Her Secret, His Child: A Little Secret by Tara Quinn (rosie project .txt) 📕

"Their telephone number's 911 and you can call it if you're in trouble."

Intercepting a glance from Jamie, Kyle smiled at her.

It soon became apparent that not only did Ashley know about the fun to be had at the festival, she knew about all the hazards she was to watch out for, which games she was allowed to play, even which foods weren't so good for her. And she lectured Kyle on every one.

"You don't ever talk to strange people, Daddy."

HER SECRET, HIS CHILD

she said solemnly at one point. '' 'Specially if they got candy."

Jamie was buying a handmade magnet at the time, and watching her, Kyle couldn't help remembering the night he'd talked to a stranger. A woman he'd never met but felt he'd always known. When he'd approached Jamie, it was the first and only time he'd approached a woman cold. And in spite of everything, he wasn't sorry he'd done that.

After a full day of fun, one daisy face painting and more food than a four-year-old should've been able to consume, Ashley finally fell asleep in the back of the T-Bird. Jamie used the trip home to fill Kyle in on the latest with Karen and Dennis. She still got a happy little thrill whenever she thought about her friends.

Kyle carried Ashley into the house and straight into bed as soon as they got home.

"Shouldn't she have a bath or something?" he asked Jamie. ' 'At least wash that stuff off her face?''

Shaking her head, Jamie led the way out of the little girl's room and into the kitchen. "I can wash her sheets in the morning a lot more easily than we'd get her into a bath tonight. She's exhausted and she'd only cry if we woke her."

She got out the makings for a pot of coffee. Got out a liquor bottle, too. She wasn't ready for him to leave. "Would you like an Irish coffee?"

"Sounds good." Kyle leaned against the counter. "I'd like to talk for a few minutes, if you're not too tired."

TARA TAYLOR QUINN

After a week of polite, meaningless conversations, the day's warmth had been a welcome change. But now she was afraid of what he might want to say.

"I'm fine." She tried to appear busy waiting for the coffee to drip. Anything to avoid looking at him. Though he'd been at the house every day that week, she'd missed him more than she'd ever thought possible. She'd come to depend on his friendship, his constant affection. She hated seeing the stranger's mask come over his face. Was too tired to pretend it didn't hurt.

She couldn't bear to have another session with him in her living room, so she took the coffee to the kitchen table and sat down. Kyle pulled out the seat she'd begun to think of as his.

"This past week's been hell," he said, placing his arms on the table on either side of his cup.

Jamie lifted her drink. "Can't argue with you there." She took a swig, needing the drugging bite of liquor, the surge of sweetness, and burned her lip.

Her hair a curtain around her face, she continued to hide from him.

"I've done a lot of thinking this week," he said.

"I suspect that's an understatement."

His only acknowledgment was a bowed head. ' 'I can see where a desperate person might make some desperate choices."

She could tell what the admission cost him. And she heard the "but" in his voice. She wasn't strong enough for that. Not yet. Give her a year or two, a lifetime or two, to get over him first.

HER SECRET, HIS CHILD

"I want to go back, Jamie, to be who we were before last week."

"And who were those people?"

Cradling his cup in his hands, he shook his head. "Friends, maybe?"

"Is it possible to go back?"

"Probably not."

"So what is it you do want—now, today—if we can't go back?"

He glanced up at her, his eyes looking straight into hers, connecting. Finally. ' 'I want to bring what we had into the present, the future, to move forward together."

If he didn't get to the bad part soon, she was going to fall apart right here on her kitchen table. "I'm not against that."

' "The only thing is—'' He broke off, and his gaze broke away, too. He still hadn't taken a single sip of his coffee.

Jamie's was almost gone.

"Your past…"

She ran her finger around the rim of her cup.

' 'When I think of you taking off your clothes for those men," he blurted. "It bothers the hell out of me. I hate it."

Tears in her eyes, she looked at him. "Then that's just something else we have in common. I hate it, too."

"I can't promise it won't get the best of me someday."

Jamie nodded. "I understand."

TARA TAYLOR QUINN

"It's not fair to ask you to risk your heart on that."

"Life's not fair, Kyle."

Her cup was empty. She was tempted to reach for his.

"You're right," he said, "life's not fair. You know—" he slid his cup across to her, getting up to help himself to a shot of whiskey minus the coffee and cream "—I've been thinking about something you said last week." He came back to the table, sat down. "You were talking about your secret room."

She stared down, humiliated he knew about that. She'd been wishing all week that she'd kept that piece of information to herself. It made her sound so…weak. Weird.

"You said you'd been going there since you were a little girl."

So he'd caught that. Damn.

"Why, Jamie? What was happening in your life that you had to go there?"

She just couldn't tell him. Couldn't let him get that close. Not until he'd found a way to accept what she'd been, regardless of why she'd been that way.

"I just had a stepfather I didn't like."

His eyes were piercing as she tried to meet his gaze. "Why didn't you like him?"

She wasn't lying as she answered him. She gave him the truth the way everyone had seen it then. "Because I was jealous. Before he came along, it had