Morning arrived softly, almost apologetically, as if it knew it was about to undo something delicate. Nara stood in the doorway of the guest room....no, her room now, watching Keigh move through the space with quiet efficiency. The light from the tall windows brushed against his shoulders as he checked items off a mental list only he could see.
A garment bag leaned against the wall. Two suitcases, hers stood neatly packed. A third bag, unmistakably his, sat half-open on the bed.
She frowned slightly.
"Keigh… why is that one yours?"
He didn't look up immediately. He folded a sweater, dark grey, soft, unmistakably worn and placed it gently on top of her clothes.
"It's not," he said simply. "It's yours now."
Her breath caught before she could stop it.
Inside her suitcase were things she didn't she never had or bought herself. A silk scarf folded carefully between blouses, a coat appropriate for palace evenings, flats and heels arranged with intention. Essentials she would have forgotten, comfort items she didn't know she needed, and his sweaters, three of them.
"Keigh," she said quietly, half-laughing, half-overwhelmed. "I'm going for a few days, not disappearing."
He finally looked at her then.
"I know," he said. "But I don't like the idea of you being somewhere unfamiliar without something familiar to hold onto."
Her throat tightened. He crossed the room and stopped just in front of her, close enough that she could feel his warmth but not close enough to crowd her. He had been careful like that lately, present, attentive, never pressing.
"You'll need layers," he added lightly. "Palaces are colder than they look."
She smiled, but her eyes betrayed her.
"You planned everything."
"I plan for things I care about."
The words landed gently but firmly, like a truth placed between them instead of thrown.
Outside, the apartment hummed with quiet activity. Two of Keigh's drivers waited discreetly. Nara's trusted assistants still slightly stunned by the luxury of it all, stood near the entryway, murmuring to each other in low voices. When they realized whose apartment they were in, they had gone silent altogether. Nara pretended not to notice.
Keigh handed her a small envelope just before they left.
"What's this?" she asked.
"Emergency contacts. Routes. Backup routes," he said calmly. "And my number written again, in case you forget it somehow."
She rolled her eyes softly. "As if."
Outside, the car waited. As she stepped toward it, something in her chest tightened unexpectedly. This wasn't fear and it wasn't doubt. It was the quiet realization that leaving him, even for a few days felt like pulling away from gravity. Keigh noticed like he always did.
He reached for her hand, subtle enough that anyone watching would assume it was reassurance, nothing more.
"I'll be right here," he said under his breath. "Every call. Every hour. You won't feel alone."
She squeezed his fingers once before letting go. "I already miss you," she admitted.
His mouth curved, soft and real.
"Good. That makes two of us."
The private jet waited on the runway like something unreal. sleek, quiet, almost reverent in its stillness.
Nara paused at the bottom of the steps, turning back one last time and Keigh stood a few feet away, hands in his coat pockets, expression controlled but eyes giving him away.
She hesitated only a second before stepping closer. "This isn't goodbye," she said.
"No," he agreed. "It's just… later."
She leaned in then, careful, brief. but unmistakably theirs. A kiss that held promise rather than urgency.
When she pulled back, she whispered, "Don't forget me."
He smiled faintly, dangerously sincere.
"Impossible."
As the jet lifted into the sky, Nara settled into her seat, one of Keigh's sweaters draped around her shoulders. It smelled like him, clean, familiar, grounding. She pressed her forehead lightly against the window, watching the city shrink beneath her.
Somewhere below, Keigh Dynamite stood still long after the jet disappeared from view.
He didn't move until it was gone completely.
Only then did he turn, phone already in his hand, mind shifting back into the world he ruled because while Nara was heading toward a palace and a destiny she didn't yet understand, he was preparing the ground to make sure she returned safely and never had to face what was coming alone.