Good God in heaven.
Amber would say something, surely. She’d shoot that idea down. The two of them had less in common than Jesus and the devil. Harper waited, tense.
Come on, Amber. Speak. Tell him you’d rather be hung out by your toenails than be my date at some couples shower.
“I’m free if you are,” she said coyly.
Christ.
“Well, then, you all have a date.” Tom smiled and raised one eyebrow.
Damn it, Grayhawk, I owe you one. “I can’t be her date since I’m not going.”
There. Still a save.
“No, no, no,” Tom said. “This lovely lady needs an escort. And you don’t want to disappoint your pretty little sister.”
Hitting him right where it hurt. And now he had to take Amber to the party on top of everything else. Either that or reject her right here. Even though they had no interest in each other, he was too much of a gentleman to do that.
He gritted his teeth. “Fine.”
Amber winked at Tom and sipped her cosmo. “Perfect. I’ll look forward to seeing you. Pick me up at the beauty shop on Saturday at two.”
Tom winked back.
Harper downed the last of his beer and plunked the bottle on the bar. Damn it all.
He’d just been played like a fiddle.
Chapter Two
“Well, hey there, Harper.” Judy Williamson, the owner of the salon where Amber worked, looked up from the head she was blowing dry.
“Hi there.”
“I hear you’re taking Amber to the party this afternoon. I’m closing up early when I’m done with Lisa, here. We’re all heading over.”
“Great.” Could he be less enthused?
Amber sat in the back of the salon, cleaning up her…was it a desk? What did one sit at to do nails, anyway?
“Hey there,” she called. “I’ll be with you in a sec.”
“No hurry.” He sat down and thumbed through a hair styling magazine.
“When are you going to let me play with that gorgeous mane of yours, Harp?” Judy asked as she clicked the blow dryer off.
“Uh…well, I still see Ron over at the barber shop, you know.”
“Not often enough. You’ll be touching your shoulders in a few more days.”
“Works for me.”
“You’ve got a gorgeous head of hair, just like both your sisters and your mom. I love doing all their hair.”
I’m sure you do. “Amber, you coming?”
Was the whole world bound and determined to turn him into a woman this week? First a shower, now Judy wanted to do his hair?