protect him | grayson hawthorne

Chapter 1 : Grayson

She's late.

I have to be somewhere in half an hour, and she's late.

I'm almost 100% she knows exactly what time she needs to be here. Oren said he told her. Well, he never said that but I assumed he did. He's resourceful like that.

His sister, though, clearly is not. How could you possibly be late to your first day? I don't even know this girl, but at least I know she's nothing like me.

I would absolutely never be late, no matter if it's the first day or not. Especially if I was working for the Hawthorne family. So many people would kill to be in her position. 'The bodyguard of the Hawthorne heir apparent'. Even though I don't need a bodyguard.

My grandfather insists on me having one. "You need to stay safe, Grayson, what happens if you get hurt? Who will inherit the fortune?" He said to me. And, of course, he's right. But I can still protect myself. I don't need some girl to protect me. It's humiliating.

'The Hawthorne heir apparent, protected by a girl.' Not a good headline. If she's anything like her brother, though, I won't be complaining too much.

Oren has worked for my grandfather for years now. I've known him since I was a kid. He's serious about his job, doesn't let anyone get hurt on his watch, always makes sure he knows where everyone is, the normal stuff. But if his sister is late to her first day, I shouldn't get my hopes up too much.

I check my watch. 28 minutes. She needs to get here soon. I have to get to the foundation to upload the pictures I took yesterday. I cannot be late. I'm never late. If she's the reason for the first time I'm late, I won't be too happy.

Another reason why I do not need a bodyguard, she'll just slow me down. Xander says I should try and see the 'bright side' of this situation. Like there even is one. This is the worst possible thing that could happen to me. There is no 'bright side'.

Besides, does she even deserve a chance? Should I be optimistic about this, if she's late for her first day? No. I should not be optimistic at all. In fact, I am going to be the most pessimistic person ever. Maybe that will give her a reason to quit. Oren probably wouldn't let her quit, though, but I could try.

Actually, no, that's a stupid idea. Just suck it up and deal with your stupid bodyguard, Grayson.

I check my watch again. 27 minutes. Time is moving awfully slow today. Time never moves this slow. It's always fast, minutes fly by in the blink of an eye.

But it's not like that today. I wonder why.

There's a knock at the door.

Finally.

I stand up from my spot on the stairs and walk towards the front door. Normally, a person would hesitate before opening the door to someone who they haven't met yet, but will have to spend a lot of time with. But I don't hesitate.

I open up the door, and there she is. My bodyguard.

She has dark brown hair, not too long but not too short either. It's a bit curly, as if it was just taken out of a braid or something similar. She's shorter than me, but not by a lot. I'm six foot, she looks about five foot seven, eight maybe. Her eyes are round, but her glare is sharp. Seems like she could cut glass with that look. They're a dark brown, but a little lighter around the edges. Almost like a solar eclipse.

She's wearing black jeans, not straight jeans, they're a little flared at the bottom. She also has a black leather jacket on, with a black t-shirt under.

I don't really know what to say, I mean, I'm gonna have to be with this girl for a long time. What am I supposed to say?

"So you like black?" Is the first thing that comes out of my mouth. Stupid thing to say, Grayson, so stupid.