Free The Secret She Kept by Amy Knupp Page A

make things a lot…friendlier.”
    “Right. Just remember that. Stop playing games and we’ll all be fine.”
    Her eyes shone with fear and he understood she wasn’t happy about any of this. That suited him, because he wasn’t, either. But he’d take what little she was offering. The one thing he knew about Savannah was that giving over any control to him killed her. His point wasn’t to control. He just wanted to get acquainted with Allie. Being with her mother wouldn’t exactly be a hardship, unless they fought nonstop.
    Savannah stared at him a long while, those brown eyes piercing his. “I’ll just be a minute.”
    She retreated into what he assumed was the master bedroom. Her sweats hid nothing of her shape and he couldn’t help admiring how nice her curves were. He shook his head, determined not to think of her in the same way he had for years and years. He’d had no chance with her in the past, proved by her almost immediate rejection of him after their one night together, and had even less of one now. The only thing he wanted here, he reminded himself, was to form a relationship with his daughter.
     
    S AVANNAH TOOK the fastest shower of her life, praying that Allie was still hidden away in her room with her sketch pad. Savannah didn’t think Jake would reveal anything critical but she still didn’t want them together without her there.
    She dried her hair, then threw on jeans and a black hoodie. Skipping makeup, she found her tennis shoes and slipped them on. She was not going to look good for Jake. The second she was alone with him she was going to wring his neck, as a matter of fact. He’d said he didn’t play games, but that was exactly what he’d done by asking them to dinner when Allie could overhear. Didn’t matter that Savannah had decided to go along with her sisters’ advice. How he’d gone about getting to see Allie was the issue.
    Savannah poked her head out of her bedroom to note where everyone was. Both kids lounged on the couch with Jake, watching Batman cartoons, from the sound of it.
    “Jake?” She motioned for him to join her.
    He followed her into the kitchen, which was walled off from the living room and dining area, so the kids couldn’t see or hear them.
    “Where are you planning on eating?”
    He shrugged. “Tut’s would work. There aren’t a lot of choices here, right?”
    “I don’t want to go where people will recognize us. In Lone Oak, less than a dinner together could start rumors flying.”
    “And wouldn’t it be terrible if everyone thought you and I were together?” he said sarcastically.
    “No, it would be terrible if anyone ever suspected the real reason you’re with us.”
    “You know what, Savannah?”
    He advanced on her until they were inches apart and she was backed against the counter. Which didn’t take much in this small space. She could smell him and was annoyed that his scent was so familiar, that it still stirred something deep within her after all these years. Even more annoyed that a part of her had the overpowering desire to have it envelop her.
    She shook off the weak moment.
    “I didn’t do anything wrong here,” he said. “I’m the one who was kept in the dark and lied to for eleven years.”
    “I never lied to you.” She stood her ground even though their closeness was making her lose her concentration.
    “You never told me the truth.”
    “I’ve told you why.”
    “Somehow it’s not making me feel any better.”
    “So now it’s all about you, huh?”
    He stared at her for a moment and then his lips twitched with the hint of a grin. “I’d almost forgotten what a world-class arguer you are and how much fun arguing with you can be.”
    “This is fun?”
    “Beats sitting around at book club with a bunch of old women.” Then he did smile, and it made Savannah’s heart catch. She hadn’t seen that genuine Jake smile, the not-trying-to-charm-the-ladies one, since he’d been back. Which was a good thing, because the