“No, no. Extensions. In your daughter’s hair.”
He blinks at me before shaking his head. “I’m not following, Hal.” I take a deep breath and try to organize my thoughts before presenting my plan to him.
“The only way to avoid a disaster is to give her something else that’s bigger and better. Tomorrow, I’ll come bright and early, and we’ll go to Wren’s for brunch. She’ll probably be awake super early because she’s an early riser, plus jet lag. After brunch, the three of us will go to see Nat at the salon. Emma’s been talking to me about getting a tinsel extension but was afraid to ask you.”
“Is it dye?”
I shake my head. “Basically, Nat will tie little shiny things into her hair. They’ll fall out in a month or so, but it’s fun and cool.”
A beat passes before he nods. “I’m okay with that, so long as it’s not permanent.”
I smile and then continue sharing my plan. “After getting her hair done, I’ll take her shopping, get her a new outfit, and then you’ll take her to dinner.”
“Me?”
“Yes. You guys are going out on a date. You go to the florist, get her flowers, and make a big deal out of it. We’ll make the day really special for her.”
A soft look crosses his face. “You’re making up for her mom not being here,” he says, but somehow, it’s not him stating the obvious. There’s almost awe in the words, confusion mixed with the gratitude I feel.
I nod, pushing back the lump that has suddenly formed in my throat. “We’re all going to make up for it. So what do you think?”
“I think she’s going to love it.”
I give him one last grin, and he returns it before we work together to move the wood he chopped, then walk into his house with an arm over my shoulder to tell Emma about the change in plans.
THIRTEEN
The next morning, I head over to Jesse’s house bright and early, and Emma’s bouncing off the walls with excitement before we head out to Wren’s place for brunch. Wren fills us in on her whirlwind of a trip, and we laugh and eat far too much before going to the salon where Nat works.
Last night, after I left Jesse’s, I called her to fill her in on everything about Kim bailing and wanting to give Emma a magical day, so I shouldn’t be surprised when I realized Nat pulled out all the stops for her, but somehow I still am. At some point between last night and this morning, she found an Emma-sized robe and a pair of slippers. She even managed to squeeze in a manicure, pedicure, and facial with some of her coworkers after getting her hair done, deeming the day Emma’s luxurious makeover day. Wren and I pull chairs over to her station, and the four of us chat as if we hadn’t seen each other in months instead of just over a week.
“We have to schedule our vision board night,” I say, the magazines reminding me of the stack I’d been saving in my house for that reason.
“Oh my god, can I come? I want to make one too! Hallie and I found mine after Christmas, and we did a bunch of things onit, and it was so fun!” Nat smiles at me in the mirror, and Wren nods.
“Oh, totally! We’ll make a girls’ night of it,” she says, and Emma’s face lights up.
“What do you want to add this year?” I ask, and Emma goes off on a tangent about all of the things she’s going to add to her board, and even more heartwarming, how I’m going to help her achieve them, just like I helped last year. Nat smiles at me, and I shift back to the magazine, not liking the assessing look of it. Emma asks Wren what she’s going to add to her board, and a blush crosses her cheeks as she says she’s planning for more travel with Adam, including a trip to LA since he has to go there anyway to talk to his new agent over spring break.
“I want to be more intentional about how I help out around town, so I’m trying to plan a big fundraiser to see if we can manage to get enough money together to hire a community event coordinator. Adam offered to donate it,” she says with a disapproving grimace, and Nat laughs out loud. “But I think it should be done the old-fashioned way by fundraising. I’m thinking of some kind of strawberry festival or something in May, a big event.”
I give her a speculative look. “I don’t know how that wouldremovethings from your pile, Wren.”
She shrugs. “I have a meeting next week with Mayor Calloway to talk about options and if we can make it work. I don’t want to do everything myself anymore, but community events are important to me.” The reality is that Adam will force her to prioritize herself, but Wren will never stop being Wren. We just have to hope she does it smarter, and honestly, hiring someone to manage the big picture makes a lot of sense to me.
Before I can say anything else, the spotlight moves to Nat, who tells us her goals are to build her clientele book, get certified in facials, and continue moving toward buying a house.
“What about you, Hallie?” Wren asks after a bit, and I startle when all three sets of eyes turn in my direction expectantly.
“Me?”
“What are you going to put on your vision board?” Emma asks, a wide, genuine smile on her lips, but nerves take over me as I try and flit through my mind, thinking of how to answer. Instead of things Iwantto do, all that comes to mind are the things Ididn’tdo this year and the discomfort that came with realizing that earlier this week.
“I…I don’t know,” I say, and for the first time in a long time, I mean that.
“You don’t know?” Nat asks, raising an eyebrow.
I lift a shoulder nonchalantly, then drop my eyes to the magazine in my lap. “I just…I’m happy with how things are, you know? I wanted to get out of Colt’s house, and I did that. I guess I want to decorate it and make it mine.”
