She seemed to be living a double life—half American and half Ruthenian. But that wasn’t unusual among expats. She probably kept her accounts open, figuring she’d go back sooner or later.
The bag did contain a keychain containing two keys—her bedroom and office? Other than that there was a small packet of tissues and two lipsticks. No phone. Disappointment dripped through her. Maybe she just had no life.
Except Jake.
She glanced at the business phone on the dresser and her nerves sizzled with anticipation at the thought of calling him. She felt a lot safer in his large, calm presence.
But she didn’t want to be a bother. She’d wait until she really needed him.
Keys and phone in the pocket of her jeans, she set off back for the locked office. Her instincts proved correct and the smaller key opened the door. Like her bedroom, her office was neat and featureless, no photos or mementos on the desk. She’d be worried that she was the world’s dullest person, except that apparently she was intriguing enough for a king to want to marry her.
She opened a silver laptop on the desk. Surely this would reveal a wealth of new information about her life—her work, anyway. But the first screen asked her to enter her password.
Andi growled with frustration. She felt like she was looking for the password to her own life and it was always just out of reach. Password, password. She racked her brain for familiar words. Blue, she typed in. The screen was blue. Nothing happened. Jake? Nothing doing. Love?
Nada. Apparently her computer, like her memory, was off-limits for now.
Irritation crackled through her veins. She pulled open the drawers in the antique desk and was disappointed to find nothing but a dull collection of pens, paper clips, empty notebooks. The entire office revealed nothing about her. Almost as if every trace of her individuality had been stripped away.
The way you might do if you were leaving a job.
A pang of alarm flashed through her at the thought. Had she stripped her office bare in preparation for abandoning it? She could see how getting engaged to Jake could mean her leaving her job as his assistant, or at least changing it dramatically. But surely Jake would have mentioned it?
She picked up her phone and punched in his number. Feelings of helplessness and anxiety rose inside her as she heard it ring, but she fought them back.
“Hi, Andi. How are you doing?”
A smile rose to her lips at the sound of his deep, resonant voice. “Confused,” she admitted. “I’m in my office and feeling more lost than ever.”
“I’ll meet you there.”
She blew out a long breath as she put the phone back in her pocket. It was embarrassing to feel lost without Jake at her side, but wonderful that she could call him to it at any moment. She glanced at the ring on her finger. The big diamond sparkled in the sunlight, casting little shards of light over her skin, a symbol of his lifelong commitment to her.
At least she knew what it felt like to be loved.
She flew to the door at the sound of a knock. A huge smile spread over her face at the sight of him, tall and gorgeous, with a twinkle in his dark eyes.
“I missed you,” he murmured, voice low and seductive.
“Come in.” Her belly sizzled with arousal and her nipples tightened just at the sight of him. “Do you always knock on my office door?” It seemed oddly formal if they’d worked together and dated for years.
A shadow of hesitation crossed his face for a split second. “I suppose I do. Would you prefer me to barge right in?”
“I don’t know.” She giggled. Nothing seemed to matter all that much now that Jake was here. “I guess it depends on if I’m trying to keep secrets from you.”
“Are you?” His brow arched.
“I have no idea.” She laughed again. “Hopefully if I do, they’re not very dark ones.”
“Dark secrets sound rather intriguing.” He moved toward her and lifted his hand to cup her cheek. Her skin heated under his palm. “I might have fun uncovering them.”
Their lips met, hot and fast, and his tongue in her mouth drove all thoughts away. She pressed herself against him and felt his arms close around her. Much better. Wrapping herself up in Jake was the best medicine for anything that ailed her.
His suit hid the hard muscle beneath it, but that didn’t stop her fingers from exploring his broad back and enjoying the thickness of his toned biceps. Her fingertips were creeping into his waistband when a sharp knock on the door made them jump apart.
She blushed. “Do we get carried away like that often?”
Jake shot her a crooked smile. “Why not?”
A glance at the door sent her cheer scattering. “I won’t recognize the person.”
“I’ll help you out.”
She drew in a deep breath as she approached the door. “Who is it?”
“Domino.” A male voice. “Just wanted to take a peek at Jake’s calendar for tomorrow.”
She glanced back at Jake and whispered, “I have no idea where your calendar is.”
“You can peek at it in my head, Dom.” Jake’s voice boomed across the room.
A compact, dark-haired man in a gray suit flung the door open and entered. “Sorry, Mr. Mondragon, I didn’t know you were in here. I just wondered if there was a set time for the Malaysian High Commission’s arrival.”
Andi listened while Jake rattled off a few planned events for the following day and tried to keep them filed in her brain in case anyone else asked her. It couldn’t hurt to practice using her memory again. Still, she didn’t truly breathe again until Domino backed out with a slight bow.
“I feel like the world’s most incompetent assistant. Is the calendar on the computer?”
“Yup.”
“It’s password protected and I don’t know the password. Do you know it?”
Jake looked thoughtful. “No.”
“Any ideas what it might be?”
“None whatsoever. I guess there are some dark secrets between us.” He lifted a brow playfully. “Maybe you have it written down somewhere.”
“That’s another thing.” She frowned, apprehension twisting her gut as she prepared to tell him. “There’s nothing personal in here at all. It’s all business all the time, as if all the personal effects had been removed.”
Jake blinked and his gaze swept the room. A furrow deepened between his brows; then he shrugged. “I’m not much for personal knickknacks in the office, either. Why don’t we take a break and go stroll around the palace? Then at least you’ll know where everything is.”
Andi was a bit alarmed by the brusque way he changed the subject. One question burned in her mind. “Am I still your assistant? I mean, now that we’re engaged.”
“Yes, of course.” Jake looked startled for a second. “I’d be lost without you arranging my life.”
“Then prepare to get lost, since I can’t arrange my own computer desktop right now.” Tears loomed again. Apparently they’d never been very far away. “I still don’t remember anything at all.”
Jake took her into his arms again. His scent, familiar and enticing, wrapped around her as his embrace gave her strength. “The doctor said it would take time for your memory to return. Come on, let’s go for that walk. There’s no point getting upset over something you can’t control.”
The palace was