Chapter 1

Lila's POV

I was piping buttercream roses onto a wedding cake when my phone buzzed. Nathan's name on the screen, but a woman's voice.

"Mrs. Moore? This is Memorial Hospital. Your husband's been in a car accident."

The piping bag dropped. I didn't even feel it leave my hands. My heart just stopped. Then it started hammering so hard I thought I'd pass out right there on the bakery floor.

"Is he—" I couldn't get the words out.

"He's stable. But you should come now."

I grabbed my keys and ran.

I don't remember the drive. I don't remember parking. I just remember running through those automatic doors, still wearing my flour-covered apron, not giving a damn what anyone thought. A nurse pointed me toward his room and I ran faster.

The hallway went on forever. When I got to his room, I didn't knock. Just shoved the door open.

Nathan was sitting up in bed. Bandages around his head. But alive.

"Nathan!" I rushed over, reaching for him.

He pulled away.

Not mean. Not rough. But... careful. Like I was some random person getting in his space. His eyes met mine and there was nothing there. Just polite confusion.

My stomach dropped.

"I'm sorry," he said. His voice sounded wrong. "You are...?"

I grabbed the bed rail because my legs were shaking. "What?"

Nathan looked past me at someone in the corner. I turned. Nolan was there, leaning against the wall. I hadn't even noticed him. Nathan looked back at me. "I can't remember you. The doctor said I've lost some memories. I'm really sorry."

You don't remember me?

I couldn't say it at first. My throat closed up. When the words finally came out, they were barely a whisper. "You... you don't remember me?"

His face crumpled. "I don't. I'm so sorry. You obviously know me and I can see I'm hurting you, but it's just... gone. The doctors don't know if it'll come back."

I stared at Nolan. He nodded. It was real.

My husband was looking at me like a stranger.

"How much?" My voice cracked. "How much do you remember?"

"About three years ago. Everything after that..." He gestured helplessly. "Nothing."

Three years. It's exactly the time we met and fell in love, why did he conveniently forget about these years?

I couldn't breathe in that room. With Nathan's apologetic eyes with zero recognition. I had to get out.

"I should let you rest." I backed toward the door. My vision was blurring. "I'm glad you're okay."

"Wait—" Nathan called out.

I was already gone.

I pressed my back against the wall outside, hand over my mouth trying not to sob. He's alive. That's what matters. He's alive.

But he doesn't know me.

Doesn't remember our first date. Our wedding. Nothing.

"That woman..." Nathan's voice came through the half-open door. "I think I just fell in love at first sight."

I froze.

"The second I saw her, my heart went crazy." He sounded confused. Almost scared. "Is that normal? Feeling this way about a complete stranger? Nolan, what the hell is wrong with me?"

I looked through the crack in the door. Nathan was staring at his hands like they'd betrayed him. Nolan stood next to the bed, and I could see him biting back a smile.

"I'm serious," Nathan said. "She walked in and I couldn't breathe. And her eyes..." He stopped. Shook his head. "This is insane. I don't even know her name."

Nolan finally spoke. "Maybe you should rest."

"Rest? How am I supposed to rest?" Nathan laughed, but it sounded panicked. "I just fell in love with a stranger in a hospital room. That's not normal. That's—" He paused. "Wait. Do you know her? You didn't look surprised when she came in."

Nolan just patted his shoulder. Didn't answer.

I slid down the wall and sat on the cold floor. Tears streaming down my face, but I was smiling like an idiot.

He fell in love with me. Again. Without knowing who I am.

My phone buzzed. Text from Nolan: Give him a minute. Then come back. We need to talk.

I got up and found a bathroom down the hall. Splashed cold water on my face. Stared at myself in the mirror.

Three years ago, I was his executive secretary. The attraction was instant and completely inappropriate, he was my boss, I needed the job. But Nathan chased me anyway. "Working late" that was obviously a date. "Business dinners" at romantic restaurants.

After three months, he asked me to marry him. No big romantic moment. He just looked up from his desk one night and said, "Marry me, Lila. I don't want to waste time."

It was fast. It was impulsive. It was so Nathan, treating love like a business deal he needed to close. I said yes because I loved him. But sometimes I wondered what it would've been like if he'd actually courted me. Flowers. Love letters. Romance.

And now he didn't remember any of it. But he'd looked at me and fallen in love instantly.

An idea started forming. Crazy. Probably stupid.

What if I didn't tell him right away?

Nathan, trying to pursue me. No rushed proposal. No skipping to marriage. Just... a real courtship.

My phone buzzed. Nolan: I know that look. Whatever you're planning, I'm in.

I almost laughed.

The parking lot was empty when I left the hospital. I sat in my car under a streetlight, engine off.

Nathan said it himself. He fell in love with me at first sight.

I thought about our whirlwind romance. The quick wedding. First kiss to "I do" in three months. I love Nathan. God, I love him so much it scares me. But I always wondered. What if we'd taken our time? What if he'd really chased me? What if I'd gotten to feel pursued instead of just efficiently acquired?

My phone lit up. Nolan: He's asking about you. Wants to know everything. I'm not saying anything until we talk. But heads up, he's VERY interested.

I typed back: We need to talk. Soon.

His response was instant: I figured. Tomorrow morning? Coffee place near the hospital?

Yes.

I started the car but didn't leave yet.

Nathan Moore, I thought, smiling through the dried tears on my face. If you forgot, then let me see how you'll chase me the second time around.