This Is Love

14

Rob nodded. “He said it was something he had to handle on his own.”

I had been making James feel so alone ever since I woke up. Combining that feeling with seeing his mom? That wasn’t going to be good. It would have been easy for me to call him and tell him to come home. But if he was going to see his mom, that was a big step. And I needed to be by his side. He needed me and I was finally ready to be needed. “Can someone take me to them?”

Rob didn’t ask why I didn’t want to just call. He just agreed without a second thought.

I didn’t thank everyone for worrying about me. I didn’t thank them for coming together to search for me. All I could think about was James. I turned and walked right back out the door with Rob on my tail.

***

“When did you start to remember?” Rob asked as he took another turn.

Rain was pounding so hard against the windshield that the wipers barely looked like they were working.

“I was having dreams. I didn’t…I didn’t realize that they were actually memories.”

James’ parents had sold their house after the divorce. I remembered being sad about it because it meant James’ tree house would disappear. We had visited it one more time before the house went on the market. He assured me that he wasn’t going to miss it. And that maybe one day we’d have a house with a yard and that he’d build a tree house for Scarlett. I absentmindedly touched my stomach. Liam now too. The thought made me feel sick. Part of me wanted to tell Rob to drive toward the hospital instead, but I had a feeling that right at this moment my husband needed me more than my baby. I felt drawn to the outskirts of the city. The sprawling lawns and ornate houses. James was here. Somewhere.

“How long has your mother been back in town?” I asked.

“I don’t know. I didn’t even realize that she was. James knew I guess.” He kept his eyes on the road.

James knew. I wondered if he missed her. If he ever thought about forgiving her. She had never even met Scarlett. My heart felt like it was breaking. What if she never got a chance to meet Liam? I blinked away my tears as I stared out the window.

“Do you remember me then?” Rob asked.

I knew he was trying to lighten the mood. I turned to look at him and it was like I saw flashes of our past. Which contained a lot of me playfully shoving his shoulder and him cheesing way too hard. “Yeah. You’re the brother that makes me laugh until my stomach hurts.”

A smile spread across his face. “The better brother.”

“That’s debatable.”

He laughed. “No, it’s a fact.”

“Riiiiight.” I bit the inside of my lip. He really was good at making me laugh. So maybe he could tell me about Liam in a way that wouldn’t make me feel like throwing up. “How’s Liam doing?”

All I could hear was the rain on the windshield again.

“I don’t know, Penny. But he’s a fighter.” He glanced at me out of the corner of his eye. “Like both his parents.”

Monday - James

My mom was holding her front door open and staring at me like I was a stranger. Maybe I was to her now. She seemed the same to me, though.

“James,” she finally said.

“Mother.” The word sounded strange coming out of my mouth. I hadn’t used it in so long. Except to refer to Penny as “your mom” to Scarlett. The fact that each of them held that title was shocking. Penny was so loving and kind. And my mother? Well, she was the kind of mother that just stood there instead of hugging you. Like she was doing right now.

“What are you doing here?” She didn’t invite me in even though I was literally standing in the rain.

“Penny’s missing.” My voice cracked. “I don’t know if you heard about the incident a few weeks ago…”

“Of course I heard. It was all over the news.”

I nodded. “I think the same guy has kidn*pped her. I just…I wanted to know…”

“You think I had something to do with it?” She lifted her chin slightly so that she was looking down her nose at me.

I felt like I was a child again that was being scolded. “I just needed to ask. I needed to make sure.”

“I told you I was sorry about what happened with Isabella. I told you and you didn’t believe me. I’m not the monster you’re making me out to be. I’ve been nothing but a good mother to you.”

“A good mother? You forced me to marry someone I didn’t care about. You told me no one would ever care about me, only my money.”

“I was looking out for you. And I was right, wasn’t I?”

“Penny didn’t marry me for my money.” I didn’t know why I was having this conversation with her. We’d never see eye to eye. Whereas the rain made me feel close to Penny, the rain falling between my mother and me felt like an insurmountable distance. “She fell in love with me for me.”

“And how did that work out for you? That whole amnesia thing? Probably a ruse for a divorce. And she’ll get half of everything. She’ll ruin you and drag our name through the mud. She’s never been anything but a nuisance.”