Page 6 of Running to You

She voiced it as if he’d be able to confirm or deny.

Daniel asked, “Where do you work?”

“At an investment firm in Portsmouth.”

She had, once upon a time.

“Do you have any drug allergies?”

“No.”

Daniel looked at Sam as if he should know. He didn’t remember drug allergies. He did remember her taking over-the-counter pain meds.

He nodded to the bottle of pills. “She can take those.”

Daniel took the mug from her and poured four pills into her palm. “These’ll help with the headache.”

She put them in her mouth, then drank from the glass Sam held out.

“You’ve got a head injury,” Dan said, “and it’s affecting your memory. We’re going to get you to a hospital—”

“No!” Her eyes widened, then found Sam again. “I can’t go to the hospital. I can’t.”

“Okay.” In response to the terror radiating off her, Sam’s body tensed as if preparing for a fight. “Nobody’s going to make you do anything.”

“You need tests.” Daniel ignored Sam’s interjection. “We need to find out why you can’t remember—”

“I can’t go to the hospital.”

“Why?” Sam asked. “What will happen?”

She looked from him to Daniel, then to Camilla, who stood behind the table. “Please, don’t make me go. I can’t go.”

“Okay, that’s okay.” Camilla spoke as if to a small, frightened child. “We’ll talk about it tomorrow. Maybe things will be clearer in the morning.”

In the morning.

Which meant she’d have to stay somewhere tonight. Sam had no idea where she lived. After she’d left him, she’d blocked his number. He hadn’t heard from her—or about her, or even seen her on social media—in five years. He had seen her in person once, six months before.

In Salt Lake City. A long, long way from his house in coastal Maine.

Apparently, Eliza would be staying here tonight. Under his roof, in a room just down the hall.

So different from when they’d been together. Five years before, she’d have stayed not only in his house but in his bed.

He wasn’t going there again, not with any woman, and certainly not this woman. She’d ripped his heart out. No way was he handing it over again.

Sam liked being alone. And yet his stomach did a stupid little flip at the idea of her staying. As if it could last.

As if there might be a chance.

* * *

Sam leaned against the wall outside the guest room. Since Daniel and Camilla were occupying the larger guest suite on the other side of the house, Eliza would need to stay in this one, right down the hall from the master bedroom. It had a full bath, and Camilla was in there now with Eliza, helping her get cleaned up and ready for bed.

The shower had gone off thirty minutes before. He thought he’d heard the hum of a hair dryer. How long could it possibly take her to get ready for bed? He’d need to get her proper clothes. Maybe Camilla could loan her something to get through the next day. They were about the same height, though Eliza was thinner than Sam’s sister-in-law. Too thin, in his opinion. She’d lost some of the curves he’d liked so much.

Finally, the door opened.