“Wait!” Cord said, grabbing his arm. “You’re not wearing gloves. I am.”
“Sorry. Apparently I’m a little rusty at breaking and entering.”
“If the door’s unlocked, it’s only entering,” Cord replied.
“I want to be there when you try that explanation out on the judge.”
“No doubt you will be, if it comes to that,” Cord stated as the door eased open on the first try. “Bingo.”
He slipped inside and pulled the flashlight he’d brought along from his pocket.
“Mind telling me exactly what we’re looking for?” Harlan Patrick said.
“Evidence.”
“Evidence of what?”
“That Hazel Murdock wouldn’t be fit to raise that baby.”
“Her evenings at the End of the Road ought to take care of that.”
“I want more.” He flashed the low beam of the light around the room, which was decorated with framed religious pictures and not one single snapshot of her daughter as far as Cord could tell.
“So far all I see is evidence of a God-fearing, churchgoing woman,” Harlan Patrick commented, holding up a stack of programs from Sunday services at the church down the block. “I don’t think that’s going to go against her.”
Cord was forced to admit that the house was well maintained, if not lavishly furnished. There wasn’t a speck of dust on anything and in the kitchen not even a coffee cup had been left in the sink.
He opened the refrigerator and peered inside. There was a six-pack of beer on the top shelf, a half-used stick of butter and a package of stale cheese slices that had darkened around the edges. Apparently Hazel wasn’t much of a cook.
The cabinets weren’t much of an improvement. He found a loaf of bread, some peanut butter and a tin of coffee. There wasn’t even a canned vegetable or box of cereal in sight. Under the counter, though, he did find several bottles of whiskey. It was obvious she didn’t confine her drinking to the saloon down the street. It made him wonder how she managed to stay upright on those walks home at night.
Still, would that be enough to keep her from getting custody? Especially if she worked hard, went to church Sundays, and stayed to herself. Who would testify that she was anything other than a responsible woman, who was willing to take on the burden of raising her grandchild? There were plenty of folks who would probably sing her praises for the sacrifice she was willing to make to care for her daughter’s baby.
“This place is giving me the creeps,” Harlan Patrick murmured, coming up behind him. “Can we get out of here?”
“Might’s well,” Cord agreed.
When they were back in the car and on their way back to Los Piños, Harlan Patrick asked, “Did you find what you were looking for?”
“Aside from the booze, I’m not sure if there was anything at all there to suggest she couldn’t care for the baby,” he admitted, not even trying to hide his disappointment. “Who knows, though, maybe her drinking will be all it takes? Or maybe when she’s had time to think about it, she’ll decide that she doesn’t want a baby messing up her dull little routine.”
“I sure as hell hope so, for Sharon Lynn’s sake and for the baby’s.” Harlan Patrick shuddered. “I know I wouldn’t want to grow up in that house. Reminded me too much of a monk’s cell. Is it any wonder that her daughter didn’t think she could go home with the baby? Dear old mama would probably have bombarded her with a diatribe about her sins. I counted four Bibles in the place.”
“There’s nothing wrong with owning more than one Bible. Some would see that as a sign that she’s a pious woman,” Cord replied.
“Maybe,” Harlan Patrick said. “But I’ll lay you odds, the words in the Bible weren’t used with love in that house. I’ll bet they were used as weapons.”
“Unfortunately, unless Vicki reappears, we won’t be able to prove that, and the last thing we want is the natural mother coming back to claim the baby.”
“Yeah, I suppose you’re right.”
Cord glanced over at Harlan Patrick. “Thanks for coming with me. I know you had your doubts about the wisdom of going in there tonight.”
“Somebody had to go along. Besides, you were doing it for my sister.”
“I just wish we’d accomplished more. I wish I could go back there and tell Sharon Lynn that there’s no chance a court would award custody of Ashley to that woman.”
“You’ve warned her. We all have,” Harlan Patrick reminded him. “Once she held that baby, there was no way that Sharon Lynn was going to do anything except see this through, even if she got hurt in the process. You get a lot of credit from all of us for sticking by her.”
“I had no choice, either.”
Harlan Patrick turned a suddenly serious look on him. “Are you planning on being there for her, no matter how this turns out?”
Cord knew what he was asking in his roundabout way. “If she’ll let me, I’m in this for the duration.”
“If I haven’t said it before, I’ll say it now. It was lucky for her you walked into Dolan’s that night.”
“No,” Cord said softly. “I’m the lucky one.” Now all he had to do was figure out how to put a positive spin on all of this for Sharon Lynn.
* * *
Waiting and wondering when the grandmother would appear and snatch the baby out of her arms was driving Sharon Lynn a little crazy. It hadn’t helped matters that Cord had suddenly vanished. She hadn’t seen him for two days now. Nor had he called. It made her realize just how much she had come to depend on his presence.
On the second day she finally broke down and called her mother.
“Darling, how are you?” Melissa asked. “I’ve been so worried about you. How’s the baby?”
“The baby’s fine. I’m fine.”
“You don’t sound all that terrific. What’s really going on?”
“Actually I was just wondering if you’d seen Cord around the ranch the last couple of days.”
“I haven’t, but then I rarely see any of the men outside of your brother. Let me ask your father.”
“No, don’t,” Sharon Lynn protested, only to realize she was talking to dead air. She could hear her mother calling out to her father as she walked through the house.
Since there was no way to prevent her mother from asking, she concluded she might as well stay on the line until she had an answer. It was several minutes before the phone was picked up again, but this time it was her father on the line.
“I hear you’re looking for Cord,” he said. “What’s up? Is there a problem? Do you need one of us to come into town?”
“Of course not. Everything’s fine here. I was just wondering about out there. Cord hasn’t come down with the flu or something, has he?” She couldn’t bring herself to voice her greatest fear, that he might have taken off.
“He’s not sick. He’s been at work right on time the past couple of days. I’ve got to admit he’s damned good at it, too,” he said grudgingly.
Sharon Lynn grinned at his disgruntled tone. “Were you hoping he’d be lousy, so you could fire him? Especially since you didn’t manage to get him to quit.”
“How’d you hear about that? Isn’t there anything that happens on this ranch that the whole world doesn’t know about?”
“Not when you’ve never learned to lower your voice,” she teased. “That’s why the whole town always knew exactly what was going on with you and Mom, even though you dragged her into the back room at Dolan’s to have your battles.”
“Okay, smarty, that’s about enough out of you,” her father grumbled, but he was chuckling. “As for Cord, I have no idea where he is, but I’m pretty sure he’s with your brother. They’ve been thick as thieves the past couple of days.”
That was the last thing Sharon Lynn expected him to say. What on earth were the two of them up to? Probably no good, giv
en Harlan Patrick’s current state of mind.
“Should I tell Cord you were looking for him?” her father asked.
“No, I’m sure I’ll catch up with him sooner or later.” She was about to hang up, when another thought occurred to her. “Dad, how is Harlan Patrick handling Laurie’s leaving?”
“You mean after he got over the shock that she actually left?”
“Yes, though I still don’t know why that caught him off guard. She’d been telling him for years she was going.”
“His ego wouldn’t let him believe she’d walk away from what they had.”
“And his pride won’t let him go after her,” Sharon Lynn added.
“Why should he?” her father demanded. “She made her choice plain enough. I say good riddance.”
“Dad, you don’t mean that. You always liked Laurie. We all did.”
“I don’t like anyone who hurts one of my kids.”
She grinned at his fierce tone. “Yeah, we do tend to stick together, don’t we? Heck, I might even take a poke at Laurie myself if she turned up again. Ever think we might intimidate the daylights out of anyone who tries to break into our tight-knit circle?”
“Not the good ones,” he retorted. “Nothing intimidates the ones worth having.” He paused, then added thoughtfully, “Could be your Cord’s one of those.”
She was surprised at the praise, but found herself denying the relationship. “He’s not my Cord.”
“Uh-huh.”
“He’s not.”
“Whatever you say, baby. You need anything, you let me know, okay?”
“Thanks, Daddy.” As always, after talking with her father, Sharon Lynn felt safer, more reassured that all was right with her world. Despite her fierce protest to her father, she felt the same way with Cord around.
So where the devil was he? She didn’t believe for an instant that he and Harlan Patrick were off on some male bonding ritual. Her brother had plenty of drinking buddies, if that’s all he needed. No, this had something to do with the baby. She would stake her life on it.
She wandered into the bedroom to check on Ashley, then lingered just to watch her sleep. She couldn’t resist trailing a finger over the soft curve of her cheek.
“Oh, sweetie, what’s going to happen to you?” she murmured. “And what will happen to me, if you have to go?”
When she heard the knock on the front door, she jolted, then brushed away the tear that had been tracking down her cheek. When she finally got to the door, she found Cord waiting on the porch, his hands jammed into the pockets of his sheepskin-lined coat, his cheeks ruddy from the cold.
“Sorry to come by so late. Mind if I come in?”
“Of course not.” She stepped aside, hoping he couldn’t tell how relieved she was to see him. “Can I get you a cup of coffee? You look half-frozen.”
He nodded. “Coffee would be great.”
He followed her into the kitchen, but instead of sitting, he leaned back against the counter and watched her. Feeling his gaze following her made her movements jerky. She splashed the water as she poured it into the coffeemaker, then scattered coffee grounds every which way.
“Something wrong?” he asked finally, amusement threading through his voice.
“You’re staring,” she admitted. “It’s making me nervous.” She turned to scowl at him, only to catch a smile hovering on his lips. “You don’t have to look so blasted pleased about it.”
“Why not? I figure it has to be a coup to rattle your supreme self-confidence.”
She stared at him. “Me?”
“Yes, you. You’re unflappable. Didn’t even let finding a baby on your doorstep cause you to miss a beat.”
“Maybe I just don’t let it show.”
He seemed skeptical. “You pride yourself on your acting skills, darlin’?”
“No, of course not.”
“Good, because you didn’t manage to hide the fact that you’d been crying when I turned up here. What was that about?”
“Nothing.”
“Our girl’s okay?”
“Ashley’s fine.”
“Nothing new from Justin?”
“Nothing,” she agreed.
“Then why the tears?”
“Something in my eye.”
“Now, sweetheart, that’s not acting,” he chided. “That’s outright lying.”
“You don’t have to know everything, you know.”
“When it comes to you or Ashley, I do,” he said matter-of-factly.
She decided enough was enough. It was time to turn the tables. “Does that work both ways?”
He suddenly looked uneasy and evaded her direct gaze. “I don’t know what you mean.”
“I mean do I have a right to know what’s going on with you, if it has something to do with Ashley?”
“Of course.”
“Then why don’t you tell me what you and my brother have been up to the last couple of days?”
He grinned. “You missed me.”
He said it with an irritating touch of triumph. “No more than I would a stray cat who’d been coming around and then suddenly vanished,” she retorted.
“Is that right?”
“Do you intend to answer me or not?”
“Maybe. In time. Right now, I’ll take some of that coffee, if it’s ready.”
Sharon Lynn chafed at the delay, but she poured the coffee, then plunked herself down at the kitchen table. “Talk to me, Cord Branson.”
He pulled out a chair, turned it backward and straddled it. “It’ll be my pleasure. Any particular topic you’re interested in?”
“Cord!”
“Okay, okay. Your brother and I were over in Garden City doing a little nosing around about Hazel Murdock.”
Her heartbeat seemed to thud dully. “And?”
“To tell you the truth, we didn’t find out much.”
“Is she coming after the baby or not?” she asked, unable to keep the frantic note out of her voice.
“I don’t know. I purposely avoided talking directly to her.”
Sharon Lynn buried her face in her hands. “Oh, God, she is. I just know it.”
“You don’t know any such thing. Be grateful that it’s taking her so long to make up her mind.”
“Why?”
“Because the longer it takes, the less likely the courts will view her as being the best person to raise the baby. They’ll have to wonder why she waited, if she was so concerned about the baby’s well-being.”
Sharon Lynn sighed. It was something she hadn’t even considered, but it made sense. “You’re probably right. Why do you suppose she’s waiting?”
“Having second thoughts would be my guess. From appearances, she’s had a tough life. I can’t imagine she’s any too eager to disrupt her current routine to care for a baby.”
“Why? What’s her routine?”
“Let’s just say she likes her afternoon toddy a little too much. There’s a bartender in Garden City who says not a day passes that she’s not in his establishment from sundown until he closes up.”
His description was enough to solidify her resolve. She couldn’t turn Ashley over to a woman like that. Somehow, some way, she would protect the baby. Her baby.
Oh, God, she thought as she realized what she’d been thinking. Her hand shook as she reached for her own cup of coffee. It had happened, just as everyone had warned it would.
That innocent little baby wasn’t hers, she reminded herself sternly.
But that wasn’t how it felt. In every way that counted, she felt as if she were Ashley’s mother.
Chapter Twelve
It had been a stressful day from beginning to end. The baby had awakened fussy and remained that way. Advice had been offered from every single customer who’d passed th
rough Dolan’s. Sharon Lynn was ready to scream.
“She’s teething,” one person said.
“Too young,” another had scoffed. “Probably colic.”
“Maybe a little winter cold,” suggested another.
When Cord walked in just after five, she glowered at him. “Don’t you start.”
Rather than asking what the devil was wrong with her, he bypassed her completely and went to pluck the miserable baby from the portable crib. Only when he was pacing up and down with the baby gazing at him adoringly—and without a single tear—did he turn to Sharon Lynn.
“Rough day?”
“Oh, go to blazes,” she muttered, uncertain whether the remark was directed at him or the traitorous child in his arms. He did have a way with the baby that was enviable.
He grinned and tickled Ashley, who gurgled delightedly. “Guess so,” he concluded, then gazed at the child in his arms. “Were you the cause of that?”
The baby responded with a series of incomprehensible sounds. Cord nodded as if he’d understood every word. “Guess what she needs is a night on the town,” he concluded. “What do you think, little angel? Should we take her out to dinner?”
“I’m not going out to dinner,” Sharon Lynn grumbled. “I’m going to go home and crawl into bed and pretend I’ve never met either one of you.”
Cord gave her a look that would have singed steel. “Works for me. The crawling into bed part, anyway.”
“You’re not invited,” she shot back, then sighed. “Sorry. I shouldn’t be taking this out on you.”
“I can take it,” he said easily.
She sank down onto a stool at the counter and regarded him wistfully. “I just don’t get it. I have done everything I know how to do all day long and I could not get her to settle down. You walk in here and, bingo, she’s smiling and babbling.”
“You know, darlin’, there are just some females who respond to a man’s touch. If you’d like, I can hold you and see if you won’t feel better, too.”
Ah, the power of suggestion. She instantly thought of what it would be like to have those powerful arms of his folded tightly around her, of how reassuring it would be to rest her head against his chest, to listen to the beat of his heart. She imagined being surrounded by the clean, soap-and-water, all-male scent of him. It was tempting, all right. A little too tempting. And he, blast him, clearly knew exactly how easily he could get to her.
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