Page 24 of Bad Wolf's Nanny
And yet, here they were.
Lola inhaled deeply, then squared her shoulders again like she was about to give a keynote lecture.
“Alright,” she said, “I’ll stay here. With him. You go get what he needs. I’ll…make sure he doesn’t explode.”
Dane hesitated.
Not because he didn’t trust her. But because something tight and strange had curled around his chest at the sight of her standing in his kitchen, barefoot and flushed and completely out of her depth, but still not backing down.
“You sure?”
Lola rolled her eyes, “No. But go before I change my mind and escape to the library.”
He gave her a nod, grabbed his keys, and backed toward the door.
The last thing he saw before it closed was her awkwardly adjusting the baby in her arms, murmuring something soft to him.
She looked terrified.
She also looked like she might already be falling in love.
And honestly?
That scared the hell out of Dane more than anything else.
***
Dane sat in his truck outside the pharmacy, engine idling, forehead resting against the steering wheel. He’d filled the basket with every baby product he could grab in a blind panic, two different types of formula, three brands of diapers, a sterilizer he wasn’t entirely sure how to use, and now he was staring at his phone like it was a live grenade.
He muttered a curse under his breath, then hit call.
Felix answered on the third ring. “Hey, Dane, what’s up?”
Dane didn’t even blink. “I need help.”
There was a pause. “You sound weird. What happened?”
“There’s a baby in my flat.”
A longer pause. “You mean metaphorically, or—”
“A literal baby, Felix. Two days old. Human. Male. Possibly mine.”
“What the fu—” Felix stopped himself. “Where did it come from?”
“Woman from last year. Sasha. She just showed up, dumped him in my arms, and drove off.”
“...Holy shit.”
“I know.”
Another beat, then, “Do you have formula?”
“Now I do. And diapers. I think. Maybe six months’ worth.”
“Right. I’m coming to you. I’ll bring the others. We’ll get this sorted, Dane, don’t panic.”
Dane let out a slow breath, “Thanks.”
