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“You don’t remember the crash?”
“No. Not really.”
“Oh, Holly. I’m so sorry. Didn’t Jack come in?” She looked toward the door as though expecting to see him there. “I got busy with my rounds. I assumed he was in here…”
“I told them I wasn’t ready to see him.”
Gemma’s face fell. “So, you’ve been in here all alone?”
I gave a slight nod. “Rachel’s on her way up from Newport Beach.”
“Oh, honey, I’m sorry. Do you want me to find Jack and tell him you’re ready to—”
“No!”
Gemma frowned. “Why not?”
“I don’t want him to see me like this and he can’t know about the baby. I haven’t told him yet.”
One of Gemma’s brows lifted. “Wow. You really don’t remember, do you? He knows about the baby. He said you told him, back at the shop, and you two got into it. He was chasing after your car when you hit that guard rail and went over…”
“What?”
She nodded.
“How come I don’t remember that?” I scratched back through my memories, desperate to snag the hours before waking up in the hospital bed. I’d told Jack about the baby.
“It’ll come back to you. Dr. Nolan doesn’t think the head trauma will result in long-term memory loss.”
I sighed. “I guess I should talk to him but I don’t know what to say. Can you just—can you tell him to go home?”
“Holly—”
“No, I’m serious. I don’t have anything to say. Everything is so crazy right now. I woke up this morning, went to work, it was just any other day and then—” A memory pricked at the back of my mind—lunch with Noah. The bathroom at the restaurant. Tina. The big-boobed pilot. “Gemma!”
She jumped at the snap to my voice. “What?”
“Who is the brunette that works for Aaron?”
“Kourtney?”
The name didn’t sound familiar. “Who is she?”
Gemma shrugged one of her shoulders. “She’s a pilot. Moved to Holiday Cove from the Bay Area. She’s a nice girl, although she’s getting a bit of a party-girl reputation around town. But hey, she’s twenty-two.”
“Jack was with her.”
“I think they did a flight together…yes…”
“No. I mean he was with her. Tina, from Harvey’s told me about it. That’s why I was at the museum. That’s why Jack and I were fighting. That’s why…that’s why all of this even happened!”
Gemma’s eyes went wide. “Are you sure? Aaron hasn’t said anything…”
“I’m sure.”
She looked back at the door. “Do you want me to talk to him? See what’s going on?”
“No. Just tell him that I’m fine and that we’ll talk about…everything…later.”
Gemma gave a slight nod. “About the baby? Why didn’t you tell me, Holly? I would have kept it quiet until you were ready.”
I reached for her hand. “It’s not that I didn’t trust you, Gemma. Please don’t think that. I only told Carly a few days ago. Rachel doesn’t even know. I think at first I was in a little bit of denial over the whole thing and needed a little time to sit with it and figure out my plans before bringing in a bunch of other people.”
“Okay. Well, know that regardless of what happens, Aaron and I are here for you guys. All of you.”
“Thanks, Gemma.”
She stood from the bed. “I should get back to my patients. I’ll stop in and see you before I clock out later. Do you need anything right now?”
I shook my head. “I don’t think so.”
“No pain?”
“No.” I looked down at myself, mostly covered by the thin hospital sheets. I hadn’t seen the damage to my body but from what one of the nurses told me, I was going to be stiff and sore for a good while as I healed up from the bruised ribs, chest, and cuts and bruises on my torso, arms, and face. “I think I look worse than I feel. At least judging by the way people look at me.”
Gemma smiled. “You look beautiful, as always, just a little more…purple, right now.”
I laughed softly and felt a twinge of pain in my ribs. “Oh! Remind me not to do that…”
“Sorry.”
“Any chance you can have Carly sneak me some lemon bars?”
Gemma laughed. “I’ll see what I can do.” She opened the door and stopped, straddling the line between my room and the hallway. She looked out into the hall and even from across the room, I could see the worry in her eyes. She dragged her stare back to me.
I sighed. “He’s still there?”
“He’s been here since he brought you in. Are you sure you won’t see him? Just so he knows you’re okay?” Gemma asked as she walked back toward me. Her tone wasn’t judgmental, but I could tell from the look in her eyes that she thought I should let Jack into the room.
“I can’t. Not right now. Can you tell him I’m okay?”
Gemma sighed. “All right. And I’ll tell him to go home. Maybe tomorrow? That way you’ll have some time to think?”
