"Why are you fidgeting so much?" Zain asked as Grace shifted herself on the seat once again.

  "Because people are staring at us, and this is such a high-class restaurant." Grace glanced around. Tables were moved away from theirs to give them more space, and a bunch of the tables had other Bertolottis members as guards.

  "You should get used to it; you're the Bertolottis heiress. Besides, the boss is still worried someone else will cause trouble. When you take over, you can decide how many people you want to bring with you, but for now, that's his decision. Unless you prefer being stuck inside."

  "I preferred when I could go out on my own, or at least with only one person, not a crew with us."

  "He loves you, that's all. And I'm injured, so even being the best fighter—"

  "Ahem," Grace cleared her throat.

  "The best fighter aside from you, and I'm not enough to stop him from worrying. In some ways, I'm not sure he'll ever stop worrying. Considering what's happened to the rest of his family, I can't blame him either."

  "I guess... but does it have to be so many? They stand out too much. Don't we have some women members? We're surrounded by guys."

  "We do, but these are actually our single members."

  Why does it feel like they're more disposable or something? What am I thinking? Grandpa doesn't look at his family members that way, direct blood relation or not.

  "I know what you're thinking." Zain chuckled. "But these are also the ones who offered themselves up for bodyguard duty."

  "What? Why would so many do that?"

  "They want to be close to the next boss? Much to my chagrin, I'm certain a many of them want to take my position, not that any of them will actually challenge me for it."

  Grace frowned. "They want to marry the next boss?"

  "The next boss who's hot and in charge." He winked at her.

  "Shouldn't that upset you? Especially considering how jealous of Vincent and Roger you've been."

  "Yes, but you're mine, and I'm not going to mess this up by being jealous and trying to hide you away or something. I'm not our boss, and while I am a bit possessive, I'm not going to start a war with everyone who ogles you. That is, unless you want me to."

  "Of course not."

  "Then as long as they keep a distance, we're all good."

  The waiter set down their food in front of them; the plate shaking. "Please enjoy." He gave them a small bow and excused himself.

  Grace raised an eyebrow as she looked at the meal he had ordered for her. Sicilian chicken spaghetti. The same thing she ordered when she went out with her grandpa. The dish her father liked. "This better not be hot."

  "I know; I'm the one who ate your meal last time, remember? This is the non-spicy version."

  "Oh, so I should be able to taste it and not burn my tongue off."

  "Yes."

  "Thank you." Grace dug in. "Mmm! This is good." She nodded in approval.

  Zain smiled as he watched her eat, glad he brought her out.

  After eating their meal and dessert, and talking the whole time, Grace excused herself to use the bathroom.

  Who would've thought I could have so much fun even with the guards around?

  "Ha..." Grace sighed and patted her belly. I ate too much.

  "Enjoying yourself?"

  Grace jumped and turned. Her eyes widened as she stared down the barrel of a gun.

  Bang!

  It only took a second for Zain to bolt out of his seat, running to the women's bathroom where Grace had gone, followed by the other guards.

  "Grace!" Zain yelled as he slammed the door open. He froze at what he saw.

  A dead body on the floor.

  Grace standing with a gun in her hand, staring at the body.

  "You're okay?" Zain waved the other men away and closed the door behind him.

  Grace didn't respond; she just stayed staring at the body.

  He stepped around the body and casually slipped the gun out of her hand. "Grace," he whispered her name and gripped her shoulder.

  "I..."

  "What is it? What happened in here?" Zain eyed the gun on the floor by the dead woman. "Or should I just guess she drew on you, and for once, you reacted in kind versus trying to avoid killing?"

  "The look in her eyes... She was determined to kill. I still should've shot the gun out of her hand like normal, but I automatically went for a kill shot." She had been quick enough to knock the gun aside at first, but didn't manage to disarm her.

  "I think it was a kill or be killed moment. You did the right thing, Grace. If you didn't, that could've been you splayed out on the floor. Ha... I guess you're right about getting a female guard in here."

  "Is it always going to be like this? Will I always have to worry about an enemy popping up and trying to kill me?" This is worse than being a cop... "I thought everything had finally died down. Roger isn't an enemy anymore, and his family is being dealt with. So, who is this woman?"

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  "I'm sorry to say, but the boss has made a lot of enemies throughout his lifetime as a mobster. He has made a lot of friends too, though."

  "What are you saying?" Grace finally dragged her eyes away from the dead woman to look at him.

  "It's not all bad."

  "I know that."

  Zain sighed. "It's not too late, you know. Are you sure you want to be the next boss?"

  "Yes; I'm not changing my mind there. But I refuse to make this a part of my normal life." She pointed at the body, the bullet straight through the middle of her forehead. "And... I still can't believe I didn't hesitate."

  "You have good instincts, Grace; it'll help you in the long run."

  "Yeah, I guess so. Can we find out who this lady was? I'd rather stop the source."

  "About that... Boss and Vincent have been working together for a while now to track down part of the Marini family."

  "Marini? That sounds familiar."

  "It should; they were the ones targeting you before you even came here. We mentioned them to you before."

  "Oh, right! Yeah, they were one of the reasons you guys kidnapped me instead of approaching me like normal humans, right?"

  Zain's cheek twitched, and he cringed. "Basically, yeah."

  "They'd been so quiet, I forgot about them."

  "Well, that's because we've been dealing with them in the background with Vincent and his family. I'm surprised they had anyone left to send after you."

  "Wait, so they're dealt with already?"

  "I thought so, but I guess it depends."

  "On what?" Grace asked.

  "It depends on if there are other hotshots in that family trying to come after you."

  "Why are they coming after me?"

  "Bossman may have butted heads with them when they tried to take over some of our area, and they lost... badly. They had to run away with their tails between their legs."

  "Do I want to know how many families my grandpa has had to run outta town?"

  "Probably not. How about I get you out of here?" Zain wrapped his arm around her shoulders. His plans were ruined, so he wanted to take her somewhere else.

  "And the body?"

  "It'll be cleaned up and whatnot by the others; you don't have to worry about it."

  "Easier said than done."

  Zain kissed her temple and led her out of the bathroom, around the body. A couple of their men ran in to clean up while the others followed them out.

  "I guess we should head home and tell grandpa."

  "He likely already knows, but I don't want our date ending on this note."

  "Then where are we going?"

  "Somewhere nearby."

  Zain brought Grace up a long stretch of stairs to a fenced off a cliff with a fantastic view of the city lights and starry sky above. The guards were keeping their distance, as per Zain's request.

  "It's beautiful here." Grace closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "And the air is so cool and fresh."

  "I guess this place suits you better than a fancy restaurant?"

  Grace shrugged. "I can like both, right?"

  "Of course."

  "But I think I'd prefer if we could at least skip on the lady trying to kill me."

  Zain thought back to the restaurant that got shot up. "You seem to have bad luck with restaurants."

  "I suppose you're right. I guess I'll stick to eating at home."

  "Even the boss doesn't get attacked as much as you, so I'm thinking you'll be fine after the Marini issue is solved."

  "However long that takes." Grace sighed and gazed up at the sky.

  "Grace." Zain lightly touched her hand to grab her attention. "I know you made the choice, but since I have fallen in love with you, I wanted to ask you myself." Zain knelt down on one knee.

  "Zain?"

  "I know you're still uncertain about me, but I'm sure about you." Zain pulled a red velvet box out of his pocket. "This is the one thing my mother gave me before sending me away. It's her engagement ring." He opened it up to show her a stunning, platinum diamond ring."

  Holy crap... That diamond is huge! Grace's jaw dropped.

  "Grace Morris Bertolottis, will you marry me?" Zain stared into her eyes as he asked.

  "I... How are you so certain about me? I was sure you just wanted to be the leader."

  "You'll be the leader, and that's fine with me. I still want you," his voice deepened and pupils dilated.

  Grace's heart skipped a beat. "Oh..." She bit her lip. They were already engaged, but it still felt different. Important. Desired. "Why?"

  He smiled at her. "Because you're the strongest, most amazing woman I've ever met, and I'd be a fool if I didn't show you how much I want you. I may not seem like the most emotional person and whatnot, but if there's one thing I've learned from Boss about emotions, it's to follow your heart, and my heart's been pointing at you for a while. Maybe even longer than I think."

  Grace frowned. "What do you mean by that?"

  "I mentioned it before, didn't I? I saw you at your parents' funeral. I wanted to protect you then, even when we were kids, and I want to protect you now. I know you won't want me to most of the time, but I'll still want to. When Boss sent me to keep an eye on you, after the Marinis took notice of you, I was amazed by the woman you became. And you know what? I still had the urge to protect you. That's why I can't help but think that it was you all along."

  "Are you sure you don't just like to protect women and family?"

  Zain chuckled. "I can't deny that, but I know this is different. I can feel it. So, are you going to keep leaving me hanging? Like the view too much?" He smirked.

  Grace laughed and wiped away the tears in her eyes. "Of course, my big lug; I'll marry you."

  Zain slipped the ring onto her finger. "It didn't feel like a real engagement to me without this ring."

  "I'm still not looking to get married right away."

  "That's fine." Zain wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her. He lifted her into the air and spun her around.

  "Congrats, Boss!" a few of the guards called out, having been watching the whole time. A few more came out of the bushes, whistling. "Liked this more than your announcement, Boss."

  "I can't even tell who they're calling, Boss," Grace whispered.

  "I think they're talking to you, the future boss."

  "Um, is it me or are there more guards than before?" Grace wiggled her feet in the air, hoping he'd set her down.

  "Boss man... er... Big boss? He sent us after hearing what happened. He wanted to come himself, but the little guy managed to keep him at home," one of their men explained.

  Must mean Pez.

  "He's super worried about you. Boss? Miss Boss? Um... I'm not sure what to call you." He scratched his cheek and averted his gaze.

  "Grace is fine with me."

  "No can do, ma'am; that might be fine for upper members." He glanced at Zain. "But for soldiers like us, titles as a show of respect. Since you're going to be the boss in the future, you're the head of the family."

  "He's not going to give on this, is he?" Grace whispered to Zain.

  "Nope." Zain smirked.

  "What do I tell them to call me, then? Boss would be confusing."

  "I don't mind calling you, Boss." His smirk spread into a smile as he held back his laughter.

  "Of course you wouldn't." Grace rolled her eyes. "Can you put me down now?"

  "Nope; too happy, and I don't want to let go." He snuggled his head into the crook of her neck.

  She couldn't help but giggle from his hair tickling her neck. "Zain! Quit it! We have company waiting for an answer."

  "Yes, ma'am."

  "I guess ma'am works... kinda. Ma'am or Miss Bertolottis work for me."

  "Yes, Miss Bertolottis," they all said as they bowed.

  "Damn..."

  "Feeling like a real mafia princess now?"

  "Kinda."

  "Good, because you are one. Now, my princess, how about we go home?" Zain wiggled his eyebrows.

  "Mmm, sounds good to me." Grace wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him.

  "Whoa! Zain's a lucky man!" someone in the crowd cheered.

  "Yes, I am."

  Grace blushed all the way up to her ears. "Are we always going to have an audience?"

  "When we're not at home, probably. You'll get used to it."

  "Really?"

  "Yes, because you'll be too distracted," his lips brushed against hers as he whispered.

  As soon as Grace and Zain got into her room, he pushed her up against the door and kissed her. His hands travelled down her curves to the slit in her dress. "Please don't make me wait anymore," he whispered into her ear. His hot breath tickled her ear.

  "Mmm..." Grace bit her lip. "I'm yours." She pulled his jacket off and tossed it aside.

  Zain let out a low growl as he lifted her up, his strong arms supporting her as they kissed until he dropped her on the bed. "I'm definitely not going to let you sleep much tonight."

  Grace chuckled. "Good." She ripped open his shirt, surprising him.

  "She finally shows her claws."

  "We're only just beginning."