Publisher's Summary Protecting him was just to supposed to be another job. Until it wasn’t. Two years after surviving a brutal attack from members of his own unit, former Special Forces soldier Cruz de la Vega has found new purpose working for an underground vigilante group that offers justice when the law can’t. When he’s assigned to figure out who attacked a local gay rights activist, Cruz expects it to be just another job. But when it comes to protecting Elliot Wittier, he soon learns that the last thing he wants is for the intriguing young man to be just another job. At 25 years old, Elliot Wittier is well on his way to having the perfect life. As the head of a hugely successful investment firm and the founder of a prominent foundation, he should be on top of the world. But looks can be deceiving and Elliot knows how to play the game. With the fear of failing the two most important people in his life always at the forefront of his mind, Elliot keeps an iron-grip on the control that has served him so well in the past. But when a violent attack leaves him vulnerable, Elliot’s carefully constructed world starts to fracture. As he struggles to keep the threat under wraps, he’s thrown off guard when a gorgeous stranger takes an interest in him at a Halloween themed benefit. Throwing caution to the wind, Elliot decides to allow himself the freedom that being with the enigmatic Cruz de la Vega brings for just one night. But what happens when one night isn’t enough? Or when the past catches up with the present? Can what two men found in each other in just twenty-four hours really last a lifetime? Although it features several characters from my other books and is part of the “Protectors” world, Protecting Elliot is a stand-alone novella that can serve as a great way to get a feel for the Protectors/Barretti/Finding universe I’ve created. In regards to the timeline of events, Protecting Elliot occurs after Book 9 in my Protectors series, but it is not necessary to read/li