Special Delivery (Mountain Meadow Homecoming 1) (34 page)

“There you go.” She left him standing in the middle of the office, a nervous, almost frightened look on his face. Serves you right, Anna thought with a small spark of vindictive satisfaction as she walked away. The only thing that would make it better would be for Becca to either spit up or poop, both things she excelled at doing. Imagining such a scenario made Anna smile.

The horse’s ears swiveled forward when he saw her. He quit stomping once again and this time blew at her enough to make a small nicker. Anna’s smile widened. She loved horses—always had, and somehow they knew it. Without hesitation, she walked to the muscular animal, stroked his head before clipping on a lead shank, and unhooked the cross ties. To make sure he was steady on his feet and the stitches weren’t pulling, she walked him the length of the aisle a couple times before leading him to his own stall. The horse followed her and munched the hay in the feeder as soon as she escorted him inside the stall. After unclipping the lead and looping it in her hand, she shut the door and watched him for a couple more minutes. Finally glancing at her wristwatch, she hurried up the aisle to the office.

Chris stood rooted where she’d left him, as if he were afraid any movement might startle the tiny person in his arms. Curiosity had replaced his earlier frightened expression. Becca had her face turned toward him and watched him from her big, blue-gray eyes. Anna swallowed. The baby had a reputation for not liking strangers, so her daughter’s quiet observation of the man made Anna uneasy in a way she did not want to examine. Part of her had hoped Becca would scream bloody murder the moment he touched her, and at least her daughter could have covered him in spit up. Traitor.

“Thank you,” she said, reaching for her. “I can take her now.”

“I’ve never held a baby before.” Stevenson’s deep voice was rough, and he sounded a little embarrassed. He handed her the infant.

His awe made Anna drop her hostility. For just a moment, she felt like she glimpsed the man behind the public persona--and he appealed to her. When she smiled, she saw Stevenson’s eyes widen, then narrow with speculation. Her smile turned to a chuckle. “I know.”

His gaze swiveled from her to the baby and back. “That obvious?”

Anna pursed her lips. “Yes, but at least you were brave enough to take her.” She laughed again before quieting at the curious look he gave her.

Time to go. Right now. Curiosity was not good. The last thing she wanted to do was make Chris curious about her in any way. They had nothing in common, nor should they. She would not take such a risk.

She kept her tone cool. “I’ll stop by in the morning to check on your stallion. Good night, Mr. Stevenson.”

“Good night, Dr. Barlow.”

He turned back to the barn, and she gathered Becca and the rest of her things and headed toward the truck. That was it. He hadn’t recognized her. She was relieved. Of course she was relieved. It was the best thing. Her lip trembled and she clamped on it with her teeth until it hurt. He was a despicable human being, which she knew better than most people ever would. The farther she and Becca stayed away from him the better.