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She couldn’t believe that had just come out of her mouth. What was wrong with her?
“Believe me, I want to. There’s nothing I want more. But I’m not planning on sleeping much tonight. If the stalker is going to strike again, it will be at night.”
“So you’re planning on staying up all night?” she asked.
“Most of it anyway.”
“You need your sleep, though. You’re not in your twenties anymore. Pulling an all-nighter isn’t something you can do without consequences.”
“Um. Thanks for the insight, baby. But I’ll be fine. I’ll nap and keep an eye on security. I don’t want to keep you awake though. So perhaps I should stay out in the living room.”
“No!” She reached for him and he sat on the mattress, facing her.
Wrapping her arms around him, she held on tight. “Please don’t leave me, Daddy. I don’t want to be all alone! I’m scared.”
“Hey, listen to me,” he said firmly. “I’m not going to let this asshole get to you or hurt you.”
She shook with fear. “What about ghosts?”
There was a moment of silence. “Ghosts?”
“Uh-huh. Who will stop the ghosts from getting to me?”
“You believe in ghosts?” he asked skeptically.
Well, no, of course she didn’t. Or Big Cate didn’t. But Little Catie-pie?
Yeah, ghosts were really, really scary. And if that meant that Daddy had to stay with her all night . . . well, she thought she might just believe in ghosts.
“Uh-huh. And then there’s the Oogie-Boogie man.”
“There’s an Oogie-Boogie man?”
“Uh-huh.”
“Do you mean the Boogeyman?” he asked.
“No!” she wailed. “That’s a completely different scary monster!”
“Oh, right. My apologies. I didn’t mean to get them confused.”
“Daddy, I thought you’d be up-to-date with your scary monsters.”
“Why would you think that?”
“Because you’re a Daddy. Don’t all Daddies go through ‘getting rid of scary monsters’ courses before they’re officially allowed to call themselves a Daddy?”
“Of course we do. But the, uh, instructor on our course said that the Boogeyman and Oogie-Boogie man were the same person.”
“They aren’t,” she told him solemnly. “And what about your normal types of scary monsters?”
“There are normal types?” he asked.
“Honestly, Daddy, I don’t think your instructor was very good.”
“I’m beginning to see that. What do you think normal monsters are?”
“Your standard ones . . . like wizards, witches, vampires, demons.”
