“Do you know what we have in common?”
“Clothing choices?” she said snarkily, motioning between them. Matty was in a T-shirt, work pants, and steel-toed boots. Reese was in a light cream-colored blouse, dark purple skirt, and lavender cardigan with tan sandals. Total opposites.
“Yes, tomorrow let’s wear matching dresses.” Sarcasm dripped with every word.
“Deal.”
“Anyway,seriously, though, we both have things we need help with.”
Matty raised an eyebrow. “We do?”
“Yes, we do. My hoard and your GED.”
The silence that followed was thick. Matty pulled her bottom lip in between her teeth and crossed her arms. Reese hoped she hadn’t overstepped. She was relieved when Matty spoke. “I guess so.”
“I have a proposition.”
That earned her a curious look. “Yeah? What is it?”
She took a deep breath. This was a big leap for her. “I need help with things around the house. It’s such a large task. Repairs will be needed, and there’s some stuff I need an extra person to help with.”
Matty’s eyes brightened. “I can help with that.”
“You can, and I can help you.”
“Help me?”
“Yeah, you. You said you were worried about not passing. I’ll help you study. You help me de-hoard the house. And fix stuff. I can barely hang up a picture.”
Matty opened her mouth, then closed it again before speaking. “I, um, I guess?”
“Are you asking me or agreeing with me?” smirked Reese.
She let out a short laugh. “Uh, I think I’m agreeing.”
“Fantastic. I like this. We can both have support without having to expose ourselves to a lot of people. I’d rather everyone not know about the hoard. We’ll do it together.”
A look of something she couldn’t quite read flashed across Matty’s face. Was it excitement, maybe? “Together. Yeah, I like that. Let’s do it.”
“Are you busy this weekend?”
“Nothing I can’t work around. How about I come over Saturday morning? I’ll bring doughnuts, and you make the coffee?”
“I can do that. And then maybe Sunday evening, we work on the GED stuff?”
Matty nodded, more excited now. “Yeah, that’s great.”
Reese smiled. This was going to be a nice arrangement.
Chapter fifteen
Chapter Fifteen
“So, who is this woman?” asked Haley over FaceTime. Reese’s phone was propped up on the vanity in the bathroom.
“She’s from the rehab. She works in maintenance.”
“Huh. And by the way, you’ve changed clothes three times, asked if you looked too dressy, and have on eyeliner and mascara to clean, which tells me this isn’t just a normal friend. Also, is that lipstick in your hand?”
