Treasured (The Salvation Society) - Victoria Pinder Page 0,1
watch my son. It’s enough. You are protecting my heart’s biggest joy.”
“You deserve a break too. You work too hard.”
My hairdresser would arrive any moment. Tonight, I was living in a world where all my whims would be taken care of. I was special. I laughed. “It’s funny, actually, as Dad said we’d never amount to anything.”
“I haven’t given him much thought these days.”
His issues were probably tied to fighting my battles, too, so his shoulders had taken double duty, even after our father died. But I would not be thriving if I didn’t know I had someone in my corner. And family was family.
I placed the dress on the bed and said, “Letting go of what happened helps you heal.”
“Yes, you and your positive affirmations to forgive the past.”
If I could reach into his heart and rip our past away from him, I would. I kicked off my sneakers, as jeans probably weren’t good for a massage. I needed to change into my sweats. “You should try it once in a while, Joseph.”
“Leave me with my regrets.”
My phone beeped with a message—my appointment was on her way up. I tugged on the cotton bottoms fast while I said, “What regrets? You saved my life more times than I can count.”
“I… the best thing I did for you was chase him off for good.”
“Him” meaning Arthur. My son’s father had been my biggest mistake, but then again, without him, I would not have Bruce. His still name sent ice chips through my spine. When Arthor snapped, I feared for the safety of my son and knew I had to leave. Now he was long gone, and I glanced at the door and hoped the staff coming were all women. “You did that twice for me. I won’t need that service ever again.”
“Call me when you get home.”
“I will.” There was a knock at the door. My hands trembled a little. Then I glanced through the peephole and saw three women in a black smocks, carrying rolling luggage that must have been filled with hair products, makeup, and whatever a masseuse carried. I unlocked it as I said to Joseph, “Tonight I’m going to pretend to be a princess.”
“You’ve been playing that game all our lives.”
When I’d been a girl, the game had been to mentally check out so I wouldn’t have to listen to our drunken father. Now, I waved for the three women to come in and said, “This time, it’s fun.”
“Fair enough.”
We said, “See you tomorrow,” and I hung up the phone.
The masseuse set up a table that had been folded, and the hair and makeup ladies found stations in the room—it was like my hotel room was a salon. I lay down on the massage table, and once the woman started, I closed my eyes.
Maybe tonight would be my coming-out ball or like the prom. I never had the chance to just be pretty. Sure, my job tonight was simple. I would pick up the check from the benefit, say a one short sentence thanking the benefit guests, and fly home the next morning. However, I never had any of this pampering stuff, ever, where someone else did my hair and face. My cousin, Indigo, who owned the shelters I ran, had really set me up.
I followed the women’s directions, and soon I was done. My hair was in an upsweep, like I was some noble of old who had lady’s maids to ensure every strand of hair was perfect.
In reality, I would have been the maid in any scenario of my life, except I had no special skills with a brush.
I tipped them, and they left together.
I shoved the rest of my money back in my pocketbook and locked it in the safe. Done. I checked my dress in the mirror to ensure everything was on right and stopped and stared at myself. It was me, but it wasn’t. I glowed. My dark blond hair, which normally reminded me of dry baked dirt, now seemed soft and elegant. The dress was strapless, though my breasts were covered.
This was the princess version of me, and no one was going to stop me.
However, as I turned to the door, I froze. The dress had no pockets, and I never went anywhere without my phone. I sucked on my bottom lip until I realized I had on lipstick and stopped.
If something happened to Bruce, I would need to know. No one would see me anyhow, so I tucked it