She was awfully glad it wasn’t Justin out there getting far too close to Daisy Donovan’s heart-shaped lips.
* * *
“I’LL TAKE THE night shift,” Justin told Mackenzie as she finished bathing the girls. She put them into soft nighties and touched a towel gently to the light fuzz atop their heads. A little baby oil for the dry spots, and they were like angels ready to be tucked in for the night.
“You don’t have to,” Mackenzie said. “But thank you, Justin. Babysitting isn’t part of your job description.”
“I’ve been thinking about my job description.” He carried Hope and Holly down the hall, so Mackenzie picked up Heather and Haven and followed. She watched the big man settle her daughters ever so gently into their white-ruffled cribs. “This business of Ty bringing on hannies for you, for example.”
“Ty is nuts, and there’ll be no hannies around here, nor mannies. Silliest thing I’ve ever heard.” Mackenzie covered her daughters with light pink blankets and kissed each of them. “Ty doesn’t want to bring those cowboys here to help me as much as he’s looking for a place for some of his buddies to work. I’ll ask around town, see if anybody needs a couple of hands.”
“You know I’m leaving with Ty. Probably day after tomorrow.”
She felt a slight prick at that news. “Then I’ll only need one of the men. Maybe Frog. He seems pretty harmless.” She sighed to herself. And maybe if he were here he’d be less likely to fall into Daisy’s clutches.
“Frog, is it?”
“I can’t get used to a grown man being called Frog.”
“Hiring him on here isn’t going to save him from Daisy.”
She looked at Justin. “Who says I want to?”
“I know something about the female mind. And I heard you and Jade talking about saving him.”
“Jade was talking about it. I personally think Frog can probably take care of himself just fine.” She didn’t look at Justin directly. Just too much sex appeal, too much closeness.
It was the babies. She loved the way he took care of her daughters, handling them like they were delicate treasures.
He moved a strand of hair away from her face, and she tucked it up into her ponytail. “I should catch a shower while they’re down. We’ve hit the four-hour mark at night now, and I take full advantage of those four hours.”
Justin moved away, sat in the rocker. “Go. Get some rest. I’ll keep an eye on them.”
“There’s no need,” she said quickly. “The monitor is on, and I’ll hear them—”
He waved a hand at her to leave. “You need four hours to yourself. I’ll wake you when they start looking for dinner.” A smile tugged at his lips. “Better take me up on my offer. Ty’s taking me out of here tomorrow or the next day.”
“Oh. Okay. Thank you.” She backed up slowly, then turned to hurry down the hall. He was actually leaving. She’d always known he would, and yet she’d hoped— Well, it didn’t matter what she’d hoped.
The fact was, she’d gotten used to Justin being around. But it was more than that, and she knew it. Something about the big man made her feel safe and protected and happy. They weren’t a family, but they’d gotten into a groove that worked, and she’d come to rely on that comfort. Rely on him.
Maybe Jade’s right with that protesting too much stuff. I’ve got a major thing going for this cowboy. I was just trying to ignore it because I knew he’d leave one day.
And now it seemed that day had come.
* * *
JUSTIN SLEPT OFF and on, dozing in the room with the babies. It was weird how much he found himself enjoying taking care of them. As a man who’d never been interested in having children—not one bit—he was surprised by how Mackenzie’s four little daughters tugged on his heartstrings.
He hated the idea of leaving them—all of them. And, somehow, he even hated the idea of Frog staying behind to take his place. Or any of the three men Ty was bringing on to replace him, for that matter.
The only reason he was leaving with Ty was because Ty had brought him here in the first place. He owed it to him out of a sense of brotherhood. Ty wouldn’t ask him if he didn’t need him. Mackenzie didn’t really need him—not like Ty did.
He needed to talk to Ty a bit more, dig into the mission to settle the questions in his mind. But the thing that unsettled his mind the most was how much he hated the idea of three men he didn’t know all that well roaming around the Hanging H and falling for Mackenzie and the girls.
Just as he was beginning to fall for them.
Whether he liked it or not, that was the truth. Justin closed his eyes as he rocked in the chair. The tiny night-light sent a soft glow over the room. An occasional baby snuffle or sigh reached him, the sound somehow comforting and not intimidating at all, not the way he’d thought it would be. During his wilder, crazier rodeo days, the idea of a family had been distinctly unappealing.
Mackenzie was recently divorced. No doubt the last thing she wanted was another man in her life. He couldn’t blame her if that was the way she felt.
At dawn, when Betty Harper appeared in the nursery, Justin felt strangely rested. He smiled at Jade’s mother. “Good morning.”
“Go get some rest. I’ll take over from here. Mackenzie said the babies didn’t even move last night.”
He felt like he hadn’t, either. In fact, he couldn’t remember the last time he’d felt so relaxed. “I thought I was awake all night. I didn’t even realize Mackenzie came in the nursery.”
Betty smiled. “I checked on you at five. Everybody was sound asleep, which is a first for the girls. They probably feel comforted with a man’s presence around. Babies do that sometimes. You have a nice deep voice with is probably soothing to them.”
She disappeared from the room. Justin rose and stretched. Haven peered up at him from her blanket, and he had the uncanny notion that she was watching him. Did babies see anything at this tender age?
“Hello, little one,” he said, approaching her crib. Gently he picked her up, held her close. “Good morning to you, too.”
He kissed the top of her head, breathed in the sweet baby freshness of her skin, the scent of baby powder.
“Hi,” Mackenzie said, her voice soft.
He turned and saw she was wide-awake and looking refreshed. “You’re up bright and early.”
“I got a lot more sleep than I have since before I became pregnant.” She came to take Haven from him, and he smelled an entirely different smell: strawberry shampoo, delicate floral soap, sexy woman.
His heart did one of those funny flip-flops he’d gotten used to feeling around her.
“Thanks for watching them last night.” She gazed up at him. “I think I slept so well because I knew you were standing guard.”
Oh, boy. There went the heart. “It was no problem. Part of the job.”
“Not part of the job I hired you to do.” She looked at him funny.
He backed up a step when he realized he was staring at her pink, glossy lips. “It’s the job Frog and Fellows are applying for.”
“That’s Ty’s bright idea. And by now, you know Ty can be a bit of a squirrel.” She smiled. “Babysitting isn’t part of your job description. But thank you.”
Warmth expanded in