Unforgettable by Shanna Vollentine Read Free Book Online

later he opened them and looked directly at me. I couldn’t breathe and I couldn’t look away. We stayed there, still, and finally he grabbed the handle and opened the door.
      He didn’t say anything as he strapped in and started the car. He didn’t say anything as we left the hospital grounds and turned onto the street. He drove in silence until we got to my house.
      Normally I wouldn’t have minded this as it keeps me from having to make conversation. Right now, however, it was pissing me off. I didn’t know why I was so angry, but each mile of quiet ratcheted up my fury. By the time we pulled into my driveway I was ready to snap. Ethan put the car in park and sat in the seat looking forward.
      “So, this is kind of weird, huh?” He turned his head to look at me.
      “So you feel like talking to me now?” I reached down to the floor to grab my purse.
      “Did I do something to upset you?” he asked as if he didn’t know.
      “Well, you ignored me for the entire car ride, which, maybe , has something to do with it.” I reached for the door handle but Ethan put his hand over mine and stopped me from pulling it.
      “Wait. I’m sorry. I just didn’t know what to say. You still don’t remember me, not the right way. You turned your head when I kissed you. I don’t know how I’m supposed to act around you. This is hard for me too, Juliet.” Ethan’s voice sounded ragged. But that wasn’t enough to make me simmer down.
      “You don’t know what hard is. I don’t have any idea who I am anymore. I don’t know what I do. I sure don’t know how I’m with you.” After I said it, my anger fizzled out at the look on his face. I wasn’t trying to be mean to him, I was just saying what I felt, but I realized that the last part didn’t come out quite like I had intended.
      He pulled his hand back and I opened the door. I wasn’t in the mood to apologize to him, I had been through enough. So, even though I knew I had hurt his feelings, I got out and walked up the sidewalk.
      Ethan got out of the car and beat me to the door. He unlocked it and stood aside to let me pass. I stopped several feet inside the doorway. My living room was wrong. There was a huge TV on one wall and long black table against the other. I took a few more steps and noticed other things that were different. There were several small statues on the built-in shelves and there were pictures in different styled chunky frames. Pictures of me, of Ethan, of Carrie and Nigel. There was no clutter. There were no magazines or cookbooks lying on the coffee table. It looked really nice, actually.
      I turned to Ethan. He was looking at me, staring really, but not in the same hopeful way as before. His face was blank. My stomach started to hurt. I’d obviously made him angry.
      “It’s different. I don’t remember decorating it like this.”
      “I live here. What you don’t recognize probably belongs to me.” His tone was friendly but eyes weren’t. I suddenly wanted the other Ethan back, the overly familiar one that called me earlier.
      I nodded and walked into the kitchen. Luckily, everything seemed to be in order here. My cookbooks were lined up on shelves beneath the island. All my countertop appliances were in their places and there were no extraneous items lying around. The only thing I noticed were some pieces of paper stuck to the refrigerator with magnets. I walked over and noted that they were recipes, written in my own handwriting with items scratched out and jotted down in the margins. I stared at them, not recognizing them, but intrigued.
      “Those are the recipes you’re working on right now.” I wasn’t aware that Ethan followed me. “You’ve tried that pad Thai four times. I think it tastes great but you keep saying you can get it closer.” He walked over to the cabinet and pulled out a glass. “Are you thirsty?”
      Suddenly I was parched. I nodded and he reached up for another glass.