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“I have an ex-husband,” I say.
He nods. “I know.”
“His name is Henry Armstrong.”
His silence tells me he knows this, too.
Something flips in my stomach, but I continue. “I have a restraining order against him, but it might be useful to… find him.”
“He’s in California.”
I jerk back. It’s not enough distance, with the way my skin suddenly crawls. I didn’t have a reaction to the name, but to this?
I go to the window. It’s a good view in the daytime—almost as pretty as everything lit up at night. I can see Jacob’s reflection in the glass. He’s standing behind me with his hands in his pockets.
California.
“Where in California?” The word tastes foreign on my tongue. I can’t imagine going there, or living there, or… I don’t know. “California,” I repeat, just to test.
He shakes his head. “I don’t know. I’ll find out when we get to New York tomorrow.”
“Okay.” I stop. “No, I can’t go to New York tomorrow. I have things to do. I need to get on with my life, Jake.”
He stops.
Hell,Istop. “Why did I call you that?” I force a laugh. “Sorry.Jacob.”
“Melody.” He comes up beside me and runs his knuckles up my arm.
I hate and love when he does it, because goosebumps unerringly rise in their wake.
“You can call me Jake.”
He leans into my back. I press my palms to the glass, but I’m unprepared for him to slide my hair off my shoulder. His lips touch the crook of my neck, and more goosebumps rise on my back.
“Call me Jake, Melody.”
“Jake,” I repeat, tilting my head to give him more room.
He takes advantage, kissing a trail up my neck. He nips my earlobe, and heat flushes under my skin.
“Have you called me darling before?”
He stops.
I kind of regret asking, but the need to know outweighs it. I face him and wait.
“I haven’t. Do you remember something?”
“Just that the word makes me feel…awful.” I wince. “I know how that sounds, but—”
“It’s a fair question,” he interrupts. “I get it. The search for memories isn’t going to be easy. If you remember anything.”
Right.
“I called you songbird.”
That feels…right. Although— “I can’t sing for shit.”
