Nanny for the Army Rangers by Krista Wolf
Nineteen
DELILAH
I was getting to know the ceiling of my new bedroom intimately well. And that’s because I spent a good half-hour or more staring up at it each night, while trying to fall asleep.
Ah, crap.
It irked me because I’d never had this problem before. In fact I’d always slept like a baby, all throughout my life.
Except for now.
I sighed beneath the blankets, spreading my hands over the comforting warmth of my belly. Things had definitely settled down since the move-in. In fact, the children and I were getting into a nice little routine. Things with the guys were picture-perfect. Even my social life was picking up.
Yet it seemed the longer I remained here, the more distractions my night-time mind kept focusing on. It wandered from thoughts of the twins to memories of my niece and nephew. From trying to make future plans for play-dates to recalling and repeating old ones I’d always enjoyed. I thought about Liam, and Duncan, and Julius, and even Stephen, my date from the other night. His message to me had been sweet, telling me what a wonderful time he had and how he’d like to take me out again this coming weekend.
And after the conversation I had with my sister, I’d even said yes.
It still seemed strange though, going on a date with the guys in the house, waiting for me to come home. Leaving them here to go out. Knowing that if my date went well there was a possibility I’d be kissing, making out with, and potentially doing even more with some internet guy I’d only met once, before coming home to them.
In a way it was like having three big brothers, only it wasn’t like that at all. I knew there was nothing brotherly about the way the guys stole glances at me, around the house. And after watching them march around bare-chested while filling out their boxer-briefs?
The feeling was totally mutual.
Still, a girl had needs, and by now my needs were many. Besides, it wasn’t like I could just—
CRRASSSHHH!
I bolted upright, instantly fully awake.
What the—
It wasn’t a noise so much as something falling over, followed by a loud skittering.
The babies!
I flung back the covers and flew through my bedroom door, just as Duncan’s head poked into the hallway. We looked at each other for less than half a second, then the two of us were bolting toward the nursery, full speed.
Oh my God…
We reached the door at the same time, practically elbowing each other out of the way to rush inside. We were greeted by silence and darkness amidst the two opposite cribs. Both Jace and Courtney were dozing soundly in their little sleep-sacks, resting perfectly on their backs. Everything looked exactly as it should be. We double-checked it anyway before tip-toeing out.
“What the hell was that noise then?” I asked, once the nursery door was closed.
“You heard it too, right?” asked Duncan.
“Of course!” I exclaimed. “It was too loud not to hear.”
Almost on cue, a scratching noise reached our ears. It hadn’t come from our wing, or even from the kitchen area. It came from the other end of the house.
The unoccupied end.
“Liam?” I asked, already pretty sure of the answer. “Julius?”
“They both stayed at the Shop tonight,” Duncan reiterated. “It’s not them.”
His expression turned hard, and suddenly there was a restrictive hand on my belly. The big ranger pushed me back, ushering me behind him as he made his way forward and down the hallway.
“Stay here,” he ordered.
“Screw that,” I spat back.
“I’m serious!” Duncan hissed. “Delilah—”
I reached out and grabbed his shoulder. “You want to get into trouble alone, or with someone to watch your back?”
He hesitated, then continued forward with me close behind. Just as he reached the living room, he reached for a nearby shelf and pushed on a piece of wood near the center of it.
CLICK.
The bottom of the shelf dropped out at a 45-degree angle, revealing a hollowed-out secret compartment. Nestled snugly within the egg-crated area, two nickle-plated pistols lay perfectly diagonal to each other.
Duncan took both, hesitated, then offered me one.
“You comfortable with one of these?”
Still in shock, I shook my head. “I’ve never fired one in my life.”
Duncan nodded, then took back the offer. “We can fix that problem another time.”
We crept forward together, moving through a pair of plastic curtains and into the darkened part of the house. Luckily the sky was clear, and the moon was out. It shone down through century-old lead-glass windows, illuminating just enough of each room’s outline to make it navigable.
“Whoever’s stupid enough to break in here—”
Duncan’s whisper was cut off by another noise, this one lower but much closer than before. Something fell over in the chamber next to us. Something heavy and clunky, with a metallic ring to it.
He stopped dead in his tracks. Still moving, I literally bumped into him from behind.
“Oof!” I gasped. “Sorry.”
Next room!he signaled, mouthing the words silently. I nodded to indicate I understood.
Okay!
I saw him crouch down, wait for the next noise, then spring into action. As he flung his half-clothed body through the archway leading into one of the abandoned sitting rooms, I leapt into position behind him.
“FREEZE!”
It was all I could do to stop laughing.
Holy shit!
Duncan had both pistols drawn, his big arms held out perpendicular to his corded body. Both barrels were aimed at a medium-sized furry animal, sitting on its hind legs sniffing the air. It had long whiskers and a ringed, black-and-grey tail.
“Hold up,” I chuckled. “Don’t shoot.”
The animal whirled in our direction, hissed venomously, then bounded off behind a pile of broken plaster. Very slowly, Duncan lowered his weapons.
“Great,” he groaned, as our eyes adjusted to the dust-filled darkness. “Now we’ve got a raccoon problem, too.”