To some who know him, Jax -- under the name Jackson Martin -- is a reputable restorer of antiquarian books. To others, in various guises, he's a man who double-crosses thieves, relieving them of what wasn't theirs to begin with ... although he doesn't return the stolen goods to their original owners. That isn't his thing.<br><br>When he's hired by Donovan, a book collector, to restore a damaged atlas, Jax meets the young man who runs Donovan's side interest, a no-kill animal shelter. Noel is wary of Jackson for reasons he can't explain. It doesn't stop him from finding Jax interesting ... an interest Jax returns despite knowing it will go nowhere.<br><br>Then Keegan, Jax's mortal enemy, appears bent on killing him. Will Jax be able to stop him before that happens? And will what he and Noel learn about each other end their budding relationship before it can become something more?

A Man of Many Parts

“Guess what we’re going to do next,” Noel said when he finished. He got up, starting toward his desk in the corner of the room.


Jax laughed, going after him. “What comes next has nothing to do with that.” He pointed to Noel’s laptop. “We’re going to walk Andre then head to bed.”


Pursing his lips, Noel seemed to think about it. Then he grinned. “Sounds like a plan to me.”


For a while, Jax thought finding a house that would work for him wasn’t going to happen. Over the following two weeks he kept the realtor busy showing him everything that was available, including ones as far away as the suburbs of the city. He apologized more than once when one that had sounded perfect wasn’t. She waved it off, telling him it was part of being a realtor. He had the feeling she was too polite to add, “With a client who is very picky.”


Finally, mid-Tuesday morning, when he was certain the whole thing was an exercise in futility, the realtor called.


Chapter 46