“So, there you have it,” Patty said. “I called the hospital this morning to tell David that Sarah Ann was with me, safe and sound, but the nurse on his floor said he was in X-ray. Since I’m pretending to be his wife I couldn’t leave a message saying that Patty from the Fuzzy Bunny is tending to his daughter. So, I need to get to the hospital to put David’s mind at ease. Thank you for watching Tucker, Sarah Ann and Sophia while I go.”
“Oh, that’s no problem,” Hannah said. “Tucker and Sarah Ann are so cute together. With their dark hair they look enough alike to be brother and sister. And you know I adore getting my hands on Sophia Hannah.”
“I really appreciate this,” Patty said, getting to her feet. “Well, off I go. Good grief, I’m so nervous. How do you tell a man that you sort of kidnapped his daughter?”
“What you did was very caring, very thoughtful and loving,” Hannah said, rising.
“I hope David views it that way, but it was the only solution I could come up with.” Patty paused. “Where’s Dad?”
“Playing golf with your Uncle Ryan. Neither one of them is a threat to Tiger Woods but they have a very good time. Off you go. You’ve already said goodbye to the kiddos so just be on your way. David Montgomery must be sick with worry this morning over what happened to Sarah Ann when he didn’t arrive to pick her up last night.”
“You’re right. At least I can assure him that Sarah Ann is fine. But, oh, dear heaven, I am just so nervous.”
At Mercy Hospital, Patty was directed to the third floor and given the room number for David Montgomery. She stood outside the closed door and smoothed the hem of her red top over the waistband of her jeans, acutely aware that her hands were not quite steady.
Get it together, she ordered herself. She was being so ridiculous. It wasn’t as though she’d done an unforgivable thing by taking Sarah Ann home last night, and had to beg for David’s forgiveness or… Oh, stop thinking, Patty.
She knocked on the door and heard a muffled directive to come in.
Forget it. She didn’t want to come in, Patty thought. She was turning around and going home. She was… Darn it, enough of this nonsense.
She pushed the door open and entered the room.
“I…um…hello,” she said, as the door hushed closed behind her.
David Montgomery was propped up against the pillows on the bed, a bandage at the hairline above his right eye. His right leg was in a cast from below the knee to the tips of his toes and suspended above the bed by a complicated-looking apparatus. He was pale despite his tawny skin. He was also staring at her with wide eyes and his mouth had dropped open a tad.
A short man in his fifties, wearing a white coat and standing next to the bed, smiled and approached Patty.
“I’m Dr. Floyd Hill,” he said, his smile growing even bigger. “I’m assuming you’re Mrs. Montgomery, and I must say we are very glad to see you. This will solve a great many unanswered questions for us.”
“Oh, no, I’m not Mrs. Montgomery,” Patty said. “I’m not married to anyone. I’m Patty Clark and I have David’s daughter Sarah Ann.”
“I didn’t marry you?” David said, shifting up on one elbow. “You gave birth to my child and I didn’t marry you? What kind of bum am I?”
“Huh?” Patty said, totally confused.
“Oh, my head,” David said, easing back onto the pillow and pressing the heels of his hands to his temples. “It’s going to fall off and roll across the floor. Break it to me gently. Do you have any other kids I should know about?”
“Me? Well, yes,” Patty said. “Tucker is three years old and Sophia is three weeks old. Of course, Sarah Ann is three years old, too. We’re really into the number three at the moment.”
“Ohhh,” David moaned, closing his eyes. “I’m worse than a bum. I’m a sleazeball.”
“Dr. Hill? David? Somebody?” Patty said. “Would you please explain what is going on here? I feel as though I’ve stepped into the ‘Twilight Zone.’”
“Which is a rather accurate description of where your husband…excuse me…your…the father of your children is, himself, at the moment.”
“The who?” Patty said, her eyes widening.
“David,” the doctor said, “does the name Patty Clark ring any bells. Patty… Clark.”
David opened his eyes and looked at Patty again.
“No,” he said. “I have never heard that name, nor have I seen this woman before in my life.”
“Huh?” Patty said. “Now wait just a minute here.”
“David has retrograde amnesia from the blow he sustained to his head,” Dr. Hill said. “He doesn’t even remember his own name, which we were able to supply from credit cards and what have you in his wallet.”
“You’re kidding,” Patty said. A funny little bubble of laughter that held the edge of hysteria escaped from her lips. “No, you’re not kidding. How long is this amnesia thing going to last?”
“I have no idea,” the doctor said, shrugging. “Every case is different.”
“Well, isn’t this just dandy?” Patty said, then marched to the bed and gripped the top bar of the rail. “David, read my lips. You…have…a…daughter…named… Sarah Ann. She…is…three. She…is…cute. She…misses…her…daddy. That…is…you.”
“I don’t know any Sarah Ann,” David said, frowning. “She’s only three and she misses me and… This is terrible. Well, it could be worse, I guess. At least she’s with her mother. You. Patty.”
“No, no, no,” Patty said, shaking her head. “I’m not Sarah Ann’s mother. You didn’t list a name for her mother on the application blank.”
“What did I apply for?” David said. “To be a sperm donor? Are you the mother of Tucker and Sophia?”
“Yes, but…”
“I apparently didn’t marry Sarah Ann’s mother, but why didn’t I marry you? This Sophia baby is only three weeks old? I must say you look sensational for someone who just gave birth. At least I know I have good taste in women. You’re very pretty. Who do our children look like? You or me?”
“That’s it,” Patty said, throwing up her hands. “This isn’t a conversation, this is a ridiculous stringing together of words that are totally insane. Dr. Hill, I cannot talk to this man.”
“Let’s all just calm down and start over,” Dr. Hill said. “Please, Miss… Ms… Patty, sit down, won’t you?”
Patty sighed and sank heavily onto the chair next to the bed. The doctor pulled another chair over and sat next to her.
“Now then,” Dr. Hill said, “perhaps you would be so kind as to explain to us what your relationship is with David,
