He nodded.
“Are you, ah, coming inside?”
“I’d like to, yes. That way I can identify the normal appearance, compare it to anything out of place in the future.”
I unlocked the front door and pointed down the hall. “That’s my Aunt Penny’s side of the house.” I opened my door. “And this is mine.”
He nodded and disappeared inside my living room, and a moment later I heard a thump, followed by a strangled meow. Bruno came hobbling out, a wounded look on his whiskered face.
I scooped him up. “Oh, honey, I’m sorry.” He stared at the wall and pretended to ignore me, but unlike most cats, Bruno had a short window of resentment. I stroked his back and kissed his nose until he purred and head-butted me in feline forgiveness. Above us, Rafe’s measured footsteps moved from room to room, up the stairs to the third floor, then down again. I really hoped I didn’t have any underwear drying in the bathroom.
“What’s going on out here?” Penny opened her door, dressed in a see-through baby doll nightgown. I wanted to throw a robe over her, but it was too late. Rafe walked out and got an eyeful of her bare legs, tattooed cleavage, and nipples pointing straight to the ceiling. Penny’s eyes went wide. “Who’s this? Vic?”
“Aunt Penny, meet my bodyguard. Rafe, meet my aunt.”
He gave a short nod. “Ma’am.”
Penny gave him a long look. “A bodyguard?”
“It’s part of my new job.” I’d broken down and told her about dropping out of law school, though I’d been vague about the details of mistress dispelling and what it involved.
“Should I worry?”
“Not at all,” Rafe said. “I’m just here to keep Victoria safe.” He looked over her shoulder. “Is there anyone else in your apartment, ma’am?”
“There is not.” She winked. “Not tonight, anyway. I can’t promise the same if you come by tomorrow. But Icanpromise that if you call me ma’am again, there’ll be hell to pay.”
For a second I thought Rafe might crack a smile. Something twinkled in his eyes, but it was gone in a flash. I wondered if he even knew how to smile, or if he was allowed to smile on the job. Probably not.
“Are you sleeping here?” I asked him.
He frowned. “Why on earth would I sleep here?”
“I don’t know. You’re my bodyguard. Doesn’t that mean twenty-four-hour protection?”
He shook his head like I was an idiot. “No. It means I follow you while you’re working and I make sure you get to and from home safely. I do not sleep with clients.”
For a second I wondered if he heard the double meaning of his words, but I wasn’t about to ask him. It seemed like every word I uttered was another reason for him to grumble or sigh.
“I’ll be back Monday morning,” he said. “I recommend putting new locks on your exterior door, by the way. With deadbolts. I can do the installation if you don’t already have a locksmith.”
“You’re kidding.”
“I do not everkid, Victoria,” he said, his condescension barely concealed.
At that, I decided I didn’t like him. I really, really didn’t like him.
“Okay, well, good night, then.” I opened the front door and stood there until Rafe clomped down the steps and disappeared into the night.
“He’s a charmer,” Penny said.
“Yeah. He just showed up at the bar and ruined my night.”
“How?” She looked indignant, as if she might follow him into the dark and make him pay for whatever he’d done to her precious niece.
“There was a guy at the bar. Steven. Remy introduced us. And he was good-looking and nice and really into me until Rafe threw him against the wall and told him to leave.”
Penny crooked a brow. “Rafe threw him against a wall? That sounds very Lifetime-movie-like.”
