Chapter 20

CHAPTER 20

M ia woke in the early morning pale light disoriented, with two pressing needs -- to pee and to breastfeed. Both her bladder and her boobs felt full to the point of bursting; she hoped that Daisy was going to be awake soon. Then she realized that she wasn't alone. Her mind raced for a minute, remembering the events of the previous night. She turned her head and saw Kyle still sleeping on the other side of the bed.

It was not like she could have forgotten what happened between them, even with her compromised memory. It was body and soul shattering sex, after all. It was just that she was starting to remember bits and pieces of her past life and she still hadn't determined if she was free to fall for him. While she didn't wear a wedding ring, she did have a baby. Daisy's father had to be out there somewhere, didn't he?

If the two men who had found her in Boston were hired by whomever it was that was looking for her, then they must know her identity. Maybe she was going about this the wrong way. Maybe those men held the key to her future and if they did show up here, perhaps she could get them to tell her the truth.

Or maybe they just want to snatch Daisy and kill you, she warned herself. Plus, she could no longer ignore the overwhelming sense that she was in real trouble, the kind of danger that Kyle would not be able to protect her against.

She looked over at Kyle again. This man had done so much to help her already. She could not let him continue to put his own life on the line for her. She had to figure this all out and do it quickly before the rest of his family arrived for Thanksgiving and she put them all in peril as well.

That was the other odd piece. Thanksgiving. She wasn't sure what that holiday entailed. She heard Sibby talk about it in the kitchen with Colleen before they left, planning for what they'd need to bring to the Cape to make the traditional meal, but none of that felt familiar. Shouldn't she have a core memory of celebrating with her own family as a child? Why couldn't she even remember that? If she did have a bake shop somewhere, wouldn't she have made specialty cakes for the occasion? She had heard Sibby mention pumpkin pie. I have no idea how to make one of those, she thought.

She sat up and shook her head, trying to pry some odd fact loose in her brain. It didn't work and she knew that she had only a few minutes before her bladder would betray her as well. She carefully maneuvered herself out of the bed, doing her best to keep Kyle asleep. Once she made it to the bathroom and relieved herself, she felt better. Now it was just a matter of putting some clothing on before he woke up and found her naked yet again.

Mia quietly made her way back into the bedroom, thinking that she was in the clear as she rummaged through the top drawer of the dresser where she had stored her bras and panties. Suddenly, she felt a shift in the air; it was as if the energy had become supercharged.

"Good morning," he said. "Where did you go?"

She quickly grabbed a lacy thong and stepped into it, turning around with her arm covering her leaking breasts.

"I had to pee. And I have to feed…the baby."

"Is she up yet?"

"I'm not sure. I'm going to check."

"Don't you think you would have heard her?" He pointed to the monitor screen on the night table. "I think she's still asleep."

She followed his glance and saw that indeed her daughter was in her crib and not yet awake.

"Come back to bed, Mia."

It sounded more like a command than a request.

"Kyle, I think we should talk about this…"

"Mia. There's nothing to talk about. I think we both know that we crossed a line last night. What's the harm in crossing it one more time?"

"Just one?" she asked, knowing the answer.

"Just one for now," he replied with a smile. "We can see what happens after that."

And for all that she recognized that this might not be the best idea she ever had, Mia couldn't help it. She wanted to lose herself in him, to forget that she couldn't remember who she really was and be reborn in his embrace, to be a part of his life, his family. She slowly moved her arms away from her breasts and hooked two fingers in the thin lace of her panties, pulling them down and kicking them aside. Then she took a deep breath and sunk back down into the bed with him, reveling in the warmth of his body and his heady scent.

Just once more. Then you have to tell him what you remember.

At breakfast that morning, Mia was determined to keep her wits about her. It wasn't just the mind-blowing sex that had her rattled; it was the distinct memory of Daisy's true name. She had pushed the pancakes around on her plate long enough for him to notice that she wasn't eating.

"Aren't you famished?" he asked. "Or is it that you just don't like what I made? It's okay, I won't be insulted if you want to make yourself some eggs."

"It's not that, Kyle, these are actually delicious," she said, taking a bite to make a point. The forkful of maple-soaked goodness tasted like cotton in her mouth. She looked over at her daughter, kicking happily in one of the multiple baby seats she'd found in the house, fed and content. She pushed the plate aside. "There's something I have to tell you, something I remembered."

He looked up, his eyes boring into her own. "You remembered something? That's great. What is it?"

"That nightmare, I don't think it was just a random bad dream. I think it really happened. I think the men I saw in the dream are the men who you saw on the street. And I don't think they're here for me. I think they're here for Daisy."

"Daisy? Who's Daisy?"

She turned her head slightly to look at her daughter. "You've been calling her Sarah, but her real name is Daisy."

He pushed himself back from the counter, stood up and began pacing around the kitchen.

"That can't be. You have papers that prove otherwise."

"We know they're fake, Kyle, so they're useless. I can't remember anything else, but I know what I know. My daughter's name is Daisy."

"Those are damn good fakes, Mia."

"I wish I knew how I got them, but for now, all I am sure of is that those two men have been on my trail for a while. I don't know where that hotel was, the one in the dream, but it felt awfully real to me. Could they have something to do with my accident?"

She watched as he ran his hand through his hair, clearly thinking about what she'd just told him. Then he looked at her again.

"We already know you're not Mia Sawyer. I guess it stands to reason that your daughter's name has been changed as well."

"Why can I remember Daisy's name but not my own?"

"I wish I could answer that for you, Mia. But for now, you've given us something to go on. If you've remembered correctly, maybe I can find a clue about a baby with that name on the police database. It's not so common a name, there can't be that many missing children named Daisy. Something might turn up."

Mia nodded her head and then wrapped her arms around her body, suddenly feeling chilled to the bone. "I don't know what I'm hoping for here, Kyle. That you find her or that you don't."

He came over to where she sat and lifted her off the stool to her feet and put his arms around her.

"Listen to me, Mia. We're going to figure out who you are and why you're here. I promise."

"But when we do, what will happen to us?" She felt a familiar panic begin to rise into her chest.

"Nothing, if I have anything to say about it. I think we both know that we're in deep now. I'm not letting you go without a fight."

She felt herself begin to spiral out of control with fear. "Kyle, it's not that easy. Daisy has a father. He's out there somewhere. What if…"

He lifted a finger to her lips and then replaced it with a soft kiss. "I don't know who Daisy's father is, or if he's even out there, but this I do know. If you were mine, I'd never have lost sight of you in the first place. I have to believe that whoever he is, he's not in the picture at all."

"I wish I felt as confident about that as you," she replied, now standing on her tiptoes to kiss him back, feeling stronger with the contact, the warm, woodsy scent of him reassuring. She drew in a deep breath. "I appreciate it, though. I really do. You have a sneaky way of making me feel better."

"Mia. It's you who's sneaky. I never expected this," he motioned to the tight space between them. "That morning of the accident, I just acted on instinct. I didn't think that I'd bring the victim into my home, my family. I didn't know that I'd find you."

"I'm the lucky one, Kyle. I could have been trapped in my car for God knows how long if you hadn't been there. And what would I have done after the hospital released me? I had no idea just how shaky I would be that first week. If it hadn't been for you, I don't know what might have happened to me, or to Daisy."

"I think the universe had a plan for us, Mia. We were supposed to meet."

"Maybe. Or maybe I'm just the luckiest woman on earth. I'm here with you in this little cocoon you've created for us. I just wish I had more answers."

She could feel his strength in the embrace they shared. It would have to be enough for now.

"I'm going to put the baby down for a nap. I'll catch up with you in a bit," she said, stepping back and immediately feeling the loss of his arms wrapped tightly around her.

"After I load the dishwasher, I'll be in the office. I'm going to see if I can find anything about a missing baby named Daisy."

"Okay," she said, lifting the child up and balancing her on one hip. As she made her way up the staircase, Mia was left with one very unsettling thought. Whatever he finds, I hope that he doesn't think less of me for taking my daughter away from her father. I must have had a good reason. Right?