me for interrupting, Alexa. I only wanted to let you know that I’m finally here. I meant to arrive earlier, but things got busy.”
Her heart thumping, Alexa swung her legs to the ground and rose to her feet. “That’s all right. If you’d like to come in, I’ll show you your room.”
Nodding, he followed her through the back door of a small atrium filled with all types of potted plants and cushioned lawn furniture, then into a dimly lit kitchen.
“Sassy is out for the evening,” she informed him. “But Reena, our cook, saved supper for you.”
“No need for that,” Jonas replied. “I can eat with the boys in the bunkhouse. Gus will have something left over.”
She gestured toward an open door that led into a long hallway. “It’s no trouble, Jonas. And someone needs to help Sassy and me eat all the food that Reena prepares.”
At the end of the hallway they turned into what looked to be a living room. On the left side, a wide staircase made of dark, polished wood led to the second floor. Jonas followed at a respectable distance. Until they were nearly to the landing. There, Alexa suddenly sagged against the bannister and clutched it tightly with both hands as though it was all she could do to stay upright.
Leaping up the two steps separating them, Jonas quickly put his hand under her elbow to steady her. As his eyes anxiously scanned her face, he noticed her breathing was labored.
“Alexa! What’s wrong?”
Pressing a hand to her throat, she drew in a long breath. “I—I’m okay, Jonas. I just…got a little winded. That happens when I try to move too fast. All this extra weight pushing against my diaphragm doesn’t make stair-climbing easy.”
She was recovering quickly, yet he was reluctant to loosen his hold on her arm. If she happened to get dizzy and fall backward down the staircase, it would, in all likelihood, harm her and the baby.
“You didn’t need to escort me to my room,” he scolded lightly. “You could have just told me where it was.”
Straightening to her full height, she said, “Don’t be silly. I have to climb the stairs to get to my room, too.”
As Jonas stared at her, he was suddenly struck by how soft her skin felt against his hand, how sweet she smelled and how totally vulnerable she was. It had been a long time since he’d been this close to a woman, a long time since he’d touched one. He’d almost forgotten the tender feelings a woman could evoke in a man.
“Are you having health problems?” he asked. “Something I need to know about?”
Color darkened her cheeks as she shook her head. “No. I’m fine. Really, Jonas.”
Pulling her arm away from his hand, she headed up the stairs, leaving him with nothing to do but follow.
At the end of a wide hallway, she gestured to the right, where a door stood ajar. “This is your room. If there’s anything you need that Sassy might have missed, just let me know.”
Jonas entered the room and was surprised when she followed and switched on a lamp at the head of the bed. Earlier today, he’d gotten the impression that she wanted to avoid being near him at all cost. Maybe she was deciding he wasn’t a threat, after all.
“The bathroom is over there in the right corner,” she informed him. “And the balcony is beyond the open door. You might find it more comfortable to sleep with that door open. The night air cools the room nicely.”
He tossed his duffel bag onto the bed. Everything he’d brought from Texas was in that bag. Including his weapon and Ranger badge. He was going to have to find a hiding place for them. Otherwise, the maid might possibly stumble across the items during her routine cleaning.
“Everything is fine, Alexa. The room is far beyond my needs.” He lifted off his hat and placed it next to the bag. “I’ll be out of here early in the morning, so I’ll try not to disturb you. As for the evenings, I can’t say when I’ll be showing up. I’m sure you remember that ranch days rarely end before dark.”
Nodding, she gave him a brief smile. “Of course. When my father was running the ranch, he was oftentimes a stranger around here. So I don’t expect your schedule to fit with mine. You’re welcome to come and go as you please.”
Strange how she’d done an about-face, Jonas thought. She’d initially been outraged when he’d suggested staying in the house with her. Now she was the perfect welcoming hostess. Was that what being pregnant did to a woman, swung her moods wildly one direction and then another? If so, he was going to be in for a hell of a ride in these next coming days.
She started toward the door. “If you’ll come down to the kitchen in a few minutes, I’ll heat your supper.”
Jonas was hardly expecting her, the heiress of the place, to see to his kitchen needs, but he wasn’t going to argue the point now. If she wanted to extend to him a bit of hospitality, then he was going to be grateful enough to accept it.
“Fine. Thanks.”
She disappeared into the hallway, and he began to put away his things in the long oak dresser. As for his pistol and badge, he pulled out the bottom drawer of the dresser, placed them on the floor beneath, then returned the drawer to its track and shoved it back in place.
Minutes later, after a quick shower, Jonas pulled on a pair of faded jeans and boots and topped them with a white T-shirt before heading downstairs. As he walked toward the kitchen, he was struck by the quietness and reminded all over again that no one was in the house except for him and Alexa.
The smell of roast beef and vegetables met his nose long before he entered the kitchen. The growl of his stomach reminded him that he’d not eaten a bite of food since breakfast.
“I didn’t know whether you would prefer iced tea or beer with your meal,” Alexa told him as he stepped into the room. “So I gave you both.”
A plate piled high with food was already laid out on the table. Next to it was a basket full of bread rolls, an assortment of condiments and the two drinks. She gestured for him to take a seat.
“Aren’t you going to have any?” he asked as he pulled out a chair.
“I would, but I’ve already eaten,” she told him.
“Then surely you can join me with something to drink,” he suggested politely.
She studied him for a long moment, as though she couldn’t quite decide whether joining him would be the right thing to do. Jonas tried not to let her attitude offend him. After all, she’d already gone out of her way to be gracious. No one said she had to cozy up to him.
“All right. Since it’s decaffeinated, I suppose I could have a glass of tea,” she told him as she went over to the counter to fetch the drink.
“You’re not supposed to have caffeine?” he asked curiously.
“It’s not healthy for the baby, so I try to limit the stuff.”
She carried the tea back over to the table and took the chair across from him. He glanced up from his plate to see her stirring a spoonful of sugar into her glass. There was a small
