Suspicions of the Heart (31 page)

"Tell me you want me as much as I want
you," he whispered near her ear.

"I love you, Joe Munroe. When I finally
understood that Lancer was gone, all I could think of was getting
back to you."

"I lost Cherokee, too."

"Dear God, Aggie and Roscoe, Sam and
all the others," she shrieked, suddenly pushing him
away.

"Yeah, we better make tracks." He
sighed, and then lifted her into his arms again.

He didn't mind carrying her, he'd carry
her a million miles, he was just glad he had her here safe in his
arms again.

EPILOGUE

"Sweetheart, want to hand me that rope
up there, I gotta pull this little fella out of the brambles," Joe
hollered at his pregnant wife. They'd been out most of the day
rounding up the new calves to be branded.

"Need help?" She brought him the
rope.

"Not in your condition, young lady. You
gotta take care of your own little one. You feeling okay?" His
concern mirrored on his face.

"I feel fine. Honestly, it isn't due
for another week. What are you worried about?"

"I'm worried about the fact that you
should be in Channing waiting for the baby to arrive." He fussed as
he worked to pull the calf free.

"I'm not having my baby in Channing.
I've already told you. I want to have him here, at the
ranch."

"You're stubborn as a Mississippi mule,
aren't you? What if something goes wrong?" Joe's brow
lifted.

"Nothing is going wrong with our baby,
Mr. Munroe. It's going to be born healthy as me and you," she
chided him.

After loading the calf in the back of
the truck, he wheeled them out of the rut and headed back to the
ranch. Candy scooted close to him, and hugged him to
her.

"Happy?" he questioned as he kissed her
nose and pulled into the yard once more.

Sam came running out to take the calf
as Joe helped her out of the truck.

"As two peas in a pod," she
smiled.

"Why don't you go rest on the porch
'til I get things squared away. I'll be in directly." He smiled and
kissed her on the lips.

She sighed. "Mm, sounds interesting Mr.
Munroe. Is this a date?"

"You bet." He smiled and waved her to
the house.

As Candy made her way back to the
house, she felt a nitch in her side. She ignored it, until it
hitched up again. She groaned and caught her belly.

"You aren't coming, yet, are you little
one?" she asked as she barely made it to the rocking chair to sit
down. She took several deep breaths.

But the hitches didn't stop and by the
time Joe came strolling in, she was in a little pain.

"I think we need to call Aggie," Candy
told him quietly as he took his boots off and poured sand out of
them.

It took a few seconds for it to
register what she was talking about, and when it did, he
practically ran to her side. "It's your time?" he
whispered.

"I think so," she said, puffing and
smiling at the same time.

"I knew I should have taken you into
town."

"What for? Our baby is going to be born
at home right here on the ranch, like he's supposed to. Now, go
call Aggie. I'm going to need her."

"Don't you think you should go lie down
or something?" he asked, his face a screwed up frown.

"No, it's too early to worry about
that. Don't worry, I'll be moving inside very shortly. I've got
plenty of time, honey. Don't panic. First babies are known to take
their time. Just get Aggie and Roscoe to come over. Strip the
sheets and put the rubber ones on."

"Are you going to be all right?" he
asked his face pale.

"Not if you keep standing there asking
questions," she said, laughing.

"This isn't funny." He went inside and
picked up the phone. She heard his voice go from calm to overly
excited, and chuckled to herself. Big strong cowboys were totally
defenseless when it came to having children.

She rubbed her tummy, and smiled. Her
baby was ready to make his way into the world and nothing could
have pleased her more. "I know you're getting anxious. So am I. But
we've got all the time in the world, honey," she said to her little
one.

She sat on the porch while all the men
on the ranch were immediately put on alert as to Mrs. Munroe's
condition. Sam was almost as bad as Joe. She had grown to love all
the hands who worked for them. They were part of her family now,
and were treated as such.

Candy knew her water had broken the
moment she got up, but she tried to remain calm as she went inside
and into the bathroom. She removed her clothes and threw on a bed
jacket, then lay down on the bed and covered up. It was early
spring and she felt like a big mother robin about to give birth to
her first offspring.

Being a woman had been hard for Candy,
she reasoned, but being a mother was as natural as the buds of
spring sprouting.

Aggie and Roscoe must have flown over,
because they were there with her in a matter of minutes. Roscoe had
that tight-lipped look about him that said he was in knots and
didn't know what to do about it.

The room seemed full of people in no
time, but for a while Candy was just too busy to pay much
attention, except to her darling husband who was so adorably
worried over every groan that came from her lips.

She finally stopped him, and pulled him
to her bedside. "Joe, honey, stop fretting so. This is one thing I
think I can do pretty well. And I thank you for it."

"Me? It's me that got you in this mess.
You should be cussing me out," he managed to say. "I've heard most
women cuss when they are having babies."

"And what would you know about most
women having babies?"

"I can read, too, you know."

"I know, darling. I love you today so
much more than yesterday. You've given me the confidence and the
trust I needed to fulfill my life. I'm so happy." When his frown
didn't go away she smoothed his forehead and smiled as she kissed
him tenderly. "Are you ready to be a father?"

He looked at her and suddenly his frown
began to fade into a big goofy grin. "Yes, ma'am."

"Then, trust me; it's going to be all
right. But, in your condition, you'd better wait outside. I'm not
sure you've got the stomach for this."

He gulped, his eyes searching hers. "I
do trust you, sweetheart. Only, don't ever leave me."

Another pain hit and she started
puffing, then, as it began to subside, she smiled again. "I'll
never leave you, I promise."

Roscoe had to practically pull Joe from
the room. He couldn't stand leaving her like that, in so much
pain.

Sam cleared his throat. "Maybe you need
a stiff shot a whiskey, boss?"

"No, thanks, Sam, I want all my
faculties when my child is born. In fact, I'm not staying out of
there. I've got to see it." He took a deep breath and went back
into the room.

Candy glanced at him, but her
contractions had become quite strong and she had to
concentrate.

Joe looked at Aggie. "Anything I can
do?"

"Nope, just let nature take its course.
It might be a while. You might get a cool cloth for her head. She's
gonna have a lot of ups and down before this youngin' is
born."

"Will she have a rough time, Aggie? Is
there any way to tell?" Joe asked, watching Aggie sterilize things
and clean up messes here and there.

"Rough, yes, most women do. It's the
way God intended, but not so rough she can't make it. She's
stronger than she looks, hon. She's a trooper, and I think she's
going to be right good at bringing those little Munroe's into the
world. She takes to it like a cat with a string."

"I can't lose her, Aggie," Joe said
seriously.

"You won't lose her." Aggie reached to
pat his hand. "Now, sit yourself on the other side of her and let
her hold your hand. It's about all she's gonna need."

Joe held her hand, kissed it, touched
her forehead with the cloth, and waited. The waiting nearly did him
in. Every now and then, Roscoe would stick his head inside and
check on them, but he said very little, just frowned as though he,
too, were going through some kind of hell.

Aggie chuckled at them both. "Land
sakes, you men are a tough breed until it comes to birthin'
babies."

"Her pain is getting worse. Is that a
bad sign?" Joe asked.

"No, it's a good sign. It's a sign
we're getting somewhere. You're gonna be a father before too long
now."

Suddenly, Joe watched Candy's
expressions go from pain to smiles and he began to understand
something about his wife. She was in her element now. This was
something she knew she could do, and there was not one sign of fear
on her beautiful face. She was happy, content. It gave him a new
strength and he squeezed her hand.

When her contractions came, he bathed
her forehead and held her hand tightly. And when they went away, he
kissed her. Hours passed and nothing had happened. But Aggie sat
with them, doing what she could and smiling all the
while.

"Having babies takes time, don't
it?"

"I wish it was over for her," Joe said
quietly, lifting the rag from her head. He went to the bathroom to
rewet it.

Roscoe peeked in again. "A storm's
coming. Sam's got everything tied down and it looks like it's going
to be a doozy."

Aggie chuckled. "So's this baby. It's a
big one. That's why it's taking so long. Good healthy stock, that's
what you're raising here."

Joe glanced at her. Any other time the
comment might have pleased him no end, but he wanted Candy to have
an easy time of it.

The storm raged, the wind blew, the
rain battered the windows, and the lightning lit the room. And
Candy's baby was born about the time the storm finally broke, with
a couple of loud yells from Aggie as she hollered, "Push, honey,
now."

And Candy pushed.

Aggie wrapped the baby in a big, warm
blanket, cut the cord and placed the child on Candy's breast.
"Here's your new son."

Joe stared down at the two of them in
wonderment.

"Want to hold your son?"

Joe's eyes filled with tears, but he
happily took the bundle from her arms and cradled his son against
his chest.

"Look at him, he's perfect. And
beautiful for a boy," Joe said clearing his throat.

Aggie chuckled and sat down.

"Thank you, Aggie," Candy said, with a
smile at the woman who knew as much as she about having
babies.

"My pleasure, hon. We got us a new
Munroe," Aggie said proudly as she opened the door and let all the
men come in.

Hired hands and all filed into the
small bedroom to welcome the new family member into the world. But
Candy would never forget the look on Joe's face when he first saw
his son. It was stunning, raw, and wonderful and all man. She loved
him so.

Both of them.

They had learned to let the past go,
and reach for the future. They had learned to trust and love. And
she knew they would always be happy now. Because they both knew
what it took to accomplish it.

This was her love, her life, and she
had put the suspicions of her heart to rest, once and for
all.

The End

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