Blooming (15 page)

“Kneel down
there and put the cushion on your lap, if you press your chest down into it
that should help your ribs.” She did as she was told and next thing Todd was
stood with his feet either side of her hips, leaning over her to get the shower
hose.

“I really
should have tried to get a brush through my hair first this is going to be a
nightmare,” she complained.

“Right let’s
get going,” he passed her a towel and she covered her left arm and used the end
of it to shield her eyes.

He lifted the
mass of her hair up and over her head and got the water going. As soon as it
was warm enough he gently soaked her hair. “Can you hold the shower head with
your right hand, save me turning it off while I shampoo you?” she nodded.

She heard the
bottle squirt and then his hands were in her scalp massaging and little moans
of pleasure came out of her mouth.

“Er Jen you
need to stop doing that, the position I’m in here is a bit inflammatory. It may
be the back of your head I’m looking at but that’s still your head between my
legs when all’s said and done.”

The next moan
squelched in her throat pretty quickly.

“Todd what
are you using, that doesn’t smell like my shampoo.” The words were no sooner
out of her mouth than Todd yanked her scalp, hard enough to make her eyes
water.

“Ouch, holy
crap,” she spluttered, shocked. “What did you do that for?”

“Shit, I’m
sorry I didn’t mean to. You’re going to kill me.”

“Why what’s
wrong?”

“My damn
pinky ring is stuck fast in your hair.”

“What,” she
cried.

“I’m serious,
somehow your hair has gotten twisted around my ring and it’s all fused
together. Hang on a second - let me turn off the water, he managed it just as
Jen dropped the shower head in a panic.

“Todd, let me
see the bottle you used.”

Awkwardly he
leaned over her and blindly shoved it in front of her face, “Aw, Todd that’s my
biodegradable shower cleaner.”

****

“Just pull
the ring off!” Jen said while trying not to panic. She was starting to shiver
and she needed to shift position because she could feel pins and needles in her
feet.

Todd was breathing
heavily standing over her. “It’s an old keepsake I found last week, I tried it
on and couldn’t get it back off, hang on,” he checked his watch. “Sean’s friend
will be here in an hour, pass that towel and I’ll try to dry your hair one
handed.”

He managed to
sop up the worst of the wet with his left hand and then tried to decide what to
do.

“You’re going
to have to get me through to the living room, there’s scissors in there. I
can’t have you stuck to my head for an hour,” she yelled.

“I don’t want
to cut it out, it’s a big chunk near your forehead. It’s gonna be noticeable.”

“Todd I have
to move, like right now. I’m getting cramp and I don’t think I can walk.”

“Shit, I
can’t pick you up like this because I’d need to grab you round the middle. You’re
going to have to shuffle and I’ll walk backwards in front of you to the living
room. Go slow so I don’t pull your hair any more than I have to.”

In a very
surreal moving tableau, Jen followed Todd out of the bathroom on all fours
trying not to put weight on her left arm. She couldn’t help thinking it must
look like some weird BDSM scene from those romance novels she’d been reading
too many of lately.

When they
reached the front room Todd stopped, trying to work out his next move. The
sight of Jen’s head bent near his knees with her robe gaping in places, his
hand in a weird pose looking like he was pressing down on her head - had all
combined and shot a bolt of lust to his dick and he didn’t know what the hell
to do about it.

Jen made the
mistake of sitting upright and her eyes met his groin face on.

“Oh good
grief,” she gasped.

“It doesn’t
help when you look at it like that,” he moaned.

“Right how
can we sit comfortably enough to get through the next hour without killing each
other?” she swallowed nervously as his jeans pulsed in front of her.

“Don’t
swallow for god’s sake you’re making it worse.”

“Look Todd,
I’m not enjoying this much either. I’ve got rug burn on my kneecaps on top of
everything else now.”

She gave it
careful thought before she said, “maybe we should call Sebastian for help?”

“No way, I’ve
given them enough ammunition lately to torment the life out of me for months.”

“Is the
apartment door unlocked?” Jen asked.

“Yes I think
so,”

“Then all we
need to do is get as comfortable as possible for the next hour until Marguerite
arrives.”

He gave it a
minute’s thought, “Right, I’m going to sit on the sofa over here and then you
can stretch out on your back with your head in my lap.” He groaned inwardly at
the implications.

“Yeah that’s
going to work out just fine,” she replied sarcastically.

Todd edged
backwards and sat back on the sofa. His right hand firmly attached to her head,
he used his left to ease her off the floor. Once she was up on the sofa, she
pushed her face into his stomach and stretched her legs out, and then her whole
body started vibrating.

“Jeepers,
what now,” he said, tilting her head away from him.

Tears were
rolling down her face as she laughed right from her belly; a loud snort came
from her as she tried to rein herself in when she saw his agonised face.

“Well I’m
glad you think it’s funny, I’ve got the hard on from hell here.”      

“Oh Todd,
it’s not funny really, but if anybody had ever told me I would be this close to
a gorgeous guy with a massive erection and all I could do was giggle, there is
no way in hell I would have believed them. Scared to death, full on
hyperventilation that I would believe, but yet here I am and do you know what
I’m laughing. Still scared shitless but I’m ok, and that’s down to you, you
make me think I can do anything even though you can’t tell shampoo from shower
cleaner.”

Todd’s anger
dissipated and Jen was filled with affection when his face went all school-boy
soft and cute.

He stroked
her jaw gently as he looked at her, “hmm, you just say the nicest things
sometimes. I especially like your use of the word massive. I don’t seem to be
able to stay annoyed with you for any length of time, but for god’s sake stop
laughing - you’re jiggling all over me.”

“Sorry.”

“So how are
we going to kill an hour then, I probably should have put the TV on before we
sat down.”

She looked up
into his emerald green eyes, “I must look a mess.”

“Do you want
me to be honest? I accept full responsibility for your current disarray and may
I say my dick doesn’t seem to mind it in the slightest.”

The rosy
flush that instantly suffused Jen’s cheeks gave him a buzz.

Forty minutes
later, still locked together, they stumbled to press the outer door buzzer before
lurching back to the couch. A cheery knock came at the door and a breezy
greeting burst forth, as a ball of Spanish lusciousness bounced inside the room.

“Hola, Margarita está aquí para trabajar su magia.....
Holy
shit!” the tiny powerhouse exclaimed as she caught sight of them, “Sean warned
me it was bad but Madre de Dios!”

Gesticulating
at Todd, she exclaimed when she saw his soapy hand wrapped in Jen’s hair.

Rummaging in
the vast tote bag she had hauled in, she advanced on them where they perched on
the couch.
“Así antes de empezar que va a tener que tener
flequillo, ¿qué coño ha lavaba el pelo en, ay ay ay.”

Todd and Jen
didn’t have a clue what she was saying but that seemed beside the point as
Marguerite peered over the top of Jen’s head and registered that Todd was
actually bonded to her. She screeched in alarm and slapped Todd hard over the
back of the head.

“Ouch,” he cried.                                                                                                                  

“Señor por encima de salvarme el culo de los hombres mudos.”

“Aha, I know
that bit; she just called me a dumb ass.” Todd growled, “will you please speak
English, I’m sure you can.”

“Sorry I
forget sometimes, I speak Spanish mostly when I am really angry.”

She studied
his ring finger, “now before I can even get a good look at your novio here I
can see I’m going to have to cut bangs into her hair whether I want to or not.
Do you know what that does to an artist like me? It does not please me Senor.”

She pulled
Todd’s finger up until Jen thought she would scream from the pain. There was a
brief flash of blades and Todd was free - he gently lifted Jen off his lap and
set her on her feet. He looked at her there in her pink fluffy gown, tangled
bicarbonate of soda hair, flushed face, and as crazy as she looked, he knew he
was a goner, probably had been from day one.

“I’m going to
leave you ladies to it. I’m going to go find some metal cutters to get this
damn hairy ring off my finger.”

He bent to
Jen and kissed her long and soft, open-mouthed and yet deliciously chaste, then
he turned to Marguerite. “Don’t cut too much off, I like it long. Just tame it
a bit ok?”

“No me digas qué hacer, obtener su lindo trasero fuera de ella antes de
que me siento tentado a golpearla con el pie para usted.”
Marguerite
hollered.

“I’m going -
I think she was just casting more aspersions on my butt!”

15 minutes
later and after another session of hair washing with Marguerite, she was sat on
her couch with a hot towel on her head while an intensive conditioner permeated
her abused hair. Marguerite was proving to be lively company and had soon begun
fussing over her, plying her with a glass of wine and propping her feet on the
footstool that had so many fond memories for her now.

Once she’d
had a final rinse in the bathroom, she endured a scalp tingling, de-matting
session, that even though Marguerite promised she was going as gently as
possible had her wanting to scream to the rafters.

“Now I can
see what I’m working with,” Marguerite crooned some time later.

“Beautiful,”
she said feeling the weight of Jen’s hair. “You are a lucky girl, naturally
curly hair and so thick. It just needs a little help.” She took Jen’s face in
her hands and studied it, “lucky for your hunk you have an oval face and bangs
will suit you well enough, although it would probably not have been my first
choice,” she tsked.

“I’ll cut it
so it flows best curly, but today we’ll take the time to straighten it and it
will last you a few days. You don’t need to be messing with your hair while
those ribs mend mi amiga.”

In the end
she simply took three inches off the length and layered it so it was less
weighty, the curls started to spring back even while it was still wet.
Marguerite then artfully created a long diagonal sweeping bang that completely
camouflaged Todd’s mishap.

She sang a
Spanish love song while she blow dried Jen’s hair with a huge round brush, and
then got busy with the straighteners. When she was finally done she steered Jen
to her bedroom where she could look in the mirror.

Jen just
stared. For a second she didn’t know which of the two girls was her, since
Marguerite was just as small and dark as she. Then she burst into tears sending
Marguerite into apoplexy.

“No don’t get
mad I love it,” Jen cried, “I didn’t know my hair could look like this, I’ve
never managed to get it so straight and I can’t believe it looks.. manageable!
Look,” she said in delight, “I can run my fingers straight through it for a
change.”

Marguerite
laughed and laughed. “You are so easily pleased querida, now show me to your
make-up and let’s make you fit to drive your man wild.”

Marguerite
left an hour later, having refused any payment as it was taken care of. Jen was
puzzled - wondering who of several interferers’ nearby was responsible.

Now that
she’d had her hair and make-up done she felt like she should put some decent
clothes on. She was starving too.

Going into
her bedroom but refusing the temptation to look in the mirror again - she
rummaged in her drawers and came out with white jersey sleeveless pyjamas. Jen managed
to get them on without too much struggle but stuff the underwear – tonight she
was not trying that one handed.

Her phone
rang and she hustled through to the lounge. She went to pick it up and then
paused, no she should screen it, she didn’t want to know who was there.

The answer
machine cut in. “It’s me, is the coast clear? I have Chinese food.” Todd’s deep
drawling voice made her jump forward and snatch the receiver up, “Yes I’m done,
come on up.”

Jen shifted
from foot to foot while she waited for Todd’s arrival, nervously fiddling with
her new bangs. He didn’t bother knocking because her door was still unlocked,
he just barged straight in loaded up with carrier bags. He was showered and
changed into low slung jeans and a white t-shirt.

He damn near
dropped everything on the floor when he saw her.

“Oh!”

Jen’s brows
rose up.

“Oh!” Todd
said again, now she was really was nervous. “Does it not look ok?”

He stalked
past her and put all his packages on the kitchen counter, Jen followed behind
him her heart dropping to her stomach.

As soon as
Todd’s hands were free he spun towards her and his hands were in her hair,
marvelling at it, running his fingers through it. The hair that swept her
forehead brought focus to those strong brows and deep navy eyes, it made them
look like huge deep pools. Soft silver shadow was on her lids and her eyelashes
looked longer than any false ones he’d ever seen.

He stepped
back again to get a hold of himself; he couldn’t tell if her hair was any
shorter because straightened out like that it still fell near her waist. But it
seemed darker than ever and layers fell from below her chin and shoulders and
everywhere in-between, drawing little attention points all over her.