Thanks for the reviews! It often gives me ideas and hints on what you guys would like to see happen so don't stop! I never thought my first Nanny fic would be longer than 5 chapters. In fact, it was going to be a one-shot but this mismatched couple and my own personal Babcock-ish experiences keep inspiring me :)

* Disclaimer. You know how it goes.

CHAPTER 29

CC woke with a start early the next morning. She lifted one side of her sleeping mask and looked over at her alarm clock, feeling groggy. It wasn't buzzing and the time read 6:04am "What the hell?" She moaned and twisted to pull the covers tighter and cover her face.

Bzzzz

"Ugh, it's the stupid doorbell that woke me!" She groaned. She hauled herself out of bed with her eye mask pushed up to her forehead and her hair looking like a bird's nest.

She reached the door and as she turned the knob to open it, hissed, "You better have a dying wish, assho- Oh. It's you."

"Gee, I thought you'd be a morning person, seeing as you're no fun during the rest of the day," Niles said.

"Ugh. Not everyone can be so bright-eyed and bushy-tailed at 6 am." She turned and trudged away, leaving the door open for him to enter.

"And why 6 am, by the way? I only need to be at the mansion at 10:00."

Niles walked toward the kitchen and fished a notebook and pen from his blazer pocket.

"Yes, but my day doesn't start at 10:00. The children have already eaten and are getting ready for the day. Mr. Sheffield and Miss Fine are likely doing the same. I thought we'd make a list of some meals you'd like this week so that I can run and get fresh groceries this morning to cook while you get ready."

"Too early. Too much talking." She said as she pulled her eye mask off of her head and sat at the table near where he stood. She rested her head on her arms.

"What do you like in the morning?"

"Sleep, for one." She groaned.

"Miss Bab-"

"Eggs, Niles. Poached." She said, hoping to shut him up.

"No heavy hollandaise sauces or anything. Nothing fried in too much oil."

"Any other favourites?" He asked as he took notes.

"Um..." She lifted her head. "Granola... oats... or plain Bulgarian yoghurt. Any of those with fresh berries - goji, blueberries, raspberries. Cashew nuts... And also sunflower and pumpkin seeds... I like a mixture of things. I don't like too much of the same flavor. It gets boring."

"I didn't realize you'd be this picky. And you thought I should've come later? It's a good thing I didn't. This might take a while."

"I'm not picky. I'm just particular. I'm very conscious of what goes into my body."

"Even when you're drinking? And even when you take a stranger home with you? Do you consider what goes into your body then?" He smirked.

She gave him a forced smile, bearing her teeth at him to indicate she wasn't amused.

"Okay, what else?"

"Ground flaxseeds and whey powder. In the above." She pointed to the spot on his list where he had written 'granola / oats / plain Bulgarian yoghurt'. Now she was going to push it to see how much he could take from her.

"You love to be difficult, don't you?" He said.

"If I'm going to hire a cook, he might as well make the things I'd want to make if I had the time."

"Or the cooking skills," he teased and smiled at her.

She looked up at him and he could see the smile hiding in her eyes. He got lost in them for a moment.

"Pancakes..." She said softly, still staring at him. "If all else fails, I could be happy with pancakes."

He continued looking at her.

She looked down at his lips and then blinked, breaking their eye contact and she rubbed the sleep from her eyes. "Aren't you going to right that down?" She asked.

"I think I'll remember that one." He said as he looked down at his notebook and carefully and neatly wrote 'C.C. Babcock' at the top of the page.

She watched his hand as he wrote. "You're cooking for other people too?" She asked.

"No, just you and the Sheffields." He said.

"You wrote my name. Afraid you'll forget who the meals are for in your old age?" She teased.

He shrugged his shoulders. She felt strange. All he was doing was writing her name and yet it felt so personal. It was like a reminder that her name was in his head; that she was the sole thing on his mind in that moment. She grasped for any conversational topic to ease the tension she felt.

"You're left-handed," she noted.

"What! You mean this isn't my right hand? All my life..." He said in mock surprise.

She rolled her eyes playfully.

"Anyway. You had better get going if you want to find and make all that." She gestured to the list.

"And you had better start getting ready. You look like you had a heavy night."

"Well, like this morning, last night you unexpectedly dropped in on my night so 'heavy' would be an apt description." She laughed.

He wiggled his head around with a scowl.

"I'll be back soon. Leave the door unlocked in case you're in the shower when I get back. No, scratch that. I don't want to walk in on anything that could ruin my vision. I'll buzz so you can let me in."

"Fine by me. See ya later," she said as he reached the door.

"Don't be long, I'm already so hungry, I could eat a horse!"

"Miss Babcock! That would be cannibalism!" He taunted and he pulled the door shut just as her night slipper hit it.

CC emerged from the shower and wrapped herself in a towel. She walked into the bedroom, still rubbing her heavy eyes. She would have to start getting used to early mornings if he was planning on coming over to make breakfast in her kitchen this early every day.

She plonked herself down on her unmade bed and wished she had had at least another hour's sleep. Her body wasn't used to the change in routine.

She stretched her neck back and forth and from side to side then she got up to return to the bathroom and brush her teeth. I don't need my breath making me an easy target.

She watched herself in the mirror, noting how worn out she looked. At least her hair looked good. She was glad she'd washed it the night before. With Niles waking her so much earlier than usual, she was left with so much time and decided to try an up-style this morning.

The doorbell rang. She walked towards it with her toothbrush in her mouth. she unlocked it and began running back to her bedroom shouting, "It's open!" And hoping he wouldn't catch a glimpse of her in the towel.

She heard him enter as she pushed her bedroom door closed with her foot. She finished brushing her teeth and opened her cupboard to search for something to wear.

Niles began packing away a few food items in the pantry and fridge. "Miss Babcock!" He shouted. "Shall we do eggs and toast today?"

No answer. He put a pot of water on the stove to boil and put the kettle on for tea and coffee. He made his way to her room to ask her again.

CC had put on her red, sensible, cotton underwear and a black & grey gingham pencil skirt along with a pair of classic, black Christian Louboutin heels.

She slid each coat hanger in her closet from one side to the other, looking for a red blouse. She wasn't feeling very vivacious this morning so she decided to let her clothes take front seat.

Niles reached her bedroom door, which was left slightly ajar. He lifted a hand to knock but stopped himself when he noticed her moving around through the sliver in the door. When he saw her in her red bra, his breathing hitched in his throat. He moved closer to the crack in the door as she pulled a blouse from her closet and lifted it to inspect it.

She grabbed the towel off of the bed and held it up around her chest and called, "Niles!" And moved towards the door.

Shit! He thought. He quickly took a few running steps backwards before she pulled the door open. She was startled to find him almost near her room.

"Oh, that was quick," she said. "Um, do you think this blouse would clash with this pencil skirt I'm wearing?" She held up the blouse with one hand and the towel over her chest with the other.

"It'll look great with the blood on your lips once you feed."

She decided to take the comment with a pinch of salt and stepped backwards into her room to close the door with her foot, still looking at the blouse.

"Poached eggs and toast?" He asked before she shut it.

"Yum," she said with a smile and shut the door.

He smiled and walked to the kitchen to prepare breakfast.

"Mmmm, breakfast smells amazing!" CC sang as she entered the kitchen area.

Niles had just plated her meal and set it on the table for her. He'd set out cutlery, a teacup, a small dish of jams and spreads and two small drinking glasses - one filled with juice and the other containing a single, short-stemmed pink rose.

She smiled at the sight before her as she took a seat. She picked up the slice of toast and spread some strawberry jam onto one half and pomegranate jam onto the other.

He shook his head. "I could have made you another slice if you wanted both?"

"I didn't know I wanted it until I saw what you had to offer," she said absentmindedly as she took a bite of one side and closed her eyes to savour the sweetness.

He leaned over the table to sprinkle a pinch of salt and pepper onto her eggs.

"Hmm... Just how I like it!" She said with her mouth full after having taken a bite of the eggs. "Thank you, Niles," she smiled.

"If I had known that food would be all it took to make you this pleasant I would have started feeding you years ago."

She grinned. "You missed a good jab there."

"I did?"

"I would have added, 'But I should've known. The way to a man's heart is through his stomach after all.'"

He snorted in surprised laughter.

She chuckled alike.

"Have you eaten?" She asked.

He nodded. "At the Sheffields this morning."

"So early? I'd be hungry again by now."

"Yes, highly likely."

She gave him a dirty look. "If you want to have something here, feel free. You're doing the cooking anyway."

He bowed his head in thanks but didn't have anything to eat.

"Are you going to watch me eat now?" She asked, unexpectedly shy.

"Is there anything I can get for you? Anything you need to take with you to the mansion?"

"Would I need to pay extra?" She teased.

He smiled, shaking his head. "I'm here and I don't know what else to do with myself."

"Do you feel uncomfortable in a woman's apartment?" She teased him with a grin.

"No, but I feel uncomfortable in yours." He teased back with a smirk.

She aped his expression. "Make yourself at home. Have a seat in the living room, watch your trashy soap reruns on TV, whatever you do to kill time."

"I never have time to kill."

"Aww," she pouted, exaggerating pity. "Okay then. You could get my briefcase and coat ready. They're in my bedroom."

"Are there any dangerous laptops left in there that I should avoid?"

Her eyes bulged. "Shut up. It was... research. For a show."

"A one-woman show? Starring you and your hand?"

"You have a dirty mind!" She said.

"And yours keeps up."

She got up and pointed a finger at him but had nothing to say. Her smile eventually forced its way through and she poked him in the chest and said, "Clean up these dishes. I'll get my things."

"Yes, sir!" He saluted as she walked to her bedroom.

By the time the dishes had been washed, CC had emerged from her room, briefcase and coat in hand. She set them down on the coffee table in the living room and turned to see her cup of tea still sitting on the kitchen countertop.

"Oh good!" She said and grabbed it. "I wasn't finished with this." She took a few more sips and leaned against the counter as he emptied the dishwater from the sink and dried off his hands.

She glanced over at the rose that was still resting in a glass on the table. He looked over and then followed her eyes to it. "Your place could do with a little life." He said.

She looked at him and then back at the rose. "Mm, I suppose you're right. You'd know how to give it a woman's touch."

"Yes, seeing as you can't." They chuckled.

"Ready to go?" He asked.

"Mmhmm," she said as she gulped the last of her tea and put the cup into the dishwasher. "You know, I'm not British. We, Americans, tend to go for coffee in the morning."

"Maybe you should try a little British now and then. I'm sure you enjoyed what I've given you." He winked as he picked up her briefcase and keys and walked to the door.

She wasn't sure if he was talking about tea or about other things he'd given to her lately. She smiled and followed him out of the door, putting on her coat as she walked.