Adventures In Babysitting

  Adventures In Babysitting

  Miss Fortune World: SS Beauty, Volume 5

  Kamaryn Kelsey

  Published by J&R Fan Fiction, 2018.

  Copyright © 2018 by Kamaryn Kelsey

  All rights reserved.

  This story is based on a series created by Jana DeLeon. The author of this story has the contractual rights to create stories using the Miss Fortune world. Any unauthorized use of the Miss Fortune world for story creation is a violation of copyright law.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author and the publisher, J&R Fan Fiction, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Also by Kamaryn Kelsey

  Mercy on the Bayou

  Sour Honey

  Miss Fortune World

  The Identity Inquiry

  Catch a Falling Spy

  The Treasured Letter

  Miss Fortune World: Mercy on the Bayou

  Wrong Turn

  Shot in the Park

  Spare Ribs and Cold Cuts

  Miss Fortune World: SS Beauty

  On The Bayou

  Bound For Hell

  In The Shadow

  Fast and Blue

  Adventures In Babysitting

  Down On The Vegas Strip

  On The Mountain Of Hope

  In-Laws, Outlaws, and Uninvited Guests

  When Worlds Collide

  On The Wagon

  Snapped, Cracked, and Popped

  City Girls Don't Camp

  It's All Relative

  The Missing Morrow

  Boot Camp Beauty

  Miss Fortune World: Wholly Moses!

  Murphy's Flaws

  Up In Smoke

  Filthy Stinking Rich

  Mo's Motel

  Cast and Catch a Fortune

  Dubious Deliveries

  Dirty Deeds

  Triple Threat

  Pandora's Shoebox

  Oh, Shoot!

  The Murphy Girls

  Tricks and Trouble

  Hit the Road, Jo!

  Out of the Storm

  PB & J

  Pary Barry & John- The New Neighbor

  Pary Barry & John- Who Can You Trust?

  Pary Barry & John- The New Job

  Pary Barry & John- Partners

  Pary Barry & John- The Team

  Pary Barry & John- The Body Drop

  Pary Barry & John- Now We're Cooking

  Pary Barry & John- Running Away

  Pary Barry & John- Life's Lessons

  Pary Barry & John- Pigmalion

  Pary Barry & John- He Says, She Says

  Pary Barry & John- Who's That Girl?

  Pary Barry & John- The Ex Games

  Pary Barry & John- The PJ's/ Mr. & Mrs. Smith

  Cookbooks and Crooks

  Pary Barry & John- Targeted (#6) & BLT (#7)

  Pary Barry & John- The Honeymoon (#17) & Designer Family (#18)

  Standalone

  Introduced by Karma

  Crazy Like Me

  I Love You- What's Your Name?

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  Copyright Page

  Also By Kamaryn Kelsey

  Adventures In Babysitting (Miss Fortune World: SS Beauty, #5)

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

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  Author's note:

  This is Book 5 in the SS Beauty series and is not intended to standalone.

  The series is not about Fortune Redding, Sinful, and the Swamp Team. SS Beauty is Sandy-Sue Morrow and the series is about her and the life she makes for herself.

  This is a work of fiction. Other than Jana DeLeon's original story elements, the characters and names are creations of the author's imagination.

  The S.S. Books revolve around Morrow's niece, Sandy-Sue. She tires of her European vacation and comes home early, to Morrow's dismay. Wondering about her inheritance in Sinful, she takes a bus trip to check it out.

  Morrow sends Matt Meadows, who has done security work for him in the past, to keep an eye on her and to keep her from crossing paths with Fortune, and blowing Fortune's cover.

  At this point in her life, Sandy-Sue decides she's leaving the past behind, along with her name. She shortens it to Sady (sometimes she uses Sassafras or Sassy, the name she first gave Matt in book one of the series.) I took the liberty of giving Morrow a first name, John, since he makes appearances throughout the series and it didn't make sense for Sady to refer to him as Uncle Morrow.

  After the adventure in Louisiana, Morrow sends Sady to work for two former operatives, now retired and operating their own business, Knight Investigations in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Harry and CJ Knight are a husband and wife team.

  Character descriptions:

  Sady Morrow- Tall, slender, with long brown hair and big brown eyes. She often uses beauty pageant skills on the job. She is sweet, and sometimes goofy. However, she's intelligent and can been tough, when necessary.

  Matt Meadows- Tall, dark, and handsome. Matt sometimes uses Sady's pet name, Sassafras.

  Amanda Keller- Sady's best friend. Short, full-figured, and mouthy. Amanda has an eye for men. She loves to rile Matt and uses the nicknames Stubbles and Blue Eyes.

  CJ Knight- Short in stature, with clipped gray hair, green eyes, and an even shorter fuse. CJ is impatient and lethal with her hands. Even though she's small, she keeps them all in line.

  Harry Knight- Hot dang handsome with Siberian Husky light blue eyes, a stunning white smile, and good build. Amanda calls him Handsome, and he is- even though he is bald. Harry looks out for his team and plays the big brother/ father to Sady.

  The stories behind the supporting characters are developed throughout the series.

  Chapter 1

  "Hurry up or I'm pushing the CLOSE button," Sady threatened Matt as he dawdled in the hall of their apartment building.

  "Go ahead. I'm not in any hurry to work this Saturday afternoon," he said sourly. Sady pushed the button when he was a few feet away from the elevator.

  "I hope you get stuck," he yelled through the crack just before the doors closed in his face. Twenty minutes later he was still fuming when he pushed through the back door of Knight Investigations where he and Sady worked.

  "I told you," Sady said to CJ and Harry, owners of Knight Investigations.

  "Who ground your gears?" CJ asked Matt as he flopped down in the conference room.

  "I had plans for the afternoon."

  "Really? They must have been pretty important. I've never seen you show up to work so grumpy. Well, not an emergency work call anyway," CJ continued.

  "Well, now you have," Matt said, not giving any details.

  "Hot date?" Sady teased. He glared at her. "Hmm... let's see. What would have you so bent on a Saturday afternoon? You did have a date, didn't you? One you don't want to admit?"

  "Why don't you mind your own business?" he asked.

  "Take my word for it. You're not missing anything special," she said with a consoling pat on his hand.

  Matt's head looked like it would blow off his shoulders.

  "Someone want to fill us in?" Harry asked.

  "He's just steamed because Amanda was taking him to the football game," Sady told them. "He doesn't
want to admit he had a date with her."

  "Can you blame me? A thing like that could ruin my reputation," he protested.

  "What reputation? You don't have one," Sady snickered.

  "I at least wanted to see the game. It would have been worth putting up with Amanda for the afternoon so I could watch a U of M game from the fifty yard line," he explained.

  "I already told you, you're not missing anything. Not unless you want to dodge beer baths from the drunks behind you. Watch the news tonight," she suggested. "You can save yourself a couple hours and the drunks will make the news so you can see what they are spelling this week. By the end of the game it's never GO BLUE."

  "This from a woman who decides what team she likes by its mascot?" he asked incredulously.

  "I have standards," Sady insisted. "I don't root for Trojans or Spartans. They're not cute. Now the Ducks have a cute mascot."

  Matt looked ready to launch over the table and even Harry looked sympathetic. CJ cleared her throat while trying not to smile. "We wouldn't have interrupted your afternoon if it wasn't an emergency," she told Matt.

  "Yeah, right," he said with a sigh. "So let's get to it already."

  CJ sent a look at Harry. "Why don't you see if there's a beer in the fridge," she suggested. "We might even be able to catch some of the game." She looked for the TV remote.

  Matt’s palm hit the table. "Cut the crap. If you're offering beer and a football game, this isn't an emergency."

  "Well, our client has had an unexpected delay. But the emergency is real. We'll have to wait until he arrives," Harry said.

  Matt snorted. "There’s only one client you would meet at the last minute on the weekend. Morrow’s sorry tail is late. When is it arriving?"

  "It just did." The voice at the door made them all jump. Sady's uncle stood in the opening and poked his head around the corner. "Your friend isn't here, is she?" he asked Sady.

  "No, but if you hang on, I can give Amanda a call," she teased.

  Morrow's eyes got big, and he quickly said, "Oh, no. This job doesn't involve her. If she were here, I'd have to insist she leave."

  "She wouldn't come if you called and begged," Matt taunted Sady. She pulled out her phone.

  "I bet she'd come if she knew Uncle John was in town."

  Morrow grabbed her phone. "No need for that. I'm sure we can... er... catch up some other time."

  Matt turned to Morrow. "Stop sweating. She's going to the U of M game with someone who isn't me." Morrow lifted a brow and Matt defended himself, "It's the University of Michigan! Fifty yard line seats," he moaned.

  "We know, we know," Sady interrupted. "Quit whining. He'll get over it, Uncle John." She gave Morrow a smile of encouragement.

  He cleared his throat and said, "Normally this isn't something I would have you do, but I don't see any way to keep you out of it." He nodded at Sady. She waved her hand in a manner that suggested he get to the point.

  "I need the company to keep an eye on a family for a couple days."

  "As in a bodyguard," Matt told Sady. Then turning to Morrow he asked, "Why can't you keep her out of it?"

  Sady gave Matt a dirty look as Morrow explained, "They live in your building and she's bound to see you at some point. Besides, you two will have a large part in this. You’re protecting a neighbor."

  "Please, tell me it's Amanda," Sady begged as a look of horror passed over the faces of Matt and Harry. Morrow's face grew pale, and he shook his head rapidly while the men sighed in relief.

  "No. I need you to take care of a young married woman and her..." he stopped to look at a paper, "two children. Kristen Davis is the mother. Her children are Argus and Beatrice." He looked closer and shook his head. "That must be a mistake," he frowned.

  "No mistake," Sady told him. "At least about Argus. We didn't know she had any other children, but Beatrice wouldn't be surprising."

  "You've met them?" Morrow asked in delight. "Wonderful. That should make things easier."

  "Obviously, you've never met them," Matt mumbled under his breath with a grimace. He remembered the booger smeared hand five-year-old Argus offered in greeting the first time they met. "There's two of them?"

  Morrow nodded. "One's five, and the other is three."

  "Good thing the second child is a girl," Matt said.

  "Why?"

  "If it was a boy, they probably would have named him Boris or Beavis," Matt said sarcastically. "Are you issuing PPE?"

  "Personal protective equipment," Harry explained to Sady with a smile.

  "You wouldn't need it if you were nice," Sady told Matt. "Kids don't like it when you make fun of their names."

  "Neither do adults," CJ warned before Matt could say anything. He bit back a retort and turned to Morrow.

  "How long is this torture gig?"

  "Just until Monday evening." He turned to CJ and Harry. "Any questions?"

  Sady raised her hand and Matt pulled it down. "He didn't mean you. You aren't allowed to ask questions."

  She yanked it away and raised it again, wrinkling her nose at Matt. Morrow smiled. His niece was settling into her new life. Morrow lifted a brow, and she stuck out her tongue at Matt. "Uncle John, how would you like to go to the game today? Amanda's date stood her up."

  Morrow scratched his head. "You said fifty yard line seats?" Sady nodded while Matt yelled in protest. Morrow looked at Matt and said, "You're right. It's worth putting up with Amanda for the afternoon. Besides, you have to work. Tell Amanda not to leave without me," he told Sady as he headed for the door.

  "I can't believe that just happened," Matt said. "Can someone explain how my chance to see a home game turned into a two-day baby-sitting nightmare, and Morrow now has my seat?"

  "It's because you're a poor working slob," CJ said unsympathetically. "Suck it up, fella. Morrow made a special appearance just for you and Sady."

  Matt snorted and muttered under his breath about Morrow, thieves, fifty yard line seats, children, and work in general. A minute later he flushed when he saw the others watching him. He grinned sheepishly and said, "Okay, I promise it's out of my system. Besides, I'm going to text Amanda. Morrow will think twice about swiping my seat again." They all had a good laugh over that. Amanda was one of the few people ever known to make Morrow edgy.

  "Now that we've gotten over the game let's discuss the case," Harry suggested.

  CJ nodded. "You know anytime we work for Morrow there's not much information. He can't tell us why they need protection, but assume the worst. All he could officially give us is the family schedule for the next couple of days. Looks like our duty ends at about nine PM Monday." She passed out papers. Matt and Sady looked at their papers, then each other's.

  Matt reached over and snatched Harry's. "Why is his different from ours?" he asked CJ in a suspicious voice. He showed Sady Harry's paper, which had Mrs. Davis' schedule outlined. Matt and Sady had schedules for the two children.

  "Well, Mrs. Davis agreed for the safety of her children to stay at a hotel until Monday night. Splitting them up is a precaution. We'll be covering her security since it will be more complicated with her going to work. And she will probably be at greater risk," CJ explained.

  "Have you ever baby-sat?" Sady hissed to Matt with a worried look.

  "Me? He... heck no! Guys don't babysit. What about you? You must have watched some kids. Don't all teenage girls babysit?"

  "My only experience was when I was seventeen and I watched a neighbor's eleven-year-old son. He wanted to know if my swimsuit top was padded, did I use glue to keep the bottoms from riding up, and would I model?" She scowled. "I'd rather work the fryer at Burger Bucket than do that again."

  "Well?" Matt asked.

  "Well, what?" Sady asked while Harry shook his head in warning.

  "Come on, Sady. The kid was just asking the questions every guy wants to know about beauty contests," Matt said with a grin. A smack to the back of the head was the only answer he received. He rubbed his head and said, "Ouch." But he d
idn't lose the smile... until later.

  Chapter 2

  In the Davis' apartment on the seventh floor, CJ and Harry prepared to escort Mrs. Davis to the hotel, while Matt and Sady would stay with the children at the apartment.

  Kristen Davis talked faster than Matt and Sady together could comprehend. She gave them each a package with a detailed routine outlined, down to fifteen-minute intervals. The information covered food, entertainment, sleeping, education, exercise, and everything else an OCD mother could imagine.

  Matt nudged Sady, "I don't see bathroom time," he whispered with a grin. He turned to see five-year-old Argus glaring at him. Argus had red hair and freckles. His sister looked just like him.

  "Uh, oh. Someone didn't make a friend," Sady whispered back just before she had a screaming three-year-old girl thrust into her arms. Sady looked helplessly at Kristen Davis.

  "Don't worry. She quits after a half hour," Kristen assure Sady.

  "Is she on a timer?" Matt asked and CJ gave him a dirty look.

  Mrs. Davis didn't seem upset at leaving her darling children. In fact, she looked happy as she pushed CJ and Harry out the door with a wave. "I've written down everything so you don’t need to call me." The door slammed as Matt and Sady gaped at each other in shock.

  "Uhm, Argus. Do you know how to make your sister stop crying?" Sady asked desperately.

  "Sure," he said confidently. He turned to his sister and said, "Hey, BB, you're such a baby. Wahhhh! Cry like a baby." Beatrice screamed louder and almost pulled out Sady's hair.

  "Check the list," Sady told Matt desperately. "Isn't there something I can give her?"

  Matt scanned the list, a look of awe on his face. He shook his head. "There's nothing on here a kid would like."

  "Well, do something," Sady begged. "Do you have any ice cream?" He nodded, and she told him to go get it.

  "We're not allowed to have ice cream," Argus told them. "It's bad for our teeth and most brands aren't all natural. We only get organic frozen yogurt for a special treat."

  Sady gave Argus an exasperated look and demanded Matt get the ice cream. Ten minutes later Bea sat in her booster chair shoveling the artificially colored and flavored frozen treat into her mouth.