Dark rings under her eyes, Grace sat on the bed hugging a pillow as she stared out the window. I wonder if they'll let me go on a run; it always helps me clear my head.

Wait... no one's really keeping an eye on me anymore, so maybe I can just go for a run.

Grace changed into some active wear and pulled on a baseball cap. Now, hopefully, no one notices me. She made sure she had her cell phone on her and took off.

No one roamed the halls, so she headed for the front door, and straight out. There were two men in suits guarding the front door. She gave them a nod. "Morning run." She chuckled and took off before either of them said anything.

Crap, I should've remembered there's always someone at the entrance.

At the front gate, she waved cheerfully at the person controlling it.

"Where's Zain?" they asked, knowing he was always around her.

"He's in bed. I'm just going for a quick run, and I'll be back."

"Uh... I haven't heard anything about you being allowed to leave on your own. I'm going to have to call in and ask."

"At this time of day? Grandpa is probably asleep still. I don't think we should disturb him."

I should've just climbed the fence!

"Oh, you're right; he hates being disturbed in the morning. Still, I don't think I should let you out."

"I need my morning run!" Grace jogged in place.

"Jog around the estate again," the guard cringed as he suggested it. "Oh!" The guard's face lit up. "Zain! You're here! I'm glad to see you doing alright."

Grace froze, her whole body tingling.

Crap, crap, crap. What's he even doing out of bed? It's early, and he's injured!

She could feel him walk up behind her, and her heart raced.

I'm done for!

Zain leaned down and whispered into her ear, "Where are you going to so early in the morning, all on your own?"

"Uh... On a run, where else?" She laughed nervously. "W-what are you doing here? Out of bed already?"

Zain slung his good arm around her shoulders and pulled her in close. "It's my shoulder that's injured; I can still walk."

"But you can't run right now without disturbing your injury."

"And I can't leave you wandering outside alone. I'd tell you to stay inside like a good girl, but we both know you won't listen. If you're determined to go somewhere, then I know you'll do risky things to make it happen. Even injured, I'd prefer to be by your side."

"I'm not going out to do anything risky; I'm just going for a run."

"I don't believe you." He hugged her closer to him. "It's like how I don't believe you when you say nothing is wrong. You're keeping a secret, and whatever it is, I have a feeling I need to know it."

"Again, I'm just going for a run, which you can't do."

"A walk will have to suffice."

"Ahem... So... are you two going out?" the guard asked as he fidgeted.

"Going out? What? No!" Grace blushed and tried to push Zain's hand off, but he wouldn't budge.

"Oh, I meant, are you two leaving?"

"Oh!" Her blush spread way up to her ears.

"Yes, on both accounts." Zain smirked. "Open the gates, George."

"Sir." George hit the button to open the gates. "Stay safe, you two; there's been too many fights and whatnot breaking out lately."

"Don't worry, George; we'll be fine." Zain gave him a quick wave and walked through the gate with his arm around Grace. "You know, if you want to head somewhere, I could've grabbed a car and drove you there."

The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

"Your shoulder is injured."

"I can drive one hand." Zain rolled his eyes.

"And that would go against wanting to go for a run."

Grace could feel the heat radiating from Zain as they walked. Does he really have to keep an arm around me?

"Are you sure you're up for even a walk? You must be exhausted from yesterday," Grace said as she glanced up at him and found him staring at her.

"I'll be fine; I'm resilient. Besides, I'd go crazy staying in bed all day. I'm used to being busy, but I don't think the boss will give me anything to do right now. I'm not even sure he'd want me as your bodyguard, either."

"Are you sure you're my bodyguard right now, and it's not the other way around? I think I proved myself early on that I could take you out if I wanted to." Grace pursed her lips as she looked away at the trees lining the path.

"Is this your way of saying I'm a hindrance in my injured state?"

Grace kept herself tight-lipped, not wanting to answer.

"Ha... It doesn't matter if I'm injured; as long as I can still move, I'll stay by you to try to keep you safe."

"Geez, you make it sound like you don't care if you get hurt again," Grace grumbled as they turned onto the sidewalk.

"Can't say I really do. I'm used to pain, so I'll be okay either way."

Grace came to a sudden halt and glared up at him. "You realize you almost died, right?"

"It's only my shoulder—"

"You were pale and sweating because of all the pain and how much blood you lost!" she snapped at him and finally used enough force to shove his arm off. "Don't you understand how close to death you were?"

"I..." Zain trailed off when he saw the tears in her eyes.

"Ha..." She turned away from him and swallowed hard, forcing the emotions back.

Damn it all to hell... How could I let emotions get the better of me like that?

"At least I can tell how much you care now." Zain sighed. "I'm sorry, but I can't let being close to death interfere with things. As a cop, you understand, right?"

"Tch..." Grace huffed and walked away.

Zain rushed to catch up and took her hand this time instead. "I'd prefer if we're not separated out here."

"Whatever," she mumbled and kept walking.

"So, where to?"

"Nowhere specific; it's just a walk."

"Right. So, are you ready to talk about your secret yet?"

"..." He's going to be annoyingly persistent, isn't he?

"How about why you mentioned Herald?"

"..."

"I sent Ran to keep an eye on him, but we're not sure what we're looking for. What did you see? What did you hear?"

"..."

"Come on, Grace; I know something is going on. Do I really need to go to the boss about this?"

"What in the world would you tell him? That I find Herald sketchy? I don't trust him? That's not enough for grandpa to interrogate him or anything."

"It's enough to get him curious, and you don't know how persistent he can be. Come on, Grace, you know you can trust me, right?"

"..." I guess out of the people there, he is one of the few I kinda trust. I have to keep in mind that he's still a mafia member, and an underboss at that. Although, I am a part of that same mafia now. He wouldn't turn on me. Then again, I never thought Roger would've been hiding so much... and using me to be behind enemy lines. Grace's mouth went dry at the thought of explaining everything to him.

Zain looked around at the shops while they walked in silence. "Hey, I'm thirsty from rambling on; let's grab a coffee." He pulled her into a cafe and nudged her towards a seat near the counter.

He came back a few minutes later with two iced coffees.

"Thanks..." Grace couldn't help but think about Roger, since that was the drink he liked to get her in a can form.

"I know something that you might like that could help you get your mind off of... whatever it is you don't want to tell me about."

"Oh?"

"The orphanage. You said you wanted to visit it, right? I'm overdue for one, anyway. We'd just need a quick stop at a toy store, and candy store, and we're good to go."

"You buy them stuff?"

"Every time I go to visit, yes, which also means they always expect me to bring things." Zain sighed. "But they deserve to be spoiled a bit after all they've gone through. I mean, we keep the place in good condition with enough money for food, clothes, toys, and whatnot, but I can't help but want to bring them more."

Grace stared at him wide-eyed.

"What?" Zain asked. "Is it really so odd that I'd be involved in an orphanage like this?"

"Kinda..."

"Ouch..."

"Won't the injury bother them, though?" Grace nudged her head towards his arm in a sling, making his shoulder injury obvious.

"Ah..." Zain scratched his neck. "This wouldn't be the first time I've shown up while injured. They're kinda used to it, but at the same time, they worry. They'll also get worried if I go too long without showing up."

"And I'm guessing you haven't been there since I showed up?"

"Correct. Everything's been a bit hectic since you were brought in."

"Being a watchdog is a full-time job. By the way, how'd you end up noticing me at the gate? Don't you normally get up later?"

"Generally, but between the pain and the pondering, I wasn't sleeping much. While looking out the window, I saw you rushing up to the gate, and I came out after you right away."

"Guess I should've disguised myself."

"You think they would've let you out of there without me or the boss? I highly doubt it."

Grace sighed and downed her drink. "I think I did everything wrong so far this morning. I should've just climbed the fence or something."

"You'd set off the alarms if you did."

"But I would've made it out of there alone and been able to go for a run."

"Don't even think about it, princess, or I'll have to find a way to tag you with a tracker."

"As if my grandpa would let you do that."

Zain chuckled. "You know what, you don't know him well enough yet if you think he wouldn't resort to something underhanded in order to keep you safe. As long as you're not harmed by it, I could see him ordering someone to do it to you himself, even in secret. Like, in the middle of the night, someone injects you with a nano-tracker."

Grace shuddered and rubbed the back of her neck. "Great, now I'm going to be paranoid about it."

"Stick close to home or to me, and he probably won't think about putting a tracker in you."

"Right..." Hard to tell if he's joking about that or not.

"Would you prefer I put a collar on you? Then we could just have the tracker there."

Grace rolled her eyes. "Quit teasing me."

"Guess that's a no on the collar." Zain finished off his drink. "So, how about we grab a few things and head over to the orphanage?"

"Sure." I guess this will prove if he's telling the truth or not.