Someone had gone to a lot of effort to wrap it and make it look pretty. When I bought gifts, you were lucky if it got to wrapping paper. I could never get the folds in the paper right, and doing it with magic seemed like cheating, so I was a gift bag connoisseur.
I blinked at it, trying to get my brain to kick into gear and make sense of what I was seeing, but I couldn’t quite shake off the sleep.
How the hell did it get there?
I looked around my room and couldn’t see any obvious answers. There was no one lingering like a creepy Santa, and all my windows were closed. I rolled over, and the scent of something familiar wafted over to me.
Woodsy, spicy, and something a little dark and edgy.
I followed the scent until my nose hit the pillow next to me.
Byron?
My eyes snapped to the little red box on my bedside table. If that idiot had left me that gift, there could be anything in there.
It was too small to hold a head. Oh, God. Had he left me someone’s dick? Or finger? Was this like a cat showing affection by leaving dead things?
And why hadn’t he woken me if he’d slept in my bed again? Had he just lay there andwatchedme sleep?
God, the guy was fuckingweird.
I was a little annoyed and disappointed that I’d missed him being there. Was he the reason I hadn’t had a nightmare again?
The little red box sat there, taunting me but I tried my best to ignore it. I couldfeelit, though. Like an itch beneath me skin that I couldn’t scratch.
Fuck it.
I jumped out of bed and picked the box up. It wasn’t heavy and when I shook it, something tumbled around in the bottom of the box.
Thankfully, it didn’tsoundlike a finger or any other body part. There was more density to whatever was in there. Something metal maybe?
I went to pull the gold bow and stopped myself. I couldn’t do it. This was ridiculous. I didn’t want a gift from Byron.
I dropped it back onto my bedside table and threw on some sweatpants. I needed coffee and something to eat. Not that I had any food in my house. I barely managed to keep the coffee stocked, but that was only because I needed it to function.
As I walked into my kitchen, I stopped dead. On the side was a takeaway bag fromHearth & Honey, my favourite café down the road. There was a sticky note attached to the front of the crumpled brown bag, and I plucked it off to read it.
The lady in the shop said these were your favourite things. Eat them, baby. That’s an order x.
An order? What the fuck?
And was that a little love heart? Was he twelve?
But my annoyance melted as I opened the bag and found an almond croissant, a superfood salad, and a blueberry muffin. They were indeed all my favourite foods.
I grabbed the croissant, ripped the end of it off and shoved it in my mouth. My anger melted away as the buttery, flaky goodness hit my tongue.
Goddammit, Byron.
It was impossible to hate him for breaking into my house when he seemed to be trying to take care of me. I should be outraged, but there I was, thinking that he was sweet again.
My mind turned to the little red box he’d left by my bed. Maybe there was something sweet in there?
I marched back up the stairs and into my room. I’d have to open it otherwise I’d be thinking about it all damn day.
I grabbed my phone on the way past and dialled Byron’s number.
The stalker answered on the first ring. “Good morning, Starshine.”