let my housekeeper, Mattie, be the judge of that.” He’d feel a lot better having her oversee Arielle’s care. Mattie had been like a grandmother to him and Lana and nursed them through every one of their childhood illnesses with a jar of VapoRub in one hand and a bowl of homemade chicken soup in the other. “Her home remedies are as effective as any prescription medication.”
“I’m sure they are. But my apartment is a lot closer and…I told you, I’ll be fine as soon as I—” She stopped suddenly. “Pull over. I think…I’m going to be…sick.”
Zach had the SUV stopped before she could finish the thought. Throwing open the driver’s door, he rushed around the front of the truck to help her out. Putting his arm around her shoulders, he supported her while she was sick, and if he wasn’t sure before that he’d made the right decision, he was now. The last thing she needed was to be left alone to contend with a very bad case of the flu.
“I think I’ll be…all right now,” she finally said, raising her head.
After helping her back into the truck, Zach got in behind the steering wheel and turned on the heater. “Let’s get you out of your raincoat,” he proposed, reaching over to help her. The garment was completely soaked. “I’m sure you’re cold and uncomfortable in that thing.”
“I’d rather keep it on,” she objected, shaking her head as she clutched the folds of the coat. “It’s waterresistant and the inside is still warm and dry.”
Had that been a flash of panic he’d seen in her expressive hazel eyes? Why the hell would she be afraid to take off her wet coat?
“I’m not absolutely certain that’s a good idea, darlin’.”
“I am.” As she leaned her head back against the headrest, he watched her close her eyes as if it was too much of an effort to keep them open. “Now, will you please stop telling me what to do and listen to me? I want to go home to my apartment.”
“I’m sorry, Arielle, but I just can’t do that. Try to rest. We’ll be at my ranch before you know it.”
“This could easily be considered a kidnapping,” she relayed, sounding extremely tired.
“Not if the alleged kidnapper is only trying to do what’s best for the alleged kidnappee,” he elaborated, shifting the SUV into gear and merging back into the busy rush-hour traffic.
“Best in…whose opinion?” she argued, delicately hiding a yawn behind her hand.
“The only one that counts right now—mine.” He smiled at the long-suffering expression on her pretty face. “Now, try to take a little nap. I’ll wake you once we get to the ranch.”
When she felt herself being gathered into strong, capable arms, Arielle’s eyes snapped open. “Wh-what on earth do you think you’re doing, Zach?”
Lifting her to him, he gave her a grin that curled her toes inside her soggy shoes. “You’re not feeling well, so I’m helping you—”
“Just because I’m not one hundred percent doesn’t mean I can’t get out of the truck on my own,” she interrupted, desperate to put some distance between them. What if he felt the bulge of her stomach?
“You need to conserve your energy to fight whatever bug you have,” he explained, setting her on her feet. When he shut the SUV’s door, he placed his arm around her shoulders, tucked her to his side and guided her from the garage across the covered breezeway into the house. “Besides, I’m not running the risk of you passing out and possibly adding a concussion to your other ailments.”
His secure hold caused her heart to thump even harder. “H-how many times do I have to tell you? All I need is something to eat and I’ll be fine.”
He stopped ushering her along when they entered the kitchen. “Mattie?”
“Stop your hollerin’, Zachary. I’m old, but I ain’t deaf.” A gray-haired woman in her late sixties walked out of a pantry and stopped short at the sight of Zach holding her. “Did I forget about you bringin’ company for the weekend?”
He shook his head. “No, but Arielle’s sick and can’t be left alone. Probably coming down with a bad cold or maybe even the flu and requires your expert care.”
Arielle tried to push away from him. “I don’t have the—”
“Hush, darlin’,” he said close to her ear, causing a shiver to course through her. “Mattie Carnahan, this is Arielle Garnier. She’s in need of some dry clothes. See if you can find something of Lana’s for her to put on while I take her to the guest room.”
He led her down a hall and opened the door to a beautifully decorated room. When he reached to help her out of her coat, Arielle shook her head and took a step back. “I don’t need your help.”
“You need to take that coat off,” he insisted, moving toward her. “It’s soaked.”
She took a few steps backward. “The only thing I want from you is to be left alone. But if you feel you have to do something, find me something to eat and then take me back to my apartment. What part of that don’t you understand? And exactly how can I make it any clearer for you?”
As they stood glaring at each other, Mattie walked into the room to place a set of gray sweats and a heavy pair of socks on the bed. “Honey, he can be as stubborn as a jackass when he gets something in his head.” She motioned for Zach to leave. “You go get your things out of the car and I’ll have supper on the table by the time you get unpacked.”
Zach didn’t appear to be all that happy with his housekeeper taking over the situation. “I can do that later. I need to make sure Arielle is—”
“Go,” Arielle and the older woman both said at the same time.
Muttering a curse, he finally turned and walked from the room.
Mattie started to follow him. “If there’s anything else you need, just let me know.”
“Thank you,” Arielle said, meaning it. At least the housekeeper had given her a bit of a reprieve from Zach’s overpowering masculinity. “And for the record, I don’t have the flu.”
Mattie nodded as she stepped back into the room and closed the door. “Zachary means well, but he doesn’t have any idea you’re pregnant, does he?”
A cold sense of dread spread throughout Arielle’s body. “I…Uh, no, he doesn’t.”
“How far along are you, child?” Mattie asked, her voice so kind and understanding it chased away some of Arielle’s apprehension.
There was no use denying what the housekeeper had guessed, although Arielle didn’t have any idea how the woman could have possibly figured it out. “I’m only three and a half months pregnant, but I’m already starting to get a nice little bulge.”
Mattie nodded. “I thought you must be showing some since you were so determined to keep your coat on and kept holding it together. That’s why I brought some of Zachary’s sweatshirts and pants, instead of his sister’s. You’ll have to roll up the legs and push up the sleeves, but I thought you might need the extra room.”
“But how did you know?” Arielle was thoroughly amazed by the woman’s intuitiveness.
“Some women have a look about them when they’re pregnant and if ever a woman had that glow, you do,” Mattie revealed, shrugging. “And if that wasn’t enough, Zachary telling me that you got sick on the drive up here and your insistence that all you needed was something to eat was. I always had to keep something on my stomach when I was carrying both of my boys.” She smiled. “Now, get changed and come to the kitchen. I’ll make sure you get something to eat before you get sick again. Then I’m going home so that you and Zachary can talk things over in private.”
When Mattie closed the door behind her, Arielle at last took off her