The Dragon’s Brave Nanny (Mysteries of Dragon’s Island #4)

Chapter 5

CHAPTER 5

***KEITH***

K eith looked at the pile of baby stuff slowly accumulating on the sidewalk in front of the hotel and shook his head. “Are you sure we needed all this stuff?” he asked, looking over at Stella who was holding a very sleepy Jordan. “He’s just a little thing, but he sure takes up a lot of space.”

Stella laughed, “I suppose that's a good way to put it,” she said. “And yes, we need it all. Trust me, you’ll see, all this stuff is going to make life much easier.”

“It better, I just spent a small fortune at that store,” he said. “I knew kids were expensive, but I had no idea.”

“That’s why there’s a thing called a baby shower,” she said. “But I think it’s too late for that.”

“You think?” he asked, but found himself smiling. “Maybe we could come up with something new, you know, an after-baby shower or a daddy shower.”

Stella laughed, “We’ll have to work on that,” she said. “But right now, I think we’d better get this little guy up to the room. He needs a good dinner, a bath, and bed.”

“Sounds good to me, I haven’t gotten a full night’s sleep in days,” he said, then bent to pick up an armload from the pile. “But first, we have to get all of this up to the room.”

Before he could finish gathering what he wanted, three guest attendants came out of the hotel. “Don’t worry about all this, Mr. Sanders,” one of them said, taking everything out of his hands. “We’ll get it up to your room.”

They made quick work of the pile, then disappeared into the hotel before he could even say thank you, and he turned to look back at Stella, who was as surprised as he was. “Do you think we can take them with us to the island?” she asked, grinning at him. “It would sure make my job a lot easier.”

He laughed, “Come on, we’d better follow them,” he said, holding the door open for Stella and the baby. “They’ll probably have it all set up before we can get to the room.”

The lobby was crowded and the smell of food hit him as they walked across the room. “Something smells good,” he said, his stomach growling. “Jordan isn’t the only one who needs a good dinner.”

“We did skip lunch,” Stella said. “We’ll have to do something about dinner for ourselves once we get the baby settled. We probably should have grabbed something while we were out.”

Before he could suggest they stop by the restaurant on their way to the room, a man dressed in a suit walked up to them. “Mr. Sanders, I’m Paul, the manager of the hotel,” he said, holding out his hand. “I’m sorry that I missed you when you checked in earlier. It’s been such a hectic day with the storm and everything.”

He was a bit surprised, and wondered if the manager greeted every guest. “Oh, well, that’s understandable,” he said. “The staff has been more than accommodating, and we appreciate it.”

“Oh, that’s good to hear, I wouldn’t want Mr. St. Clair to hear anything else,” Paul said. “I’m just so embarrassed that I didn’t realize who you were when you came in, but you see, I was looking for a single man, I just didn’t realize… well, anyway, I wanted to let you know that the charges to your credit card have been reversed. Mr. St. Clair is covering your entire bill.”

“Oh, that was nice of Max,” he said. “But it wasn’t necessary.”

“He insisted, and we don’t say no to Mr. St. Clair,” Paul said with a shrug of his shoulders. “He’s one of our best clients, so we like to keep him happy. If there’s anything you need, anything at all, just let me know.”

“Thank you, we will,” he said. “And I’ll be sure to let Max know that you took very good care of us.”

The manager beamed at him. “Thank you,” he said. “We do our best.”

It was a huge relief to know that the charges for the room weren’t on his card anymore, and he turned back to Stella with a huge smile on his face. “I guess Max is covering the entire bill,” he said. “Let’s go get all of this put away and come back down for a fancy dinner since he’s paying.”

Stella looked shocked. “Keith, you wouldn’t,” she said. “And I know I’m not going to.”

“I was just kidding, I wouldn’t do that to one of my friends,” he said. “But it is a bit of a relief that he’s paying for the hotel. I’m not poor, but I’m definitely not rich like Max and the rest of my friends anymore.”

When he saw the curiosity blossom in Stella’s eyes, he wished he’d kept his mouth shut and took off for the elevator, hoping to keep her from asking questions. He was still very aware of the attraction simmering deep inside him, and getting too personal with her would be a mistake. He needed to keep his distance, not share his life with her. But she was right behind him, and he could feel the questions floating in the air between them as he pushed the button to take them back up to their room.

When the doors closed behind them, Stella stared straight ahead for a second, then turned and looked over at him. “Does Max know that you’re bringing us with you?” she finally asked. “I mean, it sounded like the hotel manager didn’t know. Did you tell Max about Jordan?”

It wasn’t the question he’d been expecting, and he was caught off guard for a second. “Everything happened so fast……and I wasn’t sure……” he stammered, then sighed. “I didn’t tell him……I was in shock and embarrassed, I guess.”

***Stella***

Stella studied Keith for a second feeling both sorry for him and frustrated that he had kept Jordan a secret. “What do you think is going to happen when we show up?” she asked. “There might not even be a place for us to stay, and I’m not sleeping on a couch or something.”

“It’s a big place, Stella, I’m sure Max will find a place for you to stay,” he said. “I know him, he’ll make sure that you’re comfortable.”

“I hope so,” she said. “This job has turned out to be more work than I thought it would be, and I don’t exactly like going places where I’m not expected.”

“I’m sorry if it makes you uncomfortable. I’ve been scrambling since Melissa showed up with Jordan,” Keith said. “I guess maybe I should have been more honest with the agency, but I was desperate. If we get there and you’re not happy, I won’t make you stay, but I don’t think that’s going to happen.”

She looked over at him and knew instantly that he was telling the truth. “Fair enough,” she said. “But no more surprises, okay? ”

“Deal,” he said, smiling at her and making her heart skip a beat. “Now, what about that dinner? Feeding you is part of the deal, too.”

“As appealing as dinner in the restaurant sounds, I think Jordan needs an early bedtime tonight,” she said. “I don’t mind staying with him while you go, though. Just bring me something back.”

The elevator door opened and he waited while she and Jordan got off. “I have a better idea. We’ll both get Jordan ready for bed, I need the experience, and then we’ll order room service,” he said, stepping up next to her. “Normally I don’t mind eating alone, but I’d feel guilty leaving you in the room.”

“It’s my job, Keith,” she said. “I don’t mind, really.”

“I know it’s your job, and I’m sure there will be plenty of times I leave the two of you behind, but tonight isn’t one of them,” he said, leading the way to their room. “I want you to know how much I appreciate everything you’ve done for us so far. I was a bit of a jerk in the beginning, and I’m sorry about that. You’ve done nothing but try to help.”

Stella felt herself softening to Keith and for a second wished he was still being that jerk. “It’s okay, you were just overwhelmed and scared,” she said. “I don’t really blame you. Trying to cope with everything alone must have been really hard. Wasn’t there anyone you could have called to help you?”

“Not really,” he said, opening the door to their room. “My parents and I aren’t exactly on speaking terms, and my sister took their side, so I’m on my own.”

“I’m sorry, Keith, that can’t be easy,” she said, wanting to push but sensing it was a delicate subject. “Family is important, but I’m sure you had good reasons.”

He was silent for a second, then asked, “What about you? Are you close to your family? ”

She knew that he was changing the subject and realized it was a good idea. The more she discovered about him, the more she found herself liking him. “My parents are both gone, and I was an only child,” she said. “I have some distant relatives, but I don’t see much of them. My friends are my family.”

He studied her for a second, “Well, how about that,” he said, shaking his head. “We do have something in common, we’re both loners.”

“I guess so,” she said, hating the thrill that shot through her and more than ready to steer things away from their personal lives. “Let’s break out some of that baby food and see if Jordan wants some dinner. The sooner he eats, the sooner we can.”

“I’m all for that,” Keith said. “But if it’s all the same to you, I think I’ll just watch this time.”

“No way,” she said, shaking her head and handing him the baby. “Find one of those new bibs and put it on him, then set up the highchair and buckle him in tight. I’ll heat up some food.”

By the time Keith finished feeding the baby they were both covered in food, and she couldn’t help but laugh. “Not bad for your first time,” she said, grinning at him. “Do you want to shower before I give the baby a bath?”

“That would be nice,” he said, wrinkling his nose. “I smell like bananas and… whatever that brown goop was, I don’t know how he eats that stuff. I’m losing my appetite just smelling it.”

“Just wait until it comes out the other end, that will really make you lose your appetite,” she said, laughing when his face filled with disgust. “Isn’t parenthood a blast?”

“I think I’ll take you up on that offer of a shower,” he said, then made a funny face at Jordan. “I have a feeling this isn’t the first time my son is going to slime me with his dinner. ”

The baby laughed and flapped his arms at Keith, and a tender smile spread across his face. “Hey, no fair, I’m mad at you,” he said, grinning. “Stop being so cute. It makes it impossible to resist you.”

Jordan leaned forward, his arms reaching for Keith, and a shocked look appeared on his face. “I think he wants you,” she said, a surge of emotion making it hard to speak. “Take him, Keith.”

He reached out and took his son, a look of amazement on his face. “I think he likes me,” he finally said. “I didn’t think that was ever going to happen.”