Chapter 7
CHAPTER SEVEN
After hugging Claire, Freya turned to Janie and was engulfed in an equally fierce hug. “Keep in touch,” she murmured.
“I appreciate the support, Freya, and the great haircut.” Janie smiled and ran a hand over her shorter hair. “I really do feel like a new person.”
Freya smiled. “I’m glad. And, really, if you’re serious about finding a new place to live, you’re more than welcome to come crash on my couch and check Hudson Island out. I know this place is fantastic”—she waved her hand around the lobby—“but it’s not exactly reality, right?”
Janie elbowed her sister. “Unless you’re Miss Moneybags over here.”
Claire snorted. “Hardly.”
Freya chuckled. “Like I said, if you want to check out the island, you’re more than welcome to stay with me. There’s also a little boutique hotel downtown and several B and Bs too.”
“Sounds like a plan,” Janie said as her eyes filled with tears. She pulled Freya into another hug. “Thank you again for listening and just being . . . you. I won’t ever forget what you’ve done.”
She gave Janie one last squeeze and pulled away. “I haven’t done anything. Just listened.”
“That, my new friend, means everything,” Janie said, flashing her a smile. “I’ll be in touch for sure.”
“Safe travels,” Freya called out as Janie and Claire waved and pulled their suitcases toward the check-out desk.
Freya’s heart squeezed. She prayed everything would work out for Janie. Yes, her husband had been arrested and would most likely get a longer sentence for shooting up the salon, but the woman still had quite the journey ahead of her.
“I thought I’d find you here.”
Freya turned toward the familiar voice and smiled at Miriam. “I was just on my way to meet with you.”
Miriam checked her watch. “You still have twenty before our meeting.” She nodded toward where the sisters were checking out. “Everything okay?”
Freya nodded. “I think she’ll get there. Her sister’s amazing, and I don’t think Claire will give her much of a choice. Janie’s looking to start fresh somewhere and is actually considering Hudson Island.”
“A strong support system is everything. It’s good Janie has her sister and you.” A soft smile lifted Miriam’s lips before she turned and began walking through the lobby toward the spa building. “It was nice of you to take an interest in Janie after what happened.”
She frowned at her boss’s word choice. “I wouldn’t exactly call it ‘taking an interest in her.’” The other woman wasn’t some sort of pet project or charity case. “What happened was awful, and Janie and Claire are genuinely nice people.”
Miriam held up a hand. “Sorry. That didn’t come out correctly.
What I meant is that it’s nice of you to genuinely extend your friendship to them.
” She stopped as they reached the spa’s main entrance and nodded to Freya.
“I need to check with the front desk for a second. Go ahead into my office. I’ll be right there. ”
“Take your time,” Freya said, waving at Audrey at the front desk.
She glanced to the right where the tall room dividers still remained, blocking off the salon area.
She could hear the soft buzz of activity coming from behind the partition, but considering the spa music in the lobby had been kicked up a notch, Freya was certain those who didn’t work at the spa day in and day out noticed.
After making her way to Miriam’s office, she sat in the guest chair next to her boss’s desk.
Curiosity tickled her mind. Obviously, Mir wanted to discuss something in private, but so much had happened over the last few days that it could be anything.
Luckily, she didn’t have to wait long. Miriam joined her after a couple minutes and closed the door behind her.
“Sorry if everything feels a little cloak and dagger,” Miriam said, taking a seat behind her desk.
She shook her head. “It’s fine. Though I am curious about what you want to talk about.”
Miriam frowned as she clicked her mouse a few times and then turned her laptop so Freya could see the screen. It showed the salon schedule for the remainder of November.
“As you know,” Miriam said, leaning back in her seat, “Hazel gave an interview to a local Seattle television reporter about what happened on Tuesday. Not only did she do so after every staff member was explicitly directed to pass all media inquiries to our front office, but she also told the reporter personal information about Janie Edwards. Is it safe for me to assume that part of your breakfast with Janie and her sister this morning was to see how they were handling Hazel’s interview? ”
Freya nodded. “I was upset by Hazel’s interview.” Disbelief still flowed through her and had her stomach turning. “I couldn’t imagine how Janie was feeling or how angry Claire must have been.”
“That’s because you’re a good person, Freya.” Miriam sighed. “You know respecting our guests’ privacy is one of the most important things here at Pacific View Resort, so Hazel has been let go.”
Freya’s jaw dropped. She shouldn’t have been surprised, but she was. Hazel had been at Pacific View for a couple years longer than her and was extremely popular with both guests and locals.
“And that leaves this mess.” Miriam waved at the calendar. “The calendar is basically booked solid this month.”
Taking a closer look at the screen, Freya cringed. “Lisa’s taking Thanksgiving week and the following week off. She and her family have had that cruise planned for forever.”
“I know, and she’ll still have those weeks off. The real issue is that Hazel was the one who predominately handled the male clients. Both Lisa and Sophie have said they aren’t comfortable doing male cuts. Something about not having a lot of experience?”
“Hazel and I both completed the additional barbering program at our beauty schools. I think Lisa and Sophie just did the standard cosmetology program. I can take Hazel’s male clients, and we can divvy up everyone else between the three of us.”
“That’s good. After the shooting, we cancelled all the appointments for yesterday and today. I held off on cancelling tomorrow and the weekend because there was a possibility we’d be able to open back up earlier than anticipated.”
Her eyebrows rose in surprise. She’d seen the salon space yesterday. There was no way . . . “Seriously?”
Miriam nodded. “I was planning on reassigning your clients and Hazel’s to Lisa and Sophie for the rest of this week anyway. I can’t believe I’m going to say this, but we fortunately had a number of cancellations, so it shouldn’t be too crazy for them.”
Freya shook her head. “I don’t need to take a week off, Mir. If you need me, I’m more than happy to come in.”
Miriam let out a sigh that she could only describe as grateful. “I’d appreciate that.”
“It’s not a problem. When do you think we’ll reopen?”
“Tomorrow.”
Freya frowned. No way had she heard that correctly. “I’m sorry, but tomorrow?”
“Care to check out the place with me?” Miriam asked as she rose, a smile growing on her face.
They left Miriam’s office, rounded the front check-in desk, and slipped behind the paneled wall. Freya gasped. Her jaw hung open, but disbelief had her unable to do anything about it.
Three men were busy at work. One was assembling the new workstations.
One was working on the lighting, while the third was trimming out the paint.
Four large stylist chairs wrapped in plastic sat in the middle of the area, along with multiple boxes which, by their sizes, looked to be the new mirrors.
Stunned, she turned to Miriam. “How did everything get here so soon? We were just talking about what kind of chairs to get yesterday.”
The corner of Miriam’s lips kicked up in a smirk. “When Gabriel makes a personal call to our suppliers”—she waved her hand at the new items—“magic happens.”
“Imagine that.” Shaking her head in wonder, Freya chuckled. “Maybe I should see if Mr. Ortiz can talk to the post office for me.”
Miriam snickered. “The man’s got influence, but I don’t think that even he can make a difference there.”
Laughing, Freya took in the space. “It’s amazing how much they’ve accomplished.”
“Like I said, we’ll reopen tomorrow. If you’re good, all your clients are still on the books.
As you know, Sophie doesn’t usually work Fridays or Saturdays, but she agreed to come in and take over Hazel’s schedule.
It shouldn’t be too bad, because, as I said, we’ve had some cancellations. All Hazel’s regulars.”
Freya raised her eyebrows.
Miriam shrugged. “I can’t confirm anything, but I’m assuming Hazel called her regular clients after I spoke with her last night.”
Holy wow. Was Hazel even allowed to do that? It would be one thing if they were all renting chairs at the salon, because your clients are your clients. But they weren’t renting space. They were employees of the resort. “Were her cancellations local regulars or resort regulars?”
“Local. So at least there’s that.” Miriam’s face scrunched as if she’d smelled something rotten.
“Speaking of resort clients, I know one of Hazel’s clients tomorrow is a guy, so I’m sure Sophie would appreciate it if you took that appointment off her hands.
I checked the schedule and you’re open at that time. ”
“Of course,” Freya said as she followed Miriam back to her office.
The spa at Pacific View prioritized the resort’s guests.
However, they also offered a limited number of day passes for both spa and salon services.
All the stylists had several regular clients who either lived on Hudson Island or traveled to the resort for their hair services.
Once they were seated, Miriam said, “With Hazel gone, that leaves you as our only level-one stylist. As we discussed, you’ll take over all the male clients and handle all the extension work, along with your regulars.
We’ll fill in colors and cuts as your schedule allows.
Of course, we’ll compensate you accordingly.
Also, for the time being, new day-pass clients for the salon have been halted.
All your regulars can still come, but the only new salon clients we’ll be booking are resort guests. ”
Freya nodded and then frowned. “Oh, uh . . .” Her mind flashed to a certain tall, muscular, long-haired man. “Can I request one exception?” Miriam’s eyebrow arched, and Freya rushed on. “You recall Xander Bonetti from Hudson Security?”
Miriam snickered. “Kind of hard to forget that one.”
“When he came to my rescue the other day”—her cheeks heated, but she plowed on—“I offered to cut his hair.”
Amusement danced on the woman’s face. “Did you now?”
She fought to not squirm in her seat. “As a thank-you.”
“That’s fine. God knows, no one is going to fault you for that.
” Miriam chuckled. “You may want to get him on the schedule sooner rather than later. Honestly, tomorrow would probably be best.” Her gaze shot to the calendar and then back to Freya.
“Once we start rearranging the appointments, things are going to fill up for you. How does your Thanksgiving schedule look?”
As they discussed the schedule for the upcoming holiday, nerves fluttered in her stomach, and her mind wandered.
There’d be nothing wrong with her texting Xander, right? A thank-you haircut was no big deal. Not at all. Besides, she wasn’t in the market for a relationship. It would just be a friendly, thank-you haircut that would possibly include dinner afterward.
As friends, of course.
What did it matter if she’d never had a friend that ridiculously good-looking before? It was fine. The man couldn’t help how he looked. Well, she was pretty sure he worked out a lot. Like a lot a lot. But again, that was fine.
She was a grown woman who could control her feelings. It’d been over a year since her last relationship. A relationship that she’d thought would finally be different.
The year she and her ex had been together had been bliss.
At least on her end. But as it turned out, she’d been wrong.
Again. That relationship hadn’t been any different from any of her previous ones.
Because just like all the others before him, he’d cheated on her.
And again, just like all the other times, she’d been the last one to find out.
The one difference this time was that instead of being devastated, instead of falling into a heap of tears and sadness, she’d gone numb.
Over the last year, she’d received some attention from men, but aside from varying degrees of annoyance, she’d been indifferent.
A hard, cold shell had surrounded her heart, protecting it from any further damage. She’d felt absolutely nothing.
Until two days ago.
Until Xander.
The moment she’d heard his voice, he’d sparked something inside her. Something she wasn’t sure she wanted. Despite her uncertainty, the man was slowly thawing that brick of ice in her chest. There was just something about him . . .
It scared her. Her judgement with the opposite sex was iffy at best, and her track record was abysmal. But her body hadn’t seemed to get the message, because she lit up like a barge of fireworks around the man.
Was she supposed to just go with it?
She’d always been cautious. Always planned things out.
No kissing until the second date. No rounding the bases until at least seven dates.
And definitely no sex until at least two months of dating.
She’d stuck to those rules her entire dating life.
And where had that gotten her? Cheated on by all four of her previous boyfriends.
Maybe this time around, she’d chuck all her rules out the window and just go with it. Follow Xander’s lead. If he wanted to just be friends, that would be fine. If he didn’t? Well, she’d be fine with that too. Right?
As much as she knew it would be best for all involved to keep things friendly, she wasn’t sure she wanted to.