Page 2 of Fighting for You

Chapter 2

Ryder

Gun fire echoed all around me as a scream pierced through my ears. I turned, my heavy machine rifle stuck at my side, as I tried to keep my eyes open for the enemy. The dessert was hot-- scorching, as I walked in all of my required gear.

A blast boomed behind me and the ground shook, almost knocking me off balance. Ahead, a helicopter flew by and I waved one arm, hoping they would see me and get me the hell out of this fucking place.

Screams continued to haunt me, but I couldn’t find the faces of my brothers. We had come here in one of our humvees and before any of us could register what was happening, we were struck by a missile.

I landed several feet away from the now blazing truck. I needed to check on everyone, but I couldn’t see anything. I opened my mouth to scream…

Shooting up in bed, that scream came tearing out of me in a wild roar.

“Fuck me,” I said, wiping my hands across my face.

A night didn’t go by that I didn’t wake up in a puddle of my own sweat and tears.

It might make me sound crazy, but at least I was alive. That was more than I could say about several of my other combat brothers who weren’t as lucky as I was.

Sitting up in the darkened room, I could feel my chest panting as I struggled for air.

“It’s just a dream,” I reminded myself.

I had seen more therapists than I could count, but still, no one knew how to stop the night terrors from triggering. It had been over five years since I had seen enemy soil and combat, so how I was still shaken to the core by my life as a SEAL, was still beyond me.

Throwing the covers off my now drenched body, I glanced at the clock on my phone. I could already hear the hustle and bustle of the city in the morning beginning. It was after four in the morning. At least I made it through most of the night. Realizing I was never going to get my body to settle down again to sleep, I climbed out of bed and stumbled into the bathroom attached to my bedroom. A nice, hot shower would do just the trick. I would just head into work early, a job that had been a blessing from another one of my combat brothers. Aiden and I had been in the military together. He was an excelling sniper, but had decided to settle down and work a less-stress job in Sunnyvale. He knew about my nightmares and demons, and convinced me to come join him. Only, I just wished that it could erase the memories of the day I lost all of my brothers in war.

Chapter 3

Meghan

“Did you see how hot the barista was?” Kirsten asks, as she falls into the chair beside me.

We are sitting in one of our favorite breakfast spots in the city, and I was trying to enjoy my toasted bagel and cream cheese.

Kirsten comes from a wealthy family that has social ties to many of the biggest public relations companies in the world. She was guaranteed a job after college, and I couldn’t help but envy her for that. For me, I had to work hard for everything I have. Honestly, Kirsten wants to work a few years, then marry a billionaire. With her long, caramel colored hair, striking brown eyes, and tall, lean frame, she is nothing short of a Greek goddess. If anyone could make that goal a reality, it would be Kirsten.

As for me, I knew I would have to work for the rest of my life. Marriage wasn’t something that was in the forefront of my mind right now. Don’t get me wrong, my parents had a great marriage. But, after getting engaged to my high school boyfriend at eighteen, I thought I had everything I would ever need. Then, one night, everything went up in flames as my love was scorched. I still remembered that night like it was yesterday.

The sound of a phone ringing woke me from my sleep. Rolling over, I reached for my phone on the nightstand, but almost knocked my diamond engagement ring onto the floor.

“Hello,” I said, my voice groggy. I wasn’t sure of the time, but I knew it must be very late at night.

“He’s gone,” a voice wailed.

Sitting up, I clutched the phone tightly. “What? Who is this?” I asked.

In my slumber, I hadn’t looked at the number calling. Now, looking down, my heart fell into the pits of my stomach as I saw it was Wade’s mom.

“Wade, he’s gone,” she cried out, and then the phone went dead.

A loud scream tore out of me and at some point, my parents rushed into my bedroom. Shaking my head, I tried to wake myself up from this nightmare, but it was all real.

Now, shuddering as the sounds of his mother's cries echo through my head, I closed my eyes to stop the tears from forming.

For me, I never wanted to experience such brutal pain. I’d rather be single forever than love and lose someone that could destroy me. Wade had proposed to me at our high school graduation. He had decided to forgo college and had become a firefighter in our small hometown. I was going to take classes at the local community college for business and Marketing, and we were supposed to be happy forever. But, that changed.

I watched a few more patrons pile into the small restaurant. Glancing at my clock, I realized we needed to hurry or we would be late to work.

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