It took about thirty minutes for them to get across town to the small townhouse that Peanut and Jasmine lived in. She climbed out of the car staring up at the two-story townhouse. It was cute with its mint color and its white shutters. Phoebe found herself smiling. Peanut was right about the yard, it was definitely too small for a pony. It was barely more than two foot by two foot surrounded by a fence that was made out of metal with a little gate. She couldn’t help smiling as she followed Jasmine towards the house.
“Oh, Peanut, Peanut! Hi, I thought I heard you pull up. I just wanted to see if you—oh, you have company,” a female voice said from the next house over as Peanut held the gate open for her and Jasmine to go through. Phoebe couldn’t help but note that the woman was out in her yard wearing very little. She had on a cream camisole and some tiny shorts that showed off her long tanned legs. She was immediately jealous. It confused her because Peanut wasn’t hers and she didn’t want him to be. She’d had enough issues with Johnny. Jumping from one man to another wasn’t in her plan and she was sticking to her plan.
“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 the dirty clothes piled up in a corner and the socks that were beside the bed. He wasn’t a complete slob, but the room wasn’t very clean either.
“Here you go. Don’t worry, cleaning in here isn’t required. You will need to keep the kitchen and the living room at least clear of toys. Nothing too bad. I typically have one of the girls from the club come over about once a month and give the house the once over. I would ask that you have Jazzy clean her room every week. I’m trying to teach her to keep things at least a little cleaner. Plus it’s how she earns her allowance. She gets five dollars a week to take out the trash, clean her room and keep her toys put away. Don’t let her hoodwink you into doing it for her like she does her uncles. She is perfectly able to do it herself,” Peanut said as he handed her two t-shirts and a pair of jogging shorts that looked way too big. Although maybe not with the weight she’d gained. Taking them from him cautiously, she nodded.
“Now let’s show you the munchkin’s room and see what she’s up to. If I know her, she’s playing with her Xbox. I don’t let her play mature games either so make sure she doesn’t buy them if you take her somewhere to spend her money. She’s really convincing sometimes, and it gets her into trouble. I caught her playing Call of Duty with her Uncle Phoenix one day and she is definitely not allowed to play that.” Peanut smiled as he spoke.
Phoebe found herself a little bewildered at his obvious care for Jasmine, or Jazzy as he called her. It confused her that he cared enough to tell her the things she shouldn’t be doing but was inviting a complete stranger into his home to care for her. Was the man crazy? Not that she would ever hurt Jasmine but still, it was kind of blowing her mind that he wasn’t asking her a million and one questions before leaving her with his child. He obviously cared about Jasmine but his judgement where she was concerned was in question.
Peanut led Phoebe down the hall knocking lightly on the door before opening it. Jasmine was sitting in a pink rocking chair with a controller in her hands. She was wearing a headset and talking to someone. Phoebe looked around the room noting that it was decked out in an odd assortment of colors, mostly black and white with some hot pink and green thrown in. Her bedspread was black with a white devil with red eyes. Phoebe realized that it matched the vest that Peanut was wearing. It must be the club’s logo. She suddenly realized with a b
it of surprise that Jasmine was some kind of biker club princess.
She looked again at Peanut who was kneeling beside Jasmine talking into the headset to whoever she was playing the game with. Jasmine was laughing as she ran her flower character towards a zombie. She couldn’t help questioning her decision to take this job. Yes, they looked like a normal family but she knew all too well about the darkness that could lurk behind closed doors. Phoebe wondered as she watched them if she could trust Peanut. Every instinct she had screamed at her that she was safe here, that Peanut would protect her. But those very same instincts had let her trust Johnny. She wasn’t sure she could trust herself to know the difference between a good and a bad person anymore. Was she fooling herself that Jasmine was a happy little girl with a father who loved her?
Everything she’d observed so far was telling her Peanut was different. He hadn’t pressured her like Johnny would have when she was deciding to come with them earlier. He hadn’t lost patience when she was skittish and so far, he hadn’t been harsh or demanding with her or his daughter. For now, she supposed she’d have to take a chance on Peanut. He seemed harmless enough and she could leave if she wanted to. Only then she’d be on the run from two men instead of one. She wrung her hands and shifted from foot to foot as worry ate at her. Peanut had given Jasmine back her headset and she watched as he kissed her forehead before standing up.
“I leave in forty minutes, Jazzy pants. I’m going to show Phoebe to her room and let her settle in before I leave. Phoebe will order you guys something from one of the takeout places. Help her with that and don’t get yourself into trouble by breaking the rules,” he told Jasmine after lifting the headphone away from one ear so she could hear him.
“Yeah, yeah. I know. I promise not to do anything bad, Dad,” Jasmine said, her eyes still trained on her flower as she bopped along shooting zombies with her character.
“Don’t you yeah, yeah me kid. I want you off that game and doing your homework before I leave, capisce?” Peanut tapped her cheek.
She brushed him off with a grin. “Okay, Dad. I will do my homework. I hate math though so can I wait till you get home so you can help me?”
“Nope, I’m not getting suckered into that again. You do your work cause I’m going to be late and you know you’ll already be in bed and Mrs. Jenkins will be calling me to ask why it wasn’t done again. She might be Teeter’s old lady, but she doesn’t show favorites and you know it. Last time we got a pass because I had the flu, but she will nail my balls to the wall if I let you do that again. No conning Phoebe into doing it for you like you did Uncle Phoenix either,” he said, his face serious.
“Alright, I’ll make sure I do my math too,” Jasmine said with a deep sigh.
Phoebe couldn’t help but smile a little at that exasperated sound from the cute as hell little girl. She could see how so many people got conned into letting her have her way. Not that she was going to allow it. Kids needed someone to keep them on target. She was a little surprised to see that Peanut was actually good at keeping Jasmine in line. She liked that he hadn’t been harsh. Johnny would have been harsh. He likely would have yelled or called her stupid or even hit her for bothering him. Hell, maybe he wouldn’t have bothered reminding her to do her homework at all. Actually that was the route he likely would have gone, and then when the teacher called him he would have hit her for not doing it. She closed her eyes, trying hard not to let the fears she was having surface. She was damned glad she had run.
A child didn’t need that kind of fear in their lives any more than she did. Her child would never know that fear, she promised him or her, hugging her stomach as Peanut headed back to where she was standing near the door. He gave her an oddly assessing look as he neared her. She moved her arms higher as if she was hugging herself for comfort instead of making promises to the tiny life that was growing inside her.
“I’ll show you to your room. It’s not much but it will do for now. If you need anything you can just ask. Like I said we will get you some things to wear tomorrow. The washer and dryer are in the laundry room right by your room. I’ll show you that too before I head into my room to get a shower and some things I’ll need for tonight. I’ll leave some money for dinner and write down some numbers for you before I leave in case something happens,” Peanut said, heading out the door and expecting her to follow.
Phoebe walked up the stairs behind him as he led her to a room just off the stairwell. He opened the door showing her a small laundry room. She peeked into the room as he entered and pointed to the cabinet along one wall.
“The laundry detergent is in that cupboard along with extra towels, sheets, and wash cloths. Use whatever you need,” Peanut said before shutting the door and heading towards another door a few feet away. He opened it and let her look inside.
“This is my office. I usually lock it, but I’ll leave it open for you in case you’d like to get on the internet. There is a guest account on the computer and it’s okay to use that one. Mine’s got a password so don’t worry about logging into the wrong account because it wouldn’t let you.”
Phoebe frowned as she watched him close the door and continue on to the last room on the landing. She was still holding the clothes he’d given her and feeling a little bit overwhelmed because everything he’d done so far led her to question his ability to protect himself and Jasmine. If she wasn’t a nice person, she could do so much damage with all the things he’d shown her. Phoebe felt a little wary of all the freedom he was offering.
“This will be your room while you stay with us. There’s a lock on the door but please leave it unlocked when I’m not home. If Jazzy needed something I’d like it if she could come in here to get you. She sometimes has night terrors and she’s used to people staying over and sleeping here when I’m not here. She just needs reassurance and a few hugs. Maybe some warm milk to help her get back to sleep.” Peanut was leaning against the door jamb silently observing her as she stood near the bed.
“Okay,” Phoebe replied, realizing he’d paused to get her agreement to his request.
“Great, so I’ll leave the keys to the Kia downstairs on the hook in the doorway of the kitchen in case you need something that can’t wait until tomorrow or if there is some type of emergency. Just remember to call me or one of the guys if something like that does happen. I’ll set the alarm before I leave but if you need to go out shut it off. It’s pretty complicated but I’ll write down some basics. Jazzy knows how to work it if you don’t understand my scribbles,” Peanut said, smiling at her.
Phoebe didn’t know what to think of him. Didn’t he realize she could leave Jasmine here alone and run off with anything of value? Or even take his daughter? He should be damned glad that she wasn’t a thief or some kind of human trafficker. He’d pretty much given her access to his entire life by taking her on this twenty-minute tour. She was worried that something had to be wrong with this situation. Nothing was this perfect. She just couldn’t seem to reconcile the fact that she’d had everything she owned stolen from her about an hour ago with the fact that she’d ended up landing on her feet with a job and a generous boss. She was never that lucky, which meant something had to be wrong. Didn’t it? Maybe not, but she’d have to wait and see.
“Any questions?” he asked, watching her. Phoebe suddenly noticed how nice his brown eyes were and how when he smiled there were little crinkles by his eyes. Phoebe didn’t like the warm gooey feeling that spread through her as she stared at him. There had to be some fatal flaw that she wasn’t seeing. There was no way that he was for real. Maybe he was the human trafficker and he was going to keep her here content and unaware until he had a buyer lined up. That thought sent a shiver of unease down her back and she eyed him warily. Peanut was still watching her moments later when she realized he was waiting on another reply.
“No, I’m pretty sure you’ve covered everything. If I think of something else, I’ll be sure to ask before you leave. Are you sure hiring me without knowing me was a good idea?�
� she asked as she stood by the bed, still holding the clothes he’d given her.
“I’m good with it, Lovely. If I wasn’t, trust me, you’d already be out the door. I’m not a fool and I have damned good instincts where people are concerned. I’m rarely wrong about them. Besides you needed help and I was in a position to help. It helps that Jazzy likes you. That’s something I long ago learned was a good indication of character,” Peanut shrugged, the smile still crinkling his eyes.
Phoebe didn’t know what else to say after that so she just looked around the room. She noted that there was only a dresser and a double bed with a tan comforter in the room. It looked a bit like a hotel room. She supposed that made sense if he had several different people over watching Jasmine when he went on trips for the club. It was still odd to her that he was trusting her but maybe this was what it was like for normal people. Nothing that had happened in her life over the past few years had been even a little bit normal. It had all been about fear and pain.
“Thank you,” was all she could think to say.
“You’re welcome,” he replied before nodding and leaving the room. He even shut the door behind him. She stared at that door with an odd sense of wellbeing filling her up for the first time in forever.
Chapter Nine
Phoebe had looked through the pantry and the refrigerator and found the ingredients to make chicken fajitas. She had started to make them when she realized she wasn’t sure if Jasmine liked them and decided she’d have to go ask her. She washed her hands and headed down the hall to ask, her mind on the day’s events. Peanut had left two hours ago with only a quick goodbye to her and Jasmine. Nothing else. No dire warnings to keep his daughter safe or any hesitation on his part. She was still a little flabbergasted by his trust. He’d left a long list of numbers for her to call if she had ‘trouble’. She wasn’t even sure what he thought could or would happen that required twelve phone numbers. Why would they need that many people if something happened? Maybe they wouldn’t all be available, so he’d given her a bunch just to be sure? She didn’t know but it was another thing she was adding to the list she’d started in her head labeled odd things about Peanut.
Saved by the Devil (Devils Arms Book 3) Page 7
