Chapter 2
Chapter Two
F inn
“Hey, Daniel.” Finn walked into the tech room at Protective Solutions and pulled up one of the rolling chairs to the banshee’s desk. His friend had a sweet setup in here, with three massive monitors connected to a desktop Daniel had built and tricked out himself. He’d even built a kick-ass computer for Finn which ran games like a dream. “You up for some Raft tonight?”
Daniel continued typing on his computer, his black eyes and claws not hampering him in the least. “You bet. I’m guessing the next story island is gonna be a bitch.” He glanced at Finn and cocked his head. “Why don’t you look more rested? Thought you told me you had special plans for your days off.”
“I did.”
“Plans beyond gaming. We do that every week.”
Finn shrugged. He’d spent most of his weekend tossing and turning, his mind whirling around all these strange new feelings. And he’d paced a lot, growing more and more frustrated. With himself.
He’d never thought himself lonely, but that’s what he was feeling. Hell, he was feeling lonely now, sitting right next to his friend and making social plans. His skin suddenly prickled with magic, and he turned toward the door.
Xavier walked into the room, elegant in fitted black slacks and a burgundy button-down. Finn really liked his boss, though he knew little about him. Xavier pretty much kept to himself and wasn’t one to share a lot about his life. All Finn knew was that the sorcerer was older than all of them—possibly put together. Oh, and that he held more power than anyone Finn had ever encountered. At one of their last jobs, the sorcerer had stripped a powerful warper wizard of his powers. Finn hadn’t even known that was possible.
So now, he was a little wary of the man. Didn’t plan to ever get on his bad side.
Xavier stopped next to him and caught his eye. “Finn, just the man I was looking for. Your next job is ready. It’s a long one—six months.”
Finn lifted his eyebrows. “Six months? Is it here or away?”
“Here. The client’s a musician from New York. He’s taking a sabbatical to work on a solo project, renting a gated house outside of the city. You’ll be changing out with Ivor, who will take the weekends to give you plenty of time off. This man is rather famous, so I expect you’ll be dealing with overzealous fans mostly.”
“If he’s such a celebrity, why doesn’t he already have protection?”
Xavier shrugged. “Apparently his latest bodyguard has decided to get out of the game. The client has decided to wait until he returns to New York to find his permanent replacement. We’ll take good care of him in the interim.”
“Who’s the client?” Daniel swung his chair around.
“Ajax Craig,” Xavier answered.
“Holy fucking shit!” Daniel jumped out of his chair. “He’s the frontman for Back to Chaos. I’m a huge BTC fan! Can I do this job instead? Pretty please?”
The corner of Xavier’s mouth lifted. “I need you here doing what you do best, Daniel.”
“Damn. I hope I get to meet him at least once. He’s here for six months, so it could happen. And solo project, you said? I hope he isn’t leaving the band. They’re my favorite.”
“I’m not familiar with BTC,” Finn admitted.
Daniel blinked at him for several moments before he chuckled and plopped back into his seat. “Watch this.” He pulled up a video.
Finn expected Xavier to leave the room, but he stayed, leaning against the wall and crossing his arms.
It was a live video. A hard, heavy riff blasted out of the speakers, pulling Finn’s gaze to the screen. Then the lead singer strolled onto the stage slowly, and the crowd went wild. Wavy brown hair hit his collar in back, and he wore a skin-tight pair of leather pants that wrapped every lean, sinewy muscle in his legs. His billowing black shirt had been left unbuttoned, revealing a ripped, lean torso.
He wrapped long fingers around the microphone and began singing into it with complete and utter focus as his hips subtly pumped with the drums. Somehow, with him barely moving, and that incredible voice front and center, it was the sexiest fucking thing Finn had ever seen. He couldn’t take his gaze off that man on the screen. And as he heard more of the lyrics, Finn realized the man was singing about monsters, of all things. Using them as metaphors for deep feelings. As if this human somehow understood the deeper truths of preternaturals.
The performance, the lyrics… It was altogether raw and visceral.
And that voice!
Deep, melodic and so full of emotion. He had this sort of rumble on the low notes that sent shivers down Finn’s spine. He could listen to this guy sing all day.
Daniel pointed at the screen. “They don’t rely on a lot of gimmicks when they sing live. It’s all about the music and the lyrics, the sheer majesty of what they create. It’ll blow you away.” He glanced back at Xavier. “Sure I can’t be his bodyguard? I’ll happily step away from this desk!”
Xavier shook his head, his long, black hair swishing over his shoulders. “This is Finn’s job, and I need you here.”
“Bummer.” Daniel turned back to the screen.
“Show me another video,” Finn said as he leaned closer to the monitor. Daniel did. And again, Finn found himself mesmerized. And not only by the singer—the music, dark and melodious, pulled a person in, the song building until goosebumps sprouted on Finn’s back and arms. When the song ended, he realized he was responding more to this man in a video than he had to the three hot men at the club. A small buzz of anticipation zipped through him as he turned to Xavier. “When does the job start?”
“Today. Here’s the address.” Xavier handed him a piece of paper.
“Guess Raft is out for tonight,” Finn told Daniel before looking at Xavier. “You said fans—are they the only threat?”
“Nothing in particular, outside of a couple of fans who have gone over what would be considered polite.”
“So, cush job again.” His last job was supposed to have been easier than it had been. He had to wonder if this rock star would end up being another narcissistic nightmare. He hoped not. But as he watched another video, he didn’t get that impression. This music had soul. It had meat to it. And there was something about the singer that felt…real. His absolute joy in performing, the incredible music itself—it was all very powerful.
Finn stood and nodded to Xavier. “I’ll get going then.”
It didn’t take him long to pack since he’d be coming home on weekends to replenish clothes, but as he folded shirts and jeans and threw in his portable game system for down times, he looked around at his apartment. He’d picked a place with high ceilings and lots of windows because he couldn’t stand feeling closed in. He had his reasons—ones he didn’t like to think about. He hoped the house he’d be in for the next six months was as roomy, but he’d make it work no matter what.
A strange sort of excitement filled him, though it was slightly tinged with wariness. He looked forward to meeting Ajax, especially after seeing how dynamic he was on stage, and after hearing such deeply moving music and lyrics. But that hint of wariness came from just having finished a job with another famous person who turned out to be the absolute worst sort of human being.
As he slung his bag over his shoulder and headed out, the anticipation took precedence, so he decided to give this rock star the benefit of the doubt.
The house was thirty minutes outside of the city. Douglas firs, maples and western hemlock trees grew thicker the closer he got to the place. Once he found the driveway, Finn pulled up to the gate and rolled down the window to hit the intercom. Took a couple of minutes for an answer.
“Yes?”
The man’s voice was just as deep when speaking as it was when he sang.
“Finn Kelly from Protective Solutions. You were expecting me?”
“Sure. I’ll open the gate.”
Finn followed along the driveway, parking in the circular section in front of the house, a sprawling one-story gray brick villa. The double front doors opened as he was getting out of his truck.
The man who stood in the doorway looked so far removed from the man he’d watched in those videos, wearing loose jeans and a T-shirt that didn’t quite meet the low waist of his jeans. His hipbones were exposed. His feet were bare. His brown hair fell in wiry waves to his collar in the back. Eyes narrowed on him as Finn stopped at the bottom of the two steps that led to the porch.
Ajax had a poet’s face with sharp cheekbones and nose, and the sexiest cleft chin Finn had ever seen. The musician tilted his head, and sunlight sparkled in emerald green eyes.
A brush of awareness swept over Finn’s skin, which surprised him, made him study Ajax a little more closely. The man stared back, his eyes widening slightly as his gaze ran down Finn’s body then back up.
When he smiled, Finn held his breath.
That smile transformed an already pretty face into something spectacular. It was a true smile with nothing fake about it. A smile that proved Finn didn’t need to be wary. There was a sincerity there his last client had lacked entirely. A depth of character Finn had already glimpsed through his music.
This man, this human , was something special, making this job suddenly very, very interesting.