She could ruin him and his family, and he is tasked to protect her. Now, Xavier not only needs to watch his back–he also has to watch his heart.

***

Xavier: The Contract is releasing on Tuesday, the 27th of February, and I can't wait for the day to come. I had a blast writing this story–the first book of the new Indie Rebel series–and I'm so excited to share it with you.

Not long to go before the 27th, but here's chapter one right now to whet your appetite. Enjoy!

Xavier: The Contract Chapter One

“Keep going,” Xavier Stirling grunted, adjusting his arms’ and legs’ grips around the thick horizontal logs he was dangling from, his muscles straining. He stopped to crane his neck and look at the other man who was groaning in agony.

“Argh!” Jaxon Caine, the millionaire owner of a tax agency franchise, pushed the bar past the next barrier on the pull-up ladder segment of Obstacle X, his biceps taut. He tried to advance further, but he lost his grip and dropped to the heavily cushioned floor.

Xavier climbed down and clapped. “Excellent work. That’s the farthest you’ve gone, and your time’s improved too.”

Jaxon reached for his water bottle, his breathing laboured. “Thanks. But seriously, bro, don’t slow down for me next time. I need to know how I’m keeping up with you when you’re full steam ahead.”

Xavier chuckled. “I didn’t slow down that much. You’ve done well. But we should keep concentrating first on your upper body strength before we work on improving your speed.”

“Well, my new girlfriend’s impressed with speed,” Jaxon said with a grin. “But I couldn’t have continued anyway. I have to run for an important meeting.”

“Excuses, excuses,” Xavier teased. “I won’t let you get off as lightly next time.”

Jaxon laughed, heading to the men’s shower room. “I don’t expect you to. See you Monday. Enjoy your weekend.”

“You too, bro.”

Xavier wiped his face with a towel and glanced at the people congregated by the entrance to the Obstacle X room. There were still five minutes left of Jaxon’s one-on-one session, but several members of A to X Fitness— Xavier’s gym in Sydney’s central business district—were already waiting to use the room’s facilities. He was heartened that the three hour-long blocks each day when the Obstacle X room was available to regular members were very popular.

“You can go in, guys,” he said to them.

He was proud of his newly refurbished gym. He’d hesitated to lay out a large sum to create this obstacle course, especially since it took up a lot of space where he could have put more exercise machines or group classrooms. But he’d taken the risk. He wouldn’t have gotten some of his personal training clients if it wasn’t for this obstacle course. Now, he even employed two fitness trainers who used to be his competitors, and they’d brought their own loyal clients who were eager to be trained on Obstacle X.

It would still take several more months to break even with his investment, though, with rent here in the city being so expensive. Thankfully, with A to X Fitness being right on the ground level of a forty-five-floor commercial building on busy George Street, a number of executives who worked long hours—including Jaxon—found the location very convenient.

Xavier grinned, remembering Jaxon’s comment about his new girlfriend. The man appeared totally smitten with the Olympic gold-medal-winning triathlete he’d met a few months ago.

Speaking of smitten…

He snorted. He wasn’t at all smitten, but he hurried out towards the main gym floor, scanning each person using the elliptical machines in search of the stunning brunette who’d caught the attention of every single cell of his body the first time he’d seen her.

To his disappointment, his mystery woman wasn’t there again.

She’d stepped onto an elliptical last Monday at one in the afternoon. He knew because he’d happened to check the time right before she’d come into his view. He’d been immediately bowled over. And to his delight, she’d returned on Tuesday and Wednesday around the same time.

But he hadn’t seen her at all yesterday, and there was no sign of her again today.

He should have approached her earlier, but he’d baulked at picking up a woman in his place of business. The last thing he’d wanted was to set an example to his staff that would encourage them to flirt with the customers. But now, he wanted to smack himself for missing the opportunity.

He turned around to do some paperwork in his small office, but stopped in his tracks. He gaped at the woman coming out of a dance-exercise class. This time, her chestnut-brown hair, which was usually in a bun, was in a ponytail.

She was here after all, and he let out a sigh of relief.

Or several sighs of relief.

Or whatever, because his breathing had shallowed and his heart was suddenly beating like crazy, as if he’d jumped on one of the ellipticals and pushed himself hard from the get-go.

Damn. He just had to meet her.

Without another thought, he walked towards her. “Excuse me.”

“Yes?”

His breath hitched again when her beautiful chocolate-coloured eyes met his gaze. “My name is Xavier, and I’m one of the personal trainers here. I noticed that you’re a new customer. I was wondering what you think of A to X Fitness?”

Ugh, lame. But he had nothing else prepared.

She cocked her head, regarding him curiously. “How do you know I’m a new client? I bet there are many casual customers coming here all the time.”

Whoa, he hadn’t expected that. He looked around, ensuring none of his staff could hear him, and let out an embarrassed chuckle. “I’m sorry. That was actually my way of asking your name.”

To his relief, she laughed.

“I see. That still doesn’t explain how you knew I’m a new customer.”

Okay, this hadn’t started the way he wanted. He wasn’t usually a bumbling idiot when it came to women. He sent her an apologetic smile that he hoped conveyed he wasn’t being a creep. “I first noticed you on Monday, and I know you haven’t been here before then. I would have remembered you otherwise. And, no, I don’t notice everybody new who comes in here.”

She stared at him for a long moment before her face broke into a smile. “Okay, I’ll buy that.”

“Phew.” He brushed off imaginary sweat from his forehead and grinned.

“So do you really work here, or was that just a line?”

“I really work here,” he said with a laugh. “And apart from wanting to meet you, I do want to know how you’re liking this gym.” If she enjoyed it here, then she’d keep coming back, wouldn’t she?

“I like it a lot. The facilities are great, the classes on offer are excellent, and the staff are fantastic. Unfortunately, you don’t have a branch in Adelaide.”

“What do you mean?”

“I’m only here in Sydney for a week. I’m from Adelaide, and I go back on Sunday.”

His spirits crashed. “Really?”

“Yeah, really.” She sounded equally disappointed.

“Shame. So you’re only just visiting?”

“Yeah. Actually, I came for a job interview and decided to enjoy a week’s break here also.”

He perked up. “So you could be moving to Sydney?”

She shrugged. “I won’t know for another week or two. But I’ve been having fun playing tourist.”

“Need a guide for the weekend?” he asked teasingly.

She chuckled. “Thanks, but I already have things planned. Anyway, I have to go. It was nice meeting you, Xavier.” She gave him a small wave before walking towards the ladies’ change room.

“So your name is…?” he called out.

She turned around. “Eve.”

“So, Eve,” he said, approaching her. “If you get the job you applied for, will you come back here and take me up on my offer to be your tour guide?”

She laughed. “Okay.”

“Well, then, I wish you the very best of luck in getting the job.” He put his right palm against his chest to further convey his sincerity.

“Thank you,” she said with a chuckle.

“You know, I have half an hour for a coffee…”

Eve gave him a pretty smile. “Next time.”

He watched her walk away. What a real damned shame that she lived in another state. He’d just have to forget about her until she came back. If she ever came back.

“Xavier.”

He turned around in surprise at the sound of his father’s voice. “Hey, Dad. What are you doing here?”

“Thought I’d pop by,” Gerald answered. “Place looks packed.”

“Obstacle X is waiting for you,” he teased. “Where’s your exercise gear?”

Gerald simply laughed. “Hey, I want to talk to you about something. Can we talk in private?”

“Sure.” Xavier led his father to his small office, which overlooked the main gym floor on one side, and the Obstacle X room on the other.

“What’s up, Dad?”

“Anything weird happening lately?”

He frowned. “Weird? What do you mean?”

Gerald pulled out a folded piece of paper from his pocket. “I don’t want you to be alarmed, because I’ve already gone to the police with this.”

Xavier took the paper and unfolded it. The hairs on his arms and neck stood as he read the three sentences in the middle of the sheet.

YOU STIRLINGS ARE ROSS ANTON’S PARTNERS. STIRLING MORTGAGE BROKERS IS A COVER FOR ALL YOUR CRIMES. WATCH OUT, BECAUSE WHY SHOULDN’T YOU PAY TOO?

“Where’d you get this?”

“In the mail. That’s a copy. The police took the original when I first told them about it.”

“When?”

“Last month.”

Xavier scowled. “You got this a month ago and you didn’t tell me?”

“I didn’t want you to worry. Anyway, the police said it most likely came from an angry client who feels betrayed by our company. As you know, there are some who were downright appalled that someone like Ross could have had access to their private information.”

“What makes them think that?”

“Well, they found fingerprints on the original letter and envelope, but they didn’t match anything in their database. Apparently, that’s a very good thing, because if the writer is in any way connected to Ross’s crimes, either they would have been more careful not to leave their fingerprints everywhere on it, or they would already have a police record. That’s why the detectives believe it’s just a disgruntled client who’s still scared that their details might have been stolen by Ross. And that it came to our PO Box was positive too.”

“So what else are the police doing about this?”

Gerald shrugged. “They’re still investigating. They did also ask me to remind you and your sister to keep an eye out for anything suspicious, although that will always be difficult in Holly’s case,” he added with a sigh.

Xavier himself took a deep breath. With his sister being a superstar pop singer with a few overzealous fans, how would she be able to tell the difference between star-struck admirers and possibly dangerous individuals?

At least Holly now had a bodyguard. The whole family had forced her to hire one after Ross’s arrest.

“And they also asked again if I remember Ross mentioning Eugene Barker to me,” Gerald said. “Frankly, I don’t believe Ross ever had dealings with Barker. I don’t think he’s that big of a criminal. But you know what? It still makes my skin crawl every time I think we were even close friends with that Ross, not to mention had him as our marketing director. Thank God we were able to buy back his shares.”

“Yeah.”

“Anyway, that’s all. I better leave you to it. I gotta get back to work myself.”

Xavier walked his father to the exit. “See you in a day or two—when you come back for a private training session with me.”

“I’ll let you know when I’m ready,” Gerald said with a chuckle, stopping at the foyer to give him a back slap. “See you on Tuesday at home for dinner. Don’t forget that Holly’s leaving for her big North American tour, so we won’t see her for months.”

“As if I’ll miss that. Anyway, let me know if you get any more anonymous messages, ’kay?”

“Okay, but I really think it’s all harmless. Like the police said, it’s probably just a former client venting a little.”

“Let’s hope—”

“Bye, Xavier,” Eve said as she walked past them towards the exit.

His heartbeat instantly spiked. “See you later,” he enunciated.

She laughed. “I hope so.”

“Who was that?” Gerald asked in a low voice.

“A customer,” he answered, busy watching his mystery woman walk out the glass door.

“I mean, what’s her name?”

He filled his lungs with air. “Eve.”

“You seem… enamoured.”

He scoffed. “Enamoured? Not at all, Dad.”

“Well, you’re still gawking at her,” Gerald teased.

Xavier forced himself to peel his gaze off Eve to look at his father. “I want a date or two with her, that’s all. I’m hardly enamoured. Besides, she lives in Adelaide, so there’s not much point pursuing anything.”

Gerald wrinkled his nose in disappointment. “Yeah, long-distance relationships don’t often work. But you should really think about finding a partner you can settle down with. You’re thirty now.”

“Thirty-two,” he said with an eye roll. His father could never get his and Holly’s ages right these days.

“See? I already had two kids at that age.”

“Aren’t you supposed to go back to work?”

“Fine,” Gerald said. “See you Tuesday.”

“See you, Dad.”

He walked out the door with Gerald, waving goodbye. But his eyes scanned for Eve.

No luck. He couldn’t spot her amongst the lunchtime crowd milling around George Street.

Shaking his head, he walked back to his office. He gazed out the window to watch people use the machines and smiled. At least Eve liked his gym.

Actually, he’d been thinking of expanding. Perhaps Adelaide could be a good location for his first branch outside of Sydney.

He snorted. It intrigued him just how attracted he was to a complete stranger. The pull to want to have some fun with her was strong.

That was all, though, nothing more. He wasn’t the long-term-relationship kind of guy. Not anymore. His desire for anything permanent with a woman had died with Gail. He had enough happening in his life not to want to work on something that could be taken away without warning.

A dull, distant sadness instantly clouded over him at the memory of his last girlfriend. Sadly, Gail hadn’t survived a middle-of-the-night attack five years ago, when her drug-crazed neighbour had driven a knife into her stomach after she’d refused to hand him money.

Xavier crossed his arms. He still laid some blame on the police for Gail’s passing. They’d taken over half an hour to get to Gail’s place after her neighbours had reported hearing loud arguments from her apartment. Gail might not have bled to death if they’d prioritised the call. Worse, they still had no idea where her neighbour had disappeared to. Now, Gail’s case was considered as cold.

He rubbed his face, remembering the dark despair he’d fallen into following her death.

Then the murder of his client-turned-friend, Richard McCarthy, a mere five months after Gail’s had threatened to drag him down further. But looking for evidence against Richard’s killer had pulled him out of the abyss. He hadn’t wanted another person close to him be denied the justice they deserved.

Unfortunately, Richard’s killer was still at large too.

He’d always suspected Ross Anton to be the murderer, but his parents’ former business partner had staunchly denied it during his arrest ten months ago. Subsequent police investigations pointed to Ross telling the truth about being a thief only, not a killer.

He frowned, remembering the note his dad had shown him.

After several stressful months of putting out fires created by Ross’s arrest, Xavier hoped his parents weren’t about to face worse times with their clients.

He had a bad feeling about it, though, especially when Ross had warned him something like this could happen.

Unbidden, the day of Ross’s arrest played back in his head.

* * *

Xavier glared at Richard’s murderer. Finally, the bastard was being arrested, and Xavier was more than glad he was present to see it.

Ross Anton caught him staring as two detectives led him to an unmarked police car. “Xavier! I didn’t kill anyone. Yes, I stole, but I’m not a murderer. You have to believe me before it’s too late.”

“Too late for what, Ross?” he asked in a bored tone, not surprised that the man was trying to save his ass. Ross was narcissistic enough to believe he could get away with anything.

“Mr. Anton, you’ve been cautioned about your rights,” Detective Swanson said.

Ross glared at the detective. “If you believe I’m the one responsible for killing all those people, then you won’t be looking for the puppet master! He could very well go after everyone involved in my arrest. Everyone who’s here today! Even Xavier’s parents could be in danger.”

“Leave my parents out of this,” Xavier said coldly.

“But they’re my business partners!”

“They know nothing about who you really are and what you’ve done.”

“They might have been clueless about me, but that won’t protect them. The puppet master is as paranoid as he is ruthless. He won’t hesitate to get rid of anyone involved with me, now that I’m in police custody.”

“Mr. Anton,” Detective Swanson said with impatience. “You’ll make things easier for yourself if you tell us who this supposed puppet master is.”

“I already told you, I’m not going to say his name until I’m guaranteed complete protection by the police. And I bet you you’ll want to make a deal with me. He’s one of the most cunning and sickest criminals you could ever know.”

“We’ll see,” Swanson said, making to close the car door.

Ross leaned sideways to prevent it from shutting. “I have the right to contact a relative or a friend, right?”

“Yes, you can do that at the station.”

“I’d like Xavier to be my call-a-friend. Give me a couple of minutes of privacy with him, then I’ll tell you who the puppet master is.”

Swanson narrowed her eyes.

Ross sighed. “I want to apologise to Xavier’s parents, and he can deliver my message to them. Gerald and Adele have been good friends to me. I don’t want them thinking I’ve stolen from them or messed with the business.”

Swanson exchanged a glance with Detective Harris before raising her eyebrows at Xavier.

Xavier shrugged. “If he’s going to tell us who the puppet master is—if there’s really a puppet master—then I’m fine with it.”

Swanson nodded, opening the back window before closing the door. “When we come back, you’ll give us his name,” she warned Ross before she and Harris walked away.

Xavier stared at Ross impassively. He had no idea what was going on in the man’s mind, but he doubted Ross suddenly felt sorry for all his misdeeds.

“I need your help,” Ross whispered, glancing furtively at the detectives’ retreating backs.

Xavier laughed dryly. “Seriously? But I don’t know how to pick handcuffs yet.”

“Listen to me! The puppet master is one motherfucker named Eugene Barker, and the police—”

“Eugene Barker?” Xavier asked sharply. He’d heard of the man. Barker’s face had been all over the news over a year ago, when he’d somehow escaped from police custody while being transferred to a maximum-security prison. He was a wanted man in several countries, reportedly heading multiple international crime syndicates involved in money laundering, white-collar crimes and artwork trafficking. Most chilling of all, he apparently left a lot of dead bodies in his wake.

Ross sat up straighter, his gaze intense. “I know you’ve heard of him, so listen and listen well. I’m sure the police will offer me a deal in exchange for more information about Barker, since they’re so desperate to catch him. But just because I’ll have police protection doesn’t mean I’ll be safe. He’s got minions in and out of jail. He could get me there too. And I’m telling you, Xavier, it will only be a matter of time before he sets his sights on your family. He’ll off people if he suspects they could be a threat to him. He needsto be caught.”

“You should have given him up much earlier, then, shouldn’t you?”

Ross shook his head. “I was too scared. He would have killed me without warning if he even had a sniff of me wanting to go to the police. But now, I don’t have any other choice. For all our sakes, Barker has to be found. He’ll start hiding again now. He knows how to disappear into thin air.”

Xavier frowned at Ross, taking in what the man was saying. The puppet master was the Eugene Barker? Damn.

“But I’ve heard of people who are also after Eugene Barker,” Ross said conspiratorially. “They’ve been instrumental in getting some of Barker’s men caught, even if the police are too arrogant to admit that fact. I’m happy to give them details about Barker too, so they or the police can catch the bastard once and for all. They’re not easy to find, but I have info on how you can get in touch with them.”

Xavier snorted. “Me? Are you kidding me? You want me to act as a go-between for you and some… what… vigilantes?”

“Yes! Consider this. Police from here, the US, Canada, the UK, Germany—they’ve been searching for Barker for years. Years, Xavier. And the one time our police managed to get him, he escaped. So frankly, I don’t want to rest my hopes on the police. We need the Indie Rebels’ help.”

“Indie Rebels?”

“That’s what they’re called.”

Xavier shook his head. “I don’t think I should trust anything coming out of your mouth right now. I think you’re just trying to trick me into doing something for you.”

“I’m not!” Ross insisted. “I’m telling you that the police have proven to be inept when it comes to getting Barker. We could all be dead before they even turn up at the scene of the crime.”

Xavier inhaled sharply, an image of Gail flashing in his mind. He knew damned well what it meant for the police to arrive too late.

“Everything okay here?” Detective Harris asked as he and his partner returned.

“Ross has a name for you,” Xavier quipped.

“Give it up,” Harris said, looking inside the car window.

Ross’s lips curved mirthlessly. “Eugene Barker.”

Harris shot Swanson a startled glance.

“I’ll tell you everything I know,” Ross said, “as long as it doesn’t come out that I’ve ratted him out.”

“How much do you know?”

“A lot. And that’s all I’m saying until I talk to my lawyer.”

Harris glared at the captive, then opened the car door to close the window.

Swanson motioned for Xavier to move away from the vehicle. “Thank you. We weren’t expecting this at all. But if Ross is telling the truth, then you guys do have to be careful. Once Barker learns that Ross is in custody, he might start looking at the people close to Ross—including your parents.”

“But why?”

“If Ross does know a lot about Barker, then Barker might get nervous that we’ve got Ross. Not to scare you, but Barker’s well-known for shutting up people who he thinks might have information that could be detrimental to his syndicate.”

Xavier raked his hair. “I hope you don’t mind me asking, Detective. But why on earth are the police having a hard time catching this man?”

Swanson sighed. “He’s a master at hiding. He has a lot of cronies. Mind you, we’ve already caught some of his partners, but he’s always been one step ahead. He’s definitely not someone to be underestimated. Anyway, we’ll be in touch again soon. We need to talk to Ross more. In the meantime, I suggest you don’t talk about Eugene Barker’s supposed connection with Ross to anyone. That could help ensure you don’t get onto Barker’s radar.”

“Okay. Have you heard of the Indie Rebels?”

Swanson frowned. “What do you know about them?”

“I’ve never heard of them until Ross mentioned them just now. He said they’ve helped you guys catch some of Barker’s people.”

“The Indie Rebels are a vigilante gang, Xavier,” Swanson warned. “Stay well away from them. Don’t believe that they can do a better job than the police—because they can’t. Now, what else did Ross say about them?”

“That’s it. He said he doesn’t know anyone from the group, that’s why he wants me to find them.”

“Well, ignore Ross. We’ll deal with him. And if you find out anything about the Indie Rebels, let me know. We don’t want them taking matters into their own hands.”

Xavier nodded, refraining from mentioning that Ross appeared to know how to contact the Indie Rebels. Instinct told him it was better to keep that information to himself.

* * *

Xavier was startled by the tapping on his office window, pulling him out of his thoughts. One of his customers was waving at him.

He smiled and waved back, then went to sit in his chair.

He hadn’t heard anything from the police that their arrangement with Ross Anton had been broken or cancelled. As far as he knew, the police were still pretending that Ross had not revealed his connection to Barker to anyone.

Had Barker stopped buying that story? Did he believe that the Stirlings had information about him and his syndicate?

Out of all possibilities regarding the note his parents had received, Xavier feared this one was the truth. Unfortunately, there was nothing he could do but trust that the police were on top of this.

The Indie Rebels popped in his mind and he shook his head to clear it. He was sure Ross had been exaggerating about their success.

He got up from his chair to wait outside for his next client.

Had Eve seen him on Obstacle X? Perhaps she’d be impressed if she saw him on it.

He laughed out loud. Where the hell did that thought come from?

**End of Chapter One**

That's all for today. Keep an eye out for chapter two tomorrow!

Preorder Xavier: The Contract

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Store link to Google Play will be available on release day.

Love,

Miranda xo