“Yes.”
“Because... I can’t speak for all women. I can only advise you on what appeals to me.”
“Got it.”
“The only way I know to do this is to trust my taste.”
“I’m willing to try whatever you recommend.”
“Excellent.” Then she launched into singing. “‘Let us seize the day.’ That’s fromNewsies.”
“Let us seize the day.” Unlike her, he didn’t sing the line.
“Wait here while I run and grab my coat?”
“Yeah.”
Then, to Gabe, as she hurried past him, “Can you close for me?”
“You bet, boss.”
Chapter Two
Well, wasn’t this an unexpected pleasure?
Inside her office, Shay swiftly gathered her things. Coat, mittens, hat with the pom-pom on top, purse. One of her patterned socks had dipped too close to her hiking boot, so she pulled the sock back up to her knee and tucked her trousers into its top.
Typically, she enjoyed the Christmas tree lighting celebration. Today, though, memories of prior Christmas tree lightings she’d attended with Nate had haunted every quiet moment. She’d been feeling blue since the moment her alarm had gone off this morning. Everyone else’s joviality only made her feel worse by comparison as the workday had dragged on.
But now? Now Connor’s surprise proposition had filled her sails with gusts of purpose and excitement. He was a high school art teacher who’d moved back to Misty River to take care of his mom after she’d been diagnosed with ALS. She couldn’t think of anyone more deserving of a mini-makeover than Connor.
She found him exactly where she’d left him. Unlike most people their age, he hadn’t pulled out his phone in order to fill the forty seconds that she’d been gone.
They ushered outside into the crush of people accumulating for the parade. Shay cut a path forward, moving at twice Connor’s factory-set speed. The parade would include the high school marching band, some homespun floats, candy-throwing, numerous pets in Christmas costumes who were available for adoption at Furry Tails, and Santa and Mrs. Claus riding in a motorized sleigh. She’d seen this same parade almost every year of her life. Missing it in order to shine the diamond of Connor? No brainer.
As soon as Brad welcomed them to the barber shop, Shay began communicating her wishes to the older man, using hand gestures to elaborate.
Brad, who was in his mid-forties, listened with amusement. His silver stud earring matched the silver streaks in the hair rising sleekly up and away from his forehead. The earring and hairstyle jibed with his usual hipster clothing. Not so much with the topcoat, breeches, and cravat he wore for tonight’s festivities.
Brad looked to Connor. “What do you think about all this?”
“I’m good with it,” Connor answered, easy-going as always.
She trusted Brad’s work because she’d personally witnessed so many of his transformations. Connor might not have as much motivation to trust Brad but even so, within minutes, Connor had allowed himself to be levered back on the barber shop chair.
No doubt Connor hadn’t expected to find himself horizontal, having oil rubbed into his beard and a steam machine aimed at his face, ten minutes after asking if she’d become his dating consultant. She bit back a smile as she remembered his taken-aback response when she’d suggested they do this immediately.
When she set her mind to something, she liked to attack it wholeheartedly. Dilly-dally was not her middle name.
To Connor’s credit, he’d risen to the challenge.
Brad wrapped Connor’s face in a hot towel. A minute later he removed it and went to work. The straight razor made pleasant scritching sounds.
Shay waited on the edge of her seat, fascinated. She hadn’t seen Connor without a beard since they were in high school. Back when they’d met, he’d been a sweet, awkward kid with hair the color of a copper penny. Over the years, his hair had darkened to a deep auburn. His skin was fair, but not milky white. His nose was a straight specimen of masculine perfection. His gray eyes were deep-set and downturned—a fraction lower at their outer edges—which lent him a pensive look that suited him. He was a thinker more than a talker. Observant.
She hadn’t decided to axe the beard because it was unattractive. It was about an inch long and well kept. She’d decided to axe it because her intuition was telling her he had a stunning jawline under there. More than that, though, she suspected he hid behind the beard. He’d asked her to enhance what was already there, so that Molly would see him. This seemed like the clear first step.
The beard fell away in strips. When he finished, Brad patted on aftershave that smelled of sage. Then he sat Connor upright and went to work with flashing scissors on Connor’s hair, which was thick with a bit of curl.
