His Unforgettable Fiancée by Teresa Carpenter Read Free Book Online Page B

apologized. No harm done.
    Yep, that was her story and she was sticking to it.
    Back in the room and sipping coffee between bites of bacon and eggs, Grace worried over what else might have happened during the night. The fact she still wore her clothes from yesterday was a big clue, and frankly a huge relief. At least nothing too compromising happened between them.
    Well, if she discounted the kiss. And she did. Discount it. In fact, in her mind it never happened. A dream never to be discussed or brought to mind.
    Yeah, right. Even after brushing her teeth she felt him on her lips.
    “I meant to move on to San Francisco today, but since we slept in I think it’d be best to take it easy. Give you a day to recuperate. We’ll go shopping, get you another set of clothes.”
    “Okay, this is not going to work for me.” He set his paper mug aside and crossed his arms over his impressive chest.
    “What’s not working?” She hoped he wasn’t going to be difficult again this morning. Afternoon.
    “Having you call all the shots.” He stood and went to the window, drawing back the drapes to let in the weak afternoon sun. “It was all right when I was near incapacitated. But I’m thinking better now. And I may not know who I am, but I can promise you I’m not the type to happily trail behind someone like a trained puppy dog.”
    “That’s hardly been the case.” Puppy dog? More like bulldog. He certainly hadn’t been docile last night at the hospital. But given his attempt to leave, she should have expected another bid for independence. “I’ve only been trying to help.”
    “I know. I appreciate it. But I’m not a child that needs his hand held. I do, however, need to find out my identity. I called the local police department while I was waiting for breakfast to be delivered. Once the officer got past the idea I wasn’t joking, he suggested I take my problem to San Francisco. A bigger police department or the FBI would have more sophisticated resources.”
    “Yes.”
    “And you’re headed to San Francisco.”
    “Yes.”
    “So you’ve planned to take me with you?”
    “Yes.”
    He nodded. “I want to hire you.”
    She froze with a piece of bacon halfway to her mouth. “What? Why?”
    “I may have no control over my mind, but I insist on having control over my life. Putting a name to my face is only one step to getting my life back. You have resources, connections. You can help me to learn not just a name, but who I am. Where I belong. Tell me about the people in my life. I was stabbed. I need to know if it’s safe for me to return to where I came from.”
    “You don’t have to hire me to find that out. I’ve said I’ll help you.”
    “No. You’re used to being in charge. If you’re just helping, you’re going to feel you have a say in what I do. If I’m the boss, I have the say.”
    “JD, it’s your life. You’ll always have the final say.”
    “You think it’s the concussion talking.” He crossed his arms over his chest.
    “I think you’re trying to survive in a world that’s suddenly foreign.” Not so calm now. She set her fork down. “I’m not your enemy.”
    “I know.” The intensity in his eyes didn’t waiver. “We need to do this my way, Grace.”
    She could see they did. It was his way of making sense of what was happening to him. Of coping. She understood—probably more today than yesterday—the drive to control the areas of his life he could. And he wasn’t wrong about her having an opinion. The thing was, him paying her wouldn’t change that.
    Of course, it would give him the sense of being in charge. Which was all that really mattered.
    “I need a job for real.”
    “This is a real job.”
    “You know what I mean. The real job hunt needs to come first.”
    He frowned, but nodded. “Agreed.”
    “Well, if I agree, we’d need to set a time limit. Say two weeks, and then we reevaluate where things stand.”
    He hesitated but nodded again.
    “Okay. How do you plan