“No,” Craig said.
“No?” Louis furrowed his brow. “You said you’d take care of me.”
“And I will, but I’m with you 24/7. I need to stay with you at all times.”
Quick inclined his head. “I’ll leave you to make arrangements as you wish, as long as you clear everything with me.”
Craig looked at Louis. “Why him?”
“When I woke up in hospital and realized my security team didn’t have my back, I didn’t know who to trust. I called a friend. Cade Connolly—you know him—he told me to talk to Liam.”
Craig blinked. “Cade Connolly, the pop star?”
“Yes. He just headlined one of my gigs. He’s used Liam before.”
“I’ve set up my own security firm with the backing of Zach Fyre,” Quick said.
“The financier?”
Fyre was London based, but Craig had traveled with enough money-men to know of him. Besides, he was always in the media as one of the favorites in the Billionaires Under 30 list.
“Yes. He’s my boyfriend.” And suddenly Quick’s hard face softened, and his lips curved into a smile. The man was in love. There was no denying it.
“So you and Fyre—” Quick. Fire. “—have a security firm. What’s your connection to Josh Cooper?”
“We work closely with Angel Enterprises.”
Craig grunted. “I’m surprised he’s not gotten you killed.”
“He tried that on our first meeting.”
No surprise, then.
“So you flew to Seattle,” Craig said. “Then what?”
“Before I left London, I organized immediate protection using CDR. No one had access to Mr. Romero while he was in hospital. We fired his security at the club and took it over.”
Craig stared at Louis. “Why didn’t you call me? Why call some guy halfway around the world?” He couldn’t hide the hurt at the thought of Louis not calling him first.
“One, you were halfway around the world too, and two, I didn’t know how you’d take me calling you out of the blue,” Louis admitted.
“You can always call me, baby, always.”
Craig needed Louis to know he could always rely on him. Always! God, the thought of anyone touching his boy in anger filled him with rage. How dare they lay their hands on him? He would find out who they were and tear them limb from limb.
“Craig?”
He blinked, realizing both men were staring at him.
“Yes?”
“Liam’s talking about our travel arrangements,” Louis murmured.
“I have a plane waiting at Le Bourget airport,” Quick said. “We need to leave in two hours.”
“You have a private jet?” Craig asked.
Quick pinked a little. “I borrowed Zach’s. I have to get it back by tomorrow.”
Despite his billionaire boyfriend, he obviously wasn’t used to the ways of extremely wealthy men. Craig felt warmer toward him.
“I need to get my gear,” he said.
“You don’t mind leaving Paris?” Louis asked.
Craig stood and held out a hand to him, which ended up more of a scoop as Louis struggled to his feet. Craig was sure he had injuries he hadn’t disclosed. “My assignment is over. I was planning a road trip and flying home in two weeks.”
“I’m sorry,” Louis said but Craig cut him off.
“You came to me. It was the right thing to do.”
“Are we ready to go?” Quick sounded impatient.
Craig fixed him with a look. “I’m glad Louis found you. Don’t let him down.”
“I should be saying that to you,” Quick pointed out.
Louis insisted on walking to Craig’s apartment, despite Quick insisting he could get the car. But they made slow progress, and Louis struggled with each step. When Craig finally told him to sit on a low wall as they were outside his building, he slumped down with a sigh of relief. Craig clenched his jaw. Stubborn man. Stubborn boy.
“I’m already packed,” Craig said to Quick, who nodded and pulled out his phone.
“You get your gear; I’ll get our driver.”
Craig was used to rich men with planes and chauffeurs, so he didn’t comment. He was just grateful Louis could rest and didn’t have to cope with the rigors of commercial flying. He ran up the stairs, waving a cheery, “Au revoir,” to his neighbor and entered his apartment. It was tiny, but it had come with the job and he would miss watching the hustle and bustle of the nightlife as he sat on the balcony with a beer and whatever he’d picked up to eat. His small carry-on was by the door. He always traveled light when he had short assignments, and this time had been no exception.
He rejoined the men outside, the breath catching in his throat when he saw Louis resting against the wall, his eyes closed.
“He’s okay,” Quick said quietly. “He’s asleep. His injuries are worse than he’s told you.”
Thus confirming Craig’s suspicions. He gave Quick a nod to continue.
“I’ve got a doctor on board. I refused to let him fly without having medical help.”
“Why the hell did you let him fly at all? You could have just called me.”
Quick huffed out a breath. “Louis insisted you wouldn’t come if I called.”
Craig said nothing and Quick nodded. “He refused to stay behind.”
“Who am I working for?” Craig demanded. “You, CDR, or Angel Enterprises?”
“Quickfire Securities on a freelance contract. CDR is providing security backup because I’m based in London. You know them, which helps. Josh is just interfering.”
Craig snorted. “Same old, same old.”
“You know him well?”
“I met him when he worked for CDR. He’s got a reputation.”
Quick’s interest in Josh Cooper faded when a sedan pulled up in front of them. “Here’s our car.”
Craig let Quick take his bag while he manhandled a sleepy Louis into the back seat. He slid in next to Louis who buried his face on Craig’s shoulder. Craig left him there, pretending he hadn’t heard the soft, “I missed my daddy.” Louis probably didn’t know what he was saying.
Quick sat next to the driver and they pulled away, leaving behind Craig’s brief life in Paris. He hoped he would be back soon.
Craig stared down at the sleeping man now more or less in his arms. “Who the heck did you annoy to end up in this state, baby?”
Craig insisted Louis be checked over by the doctor before they took off. When he was given a cautious thumbs up, they went wheels up. Craig appreciated the ease of traveling when he didn’t have to go economy. Louis made a valiant attempt to stay awake, but the effort was futile, and he was soon asleep in one of the huge leather seats.
As soon as Craig was sure he was sound asleep, he turned to Quick. “Sitrep.”
The man didn’t blink at his demand. “There’s little information I can give you. It’s obvious Mr. Romero is in danger, but I don’t know who from. The men who assaulted him had no idea. CDR is tracking down intel.”
“He called you because you impressed him. Why need me at all? You have backup in Seattle. You could have organized his security.”