I turn and walk back to the front of the salon. As I walk through the doorway, I see Blake on the sidewalk. He finally made it. I can’t wait to see Lane’s reaction when she sees him.
“I’m excited you are here. There have been a few people asking who did the beautiful spa renovation. Of course, I gave them your card and said you’d be here in a bit. One of them has already left. The other two are around. I’ll introduce you.”
“As always, thank you for your praise. It was all your vision; don’t forget to mention that to everyone,” Blake says as he waves his hand in my direction.
He’s a good guy. I’d love to see him and Lane together. But who knows? He won’t mix business with pleasure. So, I might just have to wait until after the kitchen reno to get my matchmaking hands on those two.
“You made it come to life. Are you here for some services? You could use at least a chair massage. But if you want to grab a refreshment first, then I can introduce you to a few people before you head down to the studio.”
“I’m probably not going to get a massage, but I’ll grab a drink. Be right back.”
I should introduce him to Jane. She knows everyone and would be a great person to be connected to in this town. As my eyes scan the salon, I see that man again across the street staring straight into the salon.
What the hell?
My friends will be here to help me close up, but this guy is giving me the creeps. If it is Jake, I might lose it.
TWENTY-ONE
Kendall
Iyelp, and my hand goes to my mouth as someone touches my shoulder. It’s just Dane.
“What has you so jumpy?” he asks.
I twist myself to face him with my back toward the door and say, “Don’t look yet. The guy from earlier is across the street. Black t-shirt and jeans with a baseball cap low on his face. Can you see him?”
His eyes move ever so slowly to the left of me as he glances out the front window. “Yes, I haven’t seen him around before tonight. Do you know him?”
“I might…know him.”
“You’ve got to give me more than that.” Dane stares at me, waiting for me to say more.
I think for a minute about how to even say the words, but finally I say, “I think it’s my ex, who I have a restraining order against.”
With eyes wide and anger settling into them, he says, “Alright! Well, you aren’t staying here alone tonight when this eventwraps up. I’ll bring Gram home shortly and come back to help you close up.”
A part of me wants to scoff and say it’s no big deal, but with Jake…it’s a big deal.
“My girlfriends are here, so I’m good,” I say with as much confidence as I can muster.
“Yeah, that’s not happening. I’ll be here, and there’s no argument on this one.”
“What’s not happening?” I hear another man’s voice, a familiar one—Blake.
I slowly turn my head in his direction and then back to Dane, who is giving him a pointed look.
“Everything okay? You look pale,” Blake says.
I skirt around the questions a bit and say, “Yeah, it’s nothing.” Looking at Dane, “You met my contractor, Blake, a few weeks ago at the coffeehouse.”
Dane hesitates for a second before reaching out his hand to shake Blake’s. Then Dane plasters on a smile and says, “Yeah, nice to see you again. Your work is top-notch, and I can tell you pay attention to the details. My Gram has a couple of projects at her house that need to be finished. Do you have any openings in your schedule this fall?”
“Thank you! It was all Kendall’s vision back there, and she’s a dream client…Yes, I have time this fall. Here’s my card; give me a call,” Blake says as he digs out his card and hands it to Dane.
“Great. I’ll be calling you.” He takes the card and pops it into his back pocket.
Blake looks at me and says, “What’s going on?”
