Page 3 of More Than a Fling

“See you in a month.”

“Have fun.”

Annie watched them until they disappeared through the airport entrance. An overwhelming loneliness descended upon her for a moment until she willfully shook it off. Pulling back into the fray of vehicles, she headed to her salon for a full day of back-to-back hair appointments.

2

Annie sighed as she hung up the phone after managing to squeeze a cut and color into her overbooked schedule. You would have thought they were trying to set up a meeting between royalty, everyone’s lives were so busy these days.

Her hair salon, The Diamond, was in its fourth year of operation and thriving. She had recently added a fourth stylist and was currently paying for the training of her second nail tech, Rachel. She also had a licensed massage therapist who worked by appointment and an esthetician who was in high demand.

Success had a price though, and lately Annie felt like her life was out of balance…all work and no play. Fortunately, it was Wednesday, and she only had two more days to wait until she would be taking off for a whole weekend of fun at the lake with friends. It was sure to be a wild weekend celebrating her friend’s upcoming wedding.

Gabe Hunter. Damn. She couldn’t believe she had run into him today. He was too sexy for his own good and for hers as well. The attraction she had felt for him last year, rather than diminishing, had dialed up a decimal or two. She was pretty sure he had felt the heat as well.

That day they had spent together last fall had been magical. Horses, a great guy, beautiful weather…there had been an immediate attraction between them. Unfortunately, the timing had been all wrong—she in the process of disentangling from Bradley, and he already in a relationship.

Gabe’s movie-star good looks and easy-going style might be a bit much to handle. She was certain that women gravitated toward him like bears to honey. Charming and funny, he had been just what the doctor ordered that day, but it would be a challenge to feel secure in a relationship with him when he was so damn compelling. Anyway, it was of no concern to her. She had sworn off men after ending a disastrous relationship with her cop-boyfriend Bradley.

Currently Annie was focused on her career, friends, and family, and hoped to fit in a few of her old pastimes, like horseback riding and hiking. Those days of freedom, when she could take to the woods by horseback or on foot almost daily, seemed so far away. Now she was lucky if she could squeeze in a hike two days a week.

Annie looked around with a feeling of contentment and pleasure for her accomplishments and success with the salon, but her greatest satisfaction came from the sense of family and comradery they all shared. She loved the hubbub and chatter, the laughter and tears, the sense of community; they truly had one another’s backs, and that was priceless as far as Annie was concerned. Annie was completely unaware of how well she wore her contentment. The tense and tight expression she had worn for so long while dating Bradley was now replaced with a soft and relaxed countenance. Her whole body exuded ease and happiness, which only enhanced her stunning beauty.

The door jingled and Annie looked up to see Rachel, her nail tech-in-training, enter the salon with two kids in tow, one holding her hand, and the other balanced on her hip.

“Hey Annie, I hope you don’t mind, I had to bring the kids with me, but my mom is picking them up here in about fifteen minutes. She was running behind, and I didn’t want to be late getting here to cover the phones for you,” she said, looking extremely frazzled.

“No problem, my client isn’t even here yet,” Annie said.

Rachel’s little boy was two and a half, and her baby girl almost a year old now. She had her hands full as a single parent and all of them at the salon had adopted the family. Everyone was willing to help to make sure that Rachel’s dreams could become a reality.

As part of their arrangement, Rachel worked part-time filling in as a receptionist, greeting customers, taking phone calls and scheduling appointments. It was it a life saver for Annie, and it gave Rachel a little extra money while she learned about the business and completed her certificate in cosmetology.

Annie held out her arms toward Cara and was immediately rewarded with two chubby arms reaching back and a smile that lit up the room.

“Come here you little munchkin,” Annie said to the adorable little girl with blond ringlet curls and a pink bow in her hair. Holding her close she pressed her nose into the child’s hair, savoring that baby smell.

She walked over to her styling station to let Cara look at all the tempting wares of the trade, eyes huge round saucers as she opened and closed tight fists, reaching for anything she could get her hands on.

“Are you going to come work for me when you grow up little one?” Annie said. She laughed at the comical expression on Cara’s face as she concentrated on Annie’s hair. “You are so cute I could eat you up,” Annie said.

The other two stylists, who currently had customers in their salon chairs, looked on with amusement.

“When are you going to settle down and have a couple of your own?” June asked Annie as she placed another piece of foil in her client’s hair and painted on the color.

“Hey. I’ve got plenty of time. I still haven’t hit the big three-oh yet,” she said laughing.

“You will this year though… goodbye twenties,” June said.

“Look who is talking, didn’t you step over to the other side last month? I don’t see any gaggle of kid’s hanging on to your coattails yet.”

“Who has the time? I’m having way too much fun. Kids would definitely cramp my style.”

“That’s what I’m saying.” Zoey the other stylist chimed in as she guided her client to the rinsing bowl.

The door jingled again and this time it was James, their only male stylist, arms loaded down with packages.

“Please tell me that you didn’t empty the store again,” Annie said. It was a joke amongst the salon employees that James was obsessed with interior design and a compulsive shopper. However, he was damn good at decorating and had a naturally artistic eye.

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