CHAPTER TWO
Her mother had gone ahead and hired her some bodyguard, even after explicit instructions not to.
Gabby Montgomery was highly annoyed by this. In fact, she was so annoyed that she ended up packing her bags as fast as she could and leaving on the earliest available flight without even having her morning tea with her mother—a ritual that they did daily and only missed when they were in some kind of fight. They weren’t exactly in a fight right now, but it was a silent message to her mother that she didn’t like what Henrietta Montgomery did.
Her mother probably heard the rumors about some kidnapping attempt for her in exchange for something important, and Gabby couldn’t blame her mother for worrying right away. Henrietta always worried, even over the smallest or most trivial of things. The kidnapping rumor certainly wasn’t trivial.
It was also decidedly true.
Gabby remembered when they received the intel that kidnappers were on the move again with her attendance in this international business affair right now—an event that couldn’t exactly be missed, considering it involved furthering their business to other factions of the supernatural world. It had been considered for Lucy Marlow, her cousin, to attend in her place—until they remembered that Lucy had been kidnapped more times than she and probably couldn’t handle a fight or two. Gabby was better trained when it came to fighting back, and she had been pretty insistent on being the one to attend.
When Gabby insisted, there was no stopping her.
Unfortunately, there was nothing she could do about the bodyguard. She could see him trailing her now on a motorcycle, following her limousine when she thought she’d escaped him by leaving the mansion early. Gabby hadn’t exactly met the guy before, having no interest to do so, but it looked like she had no choice.
She avoided him in the private jet she rented, which was big enough that she could disappear in the private quarters without being bothered. She even avoided him on the ride to the hotel and in the hotel itself, considering they had separate rooms. But once she was at the event, there really was no avoiding her bodyguard anymore—every time she turned around there he was.
London was a pretty cool and elegant city, and the event attendees were just as cool and elegant as it was.
And her bodyguard stood out.
He had orange-colored hair—like carrots, but also like rust, and it surprised her so much that Gabby found herself staring at it for the first few seconds. He was wearing a suit—a black dress shirt and slacks, then a black coat that fit him to a tee. Even with the formal attire, he looked dangerous—the kind of dangerous that could knock you out without a word and walk away whistling. He was so…brusque-looking, with the broadest shoulders she’d seen and an I don’t care aura surrounding him. A shiver ran down her spine.
Then she looked into his eyes, which were hazel and the loveliest color she’d seen in a while.
This time, the shiver that ran down her was different.
Ignoring it, she raised a brow.
“You don’t have to follow me everywhere, you know,” she said, keeping her voice light. “I’m Gabrielle Montgomery, and I’m trained to handle most fights.”
Most men would have taken that as a signal that she refused to be babied. But to her surprise, the guy merely shrugged, the move almost lazy. “I’m Jake Kismet, and I’m trained to handle all fights.”
She blinked. Then, trying to be reasonable, she tried to re-word what she just said. “Stop following me. I don’t like being followed.”
He should have gone away, considering he was paid to follow orders. But the guard shifter named Jake merely smirked.
“Too bad. You’re not straying out of my sight.”
He said it with such authority that she could only stare at him again. Then, realizing she didn’t have a comeback, Gabby did what she often did when things didn’t go her way.
She ignored him.
The event was upscale, with all kinds of important people on the guest list—guests like the renowned panther clan leader Isaac Hart, who was known in their circle for marking a territory of his own completely separate from their clans in New York and cutting himself off any communication or dealings with them…until now. Isaac himself wasn’t here, but his mate Roxie was, and she was currently trying to check out the scene and step out of their closed boundaries. It probably had a lot to do with Dylan Masters mating with Isaac’s sister…or it probably had a lot to do with this Roxie woman, who was a cheerful contrast to Isaac’s reputedly cold demeanor.
Roxie was being accompanied by a bodyguard of her own—a quiet, charming man who looked like he would protect her with his life. He definitely looked eager to do so. Gabby glanced at Jake again, who couldn’t quite hide the fact that he would rather be anywhere else. The dislike for her radiated off in waves, but his eyes watched her movements like a hawk without looking her directly in the eye.
Determined to keep ignoring him, Gabby chatted with Roxie for a bit, pleased to discover that the woman was as bubbly as she looked. Isaac’s mate admitted that she was actually just checking out the scene but wasn’t looking to venture into any kind of business yet outside their clan. Still, it was progress because the old panther clan would never have had anything to do with even stepping a foot here.
Gabby talked to more important people, trying to charm them and keeping ties intact. While Dylan was usually the one who handled internal political affairs, the Montgomery and the Marlow families were the ones who handled the business side of things, keeping income coming as much as they could. It had been responsibility passed on from generation to generation, and now it was Gabby’s turn.
While conversing, she was aware of Jake’s eyes and how they never left her, even an hour later. At first, she hadn’t minded because he was bound to stop paying attention eventually.
But now it really, really bothered her.
He wasn’t supposed to pay this much attention because it might ruin her plan—one she spent weeks trying to perfect. It was the exact reason why she was here in the first place.
Also, the reason why she didn’t want a bodyguard—especially not now.
How was she going to get rid of him?
A plan formed in her mind—one that involved using her…charms on him. Gabby frowned at what her mind was trying to tell her to do, then decided that it was for the best. It wasn’t exactly going to get rid of him completely, but it would make him uncomfortable enough to stop eyeing her so much.
Discomfort had a way of making things pretty awkward.
Gabby searched her mind for other options. At the same time, she heard the voice behind her.
“Miss Montgomery. A pleasant evening to you.”
With a smile, Gabby turned around to face the man whom the deep, smooth voice belonged to. The man was taller than her—way taller—with the most hypnotic brown eyes she’d ever seen in her life.
The man was also not a human man, and she knew better than to be too charmed by that kind of hypnotism. Still, Gabby tried to look like she was very interested by holding out her hand.
“Oh, please. Call me Gabby,” she said pleasantly. “It’s good to see you, Raz.”
This was step one: luring Raz in.
Later, she was going to do step two with Jake: make him very, very uncomfortable.