“Lovely,” he said.
Eva looked down and saw what he meant. Her lush boobs tented the shirt, leaving little to the imagination. She pursed her lips. Her cheeks heated. “Well. There’s no way I’d wear her stuff.”
It took him seconds to realize what she meant. “I’m sorry, love.” He entered the room and closed the door behind him. “Why don’t we talk about this?”
“Sure. Just the things I’d like to ask you. I don’t feel that we’re really ma…” Her words trailed off when he held out his palm. Well, not actually his palm…he had something in his palm. Something gleaming. Rings. “What are those?”
Liam settled himself in a chair and hooked an arm around her waist. He pulled her closer. Eva sat on his lap.
“These are yours.” He took her left hand and slipped a platinum ring with a big Ceylon sapphire surrounded by glittering diamonds on her finger. “This is your engagement ring. It was my mother’s. And this…“ He slipped on another ring, a simple gold one with one paved diamond, “…is our wedding ring. I thought you’d like to have them back.”
Eva turned to him. “Have them back? What did I do to them?”
“You were upset.” He shook his head. “It was my fault.”
“What? What did I do?”
“We had an argument. You left.”
“And chucked out my rings?”
Liam only sighed.
Eva felt horrible. She acted like a bratty kid. “And my clothes too? My stuff?”
“It’s my fault, love. I shouldn’t make you upset.”
“What were we fighting about?”
“I don’t think we should discuss it right now. You’re recovering. Doctor Hall will have my neck if he finds out I let you strain yourself.”
Eva stared at the rings. They were beyond beautiful. And from the look of them, each ring cost a great deal of money. Her gaze cut to Liam’s ring finger. He was wearing an identical wedding ring. His and hers. A pair. Wedded. For better or for worse. Why on Earth would she throw away the symbol of their union? Had she lost her mind?
“So what? We had a fight and I decided to throw away my rings and all my clothes and walk away naked?”
Her theory earned a chuckle from him. “You were wearing your clothes when you left. Rosa had to throw them out because they were covered in mud.”
“What did I do?”
“You walked in the wood and fell and bumped your head. Hades found you.”
“Hades?”
“Our dog. A retriever.”
“Oh.” Eva clutched her chest. “Liam, I feel horrible for all this.”
“Hey, it’s not your fault. I told you I was being a dick. Will you forgive me?”
She couldn’t say no. Especially when she didn’t remember anything. How could he say this was his fault when so far, he had been nothing but nice. “I’m sorry too for being so childish.” She hugged him and buried her face in the hollow of his throat. Liam stiffened for a second before wrapping his arms around her, drawing her deeper into his embrace. She could hear his heartbeat as his warmth radiated from his body and enveloped hers blissfully. “How did we meet, Liam?”
“At Navy Pier.”
Eva straightened. “Oh, what did I do? How?”
“I have a yacht in the pier. One morning, I went to the deck and saw you floating in the water. I went in to get you and took you to the hospital. You don’t remember anything about how you got there.”
“What? When did this happen?”
“About a month ago. The police are working on your case. If it’s any consolation, I also employed a private investigator. I didn’t think you got into the water by accident.”
“Do you think someone was trying to kill me?”
“One of the possibilities.”
“And how about the police? Can’t they check my fingerprints for ID?”
“Nothing came out in the system. Listen, this is why I want to take things slowly. Everything will come back to you eventually.”
“You think?”
“That’s what the doctor said.”
“Oh. And along the way, we decided to get married?”
He smiled again. Eva’s heart did the skippy dance. “I married you so I have custody of you. The State would take you to the institution because of your condition. Besides, I fell in love with you. Can’t you see?”
Eva was flustered. He loves me. Here she was, a Jane Doe, a nobody with no memory, no friends and no family, and a man like him was kind enough to care for her and marry her. And how did she repay him? With a tantrum of chucking out the rings and her clothes like a spoiled three-year-old. She thought she deserved to slip in the mud and smash her head. She was a horrible person. “I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I was being unreasonable. With the fight, running away, and bumping my head. You’ve done so much for me and I didn’t appreciate it.”
“Babe.”
She hugged him and hid her face in his chest. “I don’t want to lose you.”
She heard a sharp inhalation from him. She looked up and suddenly he found her lips. He kissed her.
The kiss was exquisite. It turned her brain into scramble and melted all bones into gel. He was possessive, kissing her as if he wanted to brand his soul on hers. Eva couldn’t think. She instinctively wound her arms around his neck. Liam deepened his kiss. She pressed her body against him. She could feel the hardness at the juncture of his thighs. Goodness, he was aroused. And she was too. He touched her, slipping his hand underneath the white shirt she was wearing. Her heart drummed. Heat flushed to her head. And when he was about to touch her breast and nipple, someone knocked on the door.
Liam broke the kiss. He withdrew his hand. Eva lamented her loss.
“Eva? Are you up, child?” Rosa opened the door and poked her head in. “Oh, I’m sorry to disturb you, Mr. Caderyn. I’ll come back later.”
“That’s okay, Rosa. What’s up?”
“I have Ms. Eva’s new clothes.”
“Bring them in and put them on the bed.”
“Yes, Mr. Caderyn.”
Eva locked gazes with Liam. She flushed again. She wanted to get up from Liam’s lap and sit on the other chair, but he didn’t allow her. Liam tightened his embrace instead. They watched Rosa put her purchases on the bed.
“Sorry, again.” Rosa stalked back to the door.