Playing the Villainess, He Fell for Me

Outside the car, the bodyguards in black brandishing baseball bats drew closer. Hearing the girl’s calm voice, Mindy Morgan was incredulous. ”Joanna, what are you saying?!”

’These people obviously meant them no good, and there was no telling what their objective was. For Joanna Kennedy to ask them to open the door... wasn’t she just walking right into a trap?!’

”They’re probably haters. I’m calling the police. Listen to me, you can’t go down there.” Mindy Morgan pulled out her phone, her fingers trembling as she dialed for the police. But the instant she hit call, the screen showed no signal.

BEEP. BEEP. The call automatically disconnected. The signal bars in the top-right corner of her screen were gone. Mindy Morgan’s face went white as a sheet. ”How can this be...”

”Mindy, just open the door,” Joanna Kennedy sighed. She wasn’t surprised by this outcome. ’Thank goodness I sent that message out beforehand.’

’Someone like that would be thorough, leaving no way out. Blocking the road, stopping their vehicle, setting up a signal jammer... it would be all too easy for them.’

Her last shred of hope was extinguished. Just as the baseball bat was about to strike, Mindy Morgan unlocked the doors with a trembling hand. The car emitted a soft click.

Hearing the soft click, the two bodyguards exchanged a look but didn’t stop. The baseball bat landed on the roof of the Porsche with a heavy THUD.

The force of the blow was so great it made the ornaments inside the car tremble. Mindy screamed, clutching her head in terror, her lips drained of all color.

’This was a naked display of intimidation.’ Joanna Kennedy sneered. ’A rabid dog only dares to bite because it knows its master has its back.’ She had been about to get out, but now she stopped.

When no one emerged from the car, another bodyguard opened the door. He frowned upon seeing the girl sitting calmly in the back seat, but still spoke. ”Miss Kennedy, our employer would like to treat you to a meal. Please, come with us.”

’First they smash the car, then they terrorize you, and now they just toss out a line like that with such an entitled attitude. You’d think they were answering to some local despot. The hypocrisy was so blatant it was almost funny.’

In fact, Joanna Kennedy did laugh out loud. She met the bodyguard’s ferocious glare without a trace of fear, leaning back relaxedly. ”You need an appointment to have a meal with me. Does your employer have one?”

The bodyguard was infuriated by her languid tone and the undisguised mockery on her face. His voice grew cold. ”Miss Kennedy, please don’t make this difficult for me.”

”And what if I decide I want to make things difficult for you?” Joanna Kennedy was no longer smiling. Her tone turned icy in an instant.

”If I’m not mistaken, the person who sent you didn’t tell you to smash the car, did he?” Joanna Kennedy sneered. ”What, decided to abuse what little authority you were given?”

The bodyguard’s face flushed with anger and embarrassment. Joanna Kennedy knew she was right. The chill in her eyes intensified. She despised bullies who relied on someone else’s power.

”This is last year’s model Porsche. That dent you just made is going to cost a pretty penny. Will that be cash, card, or a transfer?”

The repair cost for a new Porsche was far more than a simple bodyguard could afford. The one who’d smashed the car was left speechless, then surged forward in a rage, only to be held back by the others.

”Miss Kennedy, we’re simply on a job,” said the apparent leader of the bodyguards. ”I hope you can forgive any... unpleasantness.”

’He didn’t try to stop him when he was smashing the car, but now he decides to step in.’ Joanna Kennedy was not about to make things easy for them. ”A job? What kind of job? Who assigned it to you? The state? Some classified agency? Do you have work IDs? An official order?”

.............

This rapid-fire questioning silenced them all. They clearly hadn’t expected the delicate-looking girl in front of them to be such a handful.

The stalemate had dragged on for some time, and the bodyguard who had smashed the car flew into a rage out of sheer frustration. ”Boss, why are you wasting time jawing with this little bitch? Let’s not forget the mission! Just grab her and we’re done!”

’It’s been over twenty minutes since this started. We can’t delay any longer.’ At this thought, the leader’s brow furrowed, and his tone hardened. ”Miss Kennedy, are you going to get out on your own, or are we going to have to ’escort’ you?”

’A threatening tone. Just as I expected. If I refuse again, they’ll resort to brute force.’ Joanna’s hand, hanging by her side, instinctively tightened around her phone, her knuckles turning white. Her face, however, betrayed nothing. ”What’s this? Trying to welsh on your debt?”

”Oh, I’ll go with you. On the condition that you pay up first,” Joanna Kennedy said with a mocking smile. ”You have to take responsibility for your actions. That’s a lesson even children understand.”

”Damn it, this is getting ridiculous! You’re coming with us today, whether you like it or not!”

With that, the bodyguard who’d smashed the car reached for her. This time, no one held him back. His hand was just about to grab the girl’s arm—

Then, out of the corner of her eye, Joanna Kennedy saw something that made the heavy weight on her chest lift. At the same instant, she snatched up her phone with lightning speed and hurled it at the bodyguard’s face.

”AGH!” With a pained cry, the bodyguard doubled over, clutching at his eye where the phone had struck him. He howled in agony, letting loose a stream of filthy curses.

The turn of events was so sudden that for a moment, no one knew how to react.

Joanna Kennedy seized the opportunity, rolled down the window, and shouted, ”Simon Lockwood, over here!”

Joanna Kennedy’s voice was loud. The dumbfounded bodyguards snapped back to reality and saw a man running toward them from a short distance away. The leader’s expression turned as foul as if he’d just eaten shit.

He finally understood. The girl’s nonsensical haggling hadn’t been about getting compensation or venting her anger at all.

Joanna Kennedy was stalling for time. And she had succeeded.

As she got out of the car, one of the bodyguards tried to stop her. Joanna Kennedy dropped the act, her tone becoming blunt. ”Old Master Sinclair wouldn’t mind one more guest for dinner, would he?”

The moment she said it, all the bodyguards froze. They had never once mentioned who had sent them to ”invite” Joanna Kennedy. How could she possibly know?!

In their moment of shock, she pushed one aside. They missed their chance to stop her, and could only watch helplessly as Joanna Kennedy ran toward the approaching man.

”Simon Lockwood!”

Joanna Kennedy had only taken a few steps before the man was upon her. She was pulled into an embrace before she even had time to react.

Ragged breaths filled her ear. His powerful heartbeat sent a tingle across her scalp, as if she could feel his own tension and anxiety as her own.

”Joanna Kennedy, you scared me to death...” Simon Lockwood practically gasped the words. The rush of the wind was sharp and grating through his hearing aid, but he didn’t care. He buried his face in her neck, holding her tightly as if to reassure himself she was real.

When he’d gotten the message, Simon Lockwood had been in the kitchen. Joanna Kennedy loved shrimp and beef, and he was planning to make some for dinner.

His phone had chimed with a custom ringtone. Simon Lockwood had immediately dropped what he was doing and checked it.

’He was just glad he’d seen it fast enough to get here in time.’

”You scared me to death...” Simon Lockwood repeated, his voice trembling.