An entertaining short story with a mix of murder, mystery and romance.

Alex Roman, billionaire investor, finds himself in need of a bodyguard after receiving strange and threatening letters. Fortunately, his best friend, Jesse Emerson, has just returned from serving in the Air Force as a security expert and is more than willing to help him. Alex has been in love with Jesse forever, and this might just be the opportunity to make that clear.

Alex and Jesse are both really nice people, and the affection they feel for each other is apparent from page one. They would do anything for each other and have looked out for one another their entire lives. Alex has been in love with Jesse, and believes that at some point, Jesse will realize that he loves Alex back. As circumstances allow them to spend every minute of their days together, it becomes harder and harder for Alex to wait around for Jesse to see what’s in front of him. Alex takes a chance and fortunately, Jesse is open to the possibility that he does love Alex as more than just a friend.

In addition to watching Jesse try to determine what is happening with his love life, we are also dealing with the mystery of who is trying to kill Alex. There are certainly plenty of suspects. Unfortunately, the mystery was just too convoluted for such a short story. It became a bit too much and overwhelmed the romance. There were also some open loops at the end leaving me wondering why certain things happened.

If you enjoy mystery stories with best friends turning into lovers, this could fit the bill.

Originally reviewed for The Romance Reviews. Complimentary copy provided by author/publisher for an honest review.

BLURB

Billionaire Alex Roman needs a bodyguard. His best friend, Jesse Emerson, an ex-Security Forces Specialist, needs a job. What could possibly go wrong?

Jesse thinks protecting Alex will be a piece of cake. He’ll get to spend quality time with his oldest friend while avoiding his ex-girlfriend. Of course, nothing ever goes as planned. Why would Alex introduce him to everyone as his lover? And why didn’t Alex tell him about the threatening notes he’s been receiving for months?

Alex has been in love with Jesse for years, not that he’d ever admit it to his best friend, but he’s not above making a practical joke out of it. Telling everyone that Jesse is his boyfriend will go a long way toward relieving the stress of the threats he’s been plagued with recently. Unfortunately, when someone tries to shoot him at a charity gala, he discovers that maybe he needs Jesse’s skills more than he realized…

…because sometimes a billionaire’s best friend is the fake boyfriend who’s really his bodyguard.