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СКАЧАТЬ baby carrier and packed everything she’d brought in. She saw him at long last when she stood to leave. As her blue eyes locked with his, he again felt a fleeting sense of deja vu. She nodded, but didn’t smile. In fact, she appeared to be doing her best to ignore his existence.

      Not an encouraging start. Now where had that come from? He didn’t want to start anything, particularly with some hard-nosed, militant woman vet who already had a kid and no daddy in sight. If she was like most women he encountered, she’d have to play “who da daddy be?” anyway. He would at least be polite enough to introduce her to his mother. But in the end, his mother beat him to it.

      As Dr. Barlow approached them, his mother spoke. “What a beautiful daughter you have.”

      The vet smiled, her hesitation obvious. Chris had a fleeting memory of the sounds of a party, and her smile…only softer somehow. What a joke. Anyone less soft than Dr. Barlow he had yet to meet. She oozed independence and capability.

      “Thank you.” Her tone was polite but not encouraging.

      His mother, however, was not taking the hint, and that in itself was unusual. In most cases, she was reserved with newcomers. “Are you new to the area? I don’t believe I’ve seen you at Mass before. My name is Liz Stevenson. This is my son, Chris.”

      “Anna Barlow,” his veterinarian supplied as she held out her hand. “This is my daughter, Rebecca…Becca, for short. I’ve met your son already.”

      At his mother’s arched brow, Chris stepped in. “This is Dr. Barlow, Mom. She was at Fincastle last night to stitch Bart.”

      Anna. Now he knew her first name. He followed his mother and Anna, pausing to shake the priest’s hand. The two women continued to talk, which surprised Chris. His mother was no snob, but didn’t go out of her way to entertain people new to the area, especially when she’d received as little encouragement as she had from Anna Barlow. “Why don’t you come join us for breakfast since you were coming to the farm today anyway?” his mother asked, surprising him even more. “I’ll be happy to watch Becca while you and Chris take a look at his stud.”

      “I can’t. I’m on call,” Anna said, “but thank you for the invitation.”

      Chris tore his gaze away from the view of the back of her slender neck and shoulders, left bare by the wide neckline of her dress.

      “Don’t be ridiculous,” he heard himself saying. “It will make things much easier if you can recheck the horse without worrying about a baby.”

      Anna glared at him, and he realized he’d said something wrong. As he tried to work out what had pissed her off, she surprised him.

      “All right. Thank you.” Her acceptance was reluctant, at best. She followed them to the house. Chris kept an eye on her in the rearview mirror.

      “She seems like an enchanting young woman.” His mother was studying him like she was cramming for a final, which made him nervous.

      “Huh?” Was she crazy? Anna Barlow might be some serious eye candy now he’d seen her in something other than figure-hiding coveralls, but she was irritating and cold. In fact, he considered it a miracle she’d gotten close enough to a man to conceive a child.

      “Dr. Barlow, Christopher. Keep your mind in the here and now, please. You’ve been distracted ever since we walked inside church.”

      He listened as his mother continued to talk about the veterinarian. She had learned an amazing amount of information just walking along the church aisle. Barlow must have felt as though she was in the middle of the Inquisition, and somehow that made Chris grin with satisfaction. The grilling was no more than she deserved. Yes, she had always been a Catholic. No, she did not have a husband. At least his mother had the tact not to inquire if there had ever been a husband. Yes, Becca was her only child. No, she did not have family close by. Yes, they were settling into the area well.

      “I don’t see how such a tiny girl deals with a large animal practice,” his mother added as she finished relating her tale.

      This was something Chris felt he could comment on.

      “She did well with Bart last night, Mom.” The admission was grudging, but he had to be fair. She had done a great job with the often obstreperous stallion.

      When they arrived at his parents’ house, Chris helped his mother from the car. He had already called ahead to warn the housekeeper they would have a guest for breakfast. His mother waited on the front steps of the large white antebellum-style home while she sent a reluctant Chris to help Dr. Barlow.

      As he approached, she was leaned across the backseat of the truck to unsnap the carseat, leaving him a wonderful view of her backside, from the dress pulled across her buttocks to the length of thigh visible to him. Down boy. The last thing he needed was to go lusting after the irritating doctor, nor did he want to come off as if he was a teenager who had no control over his body’s responses, but he was having one hell of a time doing that. He adjusted his half-hard cock before she straightened.

      “May I carry the baby for you?” he inquired.

      She spun on him with a fierce look. “No!” With obvious effort, she tried to soften her harsh response. “I can get everything. I…uh.” She hesitated before she rushed on. “I nurse her around this time. Is there someplace I can do that?”

      Chris took in her stiff expression and defensive stance. Damn! All he’d done was try to help. Trying to remember the manners his mother had drilled into him, he smiled, his lips tight. “Follow me.”

      She needed to nurse. Great! Just what his aching dick needed, something to draw his attention to her bustline. For a small woman, she was generously endowed, and he’d done his best to ignore that part of her since the glimpse last night of one creamy globe. He spun away, afraid she might notice the response he had a hard time quelling, and led the way along the wide front porch to a shady area around the corner. With no windows and rich with honeysuckle vines, the porch offered almost complete privacy. Two rocking chairs stood with a small table between them.

      “This is beautiful,” Anna said, as if it had been pulled from her. The surprise in her deep blue eyes was evident.

      “It’s one of my mother’s favorite spots.”

      She set the carseat on the table and lifted Becca. The baby kicked her legs and made smacking noises with her mouth. Did the kid know what was coming? He smiled at the errant vision that entered his head, making him wonder if the same technique would work for him. God, Stevenson, that was wrong on so many levels.

      He looked at Anna’s dress, swallowed and focused on the baby before he asked, “Do you need anything? A blanket or a towel?”

      A faint blush stained her cheeks. “No, we’re fine.”

      He nodded. “Come in the door behind you when you’re ready.”

      Anna glanced at it, and once again her chin jutted. “Thank you, Mr. Stevenson.” Her grudging admission made him wonder what he’d done to get on her bad side. They had met only last night.

      After telling his mother where their guest was, Chris drove to his own house to change clothes, which was an excuse, and he knew it. What he wanted to do was put some distance between himself and the good doctor. Her dark hair and deep blue eyes were playing havoc with him. And there was that sense of familiarity. СКАЧАТЬ