Free Baby Love by Catherine Anderson Page B

covered with bruises from the neck down. How come there isn't so much as a mark on your face?"
    Maggie swallowed, the walls of her throat feeling as if they were coated with fast-drying glue.
    "That's it? All you want is the answer to one question?"
    "Maybe two or three. " His eyes glinted with laughter. "Let's agree on three. That way, I'm leaving myself some room to be nosy again if the urge hits. "
    Maggie nearly smiled. "You're selling out cheap. "
    "Yeah, well, I'm letting you off easy. Usually I'm more shrewd at dickering. " He dabbed at a scrape above her elbow and blew softly on the moistened patch of raw skin, making her stomach flutter.

    64 CATHERINE ANDERSON
    "Well? You gonna pay up? Or do I have to take my money's worth out in trade?" When he met her gaze, the glint of laughter in his eyes had turned unmistakably mischievous. "Don't press your luck too far, Maggie girl. You come nicely packaged, even if you are a little too colorfully spotted with red and purple blue to suit my tastes. "
    "Bruises on my face would have been a dead giveaway that he'd beaten me up, " she hastened to reveal.
    "Ah. " He nodded. "Makes sense. Can I take that to mean there's someone else in your life who might take exception to his working you over?"
    "Is that your second question?"
    "Always on your toes, aren't you?" He nodded. "We can count it as my second question if you're forthcoming with the right answers. Not only who that person is, but why in the hell he hasn't stomped the snot out of the bastard. "
    " 'He' is a she. My mom. And she's a dear heart who would never dream he might hurt me unless she saw evidence of it. I've kept it from her. She's in fragile health and shouldn't get upset. "
    "She can't be much of a mother if she never noticed you gimping around. "
    "She's as good a mother as she can be, and that's all the information you're getting unless you want to use up all three questions. "
    Rafe leaned closer to work on her arm, taking care not to let his chest graze hers. She lay rigid, her small chin lifted a notch, as if it took all of her self-control not to shove his hands away. His heart broke for her.
    It was horrible enough that she'd been so badly abused. But to be placed in this position, on top of it all, having to endure the indignity of a stranger touching her... Sometimes there was simply no justice in the world.
    He yearned to gather her close and promise her no one would ever lay a hand on her again. But even as the thought took shape, he shoved it away. He'd been
    BABY LOVE 65
    around this girl one night and part of a morning. He had no business caring about her like this. The rush of feelings he was experiencing didn't even make sense.
    When he was finished cleaning her cuts, he drew the sheet over her back, positioning the top hem well above her shoulder blades as he pushed to his feet. Regarding the back of her dark head, he said, "I have to go out for a while. Jaimie is sleeping right next to you. If he cries, do you think you'll wake up?"
    Clutching the sheet close, she eased painfully onto her side, her face so pale it was nearly as white as the pillowcase. Her long, dark eyelashes fluttered, and she fixed him with a befuddled gaze that told him she was mere inches away from flickering out like a candle flame.
    "He can't roll off the mattress?"
    "I rolled up a towel as a bolster pad. He'll be fine. " Rafe raked a hand through his hair, wincing at the tug when he hit a tangle. "I'll be back soon. "
    "Where are you going?" she asked faintly.
    "To get some food, for one thing. "
    She searched his face, her expression conveying resigned hopelessness. "You're not coming back, are you?"
    The thought had occurred to him a couple of times. He couldn't deny it. Only he couldn't bring himself to be quite that rotten. The edge of fear he heard in her voice made him wonder what in God's name had happened in her young life to make her trust so little. Did she really think he would just walk out and leave her like