Roz Denny Fox

by Precious Gifts

  His method of distraction worked.

  “Look how long her fingers are,” Hayley said when Jake came to take the bundle away for a wash in the warm bath he’d prepared. “Maybe she’ll play the piano. I always wanted to learn,” she added softly.

  Jake responded to her wistful tone. “Why didn’t you? Don’t they have piano teachers in Tombstone?”

  “Yes. But music wasn’t high on Gramps’s list. To him, even radios and TVs were frivolous.”

  “Well, then, you and the little miss here will have to take lessons together.” He opened a clean towel and stood where Hayley could watch him dry the baby.

  She shifted awkwardly and curled one arm under her head. “You handle her so easily, Jake. Aren’t you afraid of dropping her?”

  He grinned. “I’ve had a lot of practice throwing and branding calves.”

  “Branding. That’s like naming, in a way.” Hayley yawned and struggled to partially sit. “What do you think of naming her Cameo, after the mine? With a middle name of Joy because…well, having her is a joyous occasion, and I feel so wonderfully, incredibly happy.”

  “Listen to your mom,” he said, crooning to the baby as he patted her dry and put a diaper on her before tucking her into a cheery yellow night sack. “Your mother certainly wasn’t saying such nice things half an hour ago, as I recall,” he teased.

  Hayley made a face. “So much for not poking fun at me. You promised.”

  “That’s right, I did. Okay, no more jokes. As for the name, Cammy’s a lot more appealing than Opal.” He handed Hayley the baby and then arranged several pillows behind her back. Already it seemed the redness was fading from the infant’s tiny cheeks.

  Sitting cross-legged beside Hayley, Jake curled the baby’s thick damp hair over his forefinger in one long sausage curl.

  Hayley touched it and smiled. “You did that like a pro. Are you sure you don’t have a wife and six kids stashed away at the Triple C?”

  Jake gazed at her so seriously Hayley wished she hadn’t given in to the urge to tease him. Especially after he said, “You’ve had plenty of offers to see the ranch and everything there, Hayley. You can take the grand tour anytime.”

  To cover her uneasiness at this turn of the conversation, Hayley focused on the baby, who’d begun to root around the front of her nightgown. “Cammy acts hungry. Could she be this soon?”

  “It’s hard work being born. Uses up a lot of calories. Give it a try. She’s not likely to get much at first. I boiled water and it’s cooling in a bottle in case she’s too fussy.”

  Hayley pulled uncomfortably at her gown. “Obviously I wasn’t thinking about breastfeeding when I bought this.” A hot blush colored her cheeks.

  Jake knew she was back to feeling ill at ease around him. Which he thought was silly. What could be more intimate than assisting someone you loved through childbirth? But he didn’t want her to feel awkward. “I have a clean shirt or two out in my saddlebags,” he offered. “I carry them in case I unexpectedly have to spend the night at one of our line shacks. My shirt will hang to your knees, but it buttons down the front.”

  “Thank you. That’s thoughtful, Jake.”

  He didn’t like her stiff tone of voice. Or maybe he just felt like an outsider, watching her gaze at Cammy with her heart in her eyes. He remembered that his married pals sometimes complained of feeling shut out from the mother-infant bond. And they were attached to their offspring in ways he wasn’t attached to Cameo. Rather than risk sounding jealous, Jake went out to get the shirt.

  Charcoal greeted him with a miffed expression and an uncomprehending whine. “Ah, you’re a lot like me, old boy. Except you were truly exiled. Still…Hayley lets you stick around at least. I’ve only had that privilege in my dreams.”

  Returning with the shirt, Jake left the dog outside again. “While you change,” he told Hayley, “I’ll feed Charcoal. After that, I’ll rustle us up some food. It’s getting late. Past suppertime.”

  He took the mewling baby from Hayley’s arms and placed her in the cradle. “Do you need help?” he asked her. Frowning, Jake watched Hayley gingerly pull herself upright with the aid of a chair.

  “You’ve done more than enough already. Pioneer women didn’t have men waiting on them hand and foot. Thank you for—for everything. You probably want to get on home. Don’t worry about me. I’ll mail your shirt back from Tombstone. I’ll loaf around here a couple of days and then hitch up the trailer and leave. I want Dr. Gerrard to check Cammy as soon as possible.”

  Jake’s frown grew darker. “Apparently you didn’t hear me say your truck has a dead battery. That’s why you didn’t deliver Cameo in the nearest hospital. And I don’t care what pioneer men did—I’m not letting you fend for yourself. Got that?”

  Her shoulders slumped as the baby started to wail. She was just trying to show responsibility for her life and that of her baby. But her legs were shaking and she was more tired than she’d ever been. She really didn’t want Jake to go off and leave her alone. After struggling to get up off the mattress, she sank to her knees and bawled in a very unladylike manner.

  Jake didn’t know whether to try to comfort her or not. Eventually his need to hold her won out over having her possibly bite his head off. He gathered her fully onto his lap and rocked her in a chair that wasn’t a rocker.

  “I’m tired,” she mumbled into his neck. “I didn’t even dig today, yet every muscle in my body aches. And…and the slightest decision seems overwhelming.”

  Jake resisted reminding her that a short time ago she’d said she felt incredibly happy. “Shh,” he whispered, instead. “Why do you think they refer to giving birth as labor? It’s hard work. I know you want to be in command of your life, honey. You will be again in a few days. Please, let me help you through this rough patch.”

  “All right.” She snuggled closer before drying her eyes. It felt good to be held. Her grandfather had never been much for dispensing hugs. Nor had Joe. But touching came easily to Jake.

  “I’m okay now.” Hayley eased off his lap. “Feed Charcoal while I change. When he’s finished eating, why don’t you bring him inside? I’ve liked having a pet. If I can swing getting an apartment where they allow pets, I’d like to have a dog.” Hayley made a stab at smiling.

  Jake didn’t have to be asked twice to go. It bothered him the way she talked about living on her own. Was he a fool to keep beating his head against a stone wall? If he hadn’t witnessed moments where Hayley lowered her guard and showed him a vulnerable side, he’d give up. But he’d seen her melt into his arms almost as often as she’d shoved him away. Somehow she had to figure out that he was nothing like the men she’d known, that he wouldn’t turn on her or let her down. To convince her, he had to find a way to keep her from going back to Tombstone.

  Cammy was wailing by the time he returned to the trailer carrying a steaming pot of beef barley soup. “Hey, hey, what’s the trouble?” He set the pot on the tiny stove and hurried to Hayley’s side.

  “The baby acts hungry, but she just cries, instead of trying to nurse. Maybe I don’t have what it takes to do this. Where did you put the bottle of water?”

  “Nursing is better for her,” Jake declared. “Maybe you’re too tense.”

  “I am not,” Hayley declared. She’d barely said it than both she and Jake recognized the fallacy of her words. Their shared laughter vented the pressure that had built between them. And Cammy finally latched on.

  Hayley gazed down in wonder at her daughter. Lightly she ran a finger over the baby’s soft cheek.

  Jake was blinded by the love that sprang instantly into Hayley’s eyes. This was the woman who’d said in so many ways that she was incapable of love. Now he had proof it wasn’t true. The moment bolstered his spirits and renewed his patience. His goal was to be a husband and a daddy-by-choice. Someday—and he hoped it was soon—Hayley Ryan would become Hayley Cooper. She’d gaze lovingly not only at Cammy but at him.

  Cammy fell asleep suckling. Jake hat
ed to disturb them, but Hayley needed nourishment. Her eyes had begun to droop. “I’ll put the baby in the cradle and bring you a bowl of soup,” he said. “Then you ought to nap for a while. From what the new parents of my acquaintance say, the adults need to grab some sleep when the baby naps.”

  “How will I ever get anything done?”

  Jake smiled. “It won’t be that way forever. I doubt you’ll feel like dashing out to dig opals in the next few weeks.”

  She stared into the bowl of soup Jake had placed in her hands as if it were a crystal ball that held all the answers. “You’re right. How will I accomplish the things on my list, Jacob? I can’t drag Cammy around while I hunt for housing. Even if I find a furnished apartment I can afford, I’ll need to stock it with groceries. Go ahead, say I didn’t plan very well. I should have closed down earlier like you said.”

  Jake curved the fingers of her right hand around a spoon. He checked on the baby and let Charcoal in before he sat down to his own soup. “Eat, Hayley. There’s nothing you can do tonight. Unless I miss my guess, by tomorrow part of your problem will be solved. Mom will come roaring in here to see why I didn’t come home. She’ll go all crazy over Cammy, like all women do with babies. Unless I don’t know her as well as I think, you and the baby will be installed at the Triple C before you can say Winnie the Pooh. That’s how she and Eden decorated the nursery, you know?”

  Hayley stopped with the spoon halfway to her mouth. “Jacob, I can’t impose on your parents like that. It’s out of the question. I already explained to Nell.”

  “Okay, so you explained. I know Eden has another check for you. That should make you feel better. Now, eat,” he said again, feeling sorry about her distress. He and his dad and brother had been bulldozed by his mother’s decisions more times than he could count. Even Eden had succumbed. That was how she and Nell had ended up sharing a work space. However, his mom’s intentions had been good—they normally were—and she’d been hurt when Hayley refused to so much as look at the room. Jake didn’t want to take sides. But he would if his family tried in any way to strong-arm Hayley.

  After they ate and he washed the dishes, he moved the mattress back into the cubbyhole. Charcoal, who couldn’t seem to understand the changes, sniffed the cradle once, then flopped down under it. After Jake helped Hayley into bed, Charcoal hopped onto the foot, and dog and woman slept.

  Jake was reluctant to awaken either of them when an hour later he heard the crunch of approaching tires. The night was so dark he couldn’t see a vehicle out of the small trailer windows.

  “Hayley.” Jake tiptoed up to her and shook her gently. “We’ve got company. In case Joe and Shad have come back with the sheriff, I need you awake enough to stand watch over Cammy. If it’s me they’re after, I’ll go peacefully. But only if they swear to leave you alone and let me notify my folks to look after you and the baby.”

  Too sleepy to comprehend all he’d said, Hayley crawled out of bed. “Someone’s coming? Why isn’t Charcoal barking? He’s always warned me before.” She stared in confusion at the collie, who’d blinked awake in a massive yawn.

  “Beats me. Maybe it’s because I’m here. At any rate, I’m leaving him inside as protection for you and the baby.”

  Hayley bit her bottom lip. “Stay, Jacob. I’m scared. Make them come to the door.” Though Hayley moved slowly, she managed to insert herself between Jake and the door.

  He was torn between doing as she asked or keeping danger as far from her and Cammy as was humanly possible.

  He’d let the time for decision pass. The vehicle had apparently been closer to the clearing than he’d judged. The next thing Jake knew, there was a series of loud raps on the door.

  Startled, Cammy awoke with a scream that became a long high-pitched wail. “See to her and stay out of sight,” hissed Jake, motioning Hayley away from the door. He picked up the shotgun and quickly checked to see that it was loaded.

  Charcoal padded to the door, sniffed along the threshold and whimpered. Jake had no ready answer for his pet’s unusual behavior. Not until he threw open the door and thrust the muzzle of the gun into his father’s ashen face. Wade jumped backward off the makeshift step and landed on his wife’s foot.

  Nell cried, “Watch what you’re doing, Wade. Jacob? Why in heaven’s name are you pointing a gun at your father?” In the next breath she covered her mouth with both hands. “Oh, dear. Tell me that’s not a baby crying.” Tears glistened in her eyes.

  He ejected unspent shells from the shotgun. “Yes, it’s a baby. Now suppose you tell me why in the world you two are creeping around Hayley’s place in the dead of night.”

  “Ask your mother,” Wade growled. “She came unglued when you missed supper. As if you weren’t full-grown and never missed a meal before. She was determined to drive out here. Would’ve come alone if I hadn’t pulled my boots back on and driven her.”

  Nell shoved past Wade while he was still explaining. She zeroed in on the crying baby. “How precious! Hayley, she’s an absolute doll. But she’s early. Oh, I knew something was wrong. See, Wade? I had a premonition, didn’t I?”

  Jake’s father stepped inside, filling the doorway with his stocky frame. He was a big imposing man, but looked less so when he snatched off his hat and gazed at his wife, pure adoration darkening his eyes. “I learned to listen to your mother’s hunches, son. Nine times out of ten she’s right on the money.”

  “Ten out of ten,” Nell chided, rubbing her hands to warm them before she scooped the tiny squalling bundle from Hayley’s arms.

  Jake had never heard his mother talk baby talk. He found it humorous. Yet something indefinable clogged his throat and impeded his breathing when his dad got into the act. Wade Cooper tickled the baby’s tummy with a big work-roughened forefinger and did his own version of cootshy-coos.

  Jake could tell that Hayley didn’t know what to make of them. She’d never had a family.

  Afraid she’d tear Cammy away from his parents, Jake shut the door, then casually slipped his arms around Hayley.

  “Cammy’s only a few hours old,” he informed his folks. In low tones he followed that news with a condensed account of the scene when he’d ridden in. He mentioned the failure of Hayley’s pickup to start and ended by saying the baby had decided to put in an early appearance.

  “That horrid man hit you?” Nell glanced up at Hayley with fire in her eyes. She touched the purplish bruise marring Hayley’s cheek and chin. “He ought to be jailed for assault. Wade, you and Dillon take care of that right after we get Hayley and this little sugar pie settled at home. Jacob, you and Dillon can come back tomorrow with whatever parts you need to fix Hayley’s pickup. We’ll store it and her trailer in one of the vacant barns until she needs it again.”

  Jake watched the play of emotions across Hayley’s face. “Mom,” he said earnestly, “Dad and I are used to you arranging our lives. Hayley calls the shots when it comes to Cameo Joy.”

  “Cameo?” Nell beamed at Hayley. “You named her after the mine. It’s perfect. And she’s beautiful. But she is premature, and the nights are beginning to get colder. Wouldn’t you rather have her in a heated room? Oh, and there’s a retired pediatrician who bought a small farm east of the Triple C. We’ll ask him and his wife by for coffee tomorrow. I’m sure he’ll be happy to give this sweet child a quick exam.”

  Jake sensed the minute Hayley lost the battle to his mother. “It’s all right,” he whispered close to her ear. “Her heart is as big as the whole outdoors. Cammy couldn’t be in better hands.”

  “I know. And I’m too tired to make a fuss. Not only that, she’s right—it is getting colder at night.” As if to punctuate her words, she shivered. Hesitantly she said, “Thank you. I guess it won’t hurt to spend a day or two at the ranch.”

  Hayley had no sooner agreed than Nell began to bark orders. She rebundled the baby to travel. Jake did the same with Hayley and carried her to the Range Rover. Wade collected the cradle and the layette Jake had purchased. Spot
ting the blanket she’d knitted, Nell covered Cammy with it before dashing to the vehicle.

  In less time than it had taken Jake to fix their evening soup, he’d saddled Mojave and was trailing behind the precious cargo being transported at a crawl over the bumpy unpaved path. Smiling, Jake wondered how many times his mother cautioned his dad to drive more slowly. Wade Cooper wasn’t one to go easy on the gas—except that he’d do anything his wife asked.

  Once they’d reached the house, Jake hovered while Nell settled Hayley and the baby in their rooms. Instead of placing Cammy in the nursery, Nell directed Jake to set the cradle next to the bed, where Hayley now lay wearing one of Nell’s frilly silk nightgowns.

  “The warm shower felt like heaven,” Hayley murmured, her eyes drifting closed. “Funny, but I hardly missed the convenience before.”

  Smiling, Nell fussed with the covers. “If you need any help with the baby during the night, just yell. Promise me you will, child. I won’t hear of this notion that you’re imposing. You must think of us as family.” Stepping back, Nell nudged Jake forward.

  Family. The word had a nice ring. Hayley glanced up and saw Jake.

  “I sleep light,” he said. “Mom, too. When Cammy cries, it’ll be a stampede to the cradle. Don’t you worry. You need to rest.”

  Wade stuck his shaggy head around the door. “Make that three light sleepers. I’ll probably lead the stampede. It’s been too long since I rocked a baby at night.”

  Hayley gazed from one smiling face to the other. The fear that had clutched at her heart since Joe blew into her camp began to unravel. She smiled at Jake as he ambled over to take a last peek at Cammy. And she didn’t act embarrassed or push him away when he turned and kissed her goodnight. She slid fully beneath the warm covers in a room that felt totally secure. Her heart accepted Jake and his family—even if her brain was slower to come around.