Page 11 of Protecting Hailey

Mmm… that sounded pretty good.

I pulled out my phone and recorded the melody in a voice note. I would test it out in the studio later.

As I turned the corner into the kitchen, I stopped short. A man stood in front of the stove, with a spatula in hand and a gun tucked inside the back of his black pants. His short brown hair was buzzed at the sides, which made his dark eyes and eyebrows stand out.

“Breakfast?” he asked when he saw me standing there with my mouth open.

“Uh…” I was stunned and speechless. He had a gnarly bruise on the side of his face and two black eyes, possibly from a broken nose, if the red line over the bridge was any indication.

“Uh… I don’t usually eat breakfast.” I stepped further into the kitchen and watched him shake the frying pan. “Um… I thought you said you were my bodyguard.”

“Yes.”

I stared pointedly at the steaming scrambled eggs he scooped up and dropped onto a plate. “But we both have to eat, don’t we?”

Good point. I usually grabbed a coffee after my run, but this could be good, too.

I took the plate he offered and sat at the kitchen island.

“Orange juice?” he asked, opening my fridge. His obvious comfort in my kitchen was, well, a little discomforting.

“Suuure.”

He poured me a glass and set it in front of me. His gaze roamed over my body. “Are you going somewhere?”

I gulped down the first sip. “Yeah. I’m going for a run.” I shoved a forkful of eggs into my mouth. Mmm… that’s delicious.

He looked down at his suit pants and white shirt and nodded. “All right. Just give me five minutes to change.”

“Wait. You’re coming with me?”

His brow furrowed. “Of course. Wherever you go, I go. That’s how this works, Hailey.”

“Oh.”

“Did you run alone often?”

I snorted. “If by often, you mean all the time? Then, yes.”

He dropped the frying pan into the sink and shook his head. “I don’t like it when bodyguards slack off. If you’re not going to do the job right, then don’t do it at all. Someone’s life depends on it.”

I agreed, but not just with guarding. You should either be the best version of yourself, or you should try something else.

After rinsing the dishes and putting them in the dishwasher, he stepped out of the kitchen. I watched him walk away and admired the way his broad back narrowed toward his waist. I rested my chin on my hand.

He’s the best-looking bodyguard I’d ever seen.

A song lyric popped into my head and I pulled out my phone to write it down. I sang the line with the melody from earlier and smiled. Yeah, I liked that.

A few minutes later, he stood at the kitchen entrance with a white t-shirt and gray jogging pants. I gulped.

“All right. Are you ready to go?” I looked at the last forkful of eggs and knew I would regret leaving them behind. So, I scooped them up against the side of the plate, and through a mouthful of eggs, I said, “Ready.”

He grinned, and I had some difficulty swallowing for a second as I took in every detail of his new outfit.

“Coming?” he asked, waiting at the open front doors.

I nodded and jogged right past him. He quickly caught up and soon our breaths matched as our feet pounded against the pavement.

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