บท 17: LOUD AND CLEAR

Hazel went down to the patio where she saw a few family members standing in small groups, talking between themselves.

There were a few cousins and nieces, along with Gaia and Stefan, while the older family members had gone ahead to the restaurant.

It was not a rare occasion to see them flocked together and gossiping, thus Hazel didn't think too much about it.

But, when she walked past them, she could hear what they were talking about. They were pointing their fingers at a luxurious car in front of their gate, where there was a man, standing next to the door, staring into their house, as if he was waiting for someone.

Hazel had never seen the man, but the car was the same car that drove her here. There was no mistaking it, since this type of car was from a limited edition series, something that you wouldn't see every day.

"Who is that? Why does he keep staring at our house?" one of the nieces asked.

"Oh, I know that car! Whoever it is, they must be very rich!" another cousin chimed in.

"Really? Is someone in our family dating a rich man?"

The only richest man that a member of the Webster family had ever dated was Stefan and it was certain that the car was not his.

So, if it was not Stefan, then who else?

Hazel had not yet recovered from her shock when the man found her and bowed his head to her solemnly. What the heck?! Who greeted someone like that, unless you were a royal?! They didn't have this culture as well.

"What?" All of them were confused to see the man respectfully bow down in their direction.

"Is that car waiting for you?" It was Stefan, who approached Hazel and asked this question. "This is the same car that dropped you earlier, right?"

Gaia frowned when she heard that. There was no way Hazel knew someone so wealthy and had such a luxurious car.

And Stefan seemed to have taken back his words, because this kind of car couldn't be rented. In that case, who was Hazel acquainted with?

"I don't think so," Hazel said, as she was still not sure what reaction that she should show, but right at that time, the man called her name, very loud and clear, which made all of them there gasp.

"Ms. Hazel Webster, please get in the car, I will drive you to the restaurant."

The distance between the gate to the patio was not that big, therefore it didn't need a lot of effort for that man to be heard by Hazel and the other family members there.

All of them were shocked when they heard this and directed their attention to Hazel immediately, but what left her shocked the most was the fact that he knew where she wanted to go. How did he know about that when she herself didn't know where they were going?

No one had mentioned the name of the restaurant to her, or maybe they did, but Hazel simply didn't pay attention to that and since she would go with Gaia and Stefan, she didn't think it was necessary for her to ask.

"You know him?" Gaia came closer. She stood beside Stefan and hugged his arm, claiming her ownership, which made Hazel want to laugh.

Go and have this man for yourself, no one would snatch him away from you.

"Kind of," Hazel said languidly. She shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly and then tilted her head slightly, as she smiled. "I think I don't need to go with you. I am afraid I will make things uncomfortable for the two of you."

Scrap that!

Hazel didn't know who would wait for her inside the car, but to see Gaia and Stefan's shocked expressions, it was all worth it. Moreover, that strange man didn't do anything to her. He even looked… good.

And after saying her piece, Hazel walked away from them. All the way there, she could feel their gazes burning into her back. She didn't walk very fast, instead, she enjoyed their twisted looks and treated this as her red carpet walk, until she reached the gate and met this man.

"Are you sent by Archer Ashdown?" Hazel asked him politely, her tone low because she didn't want them to hear it. She was slightly nervous about this.

"No, Mr. Ashdown didn't send me."

Hazel felt her heart drop to the ground. She had put on a smug smile earlier and if he didn't come for her, they would make fun of her for the rest of her life. Ugh!

"If it is not him, then… who?" Hazel grimaced. "You said, you came here to drive me to the restaurant."

"Yes, you are right," the man smiled politely at her. "It is not Mr. Ashdown, but Alpha Micah, who sent me here to take you wherever you want."

Micah. Right. That was the name of that strange man, who seemed to have more power than the Ashdown brothers.

"Please." The man opened the car door for her respectfully, waited until Hazel had comfortably sat before closing the door. He then went to sit behind the wheel.

Hazel was quite surprised to see that nobody else was inside the car. It was only her. This man was specifically sent to drive her.

Before the door was closed, Hazel could see their ashened faces, especially Gaia and Stefan's, and she had never felt so happy like this before. It had been a very long time since Hazel felt she was ahead of Gaia and could irritate her.

Her expression was simply priceless.

"So, who are you?" Hazel asked once they hit the main road.

"My name is Gillian," the man introduced himself. "I am a royal warrior in the pack."

Hazel grimaced, she was not sure she understood what he meant. If he said something like manager, supervisor, director, or that kind of title, she would have gotten it easily…

"Maybe you can think of me as a bodyguard," Gillian replied to the unspoken question. "I was appointed as your personal chauffeur."

"You can read my mind too?!" Hazel gasped.

"Loud and clear."

RIP her privacy.