Clearing her mind, she tried again. "Mrs. Dempey, there is no way I can make you a strawberry blonde without using red, gold, or orange. Especially the red. Hence the strawberry in the blonde."
Outraged, the uppity woman stood up from the chair. "You're just as incompetent as Betty Anne was! I'll just have to drive into Louisville to get my hair done by real professionals."
At the end of her tirade, the customer stormed out, leaving Dia seething in her wake. What she wouldn't give to put some hair remover in that woman's shampoo bottle.
Left in the shop with no appointments scheduled for the rest of her day, Dia took one look at the clock, saw it was three in the afternoon, and thought, Fuck it. I'm closing the salon early and going home.
In a foul mood, she started the process of closing. When she was down to sweeping the floors for the last time that day, her mind turned back to the man it thought of a little too much these days-Stone.
A week ago, she had given in to temptation and decided to let the man try to woo her. It might have sounded old fashioned, but that was only because Dia had grown up with two parents who were madly in love with each other. Her mom had always told her that she needed to wait for a man who made her body tingle from head to toe. Her father had said she needed to wait for a man that she couldn't stop thinking about. It seemed Stone fit both of those criteria.
Since making that decision, she and Stone had been out on five dates. He had taken her out to lunch one day, dinner the next, and to a movie on the third night. He had held her hand, opened every door, and had paid for everything. She was starting to wonder if he was the perfect gentleman, up to the fourth date when he punched a man out for whistling at her ass as she walked by the man's table.
That was when Dia realized Stone wasn't just a gentleman; he was an alpha man. And she meant that in the best way. Stone was the sort of man to pound his chest and let the world know she was his woman. He wasn't going to let anyone else look at, or even think about, what he considered his.
The question Dia had now was simple: Did she want to be Stone's woman? The man was making it plain as day that was what he considered her. It was obvious in every protective, territorial move he made. The way he placed his hand at the small of her back when they were walking somewhere. How he kissed her breathless every chance she gave him. Even the way he checked her little apartment over the salon every night to make sure it was safe before he kissed her good night then left.
The man was a walking, talking caveman … and she was really starting to like it.
Dia was just finishing up sweeping when she heard the bell over her front door ring. She turned her head to see who was coming in and had to bite her lip not to smile. Every time she saw him now, Dia's heart would skip a beat and other parts of her would tingle. The man was the epitome of butterflies in her stomach. Sex on a stick. Tall, dark, and sinfully handsome.
To put it mildly, Stone had become her shot of mantastic love drug, and she had quickly becoming addicted to him.
"Hey, handsome, what are you doing here?"
Stone stopped only a few inches from her. She could smell the cinnamon gum he had been chewing. Mmmmm … she loved cinnamon. That would make it fun to kiss him later.
That wasn't what held her attention, though. No, it was his eyes. There was something about them today that was different. She just couldn't quite put her finger on it. It was almost as if he was anxious or something.
"You have any more clients today?"
Dia shook her head.
"Will you come out with me, then? I have a surprise for you, but I warn you, it's a bit of a drive."
Leaning on the broom, Dia cocked her hip to the side and put her hand on it. "How far of a drive?"
"Two hours. Think you can make it that far, princess?"
She had gotten used to him calling her the nickname, but it didn't mean she liked it.
Deciding to be sarcastic, Dia said, "Don't know, handsome, might be too far. If we are out past my bedtime, I turn into a pumpkin."
Stone leaned forward until their mouths almost touched. "What if I told you it was worth staying up past your bedtime?"
Her breath hitched at his innuendo. Was she ready to get handsy with the hunk she had been seeing?
Stone leaned forward and ran his nose along hers, before giving her a small, enticing kiss on the mouth. Then he pulled back and whispered, "Come with me."
"Ever heard of the word please?" she whispered back, trying to sass him.
He shook his head, and she giggled as he wrapped an arm around Dia's waist and brought their bodies flush together. It was then that his eyes pleaded with her as he said again, "Come with me."
Dia felt that same feeling she had back at the diner when she had first met Stone. As if this moment was important, and her whole life was about to change. It sounded crazy to think that, but she couldn't help it. So now the question was: Did she take a chance on the caveman and the crazy feeling?
Fuck it. Hadn't that been what she had been doing since she told Betty Ann she would move to Battletown and take over the salon?
Dia took a big breath for courage. "Lead the way, Prince Charming."
Stone cocked his head to the side instead of moving like she thought he would. "And what if I said I was the big bad wolf instead of Prince Charming? Would you run from me, then?"
Dia bit her bottom lip nervously. "What if I told you I thought wolves were cute and furry, so even you, the big bad wolf, couldn't make me run away?"
Stone answered her cryptically, "Let's hope you're right." Then, without giving her a chance to say another word, he pulled her out the door, only stopping long enough to let her lock up.
The next two hours and five minutes were spent in his truck, traveling the roads to wherever the surprise was. They sat in companionable silence, Dia curled up against Stone's side on the bench seat as he drove. For a while, she thought he might be taking her to Lexington, based on the highway signs, but when she asked him if that was their destination, he told her no.
Finally, just before they would hit Lexington, in the town of Versailles, Stone asked her to close her eyes. Dia almost asked him why, then decided to let the man have his surprise. She had a feeling giving in just this once was going to be worth it.
She took one last long look at him, then gave him her trust by closing her eyes.
"Thank you, princess."
Feeling playful, Dia reminded him, "I'm not a fucking princess," to which he laughed.
When they stopped, Stone gently pulled her out of the truck, then hauled her up into his arms. "Hold on tight, sweetheart. This won't take long."
She felt him walk away from the truck and heard his steps in the grass beneath his boots. Her arms were wrapped around his neck, so she took the opportunity to put her nose at the spot between his shoulder and neck, inhaling his natural spicy scent. Stone gave her a little growl, and she couldn't help laughing at the sound.
Dia had no idea how long Stone carried her to their destination, but just when she was about to say something to him about putting her down because she didn't want to break his back before they could have sex, Stone finally stopped.
Setting her gently on her feet, his deep voice rumbled, "Ready?"
Dia was breathless with anticipation as she felt Stone move behind her, setting his hands on her hips before placing his mouth next to the shell of her ear.
"Open your eyes, princess."
What she saw next took her breath away. It was a castle-in freaking Kentucky!
It was made of stone with several turrets, and even from a distance, she could see it was two generous levels tall. The sun was setting behind it, the sky a red and peach flow, in stark contrast to the lavender clouds. It was by far the most beautiful thing she had seen in her entire life.
Stone's deep voice rumbled softly next to her ear. "Thought I could bring my princess to see a castle sunset."
"I'm not a fucking princess," she whispered back, still in awe.
He laughed, then buried his face in her neck. Mumbling against her skin, he said the three words she was getting oh so used to hearing him say. "As you wish."
"This is like a fairy tale," Dia told him, still staring at the glorious sight before them.
Stone's body went rock hard with tension behind her, and his grip tightened on her hips, almost to the point of pain. "And do you believe in fairy tales, Dia?"
Prying his hands off her, she turned and wrapped her arms around his neck. "These days, I think I do."