Total pages in book: 105
Estimated words: 97633 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 488(@200wpm)___ 391(@250wpm)___ 325(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 97633 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 488(@200wpm)___ 391(@250wpm)___ 325(@300wpm)
His body was more than up for whatever Brandt wanted when he smiled like that, but he made himself ignore the sudden hot surge that raced through him.
“Yeah. Not having to park again is good.” He placed the now-empty bottle back in the diaper bag as he shifted the drowsy baby in his arms. “We can stick the car seat in the car, and I’ll keep holding her so she stays asleep.”
“Sounds good. And first thing on my list is some sort of harness thing to save our arms. One of those hands-free carrier things.”
“A sling. You want a sling,” the tech offered. “Make sure it’s sized for...tall guys.”
Shane supposed that her appreciative gaze included him too, but he was more uncomfortable than flattered. He’d let Brandt handle the flirting and made his way to the door as Brandt collected a few other tips on their way out. They dropped off the car seat, and Shane used another light blanket to shield Jewel from the sun as they walked. The downtown area of the little town was only a couple of streets, but the brick storefronts coupled with the almost unreal blue tint to the sky made it feel like a 1950s movie set.
The store was a large, open storefront in an older building with racks and racks of clothes organized by kid sizes in the center and toys and baby equipment around the edges of the space. The sole clerk was busy at the front counter with two moms who had several kids of varying small ages with them. Their presence freed him and Brandt to browse unattended.
“She needs more sleepers.” Shane pointed to a rack of small garments as Brandt grabbed a plastic shopping basket. “They’re far easier to get her in and out of than anything else Shelby left with her.”
“Sure. Let’s get her some that are...” Brandt trailed off, mouth pursing.
“Less pink?” Shane raised an eyebrow. Brandt was totally that rough and tumble type guy to be threatened by lace and bows.
“Sturdier. That’s the word I was looking for.” Brandt joined him in riffling through the rack. “I don’t have an issue with pink, but dark colors, denim, thick fabrics, those would handle baby mess better.”
“I’m pretty sure that they don’t make canvas onesies or cargo—”
Brandt cut him off with a happy noise. “See? Overalls!”
“Do babies have a waist measurement or is it by pounds or what?” Shane inspected the tag on the teeny pair of blue denim overalls.
“She’s not a puppy where the chow rations are by weight.” Brandt held the overalls up to the baby in Shane’s arms, shook his head, then grabbed a slightly bigger version. Still teeny though.
“She might not be a puppy, but she could be another animal.” Shane rolled his shoulders as he too tried to find a way to relax. Brandt’s obvious enjoyment was contagious, and Shane wanted some of that fun. He held up a fuzzy brown sleeper. “She could be a little bear or—”
“A dragon.” Brandt added both Shane’s sleeper pick and another one in green with a little hood and tail.
“Maybe we’re enjoying this too much.” Shane tossed in two cheap, plain sleepers for when they ran out of funny ones.
“Probably.” Brandt shrugged. “But why not? I mean I didn’t ask for this, not gonna ever do it again if I can help it, but if I’m here, caught in a tight spot, so why not find a way to have a little fun? Either way, I gotta deal, but my way, at least I’m not miserable.”
“Good point.” Shane wished his own moods could shift so easily, wished that fun and lightness came as naturally to him as Brandt.
“I do.” Brandt bumped Shane’s shoulder, the contact far more electric than he undoubtedly intended. Oblivious, he moved on, tossing a pack of assorted small blankets in the basket. “See? I’m getting more spit-up rags, but now she can be a dragon while she pukes on you and forgets how to sleep at night.”
“True. Look! She can be a puppy, after all.” Shane added one more sleeper to the pile.
“In my house, we welcome all species.” Brandt wandered over toward a display of cribs and various baby-holding devices like swings and high chairs.
“I bet you do.” The remark came out a little flirtier than Shane intended, which might be better than judgmental and grumpy.
Brandt, though, didn’t seem to care about Shane’s tone, if he’d even noticed. In the car, he’d been rather easy about the news that there wouldn’t be a wife in Shane’s future, but that didn’t mean he’d welcome Shane trying it on with him. Not that that was Shane’s intent. He’d only revealed that much to Brandt because he’d asked, and Brandt seemed like the sort of guy to value a straight shooter.
Which Shane was. He might be discreet on tour and with what limited press he encountered, but he was generally honest with the people in his life who mattered. And besides, even if it had been a less than comfortable conversation, Shane had wanted to know now if it was going to be an issue as they worked together for the baby’s best interest.