My breath caught in my throat and I snagged his arm in a tight grip. “But I already lost jewelry to a courier. What if something happens to this?”
He glared and rested his hand on mine. “No, you didn’t. You were taken in a long-term scheme by a good thief.There was no courier.Move.”
Maybe it was the late hour or all the bullshit I’d dealt with today, but I laughed. “Yes, Daddy.” I blew an obnoxious kiss at him and got out of the car.
He followed me, then strode forward and opened a door set in stone. “Go.” He gestured for me to walk inside ahead of him. “The light is on a motion sensor.” He already had his phone out and to his ear. As I walked past him, he snatched the bag from my hand, and I had to stop myself from fighting him to keep it.
RJ sighed. “If you want to call me Daddy, you have to keep up your end of the deal.”
“What deal?” I stared at him and nibbled on my thumbnail.
He bent forward and brushed his lips to my cheek, then nudged his nose against my ear. “If I’m Daddy, that means you listen to me and stop being a shit. Get in the house.”
Chuckling, I nodded and went inside, and even though it made me queasy to let him out of my sight with the jewelry, I listened. I wandered into a small room that held the furnace. There was also a mat clearly meant for muddy shoes and a rack of winter clothes near the door. Some ski equipment was stacked in one corner. I hadn’t imagined RJ with a home that was so obviously a space where he lived and it made me smile.
I took off my leather coat and hung it up, then fished my phone out of the inner pocket and stuck it in my back one. I shivered and wandered through a door and farther inside. I was in some sort of family room, with low tan leather couches, a TV in one corner, and a fireplace on the other side across from it. I meandered that direction. The style in the house matched the exterior design, and I couldn’t imagine how much money RJ had burned to get the vintage furniture, but everything appeared to be from the late fifties or early sixties, even the golden sunburst clock on the wall. I sighed at the time. It was getting close to three in the morning.
I’d been so happy earlier. I covered my face with my hands.
I wasn’t sure how long I stood there lamenting my life choices, but eventually heavy hands landed on my shoulders and massaged until I relaxed a little.
“It’s taken care of,” RJ murmured, kneading his thumbs into the base of my neck. “Let’s get you a quick bite and hit the hay.”
Sighing, I nodded.
He led me to a staircase in the corner near the TV and we went upstairs into another entertaining room. This one seemed designed with guests in mind more than relaxing. Several green velvet couches surrounded a round wooden coffee table and beyond was a formal dining room. He took me out to the kitchen and directed me toward a two-seater booth in a breakfast nook with an oval window that looked out over the lawn into a pine forest. Above the tree line, stars were beginning to peek out. It was a breathtaking view with the snow reflecting the house lights.
“Wow.”
RJ grunted and went to the stainless steel fridge, pulling open the door.
“Do you cook?” I asked around a yawn.
“You can’t eat out all the time,” he said, though that wasn’t much of an answer.
“I do.” I stuck my tongue out at him when he glared at me.
“That’s terrible for you.”
I crossed my arms and leaned back in the seat. “Hasn’t killed me yet.”
“Give it time,” he said, then pulled out some white paper deli bags. He snagged a loaf of bread from the counter as he passed it and brought everything over to me.
“You’re so dire,” I murmured.
He sighed and narrowed his eyes in my direction. “Make a sandwich. Eat.”
“I don’t have a plate or mayo or mustard.” I blinked up at him and was surprised when he tweaked my nose.
He brought the rest of my requested items. “Eat. Get some sleep. The master bedroom is on this level. I would prefer you in it.”
My stomach warmed. Was that his bedroom? “What are you doing?”
He shoved his hands into his pockets. “Looking forVan.” He snorted and shook his head. “Van. That’s a good one.”
Frowning, I sat up straighter and pulled two slices of bread out of the bag, then set them on my plate. “You’re going to leave me alone after going on and on about my safety?”
“No one but me knows you’re here,” he said, rolling his eyes.
