Big Sky Rancher (25 page)

She was tender and softhearted. And if she wanted to cry, he knew just the fella to comfort her, even though she was a veritable waterfall right now. His heart ached for her as he recognized her fright. The thought struck him a telling blow and he knelt in front of her.

“Don't be afraid, sweetheart. I won't let anything happen to you.”

“There's not a whole lot you can do about it,” she wailed. “I want Ida here. You can help, but I need her to take care of me.”

Privately he agreed with her, but getting Ida meant riding to town and leaving her alone. And that was not a viable option.

“Hello. You in there, Lucas?” From the yard, a voice called out and Lucas stood and turned toward the door, relief flooding his being.

“That's Sandy,” he said, and felt as though his prayers had been answered all at one time. “He can go get Ida, honey. I'll stay here with you. Is that all right?”

She nodded, reaching into his pocket for his big handkerchief. “Please tell Sandy to hurry,” she begged, wincing and bending over as though something had twisted her body.

“Are you having pains?” he asked, and then silently cursed his stupidity. Of course she was having pains. In fact, he'd bet she was in the midst of one right now. Her cheeks were bloodless, her lips drawn back, and he thought her eyes had the look of an animal caught in a trap.

He stalked toward the door and jerked it open. “Got a job for you, Sandy. I need you to go to town and get Ida Bronson. Jennifer's about to have the baby, and I don't want to leave her alone.”

“Listen to me first, Luc. We've hit it really big. You know that little vein we thought was just a trickle? Well, it's a jim-dandy source of more gold than you can shake a stick at. I brought as much with me as my horse could carry and hid the site pretty well. I'll take this much to the assayer's office, and tell Mrs. Bronson to get herself out here right quick. Then I'm goin' back to the canyon to keep an eye on things.”

“You can go with him if you need to, Lucas.” Jennifer's voice was strong now, the pain obviously having passed.

Anger surged through him. “Are you crazy? You're worth more to me than the largest gold strike in the world, Jennifer. If you think for one minute I'd leave you when you're about to bear my child, you're out of your mind.”

She smiled. The fool woman smiled at him, after he'd shouted at her as he'd never done before, as he'd never thought to. And she wasn't making a show of it. This was the smile he loved, the one that told him the song of her heart, that gave him a glimpse into the woman's mind and soul. She loved him, no matter that he'd raged at her, never mind that his words had been harsh.

“I love you, too, Lucas,” she said.

He considered the words he'd said. They were true, every last one of them, and he'd just told his wife she meant more to him than all the gold in the world. Again, he knelt at her side, taking her hands in his. “I didn't mean to shout at you, Jen.”

“I know,” she whispered. “I know what you said and what you meant by it, and I love you for it.” She bent to kiss his mouth, her lips opening a bit as if she would savor the taste of him, and then her breath caught and she stiffened.

“What is it, Jen? Another pain?” He gripped her arms, but she reached for his hands, unwrapping his fingers from her flesh and then holding them in an unbreakable grasp. He knew the answer to his question, knew that she lacked the breath to utter the words that might reassure him. For he could not be fooled at this point. Jen was going to have the baby tonight, and he'd do well to haul her up the stairs and put her to bed.

Rising, he patted her hands and went back to the door. Sandy sat atop his horse, unmoving, as if he sensed that Lucas needed him in a new and different way than ever before.

“Make it a quick trip to town. Don't dawdle, Sandy. I need Ida here, right quick. And while you're at it, stop by and tell the doctor I want him to come out too.”

Sandy rode off, his horse breaking into an easy lope as he headed toward town.

“I want Ida.” It was a wail of anguish and Lucas felt helpless in the face of Jennifer's pain. This was why women did this sort of thing, he thought. Men were no earthly good at babies and the bringing of such little creatures into the world. This had seemed like a really good idea months ago, but now that the time was on him, he felt more helpless than he'd ever planned to be in his whole life.

Action would be the way to go, he decided, picking Jennifer up from her chair and walking toward the hallway and the staircase beyond. Without argument, she wrapped her arm around his neck and clung. He made it up the stairs without puffing, a feat he felt quite proud of. Jennifer was no lightweight these days, her body rounding almost to the bursting point, it seemed.

“You shouldn't have done that. I'm too heavy,” she said, as he stood her on the rug beside the bed and began stripping off her clothing. He made short work of it, only her robe and undergarments garbing her body. Bending, he pulled her stockings down and off her feet, then went to the laundry basket. Her gown was there, but he could see no signs of use.

That was simple enough. It had been lying on the floor for the past three nights, Jennifer uncomfortable with the folds wrapped around her body. “This isn't dirty,” he said. “I want you to put it on.”

She didn't argue, just pulled it over her head and then sought the comfort of her bed, only to sit up abruptly. “I forgot,” she said. “Ida made some pads out of newspapers, covered with pieces of old sheets, for me to lie on. They're in the bottom drawer of my dresser. She said this is a messy business and I won't want to get the mattress stained.”

Another surprise, Luc thought, crossing the room to re
trieve the needed pads. He lifted Jennifer and slid one beneath her, then placed the others on a chair. “Okay?” he asked, watching her, waiting for the next pain to begin.

It was not long in coming, and indeed, by the time Ida and the doctor arrived, Jennifer was well on her way to delivering her child.

“How long you been having pains?” Ida asked, washing her hands in the basin.

“Just a backache early on, but I've been cramping like this for a while now.”

“Cramping, my foot. This is labor, Jen. You should have sent Lucas in early on.”

“Let's take a look,” the doctor said, approaching with a clean towel in hand. He'd scrubbed with a brush for long minutes and Jennifer was convinced his hands were spotless. She lay immobile, Lucas holding her hand as the doctor pressed on her belly with a gentle touch and then waited until the next pain began before he continued his examination.

She cried out then, for the first time losing her sense of control and Lucas knelt beside her, gathering her to himself.

“She told me it was my fault,” he muttered. “She's mad at me.”

“I don't think so,” the doctor said. “If she was, she wouldn't be hugging you so tight, young man.” He stood again and shot a glance at Ida. “We got lots of hot water and clean towels, ma'am?”

“Jennifer and I stocked up good on towels the other day, and there's water in the reservoir on the cookstove. Run down and get a bucketful, Luc.”

As if he were relieved to have a job to do, Lucas rose and dashed from the room, his boots clattering on the stairs.

“He'll live through it, missy,” the doctor told Jennifer. “I haven't lost a father yet.” He laughed at his joke and winked at Ida. “Let's get this show on the road,” he said. “My missus will be lookin' for me along about dark.”

It was just after dark when Jennifer took her final deep breath, pushed mightily and groaned, ushering a squalling baby boy into the world. Dark hair covered his tiny head and long arms and legs gave future promise of a man built like his father.

In minutes the doctor had completed his work. Wrapped in a clean bit of flannel, the baby was placed in Lucas's arms. He went to Jennifer and bent low over the bed.

“We have a boy, sweetheart.” His pride was obvious, his love a tangible force in the room as he placed the tiny babe in his mother's arms for the first time.

“Can we name him after you?” Jennifer asked. “I planned on a girl, and I don't think that Rosalie would fit him.”

Lucas looked at the tiny face, so like that of a wise old man, and nodded. “Whatever you want to call him is all right with me, sweetheart.”

“How about Lucas Alexander? And we can call him Alex, if you like.”

“Couldn't have done better myself,” Lucas said. “And Sandy will be pleased. He's a good man.”

“So are you, Luc,” she said softly, waiting for his kiss, a kiss not long in coming.

“Let me have that child,” Ida told her, taking the baby and sitting with him next to the pan of warm water. “We need to be washing him up a little. And then you can have him back.”

Lucas held Jennifer close, as if he couldn't get close enough to her and needed to feel her very breath against his
cheek. But when Ida came back with the baby a bit later, he released his wife and opened his arms to contain his son. Bending over Jennifer again, he fit the baby between them and took a deep breath.

“For the first time in my life, Jen, I feel like I have everything I've ever wanted. I have my whole world in my arms, sweetheart.”

Her eyes filled with tears and she brushed at them. “I don't know why I'm crying. I'm so happy I just can't hold it all inside. Does that make sense?”

“Yeah, I'd say so. Nothing else could add to our happiness tonight.”

J
ENNIFER SAT
in the swing, pushing idly with one foot against the floor, holding her son against her breast as he suckled. She'd been out here for many hours over the past months, including last night, when the baby had awakened and decided that his hunger needed appeasing. Either that or he wanted company, she'd told Lucas.

Either way, she knew that these moments alone with the tiny baby boy would soon turn into sessions of scraped knees and bruised shins. But no matter what the future held, these precious hours spent with Alex as a baby would forever bond them into a close fellowship of mother and son.

A few minutes ago, with Lucas in the barn, she'd once more been awakened by the baby's snufflings and the sound of him suckling his own hand, and had risen from her bed to carry him to the porch, where she watched the sun rising above the treetops, wrapped in the knowledge that all was well in her world, that somehow she had managed to put together a life that offered bountiful rewards.

Alex released his grip on her and a soft burp notified her that he had been sated by the food his mother had provided. From the barn, Lucas whistled and Buster ran to meet him. The dog had found a new home with them, and showed every
sign of being as attached to Alex as he had been to Susan a year earlier.

Susan.
The name still sounded as sweet as ever, vibrating within her mind, as memories of the child chased through her thoughts. And then, as if she had somehow brought to life the vision in front of her, she saw a buggy approaching. It was not yet breakfast time, the dew not burned off the grass and it seemed far too early in the day for visitors. Yet two women sat on the seat, one of them holding a small child. A girl, Jennifer discerned. She abandoned her comfortable seat and stood, holding Alex close to her breast.

It was Susan, yawning and stretching, yet chattering as if such early morning excursions were an everyday occurrence in her life. The woman holding her pointed with her index finger in Jennifer's direction and then noticed the large, brown dog who had left Lucas's side to run, barking joyously, toward the buggy.

“He won't bite.” Lucas called out the reassurance with a loud voice, and only the little girl replied.

“Dog,” she shouted, and the dog bounded higher, as if he would leap into the buggy, given the chance.

“She's talking, with real words,” Jennifer said, standing on the top step of the porch, unaware of the tears that rolled down her cheeks. Lucas took two long steps and clutched her to himself.

“Come on down and see her,” he whispered, lifting both Jennifer and her precious burden to the ground, then leading them to the buggy, which had halted by the hitching rail.

“Did you know?” And if he had, would she be angry that he hadn't warned her? Not likely, Jennifer thought. The overwhelming sight of Susan, the sound of her voice calling the dog over and over, and, at last, the warmth of her tiny body
pressed up against her bosom, were enough to bring Jennifer beyond the brink of tears to a powerful overflow of emotion that caused Susan to frown and rub at the tearstains.

The child bent closer and kissed Jennifer, a warm, damp caress that did much to calm Jennifer and dry up the waterfall she'd turned loose. “She remembers me.” It was all she could think to say as her arms became acquainted once more with the solid weight of the girl child she'd missed so desperately.

“'Course she did.” As if it were most logical, the younger woman climbed down and approached the porch. “Her grandma told her about you every day, and when they decided she was a little scamp and belonged with younger folk, they sent her back to you.” A broad smile accompanied the message, and then the girl looked a bit worried.

“The problem is that we come as a package—me, the baby and my ma. I'm Shanna, and my mother is Bettina, and we'd like to take care of babies and keep house for you.”

“Your folks sent them. I'm afraid it isn't all good news, sweetheart. Your mother isn't well. In fact, she's not able to tend to Susan any longer, so she sent her to us. I told them we'd need some help for you before long and they thought with this big house we had plenty of room for three more to sleep.”

Jennifer nodded, stunned by the events taking place.

“You're all welcome. Come on in and we'll have breakfast. Lucas is hungry, I suspect, and this young one is ready for a nap.” She patted Alex on the back, Susan having gone to Lucas, leaving Jennifer's hands a bit more free. Now she stood to lose possession of her son, for Bettina slid from the buggy and approached with widespread arms.

“Let me take a good look at him,” she crooned, lifting him against her plush bosom and bending to kiss the top of his
downy head. “What a dear child. He won't be a bit of bother, and we can fix him a cot in the kitchen if we need to. We won't want him very far away, will we?”

“We'll see how you feel about this ‘dear child' along about two in the morning,” Lucas said glumly. “He tends to be a nighthawk, hungry at the worst possible times.”

“Well, I'd dare say we can take care of that, can't we, Miss Jennifer?”

Jennifer nodded, dumbstruck by the woman's easy grasp of things. And then was delighted when her kitchen was filled with the sounds of two children, one of them rolling across the floor with a dusty, brown dog, the other snuffling in his mother's neck, settling himself for sleep.

Breakfast was on the table quickly, Bettina an old hand, it seemed, with cooking and preparing a meal. Lucas brought the cradle from the bedroom for the baby and he nestled down in comfort, leaving his mother free to eat.

It was a dream come true, a slice of heaven she'd not thought to experience, and Jennifer looked around her kitchen with a joy she could barely contain.

“We'll settle all the details of me working for you later on. For now, I'll just take the load off you here in the kitchen and with the washing and such.” The older woman announced her plans as if she would accept no argument, and Jennifer nodded still too stunned by the turn of events of protest.

“And I'll take care of the little ones and give Ma a hand when she needs me,” Shanna added. And then she looked at Jennifer. “I hope you don't mind us just showing up and makin' ourselves at home.”

“You're as welcome as the flowers in May,” Jennifer told
her. “If Lucas says we can afford help, then I couldn't ask for more than to have the both of you here.”

“Let's just consider us family for now,” Bettina said. “If we can live here and find a new life in this big country, we'll be pleased. The city was getting to me, so much hustle-bustle and dirt, I was fed up to my teeth with that sort of life. This is a place where a body can stretch herself a hundred ways and still find room to explore.”

Lucas sat back in his chair and grinned. There was no other word for the expression on his face, Jennifer decided. And then he looked at her and his smile became more personal, his mouth softening, his eyes turning darker as he gave her his full attention.

“I'll do whatever it takes to keep you happy, love. We have plenty of money and a house large enough to hold a big family. And if we fill this one to the brim, we'll build another, even bigger. Or we can move to town if you want to.”

She stood and rounded the table to where he sat, then bent to kiss him with enthusiasm and hug him with gusto. “I love you, Lucas O'Reilly, more than I'd ever thought to love another person in my life. I love your son, and Susan, and I'll probably drive these two women up the wall, getting in their way and trying to be a help to them, not a hindrance. I'm so happy I could just burst.”

Lucas stood and enclosed her in an embrace that was familiar to her. Her head fit in the hollow of his shoulder, her lips not too far from the strong lines of his throat, and she snuggled there, uncaring of those who watched.

“Well,” said Bettina, with a sly grin at Shanna, “this is gonna be a fine place to work. I can see that already, girl. I'd say we landed in a soft bed, sure enough.”

Lucas bent closer and whispered a message in Jennifer's ear that made her snort inelegantly. “Speaking of soft beds…” he began, only to laugh as his wife glared up at him.

“You'll never change, will you, Lucas?” And then she wrapped her arms around his neck and leaned against his strength, knowing he would never fail her. “And if the truth be known, I hope you never do. I love you just the way you are.”

“Well, thank God for that,” he said fervently. And then his tone softened as he looked down at her. “And thank God for you, Jennifer O'Reilly. You'll always be worth more than all the gold in the world, as far as I'm concerned.”