sure Autumn noticed. " How long are you staying this time? "
She took a seat on Emma ' s bed. " Not sure yet. I ' m waiting to hear back on-- "
" So you ' re jobless. "
" Rude, " Autumn said. " And no, Mom said I could work at the salon while Mikelann was on maternity leave. Guess she ' s leaving next week. "
Migraine eminent .
I rubbed my brow. " Well, you at least know how to be a receptionist. "
She shrugged. " It ' s only temporary. I ' ve got an application in with an airline to be a flight attendant. "
" You ' ll like that, you ' ll get to travel around. " I tried to be happy for my sister. And it wasn ' t like I didn ' t want her to find the right place for herself in the world, but I just found her listless existence, well, annoying.
" I know, I ' m giddy. I can ' t wait to hear back about it. "
Emma came in, grunting as she pushed a tub into the room. " Mommy where can I put this? "
I took the tub and stacked it with the one I ' d brought in already. They were making Emma ' s little room look even smaller, but there wasn ' t much that could be done about that right now.
We ' ll figure something out. And it may involve us finding our own place.
" You ' re going to be on airplanes? " Emma asked, her eyes wide.
" Yes, I will. I ' ll help passengers get seated, bring them drinks, and take care of them while they ' re flying. "
" That sounds amazing, " Emma said, holding her arms out and zooming around her tiny space.
I left them both to their conversation, because, well, as the mommy here, I had things to take care of.
Surely Autumn wouldn ' t stay long, would she?
Chapter Eight
Wednesday
" You ' re kidding, " Ortiz--the rookie--said as they took in the chaos before them. Hennessey took a couple of breaths. He expected a certain amount of noise and people, but this was a little more than he anticipated.
Deep breath.
" It ' s a good cause, right Sarge? " Miller said.
Kids roamed the gymnasium, moving from one section to another. Each table had something going on--the sign outside said charity drive, but really, this was more elaborate than Summer claimed.
There was one set of tables where kids were doing crafts, another set where a line of adults handed out piles of papers to parents and kids, and a third where people were turning in their donated supplies.
He clenched the bag of school supplies in his hand a little tighter.
" Well, where are the haircuts, " Ortiz asked.
" Over there, " Miller replied. On the far wall sat a row of seven hydraulic chairs, each manned with a different barber.
Hair stylist.
Whatever.
Right in the middle was Summer, working on a little boy ' s haircut. When she finished, the boy handed her a coin and she spun around, dropping it in a jar behind her.
" So how does this work, Sarge? " Miller asked.
" Over here, " he said, walking to the table where people were handing over their supplies.
Behind the table was a young woman with super-bright red hair. She grinned at them as they approached.
" Hiya boys! How are you doing today? "
" Fine, " Ortiz said, flashing his pearly whites at her.
" Bet you handsome fellas need some haircuts, huh? " she grinned back.
" Are you cutting hair today? " Ortiz asked, and rubbed his head.
She laughed. " No, but the ones who are do amazing work. " She gestured to the row of people cutting hair. " So do I need to explain what you boys need to do? "
" All ears, ma ' am, " Ortiz said.
Hennessey glared at the rookie, but said nothing.
" I see you brought a fine looking bag of supplies. " She accepted the bag from Hennessey, and jerked. " And heavy! My goodness. Thank you! " She put the bag under the table. " Here you boys go. Three tokens. Give your token to the person who cut your hair. "
" And we just, what, wait for the next person? " Ortiz asked.
" Yeah, that ' s about it. You can sit over there and wait. " She gestured to a bench just to the side of the people cutting hair.
There were a few ahead of them, but not too
She took a seat on Emma ' s bed. " Not sure yet. I ' m waiting to hear back on-- "
" So you ' re jobless. "
" Rude, " Autumn said. " And no, Mom said I could work at the salon while Mikelann was on maternity leave. Guess she ' s leaving next week. "
Migraine eminent .
I rubbed my brow. " Well, you at least know how to be a receptionist. "
She shrugged. " It ' s only temporary. I ' ve got an application in with an airline to be a flight attendant. "
" You ' ll like that, you ' ll get to travel around. " I tried to be happy for my sister. And it wasn ' t like I didn ' t want her to find the right place for herself in the world, but I just found her listless existence, well, annoying.
" I know, I ' m giddy. I can ' t wait to hear back about it. "
Emma came in, grunting as she pushed a tub into the room. " Mommy where can I put this? "
I took the tub and stacked it with the one I ' d brought in already. They were making Emma ' s little room look even smaller, but there wasn ' t much that could be done about that right now.
We ' ll figure something out. And it may involve us finding our own place.
" You ' re going to be on airplanes? " Emma asked, her eyes wide.
" Yes, I will. I ' ll help passengers get seated, bring them drinks, and take care of them while they ' re flying. "
" That sounds amazing, " Emma said, holding her arms out and zooming around her tiny space.
I left them both to their conversation, because, well, as the mommy here, I had things to take care of.
Surely Autumn wouldn ' t stay long, would she?
Chapter Eight
Wednesday
" You ' re kidding, " Ortiz--the rookie--said as they took in the chaos before them. Hennessey took a couple of breaths. He expected a certain amount of noise and people, but this was a little more than he anticipated.
Deep breath.
" It ' s a good cause, right Sarge? " Miller said.
Kids roamed the gymnasium, moving from one section to another. Each table had something going on--the sign outside said charity drive, but really, this was more elaborate than Summer claimed.
There was one set of tables where kids were doing crafts, another set where a line of adults handed out piles of papers to parents and kids, and a third where people were turning in their donated supplies.
He clenched the bag of school supplies in his hand a little tighter.
" Well, where are the haircuts, " Ortiz asked.
" Over there, " Miller replied. On the far wall sat a row of seven hydraulic chairs, each manned with a different barber.
Hair stylist.
Whatever.
Right in the middle was Summer, working on a little boy ' s haircut. When she finished, the boy handed her a coin and she spun around, dropping it in a jar behind her.
" So how does this work, Sarge? " Miller asked.
" Over here, " he said, walking to the table where people were handing over their supplies.
Behind the table was a young woman with super-bright red hair. She grinned at them as they approached.
" Hiya boys! How are you doing today? "
" Fine, " Ortiz said, flashing his pearly whites at her.
" Bet you handsome fellas need some haircuts, huh? " she grinned back.
" Are you cutting hair today? " Ortiz asked, and rubbed his head.
She laughed. " No, but the ones who are do amazing work. " She gestured to the row of people cutting hair. " So do I need to explain what you boys need to do? "
" All ears, ma ' am, " Ortiz said.
Hennessey glared at the rookie, but said nothing.
" I see you brought a fine looking bag of supplies. " She accepted the bag from Hennessey, and jerked. " And heavy! My goodness. Thank you! " She put the bag under the table. " Here you boys go. Three tokens. Give your token to the person who cut your hair. "
" And we just, what, wait for the next person? " Ortiz asked.
" Yeah, that ' s about it. You can sit over there and wait. " She gestured to a bench just to the side of the people cutting hair.
There were a few ahead of them, but not too
Similar Books
Dangerous Attraction Romantic Suspense Boxed Set
Patricia Rosemoor, Toni Anderson, REBECCA YORK, Dana Marton, Sharon Hamilton, Kaylea Cross, Debra Burroughs, Lori Ryan, Jill Sanders, Marie Astor
