Chloe filled the glasses, then set the bottle down.“What are we drinking to?”
Bailey held up her glass.“Our thirtieth year.”
“Technically, we’re already in our thirtieth year.Years,” Gwen corrected.
“We turn thirty this year,” Bailey reminded her.
“Yes, but this is our thirtieth year.See, when you were a baby, before you turned one, that was your first year.Then when you were one, that was your second year.And when you turned three—”
“Jesus Christ, whatever.To our thirty-first year, then.”
“And new hair,” Gwen added, raising her glass.“I think.”
“It’s going to look amazing,” Bailey assured her.
“To taking new risks,” Chloe chimed in.
“Which reminds me, you’re getting new hair, too,” Bailey said.
Chloe started to voice an instinctive protest, then shrugged.“What the hell.New year, new risks, new hair.”
“This feels like a ‘famous last words moment’,” Gwen commented, “but I’ll drink to that.”
“That’s the spirit,” Bailey cheered over the ring of crystal as they tapped glasses, then downed the champagne.
“Hey, hey,” Gwen protested.“You can’t get drunk until you finish my hair.”
“Relax, one glass of bubbly isn’t going to impair me.”Bailey patted the countertop.“Come on, let’s get you rinsed out so I can get your color on.”
Gwen stood.“It’s going to be subtle, right?”
“Trust me,” Bailey said.
Gwen just stared for a second, then drained her glass and passed it to Chloe.“Fill me back up.I’m going to need it.”
Chloe eyed the gleam in Bailey’s eyes.“Me too,” she decided.
* * * *
Forty-five minutes and three glasses of champagne later, Chloe was sitting in the chair in front of the mirror, trying not to panic.
“Stop hunching your shoulders,” Bailey ordered.
“Sorry,” Chloe said, flinching at the snick of the scissors.“Shit.Sorry.”
Bailey’s exasperated sigh echoed off the marble.“You can open your eyes, you know.”
Chloe started to shake her head, then thought better of it.“No, I can’t.”
“If it makes you feel any better, my hair looks really good,” Gwen piped up.“You can hardly see the purple.”
“Because you chickened out,” Bailey accused.“If you can barely see it, then what was the damn point?”
“I know it’s there,” Gwen declared loftily.“And that’s enough.”
“Maybe I should just get a trim,” Chloe began, clutching her champagne glass harder.“You know, start small.”
“It’s a little late for that,” Bailey said.“What happened to new year, new risks?”
