Author's Note: Thanks again for the reviews! Sorry I haven't updated sooner, but the sudden change in weather decided to make this little author sick! That and I went to the movies this weekend and saw "The Guardian"—a very good movie by the way. My advice: get to the theater early so you don't have to sit in the second row…my neck hurt all night after that and I had to chase the characters on the screen to keep up with them.

Anyways, this chapter is a little shorter than what I normally do and it doesn't leave off at such a cliffie…but don't fret! I have more cliffies to come!

Joe jumped from his seat when he saw Frank enter the waiting room. "Did something happen to Nancy? I just saw a nurse running down the hall."

Frank smiled at his brother. "She's awake, Joe."

"What? Really?" Joe smiled and hugged his brother. "Frank, that's great!"

Yeah," Frank said softly.

"Frank, this is great news," Joe said. "You of all people should be doing back flips across the waiting room."
Frank sank down into a chair and looked at Joe. "First, I could never do back flips. Secondly, I am happy, but there's something else, Joe."

Joe saw the look of concern in Frank's eyes and the smile instantly vanished from his face. He sat down beside his brother just as the nurse returned, this time followed by Nancy's doctor.

"What is it, Frank?" Joe asked, gently.

Frank sighed and looked down at his feet. "Nancy can't remember what happened to her."

"What do you mean?" Joe asked.

"She has no recollection of the past week," Frank explained.

"You mean amnesia," Joe said slowly.

Frank nodded. "The last thing she remembers is coming to River Heights. That was ten days ago."

"Oh, man," Joe muttered, leaning back in his chair.

"Yeah," Frank agreed. "Just when I think I finally have her back, something else comes along to knock us both down again."

"Maybe it's only temporary," Joe said, helpfully.

Frank shrugged. "You should have seen the look on her face when I told her what happened to her. I have never seen her so lost or so scared in my life."

"You told her what happened to her?" Joe asked, shocked. "Do you really think that was a wise thing to do?"

"No," Frank answered. "But I couldn't very well lie to her. Amnesia or not, she still knows when I'm lying to her."

The elevator doors opened and Carson ran in, breathless. "The hospital just called me. Is she awake?"

Frank stood up and nodded. "The doctor is in with her right now."

Carson let out a tired sigh and smiled just as Doctor Troy came into the waiting room.

"How is she doing?" Carson asked anxiously.

"She's awake and fully conscious. I'm having her moved to a regular room and I don't see why she shouldn't be able to go home within a couple of days," he said, smiling.

The three men looked at each other and broke into huge grins.

"Doctor Troy, there is one thing that is bothering me," Frank said, breaking the joyful celebration.

"What's that, Mr. Hardy?" he asked.

"I was with Nancy when she woke up and she didn't know why she was in the hospital. She couldn't remember what had happened to her," Frank explained.

Doctor Troy nodded understandingly. "I wouldn't worry too much about that. It's very common for head trauma patients to experience short-term memory loss. She just went through a very traumatic experience so it's perfectly natural for her not to remember what happened to her."

"But will she get her memory back?" Carson asked.

Doctor Troy shrugged. "It's hard to say. Some patients are able to retrieve their memories and some aren't. Some patients that do remember want to do everything in their power to block those horrific memories. It's just different with every patient. But would it really be such a bad thing if she didn't remember?"

"No, I guess not," Frank said.

"I'll tell the nurse to let you know when she's moved to another room," Doctor Troy said.

"Thank you, Doctor," Carson said gratefully.

Doctor Troy nodded and walked to the nurses' station. Carson and the Hardys sat down, each lost in his own thoughts. Finally after fifteen minutes, a nurse came into the waiting room, smiling.

"We've moved Nancy to Room 135. You can see her now."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Going to the pub last night had been a great idea, Randy thought as he looked over at Gina, the blonde he had met last night. It hadn't taken long for him to convince her to come back to his place, especially after she had finished her fourth drink.

And he had to admit he was feeling a lot better. Gina certainly had a way of taking his mind off of everything. She knew she was very good and she worked that to her whole advantage.

He picked up his watch off of the small bedside table and saw that it was approaching nine o'clock. He swung his legs over the side of the bed and slid into his boxers. He watched as Gina softly stirred next to him and then quietly headed into the small kitchen to put on a pot of coffee. The coffee had barely started when there was a soft knock on the door.

He opened to door to see Barry standing in front of him, a nervous expression on his face.

"I thought I told you never to come to my apartment," Randy growled.

"You did, but I couldn't get an answer on your phone," Barry said quickly.

"That's because it had an unfortunate meeting with the wall last night," Randy said. "I would invite you in, but I'm afraid I'm a little busy at the moment."

"I thought you would want to know the latest on the Drew woman," Barry said, licking his lips nervously.

"Is she dead?" Randy asked, hopeful.

"Well, no—" Barry said.

"Then I don't want to hear anything about her," Randy said, closing the door.

Barry stopped it from shutting completely. "She awoke from her coma last night. The doctors expect her to make a full recovery."

Randy glared at Barry, silently fuming. "None of this would have happened if you had done the job I paid you to do. I guess I'm going to have to pay our intrepid sleuth a little visit."

Barry shuffled back and forth on his feet. "Maybe not. One of the nurses told me she can't remember what happened to her. Maybe she won't bother us."

Randy chuckled. "I'm afraid you don't know Nancy as well as I do. She is quite capable of anything. After all, she managed to survive me the first time."

"What do you want me to do about her?" Barry asked.

Before Randy could answer, he was interrupted by a sultry female voice.

"Randy, are you coming back to bed?"

Randy smiled as he glanced over his shoulder. "I'll be there in a couple of minutes, babe."

"Don't keep me waiting for too long," she said as she returned back to the bedroom.

Randy watched her saunter back to the bedroom and his smile vanished as he turned his head back around to look at Barry. "I don't want you to do anything about Nancy. I'll handle her myself since you couldn't do it the first time. Go find Marco and see how he's doing with everything."

Barry nodded and scurried away as quickly as he could. Randy closed the door, frustrated. He should have known Nancy wouldn't stay down for long. She had been a worthy adversary the first time they met and she was proving to be that once again.

Maybe it was time to send her another message. Amnesia or not, she still remembered who he was.

Randy walked back to his bedroom and found Gina waiting in bed for him. He ignored her as he slipped on a pair of jeans and a T-shirt.

"Where are you going?" she asked, pouting.

He grabbed his loafers and slipped them on as he looked back at her. "Sorry…you were fun and everything but I'm not one for commitment."

"So, you're leaving?" she asked, astonished.

"What can I say? I have another woman who requires my complete and undivided attention at the moment," Randy said, smiling at her.

"Bastard," Gina muttered under her breath.

"You've got that right, babe," Randy said. "But let me provide you with some helpful advice—if you're looking for a man to call all your own, don't look for him in a bar."
He grabbed his keys and didn't wait to hear Gina's response. He imagined it was something pretty bad, but at the moment, he had other things on his mind. He drove down the street and ten minutes later, he was at his destination.

A tinkling bell announced his presence and a kindly elderly woman smiled at him from behind the counter. "Welcome to Hattie's Florist. What can I help you with?"

"Let me guess—you're Hattie?" he asked.

Hattie nodded. "I've been so for the last sixty-five years," she answered cheerfully.

Randy smiled a brilliant smile. "Well, Hattie, do you happen to have any gardenias?"

Hattie nodded happily. "I just got a shipment in yesterday," she said as she pulled out a tablet. "So, who's the lucky lady?"

Randy looked at Hattie, his green eyes twinkling. "The only woman who has occupied my thoughts for the past six years."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

You are probable asking yourself about the gardenias but in The Black Widow, Randy has them delivered to Nancy's room at the beginning of the book. He is just trying to bring back some memories to her.

I will clear it up for you in the next chapter or two!

Well, you know what to do now…review! You know what they say…a reviewed author is a happy author!