Baby Love (19 page)

Maggie glanced up at him. "Where's the house?"

"It's still quite a ways, " Ryan said as he veered left to miss a muddy pothole in the gravel road. "Forty thousand acres is a mighty big spread. The main house is about seven more miles from here. "

The main house? Ryan made it sound as if they had dozens. "Are all seven miles part of your ranch?"

Just as Maggie asked that, the Expedition hit a bump that snapped her teeth together and bounced her sideways on the plush leather seat. She tightened her hold
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on Jaimie. Rafe glanced down and curled a strong arm around her shoulders. "I think you need a little extra ballast. " He dipped his head to look out his window. "In answer to your question, yes, we'll be on Rocking K land clear in to the main house. You see out through there?"

Maggie followed his gaze. All she saw was brutal wilderness. "Yes. "

"Look as far into the distance as you can, " he instructed. When she fixed her gaze on the most distant point of the horizon she could find, he said, "That's all either part of the Rocking K or land on a renewable ninety-nine-year lease. Our dad started the operation thirty-five years ago. "

Incredulous, Maggie continued to stare at the horizon. "Wow. Why do I have the feeling you can't walk to the grocery store from here?"

"You're right. The closest store would be quite a trek. "

Maggie peered out her window. "Is that all the Rocking K as well?"

"Yes. How's it going to feel to know you own that much dirt?"

The question was a reminder of their forthcoming marriage, and Maggie tightened her arms around Jaimie, her reason for being there. She wanted
her
world back— the one with sidewalks and corner markets and neighbors she'd known all her life. Minus Lonnie, of course.

From the very beginning, he had messed up her life. Now he had obliterated it.

Ryan chuckled. "Now that's a unique way of putting it. Owning a lot of dirt!" He glanced in the mirror. "All she can see right now is snow. But in the summer, we've got dirt, Maggie. Lots of it. "

Her joy knew no bounds.

Rafe drew her more snugly against him. "Honey, you're going to love the ranch. Don't look so worried. "

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"It's just that I'm a town person, I guess. Maybe I'll get used to it. "

"We've got a large town only twenty minutes away. "

"Once you get to the highway, " Ryan pointed out, as if that were another highlight. "It's the ultimate in privacy out here. No prying eyes. No pesky neighbors. You can parade naked in the yard if you want. "

"Don't even think about it, " Rafe warned with a possessive growl in his voice. "With all the hired hands on the place, it isn't quite that private. "

Maggie had no intention of parting with her clothing, period. Even as the thought rooted in her mind, she quickly qualified it. She'd part with her clothes quickly enough when Rafe decided she should.

"You keep saying the 'main' house. Is there more than one?"

"You could say that. " Ryan braked to ease the vehicle over a rut. "There's my place, about a mile from Rafe's. And after the folks signed the ranch over to us, they built a cottage on the opposite side of the lake. Then there's the housing for our hired hands and families. Plus all the line shacks. "

A few minutes later, the Expedition rounded a curve, and the wilderness gave way to white fencing that seemed to stretch forever. She spotted white outbuildings.

"There's the house, " Rafe whispered.

She focused on the sprawling brick home that sat on a gentle, snow-covered knoll in the distance. As Ryan drove closer, she saw that the huge structure was a two-story with white trim and ivy trailing up the five exterior chimneys. The expansive, multi-pitched roof was covered with burnt red tiles.

That wasn't a house; it was a
mansion.

"So, what do you think?"

She threw Rafe an incredulous look. What did she think? She remembered her cowboy bum in the ragged, filthy clothing, with his shoulder-length hair going every

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which way under the droopy brim of his dusty Stetson. Even later when he'd told her he was rich, she hadn't imagined
this.
How would she ever fit in here?

"I, um... it's beautiful, " Maggie said hollowly.

"Honey, what's wrong?" He peered through the windshield at the house, as if he expected to see that the massive roof had caved in or something. When he looked back at her, he said, "If you hate it, I'll build you another one. We don't have to live there. This spring we'll go riding and look for a building site. "

On a
horse?
"No, it isn't that. It's a—beautiful house. It's just—" Maggie broke off and stared at it some more. She'd get lost in there. "I'm not used to houses that are so—
big!"

"It
is
big, " Ryan agreed. "But you guys won't live in all of it. The basement floor is a huge industrial-scale kitchen to feed the crews during roundups, with a big dining area and another big room for dances and parties. The main floor is only—what, Rafe?—seven thousand square feet?"

"Thereabout, " Rafe replied. "Eight, tops. And much of that is guest rooms. "

Out the right back window, Maggie saw a gorgeous red horse on the opposite side of the fence. It pranced along with the car, its tail uplifted and its mane flying. Rafe spotted it at the same instant. "What's that son of a bitch still doing here? I told you to sell him or shoot him. "

"He's a world-class stud. After you left, what was the point?"

Maggie had never heard Rafe's voice so cold. She glanced at the horse again and remembered the story he'd told her about the car wreck. She knew then that this was the stallion that had been kicking up a fuss in the trailer that night during the hailstorm. Maggie couldn't really blame Rafe for not being able to stand the sight of it.

His expression was still set in grim lines when he

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carried Maggie to the house. Ryan followed, carrying Jaimie. They entered into what Ryan called the mud-room but was actually a huge atrium laced with stone walkways and beds of greenery. At the center was a bench-encircled fish pond with a waterfall.

For a long moment, Rafe stood just inside the door. Maggie suspected he had mixed emotions about this homecoming and was remembering his family.

After a moment, he smiled down at her. "You're right. It's big. "

Maggie relaxed slightly, glad that the moment had passed. When she sensed his sadness, she wanted to comfort him. Not smart, under the circumstances. She would be inviting trouble. She'd seen the possessive gleam in Rafe Kendrick's eyes and knew it wouldn't take much to make him amorous.

He struck off for a set of sliders at the opposite end of the vaulted enclosure. She tightened her hold on his neck as he bent at the knees to open the glass door. He stepped into a huge country kitchen with copper-bottomed pots hanging from hooks over a butcher-block work island. One entire wall was dominated by a stone fireplace. A cheerful fire crackled in the grate, and two well-worn wooden rockers sat before the hearth, inviting tired souls to sit back and kick up their feet. Across the room from the hearth was a long plank table with cross-buck legs. Individual stools were positioned haphazardly around it.

At the sound of the door opening, a hefty woman with a wavy cap of gray hair turned from the sink. When she saw Rafe, her green eyes filled with tears. She wiped her wet hands on the starched white apron covering her brown dress.

"Rafael!" She lumbered across the room and launched her sizable self at him, sandwiching Maggie between his hard chest and her soft, ample one. A plump arm hooked Maggie around the neck, forcing her face against Rafe's jaw as it squeezed. "Oh, my boy! Praise
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the Lord. It's a miracle. I prayed and prayed you weren't dead, and now here you are, real as life!"

"Careful of Maggie, Becca, " Rafe cautioned with a laugh. "She's still a little sore. " He dipped his head to kiss her wrinkled cheek. When he straightened, he grinned. "What's to eat? I'm starving. "

Becca stepped back and cupped her pudgy hands to her cheeks, her gaze fixed on his dark countenance.

Then her face dissolved and she started to cry in earnest. "I didn't think I'd ever hear you ask me that again. "

Rafe flashed Maggie an apologetic look and deposited her on one of the rockers. He went to take the older woman in his arms. Hunching his shoulders, he bent his head to kiss her temple.

"I never meant to put all of you through such a bad time, " he said gruffly.

She ran her hands over his broad back as if she couldn't believe he was real even as she launched into a scolding. "Taking off without a word, and then never calling home. I've a good mind to warm your seat with my spatula!"

"Later, " he said with a choked laugh. "I'm not grabbing my ankles in front of Maggie. It's not dignified. "

Becca sobbed and then chuckled. "Well, then, you'd better straighten yourself up! Any more nonsense out of you, and I'll tan your hide right in front of her, mark my words. What you've put your mama through!

For shame, Rafael! And your daddy, bless his heart. I've never seen that man shed a tear, mind you, and he cried like a baby the other night when he called to tell me!"

"I'm sorry. So sorry. "

When Ryan stepped into the kitchen, Maggie held up her arms for the baby. He shook his head. "I think you're heading straight for bed. "

Overhearing his brother's comment, Rafe pulled away from the housekeeper. Becca patted her cheeks dry and tugged at her dress and apron. "My, yes! What am I thinking, letting you sit there, Maggie? Forgive me. "

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"I'm perfectly fine, " Maggie assured her.

"Fiddle. Rafael told me on the phone how sick you've been. Well, never you worry. The master suite is all ready for you. Rafael had the room completely redone before he left. You'll be the first to sleep in there since—well, in a good long while. And I've prepared the nursery as best I can. All the furniture in there was—'' She broke off and glanced at Rafe. "Well, never mind. Rafael will have to buy more, is all. I've borrowed a few things from the wives of the hired hands that will do us for now. "

"I'd prefer to have Jaimie in the same room with me, " Maggie said.

"Only if I have your promise that you won't try to take care of him yourself, " Rafe inserted. "Doctor's orders, remember? Complete bed rest. "

The determined glint in his eyes told Maggie that arguing would get her nowhere. She decided a half a loaf was better than nothing. "I remember. "

He came to lift her from the rocker. To Becca, he said, "She isn't supposed to be on her feet for a week. "

"And she won't be, " Becca said firmly.

"It's probably all right for me to get up for a little while if I'm—"

"No arguments!" Becca said, cutting Maggie short. "I'd like to give you a bit of time to settle in before I take after you with my spatula. But I won't hesitate if I catch you disobeying your doctor. " She waddled from the kitchen into a long hallway, speaking to Rafe who followed behind her. "I already called Dr.

Kirsch, so he's standing by. Did you bring all the medication she needs?"

"Got it. "

"I'll want a list of instructions in her care. Don't be forgetting and taking off to the stables before you give it to me. "

"I'm not taking off anywhere, Becca. You'll have your hands full with Jaimie and the household. "

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"Oh, pooh. I can accomplish more with a baby in one arm than three women and a girl. " She threw open a door and stepped inside a huge room with mauve carpeting and creamy walls, her broad hips almost touching the door frame at both sides. "The bed is turned down, " she said, scurrying over to a long bank of windows to draw the drapes against the late afternoon sunlight. "Just set her there on the edge. "

"Did you get the nightgowns?"

"I sent Delores to town after you called me. You forgot to give me a shoe size, so she bought stretchy-type slippers. The robe is a nice heavy velour. " She paused with one hand on a draw cord. "It's all there at the foot of the bed. "

Maggie wanted to remind them she was an adult, not a sick child. They were talking back and forth as if she weren't there. Rafe set her on the mattress, which was covered with taut sheets that looked as if they had been ironed. He crouched to untie her shoes just as Maggie bent forward to do it herself, and they bumped heads. She blinked away stars and grabbed her temple.

"Sweetheart, are you all right?"

Much more help, and they were going to kill her. She stared at him, rubbing the throbbing place. It usually took a lot to make Maggie angry, but she was quickly getting there.

"I'll do it!" she said as he reached for her foot again.

"Don't be silly. It hurts your back to bend over. " He unlaced one of her shoes and jerked it off. As he attacked her other sneaker, he glanced at the floral-print gown and burgundy velour robe at the foot of the bed. "Ankle-length flannel?" he said with a curl of his lip.

Finished with drawing the drapes, Becca ambled to the bedside table to flip on the light. "If you want neg-ligees, go buy them yourself. "

Rafe winked at Maggie as he brushed her hands aside to unzip her coat. "Maybe I'll just do that. "

Maggie started to peel off the jacket. He drew it down

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before she could move, trapping her arms at the elbows. As he tugged the sleeves off over her hands, Maggie got a bad feeling about this. Sure enough, after tossing the jacket aside, he reached for the buttons of her blouse.

Maggie grabbed his wrists. "I'll do it, " she said.

"Honey, don't—"

Maggie's temper snapped. She slapped at his hands. "Out! Both of you. I appreciate your concern, but I'm not an invalid. "

Rafe rocked back on his heels, looking mildly startled. Becca planted her hands on her ample hips. The two of them stared at her.

Maggie felt light-headed when she pushed to her feet. She grasped the ornately carved bedpost. "Out, "