Kiss Me If You Can [NOVEL] - Chapter 2

“Big accident at a V&A jewelry event.”

The employee who reads the headline, puts the newspaper next to the box. The article at the top, it is almost impossible to avoid. It’s already on television. Not only on the Internet, too, it is a recurring theme in the conversations of people who come and go. Everybody talks about it.

At the end, the customer places the newspaper on the counter, along with gum, mineral water, and a men’s magazine.

“Chase Miller is a great success.”

“Yes.”

The man says briefly, as if he’s not interested. The employee grabs the things and passes them through the barcode.

“Honestly, those kinds of people shouldn’t be invited to those events, right? Chase Miller has not even released a comment.”

“Well, I don’t know celebrities.”

The man cleverly lied. Not everything is false. The truth is, he doesn’t know much about celebrities. Rather, he wants to quickly finish paying and go home.

At the same time, another customer stands behind him and watches the employee. The clerk hastily glances up. The man is taller than he thought. His chest is hidden under his shirt, but his firm muscles are clearly visible. Surprised and blinking, the clerk places the items on the box and gives a simple greeting when the man leaves. The clerk looks at the back of the withdrawing customer as the other customer moves forward.

“Why did it take so long to collect from you?”

“Did you see the face of the man who came out?”

The customer looks at him as if he’s embarrassed. But the clerk still mutters in the direction the man disappeared from.

“Obviously that man is an Alpha, right?”

The customer looks with a frown at the employee’s reaction.

“He doesn’t smell of pheromones.”

“He is so handsome! Of course it is an Alpha.”

The clerk is very interested in the man , but they couldn’t find his trace. The clerk sighs, picking up a barcode.

✤✤✤✤✤✤

He looks at the store again. Josh is going crazy, hurrying across the street, when a horn honks and the other driver blurts out abusive words, but ignores them and hits the gas even harder. He’s already 30 minutes late.

Why is it so procrastinating? It took 10 minutes to get the job done.

Also, the topic the store clerk brought up is the one Josh really didn’t want to hear.

He’s only heard from Chase Miller for days, to the point of having a headache. Even if he tries to avoid it, he can’t at all. When people come together, everyone talks about it. Chase’s face is embedded in the packaging of the carbonated drinks when he presses the button on the vending machine, and in the news that is released when he turns on the television.

He couldn’t live with Chase Miller in the same state.

Josh is upset and barely swallows, trying not to spit abusive language, because Pete is afraid of hearing bad words. Since then, Josh has always tried not to use foul language, although it is difficult. However, today is one of those days when it is very difficult to control your desire to release curses and insults.

When he barely gets home, his face changes completely.

“Pete!”

Jump the stairs three at a time and get to the floor where he lives. Pete, sitting in the living room and playing with the babysitter, turns his head and yells immediately.

“Papa!”

“Pete!”

Josh immediately picks him up to carry him in his arms and kiss his entire face. It is difficult for him to breathe due to his heart full of satisfaction. It is a sensation that causes the accumulated fatigue of the whole day to disappear. After 5 long hours he can finally see his little one with excitement. Finally, Josh hugs the boy and says:

“Thank you for your hard work today.”

“You’re welcome, Pete is nice and easy to care for.”

He is a college student, who takes care of Josh’s son part-time.

“I always get your help. Will you have an exam soon? Will you tell me in advance the days when you will not be able to take care of him?”

“Of course, Josh. I will try not to be absent as much as possible. So Pete, see you soon.”

After taking the boy’s hand and giving the worker the salary and saying goodbye to him, Josh is left alone with Pete.

Josh begins to get ready to sleep with his son, who always loves to climb and sit on his shoulders.

“Oh, ah, baa.”

The boy shakes his butt and makes an incomprehensible sound.

It is probably the title song of your favorite cartoon. Needless to say, it is just a guess.

Josh kisses the boy’s plump calf and walks through the narrow kitchen. Simply grill the steak, make the potato salad, and add beans to finish the dish.

“I hate beans!”

Pete, who is sitting in the chair at the children’s table, complains as soon as he sees the beans.

Josh tells him, as he cuts the meat finely so the boy can eat easily.

“Beans are friends with potatoes. They are happy to go to Pete’s boat together. I convinced my friends, but right now. You don’t want to see Jason sad, right?”

Jason is Pete’s favorite doll. He’s reasonably persuasive, but right now Pete isn’t taking a step back.

“I hate beans!”

At first glance, someone comes to mind, as Pete removes the bean from his mouth. Josh stops suddenly, he reminds him of a man’s face, a big one and grown up. But no man is as cute as Pete.

The disappointed look of his child looking at the beans is so beautiful. In the end, Josh kisses his little boy’s foot and then puts the beans in a grinder, grinds them without leaving a trace. Pick up an empty plate and shout:

“I defeated the enemy!”

“Wow, wow!”

Pete’s mouth quickly gets dirty from food. Josh always takes out his handkerchief, wipes his mouth, and watches him. Looking at the little hand with a fork, he feels like his heart is going to explode.

Walking slowly in the living room with his child in his arms and waiting for him to fall asleep.

After putting Pete to bed, he cleans the house, takes a shower, and finally has a beer.

“Whoo .”

A satisfied sigh comes out. He has no complaints about his life.

When he imagines that Pete is growing up and that one day he will be leaving home for college, he gets a few tears, but that is too far away. He empties a can and goes to bed.

✤✤✤✤✤✤

When the cell phone bell rang, Josh was asleep.

“Yes, hello … Emma?”

He wakes up suddenly, he is amazed by the sadness in his sister’s voice. So he hastily checks the clock on the side table and calculates the difference from Western time.

“Oh, Josh. What should I do?”

” Why? What’s going on?”

When he asks her in a hurry, Emma responds with a yell:

“Mom, she passed out, uh … Now, we’re at the hospital.”

“What? … Emma, ​​don’t cry, speak slowly. What happened?”

Josh’s voice unconsciously sharpens. On the other end of the phone, his sister’s sobbing voice is heard. His head is still blank.

“Stop crying and talk. Are you in the ER now?” [ER=emergency room]

“Oh yeah. Hmm …”

Again, Emma begins to cry. It is not unusual to see something like this as he is the younger brother. Josh boils, but he can’t help it. He waits patiently for his sister to calm down.

After a frustrating time, Emma barely breathes and begins to stutter. In short, she said that she is in the emergency room because their mother’s illness has worsened. With repeated shoots.

“They also told me my deposit was running low.”

After barely speaking, Josh asks in a more relaxed tone than before:

“Have you consulted any medical insurance?”

“No, I’ll go later … I notified the company that I was taking a break from work. I’m going to go to the bank to apply for a loan, I don’t know … if it will be the best …”

Emma barely finished speaking again. Josh swallows his breath.

“Josh, I really don’t know what’s … going on with Mom … My hands are too cold … my breathing …”

“Emma, ​​Emma.”

Josh calls his sister a little before he loses his mind.

“Okay, calm down first. Is mother okay?”

“Huh? The crisis is over.”

Emma still responds with a shaky voice, but somehow tries to stay awake. She is strong-spirited. When he thinks about how terrified she must feel, he wants to take a flight and go.

“What does the doctor say? Can she leave the hospital?”

“No, I think she needs to be hospitalized for a few days. They have to run some more tests …”

Emma, ​​who spits out a shaky breath, asks in a calmer voice:

“What should I do, Josh?”

“Do not worry.” Josh responds briskly. “I’ll help you in some way, did you get some sleep?”

“No.”

Emma murmurs without energy.

Suddenly, her strong fatigue is heard through the earpiece.

“Okay, you can go rest now. I will call you later.”

Emma responds in a very exhausted voice:

“… Yes, I need to sleep. So Josh, I’ll call you later.”

“Don’t worry, drive carefully.”

When you hang up the phone after adding that request, there is a sudden silence. He feels overwhelmed, in the dark and goes over the conversation in his head for a while, but the situation is clear.

I need money.

“Ahh!”

Stop holding his head and sigh deeply. However, this is not the time to be overwhelmed. Josh hastily remembers the money he has. He is trying to calculate how much he needs, but the child begins to cry.

“Papa, papa.”

As soon as Josh enters the room he sees the crying boy, who wants to go into his arms. Sometimes Pete wakes up and cries like this. The boy, as always, leans towards Josh as much as possible.

“Okay, Pete …”

While walking around the room carrying him, the child gradually calms down and falls asleep. Josh kisses Pete’s head. The baby’s body temperature always calms him down. The boy’s peculiar sweetness seems to calm his anxiety. He finally sits on the couch, feet up, all night.

✤✤✤✤✤✤

“Hi Rose.”

After knocking, Josh opens the office door and says hello.

Rose, sitting at her desk doing her nails, is shocked and smiles brightly.

“Hi Josh. Today you are very cute.”

As always, just reply with a smile. He’s not happy because he left Pete still asleep, he’ll cry when he wakes up and makes sure he’s not there. It happens every day, but it’s still bitter.

Josh wants to be with the boy until he grows up. He wishes he could, but reality does not allow it. Also, today is a day when the part-time worker, who took care of the child, rests.

The guilt is reinforced by the fact that he has left the boy with Mrs. Robert, next door, before the boy woke up. Her only source of income is her pension, she is very kind, she has grandchildren that she often cannot see, from time to time she buys toys and bakes cookies. He cannot leave his child in the care of an old woman for a long time.

As he looks at the door to Mark’s office, Rose raises her head.

“The boss isn’t there yet, he usually comes early. Want a coffee?”

Josh smiled in disappointment.

“Yes thanks.”

“Please wait a minute.”

Rose rushes in like she’s excited. When Josh sits on the couch, he feels anxious for some reason, his gaze wandering unnecessarily and turning his attention to the newspaper on the table. The cover photo catches your eye. Rose notices.

“He’s the DA on the Davis case. Very handsome right?”

He’s in charge of investigating a murder in New York. The person designated as the culprit is an Alpha, but unfortunately, his reputation is not very good. People with money and power easily become enemies of others. But the biggest cause of emotion is the Prosecutor. Rose, heaving an admiring sigh, places the mug in front of him. Josh gives her a short thanks and brings the mug to his mouth, but still keeps his eyes on the photo. Rose says:

“Are you an Alpha or an Omega?”

“None…”

The Alpha or Omega, manifest in adolescence. This is not the case with Betas, sometimes they did not manifest themselves in adolescence.

Most Alphas or Omegas are 99% or 100% beautiful enough not to be recognized. Among them is the man on the cover, even Josh was caught for a moment, even if the photo in the article is of low quality.

“Are you Beta? … It’s not possible.”

Rose, turns her head and looks at him, soon she shuts up. Very rarely, there are people with good looks among the Betas. Thanks to this, Josh has been amazingly hidden. Rose smiles vaguely and sits next to him.

“I’m really surprised that a handsome boy like Josh is Beta. I thought you were an Alpha,” she says with a puzzled attitude. Her disappointment is evident. Josh has heard it many times in his life.

Sadly, they are all wrong. Josh is an Omega, he also has a mark on his ear.

Just for work he hides the fact that he is Omega. Unfortunately, no one hires Omegas as bodyguards. So Josh started hiding it, it wasn’t difficult, when people see him, they usually think he’s an Alpha.

He was forced to take medication due to the strong pheromones. Throughout his life, he has been confident that he will not be caught.

Josh touches the mark on his ear with one hand, without realizing it. You feel a thin line, he didn’t give it much thought. He has to keep pretending to be Beta. Eventually everyone will know what an Omega is.

The only way left is to hide it with effort. That is why he often wears bodyguard headphones or uses different methods to cover his ears when he is not working. Being unemployed is not an option for Josh, he feels a chill up his spine, he ignores it and finishes his coffee.

“How old is Pete this year? Isn’t it difficult to have a child alone?”

“Well, it’s worth it.”

Staff in the office thought the boy’s mother ran away leaving him with the boy. There weren’t many questions on that topic, so he didn’t even have to speak. Until recently, it used to work, but Rose seems to be interested, a few months ago she got divorced.

Rose ignores his stubborn refusal and keeps her face close.

“But wouldn’t the child need a mother? Unfortunately, he is so small and has no maternal contact … Right?”

Josh frowns slightly. Rose does not meet his expectations.

“Wait, Rose. The distance is very short.”

Josh warns him, but it doesn’t work. Rose brings her lips close and closes her eyes. It is clear that she wants to kiss him. Josh blocks her lips with his hand, which was about to reach for him. In Josh’s palm, Rose presses her lips together and opens her eyes.

“Rose, I don’t want to.”

Rose stops at a gentle voice and then narrows her eyes.

“No?”

“Suddenly the boss may appear in front of us.”

“Are you kidding?”

Rose frowns.

“Listen, he’s footsteps approaching. Could the boss be heading this way?”

“Excuse me, please?”

Rose fluttered.

At that moment, the door suddenly opens.

“What? What are you doing so early?”

“Oh!”

With the appearance of the boss who greets in a harsh tone, Rose is surprised and lifts her body. Josh pretends to do nothing and greets him.

“Hello Mark.”

“You were waiting?”

Mark, who has seen the embarrassed Rose turning and fixing her clothes, goes straight to his office. Josh follows quickly, closing the door behind him.

“Ah.”

Mark sighs exaggeratedly, sits down on the desk and looks at him.

“Can i ask you a favor? My situation is somewhat difficult, you know that I am a single father.”

Josh repeats the many lies he had told him, just like he did with Rose.

“I’ll return it when my mother recovers.”

“Oh yeah,” Mark says, pulling out his cigarette.

Josh quit smoking when he had Pete. And he has not smoked so far. He stands as far away as possible to avoid the smell and opens his mouth:

“Mark, will you be able to do it?”

“How much?”

“… Ten thousand dollars?”

“Good luck.”

Suddenly Mark coughs violently. Josh thinks about the CPR procedure, in case he can’t breathe. When he manages to breathe, Mark asks suspiciously:

“Are you betting?”

“No.”

Josh shakes his head and answers frankly:

“My mother is sick, so I need some money.”

“Did you say she has a disease? Is it due to blood pressure?”

“Yeah … and she doesn’t have a kidney … It’s a lot of things.”

Josh speaks with little emotion. You don’t want to stimulate Mark’s compassion on purpose, so you put out the words he prepared, in the smartest way possible:

“Meanwhile, hospital charges have been filed … I saved a lot of money, but it’s not enough.”

Mark says nothing, just puffs on his cigarette.

Can a small security company pay that much?

Mark, who seems to be worried for a moment, sighs and opens his mouth:

“… I’ll think about it.”

He doesn’t say no. But the amount is very high. Josh wonders: Why does he even consider it?

“… I’ll pay you with work.”

Mark complains.

“When are you going to make ten thousand dollars? I have to say it doesn’t make sense.”

Josh is forced to leave the office with an awkward smile. Mark was still smoking with a serious face behind him.

✤✤✤✤✤✤

“Daddy, the smell of cigarettes.”

The boy hides his face in Mrs. Robert’s neck as soon as he sees Josh’s face, and then covers his nose with his hands. When Josh hastily turns around, Pete waits and then holds out his hand. The boy hugs him and Josh turns him in his arms.

“Bourr.”

“Hahahaha.”

When the air makes a sound, Pete can’t beat the tingle and shakes his body. The boy appears to have received a new toy from Mrs. Robert. The little car you see for the first time is being held in the little hand.

“I just bought it, when I passed I saw it and I remembered Pete.”

Josh couldn’t refuse the gift, and instead smiles and says thank you.

“You’ve done something? Is Pete giving you trouble?”

“I really enjoy spending time with Pete. Don’t worry, it’s always welcome.”

His smiling face is sincere. Mrs. Robert, who lives on a pension, thought of Pete and gave him a gift, so Josh also thinks he has to reciprocate. Then it turns out that the bathroom light is off. He, who looks behind her, takes a look. Soon he asks her on the subject:

“Is there a place that needs repair? I have a little break today so I can afford it.”

In response, Ms. Robert couldn’t hide her joy.

“You can do it? Over there, the bathroom light … I have a sink that the water doesn’t drain well …”

“Okay. I’ll get the tools now.”

Josh goes home and comes back holding the child in one arm and the tools in the other, so that the child does not cry.

Mrs. Robert is getting ready to bake cookies. Finally, he starts looking at the bathroom lights.

✤✤✤✤✤✤

When he gets home with his child, it is already time for dinner. Mrs. Robert recommended having dinner together, but Josh politely declined since he had bothered her so much during the day. Instead, coming home with lots of freshly baked cookies. Pete holds a cookie to his mouth, Josh takes it from him quickly.

“No, you have to have dinner first.”

Pete follows the cookie away with his gaze. By the time Josh’s mind grows weak and hesitates. Pete looks at Josh sadly. In just three seconds, Josh makes a groan of surrender.

“Ugh.”

His son is so cute and charming. Pete convinces him with just one look and Josh hands him the cookie. Then he wipes the crumbs he spills out of his mouth when he eats and rushes to make dinner.

When will Mark contact?

While feeding Pete, Josh still has a lot on his mind. He has to think about how much the hospital deposit is and if there is another way to get more money. Because of that he drops the spoon a couple of times having to take out a new one. The sound of the doorbell alerts him and he finishes his meal in two bites.

Doorbell is ringing.

“Uh, sorry for being late.”

As soon as the door opens, Mark walks past Josh and enters the house. It’s a quicker visit than he thinks, Josh feels nervous and follows him. Pete, sitting in the child’s chair at the dining room table and eating cookies and milk for dessert, notices Mark’s appearance. Josh walks over quickly and kisses his head so that the boy is not surprised.

“Pete, it’s Mr. Mark, you have to say hi to him.”

“Goodnight.”

Only then does Pete say hi. Mark roughly strokes the boy’s head and immediately turns to Josh.

“Let’s talk.”

Josh asks behind him, heading into the living room.

“Have you already had dinner?”

“I did . Shall we continue?”

“Well OK.”

While the boy was eating cookies, he had not yet eaten, but he does not have time to think about it, the conversation is first. It is not normal for the boss to come to your house, and it is too late.

“Ah.”

Even after sitting on the couch, Mark doesn’t speak easily. Josh sits down and waits for his words. The wait time feels too long, but he can’t rush him, waiting quietly, checking his feet. After a while, he speak:

“It’s about work.”

After sighing again, the boss replies:

“I have one. Well the pay is good and the condition is not bad overall. Is not very good. All the amount you said is a lump sum, and it will be possible in advance. You’ll pay enough for the down payment, so pay more for the remaining pay after work…” Mark added, “It’s really good… Whoever made the application is the problem.”

Josh looks patiently at his lips. Mark barely opens his mouth after feeling like a long time has passed. When he finally got the name out, Josh knew why he was so hesitant.

“It’s Chase C. Miller … Do you remember?”

The moment he hears the name, Josh even forgets to breathe. Chase C. Miller. How to forget the name.

Mysterious purple eyes, a natural blonde hair that shines in the sun. A beautiful face with strong lines. Slim, tall and elegant body. Chase C. Miller, there has never been a better male actor in Hollywood, since his debut his career has been active.

A dominant Alpha who left a mark on Josh. He’s the same man who got him pregnant with Pete.