“Hey Brenna!” Jasmine called, waving wildly at the woman.
Phoebe narrowed her eyes when the woman barely waved at the excited little girl. She hated women who ignored kids because the men they were interested in were around. It pissed her off. A child wasn’t going to understand why you blew hot and cold with them and it was a huge pet peeve of hers.
“This is Phoebe. She’ll be staying with us from now on. You’ll be glad to hear that she’s my new nanny. No more last-minute calls to take care of Jazzy,” Peanut stated.
Phoebe noted that he didn’t even look at Brenna as he shut the gate and started to follow them to the door. Peanut didn’t seem to notice the way her face fell and she looked hurt for a second before she nodded.
“Oh, that’s great,” Brenna said, but Phoebe could see that it wasn’t great.
“Yeah, sorry to rush away but I need to show Phoebe around before meeting Viking tonight so I will have to talk to you later,” Peanut said as he unlocked the door and ushered them inside.
“Of course. I’ll see you later,” Brenna called as he shut the door without another word.
Phoebe raised a brow but he just shrugged. Jasmine had already headed to her bedroom. The two of them were standing in the front hall staring at each other and unease made Phoebe take a step back. He frowned but moved a few steps away. Phoebe almost sighed in relief when he started walking towards a doorway to the left in the hall.
“Follow me, I’ll show you the house. We’ll start in the kitchen.”
Phoebe fell into step behind him as he took her into the room which was lit by the late afternoon sunlight giving the room a happy glow. She couldn’t help but admire the light tan color that coated the walls and the stainless steel appliances that gleamed. She couldn’t stop herself from running her hand along the marble countertop wondering if it was real or just made to look like real marble. Her inner culinary goddess was doing a happy dance. She’d always loved cooking and baking before Johnny had become—um, before she’d lost herself.
“Kitchen hasn’t seen much use cause I’m not much of a cook. I can make leftovers and the basics but otherwise I’m useless. If you don’t cook it’s all good. We have a ton of take-out menus and Uber Eats delivers. I’ll make sure to get you a credit card for expenses tomorrow,” Peanut was saying as he pulled open a drawer to show the menus.
Phoebe was shocked. She still didn’t know why he was trusting a complete stranger with his daughter and apparently a credit card. She watched him as he opened the pantry.
“Star, Rooster’s old lady, came over and filled it up about two weeks ago when she and the boys stayed with Jasmine for a few days while I was on a run. You should find enough in there to make a meal if you know what you’re doing. Like I say it isn’t a deal breaker if you don’t,” he finished, shutting the pantry door again. Phoebe stood watching him as he headed towards her. She stepped back a few steps, ending up back in the hallway staring at him with wide wary eyes.
“This way to the living room,” he said heading across the hall.
She followed with her arms around her waist trying not to let the fear she felt show on her face. She didn’t want to let him see it. So far, he hadn’t done anything to warrant it and she didn’t want him to think he frightened her. He didn’t and he did all at the same time. It was an odd mix of feelings churning in her stomach.
“TV has every channel known to man and there’s internet if you—shit, they likely stole your electronics. Well I’ll get you a laptop and a tablet too. Do you need a phone, or did you have yours in your pocket?” he asked.
Phoebe blinked a few times; he’d thrown all of that at her so quickly that she was stunned. She found her arms tightening around herself as she shook her head in response, unable to articulate her answer to that question.
“Well?” he demanded.
“I have a burner phone, and I don’t need that other stuff,” Phoebe finally managed. She pulled the cheap flip phone she’d bought out.
“Yeah, so we will get you a decent phone too. Shit and some clothes. Follow me and we will head to my room so I can grab you something of mine to wear for tonight. It won’t fit you but at least it will be clean. You can throw what you’re wearing into the wash and wear it tomorrow when we go get you some more shit to wear. Crap, I hate going shopping,” he grumbled.
Phoebe silently trailed after him as he headed down the hall. He stopped at the first door and opened it. He left it open as he entered and walked over to a dresser and began digging in the drawers. While he was doing that, she looked around the room from the doorway. She almost winced when she saw
