“So I was eighteen when we met. A child. And you were twenty-five. A grown man.”
His cheeks burn a fiery red. “I suppose, when you say it like that, itsounds a bit funny. But the way it happened, it was just…” He considers, inhaling. Then exhales and murmurs, “Organic. Everything we are…” He links his fingers together. “Everything we were… was a natural progression from that night at the carnival. We took things slowlybecauseyou were so young. Only got engaged last year, because I didn’t want to rush you.”
“Who asked who?”
Taken aback, he tilts his head to the side. “Who asked who, what? To marry?”
“Yes.”
“I asked you. It was our anniversary, and we’d made plans to go out to dinner at your favorite restaurant. We got dressed up. Even hired a driver, because I knew we’d enjoy a drink or two. I got down on one knee once dessert was served and asked you to be my wife forever.”
“And I agreed?”
He chuckles, his eyes dancing with humor. “Yes, Rose. You agreed. Enthusiastically, I should add.”
“She’s been in Plainview for three months,” Cliff rumbles. “And her ordeal was splashed on the news relatively quickly. Why’d it take so long for you to get here?”
“I’m sorry.” Darcy’s eyes jump across to Cliff’s hand again, perched on my shoulder. “I’m confused by this…” He gestures our way. “This relationship. Are you her boss, or her keeper? I hardly think it is appropriate if you pursue someone romantically when one, she’s your employee, and two, she’s vulnerable and suffering a brain injury. Is that not against the law?”
“He’s my friend.” I pat Cliff’s hand before he can take it away, then I meet Darcy’s harsh stare, thankful for his lack of composure. Perfection is creepy. It’s practiced and fake and untrustworthy. “I’ve made friends in Plainview. I’ve made a whole new life, in fact. Three months is a long time, and other than not knowing what came before the accident, I’m entirely mentally capable. And you didn’t answer the question.”
“I’ve been looking for you,” he huffs. “Since the moment you went missing, I was searching. I called every hospital, every police station, every fire department, every single person and place I could think of within a thousand-mile radius of our home, Rose. I’ve hired PIs to help. I haven’t stopped, I swear.” He extends his hands again, his expression falling when I merely fold my arms and shrink into my seat.
The two feet between me and the edge of the table may as well be a hundred.
“I was looking,” he groans. “And I begged the police to declare you officially missing. But they wouldn’t. They refused.”
Billy’s brows furrow in my peripheral. “Why not?”
“Because there was no evidence of a struggle. We didn’t fight. Our neighbors didn’t report any screaming or shouting or anything weird in the days before you left. You’ve always talked about traveling across the country. You were vocal about it, so when you were missing and the police interviewed everyone who knew you, they basically said the same thing.”
“I was traveling?”
“Yes. No.” He scrubs his face. “Yes, theysaidyou were traveling. But you weren’t. I knew you weren’t. When I went to the police and said something was wrong, they refused to open a file. They’d said you’d left freely, on a tripwe’dplanned, and since it’s—their words—not illegal for a grown woman to travel on her own, they brushed me off and said to stop bothering them.”
“That seems…” Frowning, I nibble on the inside of my cheek. “Careless.”
“Exactly! The police interviewed a few people, due diligence and all that, but your work-friends said how you liked to travel, and how you’d planned this trip. The cops already thought I was blowing things out of proportion, so by the time they got to those interviews, it was all over. They wouldn’t hear me. You could ask anyone we know. My staff. My family. They’ll all tell you that I was a mess after you left. I’d almost ended up in the hospital from the stress. I’d stopped showing up to work. Stopped taking calls unless they were about you. I was holed up at the house all day, every day, scouring the internet, searching the news, doing everything I could to find you.”
“How did you find me?”
“I saw the interview you did from the hospital.” His voice breaks with emotion. His eyes, glistening with unshed tears. “I never in a million years expected you to be so far away, so I missed the interview when it was first aired. Saw it a few days ago and knew right away it was you. I got in the car and crossed about seven state lines to get here, Rose. But my family…” He exhales noisily. “They’re worried about us. Both of us. They saw how horrible things were for me when you went missing, and they were scared this would go bad—that you wouldn’t see me, because you don’t remember me—so they were on the phone for most of the drive. They warned me to approach this carefully. Not to rush in and scare you.”
“Is that why you swung by the office yesterday?” Cliff grumbles. “To check her out without scaring her?”
He nods, shaky and unsure. “My brother said it could be a good way to get close and just…” He brings desperate eyes to mine. “To see you. To see how you respond.”
“To test me?”
“No.” He groans. “Not a test. I just couldn’t imagine a world where you wouldn’t know who I was. I couldn’t wrap my brain around it. So Jeremy said I should drop by just to see how you’d react. Maybe seeing me would bring everything back to you again. And if it didn’t, I had to be careful not to scare you.”
I bring my hand up and nibble on my pinky nail. “Who is Jeremy?”
“My brother. He’s…” He releases a heavy, sighing exhale. “You’ve known him since forever, Rose.” Tilting to the side, he pulls out his wallet, splaying the leather open on the table and taking out a small stack of worn, folded photos. Selecting the one he wants, he sets it down and slides it across the table. “Jeremy and Jacey, his wife. And their girls, Amara and Claudia. They’re your nieces, Rose. They’reournieces.” Then he selects another picture. “Tanner is my other brother. His wife Danielle. They have two boys: Ronan and Camden.” He slides that one across, too. “Your nephews. We always joked that between my brothers, we had two boys and two girls, so the pressure was on me and you. We had to have one of each to keep the numbers even.”
My stomach curdles, twisting and aching.
“We’d made a plan, Rose.” He pushes his wallet aside and leans onto the table. “We wanted children, and we wanted marriage. But we were waiting for you to get older. For us to marry first, and then have kids later, and none of that was going to happen until you felt like your career was secure.”
