Owen put his hands in his pockets and shook his head. “Nah. I… eh, I’ll sleep on the floor.”
Frankie cocked her head. “Why?”
“There’s not enough room. And—”
“There is! Look!” Frankie’s little bum scooted even closer to Tara before she padded the open spot next to her on the king-sized bed.
Owen’s upper lip pulled as he shot Tara a look. “She reminds me of someone...”
Tara smiled. “Yes. It’s actually creepy how much you two are alike.”
Tara often wondered how such a strong-willed and vocal girl could possibly be hers. She hoped that Frankie would grow up to be a strong and independent woman one day.
As she watched her daughter’s wide grin in response to Owen climbing next to her on the bed before resting on top of the covers, Tara made a silent promise to herself to try and make things work in Winter Peaks. Frankie deserved to have a stable home. She deserved a relationship with her father and his family.
If Eric Houston would find them in Winter Peaks—like he did six years ago, she would face her fears. She would finally stand up against her father, knowing that from this day forward, Frankie would be looked after if something happened to her.
CHAPTER FIVE
Soft snoring from both Frankie and Tara filled the dark motel room. Owen looked up from his phone when Frankie whispered in her sleep, “But I don’t wanna eat my peas.”
He took in his daughter’s furrowed brows as she dreamt about peas. Their dislike for the mushy green stuff was just another thing they had in common.
He couldn’t wait to discover every little thing about Frankie once they would settle in with him at Winter Peaks. He hoped that Tara would agree in staying with him in the house he’d bought from Mrs. Bear, at least for the time being so Frankie and him could get to know each other.
Frankie rolled on her side, taking the covers with her. It left half of her mother’s body on the other side of the bed exposed.Somehow, Tara had snuck out of her jeans and top in the dark, right after hopping into bed.
His eyes roamed over the swell of her luscious tits as they strained against the sheer lace of her bra. Damn. And he thought when they were teenagers that he got lucky with Tara who already had a firm C-cup.She had truly grown into a woman now, though. With full, heavy breasts and little stretch marks peeking from her underwear to her cute belly button.
The sight of those silver stripes marring her tanned skin did something weird to him. Her young body had stretched to accommodate their baby. Frankie had grown inside of her. She had probably kicked Tara from behind those little marks. He pictured Tara’s belly swollen with his child. Did she carry Frankie full term? And who held her hand during the delivery? God, he hoped they both had been safe and sound.
He exhaled a breath, reminding himself that they both seemed healthy as a horse. All these things running through his head had him miss Tara waking up while he still shone the soft light from his phone screen upon her body.
“What are you doing?” Tara asked while tugging the covers back over her.
Frankie rolled back along with the covers, now resting on her side facing Tara.
Tara sat up, her back resting against the headrest. She tried to pull up the covers to hide her top half from his prying eyes, but Frankie’s tiny hands held a death grip on the covers. After a short tug and pull, Tara left the sheets for what they were and straightened her shoulders like she didn’t care he still held his screen up so he could see her.
“I’m sorry, Tara. I promise you I’m not some creeper.”
She crossed her arms. “You could have fooled me.”
“I was just curious about where Frankie had grown…”
Her brows shot up before she narrowed her eyes at him and said, “Ah, I get it. Don’t mind me: I’m just the person attached to the body that carried your child.”
He scrunched his brows. “What?”
“You weren’t looking atme. I’m just the woman who carried your kid. Not that I am of any interest of you… You can’t even look at me. And when you do look at me, it’s in the middle of the night and only to see where Frankie grew for nine months.”
She hopped out of bed and fled into the bathroom, leaving a flabbergasted Owen behind in the bed. Frankie still snored like nothing happened while in fact, something monumental had happened. Her words played over and over in his head. ‘You weren’t looking at me.’
Did she want him to creep on her? Maybe she wanted him to see her for the woman she’d become. He got up out of bed and knocked on the bathroom door.
“What?!” Tara whisper yelled after opening the door. She wiped a piece of toilet paper under her nose like she’d been crying. He demanded entry and she immediately stepped back as his large frame crowded the bathroom. He closed the door behind him and held Tara’s eyes while stepping up to her.
She bumped her curvy ass against the small bathroom counter; her eyes rounded with shock as he picked her up by her thick, strong thighs.