Page 87 of Protecting Hailey

“During my first year,” he explained. “I excelled at training and hand-to-hand combat.”

I glanced over at him and raised a brow at his muscled chest and arms. “I’m not surprised. I don’t know anyone that could take you down.”

“No one has.” Then he shrugged. “At least not without drugging me.

Anyway, after that first year, my superiors saw something in me and transferred me to a different unit. I went to the Airborne School, where I learned how to fly war planes and underwent one-on-one training as well as psychological evaluations. Once I passed those tests, my captain referred me to a special ops team. That’s where I met my brothers.”

“Special ops? Aren’t those the guys who take down terrorist leaders?”

He shrugged. “Sometimes. We also rescued hostages and provided humanitarian aid. Those were my favorite missions because I met some of the bravest, most resilient people in those villages. Once I saw a grandmother stand in front of an armored tank when it entered her village. She never even flinched.”

“Wow, I can’t even imagine that.”

“You’re lucky you don’t have to. Maybe if we did, I wouldn’t see so many people of privilege lose their shit if the server forgets to bring them ketchup.”

“I’m surprised to hear you say that Thailand changed you and not those missions.”

“Oh, those missions changed me. I just don’t want to think about them.” He took a deep breath. “Some nights, I wake up in a cold sweat thinking about the times I couldn’t rescue someone.”

He looked up at the cloudless sky, and I rubbed his back. “Do you want to talk about it?”

He shook his head, then rubbed his face and looked at the ocean again. “I’ve talked to therapists about it. Nothing helps. I have to let it go.”

“I’m sure it’s not easy.”

He nodded. “No. But it’s getting easier.” He smiled weakly.

Reaching over to rub my thigh, he asked, “Tell me how you got your big break?”

“Me?”

Christian’s quick change in subject caught me off guard. “Oh, um, let’s see.”

I cringed. “Well, there was that singing competition Ingrid mentioned. I signed a contract with Frankie after that, but I think I’d have to say my biggest break was opening for Natalie Hun. Frankie got me to audition for her manager and then Natalie herself. She loved it and said I could open for her in L.A. Some people posted the performance on social media and then started buying my songs. I’d worked so hard for years leading up to that and then my life changed almost overnight.”

He nodded. “It’s incredible, isn’t it?”

“What is?”

“How quickly life can change. You can have everything planned out and then someone or something can spin it all on its head.” He turned to look at me. “I feel like I’m having one of those times right now with you. You’ve changed everything for me.”

I bit my lip and nudged him. “In a good way, I hope.”

He chuckled. “Definitely. In the best way possible.”

“It’s just funny how life works. Some of the best and worst times of my life happened in an instant that changed the course of my future. When I kissed you for the first time, I knew I would never be the same. I knew you were the one.”

“Wow, Christian.”

“I’m sorry. Was that too much?”

I shook my head and then crawled into his lap. “No.” I kissed his neck, and he pulled me against him. “It’s not too much. The feelings inside of me are overflowing, but in a good way. I don’t know how to explain it. You fill my cup and you just keep filling it. You make me so incredibly happy.”

“I love you, Hailey.”

“I love you, too.”

I leaned against Christian's chest and he held me while we stared out into the ocean. I inhaled and exhaled slowly, releasing all the stress from the past weeks. The feud with Kendra, the social media backlash, the stabbing, the fake relationship with Trey, the pressure of making a second successful album. I recalled all of it in one deep breath and drained it slowly through a loud exhale.

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