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Ryan had gotten stuck at work He had texted to let her knoould be a few minutes late She’d reminded him to stop by her apart ho had been delivered to the hotel, she planned to have the little Poht now Fayrene could use a friendly face

Twelve children of varying ages all stared at her They didn’t know one another and they didn’t know her The extra babysitters, the ones who did this sort of thing on a regular basis, were checking on dinner, which meant Fayrene was alone in a rooirl of o to a nice dinner while I have to stay here? It’s not fair"

"This is stupid," one of the boys said "We’re supposed to be having fun and we’re not"

Fayrene sed against rising panic She’d taken the job with the kids for a number of reasons For one, she wanted to help her sister For another, the reference and experience would be good for business Butout with a bunch of kids would allow her and Ryan to talk about what it would be like when they had their own children Which would lead to a conversation about getting married Which wouldto happen if she had a ht Dellina would not be happy if the kids broke ranks and sought out their parents

Fayrene looked around the large roo for their first event There were balloons and a working jukebox and tables with ingredients But no activity and no conversation She didn’t knohat to do or how tofast

Ana Raquel strolled in Fayrene rushed to her

"Help They’re not having fun Do so"

Her twin raised her eyebrows "I’m a chef, not an entertainer"

"Give them food, then That will distract they class in a fewthe rest of the ingredients before he heads off for the wine tasting We can’t start until he brings the rest of the food"

"We have to do soht? There’s technically no ‘we’"

Fayrene was about to beg when Ryan walked in He held Caraet free and rushed over to greet her

Fayrene picked up the happy dog and held her close Protection at last Ryan gave her a brief hug and kissed her cheek

"It’s quiet in here," he said "Too quiet"

"I know I thought they’d be ured they would supervise, not be in charge of helping the? She re, and talking to virtually anyone ould listen

Ryan picked up a pen and wrote his na, then put it on his shirt "No worries Watch the master at work"

He took Cara children

"Who here likes dogs?" he asked

A few hands went up

"Who’s afraid of dogs?"

Fayrene saw one of the littler girls stare at the ground, but no one said anything

"Can you tellthis one is?" Ryan asked

There were blank stares

"A Poot a lot of fur, but underneath, she’s tiny"

"She has really little feet," a young girl said "But she’s pretty"

"She is She’s also friendly and loves people" He winked at a blonde girl in sandals "She likes to lick toes"

The girl giggled

"I’et to know all of you While we’re doing that, let’s get on our nas We don’t have much time before the activities start"

"What activities?" one of the older boys asked "Because it’s not fun yet"

Ryan patted him on the shoulder "Patience, et to have the mocktails--cocktails without the alcohol And appetizers Oh, and there’s going to be a band later"

"A live band?" one of the girls asked

"Yup" He put down Caraure out e are and then we’ll get going on the fun"

Fayrene breathed in deeply, then exhaled with relief This was going to be okay Ryan was here and, as far as she was concerned, he was her hero She would reward hiirl to help out

She crossed to the petite brunette and smiled at her "What’s your nairl "Do you have dogs at hoic I’ve never been around dogs before" Sally watched Caramel move around the room "Does she bite?"

"Not at all Why don’t you have a seat and I’ll introduce you It’s easier to make friends after you’ve had an introduction"