After discussing how the older woman had managed with the baby, Hannah observed, “Whatever is in the oven smells delicious, but I have to ask. Celeste, how many are you planning to feed?”
“I expect we’ll have twenty to twenty-five. Dinner is potluck, with my contribution being corn casserole.
“Twenty to twenty-five?” Hannah repeated, shocked.
“It’s my nanny plan. We’re throwing a baby and babysitters’ shower for Boone. Everyone is bringing one dish for us to share tonight, and a smaller portion to go into Boone’s freezer. I’ve always said the best gift you can give new parents is the gift of sleep and meal prep. Judging by the appearance of the nursery, there’s nothing anyone could give him that he hasn’t already bought himself.”
“That’s true. Remember, the car isn’t unloaded yet.”
“Boone has a lot of friends in town. What he needs from us is day care, and we are ready to help. He said that his permanent nanny would not be available for six more weeks. I have a sign-up sheet, and everyone is going to take a turn or two. It’s tourist season in Eternity Springs, so everyone is up to their feathers in work with little time to spare, but we all want to help him as best we can. Boone has done a lot for our community, and he’s been a good friend to many of us personally. It’s lovely to have an opportunity to repay his kindness.”
“Baby and babysitters,” Hannah mused. “That’s inspired, Celeste.”
“Yes, well, I do tend to be inspirational.”
The women began arriving a few minutes later. Hannah had met many of them at Jackson’s wedding, and other faces she recognized from the businesses in town. To a person, they were friendly and excited for Boone. The bar soon grew crowded with casseroles and Crock-Pots and cookies, of course, as everyone waited for the star of the show and her father to wake up.
Finally, Celeste arched a brow toward Hannah. “Dear, I think I might have heard Brianna beginning to stir. Boone must have fallen asleep. Would you please go wake him up so he can introduce his daughter to his guests, and we can get this party started?”
Me? Hannah glanced around the deck, looking for another volunteer, but everyone simply looked at her expectantly.
“Sure. I’ll be right back.”
On the way to Boone’s bedroom, she peeked in the nursery. Brianna was sleeping soundly. Under other circumstances, she might be tempted to let Boone sleep too—Hannah understood his exhaustion very well. But the man had a deck full of guests, so she made her way to his bedroom and knocked lightly on the door. “Boone?”
Nothing.
She waited a moment, then knocked a little harder, called a little louder. “Boone?”
Nothing.
The third time she banged. “Boone!”
From the nursery came the cry, “Waaaaa!”
“Oh, for heaven’s sake.” The man was going to have to turn on his daddy radar and wake up at the sound of a crying infant. She opened his bedroom door, peeked inside, and froze.
He lay asleep on his bed, a forearm over his eyes, naked, the towel that must have been wrapped around his waist loosened and lying open. Hannah had known he was a beautiful man, but seeing him here, like this, she thought breathtaking the more appropriate adjective. Or maybe delicious. Definitely delicious with a dark, sun-kissed complexion and shoulders as broad as Texas. A light mat of dark hair stretched across his chest and narrowed down a flat torso ripped with cords of muscle to—whoa. Well, they did claim that everything was bigger in Texas.
“Waa … waa … waa.”
He startled awake, jackknifed up, and caught her staring.
“I knocked,” she declared, her tone defensive. “Three times.”
He blinked once. Twice. Then his gray eyes warmed with a wicked glimmer. “I didn’t hear you.”
“I know. That’s why I looked in.” The baby cried again, which poured frigid water over the rising sensual heat of the moment. Hannah kept her gaze focused intently upon Boone’s face as she snapped, “Hurry and get dressed. Your daughter needs you. And you have guests. Lots of them.”
She drew back and pulled the door shut behind her with a bit of a bang, then walked quickly toward the sound of the fussing baby. Thankfully, she hadn’t worked up to wail yet, but if Bree wasn’t tended to soon, that’s what would happen. Better to get a bottle into her mouth before she got to the shrieking stage.
Unless, hmm. Wonder when Celeste had fed her last? Maybe Bree didn’t need to eat. Hannah always kept a list of when her infants nursed and how long the feeding took. Boone needed to keep track of Bree’s feedings and have it available for his babysitters.
She started talking to the infant the moment she entered the nursery. “It’s okay, sweetheart. I’m here. We’ll get you fixed up.” She lifted the infant from the crib, clucking her tongue. “Well, I know part of the problem. You need a new diaper. We have some overflow going on. First let’s see where we are with the bottle situation, and then we’ll get you changed.”
Boone, being Boone, had created a feeding station for the nursery, complete with a mini-fridge stocked with pre-mixed bottles of formula and a bottle warmer. Working from experience and with the baby cradled snugly in one arm, she placed a bottle in the warmer and switched it on. Then she set Brianna down atop the changing table and clicked her tongue. “You need a new outfit also. We’ve had some spillage here.”
Just then Boone strode into the nursery wearing faded jeans, scuffed boots, and a gray T-shirt advertising Enchanted Canyon Wilderness School that complimented his eyes. “Hey. What do—”
“Here,” Hannah interrupted and stepped aside. Because she was embarrassed at being caught gawking at him, her tone was snappish as she continued, “Finish changing her diaper and then offer her the bottle. She needs new clothes too, and you’ll want one of the outfits we bought in Fort Worth. I’ll go get the bag.”
“But—”
Hannah didn’t wait. She sailed out of the nursery and from the house. A woman with thick red hair and big brown eyes whom Hannah didn’t recognize walked up the path carrying a Tupperware dish and a pack of disposable diapers. Hannah pasted on a smile and called, “Everyone is on the deck. You’ll see the steps in front.”
“Great. I’m Hope Romano, by the way. You must be Hannah. Welcome to Eternity Springs.”
“Thank you. Nice to meet you, Hope.”
Boone’s SUV sat where he’d left it upon their arrival. It took her a little time to unearth the particular bags she wanted—a trio packed to overflowing from a boutique on the west side of Fort Worth. She toted them back inside the house to the nursery, where she found Boone seated in the rocker with Bree slurping at a bottle.
“Should she be making this much noise when she eats? She snorts like a piglet at the teat.”
“I wouldn’t know about piglets,” Hannah replied. She let the bags drop to the floor. “Some babies are loud eaters. Boone, I think half of the female half of Eternity Springs is outside waiting to meet Brianna. Which outfit do you want her to wear?”
“Huh?”
“You’re going to want to pick something soft because she’s bound to be passed around a lot. Decide now if you want to go with hair bows. You need to get little girls accustomed to them early. If you present her with a hair bow, your babysitters will know you support the look, and they will too.”