Page 66 of Second Chance with the Enemy CEO
I have to admit, I miss events like these here and the togetherness between everyone. Every event in Autumn Cove, big or small, feels light and carefree like the world’s troubles are far away.
I wander through the crowd with my camera, snapping pictures of kids playing ring toss and families lining up for cotton candy. The team is scattered, mingling with fans and participants.
Suddenly, a small cry cuts through the noise. I turn to see a little boy, no older than five, sitting on the ground, clutching his knee.
Before I can think, I am moving toward him.
“Hey, are you okay?” I kneel beside him, my voice soft.
The boy sniffles, tears streaking his cheeks. “It hurts…”
“Let’s see,” I say gently.
A shadow falls over me, and I glance up to see Liam crouching down. His expression is calm but focused.
“Hey, buddy,” Liam says, his voice low and steady. “That is a tough scrape. You are brave for not crying louder.”
The boy blinks at him, his tears slowing. I pull out a tissue from my bag. “Here, let’s clean it up.”
The boy sniffles but allows Liam to take the tissue and carefully dab at the scrape. “See? Not so bad,” Liam says with a small smile. “You’re tough.”
The boy looks up, his tears slowing. “Really?”
“Totally,” Liam says, lowering his voice like he is sharing a secret. “When I was your age, I scraped my knee so badly I cried so loud the neighbors thought something was wrong.”
“Oh, that’s not all, you know, this big baby still cried when he injured his knee when he was 17 years old,” I say, glancing at Liam, who stops and stares at me. I turn to the boy and continue, “You are braver than he is and was back then.”
The boy giggles, and the tension melts away. Liam works quickly to clean the wound, stop the bleeding, and apply the ointment I gave him from my bag.
“Does it still hurt a lot?” Liam asks, distracting the boy with a smile.
The boy nods and then shakes his head, but a small smile peeks through.
“We’ve got this,” I say, smiling at the boy. “You are in good hands. Here, let me blow a kiss on it to make it better.” I start blowing air on it.
A few minutes later, a woman rushes over - it is his mother. “Oh, thank you so much,” she says, scooping him up.
“No problem,” I reply, standing.
Liam nods at her. “He is a tough kid. He will be fine.”
As they walk away, I look up at Liam, a strange mix of emotions swirling in my chest.
“You remembered my injury at 17?” Liam asks suddenly, his voice tinged with surprise. His brows are slightly raised.
I shrug, feigning nonchalance. “There are lots of things I remember.”
His gaze lingers on me like he is trying to figure out exactly what that means, but I don’t elaborate.
“Huh,” he murmurs, almost to himself, “like what?” He asks.
I glance at him, a faint smile tugging at my lips. “Don’t push your luck, Liam.”
The corners of his mouth twitch, but then he nods. We fall into silence, the noise of the event buzzing around us.
“Do you still feel pain in that knee?” I ask before I can stop myself.
He looks at me, his brow furrowing slightly as if he is trying to figure out why I care. “Haven’t for three years,” he says, the surprise in his voice almost imperceptible.
