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“You know I don’t mind helping you.”
“Yes, I know for now, but Harley is not your problem.”
I stepped closer. “Harley is not a problem. He’s a child, Mike, and I will do anything to help you with him. I know nothing is going on between us, but that doesn’t mean I won’t be here for both of you.”
“Thank you, Candy.”
He hugged me again and then stepped back. “Well, let’s go see what else we can learn.”
“There was a note from his mother in the bag for you. I didn’t read it. It’s on the counter.”
“I’ll look at it later. I’m afraid I'd lose my mind if I read it now.”
“Probably a good idea.”
I followed Mike back toward the kitchen, but before we got there, we found him sitting in the corner of the room, with his back to us and his hands over his ears as he hummed loudly.
“What is he doing?”
I shook my head. “I have no idea.”
Mike stepped hesitantly toward him and touched his shoulder. Harley turned around, his eyes wide but a smile on his face. “You’re done already?”
“Done? Um, what were we supposed to be doing?”
“You went into the room with the door. Mom used to bring her boyfriends into that room, and I had to sit in the corner and sing to myself until they were done, but it was usually a lot longer than that.”
Instantly, that nauseous feeling in my gut returned, and Mike lifted barely veiled fierce eyes to me. Mike helped him stand up and looked at me like what the hell did you say to that.
“Harley, we were just talking in my room. Come here, and I will show you my room and where you will sleep.”
Mike brought him to my room, and he looked around. “Wow! Your bed is really high!” He ran and threw his leg up to get onto the bed. He began to bounce on it, and I found myself chuckling at his youthful innocence.
Mike caught him as he jumped into the air. “Okay, enough of that. We don’t need you falling off and getting hurt. Let’s keep the jumping on the floor.”
“But I’ll bother the man downstairs if I jump on the floor.”
“Not here, you won’t,” Mike told him. “No one lives under Candy’s house.”
“Okay!” He proceeded to jump up and down, watching the two of us to ensure we weren’t going to say anything.
“Why don’t you hop over here, and I’ll show you to your room.”
He followed me out of the room and down the hall. “Why can’t I sleep with you? I used to sleep with my mom all the time.”
“Well, because here you will have your own bed, and you won’t have to share anymore.”
I stepped into one of my guest rooms, and he looked around. “This is for me?”
“Yep, for now, it is.”
He turned to Mike. “And you will be here too?”
“No, he will be across the hall.” I pointed to another room.
“We all get our own rooms?”
“Yep, here you get your own room.”
