Cyn. It had been over three weeks since I last saw Ace. I was running out of things to do around the house. I was used to doing everything and now I had absolutely nothing to do and it was driving me nuts. Today I was going to go to the hospital and see him. I had tried calling him but he never answered. I was sure our marriage was over and I was not going to wait for him to throw me out. I had to find out what was going on, being in the dark was killing me. I was about to try dialling his number again, when my bedroom door opened, "Hey beautiful," Paul said from the door, I liked Paul. Something about him always drew me to him. He seemed like a good guy, he always kept to himself. I also knew he was Ace's favourite and confidant which meant his loyalties were to him. "How are you feeling?" he asked smiling "I am good." I lied, looking away so that he could not see my tear filled eyes. "He just called." he said, and for some reason my heart got excited, I wanted to k
Kaya. We had lunch together, but the conversation was stilted and awkward. He would start to say something, but then he would stop, realising that I didn’t know who or what he was talking about. It was like for a moment he would forgot I didn't have all my memories back, which made me feel even worse. “Did you know Shelly and Charlie?”A slow smile slipped over his full lips. It was a nice smile, the kind that could make a girl have thoughts that weren’t altogether Christian. I found myself wondering if it was the smile that made me go out with him in the first place.“I know them well. You took me home with you for Christmas last year and we spent an entire week enduring their questions and crude jokes.”“I think I can figure out which was which.”He laughed, a nice, deep chuckle that came from somewhere deep in his chest.“Shelly really is the complete opposite of you.” I smiled, thinking of my kid sister only twelve in my mind. She was obsessed with that new British boy band, On
Ace. I closed the door and left her alone. It was nice to talk to her like this again. I had missed the back and forth we used to share so easily. Before everything changed, it had always been so easy to be with her. I had to believe we were going to get back to that. I went back to the sitting room and poured myself a drink. I stood there and stared at it for a while, thinking about everything that had happened. Had I done everything I should have done? Should I have tried harder to contact her parents? I knew they would be angry when they found out what had happened, that I didn’t try everything I could try to get word to them. But they were the ones who insisted on taking these cruises without their cellphones. They made it clear they didn’t want to be disturbed under any circumstances. But I knew these were special circumstances and they would have come home immediately had they known. And then they would have taken Kaya back to Texas with them. That was the last thing I wante
Ace. As soon as Kaya went back to the house, I sat there in silence looking at my phone. In that moment I was glad her memory was not back yet, what would happen if she finally knew, Cyn was the reason we broke up in the first place? She would never forgive me. What was Cyn thinking, asking me for a divorce, who did she think she suddenly was blackmailing me. I had to figure something out and quick. I also could not get rid of Cyn, my father would not take it lightly. As if on cue, my phone peeped and it was my father calling me. I had completely forgotten about our meeting, he had requested my presence and demanded I bring Cyn with me. I had just pissed Cyn off, there was no doubt she won't agree to come with me to my parents house. And even if she did, she might tell them about Kaya, and I could not take that risk. My family and Kaya's family had a history, a bad history and my father used every chance he got to remind me about it. A few years back, my father was in busine
Ace. Growing up, I had loved coming to the house in the I grew up in, but that felt like a hundred years ago. Now, as we neared the property, as Cyn sat beside me in the car, everything about her tense. It didn't feel the same anymore. I felt like I was walking into my own crucifixion. Cyb looked beautiful in the flower colored dress she had chosen, her auburn hair piled high on her head, dark eye makeup accenting the almond shape of her whiskey coloured eyes.I touched her knee as we pulled up to the security gate. She startled.“You will be fine. I will stay with you.”She nodded, but the tension kept rolling off her.I hated this. Knew as I waved to the guard and pulled around back to the garage that she was here to be shown around, shown off, a token of my father’s of my family's triumph.I also knew my father had not forgotten how mad I was at him for forcing me to marry her, and he would do everything in his power to have her alone with him so that he can drill the truth abo
AceAlice in Wonderland. My mother had loved the story, and my father had surprised her with the fresco. Tenderness was not a trait I associated with my father, but he had felt it. For her, at least. It was almost as though I never knew that version of him though, and in a way, it was sad.My father pulled out the chair beside him. “Cyn.”Fuck. The only other empty seat stood at the foot of the table, as far from her as physically possible, her footsteps dragged, and I had to nudge her forward. As the guests watched, I sat her down between my father and Duke and, hands fisted, I walked to the empty chair and took it. Cyn's eyes met mine, and I burned my warnings in the look that passed between us, knowing she wouk heed none of them.Servers began to pour wine, and conversation flowed. I watched the lecherous eyes of both my brother and father consume her. She remained between them, eyes on her plate, her face tense as she pulled her arms tighter to herself. I had come to know those li
Kaya. The house was so quiet as I came down the stairs from my nap. I almost didn't notice Ace sitting alone in the living room. "Hey, how did you sleep?" he asked as soon as he saw me. "Like a baby." i said smiling as I joined him on the sofa, "I feel so much better.""Well, I am glad to hear that." he said as he stretched out his arm for me to lie on his chest. "What are you doing sitting here in silence alone?" I asked looking around us. "I didn't want to wake you up, plus sometimes I love the silence." he said kissing me lightly on my forehead. This time I did not pull away or cringe. It felt good. "I am looking at some pictures of us, the things we did.""oooh," I said with uneasiness. Over the past few days, whenever we talked about our past it always seemed to end up badly. He would not admit it but he was so mad and angry at me that I didn't remember him or us or our life together. Today seemed like a good day, I didn't want to talk about our past. “This is from a we
Kaya.My hands started to shake. I thought for a moment that I might drop the ring. It felt so real, like it just happened. “Hey, are you okay?” Ace said touching my leg.I looked up at him, and I could see the laughter dancing in his eyes as it had the night we became engaged. We were so happy, he had been so happy to start a family with me. “We were supposed to have dinner with one of your clients. But when we got to the restaurant, you had rented the whole place for the night. There was a violinist and roses everywhere…red and yellow and that odd blue color that you said was twice as expensive so it must be the best.”His eyes widened and for the first time I saw his smile widen “You remember?”“You got down on your knee as soon as we walked inside because you said you were so nervous you were afraid you would lose your courage if you didn’t do it immediately. And I told you that you should have waited because if I had said no, it would have spoiled the dinner you arranged.”He n
Cyn. Nine Months LaterI started to laugh as my little sister twerked her way down the aisle of my parent’s Baptist church. If Daddy walked in and saw that, there would be hell to pay.Ace pulled me back against his chest as he, too, laughed, a rumbling laugh that came from deep in his chest. I loved to hear him laugh like that.“Do you dare me to do that during the ceremony tomorrow?” Shelly asked.“I’ll pay you five hundred dollars if you do,” Charlie called to her.I smacked my brother on the arm.“What?”“Don’t encourage her.”“Hey, someone’s got to inject a little levity into this whole affair.And it can’t be at my wedding because if you think our parents are bad, wait until you meet Vanessa’s.”“When’s Vanessa going to be here?”“In the morning.”“Cutting it close.”Ace’s arms tightened around my waist, his hands wrapping around my swollen belly. “I think we all are, aren’t we?”I groaned. This whole wedding thing wasn’t my idea. It was my dad’s. He insisted that we be married
AceCyn was taking so long getting the ice cream that I finally went to find her. As I was coming down the stairs, I thought I heard voices. And then I turned the corner into the sitting room just as a gun fired.All I could thing was, Fuck!Margaret was on the floor with Cyn tangled up next to her, and they were struggling over this damn big gun. I reached in, tried to untangle them and get one or both up on their feet. And then Margaret pressed the barrel of the gun against Cyn’s side and wrapped her finger around the trigger. I did the only thing I could think of and that was to grab her wrist and yank. I felt something give and then the gun went off.The next thing I know, Margaret’s on her feet, the gun pointed at my chest. There’s blood, but I can’t tell where it’s coming from. And Cyn is still on the floor.“Why, Ace?” Margaret asked, her wrist limp where I broke it trying to pull her away from Cyn. She calmly changed hands, holding the gun with her other hand now. She pointed
CynI curled up in the bed next to Ace and took another bite of pizza.“I’m sorry,” I said, as I nibbled at a slice of pepperoni.“For what?”“For not remembering you. For putting you through that whole ordeal.”“It’s not like it was your fault.”“It must have been hard, though, living here with me when I didn’t even know who you were.”He reached over and rubbed a smear of grease off my chin. “It was rough,” he said, his eyes softening as he studied my face, “being near you and not feeling free to touch you.”“It must have been surreal.”“It was…difficult.” He chuckled a little as he picked at his own piece of pizza. “I thought it was all over when your parents showed up and demanded that you go home with them.”“Yeah?”“I thought for sure that you would agree to go. I mean, I was standing there, imagining you and your mom in the spare room packing your things while your dad lectured me about forcing myself on you after you made it clear that you no longer wanted me.”“He would have,
AceI wanted her to stay at the house, but she refused. She clung to my hand as we walked into the restaurant, so tight that my bones were rubbing together. She was scared So was I.I spotted him at a table closest to the kitchen, a busy area that was a little concerning. I wasn’t sure how we could talk freely with all the traffic that was going past there, but, then again, it seemed logical. Everyone was so busy going about their own business that they wouldn’t even remember that much about us, let alone overhear much of our conversation.I don’t think I would be good at this terrorist stuff. I was too honest.The man Colin Francis. stood as we approached the table.“Cyn,” he said with genuine affection in his voice. “How are you?”Cyn smiled politely. “Good, thank you.”“And Ace.” He studied my face for a minute, then offered his hand with a polite smile. I shook it because I didn’t know what else to do.He gestured for us to take a seat. Cyn snatched my hand under the table once we
CynI wanted to stay there for…well, forever. I didn’t want him to let me go. I didn’t want his kiss to stop lingering against my lips. I wanted to feel his heart pounding under his shirt and the heat of his skin, the heat that proved just how alive he was, to forever warm me up. He was my reasonfor getting out of bed in the morning and for facing life with a smile and a little skip in my step.“I love you,” he whispered against my lips.“I love you, too.”He ran his finger along the angle of my jaw. “I kind of like your hair like this. I can see every inch of your face all the time.”I groaned. “You would.”“Don’t you like it?”I laughed. “I should go to the hospital for all my haircuts.”He chuckled before pressing his lips to my forehead.“You look like a pixie. Or a little fairy.”“Gee, thanks.”“That’s a good thing, isn’t it?”I ran my hand up his chest again before letting it slide down, hooking my fingers under the waist of his slacks.“If you like it, I would go bald. Wear a
AceCyn was hiding something from me. I wasn’t sure what it was, and I didn’t like it. But I told myself she wouldn’t do it if she didn’t think it was important.I watched her pace the porch outside the back doors, the way that boot caused her just the slightest limp. Two months ago, the doctor said she would have a definitive limp if she ever woke up. Her recovery was remarkable, but everything about Cyn had always been remarkable.“How can you be with the woman who might send me to jail?”“How can you be with the man who got us all into this position in the first place?”My mom crossed her arms over her chest, a defiant look taking over the attractive features that once made her a very beautiful woman. Now she was tired. A very tired and broken woman.“I trusted that Grant would do the right thing.”“And I know that Cyn’s only doing what she thinks will protect us all.”“She almost went to the press with paperwork that shows Grant was working with terrorists. If it didn’t send him t
CynI had dreams about her even when I didn’t know who she was.Dreams that I knew now were a mixture of memory and something else, something angry inside of me.As I came out of my coma, I dreamed I was in a dress shop with a dark-haired woman I didn’t know. I remembered thinking this woman had betrayed me even though I couldn’t say if she had been a friend or a foe.And then again, later, I had the same dream. But this time we were arguingabout Ace, about the marriage I hadn’t learned about until the day Ace and I went to get our marriage license.We did fight about it. Not in a bridal shop. My mind had mixed that up for some reason. But the words had been the same.“I can’t believe you would betray me that way! Why wouldn’t you tell me something like that? I thought we were friends. You were supposed to be a part of my wedding, for God’s sakes!”“It wasn’t my place to tell you. Ace should have done it.”“But we worked together all this time”“I thought he’d already told you. I tho
Ace “Mom.”I wasn’t downstairs five minutes when the doorbell rang and my mom shoved past me.“What are you doing, Ace ? Why do you have that woman in this house again?”“Hi, Mom. Glad to see you. Come on in.”She whirled around and looked at me as if I had lost my mind.“Answer my question. Margaret tells me she has been here for weeks and younever bothered to tell anyone. She says you wouldn’t have told her if it weren’t for the fact that Cyn was still working on that damn mural thing at the center.”“Cyn was in an accident. She cracked her skull and was in a coma for a little more than two weeks.”“Months ago.”“And she woke up with amnesia.”“So you say. But how do we know it’s true? After what she did…”“She didn’t actually do anything.”My mom glared at me as if I’d said that the sky was green. She shook her head, pacing the length of the room, pausing briefly at the back doors. When she lifted her hand to touch the cool glass, I could see that it was shaking.“You are worried
CynI must have fallen asleep. I rolled over and Ace was gone. I could hear the water in the shower running and the slight buzz of a cellphone vibrating. It took me a minute to realize the cellphone was in the pocket of my sweats. I leaned over the bed and grabbed them, freeing the cellphone just before the call would have been sent to voice mail.“Hello?”“I didn’t think you were going to answer!”“Sorry. I got a little distracted.”Paul cleared his throat, his imagination clearly supplying information I hadn’t. “Yes, well,” he mumbled as he cleared his throatagain, “he has agreed to meet with you today.”“Good.”“He’ll meet you at Conti’s. Do you know where that is?”“Yes, I think so.”“Two o’clock.”“Thank you, paul.”“Be careful, Cyn. The last time you went to meet with this guy…”“I know. I will be careful.”I disconnected the call just as Ace appeared in the bathroom doorway, nothing but a towel around his waist.“Who was that?”“Paul.”I climbed out of bed and went to him, kis