Seven

Harlow

It was just as I was adding a dime-sized amount of argan oil to my client’s dried and styled hair when I heard my phone chime, indicating I’d received a text message.

That simple sound was all it took for my heart to pound harder, because I was relatively certain I knew who it was. I’d sent a text to Blaze not long after I’d gotten into the salon this morning, and it was likely he had just sent his reply.

Once I’d finished distributing the oil in my client’s hair, I brought my hands to the back of her neck and unsnapped the cape. “Alright, Angela, you’re all set,” I declared as I removed the cape from over the front of her body.

Angela stood from the chair, inspected her hair in the mirror, and replied, “I feel like a new woman. Thank you so much, Harlow.”

I smiled at her, happy I could make the new mom feel good about herself again. “You’re welcome. I hope this gave you that break you needed to return home to your new baby and your family feeling refreshed.”

“It absolutely did,” she assured me.

As we made our way over to my reception desk, I asked, “Do you want to schedule another appointment now, so you don’t have to remember to call in a few months, or would you prefer to wait?”

She thought for a moment. I should probably schedule now. If I need to call you to schedule when it’s time for me to come in, I’m afraid I might not ever see you again.”

I laughed as I flipped through my appointment book and promised, “This is all temporary. You aren’t the first new mom I’ve had in my chair. There always seems to be a consensus among them, too. You all will do everything necessary for your babies and your families, but when it comes to doing things to take care of yourself, you push it to the back burner. I think it’s smart to schedule now. I’ll call you with a reminder a few days before, and if we need to reschedule, it’ll be easier for you that way.”

“That’s so true, and I think this is the best option. Okay, so what do you have available?”

I took the next few minutes to finish up with Angela, getting her appointment scheduled and allowing her to pay for the haircut she had today.

The minute she reached the door, and we’d said goodbye to one another, I lifted my phone in my hand and checked the display.

A smile spread across my face. There was a one-word text from the guy who’d been on my mind constantly for days now.

Blaze

Feather.

I immediately reacted and tapped out a response.

Harlow

I thought you were going to be stumped with that one for a while! I’m determined to find one you can’t answer.

Blaze

I’ll look forward to the day that happens.

It was Wednesday now, and ever since Blaze insisted on Monday morning that I continue to reach out to him throughout the day, I sort of hadn’t stopped. Since I knew he was busy working, might enjoy a brief distraction from his work, and confirmed he enjoyed riddles, I’d started sending ones to him that I had struggled to answer and thought would be challenging for him.

I still hadn’t stumped him.

Not even with the one I’d asked this morning—I am easy to lift, but hard to throw. What am I?

Sure, I wasn’t around to make sure Blaze hadn’t done a quick internet search to find the answer, but based on what he told me, I trusted he was playing honestly.

I decided to send him one more.

Harlow

What is it that nobody wants, but no one wants to lose?

When I didn’t see him immediately start typing a response, I found myself growing excited. Maybe this would be the one.

While I waited for him to reply, I set my phone down and moved to sweep up around the chair where I’d just cut Angela’s hair. My next client would be here any minute, and the last thing I needed to do was to get myself sidetracked by texting Blaze when I still had things to do at work. I’d nearly gotten all the hair swept up by the time my phone chimed again, so I finished cleaning up as quickly as I could and moved back to the desk to see his response.

Blaze

This is a tough one. I might need some time.

Harlow

Oh, I can’t wait for you to ask me what the answer is!!

Blaze

Not going to happen. I will figure it out. It might be in an hour, a day, or even a week, but I’ll eventually get the answer.

I sent him the eye-rolling emoji. While I thought it was great for him to be so persistent, I was hoping I’d be able to best him on one of these.

Blaze

How is your day going?

The door to my salon opened and my next client walked in. “Hi, Claire.”

“Hi, Harlow.”

“You can come right over and sit down in the chair. I’ll be right with you.”

As Claire crossed the room, I tapped out my response to Blaze.

Harlow

It’s zipping by. My next client just showed up, so I’ve got to get back to work. How about you?

Blaze

Okay. I’ll keep thinking on this. I’m swamped here, so I’ll be busy for hours.

Harlow

Don’t work too hard!

I set my phone down, moved toward Claire, and got started. Just as I’d told Blaze the first part of my day had gone, the remainder had flown by, too. Before I knew it, I had said goodbye to my final client, locked up, and made my way home.

I went through my usual evening routine—showering, grabbing dinner, and relaxing—without a response from Blaze.

Since this was still so new between us, we hadn’t really had enough time for me to be able to work out the specifics of his schedule. On Monday, we hadn’t spoken after the early morning phone call beyond simply exchanging text messages throughout the day. On Tuesday evening, Blaze called me after work. Today, we’d had the texts earlier in the day.

I’d assumed he might not reach out when it got late enough that I was ready to hop into bed for the night.

No sooner had I climbed into bed and allowed my eyes to drift shut, my phone chimed.

I reached out to my nightstand, lit up the display, and saw a text from Blaze that made me smile.

Blaze

A lawsuit.

I stared at the response for a long time. It was the simplest thing. Two words. They weren’t even anything of significance, yet they made me feel like I’d been handed the world. Because they came from him. After what I could only assume must have been a long and difficult day of work, he gave me that answer.

And I couldn’t miss what it meant.

He was likely home now, and it was me who passed through his mind at the end of his day.

When I took my lunch break on Thursday afternoon, I had hoped I would have been able to call Blaze, but I’d received a text from my mom while I was with one of my morning clients. She’d asked me to give her a call when I had a free moment.

So, instead of reaching out to Blaze just to touch base with him, I gave my mom a call.

Two rings later, she answered, “Hello?”

“Hi, Mom.”

“Hey, Harlow. What are you up to?” she asked.

I finished chewing a bite of my sandwich, swallowed, and answered, “I’m on my lunch break right now. How about you?”

“Decluttering the office,” she replied. “I can’t believe how much paperwork is here. I found a receipt for the washing machine we bought four years ago.”

“Wow. Sounds like you got yourself involved in a bigger project than you probably anticipated it would be when you started,” I said.

“Exactly,” she mumbled. “I’m glad you called me back, though. Your dad’s birthday is coming up in two weeks, and I wanted all of us to get together to take him out for dinner. I talked to your brothers, and they’re both free that whole weekend. I know you work on Saturday, but do you have anything going on that Sunday?”

“I figured you would want to do something then, so I haven’t planned anything,” I told her. “Sunday is probably the better day for me, though.”

I heard the paper shredder in the background. It sounded like she’d put the phone right up against it before it suddenly faded away. “Sorry about that. I had one last thing I wanted to run through there. I’m stopping to grab myself lunch now. Okay, so I was leaning toward Sunday anyway. I’ll call when we get off the phone to make reservations and let you know a specific time once I have one.”

I hadn’t shared the news with my mom about Blaze, but I thought this was the perfect time to do it. “Hey, would it be okay if I brought someone along with me to celebrate?” I asked.

“Sure. I don’t mind. Do you want to call Olive and confirm she can make it before I make reservations?” she countered.

I licked my lips as I felt a flutter in my belly. My mom might not go as crazy as my best friend did when she’d learned I’d joined a dating app and had a date, but there was no question my mother was going to be surprised.

“It’s actually not Olive that I want to bring,” I told her.

“Oh?”

Hesitating a moment, I realized there was little I could do to prepare myself to share this news for the first time. “I’ve started seeing someone,” I confessed.

My mom gasped. “Are you serious?”

“Yes.”

“Who is he? How long have you known him? Where did you meet?” she questioned me. I didn’t mind the questions and had fully expected she’d have them for me. It would have bothered me if she hadn’t cared enough to ask at all.

“I’ll do my best to tell you everything I can right now, but I only give myself so much time for lunch,” I noted. “I might need to call you back later tonight when I get home.”

Refusing to allow us to waste a minute, she urged, “Well, get started. Tell me about him.”

I laughed and said, “His name is Blaze Matthews. He’s a private investigator, and I met him the night he rescued me from a horrible date.”

“What?!”

I loved my mom’s reaction, so I continued to laugh. But I did that while I filled her in on what happened that night. Of course, I went on to share how he’d asked to take me out on a real date, how we’d had such a great time that we went ziplining the next date, and how he was going to be taking me to see a movie at the drive-in theater this weekend.

After I’d gotten all of that out, she said, “Wow. It sounds like he’s a great guy.”

“He is,” I promised. “Honestly, I never thought I’d be so lucky to meet a man like him. He wants to spend time with me doing all the things I’ve never done but have always wanted to do.”

“What a way to make some wonderful memories. I’d love to meet him, and I’m sure your dad and brothers will feel the same,” she said.

“So, it’s okay if I bring him to dad’s birthday dinner?” I asked.

If the words she said next didn’t indicate precisely how she felt, the tone of her voice would have done it. I could hear the smile on her face when she answered, “Absolutely. We’ll look forward to meeting him. I’m just so excited for you, Harlow. I wasn’t sure the day would ever come that you’d ask to bring a guy to dinner. This is wonderful news.”

Warmth moved through me. I was so lucky to have the family I did. Even though it was my mom I was talking to now, I didn’t question that both my dad and my brothers would be just as happy for me as she was. If I was happy, they’d be the same.

“Thanks, Mom. He’s been very busy at work this week, and we do connect with each other every day, but I probably won’t ask him if he’s free to go until I see him this weekend,” I told her.

“Don’t worry about it. I’ll include him in the reservations, and if he’s unable to come, I’ll just call the restaurant back to let them know. I’m sure it won’t be a problem.”

“Okay. That sounds good. I should probably get going now, because my client is likely going to be here any minute now, and I want to get my stuff from lunch cleaned up,” I said.

“Okay. I’ll talk to you later, then. Enjoy the rest of your day, and don’t forget to let me know if dinner plans need to be changed.”

“I won’t. And you have a good time with that office. I’ll be praying for you,” I teased.

She groaned. “Ugh, don’t remind me. Talk to you later, Harlow.”

“Bye, Mom.”

I disconnected the call with her, sat there for a moment recalling the conversation, and gave myself permission to feel that wave of appreciation for my family wash over me again. I might have wanted to call Blaze on my lunch break today, but I was glad I took the opportunity to call my mom.

Now, I just had to hope Blaze was okay with going to meet my family so soon after we decided to see where things would lead between us.

I was praying it wouldn’t scare him off.