“Oh, good. I want everyone to have the best experience, but when it’s someone’s first massage, I want it to be the best it can be.” She hands me a small bottle of water.
“Well, it was. You’ll definitely be seeing me again.”
That makes her smile. “Happy to hear. Now, there isn’t much post-massage care to deal with, but make sure you drink lots of water. Technically, you should avoid strenuous activities for twelve to twenty-four hours, but I know you work in a bar and will be lugging those cases of beer and whatnot. Just try to rest as much as possible. Plus, I’m sure my brother’ll be by after he catches up on his sleep. I don’t want to think about whatstrenuous activities might be involved later, so we won’t talk about those.”
I can’t help but giggle. “He told me he usually sleeps part of the day when he gets home from a shift.”
She nods. “He does, especially if they were out all night with calls.”
“All right, well, I’ll get out of your way. How much do I owe you?” Reaching into my small purse, I retrieve my wallet.
“It’s taken care of.”
I glance up, meeting her gaze. “What?”
She smiles. “Someone covered it. He tipped too. I made sure it was a generous one,” she states with a little chuckle.
My heart skips a beat in my chest. “Oh.”
She winks and starts to walk me toward the front of the salon. “He’s totally into you, if you didn’t already know. He’s never once—not ever—reached out to me and paid for someone’s massage.”
“That doesn’t mean anything,” I argue.
“Are you kidding me? It means more than you think, believe me. I know my brother, and this is very out of character for him,” she says as we reach the front counter. “Oh! Do you want to talk about scheduling a hair appointment? I spoke with both Lila and Jenn, and both feel Jenn is a better fit for your hair type. Jenn is Curly Girl certified and is the absolute best for clients who have any and all types of curls.”
“That’s perfect,” I reply, pulling out my phone and bringing up my calendar.
“Jenn told me just to schedule you for an extended appointment, and she’ll talk to you beforehand about your hair. You can go to her Insta page and see her work, but I assure you, she’s amazing.”
I nod. “Sounds good. The thought of driving an hour back to Stewart Grove just to see my usual girl doesn’t sound all thatconvenient right now, so I’m willing to talk to Jenn and see what she can do.”
My hair has loose curls, but curls, nonetheless. Anyone who has them knows you have to take proper care of them, or you’ll have an uneven, frizzy mess. Ever since I can remember, I went to someone who is certified in caring and cutting those curls. My mom is the same, with long, loose curls. But all it takes is one bad cut to change everything.
“She had a cancellation next Wednesday at nine. Will that work?” Charli asks.
Tapping on the calendar app, I see Guy is opening that day. “Perfect.” I add the appointment to my calendar.
“Great! We’ll see you then.”
“Thank you, again, for the massage. I’ll definitely be back.”
She flashes me a smile that reminds me of Cade. “You’re welcome. Talk soon.”
I wave to the others and make my way out of the salon, feeling relaxed and refreshed for the weekend ahead. Collin is working Friday night with me and Jani on Saturday evening. Things have definitely picked up on those two nights, requiring me to make the decision to staff two bartenders.
Tomorrow night is the first karaoke Friday, and I’m super excited. I found a great DJ locally who’s got a great setup. He usually sticks to weddings, but we were able to come up with an agreement and schedule that didn’t overwhelm him and offers a little bit of flexibility. Plus, the added bonus of a set schedule is great for marketing. We have a six-month agreement in place and will discuss changes or extending after we see how it goes.
Plus, next Saturday night, I’ll have my first band. It’s a local group of musicians in their forties who play a mixture of classic rock from the eighties and nineties country. When I spoke to their lead singer, he was thrilled with the prospect of playing at The Tipsy Lizard, stating he was turned down at playing at TheTall One across town, since they only wanted today’s music for the younger crowd.
They don’t know their ass from a hole in the ground, because what this band is offering isexactlywhat brings patrons out.
Not to mention my sister is coming over for the weekend, and I have the perfect project for her to assist me with. Not only do I need to make posts on social media for the band next Saturday, but I want her help finalizing my next paint night and the new book club night I want to add, and if I know Em, she’ll be so excited to help plan it all.
When I climb inside my vehicle and start the air-conditioning, I pull out my phone and tap on the text app. His name is near the top of the list, thanks to our messages back and forth last night. I know he’s probably sleeping, but I want him to see it as soon as he wakes up.
Me
What a wonderful surprise to find out someone paid for my massage. If you know who that was, let him know he’s in for quite a thank you later.
