Hi everyone!:) I don't seem to be able to stop writing this Before I forget it:Thank you all for your wonderful reviews!I always feel like a child at christmas when I open my inbox and see the reviews!;) Anyways, I should really give my mum some credit for this chapter...lol I was a little stuck and we discussed some options while sitting at a little pizza There's a lot of bad moods n stuff going on in this one, but I promise you, you will love the next chapter. If I'm not too tired I might start working on it tonight.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything but a lovely dinner that's waiting for me now!:)

Chapter 4: Escalating Tempers

C.C. awoke the next morning feeling much the same she had done the previous day: defeated by the butler. Just that this time she hadn't lost one of their verbal battles, this time her own body had betrayed her, which made it even worse. When she had arrived home at night she had, yet again, felt the strong desire to wash away the events of the day. More than the dance she and Niles had shared though, it was Sara's pregnancy that she wanted to forget. Another friend who hadn't only successfully managed to bind a man to her, but who was now also starting a family… another moment that just showed her inability to do the same, to build a relationship. That night she had opted for more drastic measures and drowned her sorrows in a glass of whiskey. Sitting down on her couch, the glass firmly in hand she had dully stared out at the city lights. It had been quite some time since that need had been so overpowering that she felt only alcohol could help. As a young girl growing up with her father she had prided herself in her ability to drink a lot without getting tipsy. But things had started to get out of hand when her father went away on more and more business trips: the occasional glass for celebratory purposes had turned into her nightly comforter. When her mother had found out about it she had locked away all the alcohol and threatened C.C. that this unladylike behaviour would get her nowhere when it came to men. Initially this had only spurred her on but when the first disappointments had occurred she had soon followed her mother's advice. But that night her resolve had crumbled when she was, once again, faced with the loneliness of her existence. A bitter drink for a bitter woman, how poetic…

The faint throbbing at her temples reminded her of the disadvantages that type of behaviour brought along and she went to freshen up to look at least presentable for Maxwell. Her determination was soon tested though when her thoughts drifted off to the infernal butler again. She knew that he had been acting on Maxwell's order but the way he had studied her, his eyes practically worshipping her…it was all so damn inappropriate. So why had her body reacted to it? Shaking her head in frustration she chalked it down to her pathetic loneliness and decided to just let it go. There was nothing left to analyze, was there?

After a light breakfast she hailed a cab over to the Sheffield residence and was surprised to find that it was Sara who answered the door instead of Niles. The young woman had decided to change her strategy yet again after her failed attempt to interrogate the butler on the previous night. He had been avoiding her all morning and only when she had followed him into the kitchen after breakfast was over to tell him that he could take the day off had he stopped and listened.

"Why?" he had asked suspiciously and she had made up some excuse.

The truth was she wanted him out of the house so that she could talk to C.C. in private, get her while her emotions were still raw and without the butler stirring them and pushing her deeper into denial.

"Maxwell's running a bit late today." she informed C.C., taking her coat "We started breakfast an hour later and this completely threw his routine."

"Should I wait in the office for him?" C.C. asked.

"You're always so focused on your career, Chas. Loosen up a bit, let's talk until he's ready." Sara said, pulling the other woman along to the couch "Did you have a good time last night?"

"Yes." C.C. lied effortlessly "Thanks again for organizing it."

"Oh, don't thank me." Sara said, patting C.C.'s knee "It was all Niles' doing, he arranged everything. And it looked like he's quite the dancer too."

C.C. rolled her eyes at the clumsy segue. "I know what you're getting at Sara, he's was alright…for a butler."

"Surely you can't help but notice though that he is a man too."

"A butler is all I see." C.C. said firmly "Speaking of which, where is that dreadful maid of yours?"

"After all his hard work I decided to give him the day off." Sara explained, somewhat disappointed that her second attempt to find out more had failed.

"But what does he do apart from his work?" C.C. questioned while trying to sound uninterested at the same time.

"Chas, he isn't as focused on his career as some are…" Sara pointed out, eyeing her friend sternly "He has quite the people skills it seems. The young woman who helped him yesterday, Lucy Nash, is a head-chef at "Henry's", he met her on his first day in New York. They are spending the day at Central Park, I believe."

C.C. frowned at this information, trying to recall the woman. The only one fitting that description was the brunette she had seen him with. Granted, she had a nice figure, but apart from that she was merely average.

"Perfect match." she said out loud.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, he's a servant, she's the help… match made in heaven."

"Chas, I know the way you have been brought up but I'm really starting to get annoyed at your tone. Lucy Nash owns an incredibly successful business, just because she cooks for a living doesn't mean she is beneath you."

C.C. opened her mouth to reply but felt completely stunned by Sara's anger and was thus unable to come up with anything better than "Ok".

In the meantime Niles and Lucy were sitting on a bench near the Bethesda Fountain in Central Park. The usually so bubbly man, however, was mostly silent and she was beginning to wonder what had gotten in to him.

"So why did they let you have the day off, did you get into trouble?" she teased friendly and elbowed him in the ribs.

"Don't think I did." he muttered before making a conscious effort to cheer up "I'm glad though, means I get to spend some more time with you."

"Aren't you the charmer?" she laughed, before sobering a little "But seriously, don't change the topic."

"I'm not in trouble, honestly. This transition is just harder than I expected, I never wanted to serve others…well, at least I never wanted to serve my best friend. Maxwell Sheffield and I grew up together but he disregards this completely…"

Nodding in understanding she suddenly broke into a smile when an idea occurred to her. "You know, if you're unhappy in your employment, or just don't want to work for the Sheffields I would love to train you as a chef, you've got real potential."

His eyes lit up for a second before he seemed to remember something and shook his head. "As much as I appreciate your offer, I don't think I could just leave Maxwell in the lurch-"

"You don't have to decide now." she interrupted him gently, squeezing his hand "Think about it and when you've come to a decision let me know."

Her offer was on his mind for the remainder of the day and as he walked home he was still considering the pros and cons. Although he was always asked to look after Maxwell as a child they had been friends at some point, hadn't they? Then why couldn't Maxwell treat him at least…ah, it was infuriating. It wasn't that he had been unfriendly just the fact that he had to address him as "Sir" and that Maxwell only came to him when his business was in trouble and a favour needed to be done. What Niles really wanted was to feel like a person again, rather than an instrument that could be used any given time. He realized where he was when he recognized the surroundings as Park Avenue, mere minutes separating him now from the Sheffield residence. Maybe the best thing was to just be frank with Maxwell and let him know about the offer he had gotten; get it all out in the open. With that decision made he strode inside the house with a new found confidence, running into his employer almost instantly.

"Ah Niles, there you are." Maxwell said, sounding somewhat impatient.

"Yes, Sir, as you know Sara gave me the day off, so I'm sorry that dinner isn't ready yet."

"Never mind, old man, never mind." Maxwell said with a smile "I've got something to discuss with you."

"As a matter of fact, so do I, Sir." Niles began while walking behind the other man through the living room.

"Yours can surely wait another moment." his employer said good-naturedly.

"Of course it can." Niles muttered in frustration, wondering if he shouldn't just quit then and there.

He sat down on the green loveseat, as offered by Maxwell, and waited for him to speak.

"As you know, Sara and I are expecting a baby."Niles nodded silently. "You know I'm not good at expressing my feelings, old man, but we've known each other for a long time and throughout that time you've always been a wonderful and loyal friend to me. Now, as a butler, you might have some quirks and you certainly take more liberties than other butlers… but you are, by far, the most trustworthy and reliable man I know. That's why I would like to ask you if you want to become my child's godfather."

Niles was speechless, to say the least, it was if he had gotten the sign he so desperately needed.

"Maxwell, it would be my pleasure." he said, dropping the formal tone as the feeling of pride washed over him.

C.C. was standing outside the office, one ear pressed against the door like a nosy teenager. All she had heard was that Maxwell wanted to talk to Niles in private and that was enough to peak her interest. Now she knew that the butler was supposed to become the godfather of the unborn child and a small smile appeared on her face when she assumed that, as one of Sara's oldest friend, she would surely be asked to share the honour. Though why Maxwell had given the task to a butler, she'd never understand…

"C.C., has Max talked to you yet?" Sara's voice interrupted her musings and she shook her head "You can tell him time and time again, he still forgets it."

And she beckoned C.C., who had stepped away from the door, to follow her inside the office. The smile that had been blossoming on her face was growing bigger and bigger by the second, as she was certain that they would now ask her as well to become the child's godmother.

"What are you looking so smug about?" Niles whispered, knowing full well that only C.C. was within earshot "Did you manage to scare off another friend?"

She simply rolled her eyes, nothing could get her off that high she was feeling.

"As Sara just pointed out to me C.C., "Maxwell began "I forgot to ask you something. We would like to have you over for dinner next week when all the contracts for the show are finalized, would Tuesday be alright?"

Her face fell the moment the last words had left his lips; this was not what she had expected.

"Tue-Tuesday?" she stammered pathetically.

"Yes, isn't that a good day for you?" Sara asked, furrowing her eyebrows in confusion.

"Yes, I'm sure Miss Babcock's schedule is very full, seeing as she's got so many friends…" Niles started but C.C. cut in:

"Tuesday is perfect. I'm sure Niles will prepare something extra special for me."

"Yes, and knowing that your taste buds will be just as distinguised as the rest of you, you might even taste the strychnine before it kills you."

C.C. spent the rest of the week hoping that Sara or Maxwell would approach her about becoming the child's godmother. She had been so certain about it… and how could she have been mistaken? Sure, Sara had given that big speech about seeing Niles as a man rather than just the butler, but she had known him for only a couple of days. How could she trust him with such a big responsibility and not her, whom she had known for such a long time? It was eating her up and so, come Monday afternoon, she was in a particularly foul mood.

"Niles, why isn't there any coffee left?" she asked angrily as she rushed into the kitchen, slamming her mug onto the counter.

"Supposedly because a certain blonde socialite drank it all?" he replied coolly, while continuing decorating a cake.

"Stop it, I'm not in the mood!" she snapped, pushing her mug closer to him.

"Now that's a sentence I'm sure you're familiar with." he grinned, but picked up her cup and went to fill it up with the coffee she had requested.

Over the sound of the liquid hitting the bottom of the mug with a splash he could just hear her mutter: "Why they've chosen you as a godfather I'll never understand."

He looked up at this and arched his left eyebrow, as his lips curved into a satisfied smile. "It's killing you, isn't it?" he asked.

The expression in her light-blue eyes which had been soft a minute ago suddenly changed as she fixed him with a furious glare.

"That's none of your business." she hissed.

"Apparently you're wrong, Miss Babcock, as I'm considered trustworthy enough to take that role while you are, sadly, excluded." he corrected her happily.

"I just don't understand why they'd-"

"Oh please, Babs, you're not exactly the warm and caring type, are you?" he continued, ignoring the pain that was so clearly forming in her eyes again.

She crossed her arms in front of her chest as all her defenses went up at once.

"At least I'm not a butler. If something happened to Sara and Maxwell I would have enough money to look after the child."

"Because growing up with lots of money worked so well for you." he growled, stepping closer to her.

She had managed to do it again, wounded him and pushed him so far that all he wanted to do was see her crumble in front of him.

"I should've known not to trust you." she spat.

"Don't be ridiculous, you never trust anyone. As soon as someone manages to get close to you, you just push them away."

"You are overstepping the line." she breathed, unconsciously backing away from him.

He simply stared at her for a moment until the anger had faded away. He could see that he had been seconds away from breaking through to her but he also knew that it would have destroyed everything had he done so. Now wasn't the time…letting out a sigh he went to retrieve her mug and then silently handed it to her.

On the following day the fight seemed to be forgotten and they were back to their usual bickering. Opposed to his previous threats, Niles had in fact prepared a lovely 3 course meal. It had taken the entire day to prepare but on one hand he wanted to show C.C. that he could do something right and on the other hand he wanted to show Maxwell and Sara his gratitude. He had come to the conclusion that, although the job was hard, he couldn't just leave. Maxwell was his friend and the knowledge that he trusted him with his child had affirmed their relationship. Then there was the situation with C.C. and, as much as she angered him, there was a part of him that just couldn't let go. They had just reached dessert; when Sara put her spoon down to say something.

"We weren't quite truthful with you, C.C., when we invited you over for dinner last week. We simply wanted to have the right atmosphere when asking you if you would like to be our child's godmother."

Niles, who had been pouring C.C. some more wine nearly spilled it when she turned around to flash him a devilish, arrogant smile.

"I would be honoured." she said.

"Wonderful!" Sara exclaimed "But there is more. I'm not sure if you're aware, but Niles is going to be the child's godfather, and as such we would love it if you two could write a speech together for the christening."