hey, are you okay?" she asked, her voice full of concern. "You look like you've seen a ghost."

Katherina hesitated. She wasn't sure if she should tell Julie everything that had happened, especially since so much of it was based on her own suspicions and assumptions.

Katherina blinked a few times and looked up at Julie. "I... I don't know what's going on," she said, her voice shaky. "Everything seems so strange right now."

As Katherina tried to explain what was going on, she found herself thinking, "This can't be the same Harrison that I know. It has to be someone else. Or maybe I'm going crazy."

But a small part of her couldn't shake the feeling that it really was Harrison, and he really had lost his memory. And if that was true, it meant that she had been lying to the man who would be inheriting the company she works with in the future.

Katherina's mind was racing with possibilities. "What if the man in the photo is his identical twin?" she thought. "Or maybe he has a doppelganger, someone who looks just like him. That would explain why he seems so familiar, and why he doesn't remember his past. But it's such an unlikely scenario, he still remembers my name"

Her thoughts were spinning in circles, and she couldn't figure out what to believe. Everything seemed so strange and confusing.

Julie could see that Katherina was deep in thought, and she knew that she needed to give her some space to process everything. So she just put a hand on Katherina's shoulder and said,

"Take your time. Just think it through, and don't worry about what I think. Just say whatever's on your mind when you sought it out already."

Katherina took a deep breath and tried to put on a brave face. "You're right," she said. "We've got work to do, and I can't let this distract me."

Julie gave her a reassuring smile and said, "That's the spirit! Now, let's get to it."

As Katherina was working on a new limited edition dress design, she found herself getting lost in her thoughts again. She was trying to decide between two different fabrics, but her mind kept wandering back to Harrison.

"Should I use this silky fabric, or the cotton blend?" she asked herself, but before she could come to a decision, her thoughts drifted back to Harrison.

"I wish I could just focus on my work," she thought, her frustration growing.

Whilst she was trying to give a presentation to her colleagues about her new design, but her mind kept wandering. She found herself staring at her notes, but not actually absorbing the information.

"What am I doing?" she thought to herself. "I have to pull it together and focus." But no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't shake the thoughts of Harrison from her mind.

By the end of the day, Katherina was exhausted. She couldn't believe how difficult it had been to focus on her work. She felt like she was running on autopilot, just trying to get through the day without making any major mistakes. And yet, somehow, she managed to survive the day without any major disasters. But she couldn't shake the feeling that something was off.

When Katherina got home, the last thing she expected to see was Harrison standing at her front door. She froze in her tracks, her heart racing all Harrison did was let out a smile.

Katherina couldn't help but feel a wave of emotion wash over her as she saw Harrison's smile. Katherina's head was spinning with questions. Was Harrison really the new CEO? If so, did he lie to her about his sudden memory loss? She was struggling to make sense of everything, and she felt like she was going in circles. All she knew for sure was that she needed some answers. But would give her the answers she wants?

Harrison didn't push Katherina to talk about her day at work. He just stood there, waiting patiently for her to speak. When she didn't say anything, he simply asked,

"How was work today?" His voice was gentle and caring, as if he genuinely wanted to know how her day had been.

Harrison's voice pulled Katherina out of her thoughts, and she realized that he was still standing there, looking at her expectantly. She hesitated for a moment, not sure what to say. But then, she heard herself reply, "It was... it was fine." She felt like she was hiding something, but she couldn't bring herself to tell him the truth and what she had found out about him today.

Katherina's voice was hesitant, but hopeful as she said, "Would you like to go for a walk? I feel like I could use some fresh air." She couldn't help but smile as she spoke, her nerves calming slightly in the presence of Harrison's calm and steady demeanor.

Harrison's face lit up at the suggestion, and he said, "That sounds great! It would be nice to get some fresh air and stretch our legs." He offered her his arm, and she took it, feeling a rush of affection for him despite everything that was going on which she wasn't suppose to feel.

Harrison's tone was understanding and empathetic as he said, "I know you've just come from work, and I don't want to impose anything too strenuous on you. So instead of going for a walk, I was thinking we could get some coffee and just relax. No pressure, no expectations. Just a nice cup of joe and some good conversation. Would that be okay?" He smiled, hoping that she would agree.

Katherina looked at Harrison and nodded, a smile playing at the corners of her mouth. She was grateful for his consideration and understanding, and she appreciated the way he had suggested coffee as an alternative. It showed that he was thinking about her needs, and that meant a lot to her.

As they entered the coffee shop, Katherina was struck by the warm and inviting atmosphere. The smell of freshly ground coffee beans filled the air, and the sound of a jazz band playing softly in the background added to the cozy feeling. They found a table by the window and sat down, chatting easily about how nice the interior was as they waited for their drinks.

As the barista called out Katherina's name, she got up and went to the counter to get their coffee. As Katherina was away from the table, Harrison heard her phone buzzing with an incoming call. Harrison's eyes widened as he read the name on the screen: "My man." He felt a rush of adrenaline as he wondered who could be calling Katherina with that name. The call ended.

Katherina carried the cups back to the table, placing them carefully in front of each of them. Harrison thanked her and took a sip, savoring the rich flavor of the coffee.

Harrison cleared his throat and said, "Hey, I think we should probably take these coffees to go. I have a feeling you might want to take this call in private." He hoped that he was being subtle enough that the caller wouldn't know he was there, but that Katherina would understand what he was trying to say.

As they walked, Katherina glanced at Harrison out of the corner of her eye. She could tell he was not the same as he was when they came in to get coffee. She felt a twinge of guilt. She knew she should have told him the truth from the start. She wondered if he would ever be able to trust her words at all. Her heart was pounding in her chest as she stole glances of his face.

Harrison stopped walking and turned to Katherina, saying, "Let's take a break for a minute." He led her to a nearby park and pointed to a swing. "Come on, sit down" Katherina sat down on the swing, feeling a little like a child again. Harrison sat down next to her.

The silence between them was thick and uncomfortable. Katherina fidgeted on the swing, feeling nervous as she waited for Harrison to speak. The longer the silence went on, the more anxious she felt. Finally, she broke the silence, saying, "There's something I need to tell you"

Harrison interrupted Katherina before she could say anything else. "I think it's probably best if you don't tell me anything else until I get my memory back. I don't want you to feel pressured to share anything you're not ready to share. It's okay to take things slow." He put a hand on her shoulder, his eyes full of kindness and understanding.

Harrison took a deep breath and said, "I think we should start over. Let's pretend like we're meeting for the first time again. No past secrets, no pressure to share anything you don't want to. Just two people getting to know each other." He extended his hand to her, as if they were shaking hands for the first time.

Katherina's thoughts were racing. "Does he want me to keep up the lie about being married? Or does he really want to start over, with a clean slate?" She felt like she was caught between a rock and a hard place. On the one hand, she didn't want to keep lying to him. But on the other hand, she didn't want to burden him with the truth about his past without him knowing what exactly the truth was.