Total pages in book: 72
Estimated words: 67665 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 338(@200wpm)___ 271(@250wpm)___ 226(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 67665 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 338(@200wpm)___ 271(@250wpm)___ 226(@300wpm)
The next day at work, Ava and I were both straightening our areas between clients. I looked around to make sure Lena wasn’t there.
“She’s in the back,” Ava said, untying and retying her apron.
“I think I’m in love with Jason,” I blurted out.
Ava’s face brightened. “That’s wonderful!”
“But I’m scared to tell him.”
She softened, leaning against her styling chair. “It can’t be that hard.”
“What if he doesn’t feel the same way?” I asked.
“What if he does?”
“But…” I couldn’t think of an appropriate comeback, other than the sheer devastation a rejection would create in my heart. It would be the kind of devastation a girl didn’t wake up from. “If he…”
“If nothing,” Ava snapped. “But nothing. You have to suck it up and tell him the truth. I’ve seen you two together. One hundred percent he’s in love with you too. You’re only going to hurt yourself by hiding your feelings. Give him some credit.”
I sighed. “You’re right. I know.”
“You’re gonna do it?” She eyed me suspiciously.
“Yes,” I agreed, just as the door swung open and Ava’s two-o’clock appointment walked in.
I snuck in a smile before turning back to my workstation. I was disinfecting my combs when the door opened and the stranger from the grocery store walked in.
I immediately turned to lock eyes with Ava, but she was bent over her customer, working a knot out gently with a comb. I tried to signal her without looking too obvious but failed. I put on my best customer service smile and greeted the woman at the door.
“Good afternoon. Are you here for a haircut?” I asked.
“Lindsey, right?” the woman said.
“I am.” I pointed to my name tag. There was a pause in which I was expecting her to give me her name. Polite conversation dictated that there should be an exchange of personal information, not a one-sided interrogation. But the stranger kept quiet. “How can I help you?”
“I want to go brunette,” she said, sitting down in my chair.
I nodded tightly, pulling a clean bib from the wall. I wrapped it around the woman, securing it at the neck. She was watching me in the mirror as I fluffed her hair up around her shoulders, pulling it free from her collar.
“You have beautiful hair,” I said.
She didn’t respond, her eyes locked on my reflection. Usually, I was pretty chatty with my customers. Most of them had known me my entire life and were like family to me. But I couldn’t get this woman out of my chair quick enough. Instead of doing a shampoo, I spritzed her hair with water, emptied an entire bottle of coloring into the strands, and let it sit. I got the feeling she didn’t give a damn about her hair; she was just there to study me.
I smiled just enough to be polite, but Ava caught on pretty quickly. I found her sneaking furtive glances at me and my bizarre customer, while she worked on one of our regulars.
“What’s going on?” Ava mouthed at me, scissors and comb in hand.
I shook my head. There was no way I was going to be able to communicate anything with little miss don’t-bake-a-cake following my every move. I finished up on her with some simple styling and let her examine her own features in the mirror. She nodded politely and gave me a decent tip on top of the cost of the color.
“How long are you in town for?” I asked at the register.
“I don’t know,” she answered.
I made an attempt at friendly chitchat. “Well, you should check out the Lucky Lady. Best burgers in town.”
“I don’t eat burgers,” she said, and I wasn’t sure if she meant she was on a diet or if she was vegan. She pulled the door open and sashayed out, leaving me alone in stunned silence.
Ava came up behind me, startling me with her stage whisper. “Who was that?”
I shook my head. “I don’t know.”
“I’ve never seen her before.”
“I have,” I said. “At the grocery store. She told me guys don’t appreciate cake.”
I turned around to meet my best friend’s eyes. “Weird,” Ava said.
I nodded in agreement.
21
JASON
Lindsey and I were having dinner together. She had picked up takeout at the diner on her way home, and we were enjoying wings and fries in the kitchen. This was the best time of day, in my opinion. We had nothing to do and nowhere to go. We were like a couple of teenagers holed up in an abandoned house all by ourselves. We laughed about the craziest things, fed each other French fries, and got drunk.
If I was lucky tonight, I was going to get laid, though I didn’t think about it like that. Sex with Lindsey was more than just a roll in the hay—it meant something and would just be a bonus to whatever fun we already had together that day. When I was inside her, I was transported to another world. She wasn’t just anybody; she was rapidly becoming my best friend. She was my stakeout partner, my inside man at the hair salon. She was my roommate and maybe even my soul mate if I was honest with myself. I could picture us growing old together in this cabin, taking our coffee out onto the porch in our late seventies.