A Summer to Remember

chapter Sixteen

The Friday following the sex marathon between Paul and I, my work day ended at three in the afternoon and I visited my favorite salon and my favorite hairdresser.

Gavin was gorgeous, gay and absolutely a miracle worker when it came to hair. He’d been my colorist for years so when I told him what my latest request was, he almost fainted from the sheer thought.

“Darling, I make you look like a natural blonde and you want to go dark? How brown do you want to go?” he inquired in a voice that dripped of Mancunian English wit and sarcasm.

“My natural brown is mousy so obviously I want darker. I want a medium brown with auburn highlights. Is it doable?” I wondered out loud.

“Of course but my question is why? Most women are brunettes and it’s boring.”

“I’m tired of dying my hair, Gavin. You have already told me that when I get old, I will have to go light just to cover up the gray. If that is the case then I want to enjoy my natural hair color or at least be somewhere in the vicinity for the rest of the years I dye my hair because I can and not because I have to.”

“It’s not a good beach look. I can do brunette and perhaps streak your hair blonde a la Sarah Jessica Parker?”

“No streaking or frosting, Gavin. Brown with auburn highlights. End of story.”

Gavin sighed loudly before he began to mix color while we chatted about his love life. I wasn’t ready to discuss Paul with anyone yet so it was quite fun to hear about what was going on with him and his lover, Kent, a New Yorker and middle-aged Jewish man, who loved him to death.

“I mean, can you believe it? I get home and all the sudden he’s got us tickets to see Scarlet Fever in Miami. The man is unbelievable!” he exclaimed as he began to apply the color to my hair.

“You’re not talking about the pre-concert gig they’re having in August, are you?” I questioned out of sheet curiosity.

“Yes, I am. I needed to move you to a week earlier next month because I will be on vacation the week I’m supposed to do your hair.”

“Interesting because I will be there too. One of my friends knows Seth, the lead singer of Winter’s Regret, and managed to get us tickets. That is actually where I am spending my vacation time in August. Miami Beach. I guess we’ll have to do Las Vegas another time though I was really looking forward to it,” I explained as I flipped through the latest issue of Society Magazine.

“And whose bright idea was it to spend August in Vegas? You do know how hot it is there that particular month, don’t you?”

“Um, yes, I do research when I plan trips. Or what, do you think it’s going to be absolutely frigid in Miami Beach in August?”

We laughed and joked the whole time until he’d finished my hair and then turned me around to face the vanity mirror.

“Voila, what do you think?” he exclaimed in true queen fashion.

I stared at myself in the mirror and couldn’t believe how great I looked. I looked like my old self but absolutely more beautiful. The hair color, a lush brown with golden auburn highlights, complimented my sun-kissed skin and brought out my blue-gray eyes.

My features were softened by the color and I was actually more stunning as a brunette than I had ever been as a fake blonde. I couldn’t believe the night and day changes and I just knew Paul would love it too when he saw it.

“I love it. I look like another person,” I responded to Gavin finally after admiring myself in the mirror.

He rolled his hazel eyes. “Let me guess: this is all for some terrific guy you have met and fallen in love with because you are absolutely glowing. I was going to ask but I knew if you wanted to tell me, you would when you were ready.”

I turned toward Gavin and smiled churlishly at him. “I will tell you all about him next time.”

He shook his head before he rolled his eyes. “You are such a tease, girl.”

I left the salon after I paid him along with leaving a well-deserved and extremely hefty tip. It didn’t take long to arrive home since I had great luck with finding a cab. I unlocked the door to the loft and was actually quite shocked when I found Jude and Savannah together on the sofa.

They weren’t exactly cuddled up but they looked quite intimate as they held glasses of Pinot Grigio and two bottles of wine—one completely empty and the other, half-way empty—on the magazine table.

“My God, your hair! What have you done? It’s beautiful!” Savannah greeted before she set her glass of wine down and walked over to embrace me.

I hugged her back before I held her out at arm’s length. “Thanks. Hello to the both of you. What’s going on here?”

Jude avoided my gaze as he said, “Your hair is beautiful. You were always a better looking brunette than a blonde. Paul is going to love it.”

“I didn’t change my hair color for Paul, Jude. I needed a change and I’m sorry about interrupting you two.” I walked out before either one of them could say anything further and went straight to my spacious bedroom.

Moments later, there was a knock on the door before Savannah entered and she closed the door behind her.

“I hope I’m not out of line being here…I mean, with Jude. It was just a friendly conversation that started out at his office and we decided to bring it back here to the loft. He’s my financial advisor and after talk moved from stocks and bonds to petty gossip, we just thought it would be more appropriate to be here instead of his office.”

I turned toward my best friend as I pretended to busy myself by placing the hair products I would have to use on my bureau before they’d be transferred directly to my private bathroom. I had bought two sets: one for my home and another for when I was staying over at Paul’s.

“It’s not my business who Jude does and doesn’t date, Savannah. I just don’t want you to get hurt, that’s all. I’ve never known him to be serious about any woman and if he did anything to make you suffer emotionally, let’s just say it would take me a very long time to forgive him,” I explained in a business-like tone.

“I’m a grown woman, Jerrica, I can take care of myself.” She sighed and her cerulean eyes sparkled as she continued, “I know all of you always thought I was the innocent one of the group because I didn’t date and I was pretty much an ugly duckling at Vassar. I wore really crappy clothes and had that awful hair style but I’ve grown up, just like you and Autumn and Talia.

“I have needs like any other woman and I am certainly no saint or vestal virgin. There is nothing Jude can do to me that I wouldn’t allow him to do. I hope you understand that. He can’t hurt me because I won’t allow him to and for you to think anything different is sheer lunacy.”

I smiled and wished for the tedious conversation to be over as soon as possible. “I understand and like I said, it’s not my business what you and my brother do—”

I was interrupted rather abruptly as the door to my suite opened and Paul walked through with a huge smile on his face. “You look absolutely amazing. Jude told me I would be in for a surprise but I never thought…” he trailed off as his eyes focused directly on Savannah. “Sorry, I didn’t realize you had company.”

She held up her hands almost in some weird form of surrender. “Don’t worry, I’m out of here.”

As soon as she left and closed the door behind her, Paul walked up to me and embraced me before his lips met mine for an all consuming and passionate kiss. “Do you want to get out of here and stay at my place?”

We parted slightly and I was able to look into those mesmerizing crystal blue eyes of his. “Yes, let’s go. In fact, we can’t get out of here fast enough.”

“That’s the exact answer I expected,” he replied and quickly began to help me pack an overnight bag.



After a very exhaustive session of lovemaking, Paul and I cuddled one another and I couldn’t help but breathe in his scent. It was so refreshing to be in an honest relationship where I truly did feel happy, healthy and like my partner completely understood me. I could truly admit I had never known what real love was until he came along.

He caressed my glossy dark locks lazily as he inquired, “I have a conference coming up in Stamford. Actually, it’s a retreat and I would really like you to come. I think it would be great for you to meet all my colleagues and perhaps they will stop teasing me about being in the closet. Not that I mind—it keeps the women off of me and I suppose I am a bit too pretty to be an alpha male.”

“When is it?” I rested my chin on his chest and stared deeply into his eyes which were truly the window to his soul.

“Next weekend…I know it’s last minute but I hoped you would be free and wouldn’t mind spending some extra time with me.”

My heart sank because I knew what my answer would be and I could only hope he wouldn’t take it the wrong way. I laid my head down on his chest and murmured, “I can’t. Talia is coming back into town and I haven’t seen her since she left. I promised her we would just a have a ‘girl’s weekend’ with just two of us. Are you terribly disappointed in me?”

Paul kissed my forehead. “No, of course not. She’s your best friend and why would you want to give up an extremely fun weekend for a boring one with a bunch of white guys who are just going to sit around and have too many drinks, play golf and talk about stock dividends?”

“Are you being facetious?”

“Uh, no, I’m not. I understand and I’m not the least bit upset by your decision. Look at it this way: at least we get to have great sex when I get back. I enjoy devouring every inch of you so the wait will make it that much more exquisite when we finally do get together.”

I sat up and allowed the sheet to fall away from my body. “You are so perfect, Paul. How did I get so lucky?”

He thought for a moment before he replied, “Charm and a big cock that was meant to satisfy you.”

I laughed before I kissed him again. “Now that, you aren’t wrong about, ever.”