Page 14 of First Snow

Faeling seems slightly amused. “No. But I’m concerned for your health. Bathroom and bedroom are over there, make yourself comfortable.” He gestures toward a door leading further into the labyrinth of rooms the club consists of.

Arttu rolls his eyes. “You’re a creep.”

“So I’ve been told.”

Arttu surrenders in the face of all the weirdness that is Jareth Faeling. At least he’ll be able to get to know the guy better, maybe even snoop around a little. Arttu stands up and stumbles into the adjacent room. The door leads into a luxurious bedroom with the same overly lavish decor as the rest of the club: heavy curtains, dark wood, and antique furniture.

Arttu brushes his fingertips over the polished wood of a dresser. He’d have to find out at some point if Faeling purchased anything from Mikael. There wasn’t anything in the record, but seeing the guy’s obsession with old-timey stuff, Arttu would be surprised if he hadn’t.

He steps further into the room, but leaves the door to Faeling’s office open a crack just in case. Maybe his horrible attempts at charming Faeling will achieve something. He finds the bathroom and leans over the sink to splash cold water onto his face. The place must often host guests, as Arttu finds a sealed toothbrush and toothpaste in a cabinet. He slips out of his black jeans and henley, before heading back into the bedroom. By now, he’s tired enough that he doesn’t care where he sleeps.

Next to the bed, he finds a glass of water and two aspirin as well as pajamas. Faeling must have placed the items there while Arttu was in the bathroom. The gesture makes an awkward but not entirely uncomfortable feeling bloom in his chest. Faeling didn’t shut the door to his office either. Arttu can see the light from his desk lamp as he snuggles under the blankets. He should probably be more worried about sleeping in the company of a killer, but he feels himself drifting as soon as his head hits the pillow. The day has been more exhausting than he’d thought.

He’s already half-dreaming, but at one point he feels Faeling by his bedside. On some level, Arttu registers that he should be alarmed, but the gentle hand brushing his fringe from his brow makes him snuggle into the pillows again.

He hears a voice as if from far away: “Sleep now. I’ll watch over you,” Faeling says.

Chapter 5

Jareth

Annikkiputsdownabreakfast tray on his desk, making cups clatter and pushing paperwork all over the place.

Jareth sends her a disgruntled glare.

“Didn’t get much sleep, huh?” she asks, grinning broadly. She’s a morning person and Jareth hates her a little for it. Serving his food isn’t among her duties, but Annikki does so sometimes when she’s particularly nosy.

“I had work to do,” he grumbles.

“What about your guest?”

“He’s well. He didn’t have a concussion like I feared.”

“Treat him to a nice breakfast, then.” Annikki wiggles her eyebrows and gestures at the opulent meal she brought. “He saved our security’s ass last night. I told you Lester is too inexperienced to handle the high-profile guests. He’s too easily intimidated by a fancy title or big money.”

Jareth hums noncommittally. Annikki is right. They’ll have to rethink their security concept. But other problems are demanding his attention. He had to get rid of three people dabbling in dark magic in under a year. This is a new record even for him. Worse, all of them were tied to the club in one way or another, and Jareth has absolutely no idea why. The Met has him on their radar, and although they can’t prove a thing, Jareth prefers operating from the shadows. He has to put his priorities straight and sort this mess out.

“Did I tell you that your pretty guy tried to de-escalate the quarrel?” Annikki says conversationally. “I mean before fucking Lord Briar harassed Mistress Emily.”

“You mentioned something like that.”

“I bet if it had been four guys instead of six, he wouldn’t have needed your help to deal with them.”

“Maybe,” Jareth replies, feigning disinterest as if the picture of Arttu holding himself against six men isn’t playing on repeat in his head. Jareth doesn’t even like good guys. They’re boring and predictable. But there’ssomethingabout Arttu that draws him in.

“He has pretty good close combat training," Annikki keeps needling.

“It seems that way.”

Jareth really doesn’t want to think too closely about it. In his line of business, he has long since mapped out his sexuality and explored his kinks. He thought that there wasn’t much in terms of sexual attraction that could surprise him. Until a stranger who fearlessly fought six men to protect his friend stepped backward into Jareth’s arms to let him handle the situation. And Jareth would have taken any bet that Arttu knew who was standing behind him if the way he had gone perfectly still before Jareth even touched him was any indication. Thinking about the blind trust of the gesture does something to Jareth’s insides. What the hell?

“Do you need anything else, boss?” Annikki asks, a knowing smirk on her lips. “Or shall I leave you to look after your guest?”

“That will be all,” Jareth replies with as much dignity as he can muster. Annikki is an absolute menace. She immediately sensed that there was something special about the man currently snoring quietly in Jareth’s bed.

And it’s not as if Jareth hasn’t already made a fool of himself by practically ordering a guy he’d just met to stay the night and placing him in his private bedroom. Jareth has no idea what got into him. He isn’t known for building emotional connections with his subs, and rightfully so. Usually, he can’t stand the thought of someone intruding on his private life, with few exceptions. He can tolerate Annikki, and Rose, a former colleague from his pathology days, and even his parents, but that’s pretty much it. Feeling drawn to a person at first sight isn’t something he usually experiences.

“Have fun.” Annikki leaves with a wave and a grin. Why is he paying her again?