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Over Her Head: In the Shadow book 3

By JL Crosswhite

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Jessica Blake swept the last of the client’s platinum blonde hair into the dustpan at the end of the first day of her job at Salon Moritz as she tried to tune out the chatter about clubbing from the girls around her. Not her. Not anymore. She was headed straight home after this. There was still a pint of mint chip in the freezer, if Mom hadn’t eaten it yet. That was celebration enough. She was lucky to get this job right out of cosmetology school.
Madison Rubio, the stylist Jessica was working under, seemed pleased with her work. Though it had been a long day, her heart was light at the praise she received. She hadn’t realized how much her parched heart needed the watering of encouraging words. It had been a long time.
Lyric Madden came bounding over, neatly side-stepping the pile of clippings Jessica had made. “The girls invited us to go for drinks with them to celebrate our first day on the job. Sounds fun.” Lyric had gone to Jessica’s school, and they’d both started here today.
But the salon owner, Crystal Moritz, had made it clear there was only one permanent position. And that she was watching. Of course, she’d left about two hours ago. Still, given the amount of gossip that went around a salon, Jessica wouldn’t be surprised if every bit of what went on here made its way back to Crystal.
“I can’t. Sorry.” Jessica put away the broom and dustpan and grabbed the glass cleaning spray. She wiped down the mirror then looked around. Anything else that needed to be done? Otherwise, she’d better to get out of here before she got questioned further.
Lyric tugged on Jessica’s arm. “Come on. You can’t say no.” She leaned in and lowered her voice. “It’s a great way for us to make friends with them outside of work, get some face time in so we both can keep our jobs. You know they’ll report back to Crystal. You don’t want to give off a vibe that you’re too good for them.”
Jessica shook her head. “That’s not it at all. I just have other plans.” With nothing else to do, she headed to the break room and grabbed her bag out of her locker.
Lyric stayed on her heels. “It can’t be that important. Whatever it is, change it.”
Jessica rolled her shoulders. She hadn’t expected this. She should have had a ready excuse, something unassailable. Mother’s birthday? Already passed. Grandma’s funeral? Not funny. The way Gran was going, she’d outlive them all.
Near the stations, Erika—the stylist Lyric was working with—and Madison stood with designer bags over their shoulders. Erika touched up her lipstick in the mirror and adjusted her sleek blonde bob that swished below her jawline. “We’re thinking of drinks in Newport. I’ll buy the first round. And then maybe see where we want to go for dinner. And whatever else sounds fun.” She laughed. “We don’t have any early appointments tomorrow. So no need to worry about a curfew, girls.”
Jessica swallowed. How was she going to get out of this? She’d been sober eight months, and she wasn’t about to risk it. If it came down to her sobriety and her job, she’d of course choose sobriety. But did it have to come down to that? How could she keep her promises to herself without losing this job that had been hard won? Especially since Madison liked her work. She could imagine the disappointment in her parents’ eyes if they found out she lost her job the first day. Or maybe they wouldn’t be surprised.
Madison frowned. “No. Don’t tell me you have a hot date already?”
“Uh, well, actually…” Jessica bit her lip.
Madison grinned and tucked a dark, long curl behind her ear. “Spill it. Who is he? Do you have a picture?”
Jessica dug in her bag to buy herself time. Madison had handed her an excuse. Yet who could she say was her date? Joe or Kyle, her brother’s friends and practically her big brothers, would likely cover for her. She probably had some pictures from the wedding. Well, Kyle had been the groom, so he was off this list. Her fingers closed over her phone, and she brought it out, swiping it on.
“Of course she does. At least we can go on his social media profile.” Lyric hovered over Jessica.
No time to type out a quick rescue message with Lyric watching her every move. She opened her photos. One of her and Austin came up in the grid of recent images. Memories of their slow dance at the wedding washed over her. Austin was one thing in her life she didn’t want to mess up. Her dating track record was nothing to be proud of. Even if she wasn’t exactly dating Austin. They were…friends. He was about as opposite of her as you could get: solid, logical, steady. And yet since he was new in town, she felt like she could actually help him with something: navigating a new social environment by introducing him to friends and inviting him places.
The phone slipped out of her hand as Lyric snatched it away. “Ooh, he’s cute. What’s his name?”
“Austin. And yes, he’s cute. Now I’ve got to go.” She stuck out her hand and wiggled her fingers. What kind of person took someone else’s phone? They barely knew each other.
Lyric spun away, tapping on Jessica’s phone and giggling. What was she doing?
“Lyric, give it back, please.”
Lyric flashed Austin’s picture at Erika and Madison, who giggled.
“Yep, he’s a hottie. Worth spending time with him for sure,” Madison said.
Lyric handed the phone back to Jessica.
“What did you do?”
Lyric shrugged. “We want to meet him. I just said you needed to be picked up.”
Jessica saw the last sent text message on her screen. Hey babe. Come pick me up at the salon? I promise I’ll make it worth your while. Followed by heart and kiss emojis.
Jessica’s face heated. How was she going to explain this to Austin? She’d have to call him. It was more than she could say in a text.
To her horror, three dots flashed across the screen. He was texting her back. Oh no! She couldn’t call him right now, not with these three listening.
Be there in a few.
Lyric peeked over Jessica’s shoulder. “Ooh, it worked. We’ll get to meet him.” She squeezed Jessica’s arm. “You made a good choice.”
***
Austin Montgomery didn’t know how anyone got any work done in this open-office concept with all the noise and distraction. In the two hours since most people had cleared out, he’d reveled in the quiet and gotten more work done and made more progress than he had all day. Finally, he was able to feel good about the work he was doing. This program had real potential to help businesses overcome their marketing challenges in a simple and elegant way. If he ever had time to work on it.
It didn’t help that Randy Dalton, their acting group leader, kept pulling him into meetings. It was enough to make him yank out his hair.
Footsteps muffled by the carpet caused him to peer over his computer monitor. Who was still in the building? Max Harmon’s glossy, slicked-back head of hair appeared over a divider a minute before his lanky body materialized around the corner, messenger bag slung over his shoulder. His boss, the VP of Operations.
“You still here?” Max set his travel mug on Austin’s desk and let the bag drop into the chair.
“It’s the only time I can get any work done.” He waved a hand at their surroundings. “This open-office concept might be great for collaboration, but it’s terrible for concentration.”
Max nodded. “I know. I’ve been talking to Edward about making some changes. But he wants to hire the Software Engineering Director first.” Edward was the Chief of Operations, Max’s boss. He’d had a heart attack a few months ago but seemed to be ramped up to full-time work again. Because they didn’t have a director for Austin’s department, Randy had been named the temporary group lead. And Austin’s biggest headache.
“Which is why I’m glad you’re still here. I wanted to talk to you about something.”
Austin glanced at his monitor one more time. He wasn’t going to get any more work done tonight. Plus, he was hungry. He saved everything and began shutting his system down. “What’s that?”
“I think you should apply for the director position.”
“What?” Was Max crazy? Austin was an engineer, not a boss.
“Hear me out. How well do you think Randy’s doing at leading the group?”
Austin shook his head. “He’s a micromanager. We have so many meetings and status updates that we can’t get anything done.”
Max met his gaze for a minute. “Edward’s leaning toward letting him have the position. They’ll recruit from outside, but Randy has the inside track since he knows the staff and the projects.”
No. No, no, no. If Randy was his boss, he’d have to seriously consider leaving. It was one thing to put up with temporary frustration. It was another to live that way. It was almost enough to make him consider applying for the job. Almost.
“Look, I know he’s not ideal. Or even preferable. I personally think you could do a much better job. You may not think you have much in the way of leadership experience, but the team looks up to you. They would respect you. You know what needs to get done and the best way to do it. We could get you whatever support staff you need. Just do me a favor. Consider it, seriously. Okay?”
Austin stared at the man for a moment. Then he let out a breath. “Okay. I’ll think about it. But no promises.”
Max grabbed his cup and bag. “That’s all I ask.”
Austin’s phone buzzed on his desk. He normally kept it shut in a drawer, but ever since Dad had been diagnosed with dementia, he tried to be more available. His gaze slid to the screen. A text message, but he couldn’t see from whom.
Max pointed at the phone. “I’ll let you get that. Hope it’s your dinner plans.” He winked then headed out.
Ha! Dinner plans. He hadn’t even thought about which drive-thru he’d hit up on the way home. He snatched up the phone.
Hey babe. Come pick me up at the salon? I promise I’ll make it worth your while. Love and kisses emojis ended the text from Jessica.
He read it twice. Had she drunk texted him? She’d confided her struggle to him at Heather and Kyle’s wedding when she avoided using sparkling wine for the toast, opting instead for sparkling water. He’d joined her. He didn’t care for the taste of alcohol and never wanted to be out of control, so it was no loss for him. She’d been sober for eight months, and he knew how committed she was to it. But he didn’t know what to make of this text.
And wasn’t this her first day at her new job? Maybe it was a joke. He’d admit he didn’t always get humor, especially over something like text. Why couldn’t people just be straight forward?
He blew out a breath. The first line was the kicker. Babe? She’d never called him that. But heat rushed through him at the idea. No, he and Jessica were too different. They were just friends. Even if they’d escaped a fire together and survived the singles’ table at Kyle and Heather’s wedding. And she’d been a good friend to him, introducing him, carrying the conversation in that easy way she had with people. He admired her passion and boldness, her lack of concern about what others thought. She let out all the things he kept locked up inside.
Grabbing his keys and his backpack, he knew there was only one way to find out what was going on. He’d go pick her up. He texted her back.
Be there in a few.
His mind spun out scenarios. If she was drunk, then he could take her to her sponsor or one of their mutual friends. How did he help her and not mess it up? He didn’t have the capacity for someone struggling with a problem as big as this. He could barely help his family with their issues. No, he couldn’t help her. But he could get her to someone who could.
He’d just climbed into his car, grateful that he’d driven today—planning to grocery shop after work—instead of riding his bike like he usually did, when another text came through.
Sorry! One of the girls took my phone and texted you. Could you do me a huge favor and pretend we have a dinner date tonight? I’ll explain later.
Relief flooded through him. Now there was a logical explanation. He was curious as to why someone would take Jessica’s phone and text him. But ever since he’d moved to Orange County, California, to work with DataCorp, life had been a little more strange than he’d expected.
Sure. On my way.
It was just late enough that much of the rush-hour traffic had dissipated. And it helped that the salon wasn’t too far from his office. Jessica’s text mentioned pretending they had a date tonight. He wasn’t good at pretending. Not at all. So, if they had dinner together, it wouldn’t be pretending. Where could they go? A few options were close by. He’d give her a choice.
As he turned into the parking lot, he considered if he would have to go inside the salon to get Jessica. He didn’t want to, but at least he could honestly say they were going to dinner.
But she stood out front and waved to him, hopping in the car the moment he pulled close. “Thanks for rescuing me.”
“Don’t you want to get your car?”
“Maybe later. Could we just leave before they come bombard you with questions?”
Three women exited the salon, smiling and waving.
Jessica waved back. “Let’s go.”
Austin pulled out of the parking lot and onto the street. “Do you feel like seafood or hamburgers?”
Jessica glanced back. “Um, hadn’t really thought about it. Why?”
“We’re going to dinner. That way it won’t be a lie.”
She laughed. “Austin, you’re amazing. Thank you.” She pushed her blonde hair still sporting the hot-pink streak back from her face.
She looked great, as usual. Dinner with her was no hardship.
“California Fish Grill is close. Why don’t we eat there? Then you can bring me back for my car after.”
“Sounds good. So what happened? I was worried you had drunk texted me and needed me to take you to your sponsor.”
She pinned him with a glare, her jaw firm. “What? Why would you think that? I’m committed to my sobriety. That’s the last thing I’d do.”
He shrugged. “I didn’t know what to think. It wasn’t like you.”
“Because it wasn’t me.” She explained about Lyric and the girls’ offer for drinks and dinner and her scramble to find a way out. Her tone was more strident than he’d ever heard it.
He parked in front of the restaurant. “That’s mean. What kind of person does that?”
She got out and shrugged. “Some people think it’s funny. Maybe it was. Just a little.”
He opened the restaurant door for her, bumping his shoulder into hers. “I’m just glad I got to be the rescue hero for once.”
She rolled her eyes at him.
They placed their orders then found a table.
Austin put the blinking pager between them. “Other than that, how was your first day?”
“Busy. It’s a high-end clientele, very demanding. I didn’t even have time for lunch. But Madison seemed happy with my work. We’ll see. Lyric—the girl who took my phone—she and I are basically competing for the same permanent position.”
“Sounds vicious.”
She opened her mouth just as their pager buzzed and blinked.
He snatched it. “I’ll go get our order.” Hopping up to grab their tray of food, Max’s words rattled in his head. He hadn’t had time to process them. Maybe he’d talk about it with Matthew when he got home. But his roommate had been spending every spare moment with his girlfriend, Kim. If only he had Matthew’s charisma and way with people, he’d take the job in a minute. But Austin didn’t have those kinds of skills. He brought the tray back to their table and set it down. After he asked the blessing on their food, they dug in.
The silence stretched a bit as they ate. Jessica had done a brave thing, reaching out to him for help so she could keep something important to her: her sobriety. Maybe he could learn from her.
“My boss stopped by my office on his way out tonight.” He gave her a quick rundown of their problems and Max’s offer.
“You should totally do it.”
He shook his head. “I’m not a leader. I’m not good with people. I’m good with numbers, machines, code, logic. Things that make sense. People don’t make sense.”
She laughed. “True. But Austin, Max is right. People do look to you. You could make the work situation so much better, not only for yourself, but for your whole team. You could advocate for them. You know what they need. Matthew can help you with people skills. But honestly, most people just want someone to listen to them.”
Warmth flooded him for the second time that evening. Unusual, but not uncomfortable. She believed in him. Huh. He’d have to think about that.
They finished up their meals, and he dropped Jessica back at her car. She leaned over and gave him a quick hug. “Thanks for bailing me out.” She opened her door.
He touched her arm. “I’m glad you called me. And I’m glad you had a good first day, ending not withstanding. You’re going to kill it at this job.”
She smiled and held his gaze a moment. “Thanks. That means a lot.” Then she left the car, leaving a swirl of her scent in her wake.
He made sure she got in her car and started it before he pulled out. As usual, he’d misread the situation. Why did women have to be so complicated? And while he thought he was rescuing her, she was also rescuing him.
***
Mia Latham cranked up the volume on the Cardi B song she was listening to over her computer. Her stupid parents had taken her phone away. Just because she’d come home after curfew. They didn’t understand. She’d seen Isaac at the beach with another chick. No wonder he’d been ghosting her. They’d gone to prom together and talked about how great this summer was going to be before their senior year. Then he’d just grown distant.
Thank goodness Vanessa and Olivia were with her. They’d gone to Olivia’s house and hung out, talking trash about him. It made her feel better, but she lost track of time and missed curfew. Which was stupid and too early for summer. It wasn’t like she had to get up for school. Plus, she was almost eighteen.
She pulled up Instagram on her computer. There was a message waiting for her from Nicholas. She smiled. His messages always made her feel better. He told her how beautiful she was, how she deserved so much better. He really understood her. Even if he was older. Her parents would freak if they knew. But he was a friend of her cousin’s. She told him what was going on.
You don’t deserve that. He’s an idiot for breaking up with you. Sneak out after your parents are asleep. I’ll come get you. We’ll have fun. Then I’ll introduce you to a friend of mine who has modeling contacts. I showed him your picture and he said you’d be perfect. He wants to meet you. He can get you work.
Wow. Really? She always thought she was too short to be a model. But maybe that didn’t matter as much anymore. Her parents would worry if she was gone tomorrow. But maybe it would serve them right. Soon enough she’d be on her own, and they’d never know what she was doing. And since they’d taken her phone, she wouldn’t be able to contact them to let them know where she was. Maybe if they worried about her for a day or two, they’d be more reasonable when she came back.
I’m not sure. I kinda want to make my folks worry for being so mean, but it might just make things worse when I come back.
There was a long gap before Nicholas replied. Maybe she’d been too much of a baby. Maybe he didn’t think she was grown-up enough. She was just about to reply when his message came through.
If you change your mind, I’ll bring you back home. You could be back before they woke up.
She smiled. That just proved what a great guy he was. Always thinking about her and her feelings.
I’ll see you in an hour.
She gave him her address.

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