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"I have a lot of people who work for me, and they have the ability to keep the business going. Ted and the others only need to manage and work with clients in the final stages. I called a few of the larger clients and warned them of what was happening and that the company was in a state of flux. Clients never want to hear the word flux, so hopefully, I cost them a few clients."
“Does Emily have the skill to take on such an undertaking?”
"I taught her everything she knows," Kevin stated in a pained voice, and he noticed Archer wince at his words. "I sort of arranged my own death, didn't I?"
"You trusted your fiancé and your family. That's not uncommon or a reach. Unfortunately, your people are fucking bastards." Kevin began to laugh and pressed his face against Archer's chest. Archer wrapped him in his arms and laughed with him.
"And that's putting it nicely." He declared and continued to laugh. It was a bit hysterical, but it was a needed release.
“What were your plans when you entered the woods?”
"To get as far away from my problems as was possible. I planned to build a cabin and live there for a few years and maybe forever. I wasn't thinking too far into the future. I knew I needed to go back to the beginning and start again in order to clear my heart and my mind. I was stupid, and I will never be stupid again." He said with a new conviction.
"You were with a lot of people, but you were alone. You had no one in your corner, no one looking out for you. That will never happen to you again."
"I have Johnny Orlando. He's an amazing companion, but he is all that I have."
"You have me, my love." Archer turned Kevin's face up to his and placed a kiss heated and hungry upon his lips, and Kevin melted into the sensation, leaving all resistance for another place and time. It went on for several delicious minutes until there was a knock on the front door. Archer pulled back with a smile and an enthralling flash in his eyes.
"What is this, Archer?" Kevin whispered, needing to understand.
"Just you and me, Kevin, just you and me." He stood up abruptly and headed for the door, leaving a bewildered Kevin in the sitting room.
Archer wanted to find Ted and gut him along with that bitch fiancé. The parents were a whole other story. How could parents steal their kid's business and feel okay about it? Kevin's family sucked, and he was better off without them. He was still seething when he opened the door.
"Is there something you want to tell me, Archer?" It was Silas; he stepped into the room, and Archer closed the door. "Your attentiveness to the target did not go unnoticed." He said with a knowing expression.
"I didn't know it until just a few hours ago. All those days spent watching him admiring him from afar, and I hadn't a clue I was protecting my own beloved."
"I'm happy for you, Archer. There is nothing like the power of a beloved in one's life." He walked over to the window, looked out, and then back at Archer. "Is he aware of your connection, and is he aware of who we are?"
"No sir, on both counts, but I intend to remedy that directly. He shared his situation with me and his reason for moving to the forest. He appears to trust me and looks to me for safety. The connection is obvious and growing." Archer explained where things stood at the moment.
"I have Easton researching his past and any relationships to try and discern who would hire to have him killed. The hitmen were contracted out of Chicago. There were three of them, and one got away, so stay close to your man." Silas was saying more than he was saying. It was clear that the one who got away would notify whoever hired them that the hit was not successful, and they would instruct him to try again, or they may hire other assassins.
"I will not fail to protect him," Archer announced, and Silas nodded.
"I've made the Master aware of the situation, and he has assigned an additional team to patrol this cottage and its grounds." Silas turned and headed back to the door. "If you need anything, let me know, and as soon as Easton has any useful information, he will contact you." Silas looked at him and smiled.
"I wondered why I felt compelled to bring you back to protect that human in the woods. I was questioned by many as to the practicality of the order, but it was something I had to do. Now I know why Fate always gets her way, and I am glad you were there for him when he needed you."
"Thank you for not fighting that feeling." Archer smiled, as did Silas.
"Take care of him, Archer." He said as he was leaving.
“I will, sir.”
CHAPTER FIVE
Once Silas had gone, Archer stepped outside on the front porch and surveyed the area. He noticed the increase in protection, and he appreciated the help. Normally, he would have protested, but this was his beloved, and he wanted all the help that was available.
He noticed Johnny checking out the flowerbeds near the cottage and slowly making his way back to the house. He wasn't ready to go inside, but he wanted to be nearby. The cat was quite a character with considerable compassion.
After a few minutes of checking the area once again, he went back inside. Kevin was still in the sitting room, looking deep in thought. Archer walked over and sat down beside him. "You don't need those people, and if you want me to take care of them, just say the word." Archer was only half kidding.
Kevin laughed and turned to look at Archer, giving him somewhat of a side-eye. "I am considering your offer." He barked another laugh and sat back on the sofa, looking up at the ceiling. "No, they deserve each other. I don't know what I ever saw in that woman. She wasn't nice to service people; she was unkind to my elderly neighbor, and she hated animals. I should have recognized her for the heartless bitch she turned out to be."
“Did she have a nice ass? Maybe that’s what was blinding you to the obvious.” Archer chuckled and pulled Kevin in for a side hug.
