She stared at the computer screen and traced the outline of her lips several times, something she did when she was deep in thought. Without actually realizing what she was doing, she took out her navy journal and turned to the pages with her secret list. “Maybe I need to rethink this,” she murmured as she picked up her pen.
* * *
Now that her list was complete, it occupied a permanent corner of her mind. Given the time of year, it seemed like an early letter to Santa Claus. She was headed to work in her cute little MINI Cooper Countryman. She loved the little car with its custom paint job; the roof was creamy ivory and the base was chocolate brown and it suited her perfectly. While she was fastening her seat belt, the list was still foremost in her mind and she started giggling at the Santa Claus idea. “Dear Santa, I’ve been a very good girl. Could you please bring me a burning-hot hunk of tall, dark-chocolate-colored love to have my way with on Christmas morning? I’ll be a very bad girl then, I promise.”
Alexis was still laughing out loud as she pulled into the parking lot of Sanctuary One, the first spa she’d opened five years before. When she crossed the employee entrance in the back of the spacious building, she was engulfed by the familiar scent of her home away from home. It was a combination of organic hair products, scented candles and the incense from the yoga studio. She inhaled deeply and smiled as she went to her small office to leave her purse and jacket. After she looked at her daily planner, she slipped on a fresh smock while she took off her taupe platform heels and put on her black wedges. They were just as high as her heels, but she’d learned the hard way not to wear light-colored shoes to work. One drop of tint was all it took to ruin an expensive pair of pumps. That was also why she protected her expensive clothes with a cover-up; one drip of peroxide or even permanent wave solution would wreck an outfit. This she knew from sad experience.
Alexis worked very few customers these days. Her emphasis was on managing the spas, not servicing customers. Hiring, training, managing the budget, advertising and other such areas were her bailiwick now. Besides hairstylists, she had aestheticians, yoga and Pilates instructors, nail technicians and manicurists to manage, in two locations, no less. But there were a few clients she continued to work on mainly because they were close friends and they simply wouldn’t allow anyone else to touch their heads. She also liked to keep her hand in the various offerings so that her skills would remain sharp. Emily’s mother was one of those ladies she couldn’t abandon and, since she was in town, of course she was getting the full treatment today.
The salon was laid out in such a way that each patron had the luxury of some privacy due to the half walls that separated the stations, yet it wasn’t so closed off that they couldn’t chat with one another. There was something about being in a hair salon that encouraged even the most reserved women to relax. There was always pleasant conversation to go along with the soothing jazz that played all day, except for the early afternoon when the soaps were played on the wall-mounted flat-screen televisions. Alexis was making her customary preopening walk-through to make sure that everything was in proper order. It was always pristine and perfect, a tribute to her management and to the loyalty of her staff. All Alexis had to do was start the coffee and the water for tea, and she really didn’t have to do that because her lead stylist, Javier, was already taking care of that.
He greeted her with a raised eyebrow and a grin. “One of these days you’ll let someone else do things around here and we’re all going to pass out from shock,” he said dryly.
Alexis pretended to misunderstand him. “Oh, then I shouldn’t have made those ultrarich brownies and pecan tassies last night? Well, shoot, I guess we don’t need them here. I can just drop them off at church for choir rehearsal, I guess.”
“Don’t pay me any attention, I’m still half asleep,” Javier said hastily. “Did you leave them in your office? I’ll just go back there and get them and you can arrange them any way you like. Just ignore me altogether. You know I don’t have good sense.”
Nothing could have been further from the truth, of course. Javier DeLaCruz was very smart as well as being very talented. He was also quite easy on the eye with smooth golden skin, jet-black hair and eyes and a smile that brightened any room. Alexis sized him up as he left the room. He was a devoted and trusted employee of several years and there was no reason not to consider promoting him to a management position. He had the experience and education and the right attitude. Alexis would be foolish not to offer him a better position with a higher salary; if she didn’t, he might leave and start his own salon. She was still mulling over that idea as she continued the opening procedure for the day.
One of the things that made Sanctuary so popular was the ultra-deluxe treatment of the clientele. Alexis always provided refreshments for her customers, hot coffee and tea along with fresh fruit and luscious baked goods that she often made herself. It was a practice that was as popular with the staff as with the customers, but there was no real need for her to make them herself. Alexis had a moment of clarity that told her she was doing too much. It probably came from the gentle little dig Javier made about her doing everything around the place. His remark had merit, and she was going to give it serious thought when she got home that evening. She knew she worked too hard and too long, but the results were well worth it.
Sanctuary One was all about relaxation and nurturing. It was decorated in soothing peach and green with lots of live plants and specially designed lighting. Sanctuary Two was similar in design, but it was robin’s-egg blue and chocolate-brown. She enjoyed the brief moment of calm before the doors opened; it always gave her a sense of accomplishment as well as inner peace, but it didn’t last long. The salon came to life first, as usual. Early morning appointments were very popular especially toward the weekend. Alexis had to bite her lower lip as she noticed that her receptionist was once again late. Plus, she hadn’t called in to let anyone know she was going to be tardy, which was a requirement of all employees. Here was another thing to put on Alexis’s must-do list: a serious talk with a backsliding employee.
As usual, Alexis didn’t let her annoyance show, she merely took over the desk, checking in customers and fielding calls until her appointment arrived and the missing receptionist showed up. Luckily the two events occurred at the same time. Ava, looking pretty and flustered, hurried into her seat at the reception counter with excuses pouring out of her mouth. All Alexis said was, “We’ll talk about it later.”
She turned her full attention to Lucie Porter, Emily’s mother. “Ms. Lucie, I have to say that Chicago agrees with you. As much as I miss seeing you when you’re away, I can tell that you’re really enjoying your new life in the Windy City.”
Lucie was a lovely woman and she did indeed show every indication of having a rich, fulfilling life. “I’m having a ball, Alexis. It’s wonderful being in the same city with my daughters and my grandchildren, but I’m also meeting some fabulous men,” she confided.
Alexis wasn’t really surprised to hear that. Lucie was pretty and vivacious and she attracted men in droves. She was a great dancer and Chicago was a dancing town. Sure enough, Lucie told her about a dance club she’d joined and how much fun it was. She also had new pictures of Emily and the twins, plus pictures of her other daughter, Ayanna, who had twin daughters and two teenage sons.
“They’re growing so fast, aren’t they? They’re so handsome,” Alexis praised. “Emily sounds so happy every time I talk to her.”
“She is,” Lucie confirmed. “Both of my girls are very happy with their husbands and their families. But truthfully, Alexis, I thought you’d be all married up and happy, too, by now. I expected you’d be married long before Emily,” she admitted. “What are you waiting for?”
Alexis covered her surprise at Lucie’s question by putting a terry wrap around her neck, followed by a pretty protective cape. “I think it’s time for a touch-up on your relaxer and a trim. And you’re overdue for some color, unless you’ve decided to leave it au naturel.”
As