Crossing the Line
Page 25
Noah kisses the top of my head, steps onto the deck, and reaches out for me. He pulls me aboard and keeps my hand in his. “Let me show you around.”
While he is giving me a tour, the vessel leaves the dock. “Where are we going?”
“Out for a sunset dinner.”
Noah leads me up to the front of the yacht. The sun is setting, and the water is calm. I peek over the bow. When I turn, Noah is on one knee, holding a sparkling diamond ring.
I put my hand over my mouth in awe.
“You’re my everything, Piper. I want you forever as mine. I’ll love you always. Will you marry me?”
I’m blinking back more tears but manage to get out, “I already told you I’d marry you.”
“Yeah, but I have a ring this time.”
My gaze moves between his face and the ring.
“Well? Will you marry me?” Noah repeats.
I step closer to him, bend down, and kiss him. “Yes.”
Noah holds my hand and slides the biggest diamond I’ve ever seen on my finger.
I check out the ring. “Noah, this is...”
“What?” His face falls in panic.
“The most beautiful ring I’ve ever seen.”
Relief crosses his face. “I had it designed for you. That’s why it took so long.”
I kiss him again then remove it from my finger to inspect it closer. Inside, the band is engraved, Forever mine. I glide the ring back on my finger, wrap my arms around his neck, and press my forehead to his. “I love you.”
His dark eyes stare into mine. “Don’t forget that I loved you first.”
I laugh and kiss him.
With a cocky expression, he traces his finger down my leg. “Now, I think it’s time we broke in those stilettos.”
Don’t Forget Me Blurb
It’s Complicated - Book Two
Dr. Xander Kane
I don’t remember the last 12 years.
I don’t remember becoming a surgeon.
I don’t remember the day of the accident or the girl named Charlotte that was in the car with me.
All I remember is the girl I loved named Billie.
My friends all tell me we broke up and haven’t been together in over ten years.
But all I remember is how I feel and the memories of her.
So I search everywhere for her, only she’s nowhere to be found.
Then I go to sleep. Every night, I dream, but not about Billie.
I dream about a faceless woman. I hear her voice call out Xander. I can feel and taste her. I smell the scent of flowers after the rain.
I convince myself I must be going crazy because that means I wasn’t loyal to Billie.
Slowly, my memory of the last twelve years comes back about everything except Billie.
But then I’m in surgery. As soon as I’m introduced, I know it’s the girl named Charlotte that was in the car accident with me. She’s the one who haunts my dreams.
And it’s clear that I’ve hurt her. But then I continue to do so.
When I finally know in my heart that Charlotte is who I love, trust has been broken.
Forgiveness is required.
I can only hope I didn’t let my past destroy my future.
(Don’t Forget Me is the second installment of the It’s Complicated series. It is an amnesia, medical romance, billionaire romance with a HEA.)
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Don’t Forget Me - Prologue
Book Two of It’s Complicated
Reality isn’t always what we perceive it to be. What’s real? What’s fake? Is our truth of yesterday the truth of today?
I’ve been told I’m living in a fantasy, trying to regurgitate the past instead of moving into my future, but all I know as my truth is what my mind is telling me my heart should feel and what it should want.
I don’t remember anyone except Billie. Well, except for the flashbacks. Night after night, I go to sleep, and I experience all of her except her face. She is a stranger.
Guilt crashes through me, as I should only be dreaming of Billie. She is the one I remember, not this faceless stranger. She is the one I love.
Or is she?
My friends tell me I don’t love Billie. That we ended things long ago and weren’t meant to be together. But how do I know that when it’s all I remember?
How are my friends telling me the truth when all I feel is madly in love with Billie?
I search everywhere for her, but I can’t find her. I spend my days searching social media, googling her name, walking streets in New York we used to stroll together. But she’s nowhere.
The guys tell me I broke it off with Billie, and we were both better off because of it. But no one can tell me why I broke it off. No one can give me details. So, until I can find her, my heart belongs to her. It aches for her because all I remember is our love.
All day long, I’m obsessed. When my head hits the pillow, I dream. But it’s never about Billie.
I hear the moan of a woman’s voice against the curve of my neck. “Xander.” A sound so unforgettable, I push it to the back of my mind throughout the day, as guilt shoots through me, and I try to refocus on my love for Billie.
I smell her scent—flowers after it rained.
I feel her gripping my back and trembling against me as our bodies sweat.
I see the perfect fit of her body wrapped against mine, clutching me.
I taste the salt of her skin and the sweetness of her tongue.
Blonde hair, the curve of her neck, the softness of her breasts, the plumpness of her red lips...it all flashes in my mind, torturing me.
She’s so real in my dreams. Every night I go to sleep, I experience her. Everything I could ever know about her, except for her face and her name.
Daily, I tell myself it’s just a dream. It’s my brain playing games with me because it’s still screwed up from the accident.
She isn’t real.
She doesn’t exist.
Or does she?
The thought sends my stomach flipping because that means I wasn’t loyal to Billie. No matter what my friends tell me, I know what I had with Billie. I don’t understand how it could have ended.
No. Surely they are wrong. It’s a misunderstanding, and once I find Billie, whatever misunderstanding we had, we will work out.
Obsession takes hold of me. I can’t move on until I find Billie. But she’s nowhere.
Over the months, my memory slowly returns, except regarding Billie. I have no memories of dating or thinking about anyone except her. Everything else is clear—my medical school, my job, how to be a surgeon. But I have no memories of anyone in my life besides Billie.
But Billie didn’t have blonde hair. She didn’t smell like flowers after the rain or call out my name like the woman in my dreams.
I can’t make sense of it all. If I can just find Billie, I can fix whatever went wrong between us. Then, this other woman will leave my dreams.
Or will she?
My phone rings, pushing my thoughts out of my head. “Hello, this is Xander.”
“Xander, it’s Angela Sincroy.”
I sit up straighter. “Hi, Angela. How are you?”
“I’m good. You feeling better?”
“Yes.”
“Great. We got the report from your doctor that you are fine to resume your normal surgical duties. We will need you to report to the hospital by Monday, or we will need to find another surgeon for the position.”
“I’ll be there.”
“Great. See you next week.” I hang up.
Life needs to resume. I can’t stay home any longer and need to get back into a routine. My new role as a surgeon in Chicago is what I’ve worked hard for, and I’m not going to screw up my future.
Wandering over to the window, I glance out into the New York skyline. I’ll pack up and move my life, but I won’t stop the search. Until I find Billie, my heart won’t be complete.
Click here to read Don’t Forget Me!
More by Maggie Cole
It’s Complicated Series
Crossing the Line - Book One
Don’t Forget Me - Book Two
Committed to You - Book Three
More Than Paper - Book Four
All In Series
The Rule - Book One
The Secret - Book Two
The Crime - Book Three
The Lie - Book Four
The Trap - Book Five
The Gamble - Book Six
About the Author
Maggie Cole is the pen name of a multi-faceted woman. She’s an entrepreneur at heart and loves writing contemporary steamy romance novels that help her readers feel lots of different emotions. Sometimes you’ll laugh, sometimes you’ll cry, sometimes you’ll have little flutters racing through your veins...and that’s Maggie’s biggest wish for you when you read her novels.
She’s a wife, mother, and lives in the sunshine, where she can often be found staring off into space while creating new scenes in her mind.
Acknowledgments
To my friends who read several drafts and kept pushing me to make this novel better, I thank you!
To my editors, cover artists, launch team and author friends who shared so much wisdom with me, I thank you!
To my readers; from the bottom of my heart, I thank you! I sincerely hope you loved this novel. I can’t wait to share all the new stories and characters I’ve been creating for you!