CHAPTER 5

LIAM

So far, everything had been going exactly as planned.

My first fear was that I might actually know Liana. I knew most of Kate's old friends and feared that her emergency contact would be someone that I had crossed paths with before. But, to my relief, they had only been friends a short while. I had dodged that bullet.

My second fear was that seeing the man who she was in the car crash with might jog her memory. The idea for her to see him wasn't mine, by any stretch of the imagination. In fact, I had argued against it. But I knew my resistance wasn’t based on my medical opinion. It was based on my personal opinions.

Once I realized that I dropped my arguments against the plan. As much as I wanted to get Kate back, I wasn’t going to jeopardize her recovery for my own personal agenda. Not telling her that we used to date was a little white lie, easily justifiable in my mind. Actively sabotaging her medical treatment was a line I refused to cross.

But I was still nervous when I took her to see the guy in ICU. I had to hold my breath as I watched her study the broken man who had nearly killed her. But again, another bullet was firmly dodged as she failed to remember anything about him.

But it wasn't these two factors that made my plan seem like such a sure thing. It was the way that Kate was warming up to me that made me positively tingle with excitement. Every time I went into her room to check on her, I could distinctly see those big green eyes light up.

I knew her pretty well. The way that her voice rose when she spoke to me and the way that she subconsciously fidgeted with her hands when she answered my questions, spoke volumes to me. I knew that I was getting to her.

And then she took my hand. I had never concentrated so hard on trying to appear normal than when her hand wrapped itself in mine in the ICU. I hadn't seen it coming at all. How could I have? One second, I was looking with disdain at the man who had nearly killed her, and the next, she was wrapping her warm little hand in mine. It made my damn knees shake.

It was because of all these factors that I felt confident enough to enact the next phase of my plan. It was the most important, but if done properly, it would all but ensure that my plan to make Kate fall in love with me again was a sure thing.

As I arrived at the room that Kate was occupying, I was about to knock and announce my presence, but I paused at the last minute. When my eyes fell on her, I had to take that moment for what it was and not disturb it for as long as possible.

Lying in her bed and staring out the window, Kate looked absolutely beautiful. I mean, she always did, but somehow, right then and there, she looked even more so. It was night time, so the only light in the room came from the parking garage. It seemed to bathe her in its glow, making her appear almost angelic.

Her brown hair flowed down to her chest, which still managed to look ample despite the gown she had to wear. And her eyes were so sad. She wasn't crying, but I could see that she was on the verge. But it was an enchanting kind of sadness, somehow making her look even more beautiful.

"Knock, knock," I finally brought myself to say as I walked into the room.

"Oh, hey," she said quickly, wiping at her eyes as she did all that she could to hide the fact that she had been on the verge of tears.

"My shift is just about up, and I thought I'd come and check on you before going home. See how you are doing."

"That's so nice of you," she said, smiling as I sat down by her bed. "Seriously, you are the only one here that treats me like I'm actually human. Everyone else makes me feel like I'm E.T. or something."

"Oh, don't take that personally," I joked. "Most of the men here don't spend much time around awake patients. Especially beautiful women. You've just caught them off guard is all."

For a moment, I thought I had gone too far with the beautiful woman comment. That was until she snorted and slapped me on the arm. "Stop it. Seriously."

"Anyway, I came by just to see if anything else has come back to you. I know that we did this earlier, but it has to be done at least twice a day, and I'd rather it be me than anyone else."

"Oh, me too," she beamed. The moment that she did though, she must have realized how over excited she looked, as she instantly pulled herself back. "I mean, yeah, I definitely prefer you to do it over some of the others.

I had to work very hard to hide my smile after that reaction. I was getting to her. It was so clear. That chemistry that had always existed between us couldn't be forgotten, regardless of her amnesia or how much time had passed between the two of us.

"Okay,” I said. “So how about it? Anything new?"

"No," she said, letting out a sigh. "Like I told you earlier, I remember small things. I can tell you what my favorite food is."

"Spaghetti and meatballs! Is my favorite meal, I mean. Sorry." I hung my head in an exaggerated fashion while also making sure to pout for her benefit.

"That's okay,” she said with a smile. “Mine is anything Mexican. And my favorite movie is The Princess Bride, but I couldn't tell you the last time I watched it. I know what my favorite color is and even my favorite song. But again, I don't know when I last listened to it. It's so frustrating!"

"Don't worry," I said gently, "It will come back."

"But when?!"

"That, I can't answer." My answer frustrated her further, a fact that I couldn't really blame her for. On instinct, I reached out and took her hand in mine. To my relief, she didn't flinch. "But listen, I am going to be here the whole time helping you, okay? Until you get your memory back, if you need anything, anything at all, you just let me know."

She didn't respond. Instead, she smiled and gave my hand another squeeze. It was because of that positive reaction that I decided it was time to put the second part of my plan into action. It was then or never.

"I've been thinking. You get out of here tomorrow, and you're probably not.” I paused. “I imagine that you aren't too thrilled with the idea of entering a world that you kind of know nothing about. You have Liana, but that's about it really, at least until your memory comes back. But I want you to know that you don't just have Liana. You have me, also."

"Okay," she said.

"And, well, rather than having to come in here to do these memory tests, I was wondering if you would rather meet up outside of the hospital? We can get a drink or some food or whatever. I don't want you to think of it as a date. But more like, well, I don't really know what to call it. But hopefully, you see what I mean?"

I was very aware of how much I was sweating in that moment. I could feel it pouring off me. And as it did, I could also feel her eyes boring into me. I basically stared at my feet the entire time, too nervous to look at her. It was silly really, as I was certain that she was going to say yes, but even still, I was scared. It was like I was asking out my high school crush, and just like that moment, she had the ability to crush me if she chose to.

"Sure," she said, after what felt like minutes. "I'd like that."

I finally worked up the courage to look at her and was relieved to see that she was smiling at me. I hadn't even noticed, but I still held her hand in mine, and in that moment, she was stroking it with her thumb.

"That's great," I beamed, trying my hardest to not sound as ecstatic as I was feeling. "How about this? I have your home number, courtesy of Liana. I'll call you when you're settled in, and we can organize something?

"Yeah, that sounds great," she said, smiling equally as hard as I was.

After that, I made sure to get out of that room as quickly as possible. I had done what I needed to do, so there was no point in hanging around. Or I would run the risk of ruining the entire thing.

The plan was indeed perfect, and I knew Kate inside and out. I knew her likes, dislikes, and what she saw as a perfect date. And although I had specified that this wasn't to be a date, I think we both knew that it was.

What really got me excited, though, was her reaction to it. She seemed equally as keen as I was, and it only served to confirm what I was sure to be true, that she liked me. Now all I had to do was drive that point home and make her fall in love with me like she once was.

I had no idea how long her amnesia was going to last. For all I knew, she might wake up the next day and remember everything. As such, I knew that I had no time to waste. I was going to plan the perfect first date. It was going to be magical, resplendent, and everything that a first date should be. By the time it was done, she was going to be head over heels in love with me, and finally, I would have Kate back.

That was the plan anyway.