Christmas Baby. Judy Duarte

the way you are.”

      She gave his hand a squeeze, letting him know she trusted him and making him feel almost heroic. But unwilling to let it go completely to his head, he focused on the road.

      As they neared the entrance to the ranch, he pointed to the right and then to the left. “See those cattle grazing in the pastures along both sides of the road?”

      “Yes.”

      “They’re part of Dan’s spread.”

      Moments later, they reached the entrance to the ranch, which was marked by a big green mailbox—a plastic replica of a John Deere tractor.

      Shane turned in, drove through the open gate and followed the tree-lined driveway until he reached the house and the outbuildings. Then he parked by the barn, next to Dan’s white flatbed truck.

      He shut off the ignition and turned to Jillian with a smile. “This is it. What do you think so far?”

      “It’s nice.” Jillian scanned the yard, turning to the yellow clapboard house with white trim, where Dan’s uncle, the man who’d raised him, sat on the porch in a rocker.

      “Who’s that?” she asked.

      “That’s Hank Walker. He can be a little cantankerous at times, but don’t let his gruff exterior scare you. He’s actually as gentle as a spring lamb.”

      Before they could open the pickup doors, Jack and Jill, the cattle dogs, ran out of the barn, barking to announce the arrival of guests.

      As Shane and Jillian climbed out of the truck, Kaylee and Kevin came out of the barn, following the dogs.

      Shane introduced the twins to Jillian, then while she greeted the kids, he gave the dogs each a rub behind the ears.

      It had taken him a while to warm up to the Walker twins, but not nearly as long as he’d thought it would. He wasn’t sure why that was, but he’d been giving it some thought lately and had come up with an interesting possibility.

      Marcia had never met the Walkers, and she’d never blamed them for her unhappiness.

      “I’ve never visited a ranch before,” Jillian told Kevin, “so this is a real treat for me. Thanks for letting me come see it.”

      “No problem,” Kevin said. “We like having company and showing them around. Do you want to ride one of the horses? I can saddle it for you.”

      Shane stroked the back of the eight-year-old cowboy’s head. “Kevin is a good hand with the horses. And he’s learning how to rope and cut cattle, too.”

      “That’s really impressive.” Jillian rested her hand on top of her pregnant tummy. “And thanks for the offer, but I don’t want to ride today. Maybe you can take me out the next time I come to the ranch.”

      When the front door swung open, two-year-old Sofia stepped out on the porch, followed by her brother Steven. Together they ran toward Shane.

      About that time, Hank got to his feet and grabbed his cane. Then he shuffled across the porch, his gait a bit unsteady. As he approached, he reached out an arthritic hand to Jillian. “Shane told us you’d be coming. When’s the baby due?”

      Jillian blessed the old man with a smile. “December third.”

      Hank whistled. “Before you know it, this place is going to be bursting at the seams with little ones.”

      Apparently, he was assuming that Jillian would be a permanent fixture on the ranch, although the jury was still out on that. Either way, Shane didn’t correct him.

      Hank gave Shane a nudge with his arm. “Did you know Eva’s expecting again, too?”

      “No, I didn’t.”

      Hank chuckled. “I’m not sure how they’re going to handle another little rug rat around here. The baby will make five. ’Course, they got me to help ’em.”

      About that time, Dan and Eva Walker came out of the house, crossed the porch, walked down the steps and approached Shane and Jillian with welcoming smiles. Shane introduced them as his friends, rather than his employers, since they’d become like family to him in the past six months.

      “And this is Jillian Wilkes,” Shane said, turning to the woman who was pregnant with his child.

      Jillian didn’t usually like to be the focus of so much attention, but when Dan reached out, she took his hand and gave it a warm shake. He was a ruggedly handsome man with light brown hair and blue eyes. Yet there was a gentleness about him.

      “It’s nice to meet you,” Jillian said, before turning to his wife.

      Eva Walker, whose olive complexion and long dark hair suggested she might be Latina, was a beautiful woman, in spite of a rather ugly burn scar that ran from the underside of her chin down to her throat. Yet it was the sincerity in her warm brown eyes that drew Jillian’s attention and set her mind at ease.

      “We’re glad you came,” Eva said.

      “If you don’t mind,” Shane told Dan, “I’d like to show Jillian around the ranch.”

      “Not at all.” The rancher slipped his arm around his wife’s waist and drew her to his side.

      “We’ll have lunch when you get back,” Eva said.

      With that, Shane took Jillian by the hand, and they were off.

      After checking out the stalls, the horses and the office, they walked along the outside corral that fenced a couple of mares. Shane explained that they were working horses—trained to cut cattle out of the herd.

      Next they continued on to the pasture, following a path that led to the creek.

      The sun was especially bright, the temperature warm, the breeze light. And after a tour that took more than an hour, Shane brought Jillian back to the house and into the kitchen, where Eva was making lunch.

      She had bread spread upon the countertops, as well as apple slices and oatmeal cookies. And when she spotted Jillian and Shane, she brightened and gave them her full attention—at least until the kids came running.

      “Kaylee, will you and Kevin take the little ones into the bathroom and wash up? I’ll have your lunch ready in a few minutes.”

      The older girl nodded, then helped her brother herd the younger twins out of the room.

      About that time, Dan opened the back door and entered the mudroom. “Shane, I’ve got something I’d like you to see. Do you mind coming out to the barn?”

      “Sure.” Shane turned to Jillian. “I’ll be right back.”

      “Take your time. I’ll help make lunch.”

      Moments later, Eva opened up the fridge and pulled out lunch meat, cheese, mayonnaise, mustard, lettuce and tomatoes. Then she placed them on the countertop.

      “You have beautiful children,” Jillian said.

      “Thanks. Things can get awfully hectic around here, and they can be a lot of work, but I can’t imagine my life without them. I’m sure you’ll find that to be the case, too.” She glanced at Jillian’s baby bump, then smiled. “Do you know if you’re going to have a girl or a boy?”

      “I’d told the doctor I wanted to be surprised when I had my last sonogram, but that’s no longer true. I’m really curious now. And since I’d like to set up a nursery, it would be nice to know whether I should focus on trucks and cars or butterflies and kittens.”

      Before Eva could comment, Kevin dashed into the kitchen. “Mom, can we watch that new SpongeBob movie until lunch is ready?”

      “Why don’t you watch that Mickey Mouse DVD until I put Sofia and Steven down for a nap. Then you and Kaylee will be able to watch TV without them bothering you.”

      He seemed to think about her suggestion,