Chasing Rainbows A Novel - By Long, Kathleen Page 0,55
missed anything vital during the moment my imagination had taken over.
“So I said, ‘nice eyebrows,’ too.” She nodded, pointing to the bald area above her eyes. “I mean he does have nice eyebrows. His costume brows are pasted on, sure, but they’re very authentic looking.”
I nodded, working hard to project how seriously I was listening to her.
“He and his buddies all started laughing--” she patted her chest “--at me.” She blinked back sudden moisture and all humorous thoughts fled my brain. “Then I remembered I don’t have any eyebrows.”
Ashley dropped her gaze to the carpet and I reached out to squeeze her shoulder.
“They’re jerks, honey. Immature jerks.”
“But that’s just it, Aunt Bernie.” She lifted her watery gaze to mine.
My head was swimming at this point. Obviously I’d lost the ability to follow teenage thought processes a long time ago. “What?”
“He’s not a jerk. He’s really cool, and I thought maybe he liked me.”
I winced on her behalf, feeling her pain, but before I could say another word, she spun on one heel and breezed out of the snack bar, Styrofoam cup in hand.
“Ashley,” I called after her.
To my surprise, she slowed to a stop and turned to face me.
I closed the gap between us and tipped up her chin with my fingertips. I studied the expanse of smooth skin above her now tear-filled eyes. The faintest trace of brows had returned, and a sudden thought popped into my head.
“Let’s go to the bathroom.” I grabbed her hand and steered her toward the restrooms.
“I don’t have to go to the--”
“Yes, you do.” I nodded, unwilling to take no for an answer.
A few minutes later we stood side by side, studying my work in the scratched and blurry mirror.
“Don’t I look like an old lady?” she asked, leaning forward to study the pale brows I’d drawn on with my eyeliner.
I shook my head no, while thinking that yes, she might resemble some washed-up star of film and stage, but at least we were on to something here.
With the help of the right tools--and makeup kiosk employees, heaven help me--we could manage a temporary fix while we waited for the Ashley’s real brows to return to full strength.
I sank my teeth into my new mission and grinned at Ashley’s reflection in the mirror. “How do you feel about a trip to the mall after work?”
o0o
Ashley and I parked at the entrance closest to the costume store in the mall for two reasons.
The spot was the farthest away from the coffee shop where the security force hung out, and the costume store offered the perfect opportunity to hide my identity before I took Ashley to face Brittany and Tiffany of Rediscover You fame.
I’d assigned Ashley the task of picking out a pair of funky glasses for me while I lovingly stroked the synthetic locks of a hot pink wig.
“Subtle, Aunt Bernie. Real subtle.”
I didn’t bother glancing at Ashley as she sidled up next to me. I could sense her eye roll, there was no need to see it.
“What?” My voice climbed an octave or two. “Too over the top?”
When she snapped her tongue, she sounded just like her mother, and I smiled.
No matter how hard we women tried to become anything but, when all was said and done, we were our mothers. In most cases, this was a good thing.
I smiled at Ashley and she narrowed her browless gaze at me.
In Ashley’s case this was a very good thing. Mothers didn’t come any better than Diane…when she wasn’t scouring clearance racks.
Diane.
I swallowed and dug around in my purse for my cell phone. She’d kill me. Ashley and I hadn’t even told David where we were going when we left the rink. As far as he knew, I was taking Ashley home and nothing more.
Diane was right. I had a whole lot to learn about the parenting life.
I frowned when Diane’s ring clicked immediately into voice mail.
The woman felt as strongly about her cell phone as she felt about discount designer purses, so I found it difficult to believe she’d turned off her phone. Maybe the battery had run down and she hadn’t noticed.
I left a message, snapped my phone shut and shrugged. “Not answering, but at least she’ll know where you are.”
Ashley gave a dismissive shrug of her own and lifted my hand from the wig. She tipped her chin toward my head and grinned.
“Don’t you think your haircut is disguise enough?”