Page 42 of His Forever

“Yeah, but we’ve not had that before. Speaking of – Mamá? I’m thinking we need to get a shampoo tech in here. And maybe a student who wouldn’t mind doing wash and sets.”

María-Luisa looked at her sister before saying, “That would be good. Let me see what I can do. If we get a student, they can either work hourly or take a portion, but I don’t want to charge them booth rent. How do you girls feel about that?”

Chandra spoke up saying, “I think it would be a good idea because they can see how a salon works and if it’s what they really want to do and if they’re a good fit for us, we could have a trained employee before they graduate!”

“Then I’ll make the call and see what I can do.”

***

Cleaning her rooms after her last clients, Marleigh gathered her tips. She liked how Mamá ran the salon. The customers paid up front and if they left the tip with Mamá, she brought it to the stylist or to Marleigh. Most of the time, her clients left her tip on the shelf. Her booth rental was beyond fair and she always asked for the girls’ input before changing anything. And even though family worked there, they seldom had a lot of drama, which was good. Looking at her book for the next day, she sent out reminder texts to her clients, asking them to let her know if they had to change the appointment. She had found, through trial and error, that this was the best way to ensure her days didn’t go sideways.

“Okay ladies, I’m out of here. There’s this really hot mechanic who has my car finished,” she called out after swapping the laundry again.

“Just a minute, Marleigh. I have more money for you,” Mamá said.

“More? But…everyone paid.”

“Si, but this is for what you did earlier. Those clients wanted to make sure the ‘shampoo tech’ got tipped,” the older woman told her as she pressed money into her hand.

Rolling her eyes, she said, “We should just put this into the coffee fund or something. I didn’t do it for any other reason than to help y’all!”

“And that’s why you’re taking it,” Mamá said firmly.

“Fine,” she said, laughing because she knew she wouldn’t win against the other woman. “I’m out of here.”

As she walked across the street, she found herself smiling. Even if the rest of the week was a wash, she had made enough today to more than cover her booth rent for the month! Still grinning, she walked into the shop and stopped short. Suri was standing there in a barely-there outfit with Colton. The two of them were oblivious to anyone else and she had the misfortune to see him openly groping Suri. She knew from the gossip at the salon that they were an item, something she still didn’t understand, but so long as they were happy and stayed out ofherlife she didn’t care. Shaking her head, she went to the office, giving a wave to Zeus without acknowledging the other two people.

She sat down at his desk and smiled. Even as busy as he was, his desk was organized and neat.Much like the man himself. Hearing the door open, she looked up and her smile grew broader. “Hey you,” she said as she went to get up.

“No, don’t get up,” he told her as he came around the desk and pushed the chair out slightly. Leaning down, he captured her face in his hands and proceeded to kiss her thoroughly.

Finally pulling apart, she looked up at him and said, “What was that for? Not complaining, mind you, just curious.”

“Just showing my girl a little bit of attention,” he said as he nuzzled her neck. “You ready to take your car out for a test drive?”

“Yeah. Are you done for the day? I saw you had…uh…company,” she replied.

“Si. Carlos is dealing with them. Let’s go.”

His hand at the small of her back, he led her out of the office and locked it up before they headed out to her car. Handing her the keys, he got in on the passenger side and adjusted the seat, making her giggle. “Mi siempre hermosa, why are you laughing?”

“You’re so much taller than me, Zeus. You can tell that my former best friend was the last one who sat over there because she’s maybe an inch or two taller than me.”

She smiled when she cranked up the Jeep. Not even in gear and she could hear the difference in how the engine ran. “It already sounds better!”

“Let’s take it over to the next town and grab some dinner, si?” he asked her. “I test drove it earlier today but want to get your opinion on how it handles.”

Nodding, she headed out of town as they talked over their day. “Oh, we’re having a girl’s night out apparently on Saturday according to your mom and Chandra so they can meet my aunt. She said you guys could play poker or something?”

He started laughing. Leave it to his mother to artfully arrange a way to get to know Marleigh’s aunt better. “Shouldn’t be an issue. Who do you think will stay at my house?”

“Hmm, I don’t know. I mean, Paulie and Gray have kind of claimed my spare room already.”

“Well, there’s room for everyone at my house, mi siempre hermosa. That way, you don’t have to worry about it and we’ll make sure the cats are taken care of, okay?”

She thought about it for a few minutes before nodding her head. “That works for me. Anything I need to do to help get ready?”

“No. The rooms are always ready for guests,” he told her.