Hers To Remember. Karen Lawton Barrett

as she, Adrienne thought, or else he really was the caring man he seemed to be. Which one?

      “Please try not to worry,” Dr. Yamana said. “All the test results came out fine for you and the baby.”

      The mention of the baby she carried caused all other thoughts to vanish. Adrienne still had a hard time believing she’d been pregnant for several months and never had a clue.

      “Since the tests came out so well, does that mean I can be released?” Adrienne asked.

      “Well, we do have this memory loss to deal with,” Dr. Yamana said.

      Happy the doctor had bought her fake amnesia, Adrienne continued her act. “How long will it take me to remember?”

      “That’s hard to say. Different head injuries act differently. It could take days, weeks, or even months.”

      Dismay filled her. What have you gotten yourself into now, Adrienne? she asked herself. “I can’t stay in the hospital for months!”

      The doctor laughed. “In a rush to get back to that handsome husband of yours, are you? Relax, Mrs. Delaney, your injury is relatively mild. You’ll probably only be here overnight.”

      Adrienne didn’t have to act out her relief. “That’s wonderful, Doctor.”

      The other woman smiled. “I’m sure your husband will be happy about it, too.”

      Adrienne started at the term “your husband,” then she realized the doctor was talking about Sam, not Vaughn.

      “I’m going to go talk to him now,” the doctor continued. “Get some rest. I’ll be back as soon as possible.” Dr. Yamana rose, and left the room.

      Adrienne stared at the closed door. What would Sam say when the doctor told him about her “amnesia”? Would he give her away, or would he realize she’d decided to take him up on his offer of protection?

      Adrienne sat up. It didn’t matter what he’d said. There was no way she was going to wait around to find out. Moving more quickly than she knew she should, she made her way over to the closet. At least this time all she’d have to do was put on jeans and shoes.

      She opened the door, then stood staring at the empty space inside. No jeans. No shoes. Only three clothesless hangers.

      Damn them! There was no way she could leave now. Anger and fear made her sway. She moved back to the bed, muttering, “I can’t faint. I can’t faint.” If she lost consciousness again, they would keep her here for days. That would only give Vaughn more time to find her. She was sure now he had no idea she’d landed in the hospital. If he knew, he’d be here.

      Huddled under the covers, she tried to think, to plan, to come up with anything she could to convince them to keep Vaughn away from her once he arrived. And she thought of the big blond man who’d regarded her so tenderly. Could she really count on his help?

      THE ELEVATOR DOOR whooshed open. Sam stepped into the corridor, then turned to his brother, who had followed. “I can’t believe you stuck me with lunch again.”

      “I thought I had a twenty in my wallet.”

      “Yeah, right.” Sam strode quickly down the wide hall toward the nurse’s station.

      Casey moved to catch up. “I said I’m sorry.”

      “Yeah, you sound sorry.” Arriving at his destination, he leaned on the counter and returned the smile of the nurse on duty. He figured there must have been a shift change, since he didn’t recognize her. “I’m Sam Delaney. Is Dr. Yamana back yet?”

      “Yes, sir, she returned a few minutes ago. I believe she’s in with Mrs. Delaney.”

      “What do you mean she’s in with Mrs. Delaney?”

      The nurse’s eyes widened at his terse tone, but Sam didn’t feel in the least guilty. He’d told them he needed to talk to the doctor before she saw Amy.

      “The doctor needed to finish her examination,” the nurse said.

      “But I told the other nurse I needed to talk to her first.”

      “Kathy gave Dr. Yamana the message. But you weren’t here, sir, and the doctor is very busy.”

      “If you had called the cafeteria when she arrived, I would have been here in two minutes,” he said between gritted teeth. “Was she too busy to wait two minutes?”

      Casey touched his arm. “Calm down, Sam. It’s not this young lady’s fault.”

      Sam glared at him. “No, it’s mine for letting you talk me into going with you.”

      Casey smiled, not in the least intimidated by his brother. “Wanna beat me up?”

      “Yes,” Sam growled. “But I don’t have time right now. I have to check on Amy.” He pushed past his brother, only to stop abruptly.

      Striding down the hall toward them was Dr. Yamana, looking as concerned as he felt.

      He moved to meet her. “Dr. Yamana? Is my wife okay?”

      “She’s fine, Mr. Delaney, physically. But there’s something we need to discuss.” She took his arm. “Let’s go down to the waiting room.”

      Sam scowled at her emphasis of the word physically. What did that mean? Had she found out about the amnesia? He looked at his brother. Casey shook his head.

      The gesture to be cautious was unnecessary. Sam knew as well as Casey the value of remaining silent until you knew the whole story. He let the doctor lead him to the little room he’d grown to hate. Casey followed.

      Inside, he sat down next to her on the cranberry couch. Casey took a chair across from them. “What’s going on, Doctor?” Sam asked.

      “I’m afraid your wife’s concussion has left her with a bit of amnesia.”

      “Amnesia?” Sam said, trying to buy some time.

      The doctor nodded. “I asked her some questions about herself. It’s part of the procedure when a patient has suffered a head injury. She couldn’t tell me her birth date or your anniversary. All she knew was that her name is Amy Delaney and that you, Sam Delaney, are her husband.”

      Sam felt rocked to his soul. If she knew she was his Amy, why had she told him her name was Adrienne Winston? What about this Vaughn person, had she mentioned him? One look at the closed expression on his brother’s face told him not to ask. “She actually told you, Doctor, that her name is Amy Delaney?”

      The doctor nodded. “Yes, but that’s about all she could tell me. She became very concerned that her amnesia would keep her in the hospital, but I assured her that we would probably only keep her overnight. Her head injury is relatively minor. With rest, she should be herself in a few days.”

      Sam tried to be relieved, but Casey’s doubts kept going through his mind. Maybe she really was Adrienne Winston. Maybe she lied about being Amy Delaney for the same reason she ran away.

      “Can I see her, Doctor?”

      “Of course, but try not to stay for long. She, and your baby, need her to rest as much as possible.”

      Sam nodded, but he was only going through the motions of understanding the doctor’s words. The fact was, he didn’t understand anything that had happened in the past few hours.

      A beeper went off. Both Casey and Dr. Yamana checked their devices. Dr. Yamana smiled. “Duty calls. I’ll check on your wife in a couple of hours, Mr. Delaney. Try not to worry. These things are usually temporary.”

      After she left, Sam looked at Casey. “Temporary? Is this the end, Casey? Has Amy finally remembered who she is after all these years?”

      Casey’s shrug was anything but casual. “We won’t know for sure until we talk to her.”

      Sam half laughed. “Then why