Two

Calux

I glanced at myself in the mirror, smoothing down my t-shirt. I wondered if maybe I should've dressed-up a little, but then shook off the thought. It wasn't like I was interviewing for a desk job. This shirt was perfectly suited for a day of baby caretaking.

I ran a brush through my blond hair, giving myself a once-over. I'd given myself a human form that was as non-threatening as possible so parents would feel comfortable leaving their kids in my care—I really wasn't a creep, I promised—which meant that I was barely 5'5", had soft blond hair and what my neighbor called 'baby blue' eyes, and I looked like I was eighteen even though my driver's license said I was twenty-five, and I was actually quite a few centuries old.

My phone pinged, reminding me my interview was soon, and I nodded at my reflection before grabbing the phone from the dresser and sliding it into my pocket.

Throwing on a jacket, I grabbed my wallet and keys before leaving my apartment.

"Off to your interview?" Matilda, my neighbor and the woman who'd first told me I should try being a nanny, asked, peeking out of her apartment, and I gave her a cheery nod.

She was a single woman in her fifties, and the nicest human I'd ever met. She baked me cookies and sweet things on the weekends and was always willing to tell me about human things I found confusing. She thought I was a 'quirky little fellow,' but she said the words with fondness. Her brown eyes looked me up and down, and she gave me a thumbs up.

"I just know you'll get it, kiddo. Go wow them."

Grinning, I leaned forward and kissed her cheek before taking off down the stairs.

"Don't run—you'll break something!" she called, making me laugh. If I fell, I'd be more likely to break the stairs than any part of myself, but I refrained from telling her that.

In my car, I plugged the address into the GPS and started driving. I lived in a big-ish city, which meant traveling via magic wasn't always safe, so I'd gotten myself a car. I'd realized driving could be quite fun, as long as you weren't driving during the rush hours.

Archer Shaw's house was a thirty-minute drive from my place, in the rich part of town, according to Matilda. Which made sense, since live-in nannies weren't cheap to hire.

Not that I cared about the money, but if I tried to do this job without asking for compensation, I was sure I'd be arrested without a single question. Knowing the kind of humans that existed, the kind of humans I used to torture back when Underworld existed, I didn't blame them either.

When I arrived at the house—I had to enter a code to be allowed in a gated enclosure where a bunch of houses sat on their own divided part of the land—I realized I'd spent the whole drive lost in thought without preparing what I was going to say.

Cursing myself under my breath, I slid out of my car, grabbing the folder of my certificates (some fake, some real) and resumé before making my way up the stairs. I took a deep breath and rang the bell, determined to do my best.

The door was opened by a handsome man in his late twenties or early thirties, with pitch-black hair, brown eyes that took me in without revealing what he thought of me, and a thick but trimmed beard that covered his cheeks and jaw. A tiny hand was petting the beard, and I followed it to the little bundle in his arms, unable to hold back my smile. The baby was all chubby cheeks and roundness, with curly black hair falling over their forehead and big blue eyes that peered around curiously.

I remembered I was here as a professional, and cleared my throat, meeting the father's eyes. Wow, he was tall too. He had at least half a foot on me in my human form, maybe more.

"Hello. I'm Calux. It's nice to meet you," I said, holding my hand out. Then I blinked, realized he couldn't shake it while he was holding the baby, and quickly retracted it with a sheepish smile.

"Hello, Calux. I'm Archer, and this is Gunner. Please come in."

"An archer and a warrior, hmm? Are you building your own army, perhaps?" I asked as I followed him into the house, the words spilling out without a thought. Fudge, I needed to get a grip on myself before I bungled this all up. (I'd learned it wasn't good to swear in front of babies, so I was trying to use different words.)

"More like a D&D campaign, but yeah," Archer said with a laugh, and I sighed, glad I hadn't offended him, though I wasn't quite sure what a D&D campaign was.

He waved toward an armchair and I sat down as he took a seat on the couch across from me.

As Archer fussed with the baby, I glanced around the room, taking in the high walls, the large TV, the comfy sitting areas that were signatures of a well-designed upper-class house, according to the TV shows.

Interspersed with all the fancy stuff, though, was the warm wooden crib, the myriad of toys spread around the room, the empty milk bottles on the coffee table, and all the little things that said Archer was too busy taking care of Gunner to take care of the house.

Or himself, I thought as I eyed the stain on his shirt and his short black hair that stood on end like he'd been running his fingers through them.

"So, Calux," he said, straightening up as Gunner grabbed onto a button on his shirt and started tugging. "You haven't done this before, have you? This would be your first job?"

I nodded, folding my hands in my lap. "I can imagine that you'll find it hard to hire me with my lack of experience, but I promise that if you do, I'll make sure I take the best care of Gunner."

Archer nodded, then quizzed me on a few baby things. How often would I feed Gunner? (Semi-solid food once a day to start with, and milk every 3-4 hours.) How often would I change his diaper? (Also 3-4 hours.) What would I do if he got sick? (Call Archer, and take the best care of Gunner in the meantime.)

By the time the interview ended, I was fairly confident I aced it, though I was sure Archer had other candidates he wanted to meet before making a decision.

"Thank you for coming. I'll contact the agency once I've made a decision," Archer said as he got to his feet, Gunner's hand still clamped around his shirt button.

I nodded as I followed suit, grinning when Gunner looked at me and cheered, moving his fist toward me...and popping the button on his dad's shirt.

The button went clattering on the coffee table, and I got a nice little peek of Archer's chest before I turned my gaze away, forcing my cheeks to not give me away. I was a professional, dammit.

"Gunner!" Archer groaned in a voice that implied this wasn't the first time it'd happened, and I held back a smile as he led me to the door.

"Bye, little one. I hope I see you again," I told Gunner before I walked down the stairs and got into my car, giving Archer and Gunner one last wave before driving off.

Archer

Once Calux had driven away, I closed the door just as Gunner started crying. I wondered if this was another sign. Did Gunner like Calux? Because if he did, that would make my decision so much easier.

Shaking my head at myself, I placed Gunner in his crib, then pressed a kiss on his forehead.

"I'll be right back with your milk, good sir." I tapped his nose before going to the kitchen.

Grabbing a clean bottle, I heated up some of the formula milk, then filled the bottle. After six months of doing this, I was an expert at just how long to heat it to get the perfect temperature.

Gunner was still crying when I came back into the living room, and he seemed cranky enough that he wasn't even trying to sit up, so I quickly picked him up, settling on the armchair and adjusting him so his head leaned against the crook of my elbow.

Placing the bottle's nipple between his lips, I smiled when he started chugging down the milk, his little hands clamping onto the bottle. He liked holding his own bottle, but I kept a hand on it since his grip wasn't quite steady just yet.

"What do you think, Gunner? Is Calux gonna be your new nanny?" I asked, and he met my eyes, mouth still working on the bottle.

"Yeah? I thought he seemed like a nice person. His papers looked good too, and he answered all the questions exactly as I'd hoped. So what if this would be his first job? Everyone starts somewhere, right?"

I'd be here to supervise for the first couple of weeks, and so we could set up a proper goodbye routine so Gunner wouldn't get anxious once I had to go back to work. If he messed up, he'd be out. If worse came to worst, I'd take some more days off until I could find the right fit for my baby. Being the head of digital marketing of the company you started with your best friends had its perks, after all.

As soon as Gunner was full, he pushed the bottle aside, and I chuckled at his antics as I placed the almost empty bottle on the table. I needed to wash these bottles before I ran out of them, but for that to happen I needed this little guy to take a nap, which didn't look possible at the moment.

"You're all bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, aren't you?"

He giggled softly, reaching up and then making a face when he couldn't quite tangle his fingers into my beard like before.

Gunner might be the only reason I hadn't shaved all of it off yet. I'd ended up letting it grow in the first few months after he came into the world, and then I'd discovered his fascination with it. How could I shave it off when he had so much fun petting it? To save myself from some brutal pain, I'd trimmed it enough that he couldn't bury his fingers in the strands, but left enough of it for him to pet and scratch.

"Do you wanna play on the floor with your toys for a bit?" I asked, standing up and walking to the area of the room I'd turned into a makeshift play area for Gunner. He had his own nursery with more toys than he'd probably ever play with, but I preferred having him close when I worked. I'd surrounded the large playmat with a foam pillow fence so he wouldn't get into trouble, and it seemed to be enough to keep him on the playmat. For now.

Placing him on the floor, I handed him one of his favorite color toys, a brightly colored starfish with bells that jingled when he shook it. I'd trained myself to let that sound fly over my head, because otherwise it would drive me crazy.

Once Gunner was all settled, I took all the bottles and my own dishes—along with the baby monitor—to the kitchen and started washing up. My thoughts strayed to Calux, and what it would be like to have his help around the place.

If he was here, he'd be doing this while I played with Gunner, or vice versa.

I'd been doing it alone for the past six months, though my friends had dropped in around the weekends to lend a hand, and I didn't know how exactly I'd feel sharing the responsibilities with someone, even if the other person was someone I'd hired and not a partner.

Calux seemed like a good choice, all things considered. He looked gentle, with his small stature and unruly blond hair. His blue eyes had brightened when they fell on Gunner, and Gunner had seemed utterly fascinated by the kid's—though his papers said he was twenty-five, he barely looked eighteen—t- shirt, which had a brightly colored cartoon unicorn on it. I was sure he'd worn it especially for Gunner.

Once I was done cleaning, I returned to Gunner, who was staring up at the ceiling, lost in his own little world as he shook around a different—yet just as noisy—toy. He was also just a bit stinky.

"Hmmm, looks like it's time for a diaper change, huh, little one?"

Picking Gunner up, I carried him to his nursery and placed him on the changing table, tapping his nose as I walked around it to get the powder and wet wipes.

As I changed his diaper, I made a mental note to reply to the agency and tell them I wanted to hire Calux. This was one task I wouldn't mind passing off to him in the least.

"You, my little baby, are a stink monster," I told Gunner, which just made him break into giggles.

Smiling at his happy face, I decided I didn't mind it too much.