* * *
“Congratulations. She’s pretty as can be.” Archie was the first to offer his best wishes, but the other men clapped him on the back, too. Nate grinned, feeling as if he deserved the praise. Chloe was so cute. He could spend the day looking at the way she puckered her mouth. And the way her fingers curled around his made him want to hold her. Only, he was a little afraid he might drop her or break her. She was such a tiny little thing.
But Louise! She really thought he might have gone on without her. Of course, she might have cause. Her mother had left her. Her father had sent her away. The Porters had died, effectively leaving them all.
Then he’d left three years ago. Did she see his leaving as more of the same?
How was he to convince her it hadn’t been the same at all?
Or was he misunderstanding her? Perhaps she wanted him to leave so she could be alone, so she could depend on no one.
No, he couldn’t believe it. She’d clung to him many times since they’d left Rocky Creek. Not in a needy, weak way but in a way that said he could help her be strong. He liked that. A strong woman willing to accept help when she needed it.
He was so deep in his thoughts that he didn’t notice Phil and the others had made a meal until she called him to the table.
“I’ll take something in to Louise,” he said.
Phil pointed to his plate. “Eat first. She’s tired. They don’t call it labor for nothing.”
He tried not to rush through the fine meal but wanted nothing more than to check on Louise and Chloe again. Chloe! A sweet name for a sweet baby.
What was to become of her once they reached Eden Valley Ranch and ended the pretend marriage? Didn’t she need a papa?
He wanted to be in Chloe’s life. In Louise’s, too. He wanted them in his home where he could take care of them every day.
Could he convince Louise to make their marriage real?
Unable to wait any longer, he took her plate of food to the bedroom.
Louise wakened at his entry and sat up when she saw what he carried. “I’m famished.”
He sat on the foot of the bed, where, as Louise ate, he could watch Chloe sleeping in a basket.
The baby jerked as if surprised by an imaginary noise. “She’s making sucking sounds.” He chuckled. “Now she’s pressing her fist to her cheek. It’s so cute and innocent.”
Louise had finished eating and shifted so she sat beside him where she could also watch the baby. “Do you think Mrs. Porter would be pleased we named the baby after her?”
He took her hand. “She’d be thrilled.”
Louise’s expression grew worried.
He caught her chin and lifted her head so their eyes met. “What’s the matter?”
Her forehead wrinkled as if her thoughts were troublesome. “I was thinking of Gordie. He never got a chance to see his little girl.”
No doubt she meant to remind him he had no part in Chloe’s life. A few days ago he would have said it didn’t matter. But now it mattered more than almost anything. His powerlessness to change the facts sent razor-sharp regret up and down his spine.
“Gordie would have been very proud,” he said, relieved that his voice sounded normal.
“Sometimes—” She broke off and shifted her attention to something past his shoulder.
“What?”
“I shouldn’t say it.”
He might regret pressing her, but better to hear than to have secrets and misunderstandings between them. “Tell me.”
She shuddered. “You’ll be angry.”
So it was something she knew would upset him. Perhaps another reminder that Chloe would never be his daughter. Or that their marriage was a farce. “I promise I won’t.” At least he’d not let her know.
“Sometimes I am so angry at Gordie, I can hardly stand it. It was his bad choices that caused so many problems and so much trouble for us all.”
“So you understand why I had to leave rather than be drawn into it? I hoped my leaving would make him see the error of his ways.”
Her eyes found his again, full of wonder. “I do.” She ducked her head again. “But he never changed. And then he got greedy and tried to trick Vic. I’m sure it’s what got him killed.”