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“Um,” Levi said. “As you keep reminding me, don’t you work for me?”

“I’m your bodyguard. Not your servant.” Ben opened the trunk and gave Levi a pointed look.

“Really? It’s been such a long day.” Levi tried not to whine, but he was freezing and genuinely exhausted after all that travel. Maybe he wasn’t driving, but travel had always tired him out, even if he was just dozing in the passenger’s seat. He strode closer to Ben, putting a special pep in his step. “Maybe if you give me some incentive.”

“How’s the incentive of not getting locked out?”

“You’re not being very professional," Levi said, trying to hide how annoyed he was by Ben’s continuous shutdowns. “God. Fine.”

After several trips that left Levi’s arms aching despite lifting weights three times a week, Levi settled into the living room in front of the unlit fire.

“How can it be so cold inside?” he demanded as Ben came back from dumping the rest of Levi’s bags in his room. “It’s practically as cold as it was outside!”

“It’s an old cabin,” Ben pointed out. “The insulation is shit.”

“Well, get the fire going!” Levi sat down in front of the unlit fire and burrowed into the collar of his coat, cursing himself for the flimsy scarf that was doing absolutely nothing to help. Ben looked perfectly fine with his thick coat and hat, which were definitely function over fashion.

Three massive crates were tucked next to the fire. One was loaded with logs that smelled pleasantly like dry pine, one was full of kindling, and the other, interestingly, was stacked with old newspapers and cardboard egg cartons. Ben opened the fireplace, which had a glass window so covered in soot that Levi wrinkled his nose, and started to crumple the old newspapers into loose balls, placing them inside. After he had a good mound, he propped kindling over the crumpled newspapers. Then he pulled a box of matches out of his pocket, and Levi laughed.

Ben glanced at him. He didn’t say anything, but Levi could hear his judgy question.

“Of course, you’re the kind of guy who keeps a matchbox in his pocket,” Levi said. “What else do you have in there? A Swiss Army knife? A rope?”

Ben muttered something that sounded like, bet you’d like it if it was a rope. It was such a delightful shock that Levi might have leaped for joy if he wasn’t so tired. Holy shit, Ben did have jokes, and Ben was into him! Levi was never wrong about these things. There was still hope of turning this forced retreat into a sexy vacation.

Levi leaned closer, arching his back suggestively. “Excuse me? What was that, Mr. Bodyguard?”

“What was what?” Ben replied gruffly. “Move, you’ll light your hair on fire with all that product you smear in it.”

He was frowning, but the red on his cheeks wasn’t just from the cold anymore. Levi leaned back obediently, grinning.

Ben lit the match easily. It made a satisfying snicking noise, and Levi wondered when the hell he last lit a match. He definitely did it in Boy Scouts, but had he ever done it in adulthood? Probably not. That was what lighters were for.

Ben lit the newspapers. They caught fire so fast Levi’s delighted grin surged back. He wanted to watch the fire eat the paper and then transfer to the kindling, but Ben closed the sooty glass door and stood up.

“I’m going to set up the radio,” he announced. “Then check the perimeter. There’s already food set up in the kitchen. They’ll drop us more supplies every two weeks. Now, there are some rules you have to— Hey! Look at me.”

Levi looked over. He’d been distracted by the fire, which had caught on the kindling behind the smudgy glass door. Ben was looming over him, his fingertips stained with soot, looking like a sexy lumberjack.

“Are you paying attention?” Ben asked. “This isn’t a game. This is life and death.”

Levi’s smile dimmed at the reminder of the whole life-in-peril thing. “Yeah, got it.”

Ben gave him a sharp look but continued. “Showers are limited to five minutes.”

“What, seriously?”

“Unless you want to run out of hot water, then yes. Seriously. Don’t open the curtains; we keep them closed at all times. Don’t fuck with the radio. Don’t even touch the radio. Don’t go outside, ever, unless I’m with you and I said it was okay. And most importantly, if I tell you to do something, then you do it.”

Levi’s grin came back, unfurling like a Cheshire cat. He tipped his head up toward Ben but didn’t even get to bat his eyelashes before Ben stabbed a meaty finger in his face.

“Don’t pull that shit,” Ben said. “If I say get on the ground, you get on the fucking ground, or you might get a bullet in your head. What I say goes. Got it?”

For some reason, Levi actually thought about taking this seriously. He didn’t want Ben to be annoyed with him. At least, not entirely. He could just nod and say he understood. It might make Ben start to respect him because, apparently, Levi wanted Ben to respect him.

But Levi was nervous and horny, and old habits died hard, so he cocked his head and let his voice drop into something low and sultry, like he wanted Ben to think about all the things Levi could do while he sat at Ben’s feet.

“Of course,” Levi said breathily. “Daddy.”