THE CEO'S FORGOTTEN BRIDE

Lionel Romano's eyes fluttered open slowly, a blink stretched thin with pain. The overhead lights hit him like sunlight reflected off shattered glass and it made his head throb. Something cold beeped rhythmically beside him, tubes tugged at his arm and the scent of antiseptic filled his lungs. He squinted, confused, the ceiling was unfamiliar so was the bed so were the distant, hushed voices.

"Mr. Romano?", the voice belonged to a woman standing to his left, dressed in pale blue scrubs and an overly calm expression. Her blonde hair was pulled into a tight bun, she looked composed, clinical, untouched by the anxiety crawling under his skin.

"What is this? What happened?", Lionel struggled to ask.

"You had an accident", she answered gently.

"You've been unconscious for three weeks"

Three weeks.

The words struck him like lightning. His throat worked, dry and hoarse.

"Where am I?"

"You're in St. Claire's Medical private suite"

"How exactly? What happened?"

"It was a car accident, late at night, it was raining heavily. From what I overheard, the police report said your brakes failed"

He tried to sit up but his body screamed in protest. Pain shot through his ribs and he fell back with a groan.

"Please don't move, it's too soon for you to make sudden movements", the nurse hurried to his side.

"I need to leave, I don't understand anything, I don't understand...", Lionel muttered.

"I'll call Dr. Peters", the nurse said. "He'll be able to explain more once he's here"

Lionel closed his eyes again trying to fight through the haze. Memories slipped like water through a sieve. He tried to remember what he'd been doing, why he'd been driving, who he'd seen last. Something about dinner? His company? A flash of dark hair, whiff of a perfume, the sound of a woman's laughter, he grasped at the name like a drowning man.

"Alyssa", he muttered.

"Sir?", the nurse asked.

"Alyssa, my fiancee", his voice croaked, he looked up at her.

"Alyssa Sterling, is she here?", he asked.

There was a pause.

"She's not here... currently", the nurse said.

"But there's someone here who's been waiting to see you"

Before he could ask who, the door opened.

Click. Click.

He turned his head and froze.

A woman entered the room, dressed in black, black heels, black coat, a black blouse that clung to her body. Her hair was pinned in a sleek knot at her nape, not a strand out of place, her lips were red and her expression unreadable. But her eyes looked determined.

"Lionel", she said softly.

He stared at her, nothing. No flicker of recognition but something inside him curled at the sound of her voice. The nurse stepped back, almost as if dismissed. The woman walked to the side of his bed, her heels silent on the carpeted floor. She didn’t touch him, she simply looked at him like she knew things he didn’t.

"Who are you?", he asked hoarsely.

Her lips curved into a slow smile.

"I'm your wife", she answered.

He blinked, it was as if the world had imploded on him.

"My... what?"

"Your wife", she repeated. "Elora Grant or Elora Romano technically"

He stared at her, stunned, heart skipping and pulse quickening.

"I'm... married?"

She nodded, her eyes never leaving his.

"You don't remember me?", she asked, stepping closer.

Lionel shook his head, confused.

A nurse opened the door quietly, announcing the arrival of Dr. Peters. The two of them turned their attention to him.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Romano", he greeted nodding at Lionel, his gaze trailed over to Elora, eyebrows raised in confusion.

"Mrs. Romano", Elora offered.

"Right, Mrs. Romano, I'm Dr. Peters, I'm in charge of Mr. Romano's healthcare", he introduced himself.

"Nice to meet you, Dr. Peters", Elora extended her hand for a handshake.

"As you know Mr. Romano was involved in a serious car accident, it's quite a miracle that you pulled through", he said, directing his words at Lionel, who stared at him blankly.

Elora took his hand and Lionel flinched slightly. Her hands felt strange and familiar at the same time.

"Yes, I'm very thankful to you for saving him", she said and smiled softly at Lionel.

"But he doesn't seem to remember me", she continued, looking back at Dr. Peters.

"Really?", Dr. Peters looked intrigued, he glanced at Lionel.

"Well, I'll have to conduct an in depth Neuro examination on him but some form of amnesia can be expected as a side effect especially after suffering a head injury that severe", he answered.

"So it's temporary?", she asked.

"Well, like I said I need to perform a detailed neuro exam but it could be, yes", he replied.

"That's a relief", she smiled at Lionel briefly before looking back at the doctor.

"So that means he's free to go home soon?", she asked him.

"Yes, looking at his scans, he can be discharged as soon as we've run all the necessary tests", Dr. Peters answered.

"Alright, thank you Dr. Peters"

"It's no problem, I'll leave you to it", he said and left the room, the nurse following behind him.

With the two of them alone in the room, the air suddenly felt very tense and awkward. Elora turned around and gave him a small smile, she squeezed his hand and let him go. Instead, she stepped closer to him, her perfume hit him, something dark, spiced, familiar in a way that wasn’t comforting but haunting. She leaned in slowly, her hand resting on the side rail of the bed, close enough that he could feel the heat of her body, close enough to feel the whisper of her breath.

"You don’t remember me...", she murmured, her lips brushing the shell of his ear. "But I remember everything"

He swallowed hard, pulse spiking. There was something in her voice, something layered, pain and something else he couldn’t place. Elora pulled back slightly, enough to meet his eyes and smiled.

Lionel stared at her awestruck, he was finding it hard to process everything.

I'm married? To her?