Louis stared at him in horror. “What? No. No. Never.”
“It’s okay if you are. We can find you a Daddy bodyguard.”
“That was a long time ago,” Louis said brokenly. “That part of my life is all over.”
“Maybe. Maybe not,” Quick said cryptically.
“What do you mean?” Louis asked, wary now.
“I think we have the perfect bodyguard for you.”
Louis closed his eyes. “Please don’t say his name.”
“He’s the right man for you.”
“Tell him that.”
Craig
“Mr. Booker.”
“Go away,” Craig said, not bothering to divert his gaze from his bike magazine. He’d been enjoying a rare free morning sitting outside a café in Montmartre, Paris. It was early in the day and only the locals sat yawning over their café and brioche, the tourists yet to spill out of their hotels.
“I’m sorry.”
The English male voice didn’t sound sorry.
“I’m on vacation.”
“Technically, you’re still employed,” the voice pointed out.
Craig gritted his teeth. “For two more weeks. And my assignment is finished.”
“We have another one.”
“No,” he said flatly and looked up to see a man staring at him. Hard gray eyes, a nose that had been broken more than once. A buzz cut which told Craig the man may be a civilian in practice but not in his head. An expensive herringbone wool suit with a crisp pale blue shirt, bespoke by the way it fitted. Huh, the suit didn’t go with the man.
“My name is Liam Quick. I own QuickFire Securities.”
Craig shrugged. “I don’t know you or your company.”
“We’re new. You know…uh…an associate of mine.”
The hesitation told Craig all he needed to know.
“You can tell Josh Cooper to fuck off.”
He was surprised by Quick’s broad smile. “It’s the usual response.”
Craig didn’t care. He just wanted the man to go away. “Tell me what you want and get lost.”
“We need someone with your skill set.”
“Ask Quinn Ryder.”
“He’s permanently busy.”
Yeah, Craig had heard that.
“Then try Griff or Mo.”
He was just throwing names into the wind. He knew what skill set Quick sought. He’d heard the rumors.
“They’re unavailable,” Quick said.
Craig knew that too.
“I don’t want another boy,” Craig said, his voice harsh. “You’ve wasted your time.” He went back to his magazine, hoping Quick would get the hint. “There’s nothing more to say.”
“Would you talk to me instead?”
Craig stiffened at the sound of the one voice he never expected to hear again. He lowered his magazine to look into dark pools of ink, the gaze of a man he’d not seen for three years. For a moment Louis Romero’s eyes were all he could see, then he took in the bruised and battered face, the smooth dark skin now swollen, vividly purple and black.
“Lou.” Dammit, he knew he sounded as if he’d been sucker-punched. “Baby, what happened to you?”
He reached for Louis, hating it when Louis drew back. Rage filled him at the thought of someone touching his boy. Craig took two deep breaths. He had to get himself under control. He prided himself on always being in control of any situation. Except where this man was concerned.
“I’m not your baby,” Louis said evenly.
“Someone tried to kill him,” Quick said, ignoring the tension between the two men.
“Who?” Craig demanded.
“I don’t know,” Louis admitted.
He lifted one hand to push back his long, midnight hair and Craig saw the bruising covered his face.
“You had to fight them off?”
Louis was a big man, at least four inches taller than Craig’s five eleven, and fifty pounds heavier. That’s what had made his submission so beautiful. But he wasn’t a fighter.
Louis looked away, obviously embarrassed. “They put me on the ground before I could. They rushed me when I was taking the trash out at the club.”
Craig studied his face. Whoever hit him had gone for maximum damage. “Geez, baby, who did you piss off?”
The baby slipped out automatically, and this time Louis didn’t call him on it.
“I don’t know, but they mean business. The men ran off when someone came looking for me but not before they tried to leave their calling card.”
“Calling card?”
“A boot to the kidneys.”
Flames exploded inside Craig’s head. “You took a blow to the kidneys? What the hell are you doing here? You should be in hospital.”
“I’m fine. No permanent damage. It hurts like a bitch, but at least I’m not pissing blood.”
“Where the hell was your security?” Craig snarled.
“They were involved.” Louis’s tone left no doubt what that meant.
“What the fuck!”
“Now they’re on a permanent break,” Quick said, “And I’ve taken over Mr. Romero’s security detail.”
Craig shook his head. “I don’t know you from Adam.”
Quick didn’t seem bothered by Craig’s obvious lack of confidence in his abilities. “I know what I’m doing.”
“If you did, you wouldn’t be here,” Craig snapped.
“CDR had teams on Mr. Romero until I arrived.”
“So why are you here?” Craig demanded.
“They think you’re the best one to take care of me,” Louis said. He slumped back into the wicker chair, as if the energy had drained out of him, and he had nothing left to give.
A waiter approached, and Craig ordered espresso for him and Louis, and when he looked at Quick who nodded, he made it three.
“Why me?” he asked bluntly.
“Because there isn’t anyone else who has my back like you do.” Louis’s honest answer was another sucker punch to the gut.
“Lou…baby…I can’t…”
“Please.” Louis looked him in the eyes. “I’ll get down on my knees if I have to, Craig.”
Craig, not Daddy. The wrongness of the address made Craig flinch.
“I need you,” Louis begged. “I’m scared.”
It was the vulnerability in his eyes rather than the plea that convinced Craig. The cocky, beautiful man Craig once knew would never have admitted he was scared of anything. Craig had been convinced the boy went through life farting rainbows and spraying glitter. This cowed, beaten man wasn’t his boy. Craig needed a reality check. Louis was a client who trusted Craig to have his back.
He turned to Quick. “Tell me what to do.”
Did he see an element of relief in Quick’s eyes? Evidently the man hadn’t been as confident as he made out.
“In ideal circumstances, I’d leave Mr. Romero here with you and get him away from Seattle. But he needs to go home. There’s a big event at his club next week, and he has to be there. You’re going to be his personal bodyguard during the day, with a security detail as backup and for the night.”