Remember Me (15 page)

“Were there any problems on the way there?”

“No. Not at all. I sat up front, and it was the most amazing view with everything spread out right in front of me. I’m sure Tom and Brandon both got a chuckle out of it, but they were patient with my excitement. When we got to Coyote Creek, Tom drove us into town. We grabbed some lunch and went to the museum.”

“How was that?”

“As incredible as we’d been led to believe. I had a wonderful time, and I think Brandon did too. Sometimes I caught him looking at me…”

“How?”

Lucy cleared her throat. “Like I was precious. There was something different in the air between us. I didn’t understand until later.” She stopped and closed her eyes for a minute. “I’m getting ahead of myself. Anyway, we got to the airport and Tom had the parts he needed crated and stored in the cargo area. This time he made me sit in the back of the plane. He said he needed to distribute the weight so it was even.”

Angelina nodded as if she understood. “And everything seemed fine?”

“Absolutely. We took off and I joked that since I was in the rear, I would take a nap. I guess I did for a few minutes, at least.”

“What woke you?”

Lucy took a deep breath and let it out. She could feel once more the fear that had made saliva pool in her mouth. “The engine didn’t sound right. I think Tom said the plane was losing oil pressure. He and Brandon began discussing what they could do, something about glide ratios and how it still wasn’t enough to get the plane either to Coyote Creek or to Falcon’s Head.” She paused. “It didn’t hit home until Tom started going over crash procedures.”

“What was Brandon doing?”

“He was on the radio broadcasting a mayday. He did it the whole time, except right when Tom finished explaining what I needed to do when we landed, Brandon turned to me.”

“What did he say?”

She looked into Angelina’s kind, dark eyes with their patient understanding. Lucy’s chin wobbled. “He apologized and told me he loved me,” she whispered. “Then he went right back broadcasting that damn mayday.”

Angelina came over and rubbed her shoulders. “Do you want to quit for today?”

“No. You need to at least hear the rest of this.” Lucy tried to smile, but she knew it appeared pretty shaky. “Not long after, all hell broke loose. It was like being a rowboat in a hurricane. Then there was this awful, awful silence. The only thing I heard was my own breathing, and that scared me the most. I couldn’t even see Tom and Brandon. Snow and debris filled the plane. I managed to crawl out the rear window. I braced my leg on the plane and yanked open the door on Brandon’s side.”

She stared out at the verdant green of the yard. “I think that’s why I feel so guilty.”

“What you did was only natural, to help the man you loved first.”

“But what if I had gotten to Tom faster? Could he have lived?”

Angelina shook her head. “You did what any human being does. We go first to those we love, and you did save him. Without you there that day, Lucy, Brandon would have died too.”

“I knew I had to find shelter for Brandon. He looked so hurt and helpless.”

“Right at the point when you could have used his strength the most. Is that part of your guilt too?”

“Yes.” Lucy looked at Angelina, holding her gaze. “It was so hard to move him and myself. I found one of the cabins near the lake where Hanson was trying to get us, got a fire going, found supplies and bandaged Brandon as best I could. Then when he woke, he had no idea who I was. On top of the hurt, God help me, for an instant I wanted to scream at him. How could this man who had spent the last few days making love to me, spending every moment with me and even telling me he loved me not have any idea who I was?”

Lucy clapped her hands over her mouth and sobbed in pain. After a moment, she took a deep breath and dropped her hands into her lap. “He made love to me. He told me he loved me and all of a sudden he didn’t know who I was?”

Angelina let her get the pain out and then handed her a tissue once Lucy had herself more under control.

“Is that why you left? Because you were angry at him?”

Lucy stared at her, dumbfounded for a moment. She wiped her eyes and sniffed. Was that part of it? “Maybe, but there were other things too. Things I didn’t know about him. Maybe I should have. He’d never tried to hide his name. I suppose I should have realized Brandon Barrett, whose family was in communications, was the same thing as Barrett Newspapers, the publishers of
National News
.”

“I think what we’ve talked about is enough for today, Lucy. It sounds to me like there are some other issues at work here, but you’ve had enough for now. I just want you to remember everything you did on that mountain was out of love and instinct–and your reactions were those of any normal person.”

“Thanks, Angelina. You’ve helped more than you know.”

When they walked out to Lucy’s car, Angelina took her hand in both of hers. “I will see you in the morning. Is nine too early?”

“No. I’ll be back from swimming by then.”

“Nine it is.”

Chapter 10

“You know I will support you if you want to go ahead with developing the marketing of
National News
through e-reader and phone subscriptions.” Seth paused while Brandon continued to stroke his thumb over the small pot in his hand. “You know, I’m the one who’s supposed to be distracted here. My wife is ready to go into labor any day now.”

Brandon shook his head, set the pot down and focused on his elder brother. “Sorry.”

“Souvenir from your trip?” Seth asked.

Brandon shook his head. “A gift that never reached the recipient.”

Seth arched one thick, golden brow. “The woman in the plane with you? What was her name?”

“Lucy Cameron.”

“She did a disappearing act.” There was a critical tone in Seth’s deep voice that put Brandon’s nerves on edge, but he tried to remind himself no one but Matt knew Lucy had been more than just a casual acquaintance. “It seemed like it might have been polite to at least see how you were doing.”

“Shut up, Seth.” There was a long silence. Brandon sighed, stood and limped to the windows of his office. He’d kept the office on the opposite corner of the same floor where Seth’s still was, though his elder brother seldom spent any time in it anymore. He showed for board meetings. However, until their father’s heart trouble, most of his attention focused on the small paper he was overhauling in the beach community where he now spent most of his time. He and Tessa were busy furnishing a nursery when he wasn’t in DC working on his novel.

“Rude’s not your usual style, Brandon. What’s up?”

He jammed his hands in the pockets of his slacks and turned away from the view of the Potomac. “Some things I learned on my trip out there.”

“You’re remembering the crash?”

“No. Her. Lucy.” Brandon raked one hand through his hair. “Matt says she and I were together from the time I arrived until the crash.”

“Together, as in lovers?” Seth’s voice deepened with concern.

“It would seem so. I mean, I’m sure I didn’t have sex right in front of Matt, but according to him I taught her to ski, took her out to dinner and dancing. I was the one who suggested the trip to Coyote Creek.” He nodded toward the little pot on her desk. “I liked her well enough I forked over a grand for that little pot for her. I was supposed to contact the museum owner with where to ship it. She brought it to Matt.”

“Flowers and a couple of baubles are more your usual style. You bought this woman a little clay pot?”

Brandon’s lips quirked. “Must be love, huh?”

Seth threw back his head and laughed. “Only you could conclude that. What are you going to do about it?”

“Fuck if I know. She made Matt promise to destroy the records of her stay. The only thing he would tell me was she lived somewhere around here. You’re the reporter. How do I find her?”

“Tax records, credit reports, driver’s license. Tessa could have you a complete dossier in under five minutes, but I’m not about to ask her to help. She’s been a little on edge the last couple of days.”

Brandon raised both brows. “Hello. She’s getting ready to have your baby. I’d be nervous and grumpy too. You’re mighty big, and she is a little thing, after all.”

Seth sighed. “Yeah, don’t remind me. She’s also mean as a rattlesnake right now. I almost walked out of the house without my BlackBerry this morning and I thought she might go for my throat. But seriously, Brandon, if you want to find this Lucy, hire a private detective. That will keep it private.”

Brandon paced the office, still favoring his ankle some. “That’s just it. I’m not sure I do want to find her. God, Seth. What did I do to her that she would leave without a word? That she would beg Matt to destroy the records of her visit and not even freaking tell me anything about her? I mean it was obvious he was betraying a confidence, and he was only doing it because of the length and depth of our friendship.”

Seth joined him near the windows and put his hands on Brandon’s shoulders. “Bran, think about it. If you were close like Matt says you were, imagine how she felt following the crash. She had to be scared out of her mind.”

Brandon nodded. “I saw the site. Jesus, Seth, she dragged me through snow that had to be more than knee deep for close to a mile.”

“And what do you remember of her?”

“Almost nothing. And I was so out of it after the crash, I still don’t have a clear image of her other than she was tall with long blond hair.” He paused and shook his head. “I don’t remember, but she does.”

“And?”

Brandon swallowed before he continued. “How would you feel if Tessa looked at you and didn’t know who you were?”

Seth’s golden eyes narrowed. “I don’t know, but you have someone who can tell you that.”

“Anna.” Brandon wasn’t sure why he hadn’t thought of their sister earlier, but then, he wasn’t thinking with complete clarity. “Not quite the same thing because Anna also had reasons at the time, at least, for not wanting Chris to remember.”

“You should give her a call.” Seth paused as they both heard the buzz of his BlackBerry. “Shit. It’s Tessa.” He snatched the phone out of his pocket. During a brief conversation in which Brandon saw his face first flush and then get pale, he jammed the BlackBerry in his pants pocket with a hand that shook. “She’s in labor. I have to go.”

“I’ll drive you.”

“You don’t…” Seth started.

“Yeah. I do. You’re a nervous wreck. We’ll swing by, pick her up and I’ll get you both to the hospital. Then I’ll arrange for her brother to get home from school.”

“Yeah. Okay.”

Brandon grabbed his suit jacket. He would have to put off finding Lucy, and if he was honest with himself, he was half afraid to launch a search. He didn’t remember her, and there was a big part of him that was pissed off. If what they’d shared had mattered so fucking much, couldn’t she have stuck by him?

Now it was Seth who had his attention. He’d never seen his older brother quite so bent out of shape other than the morning of their sister Stacey’s wedding, right after he’d found out Tessa was pregnant and had no intention of letting him anywhere near her. Good thing she’d changed her mind because their baby was about to be born.

“Come on, Seth. Make sure you remember all that coaching stuff you’ve been learning.”

“Right.” While they rode in the elevator, Seth went through the list Tessa had drilled into him. When it came to organization, she had Seth firmly in hand. Up until the last couple months, it had been a source of secret amusement to Brandon. He was now beginning to understand the emotional heights and depths being in love could cause. Whoa. Where had that come from? And how the hell could he be in love with someone he couldn’t remember?

He leaned his head against the wall of the elevator. He might not remember, but he knew from Matt’s description of him and Lucy, from Seth’s reaction to the pot he had intended as a gift–there was no question, he’d cared for her. And he would find her, but first there was getting Seth and Tessa to the hospital, taking care of business until his dad could take charge, and…damn, he was beginning to understand how confined Seth had felt.

* * * *

Lucy felt much better following her swim the next morning. She’d slept better than she had since the crash. Angelina had been right. Just talking about it, admitting to her feelings and her fears and hearing she was normal had made it easier to bear. As she puttered around the kitchen, making coffee and setting out fresh fruit slices with yogurt dip while she waited for Angelina, Lucy thought about what she needed to talk about today. Somehow, she wasn’t sure Angelina would have an easy time putting this into perspective.

The doorbell rang, and Lucy headed to the front hall. Angelina stood on the stoop, her hair still loose and curling around her shoulders, but instead of the long, flowing skirt and tunic, today she was dressed in tight jeans and cowboy boots.

When Lucy, still in her sweats, arched her brows, Angelina laughed. “Hah, you’re wondering about the dramatic change in fashion? Easy enough. Roberto and I are meeting at his farm in a couple of hours so I can test drive a horse he’s picked out for me.”