Read Online The One Left Behind (The One Series) by Lena Nicole - Free Book Online

is by the crestfallen expression on his face. I feel horrible once again but I have to do this for me. With my hand still on top of his and the ring between us I continue, “I feel horrible giving this back to you, but I would feel even worse having it in my possession and not wearing it. I want you to keep this safe until my memories return and we can pick up where we left off. Please know I am not trying to hurt you. That’s the last thing I want to do, but I also know this is the right thing to do for me. I need to take this slow and regain some normalcy because right now I feel like my life is spiraling out of control and this is the only way to get some semblance of it back.”
    I lift my hand and wait for Colin to respond. He opens his mouth to speak, but nothing comes out. He takes a deep breath and says, “I understand, Addy, I’ll do whatever you need.”
    His tone is flat and devoid of emotion and the light has drained from his eyes. His entire body deflates and sags in anguish. This only breaks my heart for him more as I watch myself crush him again. We finish our lunch in quiet conversation. There isn’t a whole lot to say to each other after I gave him back the ring. Instead of moving forward in our relationship, I’m afraid we might have taken a step back.
    I thank him for lunch and go home to get ready for my week back to work. On my way, I think about everything that transpired during our lunch. A big part of me feels guilty for putting him through so much emotional stress and I hate that I’m hurting him. But another part of me feels somewhat relieved. Having that ring on me felt like a dark cloud hanging over my head. I needed to give it back to start going forward with my life while waiting to recover. Surely this has to be the hardest part. It could only get easier from here on out, right?
     

I GET BACK to my office from my lunch with Addison and fall into my chair. Since I’m kind of the newbie at the law firm, my office is very simplistic, but I love it. My desk is to the back wall so I’m facing the door when I’m sitting. To my right is a large, mahogany book case with all the law books and references I would ever need to get my hands on. There are two windows behind me that let in plenty of natural light. The view I have is of the side of another building. Okay, so I don’t have the corner office with a great view, but it serves its purpose and I’m lucky to have a job here.
    I’m not sure what I was expecting out of this meeting, but I was so hopeful and excited, and then it all came crashing down again. Right when I think we’re taking a step forward in trying to get our lives back on track, she says or does something that pushes us two steps back.
    I pull the ring she gave me back out of my pocket. I must have stared at it for a while because my vision has started to blur from lack of blinking. This one act feels more permanent than anything else that has been happening between us. Before, I felt like any day things would go back to normal. Now that I have her engagement ring in my hand, things seem bleak. I’m starting to wonder if I’ll ever get her back. What if she gets adjusted to being separated, her memory comes back, and she still doesn’t want me? Shit, I need to stop with all the what-ifs. I’m only making my situation worse.
    I think back to how it felt when I put my hand on her lower back. It was like a rush of electricity zapped through my body. I was so anxious to see her again, but I was terrified at the same time. I started sweating wondering why she wanted to meet, but when I touched her all of my anxiety just washed away. Well, some of it anyway. I have been starving for some form of affection from her. To touch her, smell her, breathe her in. I desperately wanted to pull her up against my body and hug her tight to me, but I knew that would freak her out. She was already putting up walls, and I didn’t need to make her feel awkward and make it harder to