Page 82 of Meet Me on Greenwood

"Her father called in the loan on this place." He paused. "After I ended the engagement with Sarah."

My mouth parted at his revelation. He had called off the engagement.

Houston picked up a paperweight and turned it over in his hands, only to set it back down. "I knew he would. I'd known for some time that this practice only existed because of his goodwill, and I realized that kind of goodwill was conditional." He looked up. "I’m not built for conditional goodwill."

Everything in the room stopped. Even our breath.

"Houston—"

"I'm not telling you that to put any pressure on you," he said. "I'm telling you because I want you to know that I knew the cost and I paid it willingly." His eyes held mine. "For you."

I stood very still.

Outside, the sound of Donna's voice drifted through the curtain, warm and practiced, greeting the next patient.

"If your intention was not to apply pressure, Doctor, I’m afraid you’ve failed," I said.

He ran his hand through his hair until it was disheveled. A lock fell sideways, and I very much wanted to put it back in place.

"I’m not good at this sort of thing," he said. "I’m trying to say, that I like you. Very much, and—" He looked out the window for a moment before turning back to me. "I know I have no right to. That my affection for you makes things complicated. You don’t even have all of your memories back, and I’m sitting here wishing I could kiss you again."

I moved to the middle of the room, closing the distance halfway. "Is that why I haven’t seen you at the hospital?"

He shook his head. "If I went there, it would be obvious. Everyone would see, and while I don’t necessarily care what others think for my sake, I do for yours." He took a few steps forward until we were close enough to feel each other’s body heat.

The lock of his hair was still out of place. I reached up before I could stop myself and set it back where it belonged. My fingers barely grazed his forehead.

Houston caught my hand in his before I could lower it. He held it there, as if it was something precious.

"I don't know what I'm asking of you," he said quietly. "I'm not sure I have the right to ask anything."

"What if I have to go back—back to my life? What if that isn’t here?"

He brushed his thumb along my knuckles. "I would follow you, wherever you go."

My heart ached at that, because where I was going, he could not follow. It was impossible.

He leaned in, and for a moment I thought he was going to kiss me when Donna opened the door. She didn’t even blink at our near kiss.

"Dr. Whitaker., you told me to let you know if there was any news from Paul. The operator is on the phone, and he’s checked himself out of the hospital. They can’t find him."

31

Houston

Face Full of Pimples

"What do you mean he’s gone?" I yelled into the phone. "He has been sedated for weeks. How is he walking?"

The nurse continued to give excuses.

"Please get me the doctor again. I need to talk to them. Fine. I’ll hold."

I stood quietly, bent over the phone, unsure of how Paul Hatley had become so important to me.

"Maybe we should just go look for him," Gema said. "It will be dark soon."

She was the voice of reason that I needed to hear. I hung up the phone. "I’ll look by the hospital. He can’t have gotten far."