Free Baby Love by Catherine Anderson Page A

antiseptic smell seared her nostrils. "I'll hold the spread up close, so don't worry about me looking over the top. You just get the bra off and concentrate on doctoring your chest. "
    With shaking hands, Maggie drew the straps down her arms, laid the bra aside, and tipped the bottle to moisten the cotton. As she began dabbing at the cuts, the alcohol in the antiseptic smarted so badly she gasped and blew to ease the sting.
    "Christ. I should have read the labels, I guess. I might have bought something that wouldn't burn. "
    "It's f-fine. I appreciate that you even bothered. It wasn't part of our deal, you buying stuff for me. "
    "Our deal. You sound like one of my dad's scratched records. I wish you'd get that bargain you made with me out of your head. "
    Feeling strangely vague and detached from reality, she glanced up. "You really have a dad?"
    He narrowed an eye. "No, a stork dropped me on my mother's doorstep. "
    "Well, of course you have a dad. What I meant was—'' She broke off, not entirely sure what she meant. Her

    62 CATHERINE ANDERSON
    mind didn't seem to be tracking right, which left her mouth to operate solo. "It's just that you
    —well, looking at you, one doesn't picture you with a family. Parents, brothers and sisters, and all of that. "
    "I assure you that I'm normal in that respect, with a mom, a dad, and a brother. " He loosened his hold on the spread with one hand to rub his bewhiskered jaw. "God, do I look that bad?"
    Maggie's thinking was so hazy it took her a moment to realize he'd turned loose of one side of the bedspread. She grabbed for the drooping section.
    "Oops! Sorry. " He jerked the chenille back up. "I didn't see a thing. Honest. "
    Above the scraggly growth of beard, the skin over his high cheekbones turned a ruddy red.
    She knew he was lying through his teeth. At least he had the good grace to blush.
    "All done?" At her nod, he relinquished the spread into her keeping while he helped her lie back down. "It hurts like hell, doesn't it? I got sandwiched between a corral rail and a bull once. Cracked two ribs, so I can sympathize. "
    "So the cowboy apparel isn't just for looks?" she asked, her breath snagging with a catch in her side.
    He tucked the covers over her. "For looks? You're joking, right? Even back when I was a rancher, I never dressed to make a fashion statement, and I've gone downhill on greased runners since. "
    Maggie studied his chiseled features, trying to imagine what he'd look like cleaned up. His blue eyes were the kind to make a woman's heartbeat skitter, and his large, sharply bridged nose was attractive on him, but she could see little of his lower face with the whiskers covering so much. He had a strong, square jaw and chin. She could discern that. And a full, sensual mouth when he wasn't grim-lipped and scowling.
    He distracted her from her perusal of him by thrusting
    BABY LOVE 63
    one of the towels at her. "Cover the goods. Now it's my turn. "
    Tugging the towel under the bedding, she fumbled to spread it over her chest. When she went still, he drew the covers down to her waist. Maggie crossed her arms over the terry cloth so it wouldn't shift.
    He soaked a sterile cotton ball with medication, then started dabbing at her closest shoulder and arm. She felt so uncomfortable she closed her eyes. An instant later when she felt him blowing on her bare skin, her lids popped back open. He flicked her one of those whiskey-and-smoke looks that unsettled her so, but he didn't stop puffing.
    "Sorry, but I know how it must sting. " He returned his gaze to her shoulder. "The asshole wears a ring, doesn't he?"
    A picture of Lonnie's diamond flashed in Maggie's mind. Oh, how she detested that ring, knowing he'd bought it with some of her dad's life insurance.
    "You know, I've changed my mind about asking nothing of you as payback for the money I spent, " Rafe suddenly told her.
    Her heart leaped and then sank with crushing disappointment.
    "As payback, answer me this. You're