Chapter 9 Amber #2
I sat back in the chair and when she pulled off the towel, I gasped. The brassy blond had been replaced with a gorgeous ashy beige blond with flashes of mahogany and caramel that peeked out.
“Wait until you see it dried.” Ramsey held up her tiny hair dryer and a massive round brush.
“I can’t wait.”
Then I noticed another person in the mirror, behind us.
My stomach jittered at Tate’s massive shoulders taking up most of the space.
I couldn’t talk to him over the sound of the hair dryer.
His hair was freshly shorn and his beard trimmed to show far more angles than yesterday.
He wore a tight black T-shirt under a brown and black plaid flannel that made him look even bigger than last night.
I couldn’t see the rest of him without craning my neck and Ramsey would probably bonk me on the head with her brush if I moved anyway.
Then all my hair was falling forward as she did whatever she was doing with the brush and her not-so-quiet genius. By the time Ramsey pushed my hair back, he was gone.
Shoot. Had he left?
When she turned off the hair dryer and turned me around, I saw him leaning against the wall near the cabinet. A shelf with a few trailing leaves from a series of potted plants curled around his head.
“Funny meeting you in here.”
He tucked his hands into his pockets. “Guess we had the same idea.”
“Oh, did you get fifteen pounds of hair taken off you too?”
He laughed. “Felt like it.” His gaze flicked over my hair, then to Ramsey. “How’s it going, Ramsey?”
She grinned. “My before and after is epic. Check it.” She turned me to face the mirror.
“Holy crap.”
Now that it was dry I saw the riot of colors falling around my shoulders in shaggy, soft waves.
She’d kept me blond but whatever purple magic concoction it had been left my hair looking icy cool with flashes of warmth with the mahogany and caramel.
I sunk my fingers into the waves. “Are these mine?”
“The curl might relax a bit more, but after having all that weight on your hair it’s kind of in shock. If you can avoid using heat for the next few weeks, I’d bet it will be even better. Use your hair dryer on the cool setting.”
“I can definitely do that.” I grinned up at Ramsey. “Genius.”
“I know.” But I could see the flash of pride in her eyes.
“Whatever you charge isn’t enough.” I leaned forward to get an even better look at it and couldn’t stop touching it. “It looks amazing.”
For the first time, I saw her look uncomfortable.
“What is it?”
“Is it okay if I take some shots? This is big for my look book.”
“Oh, of course. Snap away.”
Even a pop princess was big for her reputation. I had a feeling she’d have a shit ton of clients coming in when she posted this to her socials. Instead of giving her my stage smiles, I went with Amber.
The murmurs behind us drew my attention to the other hairdressers. The burly male hairdresser with a row of clips down his arm was hang jawed. “Ramsey, that’s incredible.”
“Thanks.” She was buried in her phone, trying not to show how proud she was.
I remembered being that young. When the pride was so hard to embrace without feeling sick to your stomach.
He came forward. “Do you think it would be an imposition to get a photo with you?”
“Thanks for waiting until my hair looked fabulous.”
“Of course. Now you look even more amazing.”
“I appreciate that.”
I took photos with each of them separately and then as a group. Ramsey stayed apart from the group, but I did see her smiling at something on her phone.
I imagine her social media was on fire. I stopped back at her station and snagged one of her cards. “I’ll be back for a touch up. Say six weeks? I’ll need it for Christmas.”
She nodded. “Yeah, definitely.” She flipped through her coiled appointment book. “Any day?”
“I’m very open.” I said it looking at Tate.
She scribbled on a card and handed it to me. I couldn’t remember the last time someone actually handed me a card. Charmed, I took a photo with my phone then tucked it into my pocket. I dug out some cash for a tip. Cash was one thing I’d managed to get over the last few days.
I had an assistant who usually handled my everyday needs. Anything else, I used a credit card. I handed Ramsey two fifties and when she turned away, I tucked another three hundred into her drawer.
Tate caught it though and grinned at me.
Money made people act weird. Ramsey wasn’t one to fawn over me, so I didn’t have to worry about that part, but I’d prefer to save her from having to react.
She tucked the bills into her pocket without looking, just like a pro.
I fluffed my hair in the mirror one more time and did a rare selfie. I knew my likeness was all over social media at this point. There were far too many people in the salon that wouldn’t be able to help themselves.
I posted it and tagged the salon. Megan might love the idea of a tag, but she was about to get inundated with people.
“Thanks, Ramsey. Truly, you are a queen of your profession. Just a head’s up, I tagged you on social media.”
Her eyes widened. “You did?”
“I sure did. Sorry in advance.” I grabbed my purse and headed to the front desk to pay for all my services.
“Why sorry in advance?” Tate asked as he caught up with me.
“Were you waiting for me?”
“Maybe.”
I dashed off a text to my mother that she didn’t need to worry about giving me a ride home. She’d left for home long ago. My four hour trip to the salon had been well into six hours at this point. It was already dark outside. “Think you can take me home?”
“I can manage that. I need to run a few more errands though.”
“All good by me. I’ve been sitting for hours. I could use some exercise.” I waved at Megan who was on the phone and waited for her to finish her call. “This place is pretty awesome. A far cry from the old salon.”
“Megan took it over from her mom a few years ago.”
I leaned against the counter. “Looks pretty glam in here. You wouldn’t have something to do with that?”
Tate just smiled.
“Thought so.”
Megan hung up. “Sorry about that.” Her eyes widened. “Wow, you look amazing.”
“Ramsey is a genius.”
“Lord, now we’ll never hear the end of it.”
I laughed. “Glad I gave her a try.”
Megan pitched her voice lower. “I’m so sorry. I tried to keep things quiet about the fact that you were in here, but...”
I waved her off. “It’s fine. I expected it. I was here way too long to keep it a secret.”
She sagged into a chair. “My phone has been ringing off the hook.”
“Probably going to get a little worse. I just tagged the shop on my social media.”
“What?” She sat forward.
“I hope it doesn’t cause too much insanity.”
“Thank you. I don’t know what to say.”
I slid my credit card across the counter. “I’ll get out of your hair. Hopefully things will die down once I leave.”
“I’m pretty sure a reporter or two are outside. They kept trying to come in, but I managed to keep them at bay for as long as I could.”
“I appreciate that.” I glanced at the receipt. I’d dropped a helluva lot more in a Los Angeles salon and hadn’t been nearly as happy with the results. I added a bit more to the total and signed before tucking everything away. “You have a great place. Thanks for taking care of me.”
“Anytime.”
Tate gave her a little salute then he hurried forward and opened the door for me. He swore as a half dozen reporters rushed forward. He grabbed my hand, drawing me across the street to the Dreamer Bookshop.
“Oh, hell.”
“What?” He looked down at me.
“Now you did it.”
He laughed and held the door open. “Did what?”
I lifted our linked hands. “This will be everywhere in an hour.”
“Do you have a problem with it?”
“Not unless you do.”