Page 24 of When the Fake Snow Falls

Chase:

Free today?

Two words. There are only two words, and somehow my entire mood has lifted.

Candace:

Saturdays at the salon are crazy busy. What’s up?

Chase:

Oh, right. Hairdresser. How are you holding up?

I look around at the state of my station. There’s hair on the floor, dirty towels near the wash area, an empty shampoo bottle that needs to be thrown away, and tubes of Framesi color lying next to a dirty mixing bowl.

Candace:

I might need to squeeze in time to get some caffeine, but other than that, I’m holding.

Chase:

Understandable.

I had to come into the office, so I’m downtown. I’ll be there soon.

I stare at his message, trying to understand it. While we were out Thursday, I forgot to ask him what he does for work.He’s always dressed in a way that screams nine to five, so I didn’t think he’d be one to work weekends.

As tempting as it is to text him back and ask him what he means, I don’t have time to get into it with him. I set down my phone and start cleaning up. My next client will be here in fifteen minutes, and the place needs to be spotless before then.

After putting everything else away, I stand at the sink to clean out the small mixing bowl and color brush. The hot water used to sting my skin, but over the years I’ve gotten used to it.

“I wasn’t sure what you liked, so I got a vanilla latte. Vanilla is always a safe choice.”

I look over my shoulder to find Chase standing with a coffee in each hand. His hair is more relaxed, and he’s wearing faded wash jeans with a gray T-shirt. It takes a minute for me to speak. How does he look so good in business attireandlike this?

“Hey,” I say before turning off the water and wiping my hands on my apron. “How do you know where I work?”

“I went with iced because I figured blow-dryers are hot.” He hands me the cup. “Hope that’s okay.”

I stare at him.

“Oh, and the other night when we were walking, you proudly pointed over here and said, ‘That’s where I work.’” He gives me an amused look. “You don’t remember?”

Now that he mentions it, I can vaguely recall. “Well, thank you.” I lift the coffee to my lips and take a sip. “You can’t go wrong with something like a vanilla latte.”

He smiles an easy, beautiful smile as he leans against the side of my cabinet. Past him, Amanda has her wide eyes locked on me and mouths, “Client?”

I give her a subtle shake of my head as I take another sip, but it doesn’t go unnoticed. Chase looks over his shoulder atAmanda, who resumes sweeping hair off the floor like it’s her life’s mission.

When he brings his attention back to me, he has an eyebrow cocked. “A friend of yours?”

I glare at him playfully. “Yes. A very blonde, very off-limits friend of mine.” He can have all the blondes in the world, just not that one. Not yet anyway. If I ever get to a point where having him near me doesn’t thicken the air, then so be it.

His warm eyes shimmer at my response, the playful mischief inside him waking at the sound of my threat. “Why?”

Well, I certainly can’t tell him the air thickening reason. With a shrug, I say, “She’s too young for you.”

“You don’t know how old I am.”

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