At ten o''clock that morning, Carey knocked on the door of the Starlight


    Entertainment CEO''s office.


    She stepped inside, leading the candidate for the personal bodyguard position.


    "Ms. Kensington, this is Mr. Monroe, here for the bodyguard interview."


    Briony looked up from the stack of paperwork in front of her.


    The man was tall-so tall that even Carey, who stood around five-foot-seven, seemed petite beside him.


    He wore all ck: a tracksuit, a baseball cap pulled low, and a surgical mask covering most of his face. Only his eyes were visible, the rest of him hidden away.


    Carey handed over the interview file.


    Briony nced down at the papers.


    ir Monroe, thirty-eight years old. Ten years of experience with an international security firm. Retired after a work-rted injury. Highly skilled, single, and


    avable for round-the-clock assignments.


    The photo attached was from a decade ago.


    Briony looked up, her gaze settling on the man''s face. "Could you take off your mask so I can get a look at you?"


    The man met her eyes, his voice deep and steady. "My face was badly burned. I don''t want to startle you."


    Burned?


    Briony frowned. "The ident you mentioned in your file-was it a fire? Is that why your face is scarred?"


    ir nodded. "Yes."


    Briony studied him, an inexplicable suspicion creeping in. She knew it was irrational, maybe even unfair, but she couldn''t help herself.


    "If you''re going to be my personal bodyguard, I need to know everything about you. I''m not going to judge you for an ident, but I do need to know what you look like."


    ir hesitated, then slowly reached up and removed his mask.


    Scars covered two-thirds of his face-twisted, angry burns that left little doubt he''d been badly injured.


    It was true his features were almost unrecognizable. But even with the scars, Briony could make out the shape of his nose and the sharpness in his eyes-the only clues to what he might have looked like before.


    Definitely not the same face as in the photo.


    "All right," Briony said after a moment. "You can put your mask back on." Without a word, ir lowered his gaze and slipped the mask over his face again. He looked at Briony. "Is there anything else you''d like to know, Ms. Kensington?" She asked, "Are you able to ept all the requirements for this job?" ir nodded. "Yes."


    "Twenty-four-hour standby, possibly with no days off for weeks, but you will get vacation time. If I''m home and not going out, you''re free to use your time as you wish. Is that eptable?"


    "No problem."


    "Good," Briony said, feeling satisfied with him. "What kind of sry are you looking for?"


    "Whatever you think is fair, Ms. Kensington. The usual rate is fine."


    In the end, Briony offered him a bit more than the market standard.


    Carey led ir out to sign the contract.


    The next day, ir officially started work.


    Briony didn''t need him glued to her side all day During work hours, he only needed to be nearby, on call. she was heading out, she''d text him. After she got home, as long as she wasn''t going out again, ir was free to choose where to wait, as long as he could reach her quickly if needed.


    Briony also made it clear that for appearances, it was best if ir acted as her driver in public.


    ir was agreeable to everything, answering every instruction with a simple, "Yes, ma''am," and memorizing every detail.