Chapter 291
“Isabella, didn’t you promise you’d come see me?” The young man stepped closer, the sapphire cufflinks on his sleeves catching the chandelier’s glow as he slowly lifted the mask obscuring the upper half of his face.
Without the disguise, his tousled dark hair framed piercing eyes—eyes that now shimmered with quiet accusation.
He looked at her like a wounded puppy, his expression equal parts hurt and hopeful.
“Who would’ve thought you’d rather wear your own creation to this tedious gala than seek me out?” His tone carried the weight of a promise unfulfilled—the one Isabella had made to visit him at the Cobweb.
Isabella stilled, her expression shifting imperceptibly.
It took her only a heartbeat to place him.
Julian Whitmore.
Her frown deepened.
“What are you doing here?” They had never met face-to-face, their interactions confined solely to the encrypted corridors of the Cobweb.
She vaguely remembered mentioning she might drop by, but with everything else demanding her attention lately, it had slipped her mind.
Even without recognizing his features, his recent messages had made his identity unmistakable.
Isabella’s gaze turned icy.
She hadn’t expected one of her own subordinates to track her down.
Sensing her suspicion, Julian quickly raised his hands in defense.
“I wasn’t following you, I swear. I didn’t dig for intel. I was already invited to this charity gala, and when I saw you in that fishtail gown… I just knew.”
In his mind, he had always harbored a hazy fantasy of what his elusive leader might look like.
He had pictured someone serene, untouchable, with the same quiet authority that resonated in her voice.
But when his eyes landed on her, he was struck by how breathtakingly real she was.
The fishtail silhouette had been a detail she’d once casually mentioned to him.
That alone had been enough.
With guests mingling nearby, he refrained from addressing her as boss, opting instead for her name.
Still, he couldn’t suppress the flicker of exhilaration beneath his composed exterior.
After all, they were finally standing in the same room.
“If I wanted to track you down, I wouldn’t have waited this long,” he added, hoping to ease the tension.
Isabella’s expression remained unreadable, her sharp eyes assessing him.
Yet Julian only grinned, undeterred.
“You’re an enigma. Not just to me—I bet even Mr. Kingsley would struggle to uncover anything about you.”
There was unmistakable pride in his voice, bordering on reverence.
He was, without question, her most devoted admirer.
Isabella’s wariness lingered, though his explanation did hold logic.
It was nearly impossible to extract information about her within the Cobweb—she had made sure of that.
As its architect, she had meticulously encrypted every trace of her identity.
“It wasn’t just the dress, was it?” Her gaze sharpened.
“I didn’t expect our first meeting to happen like this. It’s… unexpected, to say the least.”
Isabella despised surprises.
Julian might be her most trusted operative, but the fact that he’d secured an invitation to this exclusive event so effortlessly suggested there was more to him than she’d accounted for.
“You’re sharp,” Julian admitted with a sly smirk. “But no, it wasn’t just the gown. That serpent bracelet you’re wearing? That’s another clue. It’s one-of-a-kind—something only we would recognize.”
His tone carried a knowing challenge, one unmistakably directed at Alexander.
Unlike Alexander’s cool, detached demeanor, Julian radiated warmth and mischief.
