Reviewed by Taylin
TITLE: Guarding His Heart
SERIES: Bad Boy Security #1
AUTHOR: R. Cayden
PUBLISHER: Self-Published
RELEASE DATE: February 19, 2020
LENGTH: 226 pages
BLURB:
A battered man, down on his luck and forced into a job he never wanted…
After a couple decades playing bodyguard for mobsters, Declan thought he’d finally managed to retire. Too bad his old boss had another idea.
At least the gig looked easy. Watching over some scientist with a rich father, secluded off in a mansion in the woods. Declan didn’t expect much more than quiet, boring days.
Then came the intruders. Home invaders with secret conspiracies? Those he could handle.
But love? Never saw the damn thing coming.
A young scientist, determined to do right in a dangerous world…
Sebastian’s path in life was set the second his father shipped him off to schools for the gifted.
Devoted to his research, he pretended the outside world didn’t exist at all. He had everything under control, until the day a threat surfaced: a plot to kidnap Sebastian and demand millions in ransom for his release.
Enter the bodyguard. Twenty years older, with silver hair, gleaming eyes, and tattoos crawling up his muscles. A man who growled when he talked and promised to keep Sebastian safe.
Declan built walls around his heart, and shy Sebastian knows not to fall for a man like that. But as the flames between them grow hotter, will Sebastian learn to open his own heart in time for something real to finally break through?
REVIEW:
Declan grew up in a family of criminals. But when feuds and interests took a turn in a direction he couldn’t reconcile, he left. He went to work as security for the MOB. Not much of an upgrade, but one he could live with. When past his prime he retired. When his ex-boss, Big Paolo took everything Declan had, and more, in a game of poker – to pay the debt, Declan took one last security job. On the surface, the assignment looked simple enough. Declan was to be a bodyguard to the son of a filthy rich man from a local group who were threatening him. Declan soon discovered nothing was as it seemed.
Sebastian is a gifted scientist who is more than happy to spend most of his time in his million-dollar laboratory and lose himself to his work. Seb though is no fool. He knows his father is exploiting him – A father who thinks more of his investment baker than his son. When Seb meets Declan, for the first time in an age, he is distracted from his work.
This is a story that I truly enjoyed. There is much to like. The cast is not large, which suited me down to the ground, saving me any confusion. They are also amusing. Loved Alexandria. Declan and Seb could not be more different, in body, education, life experiences and family. Yet, they find common ground and a need that the other satisfies. Declan knows his security and will do anything to keep Seb safe. Seb though is no wilting flower. One can never underestimate a science geek. He may not be able to throw a punch, but he has other ways to fight back.
The story is told in the third person from Declan and Seb’s viewpoint. Technically speaking, it’s not perfect, but I haven’t read a book that is. Other than a couple of autonomous body parts, namely the eyes, nothing is glaring.
Declan is what Seb describes as a white hat. A good guy in a bad industry. As adorable as Declan is, given the man’s background as a bodyguard to the mob, I found it a bit of a stretch to believe he’d never kill or killed anyone. But, hey-ho, I guess anything is possible and Declan is delicious. My only other niggle is the use of the phrase, ‘come for me’. Thankfully, it is only used once, but it is a phrase that, to me personally, firmly belongs in my room 101. Other readers may not be affected by it at all.
Re the events in the story, I found them well-paced and suitably dramatic, or delightfully sneaky. Declan and Seb are the underdogs who find themselves battling against powerful people with an agenda. Every time there’s a break-in the stakes are elevated. Thankfully the teaming of brains and brawn is a winning combination. I look forward to others in the series.
RATING: 
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