Babysitting

by Purple Lacey

Sixth story in the Angel Girl series.

Okay, this one I couldn´t resist. Doesn´t really have a plot. I just got this picture in my head and it wouldn´t go away until I wrote it down. I skip a couple of years ahead in time for this one.

Thanks to MOG, creator of the ATF universe, for allowing us to play with her toys. Big thanks to Nancy for all her hard work in getting these stories posted.


"Are you certain you don't want me to stay, Señor Chris?" Rita Aragon, Buck´s live-in housekeeper and babysitter, asked. "I can cancel this trip if you need to me too. It's my job to take care of Angela when Señor Buck and Señor JD are not here," continued the housekeeper.

"No, Rita. Buck told you two months ago you could have this time off to visit your family. It's not your fault that both he and JD had to be sent out of town on a case right now. Besides, you already told me you have your tickets and they're non- refundable. There is no reason why you shouldn't go. I can take care of Angela. You just go and have a good time, and don't worry about us. We'll be fine," ATF supervising agent Chris Larabee assured the woman.

"If you're sure, Señor Chris?” Rita hesitated again.

"I'm sure, Rita. Go on, your shuttle to the airport is waiting. You take care and stop worrying. Buck and JD should be back home by tomorrow. I'm sure I can handle things until then. Now go," Chris smiled at the woman as he gently guided her out the front door.

Rita gave him one last look before nodding her head. She leaned over and placed a kiss on the check of the toddler he had straddling his hip. "You be good for Señor Chris, Angela. I will see you next week. Adios, niña," then she turned and walked down to the waiting shuttle van.

Chris remained standing at the door while Angela waved to the departing van until it turned the corner then returned to the living room in the home of his two teammates.

"Okay, it's just the two of us now, Angel. What should we do, hmm?" asked Chris. He lifted the little girl over his head and watched her grin down at him and giggle.

"Fye, Unca C'is. Angel fye!" pleaded the toddler.

"Flying, huh? Okay, get your wings out, here we go," laughed Chris.

Angela quickly stuck her arms straight out from her sides and yelled "Zoom, zoom," as Chris held her by her tiny waste and spun her in large circles. It was debatable who had the biggest smile on their face when Chris finally set the small feet back on the floor. The toddler stumbled around for a few steps before falling to the floor where she lay giggling until the room stopped spinning. Chris sat down on the sofa. Angela got to her feet, walked to the sofa ,and then crawled up to sit in his lap.

"You know, Angel, sometimes it's really good to be the boss," said as he rubbed his nose on Angela's neck to make her giggle. "When we found out your daddy and Uncle JD were not going to be able to make it back this evening like we originally planned, everybody in the office volunteered to come stay with you. I got some pretty creative reasons from the boys why they should be the one to come over, but I since I'm the boss, I got to say who had to stay at the office and who got to go. So I picked me. Smart, huh?" Chris grinned as Angela bobbed her head up and down. "Yeah those poor boys are back at the office filling out paperwork, and I get to be here playing with you. At least they better be doing their paperwork, or the fur's gonna fly tomorrow."

Angel tilted her head in confusion and said, "Fur fye? Like Angel fye?"

Chris threw his head back and laughed. "Never mind. How about I read you a book? Does that sound like fun?"

Angel flew off the couch and headed over to the bookcase where her father kept a supply of her favorite picture books. "Yea, book, book,." She returned with half a dozen in her little arms. Chris took the books from her and lifted her back into his lap.

"So, what do we have here."

"Sweepy widdle puppy, Unca C'is. Wead it fuwst, 'kay?"

" Okay, the sleepy little puppy it is."

Angela wiggled her little bottom and got more comfortable before opening the book to the first page and holding it out so Chris could see the words. Chris starting reading, with Angela stopping him every few minutes to explain the pictures.

"See, Unca C'is, da widdle puppy waid down wight in fwont of the doowah. Dat was weal inconsidwate of him." Angel remarked. Chris was having a difficult time keeping himself from laughing as he recognized Ezra's influence in the descriptions.

Chris was in the middle of reading the third book when he realized Angela had fallen asleep. He set the books aside and carefully put his feet on the coffee table that sat in front of the couch. He wrapped both arms around the toddler and settled himself deeper into the sofa, enjoying the peace and comfort he felt by holding the little girl while she napped. He knew the child was too active to sleep long, so he planned to enjoy this while it lasted. This was infinitely better than paperwork, he thought before his own eyes closed and he joined the child in sleep.

Chris was unaware of how long he had been sleeping when he felt tiny fingers lift the lid of his left eye. He found himself being studied seriously by the toddler.

"'Uo sweepin', Unca C'is?" Angela asked,

"I'm not now," he chuckled.

"I's hungee, Unca C'is," Angela informed him cheerfully, as she started bouncing on his chest.

Chris grunted as she ground her little knee into his diaphragm. He quickly grabbed her around her waist and moved her to stand beside him on the sofa, while he tried to catch his breath again.

He stood up, raised his arms over his head and stretched the kinks out of his back, then swooped Angel up into his arms and started walking to the kitchen.

"Lunchtime, huh? So what would you like? "

"Cookies!" Angel exclaimed.

Chris laughed and gently pinched her chin, "Nice try, Angel, but I'm no rookie. You might be able to pull that one on Vin, or Ezra, but it won't work with me. How about a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Then we can talk about a cookie, okay?"

"Kay, Unca C'is," Angel pouted of a minute, but being a naturally good natured child was not able to maintain it long, "but I wanna a choc'ate one." she stated firmly.

He laughed and tickled her before depositing her in her high chair that sat at the end of the kitchen table. Angel clasped her little hands on the tray top and waited patiently will he gathered the necessary items from the cupboards and assembled sandwiches for himself and the little girl. Chris placed a completed sandwich on a paper plate and set it in front of the little girl who just looked at him expectantly.

"What?" Chris asked as she continued to look at him.

"'ou gotta fix it , Unca C'is," Angela informed him.

"Fix it how?" Chris asked in confusion.

"Daddy always cuts 'em for me. 'Ou gotta cut it, Unca C'is."

Chris shrugged and reached for the knife he had left in the peanut butter jar. He wiped the knife on a paper napkin and started to make a diagonal cut across the sandwich, when he was stopped once again.

"NO, Unca C'is!" Angel stated indignantly . "Not like dat! 'Ou gotta make it in da shapes."

Following Angela instructions, Chris located the box of cookie cutters Rita kept on the counter. He emptied the box on the table and Angela chose the star shaped one. Chris pressed the cutter into the bread for the child and grinned when she smiled up at him. He watched her carefully pull the crusts away and hand them to him.

"Dese are youwas, Unca C'is".

Chris accepted the pieces of bread dripping with jelly and laid them on his own plate. When he looked up again he found Angela once more waiting expectantly.

"We need ouwa milk, Unca C'is." Angela sighed and slowly shook her small head from side to side.

Struggling to hide his amusement, Chris retrieved the milk jug from the refrigerator and two small plastic glasses from the cupboards. He poured the child half a glass of milk and set it in front of her.

"Okay, do we need anything else?"

"No, dat's all. Wet's eat!" she said.

+ + + + + + +

Buck and JD quickly walked up the front steps of their home, both eager to greet the light of their lives. The men had missed the little imp more than they had thought possible. When they caught an unexpected break and managed to close the case earlier that anticipated, they had gone straight to the airport and jumped on the first available flight home. As Buck unlocked the front door both men stopped as they listened to the loud laughter and noise that was coming from their den. Buck looked at JD. JD looked at Buck, and both men broke into devilish grins.

"He'd kill us," Buck whispered.

"Not if he can't catch us," JD whispered back.

Both men nodded. JD quickly set down his suitcase and opened a cabinet in the living room to remove a video recorder. Buck deposited his own suitcase on the floor and quietly closed the front door, then followed his friend to the source of the hilarity. They peeked their heads into the den and quickly pulled them back out, covering their mouths to restrain their own laughter. JD turned on the camera and stepped into the den to capture the scene of little Angela astride the large man's back as he crawled around the room on his hands and knees.

"Go, horsie," Angela cried, "Go, go!"

Chris obediently crawled faster, and continued to make horse sounds. Buck couldn't stand it any more and let loose with a loud guffaw that instantly captured the attention of the young girl and her playmate. They each had very different reactions to the interruption. Angela quickly slid off Chris' back and ran to her father with arms held out wide crying, "Daddy, Daddy!" and he swung her up into his arms for a big hug.

Chris looked up and saw the video camera in JD hands and jumped to his feet. He glared at the young man and started towards him menacingly. "JD, I want that tape!" he yelled. JD turned and dashed upstairs to lock himself in his room. "JD, you are a dead man! I mean it!" Chris yelled as he raced after him.

"Got him wrapped around your little finger, don't you, Angel girl," Buck said as he grinned at his daughter.

"Yep!" Angel said proudly causing her father to once again break into laughter.

The End

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