High-Stakes Holiday Reunion. Christy Barritt

that she’d already gravitated back toward the fire again. By the set of her shoulders, she looked like she was carrying a weight far heavier than she should bear.

      He turned back to Denton. “What is it?”

      Denton lowered his voice. “Are you sure you can handle this?” His eyes showed that he was dead serious.

      “Of course.” Christopher wasn’t sure what his superior was getting at.

      Denton crossed his arms and shifted, his voice still low and conspirative. “You took this job to recover from war. You’re being thrown right back into a battle, though.”

      Christopher straightened. “I can handle it.”

      “I know you think you’re tough. You are tough. But even the toughest soldiers have to step away from the battle sometimes.”

      “Sometimes a soldier has no choice but to go back into the fight. They have to reach down inside and find strength, even when they don’t think they have it. That’s what one of the men who once trained me said, at least.” He kept his chin raised and stood at full attention, though he knew Denton would tell him to be at ease.

      Denton stared at him a moment before nodding. A smile stretched across his face and he gripped his arm. Denton had been that man who said those words. “I’m here for you if you need me.”

      “You always have been. I appreciate that, sir.”

      Denton leaned closer. “Listen, I don’t know what your past relationship is with Ashley, but I get the feeling you two were more than friends.”

      “Yes, we were. We were engaged, to be exact.”

      His eyes widened a moment. “This was the girl you were crazy about while you were in training, huh? I remember the way you talked about her like she was the best thing to ever happen to you.”

      “She was the best thing to ever happen to me.” His heart squeezed as he said the words. They were true. Walking away from Ashley had felt like walking away from his heart.

      “Don’t let your past get in the way of doing what you have to do.”

      “Yes, sir.” He glanced back over at Ashley. Those words would be the hardest to follow through on. Remembering their time together was so bittersweet.

      Somehow, he had to ignore the fact that she hated him and realize that God had brought her back into his life for some reason...maybe even just forgiveness and closure? He didn’t know.

      But he did know that, in Christ, all things worked together for His good.

      Somehow, someway, something good was going to come out of all of this.

      The question was...what?