Page 14 of Waiting for a Prince
Of course she did.
Sam: See you then.
Rebecca: You don’t want to see me before then?
He winced. He could hear her voice in his head, rising, sharpening.
Sam: I thought all your evenings were spoken for this week. Didn’t you tell me that?
Rebecca: Yes, they are, but it would have been nice if you’d at least asked me if I wanted to go out for a drink or something.
He gave an internal snort.What—so you could brush me off?His fingers slid over the screen.Then I’ll just have to make do with Thursday.
Sam waited for a response, but when none was forthcoming, he realized the conversation had finished.
He leaned his head against the padded rest, his eyes closed.
I need a friend.
His phone buzzed again, and he groaned. “What now, Rebecca?” He opened his eyes and peered at the screen.
Mark:Great talking to you. Let’s do it again. Soon.
Warmth barrelled through him.
Maybe I’ve found one.
Chapter Five
Tuesday, July 30
When his phonechimed for the third time that Tuesday morning, Mark smiled. He knew what to expect. Sam had sent him a couple of jokes earlier that had him spluttering coffee into his cereal. It was now eleven and the salon was quiet, so he was taking advantage of the lull to grab his break. Mark had thrown himself into his tasks as soon as he’d arrived, and Marie had watched him with an expression on her face he’d never seen there before. He snickered to himself.
Oh yeah—that would be approval.
“Mark, you got a minute?” Sonia stood in the doorway of the little staff room off the back of the salon, wearing her habitual cheery smile.
He drained the last of his tea. “Sure. What can I do for you?”
“I’ve got an hour or so before my next lady arrives, so I was wondering… Do you want to cut my hair?”
Mark stared at her. “Really?” Marie hadn’t let him near a single customer with a pair of scissors since he’d arrived. He’d washed hair, swept up, coloured hair extensions and madenumerous cups of tea and coffee, but nothing that resembled the stuff he’d been doing at college.
She nodded, her eyes bright. “Come on, you can wash my hair first and then we’ll work out what you’re going to do with it.” She winked. “You’re gonna make me look fabulous!”
Mark grinned and followed her to the wash station. After he’d draped and fastened a towel around her, he started to wash her dark red hair. He remembered to do the head massage that he’d watched Wendy doing so many times. The customers really seemed to like it.
“Hmm, you have a nice touch, Mark.” Mark glowed at the words of praise. “So, are you going to tell me what’s put that smile on your face this morning?” She gasped. “Or is it more a case ofwho? You met someone this weekend, didn’t you?” There was a wicked gleam in her eyes. “Come on, spill.”
Mark laughed quietly. “No… well, yes… but it’s not like you think.” Sonia’s forehead wrinkled. “Yes, I met someone, but he’s not a potential boyfriend—more’s the pity. He’s more like a potential best friend.” He figured that was a fair assessment of Sam. “And you know him. You met him on Saturday when he was here with his girlfriend.”
Sonia’s eyes grew large and round. “Mr. Fantabulous? The gorgeous hunk who ticked all your boxes?” She stared up at him. “Oh, you’vegotto tell me how this all happened.”
Mark chuckled as he rinsed off the shampoo and applied the conditioner. There were no other customers at the wash station and Marie was nowhere in sight. He lowered his voice and told Sonia all about the morning at the beach. She listened in rapt attention, making the odd little noise here and there. When he’d finished, she gave him a warm smile.
“Sweetie, I’m so glad. I think you needed a friend.”
Mark had to agree with her. He had lots of acquaintances—people he knew from school, his neighbours, the girls at the salon—but no real friends.
