Debra Cowan – Whirlwind Baby (страница 2)
Holding on to the porch railing, she stepped onto the ground and stomped to her buggy, which sat between the house and barn. The younger woman turned to Jake with uncertainty on her face.
He noted slender curves beneath a blue-gingham bodice and bustled skirt. “I’m Jake Ross. Come in, Miz…”
“York. Emma York.” She cast one last look over her shoulder at the departing Miz Halvorson, then stepped inside, watching carefully as he shut the door.
As she followed him to the center of the room, her gaze went to the baby. Molly still fussed and Georgia bounced her gently on her shoulder. Jake gestured to the woman with dark, silver-threaded hair. “This is my cousin, Georgia Ross.”
Georgia rose and nodded, since she was unable to extend her hand. “Hello.”
Jake gestured to the deer-hide sofa, special made to accommodate any of the Ross men stretched out full-length. “Please have a seat.”
“I’d rather stand, if—if that’s all right,” she said softly, as if afraid he might take exception.
“Of course.” He backed up against the sofa and eased down. She was a pretty thing, with more of a fullness to her breasts than he’d originally thought. And, behind those spectacles, he could tell she had green eyes. Pretty green eyes.
Though, it would suit him just fine if Emma York were ugly. He hadn’t noticed much about a woman’s looks since his wife had died five years ago.
From her spot in front of the fireplace, Georgia asked, “What’s your feeling about babies crying?”
“Ma’am?” Miz York glanced from the woman to Jake, looking confused.
“Before you got here,” he said, “Miz Halvorson was giving us her views on what to do when a baby cries. What would you do?”
Emma York’s fingers twined in the folds of her skirt. “I’d check to see if something was wrong, if she was hungry or needed to be changed.”
The baby twisted and squirmed in Georgia’s arms, and she spoke in a low voice, trying to calm the child.
“And you’d pick her up?” Georgia prompted.
“I imagine so.” She searched Jake’s face as if trying to guess the answer he wanted.
Still wiggling, the baby cried out. “I guess since you found your way here, you know this is the Circle R,” Jake said. “Someone left this baby at our door last Friday night and, until I find a place for her to go, I need a nurse. Right up front I should tell you we also need a housekeeper, someone who’ll cook and clean. Ours was gone Saturday when we returned from Abilene.”
As if Jake’s biweekly visit to his brother-in-law weren’t hellish enough, he’d gotten home to find his housekeeper had taken off and left this baby with Georgia.
“I can do both,” Miz York said with quiet determination.
“Are you sure?” Jake thought she barely looked sturdy enough to fend for herself, much less another person. And cook for all of them.
Georgia gently bounced Molly on one arm. “I would do more, but as you can see, my left arm is crippled.”
“I’m sure I can do the job.” Understanding and compassion darkened her eyes before her anxious gaze settled on the child and softened. “If I may ask, why did your housekeeper leave?”
“She ran off and got married. I don’t think the baby had anything to do with her decision.” Jake tried to keep the tightness out of his voice. It wasn’t Miz York’s fault that Louisa had chosen to leave at the worst possible time. “I’ve advertised about getting a family for Molly. I don’t want to send her to Buckner Orphans Home in Dallas or anyplace like that.”
The baby’s face screwed up and turned red; she let out a scream and Jake moved away, wishing she’d be quiet.
Miz York frowned. “You’re planning to give her away again?”
Jake’s eyes narrowed at the words. Said that way, they sounded hard and ugly. He grunted, seeing no reason to answer to a woman who might soon be in his employ.
She seemed to realize her place and changed the subject. “What kind of food do you all like?”
“Biscuits, gravy, ham. Sweets.” So far, the lady didn’t seem put off. He spoke loudly enough to be heard above the baby’s cries. “Nothing too fancy, but something that sticks with you.”
“So you’d want me to cook and clean? Laundry, too?”
That wasn’t all he’d like. Surprise shot through him at the fleeting thought. He hadn’t wanted to do anything like that with a real lady, in years. Women didn’t distract him, even when he’d been a long time without one. There hadn’t been a woman since his wife, who had insinuated herself into his thoughts.
He jerked a thumb toward the squalling baby in his cousin’s arms. “Yes, and take care of her. We’ll give you room and board. You’d need to live at the ranch. Will that be a problem?”
She twined her fingers nervously and, for the first time, he saw the dull gold band on her left hand. He was stunned to feel a prick of disappointment. Why did he care? He wasn’t getting involved with her. Or any other woman, for that matter. “I guess you’ll want to talk to your husband about that, first.”
“No,” she said quickly, glancing at the distressed baby. “I mean, it won’t be necessary. He isn’t with me.”
Jake didn’t like the instant relief that jabbed at him. He also didn’t examine it. The baby lurched toward him and he took her reluctantly. Her sobs grew louder as she twisted to look at Miz York. Jake juggled the infant from one shoulder to the other in an attempt to shush her.
“But your husband will be here?” Jake asked.
“I’m…I’m a widow.” She pulled her gaze from Molly, raising her voice to be heard over the child. “That’s why I need the work.”
He wanted to ask how her husband had died and how long she’d been alone, but those things had nothing to do with whether or not she could do this job. “Where you from?”
Her knuckles showed white as she gripped her purse strings tighter. “Up north.”
That could mean anywhere. “Up north?”
“Illinois.”
“And you wouldn’t have a problem living at the ranch?”
She glanced at the child as she pushed the spectacles up the bridge of her nose. “No.”
The baby jabbered something he couldn’t understand, trying to lunge out of his arms. “Whoa, there. You’re a slippery one.”
The woman stepped around the sofa and closed the distance between her and him, moving so quietly, with such still grace that the air didn’t seem to stir. Even her skirts didn’t make a sound against the floor. She held out her arms. “May I try?”
Jake didn’t need any urging. He did little more than lean toward the woman and Molly went willingly, looping her chubby arms around the lady’s neck and burying her face there. That kid hadn’t taken to anyone in his family like that. After a couple of gulping sobs, she drew in a deep shuddering breath then hiccuped. The sudden silence was startling.
“What the— How did you do that?” he asked.
“I’m not sure.” She hugged the baby close, speaking to her in a low voice and looking…relieved? “What’s her name?”
“Molly.” Jake glanced over his shoulder at Georgia, who nodded.
“Wh-What?”
He stepped forward. “You’re hired, Miz York.”
“But…you don’t even know if I can cook.” As the baby grabbed for her spectacles, the woman shifted the little girl to her other hip.
“I guess we don’t. So,
“Yes.”
“And you’re interested in the job? Caring for the kid, the house and cooking in exchange for room and board and a decent wage.” He named an amount he thought was fair.Judging by the flash of surprise in her eyes, so did she.
“That’s very generous.”
“I would ask if you have experience, but it’s plain that you do.”
She looked at him then at his cousin. “Are you just going to take my word that I can cook?”
“Yes,” Jake said, thinking how soft her hair looked. “You don’t strike me as someone who would misrepresent herself. Besides, I’m sure we’ll like your grub.”
Georgia murmured agreement. “And it will be nice to have another woman around.”
Miz York rubbed the baby’s back and he noted that her fingernails were short and ragged. “How many will I be cooking for?”
“Sometimes a couple of the hands might eat here at the house, but usually it’s just Georgia, my uncle Ike, my brother Bram and myself.”
After a moment, she nodded. “All right.”
He realized she hadn’t smiled once since she’d arrived. And, still, she was more pleasant than Miz Halvorson. “We need you to start pretty quick.”
“Now?” she asked hopefully.
“Yes, good.” The relief he felt was mixed with an unidentifiable emotion. But the baby liked her and so did Georgia, whose spells of tiredness were getting more frequent. “Did you bring your luggage?” he asked.