Page 33 of His Claim

“My god,” I yelped. I clutched the shirt to my chest and whirled around to see Murphy leaning in the doorway with his arms folded over his chest. His beard was filling in after not shaving for days, and a huge smile was on his lips. “You scared the hell out of me, Murphy.”

“Sorry, baby girl. I figured you would have heard me come in.”

“I was too busy trying to figure out if I wanted to be a funny old lady or a sparkly one,” I laughed. “Meg and Ethel each have their own kind of style.”

“Did you find something to wear, or do we need to go into town?”

I tipped my head to the side. “We can do that? I thought we needed to be ghosts right now.”

Murphy chuckled and wandered into the room. “We need to lay low, baby girl, not disappear from society.”

I looked down at the shirt in my hands. “I mean, I would love to have some clothes that are more me, but I don’t have money.” I looked up at Murphy. “Or anything. You never really think about the consequences of kidnapping until it happens to you, you know? That came out completely wrong.”

“I get what you’re saying, baby girl,” he chuckled. “We can head into town to get you some things.”

“Did you not hear me when I said I don’t have any money, Murphy?” I sighed and dropped the shirt on the bed. “And I am not going to have any money when I get back home because I won’t have a job. Oh god,” I moaned. The past seventy-two hours had been a whirlwind, and now everything was crashing down on me. “And I won’t have an apartment because if I don’t have a job, then how can I pay my rent?” I tried to take a deep breath but struggled.

“Hey, hey,” Murphy called. He gathered me in his arms and pulled me to his chest. “Calm down, baby girl. You don’t need to worry about any of that.”

“I don’t need to worry about where I’m going to live and a paycheck?” I wheezed. “Are you insane? Those are two of the most basic things a human needs.” I tipped my head back. “And I am a human.”

“Baby,” he chuckled.

“This isn’t funny, Murphy. I know we are supposed to lay low, but I gotta get back to work.” My boss, Jada, was amazing and really liked me, but I knew she wouldn’t be cool with me not coming to work and still expecting to get paid.

Murphy shook his head. “You’re not going back to work right now, Tatum. You can call your work and see if you can get some vacation time or something.”

I blinked slowly. “You want me to call my work where I am supposed to be working right now and ask them for vacation time?”

Murphy nodded. “Yes.”

“When you said you live in a different world than me, I think you meant you live in a different world than the whole world. You live in Banachi land. I don’t live there. Leo isn’t my boss, and I need to clock in when I’m scheduled.”

“Where do you work?” he asked. “Are you still at the law firm?”

I wrinkled my nose. “Uh, not for the past four years. I got burned out, sold all my stuff, and got a job at a bookstore.”

Murphy tipped his head. “Seriously?”

“Do you have something against me working at a bookstore? People need to read, and I like to be the one to help them find their next escape. I also like just to be surrounded by all of these books.” Not that I needed to explain myself to him, but I could see why he was a little confused. I had been a personal assistant for a high-profile defense lawyer when he met me.

Leo was looking for someone to represent him for some hot water he had gotten into, and Murphy had been with Leo when he came for a consultation.

Murphy shook his head. “I don’t care what you do for work, Tatum. I didn’t know you quit.”

“A lot happens in five years.” I pulled out of his arms and paced back and forth. “We have to go back. We can stay at my apartment while you keep me safe, and I can go back to work.”

Murphy shook his head. “That isn’t going to happen. We’re trying to make it hard for Brandt to find us. He obviously knows where you live and work, Tatum.”

“I need to work, Murphy. Once this is all over, I won’t have anything to return to.” I stopped with my eyes wide open. “You don’t even know how long this is going to take. What if this Brandt guy disappears for a while? What are we supposed to do then?”

“You aren’t going to do anything.”

“Whatever,” I cried. “What are you going to do if Brandt doesn’t surface? We can’t live like this. I need a job and clothes. A place to live,” I cried.

Murphy looked around. “I mean, I don’t see anything wrong with this place.”

“Murphy,” I whined. “You’re not hearing anything I’m saying.”

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