Page 55 of Mountain Man Officer

“No, I’ll dig right in,” he said with a smile, grabbing two plates from the cabinet. “You’re joining me, right?”

“Of course.”

He cut two slices and laid them out on plates. I picked up mine and licked icing off the fork. Now was my chance to tell him how I was feeling. Now was when I should lay all my cards on the table, open myself up, and be vulnerable. I wanted to tell him that I loved him, that I was in love with him, that I wanted a future with him, but what if he didn’t feel the same way? Suddenly, my heart was in knots. The cake tasted wonderful, but the anxiety didn’t sit well. I couldn’t bring myself to speak, so we just ate in silence.

He leaned across the island and kissed me, his tongue heavy with chocolate icing. I laughed. Why did talking have to be so hard?

“I have work to do if you’ll excuse me,” he said, grabbing a spatula and sliding half of the omelet onto his plate. He disappeared into the office with the omelet and a beer, and I was left alone with most of my cake, disappointed in myself.

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.

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