Billionaire's Second Chance

I reminded myself to slow down while I was here. The last eleven years of my life had been so fast-paced that this made me feel restless. I was mostly off for a month, apart from keeping track of my stocks and bonds, and I needed to slow down and enjoy life. I’d done the work needed to get my money, and I was incredibly successful in business. I had nothing to worry about, but my mind kept racing twenty-four hours a day.

My phone chimed with a text, and I saw that it was from Mandy, a woman I spent some time with back home here and there. She got an invitation to a pre-holiday party in Manhattan and asked me if I would attend it with her. It was only the sixth of December, but the parties were already starting. I was going to miss a lot being here, but Dad scared me with his heart attack. I needed to spend some time with my family and get back to my roots again. My parents wouldn’t be here forever.

“Did you have an idea of what kind of cut you wanted?” A sweet drawl filled my ears, bringing something to life inside of me. I frowned and glanced up, seeing a familiar pair of wide hazel eyes.

Holy shit. It was Rebecca Silver, or at least, I thought her name was still Silver. She was my high school sweetheart back when I lived here. She still looked gorgeous, and I felt a slow smile crossing my face.

“I just wanted a little off the top,” I said. “It’s grown out some.” I ran a hand through my messy waves. I looked like this back when we were dating, and I looked into her eyes to see if she recognized me.

She licked her full lips, and I was certain she did. Rebecca sounded comfortable when she first spoke but now looked a bit nervous to see me. Granted, it had been some time, but nothing terrible happened between us before. We were just going in different directions and made the choice to break up. We were like many of the couples in school when they ended up going to different colleges.

She stayed behind just like she said she would. I wondered what else happened in her life in the past eleven years.

Was she married? My eyes trailed down her curves, not seeing a ring on her left hand. She might have gained a few pounds in the time we’d spent apart, but I also dated a lot of stick-thin supermodels and actresses now. They barely had tits, much less any hips, and the girls here in Texas had a little meat on their bones. I missed that and thought about hooking up with a few fresh faces while I was here, maybe even hitting a bigger town for a night out with some of the guys.

Seeing Rebecca right away was not in my plans. She took a deep breath and looked into my eyes.

Chapter Two

Rebecca

Oh, my God. The moment Austin looked at me, I knew who he was. I’d never forgotten those bottomless dark eyes or the way he made me feel when we were teenagers. He answered me when I asked what type of cut he wanted, but seeing his handsome face distracted me. I had no clue what his answer had been.

Austin Harris was here. I hadn’t heard a peep from him since he moved away eleven years ago. He’d broken my heart, but I hid that from him back then. Only Mama knew how I felt.

I told him to come on over, and Austin stood, showing me how muscular his tall frame was now. He was gorgeous, even more so in person. I’d seen him on television and in magazines. They always talked about how rich he was or which famous woman he was dating this week.

The women he went out with didn’t look like I did, now or back in high school. They were typically blonde, skinny, and drop-dead gorgeous. He lived a completely different life now. I pressed my hands to my skinny jeans before I led him to my station in the back corner.

Blake Shelton played on the radio, and I watched him take a seat. He looked massive in the chair. I took in a deep, slow breath and slowly lowered the chair. Lord have mercy, but he’d grown up.

“So, what did you say you wanted to do with your hair?” I asked softly and met his gaze in the mirror. I secured the barber cape around his neck. He kept looking at me with a smirk before explaining that he just wanted a trim.

“How are you doing these days, Rebecca?” he asked. I noticed a trace of his accent, and I smiled.

“I’m good. It’s North Reed, you know? I’ve seen you on television now and then. It seems that you’re well.”

“I am,” Austin replied, sounding like a man as he leaned back confidently in the seat. He was just eighteen when he left, and while Austin always had a plan for his life, he was more successful than I thought he would be now.

“I can give you a shampoo before I cut it, if you’d like. It helps when I cut wavy hair like this.” I reached out to touch it, stopping as I caught his gaze in the mirror again.

“Anything to make it easier on you,” he replied.

I told him to follow me to a sink. Austin got comfortable in the chair and leaned back. I wet his hair with a warm spray, and he locked gazes with me. Sensations rushed through me that I hadn’t felt in years. I pumped some shampoo into my hand and stroked it through his thick hair. I did this every day with almost every customer, but there was something intimate about being this close to Austin.

We were quiet as I washed his hair, but I normally didn’t talk too much at this point. It was a little noisy, and I preferred to think of this part as a chance to let the customer feel spoiled. There was plenty of room for talk when I did the service they requested. He looked at me, but I focused on rinsing all the shampoo out and conditioning, with only a few glances his way. I still reeled with shock at seeing him, and I needed to control the way my hands were shaking.

I wrapped a towel around his neck and eased Austin up with a hand on his shoulder. I took a deep breath and smiled. I led the way to the chair, tucking a brown curl behind my ear. He sat back down and got comfortable.

“So, just a little off the top?” I asked.

“Yeah,” he said.

I picked up a comb and worked it through his soft hair.

“Everything is good here in town?” Austin asked, sounding a bit forced to me.

“It’s North Reed. Nothing much changes here.” I shrugged. I pulled his hair up to see what the ends looked like. “Don’t they cut hair in the big city? This is long.” I tried to sound like I was teasing him, but I could hear my voice shaking as I spoke.