I placed it in the center of her palm and smiled as she took it from me. "You liked it when I gave it to you."
She studied it for a minute and then looked me up and down. "I bet you proposed at some fancy restaurant or the opera. Not that I know if I like opera, but you look like the type of man who does."
I looked down at my clothes and couldn't help but smile. Dressed in my suit pants and dress shirt, I'd thought I looked casual without my tie and coat. Leave it to Nina to let me know just how wrong I was.
Lifting my head, I said, "Actually, it was a pizza place called Tony's that we like. I got down on one knee, though."
A sweet smile lit up her face. "I like pizza. That's good to know."
"And roast beef, turkey with stuffing, shrimp scampi, and sausage and peppers."
She was silent for a long time and then finally said, "I'm sorry I don't remember you, Tristan. You seem like a great guy."
I wanted to take her in my arms and never let her go. To do everything we'd done together all over again just on the chance that she'd remember how much we loved each other.
But I couldn't. I wasn't the man she loved. I was just some guy who remembered.
"Can I ask you something, Tristan?"
"Anything and I promise to give a straight answer."
A confused expression crossed her face for a brief moment and then she smiled. "Why don't I remember you?"
I sadly shook my head, her question ripping my heart in two. "I don't know."
Was it because of what I'd told her just before the accident? Had she forgotten everything about us because somewhere deep inside her mind she couldn't forgive me for her father's death?
After two and a half weeks, her doctor pulled me aside as Jordan and Kim visited with an almost healed Nina. Guiding me to a secluded room near Nina's room, he closed the door behind us and I took a seat across from him.
"I want you to know that the good news is that her physical injuries are healing well. She'll be able to go home tomorrow. Her memory loss is disconcerting, however. I had expected her to remember something of her life from the past four years, but I see no signs of that, as of yet."
Listening to him speak, I knew what he was about to say and instantly, my chest tightened.
"Mr. Stone, I just can't say she'll ever remember everything. The human mind is a difficult thing to predict. All I can say is that if you continue to show her what her life was like, she very well may come around."
Extending my hand to shake his, I pressed a smile onto my face. "I understand. Thank you for everything."
I returned to find Jordan and Kim standing outside Nina's room as the nurses did their jobs inside. The time had come to let them know my plans for Nina after she left here.
"Ladies, I'd like to speak to you privately for a moment."
Escorting them to the room where I'd just met with Nina's doctor, I stood as they both took their seats. Jordan looked up at me with wide eyes, as if what I had to say interested her, but Kim wore the same suspicious look she always gave me.
"The doctor just told me Nina will be able to go home tomorrow. I've made arrangements for her to come home with me to our home. You, of course, are welcome to come too and stay for as long as you'd like. I have more than enough room."
"With you? Why would she go home with you?" Kim asked sharply. "She should go home with Jordan."
"She's coming home with me because that's where she belongs. As I said, you're welcome to come stay as long as you like."
"She doesn't even remember you."
Jordan looked over at Kim and then back at me. "I think Kim might be worried that Nina would feel like a stranger in your house." Turning back toward Kim, she continued, "But I've been there and Nina was very happy there, Kim. She and Tristan were...are in love, and he can help her remember their time together."
I looked down at Nina's sister. "I can certainly understand your concern, Kim, but she belongs in her own home. With me."
Kim stood and folded her arms across her chest. "You keep saying belongs, like she's something you own. I'm not some small town rube like my sister. She may think you're something special, but I don't think so. She's not going to stay with some strange man. Not if I have anything to say about it."