Page 5 of Protecting the Nerd

I’d said it to get a rise out of him, but he didn’t take the bait. “York, I’d be happy to send you a copy of my résumé, which includes training in high-risk contained escort, hostile environment key asset protection, and advanced security management, and I have a degree in criminology. Oh, and I was a master sergeant.”

Fuck. He’d made me look like an asshole. Well, in all fairness, I’d done that myself. He’d merely answered a question aimed at humiliating him and had turned the tables on me. And I only had myself to blame. “Impressive,” I offered lamely.

“Not as impressive as the technology you’re developing.”

Jesus, he was good. I had underestimated him. “It’s not a competition.”

He shrugged. “If you say so.”

Shannon looked from Quillon to me and cleared her throat. “Right. I’ve studied the contract your boss sent me, Mr. Minch, and I’m ready to sign it. Our lawyers have signed off on it as well.”

“Glad to hear it. That means we can get this show on the road.” He turned to me. “Just FYI, the contract contains a clause that bills your company a thousand dollars every time you slip your protection. We have a reputation to uphold and don’t tolerate our clients disrespecting us. We’ll bend over backward to accommodate you as much as possible, but certain aspects are nonnegotiable. First and foremost, you do not go anywhere without us. Under any circumstances.”

Damn, he was intimidating like that, his face tight and his eyes blazing. He held himself with a military precision that spoke of discipline and years of experience, yet he exuded a calmness, an assurance that felt oddly comforting, even amid my trepidation. “Got it.”

“I’m serious, York. Starting now, I’ll be watching your every move. You so much as take a leak without telling me, and we’re gonna have a problem.”

Fuck. My. Life.

2

QUILLON

He was the spitting image of his brother, which had startled me. If Essex Coombe had made it to the age of forty, he probably would’ve looked like York. Alas, he would forever be young. Had he even been thirty yet? I wasn’t sure how old he was when he’d gotten killed, but he must’ve been around that age. Such a waste.

Was that why York had reacted so negatively when I’d mentioned I was a Marine? Had it brought up the pain from losing his brother, who’d been killed in action? It sounded logical, yet something seemed to be missing. Underneath lurked a deeper layer, but I had no idea what it could be.

Since I didn’t have the necessary security clearance yet, I was stationed outside York’s office, which was fine by me. I didn’t need to have my eyes on him at all times because his office had one entry and exit point. Yes, I had double-checked to make sure the windows couldn’t be opened and that all the vents were screwed shut. One never knew, and York was clearly unhappy about my presence.

Not that I would’ve minded being in the same room as him. He was easy on the eyes with his lanky build, messy dark hair with silver streaks, and short beard. Plus, he wore those nerdy suspenders, which should’ve been ridiculously over the top but fitted him to a T.

He was a client, or in our lingo, the principal, so nothing could ever come of it, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t look. Besides, I was pretty sure York was straight. He wasn’t sending out any signals otherwise. And if he was, I doubted I was his type, which was fair enough.

My phone rang. Remington. “Hey, boss.”

“Everything okay so far?”

Like me, Remington wasn’t one for chitchat. “Nothing to report.”

“How’s the principal?”

“Unenthusiastic and reluctantly cooperative.”

“We can work with that. Can you ask him for the code to his security system? We want to run a security check on his apartment and install cameras and sensors.”

“Will do. Though you could disable it.”

Remington chuckled. “If he’s already unhappy about your presence, that’s not gonna make things better, is it? And I hate to admit it, but his system is one we’re unfamiliar with and a few grades above the standard.”

“I take it Julius already begged to have a go at it?”

Julius was our IT and gimmicks guy and also an experienced hacker. He relished a good challenge.

“He’s champing at the bit,” Remington said dryly.

“I’ll get that code for you. Anything else?”

“The FBI called. They’re prioritizing your background check.”