Page 54 of Protecting Hailey

“Home? A few of us are going to Lively. You’ve got to come with us.”

Hailey shook her head. “No thanks. I still haven’t gotten over what happened the last time I was there.”

He grimaced. “Fair enough.” He kissed her on the cheek and I looked away. I hated to see another man’s lips anywhere near her.

“Do you really want to go home?” I asked her when we got inside the car.

She shrugged. “I don’t care. I just want to be with you. And if I can only kiss you in private, then that’s where I want to be.”

It was one of the nicest things anyone had ever said to me, and my lungs seized. Shit. This woman was turning me inside out.

I nodded. But as I drove down the road, another idea came to mind. “Is it true that you’ve never been to Disneyland? I heard you say that to your cousin.”

She nodded. “I haven’t stopped working since we moved here. I’ve never had a chance.”

Looking at the time, it was almost ten o’clock. It would be dark, and no one was expecting her to be there. Also, with the security checks at the gate, it would be safer than a club.

I took the exit toward the highway. “Christian, where are we going?”

I turned to her and smiled. “We’re going to Disneyland, baby.”

She sat up in her seat and laughed. “What?! Are you serious right now?”

I nodded. “Damn right. If this is where you want to go, I’m not wasting another minute.”

She reached over, grabbed my face, and kissed my cheek. Then she squealed and clapped her hands. “I’m so excited!”

My face hurt from smiling so much. I wasn’t used to this, but I never wanted it to end. Not this night, not this date, not this feeling.

***

Hordes of people were leaving the park just as we breezed through the empty security line to get in. Shortly after entering the park, I bought Hailey a princess jacket and baseball cap with mouse ears. The items were meant to disguise her, but she ended up looking so damn cute. I pulled her in for a kiss.

“None of that or Sam will have our heads.”

I growled, but let her go. This was about her, after all. I would kiss her senseless when we returned home.

“Where to first?” I asked.

She pointed to the mountain. “That one first.”

I groaned. I hated rollercoasters but for her, I’d bear it. “All right. Let’s do it.” Most people were already leaving the rides to save themselves a spot for the fireworks, which meant there was hardly a queue.

Hailey made me ride that atrocity three times. But she loved every moment of it, raising her hands in the air while I tried to keep the contents of my stomach off the ground.

We dashed from one ride to another, Hailey nearly skipping from line to line. It was darker than I’d imagined it would be, but no one would have recognized her for the pop star that she was since she acted like everyone else who was there to have fun.

It was the moment I knew I was falling for her. Not the pop star. Not the client. But Hailey.

The teacup ride sparkled under the colored lights above it, and the large tree beside it provided shelter from the crowd. I pulled Hailey aside and kissed her under the branches’ twinkling lights.

Boom!

We turned our heads toward the sky and watched as fireworks lit up the night sky. Hailey snuggled into my chest as I held her tightly against me. Our hearts raced next to each other, but it was the most beautiful feeling in the world.

“I love you,” I whispered, and she squeezed me tighter.

Then, raising herself onto her tiptoes, she kissed me slowly. “I love you, too.”

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