The comment had brought on a too-quick denial...and tears she hadn’t been quick enough to hide. There were emotions there he couldn’t begin to fathom and she hadn’t given him time to try.
With a briskness that had amused him, she’d thanked him for walking her home, for helping with all the baby supplies she’d taken from the store, and hustled him out the door before he could blink. Before he knew it, he was outside looking in, just as he had been all his life. The woman was a self-sufficient whirlwind, all right. It was an irritating trait, especially to a man who had hoped to be needed.
She wouldn’t go on brushing him off, he’d promised himself as he left. Soon he would be part of her life, but only after he was settled, only when he had something to offer. He wasn’t long on patience, so he’d just have to make sure he had steady work by the end of the day. That would give him confidence and resources, so he could begin phase one of his campaign to win Sharon Lynn’s heart.
As his pickup idled, he gave the house a quick survey in the pale morning light. There was a light on—in the kitchen, he thought, recalling the layout of the house from his brief stay the night before. He pictured Sharon Lynn, her hair tousled from sleep, her cheeks flushed, maybe wearing nothing more than a robe, heating a baby bottle or maybe making coffee. It was like gazing into his heart and seeing what he’d longed for all his life—someone to come home to, someone who cared. And a baby they’d created together, one who would never know the kind of abandonment he’d felt when his mama had run off.
He imagined he heard a baby’s whimper, though it would have been impossible at this distance with windows closed and the wind howling. Just thinking of that tiny baby brought on a smile, one that lasted until he thought of the son of a bitch who’d left her in the alley. Heaven help the man if Cord ever came across him. Or if Sharon Lynn did, he thought, grinning at the memory of her outrage and the flash of temper that had accompanied it.
Satisfied that short of going inside to check in person, he’d made sure that all was well, he sighed deeply and drove on. He was more determined than ever to get to White Pines in time to get that job. Though he didn’t like thinking that his goals had shifted and had gotten all twisted up with staying close to a woman and a baby, he couldn’t help conceding he had more reasons than ever for wanting to settle down in this little corner of west Texas.
* * *
By Saturday morning Sharon Lynn was exhausted. The baby hadn’t settled down for more than a minute all night. Fortunately the drugstore had had all the supplies she’d needed to keep the baby comfortable and fed. Cord Branson had walked her home carrying all the packages. Even though she’d said she could manage, he’d given her one of those impatient, superior male looks, picked up the supplies and waited for her to lead the way. It hadn’t seemed worth arguing about. And it had been reassuring to have someone to cling to each time her feet had slipped on the icy sidewalks. She was forced to admit it wouldn’t have been easy to avoid a tumble without him. For her own sake and the baby’s, she’d been grateful that he’d insisted.
At the house, though, she’d been eager to have him leave. Other than family, she hadn’t had any male company since she’d moved in and Cord was the kind of man who made his presence felt the instant he walked through the door. All that potent masculinity was an unnecessary distraction when she wanted to concentrate on the baby.
Cord had offered to stick around and help, to bunk on the sofa, but she’d figured she was going to have enough explaining to do about the baby without having to come up with explanations for letting a total stranger—a very masculine stranger—spend the night in her house. It was a very logical excuse for ridding herself of a man who made her nervous for reasons she wasn’t quite ready to explore.
The minute she’d hustled him out the door, the baby had begun to cry as if she’d felt abandoned all over again. Sharon