A Stranger's Baby. Kerry Connor

prints were messy and indistinct, as though whoever had made them had been moving too quickly to leave much of an impression. Quickly, as if they were running from a pregnant woman with a gun?

      Jake stared at the marks for a long moment, trying to convince himself he wasn’t putting more stock in them than he should be. He had no reason to believe the impressions were connected to what had happened in her house tonight, and every reason to believe nothing had occurred.

      Unless the intruders had been so careful to leave no trace of their presence that in their haste they overlooked this one, maybe counting on someone to discount it.

      Unless he’d just missed them disappearing into the darkness as he came around the side of the house.

      Unless he was already inside when they started their vehicle and drove away, if the sound had even been audible from the house.

      Troubled by where his thoughts were leading him, he headed back to his house. He couldn’t call the cops with something so inconclusive. They hadn’t been inclined to believe her. He didn’t think they’d be happy to be called back for this, if they did come back. He wondered if he should tell his neighbor. She might feel better knowing there could be reason to think she was right. Or she might be better off believing she wasn’t instead of scaring her more.

      Remembering the pills he’d dropped in the driveway, he started to the front of the house. He was almost there when he saw it. A car parked on the other side of the street, facing him. It sat just out of reach of the nearest streetlamps on either side, the faintest edges of their glow falling mere feet short of illuminating it. Instead, it was nearly invisible, a dark-colored sedan blending into the shadows. Still, he could see the single figure sitting in the front seat. And though he couldn’t see the person’s face, he suddenly knew without a doubt the driver was watching his neighbor’s house.

      He’d kept an eye on the street while they had waited for the police. The car hadn’t been sitting there then.

      Before he even thought about it, he started toward the vehicle.

      He’d barely gone three steps when the driver suddenly jerked forward in his seat. The engine roared to life. Jake started to pick up speed, muscles tensing in readiness to break out into a run. That damn pain shot down his leg, causing him to miss a step.

      The sedan burst forward, leaping away from the curb and onto the street with a screech of its tires. He could do nothing but watch the car tear down the street, moving so fast he couldn’t even get the license plate number.

      Biting back a curse, he drew in a ragged breath. His shoulders slumped, seeming to weigh a thousand pounds each. He should be used to his body failing him by now. That didn’t make it any easier to take.

      He’d started to turn back toward his house when his gaze fell on his neighbor’s. The curtain in the front window shifted slightly. She must have looked out to see what the noise was.

      Grimacing, he changed direction, heading for her front door. The curtain shifted again. He knew she was watching.

      By the time he made it to the door, she was already opening it a crack, peering out over the chain she kept fastened. “What’s going on?”

      “I don’t think you were imagining anything.”

      Her eyes went wide. She slammed the door shut. He heard the sound of the chain being withdrawn before she pulled the door open farther, the other hand braced protectively on her belly.

      “What are you talking about?”

      “There are fresh footprints by the trees behind your house. And that car was sitting across the street. I think the driver was watching your house.”

      She swallowed hard, looking as if she was going to be sick. “I knew it was real.”

      “They could come back. You shouldn’t stay here.”

      “I have my gun.”

      “Next time they might, too.”

      He saw the words hit home. She gave her head a shaky nod. “You’re right. I’ll go to a hotel or something….”

      Her voice wobbled just the slightest bit, enough that he felt it like a low blow in his gut. She looked scared and vulnerable, as if she wanted to look over her shoulder and make sure there was nobody there, waiting to jump out at her from inside her own home. Which suddenly seemed all too possible. Hell, how did either of them know somebody hadn’t managed to break back in again? They had already managed to do it one time without leaving any trace.

      As if she was thinking the same thing, her other hand went to her stomach, her arms stretching low. She looked as if she wanted to wrap her arms around herself.

      No, not herself. Her baby.

      Something painful hit him in the chest. Hard.

      “You can stay with me.”

      The words came out on their own. Even as he said them, it seemed as if someone else was doing so. She looked just as surprised to hear them as he was, blinking up at him, her mouth falling open in a soft O.

      “Just for tonight,” he said roughly. “Until you figure out something else.” Part of him wondered who he was saying it for, her or himself.

      For a long moment she didn’t say anything, staring at him, her eyes round and dazed. Then she nodded unsteadily. “Okay. Just for tonight. Let me get a few things.”

      She retreated back into the house. He watched her waddle away. He knew letting her stay with him was the right thing to do. She shouldn’t be alone, not in her condition, not the way she was feeling. That didn’t stop him from wanting to call her back and revoke the offer. The uneasiness had returned with a vengeance, clawing at his insides with greater ferocity, for entirely different reasons than before.

      Because he’d seen something else, too, shimmering faintly in her big brown eyes.

      Gratitude.

      And he knew more than ever that he’d finally made the mistake he’d been avoiding from the first time he’d seen the pregnant woman next door.

      Chapter Three

      Jake held open the front door of his house for her. Sara stepped over the threshold, feeling almost as though she was stepping into a brand-new world.

      A few hours ago, she’d never spoken to this man. Now she was spending what was left of the night in his home.

      Of course, several things had happened to her in the past few hours that had never happened before. At least this one might be relatively positive.

      It was only when she heard him close and lock the door behind them that she felt a moment’s trepidation. She looked back at him, so big he nearly rendered the door superfluous, blocking the entire entryway himself. What if he was involved with the people who’d invaded her home and this was all part of some ploy to get her to his house where she’d be completely at his mercy? Or even if it wasn’t, how did she know she was safe with this man? She didn’t know anything about him. No one knew where she was. He could make her disappear and no one would ever know.

      Then he turned around, allowing her to see the frown on his face. It hadn’t shifted since he’d made the invitation. He’d made it clear the offer had been grudging at best, hardly the attitude to project if he’d wanted to give her a false sense of security.

      Sara grimaced at her own foolish paranoia, forcing herself to relax slightly. She was letting the night’s events go to her head.

      Not to mention the fact that he’d barely looked at her since offering the invitation. Even now, he didn’t, moving past her toward a hallway. “You can take my bed,” he said gruffly.

      “Oh, that’s not necessary.”

      “It’s the only one I’ve got. There’s a spare bedroom, but I never bothered to put a bed in there.” Whether or not he’d intended it,