Lawfully Remembered

by Ginny Sterling

  Lawfully Remembered

  The Lawkeeper Romance Series

  Ginny Sterling

  Contents

  Introduction

  Foreword

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Epilogue

  Afterword

  An Agent for Gillian

  Remember Love

  Lawfully Gifted

  About the Author

  Introduction

  Melissa Jones still harbored an unrequited high school crush. That was the single biggest regret she had leaving everything behind and moving on with her life in Texas. Now, seventeen years later working as a trauma nurse in the ER – she comes face to face with her past! Jesse is no longer a cute teenage boy, but now a handsome grown man whose life hangs on the line.

  Jesse Smithson has amnesia due to a severe injury. He knew he arrived in camouflage and the soldier that visits him claims to be his partner, but that is all he can recall. When a nurse comes by to check on him, it triggers something in his memory that he can’t put his finger on. He wants to remember his past, but also recognizes that his future lies in her hands.

  Will fate give them a second chance at love or will their differences set them apart once again?

  Foreword

  In this story, the main character is injured causing a case of amnesia. I have tried to keep the telling of what happens to Jesse as delicate as possible - as it is a major plot point. I hope you enjoy their tender love story as much as I did and can look past some that particular tough scene.

  Sincerely,

  Ginny Sterling

  Chapter 1

  2002

  “Melly, you seriously don’t like that guy – do you? He’s a jerk,” Cassidy said, scrunching up her face as if she smelled something foul. Cassidy was her best friend and the girl that Melissa told everything to. They’d been inseparable since fourth grade art class when they’d dressed up for Halloween in the same costume.

  Melissa looked down the row of lockers to the young man who’d held her interest for the last four years. She’d seen him on the first day of high school when he’d arrived in the senior parking lot, getting out of his friend’s old Firebird. He’d looked so handsome, with such a brave stoic face, while she’d been quaking in her shoes at the thought of moving to the huge school. His friend, Dustin, whom she found out later was the quarterback, had grabbed him around the shoulders and walked him inside like he was someone important.

  That’s when the fascination began.

  Over the last four years, she’d watched Jesse Smithson blossom into not just someone she admired for his lack of fear –he’d turned into something more. He’d grown, filled out, and was devastatingly handsome. Unfortunately, that had brought on the interest of other girls and Jesse never looked twice at her.

  Melissa was the typical high school misfit. She didn’t fit in with the ‘in’ crowds whatsoever… unlike Jesse. He was in ROTC and a part of several groups. She studied incredibly hard, dedicating herself to trying to earn as many college credits while she was in high school as possible. She was salutatorian right now and struggling to hit valedictorian. She wanted to earn a scholarship so she didn’t have to worry about her tuition being a burden to her parents, and thanks to the letter she got last night – it wouldn’t be.

  “Yeah I do,” Melissa admitted, looking at Cassidy, “I always have but he’s never even noticed me.”

  “That’s cause he isn’t worth your time.”

  “You know – we are graduating in two months and I will never see him again, so instead of telling me about how awful he is in your classes, help me figure out how to talk to him.”

  “I wouldn’t do it here,” Cassidy muttered.

  “Then where am I supposed to talk to him? On the field when he’s doing maneuvers? Maybe when they are standing guard at the events in town? Oh, I know - when he’s marching in the Country Day parade downtown – that would be perfect,” Melissa whispered sarcastically, snapping her fingers before slamming her locker shut.

  “Dang it- I needed my chemistry two book tonight.”

  “How do you do that stuff?”

  “It’s terrible,” she answered truthfully, spinning the dial on the locker carefully and jerking it open again. Grabbing the large book, she also pulled out a spiral that she would need with all her notes. This had to be her hardest class and worth three college credits if she passed.

  “… But you are avoiding the question, Cass - how am I going to ask him to Prom if he’s always around someone else? I haven’t seen him near any girls and I don’t know of him dating anyone. Have you heard anything? Does he already have a date?”

  “I don’t know – but from what I do know he’s avoided dating several girls here at school and supposedly has a girlfriend from another school. That’s rumor though, so I’m not sure,” Cassidy admitted, shrugging. “I think he’s having to do hall monitor during sixth period though. Isn’t that when you have Mrs. Noble?”

  “Yes, and she refuses to let anyone out of the classroom to go to the bathroom.”

  “So, tell her you have to turn in paperwork to the counselor for your college application.”

  “And when she finds out I lied?”

  “You are getting ready to graduate,” Cassidy retorted, groaning. “This is your thing you want to do – so do it.”

  “I don’t want to lie to anyone though.”

  “Then try to catch him in between classes. It’s your idea anyhow.”

  “Thanks,” Melissa muttered in a disgruntled voice, slamming the locker closed again with a bit more force. The bell above their heads rang, indicating that they had one-minute left in between periods to get to their classes. “I’ll talk to you later.”

  “Good luck if you try it!”

  “Bye!”

  “See ya!”

  Melissa sat in Mrs. Noble’s class staring at the chalkboard from her desk. Her mind was racing and she was distracted beyond belief, causing her stomach to churn with anxiety. She’d never even been on a date before, nor did she think it was the smartest thing she could do, asking out her high school crush. The idea had come to her last week when she realized that on June first – two hundred seniors would be walking across the stage for graduation and she would never, ever, see Jesse again. She’d gotten several acceptance letters as of late, but the final push arrived last night.

  She got a full scholarship to a private university in Texas – a thousand miles away from Tennessee. Her world, her location, her life was about to change in a big way and before she stepped on that road… she wanted to leave home with utterly no regrets.

  “Melissa? Are you with us today?” Mrs. Noble snapped, popping her chalk against the board with a force that sent a little piece flying. “Perhaps you’d like to read along with us while we discuss the last chapter?”

  “I’m sorry. I am not feeling well at all,” Melissa admitted, clenching her stomach again. It was the truth. Her stomach and intestines were churning with anxiety and nervousness, making her feel ill.

  “Are you going to be sick?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “Go to the nurse’s station then. I don’t need everyone catching what you have or anyone throwing up in class,” Mrs. Noble ordered. “Class is almost over and you’ll need to do page 238’s questions for homework tonight.”

  “Got it. Two thirty-eight,” she repeated, picking up her books and purse. Bile rose in her stomach and she nodded quickly, exiting the room in a hurry. Stepping out into the silent, a
ir-conditioned hallway, she took a deep breath. Her heart hammered wildly as she listened to her shoes tap silently down the industrial tile floors of the school that had been buffed until they shined.

  Maybe I shouldn’t do this and just let it go, she mused, feeling her intestines gurgle painfully. If he said no, that would be just another regret… but if he said yes? her mind wandered hopefully, pushing her along. Rounding the corner of the hallway towards the nurse’s office, she came face to face with a camouflage wall in front of her.

  “Can I see your pass?”

  It was him!

  Melissa glanced up into his eyes and pushed her glasses up onto her nose nervously. She smiled and saw his flat expression. “Pass?” he repeated, sticking out his hand.

  “I’m on my way to the nurse’s office,” she began and tried to play it cool. Her stomach was churning horribly and her pulse was hammering in her head. “You’re Jesse Smithson, aren’t you?”

  You dork! Of course, he is! You knew that, she chastised herself and leaned playfully against the locker, grinning at him. “I’m Melissa Jones.”

  “I know. Melissa – do you have a pass or not?”

  “I don’t but I just left Noble’s class,” she began and he stopped her.

  “I know – nurse’s station. You told me.”

  “Right.”

  “But without a pass - it’s automatic detention. I don’t have a choice.”

  “And completely worth it if you’ll go to Prom with me,” Melissa blurted out instantly and held her breath as he stood there staring at her. “I know you don’t know me but I just had to ask because if you are going I’d like to go with you and if you aren’t then that’s okay because I wanted to graduate without any regrets and one of them would be not asking you out because I don’t know if you even know who I am or if you realize that I think you are cute - oh I probably shouldn’t have said that - and I should really stop talking right now so you can answer or say something instead of staring at me because you have really pretty brown eyes that look like dirty pennies – but in a good way - nice pennies. Yeaaaah,” she took a deep breath and realized that was one massive spiel that she’d poured out without blinking an eye.

  “Hi.”

  “Hi,” he uttered, looking confused and stunned at the same time.

  “So?”

  “I’m not going to prom,” he said simply, shrugging.

  He looked like he was about to say something else but then stopped. He opened his mouth and then closed it again without a word, pulling at the collar of his uniform. The nervousness and anxiety that had been coursing through her veins making her feel nauseated had just multiplied tenfold at his statement. Melissa stared at Jesse’s dark eyes, utterly horrified.

  The sour bile she’d felt sitting in her desk combined with the deflation in her soul made her body react in a way she never expected. It was like someone mixing baking soda and vinegar in her body instead of in a volcano project for science class. Melissa leaned over and uncontrollably wretched right on his boots there in the hallway.

  The bell rang above her head, indicating that class was letting out, and a flood of students began to filter in the surrounding vicinity. She couldn’t breathe. She couldn’t speak. Her senses weren’t working right now. She felt someone take hold of her arm, dragging her to the nurse’s station as the chaos in the hallway matched what was going on in her mind.

  Jesse had said no.

  Melissa had to get away from here because she couldn’t face him again.

  The next few months flew past painfully. Melissa had been teased mercilessly for vomiting on Jesse’s boots and the story expounded from there. No one, thankfully, knew the real reason she’d thrown up and this surprised her. Prom came and went – without Melissa. She didn’t want to go and see him there with someone else. Jesse had claimed he wasn’t going to Prom, but she couldn’t be certain that he was trying to be nice to her or not. If he went, with someone else, she might throw up again!

  On graduation day, Melissa walked across the stage proudly and made her salutatorian speech, confessing how hard she’d worked to reach her goals. Thankfully no one jeered her and while she’d been nervous - it was nothing like asking Jesse out. She spoke to the faceless crowd, emphatically urging them to follow their dreams and dedicate themselves to becoming the best they could be. A sea of blue caps and gowns jumped to their feet in applause, causing her to smile.

  “Have no regrets and do everything you can to make a difference to someone out there. You can be the change someone needs. Class of 2002, I salute you all, my friends!” Melissa rallied, just as the valedictorian had before her, before waving goodbye and leaving the stage.

  She walked it again proudly minutes later, receiving her diploma, and took her seat. As she looked up at the stage, she watched Jesse walk across and receive his, applauding politely as required. She didn’t hate him nor dislike him. She was proud of him for having earned his degree and wished him the best- silently. He was the one regret she’d hoped to not have to deal with – and the one she wouldn’t be able to run away from in her past.

  She was leaving for Dallas on Sunday and beginning her new life as soon as possible. Everyone threw their caps up in the air around her, but Melissa clutched hers. She’d accomplished stage one of her life and this cap represented a goal achieved. It was time to hunker down and dedicate herself to her next set of studies. This cap would be a reminder that she had to believe in herself and she could do whatever came her way.

  Chapter 2

  2018

  “Smithson! Did you see that?”

  “What? We are supposed to be doing security for the concert. There’s nothing to see out here but a bunch of people acting like fools.”

  “No, across the street – look.”

  Jesse Smithson turned his head to look in the direction that Cobb was nodding his head. Pointing only drew attention to yourself and he wasn’t about to do that if something was going on. They weren’t in the nicest part of town and it wasn’t a surprise that they got assigned to this concert event. This was one of the few public events they got to participate in and didn’t have to worry quite so much about their own safety. Usually they were on patrol or working a disaster – but occasionally it was simply nice to be a part of something that was celebratory.

  The last event he got to work was the Kentucky Derby. That turned out to be extremely fun. He’d thought it was going to be dreadfully boring with nothing but a bunch of drunks to keep in line – but that wasn’t it. It was utterly memorable. The pageantry was nothing like he’d ever seen before. Hats, bowties, colorful dresses and suits. There was an air of history as well as money in the atmosphere. Drinks such as the mint juleps and lily flowed easily, but people weren’t making a scene. They were having a good time simply being a part of the history and legacy that was the very essence of Churchill Downs.

  This was different.

  This concert had a number of well-known headliners performing. His head ached from the pounding music. He had to stand there at attention as drunks walked by mocking them, making faces, and shoving each other. The stench of vomit, body odor, alcohol, and marijuana lingered on the air, making him nauseated. He was ready to leave and thankfully, the event would be finishing up in a few hours.

  As he looked over his shoulder, he saw the car running at the gas station across the street. The windows had bars on it and he could see homeless people milling about in the area. Watching, he saw someone move inside the building, and then watched them disappear again. A head poked up from the car and then disappeared again. Slowly moving, Jesse reached up and grabbed his microphone hanging over his shoulder by his jaw. He depressed the handle and spoke softly.

  “Smithson here. We have an active robbery in progress at the corner of Main and Liberty. I repeat, active robbery in progress. Cobb and I are en-route now from the south gate. Be advised- backup requested at gate and locale,” he said calmly, unhooking the holster carefully and nodding at his partner
.

  Cobb gave a single nod and gestured that he was going to head to the right of the building. Jesse headed towards the left and slowly made his way forward towards the car. If this was the getaway vehicle, he had to be ready to stop it without injuring anyone. The idea would be to do so before whoever was in the building made their exit or killed someone.

  The movies gave the idea that you could simply shoot out the tires or that someone would come walking out with their hands up. You couldn’t shoot without there be a chance of causing more damage. Gas stations were dangerous – it wasn’t just the fuel that was threatening… the fumes could be sparked by a firearm going off. People came out with their hands up when they had something worth fighting for in their lives. Desperate criminals or ones under the influence weren’t in their right mind and had nothing left to lose. It was the unknown you had to plan for – and that is how they always proceeded. He’d been doing this for years and nothing surprised him anymore. Jesse had seen desperate, he’d seen fear, and knew that people could sink lower than what he’d ever thought was possible when pushed hard enough.

  Coming around the front of the car in a squatting position, he crept along, trying to keep out of the view of whoever was hiding inside the vehicle on the driver’s side. He was in a dangerous position right now and if the getaway driver started the car, he would mow him down immediately. He needed to get to the driver’s door. Glancing at Cobb, he saw him beside the door and gave him a single nod. This was it and they were making their move, but before they could advance, the door to the gas station flew open as the robber burst forth, shooting behind him, inside the building. Both men stepped forward from their positions and drew their firearms.