"Suit, I don't think leaving Neal with Sarah is a good idea. Does she even have any experience with kids?"
Peter and Elizabeth were scheduled to go out of town to a FBI conference in Chicago. It was only going to be a long weekend, leaving Friday and back in New York by Sunday evening. They had discussed it and decided that leaving Neal with Sarah was their only logical choice. They would have much preferred leaving him with June, but she was out of town herself and not due back until the middle of next week. Even though they knew Mozzie loved Neal, leaving the baby with him for an extended period of time didn't sit well. Neal was like a sponge and they were concerned that he might pick up a few bad habits. Plus the fact that Mozzie had always made it clear he was uncomfortable with kids. They were dirty and smelly and had all sorts of germs.
Elizabeth had packed all the things Neal would need for his stay and Peter was going to drop him off at Sarah's. She had taken the day off so that she could spend it with Neal and give him her undivided attention. Everything was fine until she got the phone call.
"Neal, I need you to be really good now. I have to go into work for a little while and I'm taking you with me. Now what do we need to take with us, hmmmm? Let's see, a change of clothes, some toys.. that should be all we need we aren't going to be there long. Oh, this should be fun !"
Neal had been pretty quiet since Peter left him at Sarah's. He liked Sarah ok and she played with him, but he had already missed his morning nap and he was getting tired and hungry and with her rushing around he was getting anxious. She got Neal into a jacket, put a little cap on his head grabbed the bag with his stuff in it, grabbed her purse and swung Neal up onto her hip. Racing around carrying several things and balancing a child on super high heels Sarah headed out the door. She pushed the button for the elevator and stepped backwards and lost her balance for a moment. Neal thought they were falling so he grabbed onto her, his fingers tangling in her strand of pearls.
"Uh oh, broke",Neal said as the pearls bounced and rolled around Sarah's feet.
"Oh Neal!" Sarah croaked, "not my pearls. My antique pearls!"
Her raised voice scared Neal and his little bottom lip started to quiver. He looked down into his hand and he was holding 5 or 6 of the pearls. "Sowry" he said.
"It's not your fault baby, I'm sorry , I'm sorry. Here, let me put you down and we need to find all the little pearls ok? Can you help me do that?"
She put him down and he went about gathering up the scattered pearls. She was on her knees picking up her broken pearls too. Thirty minutes later after having found all the pearls they could and dumping them into Sarah's purse they were on their way to Sarah's office once again.
When Peter and Elizabeth asked what Sarah's plans would be she had told them that they would be in all weekend and maybe walk to the Park that was only about three blocks from her apartment, so they hadn't left her a booster seat. No booster seat, no cab ride. They ended up having to walk the 12 blocks to Sterling Bosch. Well, Neal only walked two, Sarah carried him the rest of the way. At least it was cool, but her feet were killing her and her hair was sort of a mess. To say she was undone was an understatment for the way she looked compared to how she normally looked at work. She drew quite a few stares from co-workers and her boss.
Once she got Neal something to eat and took him to potty he had settled into a nap very quickly. Sarah left him in her office but she was right next door in the conference room and she could see him through the glass wall. She came in to check on him from time to time too and had covered him with one of her shawls. But Neal being Neal he can be there one second and gone the next. She had just been in to check on him and he seemed sound asleep still. She found him two doors down drawing on some documents of one of her colleauges. At least he had been drawing with a highlighter and you could still read what was drawn over. It would only cost Sarah a couple of tickets to a broadway show for her colleagues secretary to redo the insurance quote for one of Doanld Trumps buildings.
Sarah decided that she had done enough work and that anything else that needed doing could and would be done at home. Gathering Neal and his belongings Sarah was able to get a secretary to drive them back to her apartment. The secretary had a booster seat in her car. She was beginning to see working moms in a whole new light. No matter how much they were paid she knew that it would never be enough. Just taking care of a toddler was a full time job in itself. How did these women do it? Especially the single moms.
Once back at her apartment she and Neal played with blocks and the Baby Einstein computer pad that she had picked up to entertain Neal with. She had one client that would be stopping by for a consultation and after that it would be just her and Neal for the rest of the weekend. It was close to three thirty and time for an afternoon nap so Sarah laid Neal down on her bed. Earlier in the day, she had also lain out her lingerie on one side of her bed to dry.
Her client was just about ready to leave when Neal came out of her bedroom carrying her Victoria's Secret bra with her thong panties around his neck. She was embarassed beyond words especially when Neal walked up to her client and he just bent down and picked Neal up. Neal held out his hand as if to give the man Sarah's bra.
"Why thank you young man," he said.
Neal grinned and turned and reached for Sarah. She took him and she could feel her face and ears getting red and hot.
"Mr. Steinbrenner, I am so sorry and I'm sooooo embarassed!"
" Ha ha ha, Sarah, don't worry about it, I have grandkids of my own and if there is one thing that you can count on, it's don't count on anything when kids are around. They can sure make life interesting. Nice underwear by the way," he said as he was handing her back her bra. "The kid has good taste."
Sarah saw him out and took the panties from around Neals neck. She looked at the matched set and remembered when Neal had lovingly taken them off her. Did he pick those because he remembered them. Of all the lingerie he could have chosen, why these. Was he remembering something. She would make sure and tell Elizabeth and Peter when they called.