Claiming The Cowgirl's Baby. Silver James

posture was so stiff.

      “C’mon out back.” Pippa tugged his hand and glanced down at his clothing. “You did bring a swimsuit, right?”

      He nodded, and indicated the small backpack slung over one shoulder. “I figured you had somewhere to change?”

      “Of course! You can change at my place.” She continued to hold his hand as she drew him through the house to a set of glass-paned doors leading to a terrace and pool. He caught glimpses of fancy furniture, antiques and artwork that probably cost as much as he made in a year. “What would you like to drink? I have that beer you like in the ice chest.”

      “That’d be great, thanks.”

      While the big house on the Crown B was expensively furnished with Pendleton rugs, leather furniture and Western art, it was comfortable—looking and feeling lived-in and homey. This house reminded him of a show home—each room decorated in a different style and looking pristine. No self-respecting speck of dust would dare land on any of the furniture.

      Out on the patio near the pool, Pippa pointed him toward a second building—which had probably been either a carriage house or servants’ quarters when the mansion was built at the turn of the last century. Two stories tall, it was made of the same yellow-and-buff bricks and stone with matching red tile roof.

      “Technically, it’s the guesthouse, but it’s where I live.” She offered a crooked grin. “Just so you know? You don’t have to go to the front door. You can come straight back here and knock.” She opened the door and he found himself standing in a combined living area and dining room. He glimpsed a full kitchen beyond the stairs. “You can change in here.” She opened a door to a bathroom with a shower.

      Quickly changing, he emerged and set his folded clothes on the couch. Pippa had disappeared but the outside door was open. He headed out and found her waving at him from the door to the main house.

      “Beer’s in the ice chest over there in the outdoor kitchen. I’ll be back in just a sec. Mom needs something.”

      The outdoor kitchen was every bit as impressive as the one at the ranch, but for the life of him, he couldn’t find an ice chest. Kade finally resorted to opening cabinet doors because he really needed a beer. After searching the entire kitchen, he discovered the built-in ice chest, with its own ice maker. This is how rich people lived—people like his half brothers. That’s when he knew. Half his DNA might be Barron, but he’d never be one of them.