She flicked a sideways look of disdain—and challenge—in Savannah’s direction, but Savannah purposely yawned and sent a bored look in return. Leila frowned but turned eagerly back to Matt.
“Shall we say the weekend after you return perhaps? I’m sure Savannah wouldn’t mind. After all, you and I are old friends.” She said.
“I mind,” Matt said in a clipped voice. “Now if that’s all, we’d appreciate being left to our meal.”
“I’ll call you,” Leila murmured. “We’ll talk… later.” The inference being they’d talk when Savannah wasn’t around. Was the woman stupid?
It was tempting to put her firmly in her place, but frankly it would take too much effort and Savannah was quite content to remain in her seat and watch Leila stew in her own ignorance.
Leila touched Matt’s face in a gesture that repulsed Savannah then slid one long nail down his jaw before fluttering her fingers at him as she walked away.
Matt turned, his lips tight. “God, I’m sorry, Savvie. You have to know I haven’t encouraged her… Ever”
Savannah smiled and handed him a napkin to wipe the lipstick off his cheek. “Yeah, I figured that much out. She’s…she’s interesting. And awfully dense. You were pretty blatant with the brush-off. It makes me wonder what your mother promised her.”
Matt frowned as he swiped at his cheeks. He pulled the napkin away, frowning even harder at the red smear on the material. Then he reached across the table and took her hand. “Let’s not let her ruin what has otherwise been a spectacular day.” He said.
Savannah rolled her eyes. “You’re just saying that because of the sex. Give a man sex and it’s the most amazing day ever.”
He grinned. “Well, there is that, but it’s not just sex with you, Savannah. It’s…more.”
She flushed in pleasure at the sincerity in his voice. He made her believe all sorts of crazy things, like they could actually work through the serious issues facing them.
“So what do you want to do after dinner?” she asked lightly.
“How about another walk on the beach?” Matt asked. “Maybe we’ll go to the cabana for some dancing.”
“I liked how we danced the other night,” she said in a dreamy voice. “Just you and me. No one else around. It was an amazing night.”
He studied her for a long moment, his fingers idly caressing hers. “Yeah, it was.” He agreed.
He lifted her hand and brought it to his mouth where he proceeded to kiss each fingertip before turning her hand over and nuzzling into her palm. “I thought maybe tomorrow we could get out and see some of the sights as long as you’re feeling up to it. I don’t know if you will want to walk, so I’ve arranged for a convertible so we can drive where we like. Top down, wind-in-our-hair sort of thing.”
“It sounds fun.” Savannah said. And it had been a long time since she’d simply had fun. She smiled, feeling her chest grow lighter with each passing second.
Impulsively she squeezed his hand.
“I love that you’re smiling again,” he said. “You’re beautiful when you smile. I want you to be happy, Savvie. I’ll do whatever it takes to make you happy.”
With that statement, she felt some of her hurt and anger recede. For the first time she began to believe that maybe they could get beyond the past and forge ahead.
He seemed so sincere. Whatever he thought of her in the past, he seemed willing to push aside those feelings and start over. Why would he go to such lengths if he didn’t care about her?
“I want this to work,” she said earnestly. And for the first time she really believed wholeheartedly that she did. That they could find their way back to each other seemed an impossible dream. It would take forgiveness and sacrifice, but she wanted it more than anything.
He went silent and he looked brooding, his expression intense. He massaged her hands gently while Savannah watched him.
He seemed to battle whether or not he wanted to speak, but finally he locked his gaze with hers and said, “Why didn’t you cash the check I gave you, Savvie? I gave it to you so you’d be provided for. No matter what you did, how angry I was or how things were between us, I intended you to be cared for. Do you have any idea what it did to me to find you working in that god-awful place, barely making it? Hell, wasn’t it hard for you?.”
“I ate at the diner sometimes, so it wasn’t that hard,” she said, trying to be playful.
He made a sound of exasperation. “Like that’s supposed to make me feel any better? Why didn’t you use the money? You could have finished college. You could have lived for a long time to come without ever having to work.” He said.
“I have pride. It took a beating but it’s still intact. I guess if I hadn’t been able to get that job back and the choice was between starving or taking money that made me feel dirty, I would have sucked it up and done it anyway.” She replied.
“Did you hate me so much?” he asked hoarsely. “That you would rather work in such deplorable conditions than accept anything from me?”
She leveled a stare at him. “Don’t ask questions you aren’t prepared to hear the answers to.”
He closed his eyes. “That’s answer enough, I suppose.”
She shrugged. “You hated me, too.” She said.
He shook his head and her eyes widened. “No? Matt, you said and did some terrible things. Not the least of which was tossing that check at me with so much disdain that I can still remember the way I felt.”
“What did you expect?” he asked. “For God’s sake, Savannah, I’d just found out you slept with my brother. You had my ring on your finger, we were planning our wedding and you slept with my brother.”
“And of course he’s blameless in the whole thing,” she said scornfully. “Tell me, Matt, how long did it take you to forgive him? How long before he was coming back over and you were having family dinners at your mother’s?”
His face flushed a dull red and then he dragged a hand raggedly through his hair. “It took a while, all right? I was furious with him—and you. I had to decide whether to allow what happened to ruin our relationship. He’s family. He’s my brother.”