This was more like it. Although Eva couldn’t drink the champagne that was flowing like water, she had a contact high from the rowdy group of women crammed into the salon to watch Ellie Mae’s hair transformed from brunette to blue. The front door was propped open so anyone who needed more room could head out to one of the tables on the sidewalk.
Lucy and Henri had each given her a hug when they’d arrived but thankfully hadn’t asked any questions about the situation with Nick. Eva had taken Lucy aside to ask if the rest of the Babes knew about the breakup. They didn’t.
What a relief. She could relax and enjoy kidding around with Ellie Mae and Ed. They kept the Babes entertained with wild stories about the years they’d worked together in Hollywood.
The tales required much body language, with Ellie Mae bouncing in Eva’s salon chair and Ed twirling around in Josette’s. Without Josette to help corral Ellie Mae, Eva would have had a mess on her hands.
Halfway through the coloring process, the octogenarians decided to teach the group some bawdy songs. They knew a lot of them. The more champagne they consumed, the more risque the songs. Eva hadn’t laughed so hard in years. Maybe ever.
They were in the middle of Do They Hang Too Low when Ben Malone showed up with food from the Moose. Ellie Mae and Ed kept singing the raunchy lyrics as Henri cleared a path so he could push the multi-tiered trolley into the salon. He grinned, tipped his hat and took off, moving fast. Henri laughed and hurried after him.
Ed stopped singing. “Go get him, Henri!”
Ellie Mae and the Babes picked up their cue, chanting get him, Henri! until Pam waved her arms. “That’s enough. They’re too far down the block to hear us.”
“Are they kissing?” Ellie Mae, her hair covered with strips of folded tinfoil, popped up from Eva’s chair and hurried to the door, vinyl cape flapping. “I want a visual to take home with me.”
Eva looked over at Josette and smiled. “She’s not very good at sitting quietly, is she?”
“At least no one’s suggested dancing, or I’ll bet she’d be doing that. C’mon, let’s go see what’s happening.”
“Oh, darn.” Ellie Mae’s voice carried as she moved from the doorway to the sidewalk where the others were gathered. “They’re just talking.”
“Talking’s good.” Peggy rose on her tiptoes to peer over Ellie Mae’s thicket of foil. “Does anybody know what went on during their date Sunday night?”
“I’m convinced she’s told nobody,” Lucy said.
“I’d call that promising if it was special enough to keep private.” Josette pulled her phone from her pocket. “Ellie Mae, it’s time to check your color.”
“I’ll be there in a flash.” She edged over to the curb so she could see down the block. “Shoot, Henri’s coming back… no, wait! He grabbed her arm. He’s pulling her close, aaaannnd…we have lip-lock!”
Eva’s heart squeezed. Good for them. A cheer went up from the group on the sidewalk.
Ed started making shooing motions. “Okay, everyone back inside. Let them finish their kiss in peace.”
“We don’t all fit inside, Edna Jane.”
“As many as are comfortable, then. Who wants more champagne? I’m not taking any back home.”
Ellie Mae scooted back to Eva’s chair. “I want more, but first I have to get my color checked.”
Eva took one side and Josette the other as they each unfolded one strip of foil. “Looks great,” Eva said.
Josette nodded. “Terrific. You do good work.”
“Am I blue?” Ellie Mae wriggled with excitement.
“You sure are,” Josette said. “Time to get you shampooed and gorgeous.”
“Edna Jane, can we all go to the Moose when I’m finished so I can show it off?”
“Don’t see why not. We might have to head down there, anyway, to fetch Henri.”
“I love this plan. We can finish off the champagne while I’m getting beautiful and then zip down to the Moose, check on Henri and Ben, and dance a bit.”
“You’ll be the belle of the ball with this hair, Ellie Mae.” Eva lowered the back of the chair and slipped a folded towel between Ellie’s neck and the lip of the shampoo bowl. With Josette working on one side and Eva on the other, they divested her of the foil in no time.
Josette rinsed her hands. “She’s all yours for the shampoo and blow dry. I’m going to treat myself to some of Ed’s champagne.”
“By all means. Thanks for the help.”
“It was fun.”
“You’re a hard worker, Eva,” Ellie Mae said. “I appreciate all the time you’ve put in.”
“It’s a treat doing this for you.”
“Everyone’s champagned up except you, Eva.” Ed reclaimed Josette’s chair. “Can I pour you a glass?”
“Thank you, but I’d better not. I can have cider when we go to the Moose, though.” She ran warm water over Ellie Mae’s hair.
“That’ll be on me.” Ed spun the chair. “What a great few days this has been. I can’t decide which thrills me more, all the money we raised with that auction or Henri and Ben finally getting it on.”
Ellie Mae closed her eyes and sighed happily as Eva worked shampoo into her hair. “Strictly speaking, Edna Jane, we don’t know they’re getting it on. Only that they’re to the kissing stage.”
“If they haven’t been horizontal yet, they will be soon. Ben’s not going to let grass grow under his feet. He got exactly what he wanted out of this bachelor auction.”
“I’ll bet he’s not the only bachelor who’s happy with the outcome. That cute Nick Le Grande looked overjoyed to be taking you home Sunday night, Eva.”
She gulped. “Uh-huh.”
“He’s a strong-looking man, that’s for sure. Has he completed his twelve hours of manual labor, yet?”
“Um, more or less.” Her heart rate spiked. Technically he hadn’t given her twelve hours, but that didn’t matter anymore.
“Well, I hope it turned out well for you two. Like I said, he looked smitten on Sunday night.”
“Now that you mention it, he did.” Ed turned so the chair was facing Eva. “As Nick’s honorary auntie, I’ll put in a good word for him. He’s a sweetie.”
Eva took a steadying breath and concentrated on rinsing the shampoo out of Ellie Mae’s hair. “Yes, he is.”
“Reminds me of my first husband.”
Eva glanced at her in shock. “Your first husband? You’ve had more than one?”
“Three.”
“I’ve had four,” Ellie Mae said. “I win.”
“We’re not done yet, Ellie Mae.” She gave Eva a smile. “You never know what tomorrow will bring, right?”
“Right.” Ed had been married three times? Ellie Mae, four?
Ed gazed at her. “You look quite taken aback. I admit three is a lot of husbands, but it’s not in Elizabeth Taylor territory.”
“No, I just… for some reason I thought you’d been single all your life like my Aunt Sally.”
“She never married?”
“Never wanted to.”
“Boy, I did. I adored being married to my first love, who unfortunately died in his thirties.”
“That’s so sad!”
“It was, and instead of letting myself grieve, I rushed into the next one. I wasn’t picky about number three, either. I had to ditch him, too. Whoever ends up with Nick won’t be ditching him, though. He’s a keeper.”
“I’m sure he is.” She squeezed the water out of Ellie Mae’s hair and wrapped a towel around her head. “As for me, I’ve decided against getting married. I’m like my aunt. I prefer my independence.”
“Independence is good,” Ellie Mae said. “I’ve always maintained mine, whether I’m married or not.”
“Same here.” Ed nodded. “Establishing your independence has nothing to do with being married.”
“That’s the truth,” Ellie Mae said. “Stay away from the mean ones and the know-it-alls. Maintain your earning power. Take the kind and considerate ones like Nick. Be your own independent self, and you’ll be fine.”
It sounded so simple. It wasn’t. Not for her.