Page 27 of The Wish List
The girl held out a hand. “Let me have your phone, and I’ll find it for you. It’s the best.”
“Maybe I should get an account,” Ash said as he moved closer.
“Oh my gosh. Dad, no way. That would be so embarrassing.”
“You might go viral,” Trinity told him. “Come up with some kind of cop-shtick. Freya might be able to help you with that. She’s kind of a big deal on social media.”
“Miss May told me about all the shows she was on. But she and Dad said I couldn’t watch most of them because there’s too much bad language and kissing and drinking.”
Trinity laughed. “I get the picture. To be honest, I haven’t watched them either. Reality TV isn’t my thing.”
“But she’s your sister,” Michaela said. She handed her dad the string of lights. He walked around the tree, placing them just so in the branches. “Aren’t you supposed to watch to support her?”
Trinity felt guilt ping through her. “That’s a good point,” she told the girl. “Maybe I’ll watch them while I’m here in Magnolia.”
“How long are you staying?” Michaela asked. Trinity felt Ash’s gaze on her.
“At least through Christmas.”
“You should stay until the baby is born,” Michaela insisted. “It would make your mom happy. She loves babies.”
Trinity could not reconcile the mom she knew with the woman described by her neighbors.
“Hey, do you want to make a TikTok together?” The girl grinned. “We could do one where we make your belly pretend talk.”
Trinity laughed. “Um, sure.”
“Awesome. I’ll stop by later.” Michaela jumped off the stepladder. “Also, would it be okay if I went to visit Miss May with you sometime? I heard Shauna and the twins decorated her room. I could ride along when—”
“Mic, honey.” Ash put a hand on his daughter’s shoulder. “You can’t invite yourself along.”
“Sure she can,” Trinity told him. She smiled at the girl. “If it’s okay with your dad then you’re welcome to come. I’m heading over in about an hour. One of us has dinner with her every night.”
“Can I go, Daddy?” Michaela gave Ash the sweetest puppy-dog eyes Trinity had ever seen. “It’s leftover night, so Gram won’t mind.”
“Are you sure?” Ash asked Trinity.
“Absolutely.”
“If you get your homework finished,” he told his daughter.
“Going right now,” she shouted, then rushed back to her grandmother’s yard, picked up her backpack and ran for the house.
“How did you manage that?” Ash asked, picking up another set of lights from the lawn. “You’ve connected more with my daughter in the five minutes I was with the two of you than I have in the past six months.”
An unexpected heat exploded through Trinity as Ash studied her. “I cut hair for a living. It’s part of my job to connect with people.”
He ran a hand over the top of his thick head of hair. “Maybe you could cut mine sometime?”
Trinity had been a stylist for years. Although she loved the tactile feeling of her work, she’d never considered it something sensual. Right now, the thought of putting her hands on Ash felt downright dirty. “I’m not sure your regular stylist would appreciate that. We’re a pretty territorial lot.”
He gave her an abashed smile. “I don’t think you have to worry. My mother-in-law cuts my hair with one of those...”
Trinity put her hands over her ears in mock horror. “If you say a Flowbee, we’re going to have an issue.”
“You said it. I’m only agreeing with you.”
“Oh, my word, Chief.” She stepped forward and gave in to the urge to touch him. His hair was softer than she could have imagined. She tugged on the ends as she moved around him. “Yes, you’re in desperate need.” She tried to make the words a joke, but when their eyes met, her voice trailed off.
