Chapter 15 Help #2
“I’m surprised you even remember that.” He gave her a deep smile, clearly amused by her sense of humor. “You’re welcome.”
Tired of this long introduction, I stepped in. “Alright, we get it. You know each other. Now, can we please get to work?” I groaned.
Esther snickered as she walked away, then called out, “It’s nice to meet you, El.”
“You too,” he replied before placing the box he held on the table, then leaning in to whisper in my ear. “Alright, boss. Put me to work.”
I ignored the way it made my chest tighten and pointed at the heavy boxes by the door. “Start with those. They need to go in the back.”
El didn’t hesitate. He walked over and grabbed two boxes like they weighed nothing, his muscles flexing effortlessly. I definitely didn’t stare. Not even a little.
He caught my gaze anyway, smirking. “Like what you see, Peanut?”
A little. I scowled. “Don’t call me that.”
The next few hours passed in a blur. I moved between stations, washing, cutting, and styling hair while El handled whatever grunt work I threw his way. He lifted equipment and assisted where he could. He even held a few kids on his shoulders while their moms got their hair done.
At one point, I caught him kneeling beside an older woman, helping her sort through the donations we brought. She gestured animatedly, and he listened intently, nodding along. The sight made something in my chest tighten more.
I tore my gaze away and focused on braiding the little girl’s hair in my chair.
When we finally wrapped up, the sun had started to set, painting the sky with streaks of orange and pink.
Most of the women had retreated to their rooms, their moods lighter, their smiles brighter.
The space was quieter now, save for the occasional bursts of laughter from the volunteers still wrapping up.
I sat on a bench, sipping from a cold bottle of water, exhausted but satisfied.
El dropped down beside me, stretching his long legs out with a deep sigh. “God. I’m gonna sleep for the next hundred years.”
“You and me both,” I sighed.
With a yawn, he continued. “But I think I missed my calling. I was born to be a hairstylist’s assistant.”
I snorted. “You’re not qualified.”
“Rude.” He nudged me with his knee. “I was a great assistant, admit it.”
“You were… okay.”
He gave me a flat look. “Ellie.”
I smirked, tipping my bottle toward him. “Fine. You were helpful. Happy?”
His lips twitched. “Very.”
A comfortable silence settled between us. The heat of the day had mellowed into a warm evening breeze, carrying with it the distant hum of the city—cars passing, laughter echoing from a nearby courtyard, life continuing just beyond the quiet bubble we’d found.
“How often do you do this?” El asked after a while.
“Once a month,” I said, brushing a speck of lint off my jeans.
“When did you start?”
“About a month after we opened,” I said. “One of my regular clients lost her home in a fire. She had to move into the shelter and told me she couldn’t afford services anymore. So I offered to do it for free. It was the least I could do.”
He looked at me, brows drawing together as he listened, waiting for me to continue.
“But after that, I started thinking about all the women who couldn’t afford basic care like feminine hygiene, haircuts, clothes, even food. So I decided to step in. My staff loved the idea, and it just became something we all pitched in to help with.”
El glanced at the people neatly packing supplies into the van. “So you and your team do all this by yourselves?”
I nodded. “We get volunteers from time to time, but yeah… it’s mostly just us.”
“Any sponsors?”
“A few have offered, in exchange for promotion,” I said with a frown. “But these ladies have been through enough. The last thing they need is a camera shoved in their face like they’re some charity case.”
His jaw tightened. “Disgusting.”
Then softer, he offered. “Well, I’d love to help out. Maybe I could talk to the board, see if they’d be interested in sponsoring.”
I blinked. “You really don’t have to.”
“I want to,” he said firmly. “What you’re doing here is too important.”
Something in his tone made me pause. There was no angle or performance. Just him genuinely wanting to help.
“Well,” I said carefully, “I’d love for these women to get some real support if it’s offered. I’m not gonna be around forever. Anything can happen. It’d be nice to know that if something did, they’d still be taken care of.”
He went quiet at that.
Then, out of nowhere, he turned to face me fully, his expression steady.
“You’re fucking amazing, Elliot. You know that, right?”
I blinked, caught off guard by the sudden declaration. “What?”
“You are,” he said again. “The way you show up for these women so selflessly… you put them first. The way they look at you, the way you look after them. And you do it for basically nothing in return. It’s like you’re giving them back a piece of themselves.”
He shook his head, a quiet kind of awe in his eyes. “It’s beautiful to watch. People aren’t like that anymore.”
For a second, I couldn’t speak. I just looked at him, my heart thudding a little louder than before. I wasn’t used to people noticing how hard we worked at this and how much effort we put into our visits.
I swallowed, glancing away. “It’s just… something I can do to help.”
“It’s more than that,” he pushed. “You care. You love taking care of people, I can tell.”
“Someone has to,” I shrugged. “Those who can do, should.”
My words must have awakened something in him because he stiffened next to me. I glanced over to find him looking at me with the most expressive eyes I’d ever seen from him. Heavy. Curious. Heated.
“I’m so glad I met you, Elliot.”
My face was probably bright red from the heat. He wanted me to know he meant it, that I was someone he valued and respected. I was someone to him.
Damn it. Time to break this up.
I stood, brushing off my jeans and breaking up the tension. “Come on. Let’s help wrap this up so we can get out of here.”
El grinned, pushing himself up. When he stood, the gap between us closed drastically. “Yes, boss.”
I hated how much I liked the sound of that.
I wiped down one of the portable shampoo bowls while El stacked chairs, but I could feel his eyes still on me. He took his time watching me, never looking away when I caught him. Instead, he’d smile. Not awkwardly or apologetically. But like he wanted me to realize he was looking.
I glanced up just in time to catch his gaze locked onto my neck. Tired of being under his watch, I poked him in the chest, dragging my finger up until he followed with his chin lifting and attention redirected.
“Eyes up here. I don’t even want to think about all the nasty thoughts swimming through your mind right now.”
“I’m behaving, I promise.” He chuckled, stepping closer. “I was just thinking about last night.”
I rolled my eyes. “Of course you were.”
“It’s nothing bad. You looked so peaceful, lying on my chest like that.” He tilted his head slightly.
My gaze dropped. I hated how my stomach dipped at his words.
“So what?” I said, voice even. “I was tired, and you felt comfortable.”
“Is that the only reason?”
“Yes.” I said flatly.
I barely had a second to react before he tipped my chin up—just as I had done to him. But unlike me, he didn’t let go. His thumb brushed lightly against my jaw, and his fingers warmed my skin.
“Eyes. Up. Here.”
I swallowed. He was too close, but I didn’t pull away. In a panic, I scanned the room to see if anyone saw us as he held my jaw. If any of my staff saw us like this, I wouldn’t hear the end of it.
He smirked at my dismay. “I can come over again if you want. I want you to get a good night’s sleep.”
“Hm.” I narrowed my eyes and repeated his words. “Is that the only reason?”
“No.” His thumb rubbed against my skin slightly, almost like he didn’t realize he was doing it. “I can’t deny that I sleep better with you, too.”
I felt warmth creep up my neck and his brows pulled together almost immediately.
“That came out so wrong.”
I let out a short laugh. “Yeah, it did.”
I could hear Esther’s voice in my head, teasing.
I did like him. Not as intensely as she implied, but there was something there.
Something that was building and needed to be toppled over.
Quickly. Maybe a deterrent in his feelings was what was needed because the more he pursued, the more I would fall.
“But. I can’t tonight,” I said, pulling his hand from my jaw. “I have plans with Esther.”
His expression barely shifted, but I caught the slight raise of his brow. “What kind of plans?”
“We’re going on a double date.”
His jaw ticked, just barely. “Double date?”
“Yeah.” I studied his face carefully, searching for a reaction, but if he had one, he buried it deep.
“You can’t go.” He said it with such finality that I blinked rapidly to catch myself.
“Huh?”
“You. Cannot. Go.”
I folded my arms. “And why not?”
“Seriously, Elliot? You’re asking me that after last night?”
“El—”
“I thought we were making progress, Peanut,” he said in a disappointed tone.
I let out a short breath, stepping back. “I told you before, there’s no we, Elliot. There’s no us. You want to be friends? Fine. But thinking you have a say over my life is not the way to keep this friendship going.”
He clenched his jaw. “I don’t want you to go.”
I didn’t want to go either. “It’s not your decision.”
Silence stretched between us, thick and suffocating.
I grabbed my bag, not trusting myself to look at him for too long. “Thank you for today, El. I really appreciate it.”
Then I turned and left.