Page 2 of When Ivy Met Mr. Holiday
Still, I wasn’t quite ready to cave. “Why don’tyoufix it? No one here is better than you.”
I was sincere—Jane could do things with hair I’d never seen before.
“Now,darlin’. . .” She broke out her fake Texas drawl. Jane was born and raised in Aspen Lake, just like me. “My job is to help make sure you fly and are successful. I believe in you. Now get over there and fix that man’s hair.”
Wow. She. Was. Good. But I had one more card in my back pocket to use. Or so I thought . . .
“It’s my day off.”
She just smiled and flitted off, apparently not caring. Ugh. Fine. I supposed Jack’s and my paths were meant to cross. And cross they did.
I still remember like it was yesterday: I threw on an apron and marched over to him while trying to gulp down my pride. It took a lot of gulping and reminding myself that my future was at stake.
It had always been my dream to own a salon one day. When I was a little girl, I would set up a beauty parlor in my room and pretend to do my family’s hair. As I got older, I actually started doing their hair for real. I had a knack for it, just like Aunt Jane. So while my siblings were off being an architect, an investment broker, and a lawyer, I was doing my part by making sure people felt beautiful and comfortable in their own skin. That was my gift.
That day, I had to use my gift on the most arrogant person I’d ever met—and yes, havestillever met. Sure, I adore himnow, but that’s a miracle considering this is how our first exchange went:
“Hi, I’m Ivy. Let’s see what we can do to fix your hair.”
Jack turned away from the mirror and flashed me his debonair smile, his panic suddenly disappearing.
“Hello, Ivy,” he drawled in a real Texan accent while gazing deeply into my eyes, trying to reel me in and charm me like he’d done to everyone else in the salon. “You can call me Mr. Holiday.”
For half a second, I saw the appeal. Up close, he was an incredible sight to behold. And a good drawl is sexy. So sexy I might have even stopped breathing—just briefly. My brain stalled, caught somewhere between logic and foolishness. Then it kicked in, sounding the necessary alarm:Do not fall for the Jacks of the world.The men who loved themselves more than anyone or anything.
Sure, Jack has since proven himself to be the most thoughtful friend, but I didn’t know that then. And the jury is still out on whether Jack loves anything or anyone more than himself.
“Not a chance,Jack,” I scoffed, forgetting for a moment the influence he wielded in this town. And that every eye in the salon was on me. But there was no way I was calling a man who was practically my ageMr.anything.
Did that deter him? Oh, no.
“So, you know who I am.” He planted himself in the salon chair, smirking at me through themirror.
I wanted to tell him he was pretty cocky for a guy who currently looked more like Archie from the old comic strip than a Greek god.
Okay, fine, he still looked like a Greek god. Annoyingly so.
I held my tongue—along with my snickering—as I ran my fingers through his luxurious orange hair, studying it and trying to formulate a plan to fix the disaster. Maybe, just maybe,I let my fingertips linger a second too long, indulging in the ridiculous softness of it. The man had arrogance, but he also had excellent hair.
When I realized that I was getting caught up in his gorgeous trap, I dropped my hands and stuttered out, “I think we need to apply a warm filler first, and then we’ll go from there. We need to hurry. I have plans for this evening.”
Jack tilted his head, grinning as though my plans were suddenly his business. “And what are those?”
“If you must know, I’m taking my friend Michael to the airport,” I said, keeping my voice deliberately even. “He’s a doctor, and he’s headed to South America for six months to help treat underprivileged children.”
The man was a saint—nothing like the Jacks of the world.
Jack spat out a laugh, his disbelief apparent. “Friend?”
I blinked at him. We’d known each other for all of two minutes, and he was mocking me?
“Do you need me to define the word for you?” My tone came out sharper than I intended.
Judging by the amusement in Jack’s mesmerizing eyes, he didn’t mind. Of course he didn’t. In fact, he appeared to thrive on my irritation.
“I was thinking perhaps your friend Michael might need some help with that definition. I guarantee he’s angling to be more than your friend.”
My eyes narrowed. “Considering you don’t know Michael or me, that’s a ridiculous assumption.”
