Read Online Remembering You: Pushing the Boundaries, Prequel by Audra North - Free Book Online
Authors: Audra North
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his head. “No, that didn’t come out right. What I meant to say was I’ve been haunted by this voice—no, wait. Also wrong.”
He grabbed her hand and scooted half off the bed, kneeling on the floor, so he could see her better, but her eyes went wide at his actions, and he was suddenly aware this looked a lot like a very inappropriately timed, obsessive kind of proposal.
Oh shit, no! Why did this keep going wrong?
He quickly clambered up again, this time propping himself against the headboard right next to hear, both facing their feet. He vaguely noted she had beautiful feet. Of course. Because she was the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen in his life.
Ben cleared his throat and spoke to the far wall. “Three years ago, I was shot in a hostage situation. Things went bad after one of the—well, anyway, I ended up having three bullets removed from my shoulder. The hospital was pretty busy, so they rolled me into a room with another patient. A woman—”
But he didn’t get a chance to finish, because that was when Nina whispered, “Oh my God,” and he froze, then slowly turned to face her instead of their feet.
He took in her open mouth and wide eyes, and before he could say anything else, she blurted out, “You’re the one!”
As soon as Ben had said, “Three years ago, I was shot…” her brain shut down her ears and a sort of low buzzing noise replaced all sound. She could see his mouth was still moving, but she didn’t hear anything more. She didn’t have to. She was hearing his words in her mind, the Ben of three years ago, as he’d shared a room with her for a handful of hours and—
“You’re the one!”
She nearly shouted it, and Ben paused mid-sentence and reached out to touch her face.
She flinched in surprise, and he immediately drew back. “You remember me? You really are the voice ?”
The voice?
She looked at him questioningly, and he ran a hand through his hair. “The next day, I tried to find you, but you had already left the hospital. I called you the voice . Was it—it’s really you? You were the one in the room that night? We talked about—”
“About being alone and how much we both liked the ocean and who our role models were. And—”
“Yeah.” He was nodding. “I thought about you a lot.”
She shook her head. He had? She’d thought of him too. She hadn’t been able to remember the sound of his voice—not like he seemed to have remembered hers. Too much pain medication, she supposed. But she remembered everything else about their conversation and had carried his words with her around the world. Sometimes, when she was so alone that even the night sky was devoid of stars to keep her company, she thought back to that night, how he’d told her he was good at being alone. Whether the curtain between them had made her more bold than usual, or it really was only him who made her want to share things she never told another soul, they’d spent hours talking with no inhibitions between them, and she’d felt a connection she’d never been able to get back.
They’d both fallen asleep at some point that night, and when she’d woken up, he was gone, and the nurses had been surprisingly tight-lipped about it, telling her they couldn’t take a security risk by telling her.
She’d thought of him so many times in the past three years he had become almost like an invisible friend. And now he was real. Very, physically real…and a police officer whom she really liked, who had already been shot before, with whom she’d just had a one-night stand.
Like a sexy, impossible dream. Fuck.
“I remember,” she said slowly. “I remember you.”
Ben laughed, more like a loud shout, and pulled her toward him. “I can’t believe this. It’s too coincidental to be true, but it’s you. You have no idea how relieved I am to know I didn’t make you up. That I didn’t imagine how attracted I was to you, and how much I…”
He trailed off as she scrambled away,
He grabbed her hand and scooted half off the bed, kneeling on the floor, so he could see her better, but her eyes went wide at his actions, and he was suddenly aware this looked a lot like a very inappropriately timed, obsessive kind of proposal.
Oh shit, no! Why did this keep going wrong?
He quickly clambered up again, this time propping himself against the headboard right next to hear, both facing their feet. He vaguely noted she had beautiful feet. Of course. Because she was the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen in his life.
Ben cleared his throat and spoke to the far wall. “Three years ago, I was shot in a hostage situation. Things went bad after one of the—well, anyway, I ended up having three bullets removed from my shoulder. The hospital was pretty busy, so they rolled me into a room with another patient. A woman—”
But he didn’t get a chance to finish, because that was when Nina whispered, “Oh my God,” and he froze, then slowly turned to face her instead of their feet.
He took in her open mouth and wide eyes, and before he could say anything else, she blurted out, “You’re the one!”
As soon as Ben had said, “Three years ago, I was shot…” her brain shut down her ears and a sort of low buzzing noise replaced all sound. She could see his mouth was still moving, but she didn’t hear anything more. She didn’t have to. She was hearing his words in her mind, the Ben of three years ago, as he’d shared a room with her for a handful of hours and—
“You’re the one!”
She nearly shouted it, and Ben paused mid-sentence and reached out to touch her face.
She flinched in surprise, and he immediately drew back. “You remember me? You really are the voice ?”
The voice?
She looked at him questioningly, and he ran a hand through his hair. “The next day, I tried to find you, but you had already left the hospital. I called you the voice . Was it—it’s really you? You were the one in the room that night? We talked about—”
“About being alone and how much we both liked the ocean and who our role models were. And—”
“Yeah.” He was nodding. “I thought about you a lot.”
She shook her head. He had? She’d thought of him too. She hadn’t been able to remember the sound of his voice—not like he seemed to have remembered hers. Too much pain medication, she supposed. But she remembered everything else about their conversation and had carried his words with her around the world. Sometimes, when she was so alone that even the night sky was devoid of stars to keep her company, she thought back to that night, how he’d told her he was good at being alone. Whether the curtain between them had made her more bold than usual, or it really was only him who made her want to share things she never told another soul, they’d spent hours talking with no inhibitions between them, and she’d felt a connection she’d never been able to get back.
They’d both fallen asleep at some point that night, and when she’d woken up, he was gone, and the nurses had been surprisingly tight-lipped about it, telling her they couldn’t take a security risk by telling her.
She’d thought of him so many times in the past three years he had become almost like an invisible friend. And now he was real. Very, physically real…and a police officer whom she really liked, who had already been shot before, with whom she’d just had a one-night stand.
Like a sexy, impossible dream. Fuck.
“I remember,” she said slowly. “I remember you.”
Ben laughed, more like a loud shout, and pulled her toward him. “I can’t believe this. It’s too coincidental to be true, but it’s you. You have no idea how relieved I am to know I didn’t make you up. That I didn’t imagine how attracted I was to you, and how much I…”
He trailed off as she scrambled away,
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