Page 99 of Her Paramedic
“No, you told that man you would throw him out ass naked if he didn’t get his gator talons moving,” Aryah corrected.
“Same thing,” Zuri replied, shrugging.
“It amazes me how people have such audacity,” Journee said.
“I’m surprised he didn’t try to complain about you, Zuri,” Nova added.
“He did. He asked for the manager, didn’t like it when I told him I was, and then asked for the owner, and I sent him Aryah’s way.”
“You co-own the center,” Alivia pointed out.
“Yes, but Ryah has a way of calming clients, which keeps them from leaving bad reviews. I also only go off like that when they deserve it because I don’t know who came up with the phrase the customer’s always right, but I can guarantee it wassomeone who never worked a day in their life and was used to getting what they wanted.”
Aryah cut her eyes at Zuri. “You just don’t want to deal with the consequences of your actions.”
“It’s the consequences of their actions. They happen to not like my reaction,” Zuri countered. “But you’re the greatest at dealing with them, bestie.”
Talia laughed as Zuri gave Aryah a big smile, and Aryah rolled her eyes. They all knew she wasn’t irritated like she pretended to be. Of their group, she always seemed the most relaxed and mellow. She enjoyed giving Zuri a hard time.
“Tal, how was the hair show?” Nova asked. “I hate I missed it. I had so many showings.”
“It was good. There was a bigger turnout than the one I went to the year before.”
“She’s being modest,” Alivia said. “Her salon won first in one category and second in another, and she placed individually in two.”
Congratulations came from those who hadn’t been there, and Talia thanked them. There were a lot of talented stylists and salons in attendance, and she always felt humbled when she or her shop won. She was glad she’d participated because stopping at the nail competition pushed on an idea Talia had been toying with for the last year about expanding her salon and the services they offered. When she’d found out the space beside her was about to be up for lease yesterday, as she was leaving work, it pushed the idea a bit more.
She wanted another stylist, another braider, a dedicated color specialist, nail and lash technicians. She wanted to be a one-stop shop for every beauty need.
“Axel and I have decided on a house,” Kaydence said after there was a lull in their conversation. “We’re going to make an offer on Monday.”
“If your offer is accepted, how long will you have to wait until you move?” Aariah asked after congratulations went around again.
“The seller has stipulated a ninety-day closing,” Kaydence responded.
“Is that common, Nova?” Journee asked.
“Usually, a closing takes forty-five days. Sometimes sixty. When the seller asks for ninety, it typically means they’re moving into an apartment and haven’t started looking, and didn’t want to pay for two places while they wait on the home to sell,” Nova responded.
They finished dinner, exchanging hugs before going their separate ways after Talia told Alivia to let them know soon what she wanted to do for her birthday at the end of the month.
When Talia arrived home, she started looking for stations for the technicians she wanted to hire. She knew it wouldn’t be an overnight project, but she already had her starting point. Her first order of business was to make a list of everything she needed to do, everything that would be required for an expansion. She would call the owner of the outlet her salon was in first thing Monday to see if she’d be able to lease the space with a few changes. Then she would speak to her stylists about what she wanted to do.
It was over an hour before she’d finished making her plan and looked it over on her tablet. She knew she’d refine it each time she looked at it. She picked up her phone and saw she had a missed call from her dad in Line while she’d been at dinner.
She called him back, and as the phone rang, she gathered her tablet, turned out the lights, and headed to her bedroom.
“Hey, little girl,” her dad greeted, and Talia shook her head with a smile. It didn’t matter how old they got, she knew it would always be his chosen endearment for her and her sister.
“Hey, Dad. What are you up to?”
“Nothing much. I wanted to get your opinion on something.”
“What’s up?”
“Courtney and I were discussing this year's Christmas plans and thought we would come visit then instead of during Thanksgiving, and you all can come visit us next summer.”
Courtney was teaching summer classes that year, and her parents hadn’t gotten to come visit like they wanted to.
