HOSTILE: A Military Romance Novel (Military Men Book 1) by Leila Haven

few more food items for later, being quite adept at it. I wondered if that was also part of his military training, but somehow I didn’t think it was.
     
    Maybe there was nothing Derrick couldn’t do. Besides being a nice human being, anyway.
     
    We walked all day through the heat and danger until we reached the outskirts of the city where Derrick thought the US military base would be. It wouldn’t be an elaborate setup like where we had first stayed, but just a few tanks were enough to offer us safety.
     
    “There they are,” Derrick said, pointing to a beige mound in the distance. If I squinted I could just make out two trucks in the military camouflage colors.
     
    My heart leaped into my throat at the thought of being rescued. I hadn’t realized just how scared I was until it was almost all over. The relief was palpable, just sitting on the brink and waiting to reach the trucks so I could truly feel it.
     
    “We need to be careful when we approach,” Derrick warned. “They won’t automatically know who we are or that we’re US citizens. Don’t say or do anything without my permission.”
     
    “Yes, sir.”
     
    “I mean it, Ariana. This is just as dangerous as approaching the enemy.”
     
    “I know, I got it.” He really didn’t have any sense of humor anymore. He obviously couldn’t tell when my nerves were getting the best of me.
     
    We started the slow approach toward the trucks, careful to hold our hands out in the open so they could see we were unarmed. All I could hear was the rush of my pulse as it raced through my body.
     
    With just thirty feet to go, I wanted to run to safety, but I remained behind Derrick as he ordered me to. We would be safe soon enough, I had to keep reminding myself.
     
    The US military would take us back to a safe base. They would arrange for our transport, make sure I was sent home in one piece. I may have set out on an adventure to tell the stories of the people of Afghanistan, but all I wanted to do now was go home. I’d had enough adventures for a while. I yearned for the safety and security of home.
     
    Not that I would ever tell Derrick that.
     
    As far as he was concerned, I was still the disgruntled reporter trying to do my job without the interference of the military. He didn’t need to know how my eyes had been opened over the past few days.
     
    Without warning, a huge explosion kicked up dust, and everything else in proximity to it, right in front of us. Derrick quickly turned and grabbed me, falling to the ground as the shock waves burst out from the explosion.
     
    He covered me with his body as the heat and debris started to rain down on us. My ears rang. I couldn’t hear a thing anymore. It was like someone had put cotton balls in my ears, and everything was happening around me – not to me.
     
    I focused on my breathing so I didn’t freak out. I could do that later; right now there was a bomb that had gone off so close I could feel its power.
     
    When the debris started to subside, Derrick raised his head and took a look. His expression told me everything I needed to know. Still, I hated hearing the truth. “They’ve blown up the base. We need to get out of here.”
     
    Without another moment of hesitation, Derrick rose and pulled me up with him. My legs were shaking as he forced me to move. If it hadn’t been for his firm grip on my arm, I would have been frozen in place.
     
    The trucks were completely gone, lying around the streets in a billion pieces. There was nothing left of them, which meant there wasn’t anything left of those unfortunate to be inside them at the time either. People had died in just seconds.
     
    Our people. Ordinary US citizens who had made the decision to risk their lives for our freedom and safety. A lump formed in my throat at the horror of it all. War was just wrong, no matter how you looked at it.
     
    Derrick’s strides turned into running as people started to gather around the area. Members of the