Free Their Newborn Gift by Nikki Logan Page A

enough of that—laughing. It tumbled from her lips like a waterfall and it birthed a vibrant sparkle in her hazel eyes. The sound warmed him, which made it unacceptable.
    ‘I’m not going to argue with you about the relative merits of rodeo, Lea. I think it’s unlikely we’ll ever agree on that point.’
    ‘I’m not looking for agreement. I just want to understand how you reconcile your passion for horses with rodeo riding—morally.’
    His head snapped around to pin her with his eyes and he spoke softly. ‘Much the same way I imagine you reconcile having kept a child from its father…morally.’
    He might as well have slapped her. She glanced away and flicked her stricken eyes over to Molly’s room to make sure she was still asleep, all brightness draining from her expression. He cursed under his breath. God, he wanted to just ask her, just once.
    How did you do it, Lea? How did you convince yourself cheating someone out of a child was an okay thing to do?
    That decision didn’t fit with the woman he’d seen these past weeks. A quiet, determined woman, entirely dedicated to her daughter. Capable of great sensitivity, nonetheless capable of such deceit. The sudden paleness in her skin silenced him. They weren’t yet at a place where he could ask. He’d have to wonder a little longer.
    He frowned at that rogue thought.
    It implied there’d be more between them than what they had now. But getting to know each other was not part of the contract. They were civil for Molly’s sake, and that was where it ended. Lea Curran had had no interest in knowing him over five years ago and if it weren’t for Molly’s condition she’d have no interest in knowing him now. She’d made her choice. She had her family.
    The sperm donor was completely dispensable.
    And that feeling was just a little too familiar.
    Lea had set herself up for the crack about her morals—she’d practically attacked his first—but she needed to know that he was never going to treat her brumbies the way she’d heard they were treated in the rodeo arena.
    The way a person treated an animal said a lot about how they would treat a child. ‘She’ll sleep for two hours now.’ Lea spoke guardedly. ‘It’s been a big morning.’
    ‘Do you leave her like this often?’
    She glanced up, armed for a second accusation, but only saw concern. She reined in her desire to snap. ‘It’s just the two of us here and I have a property to run. I had to learn early to work fast and efficiently so I can get back to her.’
    ‘If she wakes?’
    ‘She won’t, but if she does she knows not to leave the house. She’ll play with her toys until we get back. But the heat will force us back long before she starts to stir.’
    Reilly mulled that over. ‘I guess it’s not so different to the latch-key kids in the city. It’s just not ideal.’
    ‘There’s a lot about people’s lives that isn’t ideal. We all get by as best we can.’
    His bottomless eyes hazed over. ‘True enough.’
    That look got her attention. ‘I can’t see you as someone who had to get by much, growing up. The only child of rich and famous parents, heir to a country-and-western fortune.’
    His snort was a good impression of Goff’s. ‘Everything you’ve just said is what I had to get by.’
    Lea dropped her eyes. Who was she to make assumptions about his upbringing? Someone looking at hers from the outside might have thought it had been idyllic too.
    They crossed the house-paddock down towards her small stables. Ten in the morning wasn’t the smartest time to be going out onto her land but life didn’t just stop because it got hot. Really, really hot. The brumbies were out there in the shimmering heat and they were going to have company. Pan and Goff whickered in horsey disbelief when Lea emerged with a saddle slung over her arm. She had a quad bike but, quite apart from finding the idea of sharing the single small vehicle with Reilly unthinkable, it felt like sacrilege to ride