The Tuesday Morning Collection

  Infection in Jake's arm had set in a week ago, and at one point Jake's fever had spiked to nearly 104 degrees. Dr. Cleary explained that infection was common where second-degree burns and lacerations were concerned, and rather than send Jake home on antibiotics, he'd kept him in the hospital and administered them through an IV. Jake had finished the treatment a full twenty-four hours ago, so there was nothing more to keep Jake in the hospital.

  Jamie was actually glad.

  For one thing, she no longer had any doubts that the man in the bed beside her was her husband, Jake. Even with his painful-looking burns, the face was definitely Jake's. The blue eyes and rugged lines that had been his trademark since he was a teenager. Regardless of his memory loss, this was the man she had married. In some ways Jamie wished the bandages had come off earlier—back when she'd been crazy with fear that somehow there'd been a mistake, a mix-up. At first she'd dreaded Jake's homecoming, especially the idea of setting him up in a guest room when he belonged in bed beside her. Now that she was sure the man was Jake, she was beyond anxious to get him home and help him regain his memory.

  Over the past ten days—while Jake's father stayed at the house with Sierra—Jamie had spent every day and several nights at the hospital, cozying up in a chair next to his bed and covering herself with whatever blankets the nurses could find for her. In the process something was happening.

  She and Jake were becoming friends.

  The connection between them had come gradually, in small bits of conversation and shy glances, but it was happening. That much was obvious. They'd be watching a rerun of the Cosby Show on his hospital TV, and they'd laugh at the same funny line. Then he would shoot a quick look in her direction, and she'd see something familiar. The hint of a sparkle in his eyes, the seeds of a smile.

  She had asked Jake if he wanted to play cards or read or work on a puzzle while he was in the hospital, and he'd tried all three. He couldn't remember any card games, but one day last weekend he stared out the window for a moment until suddenly his eyes lit up. “Backgammon. I think I know how to play backgammon.”

  “Okay.” The statement had taken Jamie by surprise. The two of them had played backgammon back when they were first married, but only for one summer. They were too active to spend much time indoors, and both of them quickly tired of the game.

  But still, if Jake remembered it, that had to be a good sign. Jamie had dug through their basement storage area, found the old backgammon set she'd bought years earlier, and brought it to the hospital. Since then they'd played it several times each day, and more often lately, Jake would make a move and follow it with a friendly comment or competitive gibe. Something like “Try beating that” or “Nice move.”

  Constantly, Jamie would catch herself wanting to share some memory with him, something about Sierra or some time in their past, but always she caught herself. Dr. Cleary had been adamant that at first all communication had to be kept in the present. As though they were starting all over again.

  One afternoon, when they'd had enough backgammon, Jamie found an old puzzle in the hospital waiting room and set it out at the end of Jake's bed. His ankle was still in the cast, but he slid it over to create a surface for the puzzle. For three hours straight, they worked the pieces into first a frame, and then a complete picture. Every few minutes their fingers would brush against each other while they worked, and sometimes Jamie would lift her eyes to find him watching her.

  She'd been tempted to bring Jake's journal and his Bible into the hospital, but in the end she decided to wait. It'd be better for him to read those while sitting on their bed—sometime when Jamie wasn't around. He might remember better that way, encouraged by the combination of a familiar setting and deeply precious words that not so long ago had meant the world to him.

  Instead, she'd brought him John Grisham novels—his favorite before getting hurt. She had laid three of them out on his bedside and watched while he picked them up, one at a time, and looked them over.

  “Interesting.” He'd lifted his eyes to hers.

  “You remember them?” Jamie had been breathless, having walked up the stairs to his floor. She wasn't working out, wasn't playing racquetball or jet-skiing. If it wasn't for the stairs, she'd go stir crazy with how sedentary her life had become.

  “No.” He looked at the books again. “But I'll try to read them.”

  Jake's reading skills were fine, but his headaches weren't. Whenever he tried to read more than a few paragraphs, he'd close his eyes and rub them, grimacing from the pain. At that point she'd take over, reading the text out loud, stopping now and then when he'd have a question.

  “So, wait a minute. Is the book about that guy or the other one?”

  “Which one?”

  “The one in the first chapter.”

  Once in a while Jamie's mind would go blank, and Jake would raise an eyebrow at her. “Hey, I'm the one with amnesia, okay?”

  They would both giggle, and the sound of their combined laughter would ring so clear and true in Jamie's heart she would be convinced beyond a doubt that Jake was returning to her. That he was making his way back through the mire of forgotten moments to a place where they could live and love and laugh again, a place where they could resume life where they'd left off.

  There'd been hard times that week too. Times when she'd be staring at Jake, watching him sleep, and he would wake up and see her. Instead of the smile she was used to, he'd jerk back, his eyes filled with confusion and fear. “Where am I?” he'd ask. Other times he'd sit straight up in bed glancing around the room, caught in some nightmare.

  Jamie was handling those moments better now, because all of Dr. Cleary's predictions were coming true. She was becoming her husband's friend, and once they were able to go home—in just a few hours now—that friendship would grow until finally the flashbacks began. After that it would only be a matter of weeks before he would remember everything about his past and they could get on with the business of living.

  Jake was still sleeping, so Jamie kept her voice to barely a whisper as she called Jim Bryan and told him the news.

  “He's coming home.” She was excited, but she could hear the fear and doubts in her voice all the same. They had miles of ground to claim back before she could truly celebrate. “His burns look good and the infection's gone.”

  “What time should I be there?”

  “One o'clock.” Jamie soaked in the sight of Jake. Even with his burns he was handsome, and if he never looked the same again, that didn't matter. His memory was worth more than anything else.

  “I'll get Sierra ready.”

  They'd made the plan days ago. When it was time for Jake to come home, his father would bring Sierra and leave her with Jamie and Jake. Then the older Bryan would head back home straight from the hospital, just as Dr. Cleary had ordered. Jamie had left her car at the ferry parking lot back in Staten Island. She and Jake and Sierra would take a cab to the ferry, make their way across the harbor, and then drive their car home.

  Jake's father had decided that once he went home, he'd take a driving trip across the country to visit his brother-in-law in Arizona. He'd spend a few months there until Jake was better and could handle visits.

  Jamie sat back to wait. All the hours and days of living at the hospital and wondering when Jake would be well enough to go home were finally coming to an end. The first part of the nightmare was almost over. The tips of her fingers trembled as she folded her hands and counted the minutes.

  Just before noon someone brought in two meal trays and Jake's release papers. An hour later a familiar nurse showed up with crutches and a wheelchair. “Your chariot, Mr. Bryan.”

  Jamie carried the crutches and a bag full of cards and gifts from her and Sierra and the guys at the station.

  “You two need a cab?” The nurse glanced at Jamie as she wheeled Jake down the hallway, into the elevator, and out to the front of the hospital.

  “Not yet. We're waiting for my father-in-law.”

&nbs
p; The woman helped Jake from the wheelchair to his feet, and Jamie handed him the crutches, working to fit them under his arms. Jake was thinner than before, ten, maybe fifteen pounds, and the size in his shoulders had atrophied some. But the doctor had said that was normal after an extended hospital stay.

  Jamie's fingers brushed along the length of Jake's arms as she helped him tighten his grip on the hand rests of each crutch. The feel of her fingers against his muscled arm was more familiar than anything she'd experienced since he'd been hurt. He'd lost some weight, but his arms were still lean and defined, the way they'd always been. Suddenly, his nearness made her heartbeat double, and she chided herself. Come on, Jamie. Platonic … remember?

  The nurse took a step back and smiled at them through teary eyes. Then she patted Jake on the shoulder. “Listen now …” She uttered a cough and tried to regain her composure. “You stay away from here, okay? We need you heroes back on the streets.”

  “Okay.” Jake leaned into the crutches and tried to smile.

  Jamie saw the now familiar confusion in his eyes. When the woman was gone, Jake's father pulled up in his Lincoln sedan, with Sierra buckled into the backseat. He stopped the car and helped her out.

  The moment she was free, her face lit up, and she darted across the sidewalk to Jake. “Daddy!” She grinned at Jamie for a brief moment and then threw her arms around her father's legs. “You're coming home!”

  Jamie studied Jake's face. She could see the awkwardness he was struggling with, and for a second, she feared what he might say. But then he smiled, and she sighed with relief.

  “Hi, Sierra.” He cast a hurried look at Jamie, and then back at Sierra. “I missed you, honey.”

  Jake's father nodded at Jamie. “We'll be talking, okay?”

  She went to him and hugged him. “Thanks for everything.” She pulled back and searched his eyes. “I couldn't have done it without you.”

  “Let me know when he starts to remember.” Jake's father cast a casual look at Jake. “Take care of yourself. I'll be praying for you.”

  Jake nodded but said nothing. He let his gaze fall to his hands.

  Without drawing out the moment any further, Jim Bryan waved once more at Jamie and kissed Sierra on the cheek. Then he climbed in his car and pulled away. After he was gone, Sierra grabbed hold of Jamie's fingers, and with the other hand, she clasped the lower part of Jake's left crutch. Jamie flagged down a cab, and when it pulled up, they climbed in—Jake on one side of Sierra, Jamie on the other.

  “Ferry docks, please.” Jamie turned her attention to Sierra. She couldn't remember when she'd seen the child so happy, and the best part was this—Sierra had no idea about Jake's memory loss. Dr. Cleary had said it was better that way, and that her assumption that all things were normal with Jake might help Jake's memory return sooner.

  “Okay, Daddy.” Sierra bounced up and down on the seat. “Let's sing.”

  Jake shifted so that his back was partially against the car door. “Sing?”

  “Come on, Daddy.” Sierra giggled. “The song we always sing when we're in the car.”

  Jake lifted his eyes above their daughter and sent Jamie a desperate look. “Help!” He mouthed the word so that Sierra would miss the exchange.

  Jamie cleared her throat and cut in on the moment. “Honey, Daddy's voice is still a little scratchy. How 'bout you and me start it.”

  Sierra's eyes clouded some. “Okay. It's the song me and Daddy sing when we go to church.”

  Again Jake met Jamie's eyes. This time he whispered just one word. “Church?”

  Jamie nodded and had to resist the urge to laugh out loud. As hard as the next few months would be, she would survive it better by looking for the humor. And the idea that Jake Bryan didn't know he attended church was so strange it was almost comical.

  Jamie cleared her throat. “I think I can give it a try.”

  “But, Mommy …” Sierra's expression was part frown, part pout. “You don't know it.”

  Jamie raised her eyebrows at her daughter. “I think I can pull it off.” She paused a beat and began to sing. “Jesus loves me,” Jamie let her eyes move from Sierra to Jake, “this I know …”

  Sierra sat a little straighter and chimed in. “For the Bible tells me so….”

  The song continued, and Jamie studied Jake's face, looking for any sign of recognition. Now and then something familiar lit up his eyes, and by the time Sierra began the second round, Jake joined in, his raspy voice joining theirs. As he did, Jamie gradually stopped and fell silent. In that moment she couldn't have sung if she'd wanted to. The lump in her throat as she watched Jake and Sierra singing together would've made it impossible. Halfway through the song, with Sierra still bouncing to the beat, Jake reached out and took their daughter's hand. When Jamie's eyes met his in the space above Sierra's head, the corners of Jake's mouth lifted just enough to notice.

  Sierra chattered and sang the entire way home—during the drive to the docks, throughout the ferry ride across the harbor, and all along the final few minutes as they drove down their street. When they finally pulled into their driveway, Jamie caught a quick look at Jake. He was tiring fast. Dr. Cleary had warned about that too. The combination of head injury and burns meant Jake should get set up in the guest room and lie low for a few weeks. Until his energy returned.

  They headed inside, and Jake made small circles in the foyer, casting quick looks in ten different directions as he soaked in the surroundings. It's as though he's never seen it before, Jamie thought. The truth of the matter made her heart ache, but there was nothing she could do about it. He would remember it one day, just not yet.

  Sierra watched Jake, his strange circles and baffled expression, and her little face became a mask of sudden confusion. “What're you doing, Daddy?”

  Her question snapped him back to the moment, and he turned with a jolt toward their daughter. “Uh …”

  “Come on.” Sierra didn't let him finish. “It's time for my horsey ride.”

  Jamie stepped in and patted Sierra on the head. “Sweetheart, Daddy's tired. Why don't you go up to your room and play with Sarabelle.”

  “Ahh, Mommy, do I have to?” She clung to Jake's crutch and leaned her head against his side. “I want Daddy to give me a horsey ride.”

  The singing in the car, the horsey rides … there were dozens of routines they'd known as a family, routines Jamie could've shared with Jake while he was in the hospital. But the doctor had advised against it.

  “Let those things happen naturally, in the setting where they're the most familiar to Jake,” he'd told her. “That way he's more likely to remember them.”

  At the mention of the horsey rides, Jake blinked and gave Sierra a light shrug of his shoulders. Once more he shot Jamie a desperate look. She gave him a slight nod, dropped to her knees, and hugged Sierra for a moment. “Daddy wants to play horsie too, honey. But right now he has a hurt leg and he needs a nap. You can talk to him later, okay?”

  “Okay.” Sierra made a sweet frown, one that immediately turned into a smile as she looked up at Jake. “I'm glad you're home, Daddy. I missed you bunches and bunches.”

  When Sierra had trudged upstairs and disappeared into her bedroom, Jake turned to Jamie and blinked. “I have two daughters?”

  “Two daughters?” A ripple of concern stirred the already troubled waters of Jamie's soul. Was Jake suffering delusions on top of his memory loss? “What makes you think that?”

  He looked up the stairs in the direction of Sierra's room. “Who's Sarabelle?”

  A burst of laughter started low in Jamie's throat, and she tried to stifle it. Nothing good could come from her laughing at Jake, no matter how crazy his questions. But something about standing in the foyer of the home they'd lived in all their lives, discussing whether Sierra's baby doll might actually be a second daughter, was so ludicrously funny, Jamie couldn't stop herself.

  Her laughter came swift and full, and knocked her back against the wall. Jake watched her, and
when Jamie stopped laughing long enough to catch her breath, he leaned forward, his eyebrows slightly raised. “Either Sarabelle's even more adorable than Sierra, or I said something funny.”

  Jamie was breathing hard, and she reveled in the feeling. How long had it been since she'd laughed? She dabbed at the corners of her eyes. “Sarabelle's … a doll. Sierra's had her since she was two.”

  Jake gave a single shake of his head and looked relieved. “That's good. Between horsey rides and Jesus songs, I have enough to handle without some surprise second daughter waiting in the bedroom upstairs.”

  The laughter faded, and Jamie straightened herself. She didn't want to ask; she wasn't supposed to, really. But she had to know the answer to at least some of what Jake was feeling. “Do … do you remember it? Any of it?”

  Jake gave her a sad smile and shook his head. “It's like I've never been here a day in my life.”

  Her gaze fell to the floor for a moment, and she sucked in a quick breath. When their eyes met once more she worked her mouth into a smile. “Time … everything in time.” Then she walked past him and motioned for him to follow. “The guest room's this way.”

  He took two steps in that direction, but then stopped. “Wait a minute.”

  “Yes?” Jamie turned around, and for the first time since they'd left the hospital, she took in the full-length sight of him. There were still bandages on both his arms, though less now than a few days ago. What showed was blotchy and red, but Jamie had to agree with the doctor. It didn't look like it would scar. As for his face, there were gauze pads on both cheeks and beneath his chin, but otherwise it was covered only with a fine layer of ointment—something Jamie would have to spread over his burns every four hours.

  It was easy to look past the injuries and see Jake the way he'd looked just two weeks earlier. Tall and handsome, the man she'd woken up beside every morning for years.

  She snapped herself from the distraction. Jake was still stopped, still studying her, his eyes full of concern.