Falling For My Grumpy Bodyguard

Chapter 3

Damien

Have you ever just sat in your car, staring at a pile of money someone threw at you, wondering what dimension you woke up in? Because that’s exactly where I was, parked outside St. Mercy’s hospital, with twenty-dollar bills scattered on my passenger seat like confetti at a cheap parade.

I blinked at it. Then I laughed. Not a little chuckle either. I laughed so hard the couple walking past gave me side-eye like I was unhinged. Couldn’t blame them though. Some random brunette had stormed into my car, treated me like her personal chauffeur, barked out orders like an angry boss, and then paid me off like she was settling debt with a loan shark.

“Is this how much she thinks I’m worth?” I picked up one of the bills, turning it over between my fingers. It felt so crisp and smelled like a perfume that was probably hers. “What am I now, a vending machine?”

Before I could decide whether to laugh again or be insulted, my phone rang. My assistant's name displayed on the screen so I answered, putting him on speaker. “Yeah?”

“Boss?” His voice cracked like he had just sprinted a mile. “What happened? We were literally on the phone like two minutes ago, and then you hung up mid-sentence. I thought you got kidnapped.”

“Relax, Leo. I’m fine.”

“Fine? You’re supposed to be outside the venue still, and you’re not here. Where the hell are you?”

I smirked at the bills in my hand. “You’re not going to believe this, but some crazy woman climbed into the car. Just opened the door like she owned it. She didn’t even look at me, before she started giving directions.”

“Boss, you let a stranger in your car?”

“She didn’t give me a choice. She was already buckled up before I could blink. So yeah, I took her where she wanted to go.”

Leo groaned so loudly it buzzed through the speaker. “That’s rich, considering you’re not the type to bend to anyone’s will. You don’t even listen to me half the time. You’re the one always giving orders. So now I’m wondering how good she must've looked for you to actually obey?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” My jaw tightened. He didn’t need to know how her face still lingered in my head, or how one look had knocked me off my senses.

“Really, boss?” I couldn’t see his face, but I knew he was smirking on the other end. He really enjoyed pushing, but I wasn't about to give in. “Anyway, whatever. The client’s getting impatient. Where are you now?”

“Now I’m at St. Mercy’s Hospital. With a couple of twenties she threw at me like I’m an Uber driver.”

There was silence before a quiet snort. “Wait, wait. She paid you off? Boss, please tell me you recorded this. I need to hear you being treated like a taxi driver.”

“Shut up, Leo.”

“No seriously. This is gold.”

I rubbed my jaw, shaking my head. “She seemed… in a hurry. I didn’t even get a chance to ask who she was before she bolted inside.”

“Boss, that’s not normal. Are you sure she wasn’t running from something?”

“I don’t know.” My eyes drifted to the back seat, and that’s when I noticed it. A little pink rectangle peeking out from the corner like it was hiding. I reached back, picked it up, and held it in my hand. “Wait a second…”

“What?”

“She left her phone.”

Leo’s gasp was dramatic enough to belong in a soap opera. “She what? Boss, no. Don’t hang up on me again. I know that tone. You’re about to do something impulsive—”

But I was already staring at the phone, curiosity bubbling. It had one of those glittery cases with a charm dangling from the corner. Definitely not mine. Definitely hers.

“Boss! I swear if you—”

I ended the call before he could finish, the click cutting him off mid-rant.

They say curiosity kills cats, but thankfully, I wasn't a cat. I slid out of the car, tucked the mystery phone into my palm, and headed toward the hospital entrance.

Inside, it was not so… pleasant. There were kids crying, nurses speed-walking like they were late to a marathon, and that sharp hospital smell stabbing my nose. The receptionist at the front desk was typing so aggressively her keyboard might file a complaint.

I stepped up, clearing my throat. “Excuse me. Have you seen a woman come in here? Brunette, long hair, fancy dress. Kind of… dramatic.”

Without even looking up, she muttered, “We’ve had at least twenty-four brunettes come in today. You’ll have to be more specific.”

I stared at her. Was she serious? Twenty-four brunettes?

“Okay,” I tried again, “she had long dark brown hair that reached her waist, brown eyes, and she was dressed in expensive clothes and heels.”

Finally, the receptionist glanced up only for me to see an unimpressed look in her eyes. “Still too vague.”

I pinched the bridge of my nose. Patience, Damien. You’ve dealt with board meetings worse than this. “Look, she left her phone in my car. I need to get it back to her.”

She arched her brow. “That’s not my problem.”

My jaw tightened. I didn’t want to cause a scene, but the woman wasn’t making it easy. Out of frustration, I accidentally brushed the phone screen with my thumb and the lock screen lit up.

There she was, smiling in a selfie, lip gloss shining, confidence all over her face. The same brunette who had treated me like her driver just five minutes ago.

I turned the phone toward the receptionist. “Her. She’s the one I’m looking for. Do you recognize her?”

The receptionist’s eyes flicked to the screen, then back to me. For the first time, her expression shifted from boredom to surprise. “That’s Vincent Beaumont’s daughter.”

I froze. “Excuse me?”

“You didn’t know?” She leaned closer, her voice dropping. “That’s Arielle Beaumont. Her father’s the CEO of Beaumont Industries.”

Pieces clicked together in my head. No wonder she acted like the world belonged to her. No wonder she didn’t even look at me when she got in the car.

“Great,” I muttered under my breath. “Of course she is.”

But before I could ask where she was, the receptionist’s face snapped back to professional blankness. “Unfortunately, sir, family only. We can’t allow any other visitors at this time.”

I blinked. “Wait. What?”

“Only relatives are allowed access. Hospital policy.”

“You think I’m here to visit? I’m just trying to return her phone.”

“Then you’ll have to come back later. Or wait in the lobby.”

I stared at her, stunned. After everything, after being hijacked and humiliated, I couldn’t even hand the damn phone back?

“You’ve got to be kidding me.”

But she wasn’t. She just tapped her keyboard again, already dismissing me like I was background noise.