A/N: I'm glad a few of you seem to be enjoying this :) Here's the next installment. Let me know what you think :)
Day 3:
The next day at breakfast the Sheffields announced that the heat wave they'd been trying to avoid was supposed to hit Montana as well. The forecast nor the ranch owners had been able to tell them which temperatures that would mean for them but they had decided to take no chances nonetheless and had booked a helicopter flight higher into the mountains. C.C., already scared on an average passenger aircraft knew that there'd be no way in hell that she would set foot into a helicopter and had declined as politely as possible to keep the peace with Sara intact. To her surprise Niles had also declined a minute later.
So after breakfast she had left the Sheffields behind to prepare for their adventure and Niles to deal with his everyday exciting chores and had made her way back over to her own hut. How bad could a heat wave really be? They were in the mountains for God's sake.
C.C. figured that while she had the advantage she would claim Niles' bed near the only functioning socket as her own and finish what she had been working on. Then she'd just have to find a way for Maxwell to visit her so they could discuss her progress and decide what still needed to be done to prepare for their upcoming season. Content with this plan C.C. unlocked the hut, headed straight for her bedroom, retrieved the laptop and then plopped down on Niles' bed with a satisfied sigh. While the computer was powering up C.C. shifted around in the bed, arranging the pillows as well until she was comfortable. His scent was already beginning to cling to them. How C.C. knew this she was eager to avoid addressing. Instead she picked the laptop back up and started working.
Just like the previous day she made good progress until Niles' steps could be heard outside. Trying to come up with a distraction for him she didn't notice at first that he wasn't alone. But finally she spotted the baby in his arms.
"What is that?" she asked testily, arching an eyebrow.
"It's a baby. Miss Grace to be precise." He answered, shifting the baby slightly and giving her a smirk.
Of course she should've known that he wouldn't give her a decent answer.
"I can see that," she growled.
"Then why ask?" he mimicked her by raising an eyebrow as well.
"Because she isn't supposed to be here!" C.C. snarled in return "Don't babies need their mothers?"
"Oh look what insight to maternal things you possess," he chuckled "yes, I'm sure Mrs Sheffield would've loved to have taken Miss Grace along but she's too young for the helicopter flight."
"So you're stuck with baby duty?"
"Technically we're stuck with baby duty," he corrected her, grinning broadly again.
"We?" C.C. exclaimed "I'm not touching her!"
"Did you hear that?" Niles mumbled against Gracie's cheek "You got lucky this time."
C.C. rolled her eyes and then glanced somewhat guiltily at her laptop. "I am trying to work here. Can't you take her somewhere else?"
"No," Niles grinned and crouched down to place the baby onto the floor "we're going to stay right here and play a little, aren't we, Miss Grace?"
Imitating his facial expression the baby let out a loud, delighted squeal and clapped her little hands together. Already knowing the answer C.C. decided to ask in anyway. "Can't you at least take her into my room?"
"Nope," he grinned at her over his shoulder and started producing baby toys from the bag he'd been carrying as well "you sneak into my bed, that's your business. But you can't expect me to move into your room. Besides, here we have much more space."
Taking a deep breath C.C. tried to keep calm and muster all her focus skills. It was only a baby and a butler after all, not like the other two brats were running around as well, how bad could it be? A couple of minutes later she wished she wouldn't have asked herself that question. Grace was banging her toys on the wooden floor, squealing loudly while Niles only seemed to encourage her. She was sure that he was handing her all the toys that would produce the most noise. Nonetheless C.C. pushed on. It felt as if she managed to write five words every ten minutes but at least she was accomplishing something.
In the end it was the weather that stopped her. It was an hour after lunch and the baby was peacefully asleep in her room when the heat wave hit. Their hut seemed to transform into a sauna and C.C. experienced the familiar sensation of sweat trickling down her back. Within minutes the added heat of the laptop became unbearable and so she was forced to shut down the machine and take a break from her work.
"Of course only a heat wave could melt the ice queen enough to abandon her regime." Niles quipped from the other side of the room.
"I am only human," she replied with a shrug and Niles grinned.
"Isn't that sweet? Cruella thinks she's a real girl."
"Niles, I swear to God if you don't shut up right this second I will ram this rattle up your a-"
She broke off and they both tilted their heads in the direction of the bedroom from where soft cries could be heard.
"Oh good job, Babcock," Niles muttered, rising to his feet with a sigh "you woke up the baby."
"Me?" C.C. exclaimed, doing the same and following him halfway to the bedroom "You're the one who started insulting me!"
But Niles hardly acknowledged her. Instead he leaned over the little crib that he had just managed to squeeze into the room next to her bed and smiled at Gracie."Hey little girl, what's wrong? Did we wake you?"
The baby huffed and puffed, her cheeks turning rosier by the second. Niles sighed again and rolled up his sleeves.
"No need to be so angry," he then continued, trying to keep his tone light and happy "just go back to sleep."
"Maybe she's feeling warm as well," C.C. commented nonchalantly, wiping her forehead with the back of her hand.
For a second Niles stopped dead in his tracks and turned to look at her as if she'd grown two heads.
"What?" she frowned, crossing her arms defensively in front of her chest.
"You might actually have a point," he conceded.
"Gee, dustmop," she replied dryly "stranger things have happened."
"Well not really," he tossed out with a grin "you knowing anything about a baby's well-being is shocking."
Ignoring the sting that this comment left, C.C. impatiently drummed her fingers against the frame of the door. "So what do we do to cool her down? Because I don't suppose she'll shut up on her own."
"We could give her a cool bath or we could walk to the lake and go for a swim there? Sara did bring some floaties for her…"
"You really think it's wise to hike to some lake in this heat?" C.C. challenged, arching an eyebrow.
"Did I ever mention the word "hike"?" he asked in return "It's about ten minutes away from here and it's surrounded by trees so I'm sure we could find a nice place in the shadow."
"Alright," C.C. agreed a bit uncertainly "I'll leave you to handle all the baby stuff while I get ready."
And with that she squeezed past him and the fussing baby and made her way to her suitcase that was perched in the corner of the room. From it she extracted her bathing suit and a towel, a pair of shorts and a lighter top. Then she moved past Niles again and into the bathroom to change.
"Strange woman," Niles told Grace with a smile and then picked her up. "Well, shall we get rid of these clothes first?" he then asked her and gently removed the onesie she was wearing until she was left in her diapers. "There, that's much better already, isn't it?" He paused for a moment and sniffed the air and then groaned in annoyance and closed his eyes. "Spoke too soon…"
Using a towel he transformed C.C.'s bed into a changing table and quickly removed the dirty diaper and replaced it with a new one. Finally satisfied with the result, he lifted the baby back up into his arms and walked over to the kitchen to dispose of the diaper. Then he began collecting all the items they'd be needing, a task made awkward by the fact that he only had one hand available. So when C.C. emerged again from the bathroom, her old clothes neatly folded over her elbow he shoved Gracie into her arms with a broad grin. For a moment C.C. struggled to hold the wiggling baby properly and shot him a glare.
"What am I supposed to do with her?" she asked.
"For God's sake, Babcock, just hold her for five minutes so I can finish packing and change as well."
C.C. muttered a curse that made the baby squeal and then moved to one of the chairs and sat down.
"Sit," she instructed as if she was addressing a dog and holding Gracie now only with one hand, she carefully extracted her clothes and hung them up over the edge of another chair.
"Don't drop her," Niles commented in passing and added a blanket and several bottles to the bag he had prepared.
"You just focus on getting ready," C.C. snapped back and used her free hand to shoo him away.
Glancing worriedly into their direction once more, Niles then grabbed a T-shirt and a pair of shorts and disappeared into the bathroom to change as well. When he returned C.C. didn't even bother stifling a laugh.
"You look ridiculous," she stated soberly, eyeing him from head to toe.
Clad in a Hawaiian shirt and a pair of khaki pants whose colours clashed terribly he looked like he was a tourist on the Bahamas rather than a butler accompanying his employers to a rustic vacation in the mountains.
"At least I've got style." He replied confidently and hoisted the bag he had previously packed up and over his shoulder.
C.C. snorted and awkwardly lifted the baby up in her arms as well while rising to her feet.
"The only thing that's missing are some white socks for those sandals." She then grinned and walked outside.
Niles grumbled something and trudged after her. When they had left their hut behind, he briefly touched her elbow and started leading her down the path to the lake. The heat was becoming unbearable although they had only taken a few steps and C.C. was relieved to eventually spot the lake in the distance. She'd been starting to doubt if Niles' promised ten minutes had just been another prank. Although she was glad to find that he had been serious this time the walk was still almost proving to be too much.
Gracie had begun thrashing around in her arms so that C.C. was forced to grasp her quite firmly against her chest so that when they finally settled down in the shade of a tree near the lake the heat of her chubby little body had made C.C.'s own one uncomfortable sticky with sweat. She longed to peel the unnecessary layers of clothes off herself but wasn't prepared to expose herself to Niles in her bathing suit just yet, as she'd make too easy of a target for his insults. But for now he was too busy setting up camp so to speak.
Having laid out the blanket for C.C. and Grace to sit on he produced a little bucket from the bag and their bottles of water, walked down to the edge of the lake and placed the bucket into the water. C.C. would've happily acknowledged this good idea, had it not been Niles who'd come up with it. Instead she produced some hygienic wipes out of her own bag and started cleaning the skin the baby had been pressed against.
"Oh for heaven's sake, Babcock, stop acting so ridiculous." Niles scolded her, when he returned and plopped down on the blanket next to them.
"Ridiculous?" C.C. asked, arching an eyebrow "Do you know how many germs a baby can carry? This vacation is awful enough without a bout of diarrhoea."
"Let's pray you'll never have children." Niles intersected dryly and kicked off his sandals.
"Certainly not if I can help it," she agreed and lay down on the blanket.
Through the prickly branches above her of the pine trees she could make out hints of the sky, clear blue, interspersed with thin swirls of white. She smiled a little to herself and listening to the sounds the baby was making, she slowly began to snooze. That was until something warm and sandy hit her in the face with full force. Spluttering she sat up again, furiously wiping at her face.
"Niles…" she growled, trying to glare at him but in truth she managed nothing more than something that could've been called deranged blinking at best.
Whatever had hit her was also partially stuck in her eyes and rubbing away at it only made the burning sensation stronger. Niles, in the meantime, chuckled and lifted his hands up. "It wasn't me."
She would never have believed him, had she not just in that moment noticed baby Grace scooping up a handful of forest soil. Pulling herself into a crouching position she towered over the baby and snarled in her lowest, most threatening voice "Don't even think about it."
Gracie's bright blue eyes filled with tears and at the same time her lips protruded into a big pout.
"Oh spare me the tears," C.C. muttered and stood up fully now "throwing dirt at people is not ok. Depends who you're talking to of course…" she then added with a dark look at Niles who had lifted the baby into his arms to sooth her.
Ignoring the scolding look she earned in return, she pulled her top over her head and slipped out of her shorts and then made her way down to the lake where she dove into the water.
"There," Niles mumbled softly against Gracie's cheek, while bobbing her up and down on his knee "the mean dragon has disappeared…" he paused momentarily to tilt his head at an angle that allowed him to see C.C.'s butt just before it disappeared beneath the water surface as well "and what a way to go…"
The baby blinked and gave him a hesitant smile, as if unsure of the appropriate reaction. Chuckling to himself, Niles placed her back on the blanket and pulled the bag closer.
"Do you want your toys?" he then asked with a big smile. Gracie clapped her hands excitedly and eagerly embraced all the toys he playfully tossed at her.
C.C. was enjoying the cool water in the meantime. She liked the way it brought her temperature down to a more comfortable level again and that it washed the last remainder of dirt out of her eyes. Moments like this showed her just how little patience she had for children. How could such behaviour be excused? And in what universe could it be deemed "adorable"?
C.C. scoffed and rolled her eyes and continued swimming with long strokes through the lake. The closer she came to the shore and the closer Niles and Gracie shifted into view again, the more difficult it became to avert her eyes. She didn't want either of the two to think that their behaviour was forgiven or forgotten but it was rather tricky not to smile when Niles was looking like such a natural with the baby. When her feet made contact with the sandy edge of the lake she stopped paddling and just continued to watch them. Gracie looked undeniably comfortable and happy and Niles had a twinkle of warmth in his eyes as well that made C.C. feel funny in a way she didn't wish to examine further. Instead she tried to find her footing again and climbed out of the lake. Niles' eyes quickly shifted towards her, gazing at her intensely while she was towelling herself dry.
"Do you mind?" she asked, arching an eyebrow.
"Oh don't flatter yourself," he replied, a slow smirk appearing on his face that indicated he'd been setting her up again "I'm just surprised that you didn't melt."
Doing the only thing that came to mind, C.C. crouched down, scooped up a handful of soil and flung it at his face. The gleeful squeals of baby Grace resounded through the forest.
They returned to their hut later that day when Grace had been fed.
"The Sheffields should be home by now," Niles announced, setting the bag down on the floor "I'll take her back to the cabin, it's past her bedtime already in anyway."
C.C. nodded in acknowledgment and slipped into her bedroom to drop off her things and to retrieve her toiletries.
"Off you go," she then said when she found Niles and Grace still in the main room upon her return.
"Say "goodnight, witch"!" he mumbled against Gracie's temple with a grin and then turned around and left the house, the baby flapping her hands around as if she had actually understood him.
Seeing this C.C. chuckled despite herself but quickly shook her head and picked up a fresh towel. With Niles gone for a while this would be the perfect moment to take a long shower and wash the sweat and the lake water off her body. Humming to herself she peeled the sun-dried bikini off and tossed it into a corner of the room before stepping into the shower. The warm water was surprisingly enjoyable after such a hot day and C.C. revelled in the feeling, taking her time to shampoo her hair and scrub every inch of her body. When she was done she dried her hair a bit and then loosely wrapped a towel around her body, picked up her discarded swimsuit and stepped outside. Just then she heard the front door close and looked up in time to make eye contact with Niles. Once the surprise had worn off she could see his gaze flickering over her body, lingering longer at certain places she was glad to have covered with the towel. Nonetheless she felt herself growing warm under his scrutiny.
"I thought you were taking Gracie back to the Sheffields," she managed lamely and Niles forced his eyes back to her face.
"I did," he nodded "Sara thanked me and took her to bed."
"You should've been more specific then," C.C. criticised with what she was hoping to pass off as a haughty tone "if I'd known you'd be back so soon I would've changed into my pyjamas in the bathroom."
"In that case I am glad my information wasn't specific enough, Miss Babcock." He commented cheekily and allowed his eyes to sweep over her body one last time.
"Pervert," she growled, though it remained unclear if her low tone was due to anger or secret satisfaction.
As it was, Niles saw no reason to contradict and chuckling to himself he toed off his shoes and settled down on his bed. When he heard her bedroom door close softly behind her he released the sigh he had been holding and with a dreamy smile closed his eyes, recalling the images he had just seen. Sharing a hut with her definitely had its advantages.