#WipitUp – A Visit to the Salon

Hello and welcome to a Work in Progress blog hop.

Another installment from my book about an affair between two musicians. Having critiqued each other’s hair over dinner, Stefan has arranged for them to have their hair re-styled at an expensive salon. Callie is less than keen to have Stefan decide how she should look…

***

Ellen proved to be charming and attentive. “Who’s first up?” She patted the chair in front of the mirror.

“You,” I said quickly to Stefan. He shrugged in reply and took the seat.

I slunk away to small suite of leather armchairs and picked up a Cosmopolitan from the magazine rack. I watched as Stefan gestured at his hair, running his fingers through the strands and stroking his beard. Ellen nodded a few times and swept a gown around his front.

I didn’t want to know what he was having done. I opted for surprise and buried myself in reading an article in the Cosmo. It held my attention – how to achieve multiple orgasms. I read it several times, committing the top ten tips to memory. I’d a feeling they might come in handy later in the day.

A throat cleared, a signal and I peeked up. Stefan stood over me and my jaw dropped at the difference. He’d certainly had his mop trimmed. Gone the untamed frizz and in its place, gentle short curls – almost wavy and defined. He’d kept the top length longer and the sides super short. Ellen had added some kind of gel and his hair shone in the lights, slightly spiky without being a mess. She’d trimmed his goatee too. His face had gained a new level of handsome elegance.

“Wow, you look… smart, I mean not that you didn’t before,” I flustered.

“Your turn.” He followed me over and stood by the chair as I settled into the padded seat.

Ellen appeared behind me in the mirror. “Hi, Callie. Nice to meet you. Stefan has told me you’re keen to tidy up your style.”

I was? Keen? “Well, it’s fine really.” I twirled a few loose ends between my fingers. Stefan remained at my side and to my amazement started to comment on my hairstyle.

“Too long around the face. She constantly has to flick it away.”

I did? I glared at him. “No I don’t.”

“It’s heavy. I’m sure a lighter style would help.”

“Looks who’s talking,” I snapped. “Mister mop head.”

Ellen chuckled. “I get it. I’ll feather it out a little and taper the sides. A couple of centimetres off the ends?”

I opened my mouth to answer and Stefan got there first. “Brilliant.” He patted Ellen’s back and took up the neighbouring unoccupied seat. “I’ll wait here while you get it washed.”

My mouth slammed shut. His attitude riled me– treating me like a child, as if my hair was all his to do as he wished.

I tried to ignore my irritation as I reclined backwards over a basin. A lovely hot spray of water hit my hair and Ellen’s fingers massaged my scalp. I relaxed slightly. Nothing he’d asked for was extreme. In fact, it was exactly what my hair needed – a sprucing up.

“He’s very attentive of you, isn’t he?” noted Ellen washing out the shampoo.

“Yes, I suppose.” I stared across the room to where Stefan lounged in the chair, his finger swiping his mobile screen.

“Must be nice,” she insinuated.

I cringed slightly. I’d been a little rude to him in front of his hairdresser. “Yes,” I said with brevity. It was nice, more than nice. He cared for me. I groaned inside. Why couldn’t I let him in and relax? What was it about my dangerous fox that kept me burrowed in my hole, poking out my head nervously. He’d not played the predator with me. He was about to spend a small fortune on my hair and we were still in our first month of dating.

By the time Ellen finished, I had to admire her handiwork. My head seemed lighter, as if unburdened and the hair bounced about my face without hiding my eyes. “Lovely. Thank you,” I spoke with genuine gratitude.

I flashed a smile at Stefan, who’d watched my hair re-shaping in silence, strangely entranced at the sight of my loose strands floating down onto the floor. His remained there too and the dark and light locks mingled together under Ellen’s feet.

He gave Ellen a generous tip on top of her extortionate fee. I twisted my feet about on the floor by the reception desk as Stefan swiped his credit card. How to make it up to him?

“I’m taking you out for lunch,” he announced as he unlocked the car.

“What! You’ve just paid a small fortune to have a few wisps of hair trimmed and now, lunch?” I slammed my door shut.

The engine roared into action. “Nothing special. A little bistro.” He leant over and kissed my lips before I could protest at his generosity. “You look glorious.”

Flattery worked. “So do you. Stunning. Sharper. Debonair.” My heart fluttered as he remained in close proximity.

“Later, I’ll put that to the test.”

Those sexual nerve endings fired up. Patience. We still had lunch to do.

***

Unofficial blurb:

Amateur Clarinettist, Callie, turns up for an orchestra rehearsal following a six-week absence to find a new conductor in residence, Stefan – a charismatic man with ambitions to be a composer. After he gives her a lift home, he invites her to his house for a practice session. What begins as a music lesson ends with a passionate display of dominance by Stefan.

As their sexual affair blossoms, Callie is increasingly drawn to find out more about her aspiring composer and why he is a potent lover in the bedroom. When she turns up unexpectedly at his house, she is shocked to find him in the company of a naked woman. Horrified to think he might have betrayed her, she calls an end to their relationship, but persistent Stefan begs for a second chance.

Encouraged by her boss to resolve her feelings towards Stefan, Callie seeks out a friend of his, hoping to understand what drives him to dominate, but the explanation given creates more unresolved issues for Callie. Determined to seek out his true feelings towards her, she plans to confront Stefan. By then, Stefan has gone abroad. Callie must make a decision. Cash in her savings and follow Stefan or banish him from her life. If she does the latter, she will never understand the nature of the intense emotions he has awoken within her.  Dare she love him?