Page 21 of Enemy Kisses

He kicks the pavement with the toe of his worn sneaker, sighing. His shoulders drop, and it’s almost like he folds in on himself. “The chemo’s left her weak. She can barely get out of bed. I have to do everything.”

“I’m sorry. I wish I could do more to help.”

“Hey.” Matthew and I turn toward the feminine voice. The muscle behind my ribs expands at the sight of Harry walking toward us. She’s so damn gorgeous. I study her closely but find no trace of the woman I left standing in her kitchen on Monday afternoon. “I was taking out the trash when I heard you say you were looking for work.” She looks directly at Matthew.

He nods and then looks down at the pavement, a blush staining his cheeks. “Uh, yeah.”

“I could do with some help. It would just be waiting tables and washing dishes at this stage. Would you be happy to do that?”

Matthew snaps his head back to Harry with wide eyes. “Yeah. I’d be happy to do anything. I just need to earn some money to help support my family.”

“He’s a good kid, Harry. You won’t be sorry.”

She glances at me, then returns her attention to Matthew. “Can you start Monday at eight?”

Matthew nods eagerly. “Absolutely. Thank you so much.” His smile lights his entire face and it’s great to see it replace the constant worry he wears. He raises the drinks and dinner I just gave him. “Thanks, Finn. I’ll be able to buy dinner now. Wow! This is amazing. Wait until I tell Mom.” He spins around, his smile huge. Then he turns back suddenly. “You’re serious, right? This isn’t a prank or anything?”

Harry giggles and it’s a tinkling sound that goes straight to my dick. “I promise I’m not pranking you.” She holds out her hand and then thinks better of it, dropping it back to her side since Matthew has his hands full. “I’m Harry, by the way.”

“Oh yeah, sorry. I’m Matthew.” He tips his chin to her. “Is there anything I need to do?”

“You’ll need to fill out some paperwork and banking details, but we can do that on Monday. You probably need to get home before your dinner goes cold.” She points to the fish and chips he’s holding.

“Cool. Okay, thank you.” He turns toward me. “See ya on Monday.” He raises the food and drink. “Thanks again for dinner, Finn.”

“You’re welcome.” Then he’s gone, disappearing around the corner of the pub.

I turn back to Harry and step closer because with her near, I can’t keep my distance. I refuse to. “Thanks for helping Matthew. He’s had a tough time and is trying to help his family however he can.”

“You don’t need to thank me. I’m happy to help. I overheard part of your conversation about his mom and chemo.” Creases form between her brows, and I reach up to smooth them away. She stiffens and steps back from me, and my hand falls to my side.

“I can pay some of his wages.” Harry shakes her head. “I couldn’t give him a job because of his age, so I tried to help him by providing dinner for him and his family every day. He wouldn’t take money. Believe me, I’ve offered. He would only accept food.”

Harry’s posture softens. “That’s kind of you to help him like that. Sometimes people just need a break.” Her eyes scan me with a level of appreciation I recognize, pausing on my torso covered in my fitted gray T-shirt with the pub logo emblazoned over my left pec. Her eyes make their way back to my face. “I can afford to pay his wages. I’ve needed an extra pair of hands for a while now. I just hadn’t gotten around to putting a sign up in the window. I even have the paperwork he’ll need to complete in my office.” She shrugs.

“He’ll work hard. He’s been looking for work for a while, but nobody will hire a kid who looks homeless. I offered to buy him some new clothes, but he wouldn’t accept it.”

“I have no doubt. Maybe I’ll get him a couple of pairs of pants and some T-shirts as a uniform. What size do you think he’d be?”

I step back into her space and slide my fingers through her silky hair, tucking the curly strands behind her ear. She doesn’t pull away this time and I mentally fist bump. “You don’t have to do that. I can buy him a uniform.” I glance at the time. “Or we could buy them together. We could go to Target now if you have time.”

“Oh, um.” She points over her shoulder toward her building. “I was just finishing a deep clean of the fridge. I’m not quite finished.”

I shrug. “I can wait. Come and grab me when you’re finished.” That’ll give me time to let the staff know I’ll be out for a while and maybe I can convince her to have dinner with me. Something casual.

“Uh, sure.”

* * *

Forty minutes later, we’re pulling into the nearest mall with a Target. We make our way through the store and head straight for the menswear section. “What type of clothes do you want to get for Matthew?”

She bites her bottom lip. “I don’t know. I hadn’t thought about it. Maybe some black cargo pants and a couple of polo shirts. There was an embroidery place on the way in. I could get my logo stitched onto the shirts and pants. I might even get myself and Judy fresh shirts. That way, Matthew won’t see it as a handout.”

“Good idea.” I collect Harry’s hand in mine and lead her toward the cargo pants. She doesn’t balk when I tangle my fingers with hers. The only problem is that we need to separate when we get to the pants and need to search for the correct size.

“What size do you think he is?”

“He’s about the same size I was at his age.” I search through the racks and find a pair of black pants in a size I’ve long since left behind. “These should do the trick.” I hand them to Harry and search for another pair the same size. We then head over to the polo shirts. “What color shirts do you want to get him?”

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