Cindy Kirk - In Love with John Doe

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Suddenly, without warning, the world stood still. Lexi found herself drowning in the chocolate depths of his eyes. And when his gaze settled on her lips, they began to tingle.

What would it be like to kiss him, she wondered? To have those perfectly sculpted lips pressed against hers …

He took a step closer and when his hand touched her hair, desire rose inside her.

Married.

The word slammed like a shovel against the side of her head. Reality had finally clawed its way through the haze of desire.

This man could be married.

Lexi took a step back.

His hand dropped to his side.

Dear Reader,

I admit it. I’m a sucker for an amnesia story. This story came to me when I was in Jackson Hole, riding the tram up to the top of the ski slope. The tram operator was telling me about skiers who venture into the “back country” and how the patrol isn’t even required to rescue them. My writer’s brain started to think—what if someone did just that? What if he got caught in an avalanche? And my favorite part—what if when they found him he had no identity and no memory ?

This book is special to me because it has its own song. Sometimes when I’m writing I’ll hear a song on the radio and it will fit the story. While I’m writing I will play the song repeatedly. This book’s special song was “Come Back to Me” by David Cook.

After you’ve read the book, listen to the song, especially to the words. Then, if you have the time, e-mail me and let me know if you think the song is a good fit. I can be reached at cindy@cindykirk.com.

Warmest regards,

Cindy

CINDY KIRKhas loved to read for as long as she can remember. In first grade she received an award for reading one hundred books. Growing up, summers were her favorite time of year. Nothing beat going to the library, then coming home and curling up in front of the window air conditioner with a good book. Often the novels she read would spur ideas, and she’d make up her own story (always with a happy ending). When she’d go to bed at night, instead of counting sheep, she’d make up more stories in her head. Since selling her first story to Mills & Boon in 1999, Cindy has been forced to juggle her love of reading with her passion for creating stories of her own … but she doesn’t mind. Writing for Mills & Boon ®Cherish™ is a dream come true. She only hopes you have as much fun reading her books as she has writing them!

Cindy invites you to visit her website at www.cindykirk.com.

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To my fabulous critique partners,

Louise Foster and Renee Ryan.

This wouldn’t be nearly as much fun without you!

“Five bucks says he’s an undercover prince.”

Lexi Brennan stood back and watched the older nurse pull a crumpled bill from her uniform pocket and slap it on the counter.

“He’s handsome enough,” another RN said. “But I say he’s a politician’s son. God knows we get our share of them in Teton County.”

“Put me down for the undercover prince,” charge nurse Rachel Milligan said. “Then we’d better get to work.”

The staff scattered, leaving Lexi, one of the hospital’s social workers, alone at the nurse’s station with Rachel and a nurse’s aide. During the five years Lexi had been working at the Jackson Hole hospital, she’d lost a lot of money on these friendly wagers. Last month she’d vowed not to participate in another. Still, she was curious. “What are you betting on this time?”

“Our new patient, John Doe,” Rachel said. “He’s been the topic of conversation since the rescue team brought him in yesterday.”

“He is super cute,” the aide gushed.

“Mr. Landers’s call light is on.” Rachel kept her gaze focused on the young girl while handing Lexi John Doe’s chart. “Would you mind seeing what he needs?”

As the aide hurried off, Lexi flipped through the handful of pages. “Not much here.”

Rachel smiled. “When a patient doesn’t remember his name or any of his history, it makes for a pretty sparse medical record.”

Lexi recognized Rachel’s handwriting on the initial documentation. “Looks like you were working in the E.R. yesterday when they brought him in from Teton Village.”

“He was lucky,” Rachel said, her blue eyes suddenly serious. “He might have lost his memory, but another few minutes under that snow and he’d have lost his life.”

“Why skiers venture into the back country is beyond me.” Lexi wasn’t sure why she found the man’s recklessness so disturbing. He certainly wasn’t the first hotshot skier to take advantage of the mountain’s “open gate” policy. “Anyone who goes through that gate knows they’re taking a big risk.”

Rachel’s gaze took on a sad, faraway look. “Young men in that late-twenty, early-thirty range think they’re invincible.”

Lexi wondered if Rachel was thinking about her husband who’d been killed several years ago trying to protect a clerk during a convenience store robbery.

“Medically, John Doe is stable,” Rachel said after a long moment. “Once you find him a place to stay, he’s ready to be dismissed.”

Raising a finger to her lips, Lexi considered the available options. “There aren’t many motels that will take a man with no money.”

“He’s got money,” Rachel said. “He had a couple thousand dollars on him.”

A couple thousand dollars? Lexi had twenty-seven dollars in her pocket and that had to last until payday. She pulled her brows together. “Did they find drugs on him?”

“Nope.” Rachel laughed. “And his tox screen came back negative. My guess is he’s just some rich guy who ran into trouble on the back side of the mountain.”

“Well, the money will make it easier to find him a place to live,” Lexi said, her mind already flipping through the options. She gathered the chart in her hand and walked the few steps to the patient’s room. “I guess it’s time to meet Mr. John Doe.”

“Prepare to be dazzled.”

Lexi paused. “What are you talking about?”

“I forgot to mention the most important part,” Rachel said. “Not only does he have money, he’s gorgeous. That’s why my bet is undercover prince.”

Gorgeous. Undercover prince.

Lexi pushed open the door. John Doe’s money and looks weren’t going to help him get a room. That would take luck and a lot of phone calls. And if the weather reports were accurate, a late spring blizzard was bearing down on Jackson Hole. That meant her focus needed to be on finding this man without a memory a place to stay sooner rather than later.

John had just pulled on his ski pants and had a shirt in hand when a knock sounded at his hospital room door. “Come in.”

He didn’t bother to look when the door opened, knowing his visitor would be another nurse, wanting to check his pupils and blood pressure. But at the click of heels on the tile, he turned.

The woman striding into his room didn’t have on scrubs. Instead she wore a stylish green-and-brown dress with a short green sweater. Her dark hair hung loose to her shoulders in a sleek bob, and her amber-colored eyes were focused on the chart in her hand.