Read Online Her Baby's Bodyguard by Ingrid Weaver - Free Book Online Page B

with his fingertips. For a moment his thumb lingered at the corner of her mouth before he tucked her hair under the edge of her hat.
    The caress caught her off guard. He was focusing on her lips.
    And just like that, her body tingled with feelings that weren’t remotely maternal. He was looking at her as if he wanted to kiss her. As if he cared. As if there weren’t a truck full of armed men waiting outside.
    No. He was a soldier, doing his duty. She was merely part of the mission to him, regardless of how good his touch felt. Or how much she wanted to lean into it. She tipped her head away. “We’re ready to go, Sergeant Norton.”
    “Right.” He dropped his hand. Without another word, he extinguished the lamp, picked up his pack and led her outside.

    By the time dawn broke, the wind had died, leaving the air sharp but no longer biting. Daylight revealed slopes that bore a rugged mix of gray-black, windswept rock and crumbled stones. Apart from sharp-edged drifts where the road wound through treed valleys, most of the snow from the previous night’s storm had blown clear. Puddles were already beginning to form in the ruts. So far, the team hadn’t encountered any traffic, but that wouldn’t last much longer. Ideally, they would have traveled in the dark so there would have been less chance of encountering other vehicles or having someone witness—and remember—the direction they took. Moving by daylight was always risky, yet that sheep farm had been too close to the complex so remaining there until nightfall would have been riskier.
    Jack braced his boots against the floor to steady himself as the truck rocked around another curve. The engine sputtered. Maybe to a trained ear it would sound better after Kurt’s tinkering, but it still seemed to Jack as if it would rattle apart at any minute. Considering the condition of the road and the vehicle, it wouldn’t be wise to push for more speed.
    But going slow was the last thing Jack wanted. The kid was no longer the limp weight she’d been when he’d strapped her on. He could feel her starting to stir against his chest. He sure hoped that didn’t mean she was about to launch into one of her crying fests.
    He leaned forward and twisted his head so he could see Eva’s face. She was propped against his shoulder, her eyes still closed. Though she’d tried to fight it, she’d gone back to sleep shortly after they had started out. It was just as well that she’d let him carry the baby. The night had obviously taken its toll on her. Rather than wake her up to tend to her daughter, he opened his coat enough so that he could slip his hand inside the way he’d seen her do and placed his fingers over the curve of the baby’s back.
    The kid went still. Encouraged, Jack gave her a few pats for good measure.
    “Too bad Gonzo’s up front.”
    Jack looked up to find Tyler watching him. “What?”
    “I think he’d consider the fifty bucks you cheated him out of worth it if he could see this.”
    “What are you talking about? I won fair and square. We were ready before Kurt was.”
    “That’s because you’re carrying the kid yourself.”
    “That wasn’t cheating.”
    “What would you call it?”
    “Expedience,” Jack said, using Eva’s word.
    “Hey, Duncan,” Tyler said. “Doesn’t Jack look cozy there?”
    Duncan nodded. “Uh-huh. Like a regular Father Goose.”
    Jack snatched his hand away from Katya. As soon as he did, though, she started to whimper. He patted her back again, and she quieted. “Come on, guys. I’m just doing what I have to. You’ve heard how loud this kid can get.”
    “He must have played with dolls when he was a boy,” Tyler said, returning his attention to the road behind them. “What do you think?”
    Duncan nodded. “Dolls are a well-known conditioning tool, used by females for centuries to indoctrinate the next generation of mothers.”
    “You guys in Intelligence have way too much time on your hands if that’s the kind