Chapter 131 - The Lounge Meeting 2 (2/2)

Even the two men waiting outside unintentionally let out a sigh of admiration upon seeing her, their eyes going wide for a split-second before remembering who they are and who she is.

”Shall we go?” she says, closing the door. ”What's your name, by the way?”

”I…uhh,” the man stammers, not expecting the Big Boss's fiancée to be asking his name. ”I'm Mike, Miss Claire. And my companion here is Luke.”

”You've been working for Gabriel for how long?” Claire's curiosity is piqued. Also, she feels she should know the people upon whose shoulders her personal safety depends. She's read somewhere that it makes bodyguards more efficient when they care about you.

”I've worked for him ever since I got discharged from the Army,” Mike says. ”Honorably discharged.”

”Do you usually guard his women?” Claire is fishing.

Mike's face reddens. He makes a dismissive laugh. ”Oh, no, Miss Claire. Luke and me, we usually get posted in establishing security of Mr. Gabriel's businesses. Whenever he needs people he can trust, we're the first in line. We're actually a big team, and securing the safety of personnel is quite rare.”

”You haven't really answered my question,” Claire smiles.

Mike pauses. ”We used to do errands for his ex, Miss Michelle Alcantara. But that's about it. Mr. Gabriel, as far as I know, is a one-woman man. I've never seen him play around. You're only the other woman, after Michelle, that I've seen him with.” Mike presses the elevator buŧŧon and lets his companion step inside first, then Claire, before he closes the door. ”Between you and me, Miss Claire, I've never seen Mr. Gabriel this happy. Would that be sufficient answer to your question?”

Clever, Claire thinks. She couldn't help but smile. ”Thank you, Mike. I've never been this happy, too.” Then she remembers why they're going down on the elevator in the wee hours of the morning, and she sighs. ”But happiness comes at a price, no?”

”Don't worry, Ma'am,” Mike says. ”Miguel Tan is a non-problem. Everything will be alright.”

But as they enter the lounge, and in the far corner, a man suddenly stands up, a man she easily recognizes as Miguel, wobbling as he stands, yelling like some common drunk, ”Claire-Bella, isss sooo good to see you!” she realizes maybe Mike is mistaken. Maybe not everything is destined to be alright, after all.