4. Trig

Chapter 4

Trig

I'd heard his words, but they didn't make any sense. "Okay, say it one more time, because I feel like I'm not understanding."

Garin shook his head and laughed as he threw a change of clothes into his duffel bag. "I don't know what's so hard to understand. This is exactly what you've been telling me to do for the past year. I finally took a job doing what you're doing." He shrugged and paused long enough to look up at me. "I thought you'd be happy."

"First of all, you're going public as a shifter. I know that's not necessarily a big deal, but…it does put a different level of attention on you. You know there are people who like to mess with shifters just to get a reaction."

Garin rolled his eyes as if I were just being paranoid. He was right. I was very paranoid about this job he was taking. "I'll be fine. Just because I don't have a tattoo across my forehead that says I'm an alpha wolf, doesn't mean it's a secret."

"Fine, but second of all, this is nothing like what I do. I take cute omegas to weddings or pretend to be a boyfriend to appease meddling parents. Being a bodyguard is dangerous. And what exactly are you protecting his body from?"

My stomach was in knots. The thought of Garin being hurt made me spiral. I needed him to be safe, and this was definitely not that. It would be one thing if he was guarding a jewelry store and his position was more of a deterrent than anything else. This wasn't that. I didn't have all the details, but someone was looking for protection from a threat. That alone was enough to make me want to lock Garin up for his own wellbeing.

It was safe to say, I wasn't being rational. But so be it. Garin was too important to me to not be freaking out. Rational could be reserved for a broken knob on the kitchen cabinet or an extra large electric bill—things that didn't matter.

Garin coughed out a laugh as he zipped up his bag and leaned on it. "I don't have all the details, but it sounds like an omega shifter witnessed something he shouldn't have, and he just needs someone to watch his back. As far as I can tell, it's just for the weekend. And then we'll see if it's something I can do through the week while I work remotely. If not, he can bring in a second person for business hours. Either way, enjoy the peace and quiet around here."

There was not going to be any enjoying his absence , not even if he was leaving for the happiest reason in the world, and this was not that. Having Garin gone always sucked, but this was an entirely new level of suckitude.

"Gare, seriously. This isn't something to take lightly. The people after him could be ruthless killers."

He slipped the strap over his shoulder and walked toward me, pulling me against his chest in a hug. "Don't worry, Trig. I won't bring him here. He'll have no idea where we live, so you won't be in any danger. I promise."

What? My jaw dropped as his words sank in. He thought I was worried about myself? "I'm worried about you, Garin. You're the one who could get hurt."

He stood back and clapped my shoulders as he looked right into my eyes. "I'll be careful, man. Promise." With a single nod, he left me standing in the middle of his bedroom as he walked out of our apartment.

Ready to start his first day of being a known wolf shifter bodyguard. What the fuck was he thinking?

I paced across the small living room, thinking about all the things I should have said and done to stop him from leaving. That distracted me for a while, but eventually, I had to calm my nerves. I grabbed a beer, then turned on the TV, hoping a sitcom might occupy me for at least a little while.

Unfortunately, what I saw was the stuff of nightmares.

A news report was broadcasting a clip about a body that had been found the night before. The police were asking for any further witnesses to come forward and noted that the suspects were still at large and should be considered armed and dangerous.

"Further" meant there was at least one, right? It didn't take a genius to put two and two together. Garin was clearly hired to protect someone from a person or people who had nothing to lose. It had to be related. Nothing else made sense.

Everything about it felt rushed and chaotic. Nothing ever happened that quickly at Alpha For Hire. It was obviously an urgent matter. Urgent meant dangerous, and what was more dangerous than fleeing a damn murderer? The more I listened, the worse it sounded. This was for sure not a domestic violence situation. They were reporting on it the way they reported on both organized and gang crime. Neither of those were places you wanted to be in the middle of.

Garin mentioned a witness, but why weren't the police providing protection? Why would they outsource it to an inexperienced wolf shifter from a gig app?

There were so many questions in my mind and absolutely zero answers. I should've stopped him from leaving. I should have told him I loved him and he couldn't put himself in danger and he needed to choose his safety. For me.

Fuck, what if something happened to Garin? What if I never saw him again?

And just like that, I was back on my feet, pacing again. Please let this be for the weekend only while the human police got their shit together. I needed Garin back home where I could see him, touch him, and absorb his delicious scent. Was that too much to ask for?

Apparently, it was.