Someone's Baby Read online

  Jayne lay down beside the infant, biting her lip when she moved wrong and sent fire down her arm. She hoped Zed would bring rescue soon. She cradled the infant and yawned. It had been a while since she'd taken the pain pill and all she'd done was sleep all day, yet it was still hard to keep her eyes open.

  "Jayne? I'm coming in."

  Cade entered slowly and stopped. He surveyed the bed with an expression she couldn't read. His eyes were hidden beneath the brim of his hat. No question about it. Cade was dangerously attractive. Her heart gave a peculiar flutter just looking at him. With his hat pulled low like that, dressed in those snug-fitting jeans and boots, a toothpick jutting from the corner of his mouth, he could have posed for one of those sexy billboard ads. His entire stance shouted seductive cowboy stud, and she'd take bets he didn't even realize that fact.

  His expression was peculiar. It took her muzzy brain a few seconds to remember that her legs were bare and the shirt was undone far enough to be provocative. Not only that, the shirt had several damp spots from the wet bra clinging to the fabric.

  Oh, no. Did he think she was trying to appear seductive? With this shoulder?

  "Guess it takes a mother's touch," he said mildly as she sat up gingerly, pulling the shirt closed.

  "I gave us a sponge bath," she explained.

  Cade grunted, but his gaze remained fixed as if he couldn't bear to look away. Her nipples responded to that expression while her stomach tightened in crazy anticipation.

  "I also made her some sugar water," she added hastily.

  Cade frowned, momentarily diverted. "Is that good for her?"

  "I don't see how it can hurt."

  "Do you want me to finish changing her while you get dressed?"

  Well, that was pointed enough. She almost asked him why she'd want to get dressed, but she was a little leery of provoking him too far. As she reached for her slacks she realized how much of her body was actually exposed. Not only were her legs bare, but his shirt gaped dangerously. No wonder he was staring.

  "I was trying to let the air get to her bottom before we have to deal with diaper rash," she said trying to ignore the heat rising in her cheeks as her fingers fumbled with buttons.

  His jaw clenched. "Do you need help putting your pants back on?"

  Surprised by his tone, she lifted her head. His look of irritation raised her hackles. She set the pants beside her and finished buttoning the too big shirt to a more respectable level. To heck with worrying about provoking him.

  "Why would I need help? I plan to leave them off. It's too hot in here."

  Cade muttered something under his breath. She had a feeling it wasn't complimentary.

  "Hap's on his way with the truck. I saw him from the hill out back. He should be here in a few minutes. While I'm sure he'd appreciate your lack of attire, you need to get dressed. We're leaving."

  "Then how come you look so mad? I thought you'd be happy to get rid of us."

  Cade scowled. "Get dressed, Jayne."

  As he moved around the cabin collecting things, Jayne struggled to get her stained, dirty slacks back on. She had to take several deep breaths to keep from crying out when her shoulder protested, but she finally managed. For the first time she became conscious of how disheveled and mussed she looked. Her hair was matted with blood and she was dirty and sticky and she smelled sweaty. She must be getting better if she could worry about her looks.

  "Can I help?" she asked him.

  He turned around. "You're doing it. Just keep Heather happy and I'll set this stuff on the porch. Then I'll come in and get her ready to go."

  "Okay."

  Now that rescue was at hand, Jayne couldn't decide what she was feeling. Relief, certainly, but it was sort of bittersweet. This Hap person would drive her into town and she'd probably never see Cade again. Only, she didn't want Cade to disappear from her life. Cade attracted her as no other man ever had.

  But she couldn't deny that he seemed more than ready to get rid of her and the baby. Who could blame him? She'd been nothing but trouble from the start. And it dawned on her that maybe that trouble wasn't quite over yet.

  "Cade, about the man who shot me—"

  He jammed the empty baby bottle that he'd washed back inside the diaper bag without looking at her. "Save it for the sheriff."

  His words made her blink in surprise. He'd grown more moody and more remote than ever since he'd come back inside the cabin. What had turned him so surly?

  "But you should know—"

  "No. I shouldn't know." He shot her a glare from beneath the brim of his hat. "As soon as Hap gets here, I'm going to have him radio the sheriff. You can give the sheriff all the details of your problems. My job is done once you're safely in his hands."

  She felt as if he'd slapped her. His words seemed to come out of the blue. His tone was implacable. He acted as if he didn't care about her any longer. All the warm cozy thoughts Jayne had been harboring about the sexy cowboy died a swift death. She bent her head over the baby to hide the sting of tears. She heard him curse.

  "Look, I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings," he growled.

  -"Forget it," she managed to respond, glad that her voice came out strong. "You made your point."

  Cade swore under his breath.

  "You ought to try to broaden your vocabulary," she told him, standing up and willing the dizziness not to betray her weakness in front of him. "Heather and I are going to wait outside on the porch. The air in here is too thick to breathe."

  He stiffened instantly. "You'll stay in here until Hap gets here."

  "Make me."

  For a moment they glared at one another like a pair of little kids. While she felt foolish—a smart person doesn't tease a mountain lion—she was determined not to back down no matter what he said.

  "Fine," Cade agreed abruptly. "Go ahead and make a target of yourself, but leave your daughter in here so I can get her ready to go."

  "Fine."

  But it wasn't fine. She didn't want this stupid cowboy to dislike her. She looked at Heather. The baby was staring around in innocent contentment. She was so precious and beautiful. Jayne realized she was going to miss the little girl. Jayne kissed her forehead and winced as she moved wrong and the shoulder sent pain streaming down her arm again.

  "You all right?""

  She waited for the spasm to pass, then she lifted the rifle. "I'll wait for you outside." And she strode past Cade without looking at him. She was very much afraid if she did, she'd burst into tears—and not from the pain.

  Outside, dusk was descending. The weather was much too hot, but the land was beautiful with the hills still flush with bluebonnets. She'd always loved the . peaceful serenity of her parents' ranch, but Cade's land was breathtaking. Too bad he had turned out to be an insensitive jerk. She was certain now that he wasn't married. Who would put up with his inexplicable mood swings? Not even to live on land like this. Uh-uh. No way.

  His cows probably didn't like him, either.

  By the time the man he introduced as Hap Ramirez pulled up outside the cabin, she was more than ready to see a friendly face. Only his wasn't. Hap was a stocky, barrel-chested man of about sixty with weathered skin, dark piercing eyes and a dour expression that assessed her and the baby without a blink.

  "Lithcolm told the truth, after all," Hap said as he greeted Cade.

  “You came alone?" Jake demanded.

  "I thought it best from what I was told. And there wasn't time to unload the truck so there was no room for anyone else. It'll be dark soon and I want to get back to the men and the herd as quickly as possible."

  Jake nodded. "We need to get Jayne and her baby to Doc Zimmerman."

  Hap's perpetual scowl deepened. "This is his week to go visit his daughter, did you forget?"

  Jake swore. "Yeah. I did. Okay. We'll radio the—"

  But Hap was shaking his head.

  "What?" Jake demanded. "Don't tell me your radio isn't working."

  "Not anymore. The wires were
cut shortly after I spoke to Zed. They can be repaired but it will take time."

  Jake strode to the vehicle using a string of epitaphs that were more impressive than the ones her brother the cop had used the day he fell off the roof.

  "The wires were cut after Zed arrived?"

  Hap's eyes narrowed. "Yeah."

  "Who else was around?"

  "I saw no one but our own people."

  Cade's jaw set in a hard line. Jayne shivered at his expression. He thought Zed was responsible. But if that was true then why had the cowboy sent help?

  "Where's Zed now?" he asked in a quiet, deadly voice.

  "He said you instructed him to go to the ranch."

  Jayne saw Cade's fingers close in a fist. "I did," he stated bleakly. "Okay. I'll deal with Zed later. We'll have to take Jayne into the city."

  Without moving a muscle, Hap managed to express his shock. "That's a very long drive."

  Cade eyed him steadily. "Then we'd better get going."

  He couldn't have made his desire to get rid of her quickly any plainer. Before she could tell him not to do her any favors, Hap shook his head.

  "As you wish, however, they're predicting severe thunderstorms between here and there with heavy rain, lightning, flash floods. There's even a tornado watch in effect."

  "Now when was the last time we had a tornado in this part of Texas?"

  Hap shrugged. All three of them looked toward the sky and the swiftly moving clouds building over the hills.

  "We can undoubtedly make the city, but returning home again…" Hap shrugged once more. Cade uttered another oath. "All right," he said grudgingly. "We'll go to the house. I can take them first thing in the morning. I guess one more day won't matter."

  Jayne stood straighter in an effort not to show any weakness. "Don't worry about me. I'll be fine."

  As soon as she could get to a phone she could call one of her brothers to come get her. Belatedly it occurred to her that if anyone had spotted her car sitting in the parking lot of that shopping center with her belongings scattered all over, her family must be worried sick by now. Funny, this was the first time she'd even considered that aspect of her situation.

  "I was concerned about your daughter," Cade said mildly.

  Chastised, Jayne blinked back tears. She never cried. Never. Turning away, she felt totally enervated.

  "You did get hold of Rio, right?" Cade asked Hap.

  Hap grunted an assent. "He wasn't pleased, but he should be on his way back with the items you requested."

  "I don't pay him to be pleased," Cade snapped. "I pay him to follow orders. I may need a couple of the men to stand guard when we get back to the house in case Rio wasn't as discreet as he was told to be. The lady has a husband out gunning for her. Literally. He's already put one hole in her. I don't aim to give him another crack."

  "I can take care of myself," she said stoutly. Neither man so much as looked her way.

  "We're already down two men," Hap reminded Cade sourly. "If the weather changes course and comes in this direction I'll need every man I've got arid then some to keep those ornery cows together."

  "Let me have Rio and Sven since neither of them can ride herd right now anyhow."

  "Sven left," Hap said acerbically. "He said your ranch is jinxed."

  Cade set his jaw. "Let's load up and get out of here."

  Despite his surly disposition, Jayne was sorry to be causing Cade extra problems. It sounded like he had enough of his own. For the life of her, Jayne couldn't figure out why Zed would cut the radio lines in Hap's truck.

  Unless he was part of the kidnapping ring.

  The thought paralyzed her, but it made a crazy kind of sense. Lily Garrett had told her the ring was part of a large criminal organization. That meant anyone could be involved.

  Even Zed.

  But then why hadn't he taken the baby from them when he first arrived? Was he afraid of Cade? The two men were of a similar size and build, but Cade moved with a quiet force she suspected would give him an edge in any physical battle. Of course, Zed looked as if he could take care of himself as well. The bottom line was that she wouldn't want to see the two men go at one another. She had a feeling the results would be much uglier than the day two of her brothers got into a fight over a girl they both wanted to date.

  She put a hand to her aching head. Her thoughts were muddled. She wanted to tell Cade what she suspected about Zed, but he didn't want to know about her problems. All he wanted was to get her off his land. That would probably be best for all of them.

  Jayne pushed the hurt aside and eyed the battered green pickup truck. The vehicle didn't look like it would make it to the main road, let alone any distance beyond that point. Fortunately, Jayne knew how deceiving looks could be when it came to ranch trucks. Her dad had one she'd swear was used before World War I.

  The baby carrier wouldn't fit in the back so Cade rigged it for the passenger seat. That meant she had to scrunch in the back with Cade. Jayne thought about protesting, but both men were already grim. Besides, the air-conditioning was a blessed relief and made the tight quarters bearable.

  Jayne sat back with a sigh, all too aware of the friction of Cade's hard, muscled thigh pressed tightly against her own, as the truck bounced over the rough terrain. He held himself stiffly, so she pulled as far away as she could manage. Half the back seat had been taken up by a pile of objects including an old saddle. They couldn't put it in the bed because the back of the truck was already piled high with baling wire and fence posts and other items. She was grateful Cade hadn't suggested she ride on the roof.

  "You doing okay?" he asked abruptly.

  Each jolt of the truck sent hot embers of pain down her arm. Cade must have noticed her grimace, or maybe it was the way she had curled her fists until her nails bit into the skin of her palms. But she'd pass out before she complained.

  "Don't worry. I'll be out of your hair just as soon as I can reach a telephone."

  His steady gaze pinned her. "Got someplace to go?"

  "Yes."

  He waited, but she closed her eyes to signify the end of the conversation. A petty victory to be sure, but she savored it. After a moment, he directed the next question to Hap.

  "Anything else I should know about?"

  "We found three more sections of fence down—all on different sides. We've got critters scattered from one end of this spread to the other."

  Cade growled.

  His problems were none of her business, Jayne told herself, but she knew that her presence was keeping him from his own work.

  "How'd he get to the radio without being noticed?" Cade muttered.

  "We'll have to catch him to ask."

  "I intend to."

  And the quiet emphasis in Cade's tone sent a shiver down her spine. He definitely thought Zed was responsible.

  "You ready to call the sheriff yet?" Hap demanded.' "Or are you going to wait until someone gets seriously hurt? Maybe a poisoned well or another stampede. We're going to start losing cattle and men if we don't catch him soon, Cade. Some of the new hires are starting to talk like Sven. If the Circle M gets a reputation, you won't be able to hire anyone."

  "I'll call the sheriff as soon as we reach the house," Cade promised harshly.

  Hap didn't respond. The baby began to whimper.

  "I hope to hell Rio got some baby formula in town," Cade muttered.

  The one-story ranch house wasn't pretty. The faded white clapboard needed a coat of paint, a carpenter, a landscaper or perhaps simply a demolition crew, she thought uncharitably. She eyed the old washing machine sitting on the front porch.

  The building did have indoor plumbing and real beds with sheets that looked clean. That automatically ranked it above the line shack, Jayne decided. As she peered around, she concluded that no woman had ever lived in the house. At least not for any extended period of time. The furniture was utilitarian and undusted, though surprisingly uncluttered. And there were none of the little touches necessa
ry to turn the place into something resembling a home. Cade was definitely not married.

  This was a house where men hung their clothing and periodically rested their boots on the old scarred furniture while they drank a beer and watched television. The rooms were neater than she would have expected. And the bathroom and kitchen were actually clean enough that she didn't have to worry about touching surfaces.

  She cradled the sleeping baby in her good arm and wished she could close her eyes as well. It was a major effort to stand up. The trip to the ranch house had exhausted her reserves and all she wanted to do was sleep.

  Her secret fear that Zed would be lying in ambush, when they arrived proved false. If he was working for the kidnappers, he was in no hurry to claim the baby. She didn't even see Zed. .

  The idea of another pain pill was looking better by the moment. Cade and Hap were arguing as they came inside with the last load from the truck.

  "When did that happen?" Cade was asking Hap.

  Jayne wondered what else had gone wrong.

  "Could have been any time. We don't have the manpower to watch every inch of this spread. You know that, Cade."

  "Then we'll hire more crew."

  "From where? You going to manufacture some out of thin air?"

  Cade and Hap glared at one another.

  "Excuse me, but could one of you tell me where to find a telephone before you come to blows?" And before she curled herself in a ball and cried herself to sleep.

  "In the kitchen," Cade snapped. "On the wall by the desk."

  "Thank you. You're too kind."

  Hap rolled his eyes and turned and stalked back out the front door.

  "I'll get the sheriffs number for you," Cade added gruffly.

  She knew his anger wasn't directed at her, but it annoyed her all the same. "That won't be necessary."

  He laid a broad hand on her good shoulder to stop her just short of the kitchen. The action jarred the baby and her injured shoulder. Fortunately, Heather didn't wake.

  "Sorry. But it is necessary, Jayne. You're going to report this incident to the sheriff. The guy shot you. I don't care if he is Heather's father, you can't just pretend it didn't happen."