A Million Kisses or More (43 page)

A dark smile curved his lips as he inhaled deeply and caught another whiff of Ana. God, she was everywhere! He needed some air to clear his head before he actually flew off to California and tore through the state looking for her. Pushing himself back onto his feet and grabbing his crutches, he called out, “Mom? I’ll be right back. I’m just going to get some air.”

He didn’t wait for an answer as he hobbled over to the door and pulled it open. The first thing he saw was the limousine sitting in his neighbor’s driveway, one of those elegant models that weren’t too ostentatious. The front door of the house opened and Ana stood there, her back towards him as she continued to talk to whomever was still inside the house. He froze as a rush of memories came flooding back, all of his memories from the last six months. But what he knew with what he remembered didn’t make sense. She loved him but she was pregnant with another man’s child? No, something was definitely missing.

God, it was a thing of beauty to see her standing there with the summer sun shining in her strawberry hair. He wished she would turn around so he could see her face. It never even occurred to him to wonder what she was doing there. With his memories back where they belonged, he realized she must have just arrived, that she was finally there. It must have taken her a few days to take care of things at work so she could come to him. Had she traded her car in for the luxury car he had assumed was a limo?

“Ana,” he breathed, her name coming automatically to his lips. As if hearing his whispered word, her head shot up and she spun around. A million watt smile lit her face as she saw him standing there like a fool. Without hesitation, she ran down the steps, ran past the sleek, black car, ran across the road, and threw herself against his body, careful of his broken bones. Standing on her tiptoes, she wrapped herself around him as tears fell down her face.

“Harrison. I didn’t think I’d get to see you before I left,” she breathed, pelting his face with kisses as he awkwardly hugged her back with his broken arm and his good arm. Suddenly, she stiffened and started to pull back but he couldn’t let her go, reveling in her scent, her touch. Relaxing only a small amount, she laughed self-consciously as she looked up at him and wiped the tears from her eyes. “You must be so confused right now, having a strange woman throw herself at you….”

“I know who you are,” he said softly, brushing his thumb over her damp cheeks.

Slowly, her lips curved into a smile that became more and more luminous. “You remember me? Your memories are back? Thank god!”

Wrapping her arms around his neck, she was back on her toes as she hugged him for all that she was worth. Despite the conflicting emotions warring in his head, his chest, he choked out, “Ana. You’re pregnant? I don’t remember you telling me.”

Her head snapped back and she looked at him, her teeth worrying her lower lip as she nodded slowly. “I hadn’t meant to keep it from you but everything happened and then you didn’t remember me and I wasn’t sure what to do.”

“I never forgot you,” he rasped, his heart trying to punch through his chest. “Only the last couple of months.”

“That’s not what….” her brow furrowed a moment before she shook her head and smiled blindingly. “It doesn’t matter. Anyway, as I was saying, I didn’t know… I didn’t even realize because I kept getting my periods but the doctor says that happens sometimes, which sucks, by the way. Oh! You probably don’t remember your trip to California….”

“I remember. Seeing you brought it all back,” he interrupted. He wasn’t going to be stupid enough to ask if the baby was his, especially since he could feel it in his bones that it was, that Ana had never cheated on him. His memories started to make sense and the dark cloud that had been hanging over his head for the last few days suddenly vanished.

Tilting her head to the side as an adorable little frown marred her forehead once more, she asked, “You’re brain isn’t damaged at all, is it?”

Glancing behind her at the limousine, he swallowed thickly against the painful lump in his throat. Avoiding her eyes, he asked, “Is that why you’re leaving? Because you thought I was mentally damaged?”

“Of course,” she said, the words making him squeeze his eyes shut in pain. But then she continued, “You couldn’t very well fall in love with me again if I was in California. But you memories aren’t lost forever so we don’t have to start over, thank god.”

His heart was in his throat as he looked down and saw the absolute love and devotion burning in her eyes. How could he have ever doubted her? “Then why are you leaving?”

“Well, I flew home as soon as I learned you were in the hospital….” she started to explain.

When she opened her mouth to continue, he blurted, “But you hate to fly.”

“You were in the hospital,” she explained slowly, as if there
was
something wrong with his brain. “I dropped everything so I could be by your side.”

“You were there that night,” he said softly, almost to himself. At her nod, the last piece of the puzzle fell into place and warmth filled his soul, making him feel as if he could fly. It had all gotten jumbled up because he woke up with her in his arms but he knew she was in California. Doctor Thompson was right when she said that brains were funny things.

“Anyway,” Ana continued, unaware of the intense joy rushing through his veins. “I was going to fly out to California and get my car and then I was going to drive to Arizona because my parents are getting married… re-married, and then I was going to drive back home.”

Cocking his head to the side, still afraid to hope despite the wealth of evidence, he asked, “Home? Here?”

“Yes,” she laughed, her eyes sparkling with happy tears.

Grinning, he hugged her tight, wishing he could spin her around despite the crutches and broken bones. “I love you, Anavrin.”

“I love you, too,” she said without correcting him for calling her Anavrin.

He entwined his fingers with hers and felt the unmistakable hardness of a ring. Taking her hand, he held it up and saw the engagement ring he had given her six months before. Seeing his ring on her finger erased whatever lingering doubts he had and he couldn’t help but kiss her again. Tasting her, having her so close, he never wanted to be apart from her again.

Breaking off the kiss, she looked up at him through her lashes. After a moment, she licked her lower lip before she caught it between her teeth and said, “Come with me, both you and Jolie. It’s summer so school shouldn’t be a problem, I’m assuming you have some time off since your arm and leg are in a cast, and I want you to be there.”

Without thinking, still flying high on the euphoria of the past couple of minutes, he nodded his head, “Yes.”

She squealed as she dragged him back into his house, talking as they walked. “You start packing and I’ll go ask the driver to wait a few more minutes and we can get going.”

“Ana,” he tried to protest. “I don’t have a plane ticket.”

She waved her hand through the air, “My sister sent the company plane to take us back. Oh! This is perfect! You’ll get to meet Abby, too!”

Now that he had had a moment to think about what he was doing, he was starting to have second thoughts. As far as he knew, his family was furious at Ana because of something she wasn’t guilty of doing, Jolie was still uncertain about how she felt towards Ana, and despite the fact that he loved the idea of flying off with Ana, he had responsibilities….

“Don’t think about it too much, my love,” Ana said, her laughing voice interrupting his worries. “If all goes according to plan, you’ll be able to write full time wherever we live.”

“What are you talking about?” he asked.

“I have so much to tell you,” she gushed, wiping the joyful tears from her cheeks, smiling up at him with her whole heart. “First, I read your latest book and it was amazing, Harrison, absolutely amazing. The depth you have given to Justice… it took my breath away. Oh! And I have the best news ever!”

He stared at her in awe, grateful that his memories had returned, grateful that she was his. Cupping her cheeks in his hands, he grinned down at her, “What could possibly be better than you having my baby?”

Color stained her cheeks, her throat, as she lowered her lashes and gave him a soft smile. A moment later she looked and him with shining eyes and an even wider smile as she told him, “Abby is working on getting Justice Kane to the big screen! Couldn’t you just die? Winter Mitchell,
the
Winter Mitchell, has even expressed an interest in playing Justice!”

He blinked, trying to absorb everything she was saying, but it was too much. Brushing his thumb over her lips, he shook his head, “Ana, I don’t want that anymore.”

“But it’s your dream,” she said, the confusion apparent in her face.

“Ana, Ana, Ana,” he sighed, his lips curling up into a smile as he rested his forehead against hers. His heart swelled with love for this amazing woman. “I only want you.”

She sighed as she melted against him and he knew that if he kissed her, it wouldn’t be just a kiss. But the damn car honked its horn and she pulled back, giving him a longing smile. “I should take care of that. Don’t go anywhere, Harrison, I’ll be right back.”

With those words, she flew back out the door, leaving him standing in the middle of his living room.

“Was that Ana just now?” his mother asked from the kitchen, her lips pressed together in a furious line. Jesus, how had he forgotten his mother was there?

“It was,” he answered, scrubbing his fingers through his hair. Holding his head, his crutches managing to stay beneath his armpits, he looked at his mom and said, “Jolie and I are heading out to California with her.”

His mom crossed her arms beneath her breasts and glared at him. Tapping her foot, she bit out, “Seriously, Harrison? She comes bouncing in here, bats her eyes at you, and you fly after her like a lost puppy? She’s carrying another….”

“It’s my baby,” he said, the words filling him with awe as he realized the wonder of it, the wonder of Ana. When his mother snorted in disbelief, he glared at her, “There is no doubt in my mind, mother, not a single one.”

His mom’s jaw dropped as she studied him. Trying to save some face, she huffed, “I hope you don’t think you have to marry her….”

“We’re already engaged,” he interrupted, unable to stop the smile from curving his lips. Grinning like a loon, he repeated the words, “We’re already engaged.”

“How do you know this?” she asked, shaking her head in bemusement. Planting her hands on her hips, still tapping her foot, she gave him a look of disbelief. “She could be telling you what you want to hear.”

“Seeing her brought it all back,” he said, his cheeks hurting from smiling so hard.

His mom pressed her lips together as her foot finally stopped tapping. “But the article….”

“It was a misunderstanding,” Ana said from behind him. “I kept trying to tell you guys that but….”

“We didn’t listen,” his mom finished, a look of horror twisting her face as she looked from him to Ana and then back. “Oh, god, all of this time… if we only knew… but we thought….”

As his mom muddled through her memories of the past week, Ana quietly slid her hand into his and leaned her head against his shoulder. Despite the ache in his bones, his pits, there was nowhere else he’d rather be. Softly, Ana asked, “Are you almost ready to go?”

“Yes,” he murmured, kissing the top of her head.

The color drained from his mother’s face as she gasped, “You are planning on coming back, aren’t you?”

“Of course,” Ana assured her. Wrapping her other hand around his arm, giving him a slight hug, she said, “I just want him and Jolie all to myself for a little while.”

Harrison watched as his mom swallowed and physically had to bite her tongue, both of them knowing that Ana had won without having to lift a single finger. He couldn’t blame his family, of course, since they were just doing what they thought was best. It wasn’t their fault that they didn’t know that Ana was what was best.

“You’ll have to stop by our house to pick Jolie up,” his mom said, her color still ashen. Squaring her shoulders, she asked, “I suppose you’ll want to pack more stuff?”

“Thank you, Mrs. Miller,” Ana said softly, gracious in her victory.

“Yes, well,” his mom sniffed. “Just don’t run off and get married. We’ll plan the wedding after you get back.”

“Fair enough,” Ana said and he could hear the smile in her voice. “As long as you don’t mind me looking like a whale when I walk down the aisle.”

“Hey,” his mom scolded. Nodding towards Ana’s midsection, she said, “That’s my grandchild in there. You can be the size of a small planet and I wouldn’t care. Now, get going and I’ll meet you back at my place in a little while. Oh, and Ana?”

“Yes, Mrs. Miller?” Ana said, a hitch in her voice. That and the way she tightened her grip on his arm were the only indications that she was uneasy.

“I should have listened to you when you asked to see my son,” his mom said, taking a cautious step forward. With a remorseful smile, she added, “After everything he has gone through, I hadn’t wanted to see Harrison suffer any more and I may have over reacted. I am sorry.”

Tears filled Ana’s eyes and her smile wobbled as Ana took his mom’s hand in her own. “I completely understand. When it comes to Harrison, I’d become a Berserker to protect him.”

With only a moment’s hesitation, his mom closed the distance between them and hugged Ana. With a hoarse voice, she murmured, “Welcome to the family, Ana.”

“Thank you,” Ana rasped again.

With that, his mom turned and rushed out of the house, promising to have Jolie ready in an hour. As soon as his mom left, he turned to Ana and smiled down at her, “Hey, you.”

Reaching up, she cupped his cheek, her eyes moving over his face in a loving caress that he could feel in his soul. “I’ve missed you.”

With that, she was in his arms and they stumbled over to the couch, his crutches lost somewhere along the way. Her fingers flew over his shirt, his pants, as she tugged his clothes off. And then she was naked, too, her body pressed against his. Panting, she said, “I’ll be careful.”