cut his hair? Or had he come hoping to find Meredith? It was a little after two p.m. Wasn’t Holden supposed to be at the school?
Noelle forced herself to walk with a slow and confident step as she went up to where Holden was sitting and leafing through a magazine. “Hello,” she said in a cordial tone as he looked up.
“Hey.” His dimples deepened. She tried not to notice how adorable they were or the sizzle that had darted through her when their eyes caught. She pointed to the magazine. “I never pegged you as a gossip rag reader.”
He laughed. “Normally, I’m not, but you never know what you might find.” He turned the magazine around to show her what he’d been reading. She gasped softly when she saw herself on the page. Her picture was placed beside Tiffany Wade. The caption above read: Which would you choose? The beauty queen or the actress? There was a picture of Kyle also.
A molten anger burned through Noelle. She’d not seen the pictures—hadn’t even realized that she was in the tawdry magazine. The page was dog-eared. She pointed, giving Holden an accusing look. “Did you do that?”
“No, it was like this when I picked up the magazine. That’s why the page caught my attention, because it was folded down.” He put the magazine down. “Honest.”
She relaxed a smidgen as she folded her arms over her chest, studying him with a critical eye. “So, you’re here for a haircut?” She made a point of looking at his hair. It was tapered around the edges and back and longer on top. His chestnut hair had a natural wave. She used to tease him about how perfect he always looked. “You don’t look like you need a haircut.” She’d always liked his hair a little longer than he chose to wear it.
His sable eyes flecked with amusement, turning them to a warm caramel as his hand went up to his hair. He pushed his fingers through it. “Noe, do you want my business or not?” he taunted.
Holden was the only one who’d ever called her Noe. He used to write her notes, which she’d kept. She told herself she was keeping them because they were an important part of her past, but the truth was, she couldn’t bear to part with them. Holden wrote her nickname as Noe, but he pronounced it as No-e, like Joey with an N. She arched an eyebrow. “If you want a haircut, I’ll give you a haircut.” She turned on her heel and waved for him to follow. He caught up with her in a couple of steps. Her cells swirled with awareness at him being so close. She could feel her cheeks burning. As she led Holden to her station, the other stylists and their clients gave them curious glances. Everyone was keenly interested in the scene unfolding between her and Holden, it seemed. Noelle wondered how many of them knew that she and Holden had a past. Or maybe they were wondering what would happen if Meredith found out that she was cutting Holden’s hair.
“Here we are,” Noelle said with a forced cheerfulness as she motioned to her chair. Holden sat down. He was wearing a navy-blue long-sleeved shirt, jeans, and a pair of black Converse tennis shoes. She draped the cape around him, fastening it around his neck. “I see you’re still wearing Converses.”
He grinned. “You know me and shoes.”
His intimate tone sent tingles circling her spine. It was astounding and concerning how discombobulated Holden made her feel.
“So, what’re we doing here?”
His eyes held hers. “I dunno, Noe. What are we doing?” he asked softly.
“About your hair,” she squeaked.
He was amused. “Ah, that. Well, I was kind of hoping you’d wash it before cutting.” He gave her a playful smirk.
Her eyes widened. Crumb! She should’ve asked if he wanted his hair washed. She’d gotten so worked up that she took him straight to her chair. “Okay,” she said offhandedly, “let’s go to the sink.” She removed the cape and laid it across the chair. She pointed to a bowl as he sat down. She retrieved a towel from the cupboard and rolled it up before placing it behind his neck. Her fingers tingled when they made contact with his skin. She swallowed, trying to get ahold of herself. This was so awkward! And, a bit stimulating.
She willed herself to go into her professional mode. This wasn’t Holden Hunt, the love of her life, the man who’d