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TY
CHAPTER 4
Troy headed to the black car in the parking lot with the number plate that Harry had given him and he opened the back door and jumped in shock as a limp body appeared before him on the back seat.
Gabi?
He cocked his head, smiling at her sleeping form, all curled up and her face so serene. When they'd said she was working from the car he didn't know she'd be asleep. He just knew Gabriel was throwing three shits about not having his lunch brought to him and Gabi was the only one he'd talk to right now.
Personally he thought he'd seen five year olds have less impressive tantrums and he couldn't understand why a ball-breaker like Gabi let herself be treated this way, but it was her father and he didn't know what their relationship was like.
Harry had been roped into getting Gabriel's lunch ordered while Troy had offered to get Gabi in his place.
He leaned into the car, feeling awkward that he was this close to her body without her knowing. But oh god she had a perfectly heart shaped backside and it just shone at him from her position there.
He gently rubbed her arm "Gabi…Gabi" he called as she roused and she sat up with a start, shock hitting her and her heart pounding wildly.
"What!? Oh my god!" she said as she came-to, rubbing her hair from her face as it escaped from her bun. "You!" she said accusingly.
Troy rolled his eyes and stood back.
"Your dad asked for you. He's in his trailer" he said flatly.
"Where's Harry?" she asked suspiciously.
"Getting lunch ordered" he relayed.
"Oh. Why are you calling me Gabi?" she asked next, grumpily.
"Jesus, I am so glad I don't wake up to you every morning, talk about not being a morning person" he muttered and Gabi's brown eyes flashed with anger and hurt.
He shouldn't have said that. God, that was the wrong thing to say.
"I…" he began to apologise but was cut off by Gabi who scooted from the car and forced him to step back as she came out.
"You know what? You will never have to worry about having to face me in the morning" she agreed and then his stomach dropped as he realised she thought he was talking about how she LOOKED as well. Oh god, he was digging a deep hole here. It was meant to be fun, teasing her.
"So what do I call you?" he challenged then as she re-did her bun.
"Well no doubt you have some derogatory nickname for me" she sighed.
He hid a smile as he shrugged "Never" he lied and she cast a disbelieving look at him.
"Miss Montez seems suitable to me" she said then and inwardly wondered what his secret nickname for her was. Frigid ice bitch?
"Okay, Miss Montez it is. You can call me…whatever you like" he said as he waited for her to ready herself and then he followed her as she walked away.
"Okay. Ego Trip it is then" she decided happily, making him frown and he wondered why he felt like she had the upper hand.
Wait a minute; he was the one tormenting HER here, not the other way around.
---
Back at the hotel Gabi set down her heavy bag and opened her laptop as she sat on her bed.
"Where's my little girl?" Gabriel asked as he walked through.
"Now I'm your little girl?" she asked lightly "Earlier today you didn't much act like it" she reminded him gently.
"I was at work, honey; you know I have to concentrate"
"Dad, you're getting worse. Everyone keeps saying how difficult you are. It's not easy for me to keep spinning the stories in a favourable light for you."
Gabriel sighed "I'm sorry honey. I'm just used to a routine and I'm used to having things done for me."
"There's something else isn't there?" she asked intuitively.
"Everyone knows that I'm an ageing has-been. I was lucky to get this role. Then they put me opposite this young whipper-snapper and it's being knocked home to me that I'm not in my prime anymore"
"There's no need to take it out on everyone" Gabi argued, though she agreed about the whipper-snapper part with a smug grin.
"Did you meet Troy today?" he checked "You better watch out for him, he has an eye for the ladies"
"I don't think I'm his type, dad." She said drily. "I have a brain" she finished.
"Mmm. Well I don't like the thought of him seducing you. I've heard he's a right little lothario"
Gabi rolled her eyes. As if she needed warning off the egotistical idiot! He'd already done that all by himself.
"There's no danger of me falling into bed with that jumped-up idiot" she said, self-assuredly.
"Do you mind going to dinner alone sweetie? I'm going to rest for a bit" he said then and moved back into is room, leaving Gabi alone, again.
This is the time she wished she had someone to call up and make silly conversation with. Somone to call by a pet-name they'd created through being comfortable enough to be apart.
Left alone with no dinner date, Gabi left the hotel in search of take-out. It would be easy to get room-service but she wanted to get out of here and let her mind wander with her feet.
The town was quiet and Gabi watched as commuters passed her by, wishing she had a cosy house to go home to just like they did. Nowhere felt like home when she was working and that was pretty much all of the time.
She stopped outside a travel agent and looked at the offers in the window, thinking how she longed to stretch out on a beach in her bikini and catch some sun. How long was it since she had made time for herself to just get away from it all?
Maybe it was time to start making changes, and the first thing on her list was to talk to her dad about having a break. It's not like she didn't deserve it.
---
The morning air was bitingly cold as Gabi headed out in her sweat pants, hoodie and a knitted beanie.
She had to walk quickly to stop her body freezing into a statue. She was rounding the end of the street that came closest to the distant mountain and the corner had hidden someone from view. Someone jogging with an IPod playing and their head down and they barrelled into her, knocking her.
"Hey!" she said quickly, then looked up herself to find that Ego Trip staring back at her, panting, eyeing her up it would seem. Did he take some kind of perverse pleasure out of looking at her like that just to wind her up?
"I'm sorry Miss Montez, I didn't see you" he apologised with a smile "You being so tiny and all" he added to insult her.
She pursed her lips, the cold air stinging her skin and she rubbed her arms, only then realising the reason he was staring at her was because her nipples had gone hard in the cold air and they showed through her top.
"Oh good grief, you are such a pervert!" she snapped and turned, walking quickly back to the hotel where he started up a light jog next to her, even running a circle around her at one point causing her to stop and glare at him in annoyance.
God but she was cute when she was angry. And so beautiful first thing in the morning all fresh faced and dressed in soft clothes that fitted her amazingly curvy body.
Her arms were clamped across her chest and he chuckled to himself at their little banter.
"What's so funny?" she demanded.
"No, nothing" he shook his head, dropping to a walk beside her as he caught his breath.
She was finding it hard to believe that he actually came out here for a run. She wasn't sure what she had expected, maybe that he was a gym-freak and that he had a tanning session each morning too, judging by the healthy glow of his skin.
"Fine" she squinted as they entered the hotel and Gabi went straight to breakfast, knowing that Troy would have to shower first and therefore avoiding any further unnecessary contact with him.
--
It wasn't until she was dressed and ready to go that she found him in the foyer chatting with Harry.
"Hi Harry!" Gabi beamed and Troy watched on with an interested look. So she could be friendly. She just wasn't to him. Mm. He would have to do something about that. Or would he? He kinda liked making her mad; she looked so damn sexy when her dark eyes popped with anger.
"Hello, Miss Montez" Harry smiled back and Gabi's warm brown eyes met his
"What he doing here?" she asked, completely bypassing Troy who went 'Pssh' next to her.
"Sharing a car." Harry smiled.
"Oh joy." She muttered, brushing down her thick wool jacket which reached her knees and tightening her scarf where her plaits fell down over the top of it.
"Ready?" Harry checked and they both nodded, scooting into the car.
"Where's Gabe?" Troy asked.
"Don't speak to me, Ego Trip" she said rudely and he lifted his brows in surprise.
"Wow. That's real friendly, thanks" he said back.
"Let me get this straight. You called me a hysterical fan and accused me of trying to break into your room…" she screwed up her face here "…you then insult me on every level and NOW you think I'm going to be friendly?" she checked with disbelief.
"Sorry, I forgot you're not a morning person." He murmured drily "I'll wait until you've had coffee" he added and she clenched her teeth once more, but not from annoyance, to stop herself laughing.
He really was quite funny when she listened to him properly and didn't presume he was putting her down.
She was being a little harsh on him considering she barely knew him. But she'd never met anyone with such outright ability to make her mad just by looking at her. If his penetrating blue eyes weren't bad enough, she kept getting this ridiculous urge to run her hands through that shaggy brown hair of his and it just wouldn't do.
She could not find some pretty-boy actor attractive. She blamed it on the fact she hadn't seen much romantic action lately and prayed to the gods that this silly physical attraction would die down because she sure didn't find anything else about him attractive apart from that muscled, strong body and that beautiful, beautiful face which held the longest eyelashes she had ever seen.
He turned to find her staring and he smiled smugly.
"I know I'm good-looking but do you have to stare?" he commented "It's putting me off"
Gabi blinked at him. He wanted war? He'd have war. There was no way she was going to get this arrogant little boy get the better of her. She had ammunition and she wasn't afraid to use it. Game on Troy Bolton, she thought silently.