Page 22 of Protecting Hailey

We didn’t speak, just let the wind take over any conversation. It soothed me, invigorated me, and helped me forget. Miraculously, there wasn’t any traffic along the coast, just a few campers parked along the side of the road.

“Have you ever just wanted to travel the country in an RV?” I asked.

“My father did that with us one summer. We camped in parks across the country from the east coast to the west. It’s one of my happiest memories. It was the summer before he left for Iraq. Then we saw a lot less of him.”

“Oh. I’m sorry to hear that.”

“Don’t be,” he chuckled. “I was glad of it at the time. My father was a drill sergeant. And I mean that in every way. He inspected my room, made sure I washed my hands, and excused myself from the table. I had chores that had to be done by a specific date and time and don’t get me started on homework. That was a constant argument between the two of us.”

I found a parking spot just off the highway and pulled over. “Mind if we walk the beach for a bit? I haven’t done that since I got to L.A. three years ago.”

“Really? That’s a long time not to go to the beach when you live right by it.”

I pulled off my heels and threw them in the backseat of my car, but before I could take a step onto the hot pavement, Christian was there. “Whoa, you could cut or burn your skin. You can’t walk barefoot.”

“I can’t walk in the sand in those heels either,” I said.

He rubbed his lips and then nodded. “All right.” He bent his knees and grabbed me by the waist, lifting me off the ground. I yelped, but held onto his shoulders as he walked us toward the rocks by the highway. He set me down on one of the rocks. “Wait here.” Then he jumped down onto the beach, picked me up from the waist, turned, and settled me down onto the brown sand. “There. That’s better.”

I wiggled my toes in the sand and smiled. “Yes,” I sighed. “Much better.”

7

Christian

The breeze pushed her hair off her shoulders and pressed the short black dress against every curve of her body. I looked away. She deserved more than to be gawked at like some sex symbol. But she was beautiful. I thought spending time with her would soften the pull of her features and the cadence of her voice, but time only made it stronger.

I was doomed.

The beach was not the best place to protect a client. But after that asshole dropped her like an uncooked piece of chicken, what was I supposed to do? Take a seat and watch videos on my phone. No. She had to get out of there, and I’d never seen her happier than when she drove her car. And I’d never been happier than when I was in Malibu with my family, so it was the first place I thought of.

My socks crushed the sand inside my Italian leather shoes and despite the breeze flapping my jacket lapels, it was still too warm in this suit. Even though it was cloudy outside, I was sweating standing next to her. I unbuttoned the first button of my shirt and pulled at the collar.

“So, how long have you been a bodyguard?” she pulled her hair away but a few loose strands escaped and whipped across her face again.

I yanked my blue tie off and turned her shoulders to face me. “Wha—”

I threaded the tie underneath her long auburn hair and lifted the ends, tying a knot at the nape of her neck. “It’s not as ideal as an elastic, but it should hold.”

She stared at my neck and then moved her eyes up to my lips. The pull in her eyes was the hardest thing I had to break since tearing through those iron doors in Kabul. No. This was much harder.

“Would you like to sit?” I asked.

“Uh, yeah. That sounds good.”

Removing my suit jacket, I laid it on the sand a few feet away from the water.

“What about you?” she asked when I sat on the sand next to her.

“Oh, I’m not worried about dirtying these pants.”

“So, you’re saying you’re good at doing laundry?”

I smiled but didn’t respond. I’d done my fair share of laundry before, but I hadn’t picked up a detergent pod in more than two years. If the cleaners couldn’t get the bloodstains out of my suit, I just bought a new one.

We sat side by side, me with my arms crossed over my knees and her with her long bare legs stretched out in front of her.

“You never answered my question. How long have you been a bodyguard?”

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