A Baby in the Bunkhouse by CATHY GILLEN THACKER Read Free Book Online

chest as she eased the baby from his arms. Rafferty caught a hint of lavender and baby powder, and then Jacey was gone. He was left standing there, his arms empty, feeling oddly bereft.
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    I T WAS DISCONCERTING having this big, sexy rancher in her bedroom when she was nursing, but Jacey figured she’d better get used to it since she—and Caitlin—were the only females on Lost Mountain Ranch.
    â€œThe bassinet and the rocking chair and footstool are really nice by the way.”
    Rafferty studied her as if that was hard to believe.
    Jacey wondered what he found unacceptable about the nursery items—the fact that they were antiques, or that they were a little on the frilly side, with lacy white overlay linens on the bassinet and pastel needlepoint cushions on the chair and cushion. “The bassinet is even on wheels, with a locking mechanism on the bottom, so I can move it around as I need to.” She paused as the next idea hit. “You’re not upset that I’m using Evans family heirlooms, are you?”
    He gave her the kind of enigmatic look that held her at arm’s length once again. “Why would I care about that?” he asked finally.
    Wondering if she would ever understand Rafferty Evans and what drove him, she expressed her gratitude. “In any case, it was sweet of your dad to get it out of storage and wash the linens in baby detergent and have it all set up for me.”
    Rafferty nodded. “He can be very helpful.”
    As well as annoying in some ways, Jacey guessed. Deciding she and Rafferty may as well be straight with each other, as long as they were going to be residing under the same roof, she continued, “Although…just so you know…I told your father it probably wasn’t a good idea to have me here.”
    He went very still. His expression was as maddeningly inscrutable as his posture. “So you’re leaving the job?”
    Jacey couldn’t say why, but it hurt her feelings that Rafferty was not as pleased as everyone else to have her on the ranch. Not that he didn’t have reason to be irritated with her. She had caused him some trouble. Brought him out in a driving rain. Got her car stuck in a muddy ditch. Gone into labor and forced him—by process of elimination—to deliver a baby on ranch property.
    She had also fixed breakfast for the men. And was about to prepare hot meals for them three times a day, through the holidays, as a ranch employee. She would have thought he’d be relieved not to have to worry about feeding the cowboys.
    Instead, he kept looking at her as if he’d seen a ghost. And not a particularly nice one at that.
    â€œWould you prefer it if I didn’t take the job and left the ranch?” she asked, determined to remain unintimidated by his brusqueness.
    He waved her inquiry away with an impatient hand. “It doesn’t really matter.”
    â€œIt matters to me,” Jacey countered stubbornly.
    Rafferty frowned, his gaze probing her. “Why?” he asked, indifferently.
    â€œBecause! I’m trying to figure out who you are—Mr. I Couldn’t Remember My Manners If a Snake Jumped Up and Bit Me.”
    â€œSnakes don’t jump,” he said, a muscle flexing in his jaw.
    She stepped closer, as if she hadn’t noticed how impatient he was becoming. “Or are you ‘The Really Nice Guy’ who helped deliver my baby? The skill with which you dispense rudeness and inhospitality says it’s the first. But the gentleness you exhibited when Caitlin and I needed you, or the way you were holding my baby just now, says that kindness isn’t entirely foreign to your nature.”
    He regarded her with a slow, devastating smile. “I thought your sister was the psychiatrist.”
    Jacey shrugged. “Her constant analyzing is rubbing off on me.”
    He came closer, too, daring her with a look. His eyebrow went up. “And what does your analyzing