Gregory smiled as he watched the others take their seats. To new beginnings.
8
By the time Audrey was finished painting the treatment room, she was dizzy. How did painters do it, she wondered. The fumes were horrible. That made her laugh. People often walked into salons, and that was the first thing they’d bitch about.
It had gotten better over the years, that was for sure. But between permanents, hair colors, artificial nail services and then the fragrance usually added to the ambiance to cover up those smells—it was a lot.
Audrey didn’t do too many perms anymore. The hair color she used had very little odor. And she’d long ago gone to doing natural nail services and gels, which emitted very little smell.
She figured her sister would appreciate that. What bride wants to be trying on dresses and gagging on salon smell.
For a while there would be new construction smell though, but that mean new beginnings. What a wonderful feeling—new beginnings. The day she’d walked out of the other salon, she couldn’t have imagined anything would ever go right for her again. But here she was, building something that was all hers.
Pride swelled in her chest. Perhaps that was fate taking over that day. There was one opening in the Bridal Mecca building, which her sister quickly earmarked for her. Looking around, she thought it would be a place people would tell their friends about. Those bridal parties would book their days with her now. She was part of something bigger.
Russell walked through the front door with two bottles of water in his hands. “I raided Lydia’s office fridge. She’s got some flavored waters in there too. She said to help yourself if you’d like.”
Audrey smiled as she took the water he handed her. “I suppose I should think about those things. Coffee maker, fridge, water, tea.” She laughed. “This is going to be great, isn’t it?”
“I think so. Come look at the tile. See what you think,” he said as he opened his water and took a sip.
Audrey followed him to the back room and stopped when she saw the beautiful faux wood tiles gleaming up at her. “Oh, Russ. This is fantastic.”
“It is.” He chuckled. “It looks nice and will stand up to everything. When your plumber gets everything else roughed in, we can start planning for the main room. Are you carpeting the waiting area?”
“Area rug. This tile will run everywhere.”
He nodded. “I might bring in Gerald to help,” he said of his other brother. “We’ll get you set and on your way. Are you having a grand opening party?”
Audrey instinctively shrugged. “I don’t know. I hadn’t thought about it.”
Russell chuckled again. “Lydia has thought about it. She was asking me. She’s the right gal to make it happen. Susan could cater. Bethany could deck the place out in flowers. Pearl will build you a clientele from her shop.”
“I have a clientele.”
“Well, then she’ll add to it. Are you going to hire others?”
“Eventually. But they have to be the right people. I’m in no hurry.”
He smiled. “I’m proud of you. It’s going to be great.”
She nodded. It sure was.
Russell cleaned up and headed home to his family. Audrey continued her painting in the bathroom, which would be a matte gray with a waterfall faucet into a glass bowl sink. Her brother, Jake, had picked it out. He had a way of transforming spaces and making them elegant. His house was proof of that.
Audrey poured paint into the tray just as she heard a dog barking, and it sounded as if it were barking in her salon. She put down the can, grabbed a rag, and hurried out to the main room as she wiped her hands.
Standing in the doorway was the sexy Hollywood god, and, she assumed, his dog.
“Hi,” she said, as she eased toward the door. “You got a dog?”
“He’s mine. He just arrived, as did my trailer.”
“Your trailer?” she asked as she set the rag on the makeshift work table in the center of the room.
“It’s on set with me. When you spend fourteen hours a day somewhere, you need something of your own.”
She nodded. “And you came here why?”
“He wanted to meet you. I told him all about you.”
Narrowing her eyes, she slid him a smile—careful to keep it minimal. “I’ll bet you did,” she smirked as she held her hands out to the dog, who sniffed her before she ran her hands over his dark, beautiful coat. “Oh, he’s very sweet.”
“He’s a little wound up from the travel.”
Audrey knelt down in front of him and continued to rub the dog into a blissful state. “What’s his name?”
“Black Sabbath.”
She laughed. “Black Sabbath?”
“Eh, it was a jab at the ex. She wanted some sissy name, and I wanted a tribute to Ozzy. I got my way. What would you have named him?”
“I’ve never had a dog.”
“Who grows up without a dog?”
She scratched Black Sabbath behind the ears. “People whose mothers move around too much. We never had the yard for a dog.”
He watched her stand, and Black Sabbath nuzzled her leg with his nose. “I thought the Walkers owned some huge ranch.”
“You’d be correct. But my father was never much a part of that. At least he didn’t work the land like my uncle and his sons. Our side of the Walker family lived in town. And it was only my sister Pearl and I, with our mom.”
Gregory eased against the doorjamb and settled his eyes right on hers. “You have a story, don’t you?”
“Don’t we all?”
“You wouldn’t want to take a walk with us, would you? There has to be a nice walking path or something around here.”
Audrey bit down on her bottom lip. “I have things to do. Besides, I thought you were busy this week.”
“Got done early.” He gave a nod toward the sidewalk. “Less than an hour. I promise.”
Why was this man interested in spending time with her? They’d just met. He was far out of her league, yet he seemed enthralled by her—her, of all people. Certainly, she was the least interesting person, and he’d soon find that out, she thought. But what would it hurt to take a walk with a gorgeous dog and his owner?
The thought had her laughing, and Gregory cocked his head.
“What’s so funny?”
“Nothing at all. Let me get my phone and my keys. You promise, less than an hour?”
“Promise.”
Audrey retrieved her keys and phone, then locked the door to the salon as she walked out with Gregory and Black Sabbath.
“Which way?” he asked.
“Let’s go this way. There’s a fantastic trail that goes down by the river.”
“Sounds nice.”
Audrey started down the street. The dog between her and the man.
He had some anonymity here, she noticed, as people passed right by him. Obviously, they were not yet aware of what was going on in town. It wouldn’t last, she was sure. Once people realized the movie was being filmed there, and that the stars were walking freely on the street, there’d be some attention. By then she’d be long forgotten. All the better. In all honesty, she didn’t have time for these kinds of distractions.
9
A spring breeze accompanied them on their short walk toward the trail by the river Audrey had mentioned. Gregory liked the quaint area, quite a bit. It was only a few blocks long, perhaps what some areas called an Olde Town which had been revamped with new businesses in remodeled buildings.
The building that would house Audrey’s salon was being built into a bridal location. He didn’t have to look it up on the internet to notice that. But he had. In the past year they had taken the building, owned by Lydia Morgan and Pearl Walker-Morgan, and completely revamped it as the all-in-one Bridal Mecca—which it was called.
Gregory thought they were absolute geniuses, these women with their combined talents. He and his brother and sister didn’t have much in common when it came to their talents. H
e was envious of the bond.
“I promised I’d get you back in an hour, but I was hoping you’d at least talk to me while we walked,” he said when he realized that they’d walked nearly three blocks without speaking.
“I’m sorry. I guess my head is somewhere else,” she admitted and slowed her gait.
“Do you walk this path a lot?”
Audrey shifted her head in his direction. “Quite often.”
“So you must live nearby.”
He saw the twitch of her lips before she pursed them. “Not too far.”
Fine, he’d save that for another conversation. “So tell me about your family. About your brothers and sisters.”
Audrey laced her hands in front of her, then lifted them over her head as if doing a stretch. Maybe she was limbering up to run, he thought.
“Why do you want to know about them?”
“I want to know about you. I thought it was a good place to start a conversation.”
She let out a long breath and lowered her arms. “I’ve already told you quite a bit about Bethany.”
“I know she’s your half-sister. I know that she was an actress and is now married to the greatest author ever.”
That brought a smile to her face. “I don’t read a lot of sci-fi.”
“You should.”
“I’ve read his. I just didn’t realize he was the greatest author ever.”
Now he smiled. “Now you know.”
She nodded, and now swung her arms as they walked down a small incline that took them next to the river. “My family,” she started. “My sister and I are the product of one of my father’s marriages. My brothers Jake and Todd are from another. Bethany is from a relationship that didn’t end in marriage.”
“I’m going to take it, from your sarcastic tone, that you’re not close to your father.”
“None of us are really. He does things his own way. You know about Violet Waterbury, Bethany’s mom. She was unique. My brothers’s mother is, well, weak and whiny?” She shrugged. “I don’t mean that as her personality is bad, she’s just…”
“Weak and whiny?”
She laughed, and oh, he was beginning to enjoy that laugh a lot.
“Yeah. My mom is a diva on a budget.”
“Wants, wants, wants and can’t have.”
Her pace slowed. “Yes. I suppose I just appease, but Pearl tries to be the good daughter. Unfortunately, she’s usually disappointed when she tries. Nothing is good enough.”
“But the five of you are close?”
“Inseparable. We have to be. The four of us have always been tight. Bethany was someone that just happened to be related if you will.”
“So your relationship with her is new?”
He noticed she checked her watch before she continued. “She moved out here after her mother’s death. About the time my grandfather passed. But we’ve all become very close, and that includes her.”
“I think that’s a wonderful thing. What about the other side of the Walker family?”
“My cousins?”
“Yeah.”
“They’re all tight-knit. All five of them. Hard-working men who are strong-willed, and love their mama.”
“As it should be.”
“Yeah,” she sighed. “As it should be.”
Well, he’d taken her down a road she wasn’t too happy to wander, he figured. Her expression had waned, and her pace slowed.
“How long have you worked in a salon?”
She began to stretch again. Maybe that was a ritual as she walked.
“Since I was nineteen. So, forever.”
He chuckled, thinking that didn’t lead him to find out how old she was, but he figured they were close in age. Another question for another time—and there would be another time.
Shifting her head, she looked up at him. “Tell me about your brother and sister. I know your parents are divorced.”
So she’d paid attention. He’d say that was a win.
“My brother, Scott, is married with three kids. Lives not far from my mother in Oakland. My sister, Kate, is stationed in Japan right now.”
“Military wife?”
“No, military surgeon.”
A smile lit her face. “No kidding?”
“Pretty impressive, huh?”
“Yeah.” The word sighed from her lips, and the smile remained. “I love strong women. Statement makers.”
“Like you?”
Now she laughed. “Oh, I’m no statement maker.”
“I disagree,” he said, and that’s when she stopped walking.
“You don’t know me,” she said coolly as Black Sabbath yanked on the leash to continue their walk.
“I know enough. You’re strong. Powerful. Beautiful.”
The smile disappeared, and she bit down on her lip. “Why do want to spend time with me?”
“I’m new to town,” he joked, but she didn’t laugh now. “I’m interested.”
“In me?”
On a whim, mostly to see how she’d react, he reached his hand to her cheek. When she didn’t pull away, he figured that was another win. “In you, Audrey Walker. I’ve been interested since the moment you turned around in the dark in your salon.”
Lifting her hand, she rested it on his but didn’t pull back. “I haven’t been in a relationship in years. I’m not good at them. Until my siblings began to get married, I didn’t think it was possible for our family to know what a stable relationship looked like. The interest I understand.” She swallowed hard and stepped in closer to him. “I’m interested too.”
“Then we don’t have a problem.”
“You don’t belong here,” she said.
Gregory dropped his hand from her cheek to her shoulder as the dog nudged his leg. “So this is the end of this?” he asked as he let his hand slide down her arm and capture her hand. “You’re not curious to find out where interest takes us?”
“You’re here for a few months. Then what?”
“I don’t know. But you’re right. I’m here for a few months, and Audrey, I’d really like to get to know you in that time.”
He stepped closer to her, the dog now wrapping himself around their legs with his leash. When her lips parted, as though she wanted to say something, he moved in and took her mouth with his.
A gasp escaped her throat, but she didn’t pull back. In fact, he was pleasantly surprised to find her hands come up between them and rest on his chest.
With his free hand, he rested it on her hip and moved her in even closer.
Need, want, curiosity all filled the warmth of her lips pressed against his. Her tongue moved against his. It was wild, new, and damned sexy.
When she lifted her arms around his neck, he knew she’d tumbled into a new feeling she might not have been welcoming, but it was there. He pressed his hand to the center of her back and kept her close. Nothing else around them mattered as long as her mouth worked against his.
When Black Sabbath yanked against the leash, which was now fully wrapped around them, he pulled back and laughed. “I think he wants to move on.”
“Me too,” she said with her voice airy and dripping with the sexual need he could only assume they both felt burning between them.
“Let’s keep walking,” Gregory offered, his voice unsteady.
Once they untangled themselves, and Black Sabbath took the lead down the path, he reached for her hand and linked their fingers. He watched her suck in a breath, but she kept her hand in his. Something new was in the making. He liked thinking of it as a new adventure, and he craved adventure. What better place to have one than in Georgia?
10
Audrey swept the floor of her kitchen before her next client was due. She hated doing hair in her house. If she had a place for it, that would be one thing, but in the kitchen—yuck.
The plumber had called her an hour ago and let her know that the inspections were complete. It was time to finish the floor. She’d called Russell, and he’d promi
sed that he and Gerald would get started on that tomorrow.
Sitting down at her desk, in the spare bedroom that she called an office, she looked at the shipping information for her equipment. Everything was due to arrive the following Monday. She had a week to get everything done in the space, and it was going right on schedule.
Having worked on an hourly schedule, as she had for so many years, she appreciated timelines. Nothing was worse than getting behind.
When the doorbell rang, Audrey looked at her watch. She had a half hour before her next client.
She hurried to the door to answer, and when she did, she was met with the biggest arrangement of roses she’d ever seen.
“Ms. Walker?” The male voice asked from behind the flowers.
“Yes.”
“These are for you,” he said as he handed them to her and now his young face was exposed. “I need you to sign for them.” He held out a clipboard, and she signed the sheet as he held the board steady. “Have a nice day,” he offered, as he turned and hurried back to his van.
She could feel her cheeks flush with heat, alone in her own home.
Kicking the door closed, she walked to the coffee table and set down the flowers. The card was buried among the long-stemmed, fragrant beauties. I was thinking about you. G-
Her heart slammed in her chest, and she wanted to cry. No one bought her flowers. Bethany would give them to her once in a while from the shop. Or her brothers would send them if she was down, and they knew that would cheer her up. But a man—her head spun and she sat down on the sofa. A man she’d just met, kissed—oh, the delight of the moment was nearly overwhelming.
She reached for her phone only to realize that she’d given him her number, but she didn’t have his.
Well, it was up to him then, she decided. Then it struck her that she’d never told him where she lived.
Scrolling through her phone, she texted Kent.
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