Fool Me Once | T. Drake ✔

[00] The Contract

She looked at the young man sent over as an answer to her request, brown eyes sizing him up. He was lean, his shirt and jacket hid if he ever worked out or not though it certainly didn't seem so by his demeanor.

How on Earth would he be fit to be a bodyguard was beyond her. But at least he wouldn't attract too much attention to himself; he would seem just another rich boy she had picked to toy with his heart.

But she would have to make sure if he was good at fighting people off or not. It would suck to have a bodyguard that could easily be beaten up to a pulp by the opponent. And seeing him right then, she couldn't imagine him fighting anyone either.

He was just... Delicate. 

Someone who her brother would laugh at the idea of being chosen as a bodyguard.

"When I asked Mister Wayne to send me his best, I was expecting him to send the second one," she remarked at last, her eyes that had been examining him all over coming up to rest on his face.

He sure was pretty, she smiled, he looked pretty enough to be her boyfriend instead.

"He said you didn't want people to know you were under threat and that I had to work undercover," he replied, blue eyes flickering in slight unease, "if he sent anyone else, that couldn't be established."

She nodded, knowing that the elder two of Bruce's adopted sons would definitely attract too much attention. Besides the first son was already committed and that could ensue drama, the one thing she wanted nothing to do with at the moment. And the second son was still presumed dead by many people. It would be chaotic to have him around.

"But if you're more comfortable working with Jason, I will let him know," he remarked and looked ready to leave.

"No, no, it's fine," she gestured for him to take a seat, "I trust his judgment. Please sit down, Mister Drake."

Roxanne Donnelley was the joint heiress to the Donnelley fortune alongside her brother Romero Donnelley. Not much was known about her but her brother held quite the reputation of a hotheaded tyrant and was suspected to be involved with the underworld.

The Donnelleys were not a common name in Gotham but they held multiple estates and businesses in the country, some of which were rivaling the standards of Wayne Enterprises itself. Tim had been sent to the Donnelley heiress as an answer to her request to Bruce Wayne to arrange a bodyguard for her.

All he knew was that she was an acquaintance of Bruce, despite it seeming strange, and she had requested him to help her out as she had been receiving death threats and felt worried about her safety. 

Nothing about the request seemed right to Tim but he didn't argue against it because according to Bruce, it was an undercover mission through which they could keep an eye on the Donnelleys, especially the brother and his sinister dealings.

Therefore, he had shown up at her office but it didn't seem as if she was interested to work with him. But the words she said next shattered that assumption.

"I assume Mister Wayne would have briefed you about my situation," she spoke up, her eyes curiously focused on him, "I need someone to protect me from these people who are claiming to have me dead, and hiring a bodyguard seemed a logical option. But at the same time, I do not want anyone to get the idea that I am under threat so it would be more feasible to have someone who could act as my boyfriend but play the part of my bodyguard too when the need arises."

"Yes, I am aware," he replied, "and I think that's precisely why Bruce sent me instead of Richard or Jason. You requested specifically for someone who would not appear to be a bodyguard."

"That much I can see," a teasing glint sparkled in her eyes but she shook her head as a gesture that she didn't mean it as an insult, "I prepared a contract already considering that I am not hiring you, per se, it's more of a business deal instead. I have promised Mister Wayne that my brother and I will be very happy to work on future projects together with Wayne Enterprises. Do you have any questions?"

He did have a lot of questions but one stood out most so he spoke, "your brother has quite a deadly reputation. It surprises me that people would send death threats to Romero Donnelley's sister."

She raised an eyebrow skeptically, "well, that's because I did not tell him. And if he finds out... Let's just hope that doesn't happen."

Something was definitely off about the entire proposition. But that would be cleared up by the contract.

"I want to read the contract first," he remarked and she nodded, handing the file to him.

"You can take your time, I am in no hurry for you to sign it right now," she told him, knowing that there were a lot of details a clever person like Timothy Drake would want to clear for himself before getting into a deal with her, "but I will need your answer tomorrow by latest. And please, keep this document and our conversation strictly to yourself."

"I understand," he replied, "I can take this with me, right?"

"Yes, I have a copy with me. I am giving you the original so you will not doubt my intentions. However, if something happens to this document..."

She had left the sentence deliberately incomplete but he understood the warning, "I am a man of my word, Miss Donnelley. I will bring your contract back safely along with my answer."

"I apologize for doubting you but you must know, there are very few people I can trust," she spoke in a softer tone, her eyes gazing into his finally without any judgment, "as for bringing the contract back, I would love to have you over for dinner tomorrow. At my place."

"Oh... Alright," he agreed.

She smiled and he was once again reminded of the words Bruce had told him as a warning. He was not supposed to let anything cloud his judgment while working with her. Because if he signed the contract, he would be putting himself at risk too by being close to a Donnelley.

"I shall see you tomorrow then. Good night, Mister Drake," she remarked, making it clear that he was dismissed.

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