Chapter 21 Hazel
TWENTY-ONE
Hazel
Two days.
Two freaking days and no word about the kiss.
Everything was at a standstill lately and I hated it.
Patience wasn’t my thing. I’d always been the type to move fast. I dropped out of community college and enrolled in cosmetology school on a whim.
I bought the first clunker car I found online that fit my budget.
I definitely moved in with Paul too quickly.
I wasn’t one to overanalyze. I liked instant gratification, and I liked taking action.
So, two days with absolutely zero mention of the kiss we’d shared was driving me up the wall. I mean, technically it had only been a day and a half. It happened two nights ago, and it was only eleven a.m. right now, but it might as well have been an eternity.
Granted, Reid and I hadn’t seen much of each other since.
I’d had back-to-back clients yesterday and then he met up with a friend after work before getting online with his investigator group all evening.
Apparently, my case had put them behind on a cold case they were blogging about, and they had a new break they wanted to discuss.
I wanted to ask him about it. It was interesting.
I hadn’t mentioned it to him, but I’d started reading his blogs.
They were good. Enticing. I knew from talking to him that their group split up the work.
They’d take turns writing, editing, and posting.
Each of their different styles shone through in the blog and made it a compelling read.
I was dying to know what else they would uncover on some of these cases.
I poured myself a bowl of cereal and slurped up a spoonful.
“Shit,” I muttered when a splash of milk dribbled out of my mouth and onto my sweater. I was already dressed for work in head-to-toe black. I was already running late as it was. I pulled out a piece of paper towel and dabbed at the damp spot.
“Oh, you’re still here.”
I froze.
Reid stood in the hallway that led from the open living area to his bedroom and office.
Shit, was it possible he looked better since the kiss? Ever since I’d cut his hair, he’d been letting it grow out. It was thick and slightly wavy. Honestly, it was a total crime that he used to buzz it all off. Some people would kill for that head of hair.
“I was just about to head out,” I said at the same time he said, “Want any lunch?”
I cringed, looking down at my bowl of sugary cereal. It was the first thing I’d eaten all day. I hadn’t meant to sleep in, but I’d stayed up way too late last night scrolling on my phone.
“I’m covered,” I said, holding up my bowl.
His gaze was heavy with judgement as he took it in. “Nothing like a balanced meal.”
“Exactly. Whole grains, dairy. I’m covered.”
“Who needs protein and complex carbs.”
“Exactly.” I laughed, hating how nervous it sounded.
“You sure I can’t make you lunch?” he asked again.
“Nope. I’m already late.” I rinsed out my bowl and opened the dishwasher to slide it in. Reid was the kind of guy who had a very specific way of loading dishes, and I still hadn’t figured it out. I just hoped the fact that I never left anything in the sink counted for something.
I walked toward the entry, throwing him an apologetic smile. “Dinner, maybe?”
He paused, leaning against the hallway. “I have dinner with my family tonight.”
“Oh,” I said, disappointment evident in my tone.
“You should come.” He tossed it out there so casually I almost thought I’d misheard him.
“To dinner? With your family?” The invite shocked me.
“Why not?” he said. “You already know Ruby. And everyone else has been dying to meet you.”
He wanted me to meet his family? Before we’d even discussed the other night? Was this a good sign? It had to be, right? “Um, I guess I could,” was all I said.
“I really want you to come,” he added.
I forced a smile and nodded. “Okay, then.”
Reid’s eyes twinkled. He must have realized how flustered I looked. “Okay, then,” he parroted back my words.
And that was it.
His invitation rattled around in my brain the entire drive to the salon.
Everyone was dying to meet me? He really wanted me to come?
The words did not compute. The fact that Reid’s family knew about me made me all sorts of self-conscious.
I’d never cared much about what people thought of me, but with Reid…
I really didn’t want his family to dislike me.
Would they think I was good enough for their son?
Was I delusional for even having that thought?
He’d mentioned nothing of the kiss since it happened, and for all I knew he had zero interest in doing it again.
But even without knowing how he felt, it still occupied every corner of my mind. The kiss was growing like an infection. Soon it would be the only thing I could think or talk about.
I pushed open the door to the salon and relief flooded through me that Ruby wasn’t at her station. I wasn’t sure I could handle the added pressure of acting nonchalant around her right now.
“Nice of you to join us,” Jackson said, as I rushed to my chair and tied on my apron.
“I’m on time.” Technically I was, but my client walked through the door not even a minute later.
“Morning, Denise.”
I smiled brightly at the graying woman. She was just here for a trim.
Her usual. She came to me once a month like clockwork and was one of the clients who’d moved to this salon with me after I’d left the last place.
She said she’d never liked the energy there.
She was sweet and kind. She’d given me a tissue and let me cry the week after Gran passed away.
“What’s new, Denise?” Jackson asked, sitting in his chair and spinning toward us.
“I’ve got a speed dating event at the rec center tomorrow,” she said coyly.
Jackson grinned. “Denise! You player. Hazel, get this woman looking her best.”
“Obviously,” I said, taking her over to the sink to give her a quick wash.
As my gloved hands worked through her short hair, my mind kept wandering to Reid’s dinner invitation.
Part of me was tempted to ask Jackson for advice.
He was the closest thing I had to a friend, lately.
I hadn’t even heard from Zoe since her birthday.
She’d said thanks for coming, and I’d told her to let me know if she wanted to do breakfast or lunch before she left.
She never responded. It hurt, but having already had the realization that we just weren’t that close anymore lessened the blow.
“What’s got you all worked up?” Jackson asked when I walked Denise back to my chair. I pulled out a comb and concentrated, trimming the ends as little as I could. I knew from experience she preferred it just brushing her shoulders. Nothing even a centimeter shorter.
“Nothing,” I said, snipping away at the dead ends.
He dipped his chin. “Are you serious? The lines between your eyebrows are so deep, I can practically see the stress headache forming.”
“I’ll tell you later,” I said, eyeing my client in the mirror and narrowing my eyes at him.
Jackson crossed his legs and zipped his lips.
About twenty minutes later, Denise stepped out of my chair with a fresh blowout, running her fingers through her hair and smiling at her reflection. I gave her a quick wave as she left, then turned just in time to see Jackson standing up, eyeing me.
“Okay, spill,” he demanded.
There really was no escaping him. One time, he’d mentioned not liking his last salon because everyone was so boring. Once I’d gotten to know him, I’d wondered if they were boring, or just desperately attempting to hold on to a personal boundary.
“You were really holding that in, huh?” I asked.
“You were absent-minded the entire appointment. Denise and I talked more than you two did.”
I chewed my lip, debating where to start. He didn’t even know about the kiss the other night.
“What’s up?” Natalie bounced over, having just rung up her last client.
Crap. I was gaining an audience.
Miranda was the only person still working on someone’s highlights. I half-expected her to demand we go to the back, but she was lost in her own conversation, even throwing her head back to laugh occasionally.
“Oh, um, it’s nothing,” I said instinctively. Natalie was sweet. Honestly one of the nicest people I’d ever met. Which is exactly why I didn’t want to go full-force on her with all my drama.
“Tell us. Now.” Jackson glared at me. Natalie leaned against his chair, eyes wide with anticipation.
“Is it about Vermont? Have you figured anything out?” she asked. See? Sweet. Sometimes I didn’t even know if Jackson remembered my missing cat situation. He was a little self-absorbed like that. It was something I appreciated about him. Quick to gossip. Quick to forget. He was real.
“It’s not about Vermont. Not really.”
“It’s about Reid,” Jackson said, even though I hadn’t confirmed that yet. Funny, he forgot about my actual issues, but when it came to any sort of possible relationship drama, he had the memory of an elephant.
“Ruby’s brother,” Natalie confirmed. I remembered a conversation I’d had with Ruby and Natalie weeks ago over lunch.
Ruby had mentioned wanting to set up Reid and Natalie.
That they’d be perfect for each other. Given her soft, quiet demeanor, I couldn’t help but think Ruby was right.
They would complement each other nicely. Unlike me.
“There’s nothing to tell,” I conceded.
Jackson squeezed his eyes shut and took in a dramatic breath. “Hazel, I swear if you don’t tell me what’s going on right now—”
“Okay, okay. Geez. Don’t be dramatic.”
The two of them stared at me expectantly.
“We kissed,” I blurted it out. Jackson gasped and Natalie smiled. A genuine one. She probably didn’t even remember Ruby’s one-off comment. I only did because I couldn’t help but notice Ruby’d said nothing about setting me up with someone.
“And?” Jackson pressed.
“And…that’s it. It was the night before last. He rescued me after a shitty night out and we got to talking, and next thing I knew we were kissing.”
“You kissed him, or he kissed you?” Jackson asked.
I tried to think back on it. Who had initiated it exactly? “Does it matter?”
“Yes,” he said while Natalie shook her head, “No.”
“I think it was him.”
“And you like him?” Natalie asked.
“I don’t know.” I chewed on my lip, tasting the lie. After a brief moment, I tossed my head back in defeat. “Ugh, yes, I do.”
Jackson clapped gleefully. “Does Ruby know?” he asked.
I shot him a glare. “No, and please don’t tell her.
” The last thing I wanted her to think was that I was obsessed with her brother or something.
Would she even want the two of us together?
Be okay with it? Obviously we were adults, but I didn’t want to step on any toes and make things awkward at work.
Natalie twirled her hair. “Have you talked to Reid about this kiss?”
“Not a word. He stopped the kiss and—”
“Wait. He stopped it?” Jackson’s eyes went wide.
“Yes. We were getting a little…heated. And he stopped it.”
Natalie and Jackson exchanged a look which didn’t help my rising anxiety.
“What? He said he didn’t want to rush things.”
“Says every red-blooded American male,” Jackson said.
“Reid isn’t like that.” But Jackson was bringing to light my worst fear. That Reid had been politely rejecting me.
“He invited me to his family dinner tonight,” I added. “That means something, right?”
“It could.” Jackson tilted his head from side to side, weighing my words. “Are you going to go?” he asked.
“I mean, yes? I was thinking about it.”
“You should. They seem sweet, from what Ruby has said,” Natalie added.
Ruby. Come to think of it, she had thrown me a casual invite the other day, too. Which pretty much confirmed there was at least some truth to the idea that his family actually wanted to meet me.
“You’re going,” Jackson decided, jaw set.
“Well, thank you for making the decision for me,” I said dryly.
“What harm could it do?”
“I agree.” Natalie nodded in support.
“And seeing how he acts around you in front of his family could be very telling.”
“Like…” I looked between the two of them, grasping at straws.
Natalie tapped her chin. “Like if he’s attentive. If he sticks near you the whole time.”
“Yeah, it’ll be obvious,” Jackson assured me.
I wasn’t certain about that. But I figured I was about to find out.