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“Even if it’s just to help bury the body of whoever got on your bad side,” he said with a wink before sauntering off again.
She laughed and watched the tantalizing view his retreating backside presented as he left.
Martha and Mercy turned to her almost in unison and gave her twin grins.
“You’re going to keep him, right? Because that right there was keeper behavior,” Mercy said, and Martha nodded enthusiastically.
Nora just smiled. “I’ll do what I can.”
…
Adam stood on Mercy’s front porch, his arms full of a squirming child. Mercy was on her knees in her garden, up to her elbows in dirt and vegetables.
“Are you sure the sheriff won’t mind me here?” he asked.
“It’ll be fine,” she said, tossing a pile of weeds into the bucket by her side.
Adam wasn’t so sure about that. The sheriff didn’t seem at all happy that Adam was even in his town. Let alone at his home, talking to his wife, and minding his daughter. But…he needed the job, so he’d stay…until the sheriff chased him away. Hopefully not at gunpoint.
“So…what should I do with her?” he asked. He hadn’t spent much time around children. Actually, he hadn’t spentanytime around children.
Mercy chuckled. “Just play with her. Keep an eye on her. You don’t have to hold her the whole time, but if you put her down, make sure you watch her. Children have a tendency to put things in their mouths.”
Adam squinted down at the baby. Watch her and don’t let her put anything in her mouth. Sounded simple enough.
It wasn’t.
After a cursory examination, he made the mistake of thinking there was nothing on the porch she could possibly ingest. He learned very quickly that a two-year-old was astonishingly hard to catch. Within three minutes, he’d pried an old nail, half a leaf, and some sort of wiggling bug from her grasp.
“Where does she find this stuff?” he asked, pulling a rock from her tiny, surprisingly strong hands.
Mercy laughed again. “They are magic. That’s all I’ve been able to work out.”
A wagon turned onto the lane leading up to the house, and Mercy stood, brushing off her skirts. She held up a hand to shield her eyes, and then a smile lit up her face.
“Ah, that’s Nora. She must have the shirts I ordered for Gray.”
Adam’s gaze locked onto the wagon, watching it until it pulled into the yard. Nora’s eyes widened with surprise when she saw him there, holding the baby no less. He had no idea how he should act or what he should say, so he simply smiled. Her cheeks pinkened, and she ducked her head a bit shyly as she hopped down from the wagon. The sight filled him with a smug sort of male pride that he had affected this woman so much, she could barely look him in the face without blushing. Something seemed wrong about that. And really, really right as well.
If he had a choice, they’d stay in bed all day long, until they’d had their fill of each other. Though he doubted any amount of time would sate him when it came to her.
Nora grabbed a wrapped bundle out of the back of the wagon and brought it to Mercy. They spoke for a minute, laughing with their heads close together, and then Mercy hurried toward the house.
“I’m just going to put these away. I’ll be back out in a bit.”
Adam nodded, acknowledging what she wasn’t saying. He was in charge of the baby now, so he better make sure she was in one piece when Mercy came back out.
Nora made her way over to the porch, smiling down at Daisy and taking one of her hands when she reached them.
“Does the sheriff know you’re minding their daughter?” she asked, her smile making it obvious she knew exactly what the sheriff would think of it.
“Not exactly. And it’s not a permanent position. Just for the morning. I’m supposed to meet Sunshine again in a few hours.”
Her grin grew wider. “Well, if the sheriff shows up unexpectedly, make sure you keep hold of this precious little thing,” she said, cooing down at the baby.
“Why’s that?” He’d think that putting the baby down would actually be the safer option, certainly for the child.
“Because he won’t dare shoot you if you’re holding his baby.”
