AUDREY POV
It was the weekend and Caroline had just arrived at the mansion.
"Omg Audrey. I'm so happy to see you're ok. I visited you in the hospital but I couldn't stay long in New York since I'm managing our family's company in London. But as soon as Xavier told me you were awake I fixed my schedule to come and see you."
Caroline was in tears as she hugged me. I felt bad for her so I hugged her back.
It was clear she cared about me. I only wished I could remember her.
"I'm sorry, I'm a stranger to you now. You must feel weird seeing some random person cry about you."
Dorothy handed her some tissues.
"Thank you Dorothy."
"You're welcome my dear."
"It's nice to see you again." Xavier hugged his sister.
"Thanks. I've missed you both. Well we have a lot to catch up on, you don't mind if I steal her from you for today right!"
She said it more like a statement rather than a question.
"Well it appears I don't have much of a choice."
"I'm glad you understand big brother."
Some of the butlers took Caroline's things to a guest room while we headed to the garden.
As we sat down and ate some tea and baked goods, Caroline explained to me how we met and talked about some fun adventures we had.
I really liked her outgoing and upbeat personality. She was very kind and outspoken.
She resembled her older brother a bit.
Her presence felt familiar. I was surprised I remembered one of our outings together. It made me so happy I was making progress.
Although I felt happy that she was being patient with me. Everyone was.
"I wanted to invite you to my birthday party next month. It's going to be a ball in a beautiful building in London. You'll have to wear a princess gown. It's going to be so much fun. You and Xavier will have to fly over to the UK but you can make it a couples trip as well."
Caroline seemed very excited.
"Xavier told me you don't remember anything about how you two met, your time dating, nor your wedding day. He sounded pretty sad when he told me you didn't remember him."
For some reason it hurt to hear Xavier was sad.
"I'm sure he's going crazy not being able to kiss you and touch you. You two were very affectionate before the accident."
We were? I wondered if Caroline was telling the truth or if she was just saying that because Xavier told her too?
"Well it's difficult when you don't remember your husband. He's like a stranger to me, just like everyone else."
I hated not recognizing anyone.
"I completely understand. I'm sure with time you will remember Xavier. You were crazy in love with him like he still is with you now. It was nice seeing how happy you two were. Maybe this trip to London will help you fall in love with him all over again."
I wasn't sure I wanted to fall in love with him. I knew he was lying to me about something. I needed to figure it out before I started catching feelings for him.
We headed inside and had dinner.
Xavier joined us and we had a great time talking about different things. Caroline talked about her husband Ian who was British. Apparently they'd been married for a while.
"Well thank you for dinner. I'm going to my room to talk to my husband. I'm sure he's waiting for my call. He messaged me saying he misses me already. " She smiled and then left Xavier and I alone at the dinner table.
I was about to stand up and leave when I felt Xavier grab my hand.
"Let's take a walk outside." He said.
It seemed he wanted to talk.
"Ok" I said as we headed to the garden.
"We walked around the garden as the lamps lit the way.
I hugged myself feeling cold.
I suddenly felt a warm coat around me.
"I'm sorry for calling you out here so late. I didn't even give you time to grab a jacket. But I wanted us to talk."
We continued to walk.
"I feel like you've been avoiding me."
He was right. He was very affectionate towards me and I was afraid of his kindness. I didn’t want to like Xavier. I didn’t entirely trust him.
It was also weird being so close and intimate with a stranger.
I did avoid him. Today had been the first day in a while since we had eaten a meal together. I had made up excuses not to eat with him. We rarely talked until now. It made sense he would have noticed.
"Look, if I've made you uncomfortable in any way then please let me know. I'm aware I can be overly affectionate but it's very difficult for me to stay away from you. You're my wife, the love of my life. When I look at you all I want to do is kiss you, hug you, pleasure you. But I know I can't."
It was clear he was sad, and that hurt me for some reason.
"I'm aware you don't remember me. I'm just a stranger to you. Even though it's painful to hear, I know it's the truth. I would do anything to help you regain all your memories back but unfortunately we can't rush the process."
I wished for the same thing. Gaining back all my memories would help me figure out if Xavier was truly a good person and if everything he was saying to me was the truth. It would also help me not feel so lost.
"You're right. I have been trying to avoid you. I understand that for you I'm your wife and you recall our history together, but I don't. I've had to get used to and adjust to everything. As I told you before, everything is so new to me. I'm still trying to remember my childhood and the woman who raised me. "
I was feeling overwhelmed with emotions. Why did I always cry in front of Xavier.
"No, please don't cry princess. I hate to see you like that."
Xavier was about to hug me but quickly stopped himself.
"I'm sorry, you probably don't want me to hug you."
For some reason I longed for his warm touch. His kind and gentle embrace calmed me. But I didn’t tell him how I was really feeling.
I wiped away my tears.
"I didn't mean to cry. I don't mean to upset you, but I need time to adjust to my new life. Maybe we can sleep in different rooms for now. And maybe you can stop hugging me and kissing me for the time being. Just until I start to remember some things."
I was sure if he was going to agree with me or not. But I needed some time alone. Away from Xavier. I couldn’t fall in love with him until I was sure he was telling me the truth.
He looked surprised and hurt but it quickly vanished as soon as it appeared.
"Ok, I can do that." He said. He sounded calm and collected.
I couldn’t figure out how he was feeling.
"You can stay in our bedroom. I'll stay in a guest room."
"Thank you for agreeing with my request."
"Of course, if it will give you peace of mind and make you happy, I'd do anything you ask of me."
We headed inside the mansion.
Xavier grabbed his toothbrush and sleepwear.
"Good night Audrey." He said before leaving.
Apparently he would be staying in a guestroom next door.
I got ready for bed and then headed to the soft mattress
I felt a bit more calm. Having Xavier sleep next to me always made me nervous and shy.
Although I would be lying if I said I hated his touch.
It was these feelings of attraction I felt for him that scared me. I tried to ignore that thought and fall asleep
Luckily it didn't take much for me to finally fall asleep.
The next morning I woke up feeling energized.
I got myself ready for the day and changed into a white dress and styled my hair.
I headed downstairs to eat breakfast. I noticed Xavier was already eating.
"Good morning Audrey. You look beautiful as always." He said
"Thank you." I answered.
Dorothy came in and brought me a plate of yogurt and fruit.
I thanked her and I began to eat.
Xavier didn't try and hold my hand like he normally did. He felt a bit distant almost. He didn't speak, he simply examined a document.
It was quiet. Xavier didn't try and start a conversation like he normally did. I was almost positive that what I had told him had upset him. But I just needed some time alone.
Caroline suddenly arrived and Dorothy brought her a yogurt parfait as well.
"I hope you two slept well because I sure did."
I was glad Caroline was here. She immediately cut the tension.
"We have to go dress shopping together for my party."
"What party?"Xavier asked.
"I forgot to tell you, I'm having a birthday party next month. You didn't forget my birthday did you?"
"Of course not. I planned to visit you in London but I was not aware of a party."
"Well it's going to be great. It's going to be a ball so make sure you wear your best suit for the occasion."
Caroline seemed so happy. I began to feel excited for this party.
After we finished eating Caroline and I headed out.
"I'm taking her again. We'll see you at dinner." Caroline waved at her brother.
"Wait, I'm sending two bodyguard’s with you. They'll drive you to wherever you want to go."
"Ok, sounds good to me."
I got in the car and Caroline followed.
We shopped at many different dress shops. I had a lot of fun hanging out with Caroline.
After much insisting from Caroline I agreed to have her buy my dress for her party. I planned to pay her back once I started working again.
Although I still wasn’t sure Caroline would take my money. She said this dress would be like a get well present.
Nonetheless I still planned to pay her back.
We planned to go somewhere to eat but since we had promised to be back home in time for dinner we decided not to go.
As soon as we arrived at the mansion we met Xavier at the dinner table.
Caroline was as outgoing and upbeat as always. Xavier seemed to really care about his sister. I was happy seeing how well they got along.
As soon as we finished eating we all headed to our rooms.
Caroline seemed surprised that we were sleeping in separate rooms but she didn’t ask why.
I got into bed and slept like a baby.
END OF CHAPTER 4
(I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I feel bad for Xavier.🥺 What do you think of the story so far?🤔 I will be updating more chapters soon. I have already written up to chapter 9 so I'll be posing the finished chapters very soon for you all. Don't forget to VOTE if you enjoyed!)