LITMIR.BIZ

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she said she’d had the baby alone made him think someone was around. And she was running from whoever that was.

      He checked on Isabella. She was still sleeping, her face almost as innocent and young as Angel’s.

      He fixed himself a sandwich and turned on the television. He had a satellite dish and got the latest in weather. His family had been right. The snow was supposed to taper off this afternoon. Come to think of it, he didn’t hear any wind now. He stepped to the window and opened the drapes.

      It was a winter wonderland. There was the occasional little gust that stirred up snow crystals, but most of the snow had settled on the ground. He crossed to his front door, which looked down on Main Street, and saw several individuals outside, clearing off the sidewalks. He waved and went back inside.

      Then he heard steps on the outside stairs. He opened the door just as Jon and Tori reached it.

      “May we come in?” Tori asked, not waiting for an answer. She ducked under his arm and darted into the warmth.

      “Hi, Jon.” Russ said. “I hope you didn’t have any trouble getting here. I think we’re doing all right.”

      “No, no trouble. Except I tried to leave Tori at home with the baby. But Rosa will take care of him.” Rosa was their housekeeper.

      “Oh, Jon, come look. She’s beautiful. Look at those curls!” Tori exclaimed.

      Jon joined his wife at Angel’s carrier. “Is she all right? Do I need to check her?”

      “I don’t think so. I think she’s about a month old and she’s eating every four hours. She has incredibly healthy lungs,” Russ said.

      “I know. So does Jonny. If anything, they get louder. Jonny is almost nine months old,” Tori informed him. “I thought you might not know since you’ve avoided all the babies.”

      “I know.”

      Jon changed the subject. “Where’s her mother?”

      “In my bed.”

      Tori gasped.

      Russ turned bright red. “I slept out here! On my air mattress, Tori. That’s the only bed I had available.”

      “Oh. Of course. I’d break it to your mother in a different way, Russ. She’ll have you married before you know it.”

      “Tori, behave yourself,” Jon ordered. “That’s none of our business.”

      Russ said nothing.

      “I’m serious, Jon! Janie wants Russ to remarry. She’ll use any excuse she can find!”

      For a minute Russ didn’t even object. That meant he could keep Angel with him if he married Isabella. But marrying Isabella, even for Angel’s sake, was a lot more complicated. She was a warm, passionate woman. He had withdrawn from life. They couldn’t possibly live together unless one of them changed. And he couldn’t change, so he returned to sanity. “Don’t be ridiculous!”

      Chapter Four

      Isabella struggled up from a deep sleep to find three people staring at her. One she recognized.

      “What?” she asked.

      “Isabella, this is my cousin Tori and her husband, Dr. Jon Wilson. He’d like to examine you and ask a few questions. Tori thought you might feel more comfortable if she accompanied him.”

      “What kind of doctor?” she demanded. She noticed her voice was a little stronger, which encouraged her.

      “A general practitioner,” the doctor said. “I understand you’ve been running a fever.”

      “Yes…I think so, but according to him, I’ve been here three days. I don’t remember them.”

      “What’s the last thing you remember?” Jon asked as he moved to the bed and opened his black bag. Isabella let him check her temperature and pulse before she answered him. “I remember being in a hotel room in…in Chicago, I think.”

      “You don’t remember driving to where Russ found you?” Tori asked, horror in her voice. “It’s a wonder you didn’t have an accident.”

      “But her instincts were good,” Russ reminded his cousin. “She kept herself and Angel safe until I came along to save them.”

      “Probably the fever you had helped keep your baby warm.”

      “Am I running a fever now?”

      “A very slight one. I think an antibiotic would be a good thing just in case. Russ said he fed you breakfast this morning. Any difficulty keeping it down?”

      “No.”

      “Okay, I’ve got some samples here so Russ won’t have to dig his way clear to the drugstore. Why don’t we see if that will get you back on your feet again? Is that okay with you?”

      She nodded.

      “Not a big talker, are you?”

      She shook her head. “Thank you.”

      “She has good manners,” Russ muttered.

      A knock sounded on the front door. Isabella glanced at Russ, seeing a worried look on his face. The other two seemed amused.

      When Russ didn’t move, Tori said, “I think you have more company, Russ. Want me to open the door?”

      “No, I’ll get it.”

      In no time he returned to the bedroom with two women. “Isabella, this is my mother, Janie Randall, and my aunt, Anna Randall. She’s a nurse.”

      Isabella nodded to the two women, but she didn’t say anything.

      Janie sat on the side of the bed and patted Isabella’s arm as if they were old friends. “Who are you visiting in Rawhide, dear? Maybe we know her.”

      “She doesn’t live in town, so probably not,” Isabella said quickly. She wasn’t sure her great-aunt would keep her arrival a secret, and secrecy was essential. She knew that once she explained everything to her great-aunt, she would. But she wasn’t sure she’d get the chance before her father called.

      “None of us live in town, but we’re a tight-knit community,” Anna said.

      “My aunt is elderly. I don’t want anyone to surprise her.”

      Anna’s eyes grew large, worrying Isabella. “Don’t tell me you’re Maria Paloni’s great-niece? Of course, I should have remembered.” Anna turned to Janie. “Remember, Janie? I told you about her wanting to talk to her great-niece that last time.”

      “She wanted to talk to me?”

      “Yes,” Anna said, turning to face Isabella, “but—” She stopped abruptly. “I’m sorry to have to tell you, Isabella. Maria died two weeks ago.”

      RUSS HADN’T REALIZED Maria Paloni had died. She was a charming old lady who’d lived near Rawhide for almost sixty years. She’d participated in community events for as long as he could remember. Taken food to those in need. Offered to take care of children in times of stress.

      Lately she hadn’t been well, and his mother and the other Randall women had taken her food. Maybe that was why Isabella had heard the Randall name.

      He convinced his mother and Anna to leave Isabella to mourn. She’d certainly looked stricken at the news. As they were leaving, pointing out the prepared food they’d left in his kitchen, Anna whispered that Nick was handling her estate.

      “Okay. I’ll check with him this afternoon.”

      “You’ll be all right taking care of the baby?” Janie asked.

      “I’ll be fine. Angel is an easy baby.”

      “That’s what people always say. If you get in trouble,

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