“We need to go out sometime. The four of us, like we used to do. We haven’t done that in a while.”
Grant nodded, feeling his spirits lift. They could definitely use a night out with friends.
* * *
Waking up to snow meant a slow day for the salon. Between women who were nervous to drive slushy streets and those who just didn’t want to clean off their cars, there was a flood of cancellations left via voicemail. The phone was ringing nonstop as they opened the doors, which meant rescheduling became a complicated puzzle that made everybody want a drink.
It also left a lot of time for socializing, though they did most of the talking while doing busy work. Polishing mirrors. Disinfecting things. Arguing over which Real Housewives franchise was the best.
“Hey, Kelli,” Wren said during a lull in the television debate. “The other day you said a man called when I was on break and asked for me by name, and he said he’d call back another time. Has he, that you know of?”
“I don’t think so. Nobody’s said anything and, honestly, you’re so private about things that a guy calling here twice for you would be gossip. No offense.”
“None taken.” Gossip at a hair salon wasn’t really a surprise. “I have a favor to ask all of you, though. I have...an ex in my past who wasn’t really nice and I’m pretty sure he’s in the rearview mirror, but I’d appreciate it if nobody gives out any info on me. Everybody I want to talk to has my cell number.”
Kelli’s eyes widened. “Oh no. Do you think that was him?”
She didn’t want to scare them into taking away her job. She just wanted them to keep their mouths shut. She’d told Mrs. Belostotsky the same story last night, knowing she’d share it with her husband. Not a lot of details, but enough so they’d be suspicious of anybody asking about her.
“It was probably somebody from the building management about the fire,” she said. “But since it was weird, I just thought I’d mention my ex. That’s all.”
Sadie, the owner, gave her a thoughtful look. “How nasty are we talking?”
“He never put his hands on me,” Wren answered truthfully. “But he’s been violent before and...he’s just really awful. I’d rather he not know where I am.”
“Okay.” After a short silence, she spoke again. “Do you have Facebook at all?”
“Nope.” It’s not as if she had a lot of family to keep in touch with.
“When you started here, there’s a thing we do. Just a post saying ‘hey, welcome Wren Everett to the reception desk’ kind of thing. We didn’t post a picture of you, but it’s not like your name is Jane Smith.”
Cold seeped through Wren’s body. She wasn’t exactly sure how Facebook worked, but she was pretty sure anybody searching for her name would be able to land on the salon’s page. “Okay.”
“I’m deleting it right now,” Sadie said as she scrolled through her phone. “I’m sorry. It never occurred to me it might be a problem.”
“I’m sure it’s not connected at all.” She wasn’t sure of anything, but she didn’t want to panic them, either. Or herself.
It was a relief when a client walked through the door and Wren had an excuse to end the conversation. She didn’t want to share a lot of details about her life—past or present—with her coworkers. She just didn’t want them giving out her information to any random person who asked for it.
There had been no more calls to her cell phone, so she’d managed to convince herself the unknown had been a wrong number after all. But it didn’t hurt to be cautious and the fewer people who could or would give out information about her, the better.
When she left the salon after her shift, she checked her phone and saw a missed text message from Grant.
Gavin said we should double date soon. Like we used to.
Her mind turned the phrase over and over as she walked to her car. Like we used to.
She knew she should be thankful Gavin and Cait had forgiven her enough to welcome her back into their lives. If they wanted nothing to do with her, her relationship with Grant probably wouldn’t survive in the long run. They were his family and what they thought of her would matter to him, even if it was on a subconscious level.
But it was also vaguely unsettling. Part of the reason she and Grant were taking things slow and getting to know each other again was to give them time to work through what had happened. Going back too quickly to like we used to could hinder that process and she didn’t want that, either.
There was no way she could say no that wouldn’t be awkward, though.
Sounds fun.
At home, she’d just finished a load of laundry when Patty got home from work. She looked exhausted as she sank onto the couch next to the clothes Wren was folding.
“What a day,” Patty said, and then she groaned as she put her feet up on the coffee table.
