The Return of the Bad boy

Chapter 27: Cam

Friday after school, I rode the motorcycle over to the salon, and I saw two things. The parking lot near the salon was packed. I had to park my bike right by the back door. And second, mom looked like she had her hands full, but she was handling it in stride.

I stepped in, and all the women turned their heads to me-every single one from the waiting room to the salon chairs. I counted ten clients and Dolores under the hairdryer with another older lady. Half of the ladies in here already had their hair done, and they were snapping selfies.

"Hey, Mom!" I pulled my hand out of my pocket and waved.

"Hi, sweetie." She said, bringing me into a side hug. Mom was wearing a pencil skirt, button-up white shirt with pearl earrings, her hair was half up, half down, and she brought out her bangs. They were parted in the middle and tucked behind her ears; otherwise, she wouldn't be able to see.

"That's your son? He's such a cutie." One of the girls said, lowering a massive camera from her face. She looked so familiar. Maybe I've passed by her in town. She was sitting in Phoebe's chair, getting what looked like highlights. "I bet you would get more clients if he were working at the front desk. There's no way anyone could look at a face like that and not want to come in."

There were around of nods and verbal "yes'"

Mom cackled. "If that's true, then I should put him to work." She patted my shoulder.

I grinned. It wasn't like I hadn't managed the front desk before, but after mom had hired extra help when the salon was taking off, it didn't seem necessary.

"So, what's your name?" she asked.

All the ladies in the salon put their phones down and looked at me. "Cameron."

"Hmm. You ever thought about modeling?" She raised a brow with a coy smile.

"Nope. Not my cup of tea. I like working with my hands," I told her.

"A handyman? I could use one of those." One of the ladies to my right in the waiting area flipped her hair over her shoulder.

I cleared my throat. I was at a loss on how to respond to that.

"AMBER!" the one in the salon chair yelled. "He's too young for you!"

Mom held a fist up to her mouth, effectively smothering her laughter.

Women were boldly hitting on me, and she was doing nothing to stop them. She was too busy being amused.

"And he's the perfect age for you?" she fired back.

"Um, yeah, I'm only 19. How old are you?" She directed the question to me.

"I'm 18, but I'm a senior in High school and...." I heard the door open up behind me, and I felt myself grinning.

"Oh! Looks like he's taken," someone mumbled.

"Well, at least she's stunning," the salon chair girl said. There was no bitterness or disappointment in her voice. She was genuinely impressed.

Summer waved and shuffled inside with a box of two dozen donuts. "Hi. I brought some treats. Figured you all might need..." her steps faltered as her eyes glanced behind me and her jaw hit the ground.

"HA! Finally, someone recognized me in this small town. I knew my international fame would pay off someday," salon chair girl said.

I stepped forward, slipping the boxes out of Summer's hand because it looked like she might drop them.

Summer blinked and broke out of her trance look enough to say, "I am such a huge fan!"

I leaned in to whisper. "Who is she?" I should have known she was some celebrity. The way she carried herself gave it away, but people like her rarely visited places like this.