Page 15 of Unhurried Hearts

“But,” she begins, “the stairs are pretty treacherous and the building is riddled with persistent men.”

“How could I, in good conscience, let you wander through the danger all alone?”

“I mean, I guess you couldn’t. Not without living a life of guilt from now until the end of time.”

I grin, enjoying our banter.

“Let me finish up here?” she asks.

“Yeah, I’ll wait for you out front.”

When I stand, I tower over her, bodies inches apart. I can still feel the sensation of her deft fingers on my scalp and shoulders, the gentle brush of her arms and chest as she moved around me doing what she does best. When you only spend the odd evening with someone, those little touches don’t seem to matter. When had I last enjoyed the more innocent touches of a woman? A hug, a shoulder massage, one sweet kiss? What would it be like to be with Anna? Softer? Sweeter? Is that the type of thing I’ve been holding out for?

Chapter seven

Anna

Is this happening right now? Christopher Wolfe is easy on the eyes. Hell, you could be blind and still know that the man is fine because he exudes confidence and machismo like they’re a cologne he applies each morning. Forty-five minutes of running my hands through his hair and smelling his actual cologne, something earthy and warm, has me hoping his barber never comes back to town so I can do it all again next month. His throaty sighs and involuntary moans while I shampooed him made my knees weak. If we start talking, dating, whatever this is, could he be the guy that I finally go all the way with?

With my station sufficiently tidy, I collect my bag from the cupboard beneath it and stroll past reception, holding my breath and hoping to go unnoticed.

“Sneaking off early, Anna?”

Amrita and Jenny stand shoulder to shoulder, arms crossed like a pair of stern parents at the top of a dark staircase. A scene I know well. Sneaking out with Ashlyn was almost never worth the punishment.

“Is it early?” I feign complete shock at the time despite the clock the size of a car tire hanging on the wall above our heads.

“We’re only teasing.” They relax their stance, Jenny collapsing into her chair.

“Butwho ishe?” Amrita whispers like he might hear her through the plate glass windows.

I follow her gaze. Chris stands on the sidewalk with his hands in his pockets, exuding all the confidence of a man with a fresh cut. I drag my eyes away from the window and purposely take a step to my right so their view is blocked.

“He’s a friend. His barber is closed for a while, so I helped him out. His hair was getting pretty crazy.” I wave my hands around my head in a wild circular motion.

“Yeah…crazy.” Jenny blinks slowly, “He lookedawfulwhen he came in. All that dark tousled-”

“You guys done? You’re ruining the whole sneaking part of my departure.”

Jenny smirks and looks around, “Who said that? Anna, is that you?” Her eyes skip over me like I’m invisible.

I wiggle my fingers over my shoulder, exiting the salon into the bustle of mid-afternoon with the warmth of the sun on my face.

“I’m ready for my arduous journey.”

He turns toward my voice and grins. The left side of his mouth curves up ever so slightly higher than the right when his smile is big.

“At your service.” He plays along.

I wave my key fob over the reader next to the lobby door which is no more than five steps from the salon doors.

“You like living here? Seems a bit…”

“Close?” I suggest.

He nods.

“Yeah, it works well. I get to go home for lunch, take late clients without having to commute at night. No driving basically.”

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