Second to Cry (17 page)

Chapter Seven

There was Never Me until there was You

Brandy Cotton worked at a trendy boutique salon within the centre of Chicago called Chez Vous. The elite clientele found her Southern charm endearing and she was a favourite amongst customers.

Brandy had picked up the basics of the beauty trade very quickly, showing a natural aptitude which was no doubt helped by her background in pageantry.

Chez Vous was nestled between a Starbucks and a Gap store so, in retail terms, a prime location as there was constant foot traffic passing by.

Aiden stood on the sidewalk, gazing in through the windows of the salon. He swerved his head to see between the constant flow of pedestrians, desperate to catch a glimpse of Brandy.

This was his first full day in Chicago and he’d spent the past forty minutes stood outside Chez Vous trying to work up the courage to go in. He knew he’d lingered far too long and was in danger of attracting negative attention. If only he could see her, just briefly, her warm smile would be enough to put him ease and then he would go in.

But from his vantage point he could only see two stylists and a receptionist. The stylists were both male, one with white blonde, cropped hair and a tattoo of a cross behind his ear, the other had a black Mohawk and various piercings. The receptionist was female, in her late forties perhaps, with bright-red shoulder-length hair and lipstick of the same colour. She seemed familiar and friendly with all the customers and Aiden wondered if she was Brandy’s aunt, who owned Chez Vous and had helped secure her a job. It had been easy enough to find where Brandy worked; there was little that couldn’t be discovered following a quick Google search.

At some point he’d have to go in. Above him the heavens darkened, suggesting imminent rain. He’d definitely look suspicious if he remained outside getting soaked in the rain. Time was running out. He only had a few days in Chicago and he wanted to make the most of them. Deciding to just bite the bullet, Aiden walked decisively towards the salon.

A soft jingle of bells accompanied his entrance but no one looked up, the stylists too consumed by their clients, their clients too consumed by whichever fashion magazine they were reading.

There was modern music playing, Aiden only knew it was modern because he didn’t recognize it. He made his way to the receptionist, feeling amazingly self-conscious. It was the sort of stylish place where Isla would have felt in her element but Aiden was a fish out of water and struggled to blend in. His entire outfit, from his long trench coat to his polished black shoes, gave him away as a businessman out of his depth.

‘Excuse me,’ he greeted the redhead who smiled vivaciously at him.

‘Do you have an appointment?’ she asked, her voice friendly but firm, with the polite insinuation that if he didn’t have an appointment, or wasn’t booking an appointment, then he needed to get the hell out.

‘No, actually, I’m looking for Brandy.’

‘Brandy?’ the red haired lady asked, bemused.

‘Brandy White.’

‘You mean Brandy Cotton? What do you want with Brandy?’ the lady asked defensively, clearly this must be her aunt.

‘I’m an old friend from Avalon just wanting to say hello,’ Aiden explained awkwardly, unsure how to articulate exactly what he was to Brandy.

The receptionist seemed satisfied with his explanation as she held up a hand which revealed impressively long false nails which were also as red as rubies, instructing him to wait. She disappeared up a black, spiral wrought-iron staircase which was located towards the centre of the salon, her stiletto boots clipping sharply against each step. Moments later she returned, a softer set of footsteps accompanying her. Brandy descended the stairs and Aiden felt his breath catch in his throat.

She looked even more radiant than when he had last seen her. Her blonde hair, still long but cut more stylishly, remained as a halo around her angelic features. She wore a trendy shirt dress which fell to her knees and on her feet she had cowboy boots, a reference to her lineage in the South.

‘Aiden!’ Brandy gushed the moment she saw him, her brown eyes widening with joy as she ran towards him, immediately throwing herself into his arms.

Aiden’s stomach lurched as it had on the plane earlier, only now it was due to the gathering butterflies within it rather than the change in altitude.

‘I can’t believe you’re here,’ she breathed the words into his neck, her breath soft and warm and carrying to scent of peaches.

‘I wanted to surprise you,’ he managed to explain as she released him from her embrace, the sugary scent of vanilla still clinging to his coat.

‘Well, I’m surprised!’ Brandy exclaimed, placing her delicate hands on her hips. A few of the stylists and clients were now casting interested eyes over them, keen to watch their reunion play out, but Aiden was in no mood for an audience. He wanted Brandy all to himself.

‘Is there anywhere we could go and catch up?’ Aiden suggested nervously, his palms sweating as they had when he was in seventh grade and asking a girl out for the first time.

‘I get off atfive,’ Brandy said, glancing briefly at the clock on the wall which was so modern in style that Aiden struggled to read the time by it as it only had hands. It was half pastfour.

‘We could get a Starbucks if you don’t mind waiting?’ Brandy asked him, glancing sheepishly from behind her thick, lustrous lashes.

Aiden wanted to tell her that he’d wait a thousand lifetimes to have a coffee with her, but held himself back.

‘Sure,’ he nodded.

‘There are so many Starbucks here!’ Brandy blurted, her accent thick as her old self rose up. ‘I mean, how much coffee can people drink!’ She giggled and then seemed to remember herself and tried to appear more professional.

‘I have a…lady upstairs…about to be waxed. I’d best go…’ she nodded towards the staircase.

‘I’ll wait here.’ Aiden noticed some leather armchairs near the entrance and pointed towards them. They were much more luxurious in both appearance and feel than the worn-out couch which perched outside his office back in Avalon.

Possibly the longest thirty minutes in Aiden’s life finally passed. During which he browsed through the various fashion magazines which were laid out and struggled to understand any of them. To him, clothes were clothes and hair was hair. They performed practical functions, nothing more.

Finally, Brandy reappeared, this time wearing a long beige coat which completely covered her dress.

‘Are you ready to go?’ she smiled.

‘Absolutely.’

They found a table nestled towards the back of the Starbucks which offered them some relative privacy. Aiden ordered a black coffee whilst Brandy opted for a hot chocolate. When offered all the trimmings of whipped cream and marshmallows, Brandy eagerly enthused, ‘Ooh, yes please! It’s not a hot chocolate without them!’ There was something so endearing and warm about her that even the sour-faced waitress managed to crack a smile at her remark. Brandy possessed that rare magnetism that just drew people to her. They were, like Aiden, powerless to resist her sweet charms.

‘I cannot believe you are here,’ Brandy stated as they sat down. ‘I mean, when I woke up this morning it was just an ordinary day. Well, as ordinary a day as living in Chicago can get, and then you walk in and suddenly it’s an amazing day! Isn’t life strange like that?’

‘Yeah, I guess it is.’ Aiden admitted. ‘Do you like Chicago?’

‘I love it!’ Brandy declared emphatically. ‘There’s so much to do here. I’ve been to the movies, the theatre, a concert. It’s amazing!’ Brandy took a delicate sip of her drink which left her with a whipped cream moustache. Aiden couldn’t help but smile as she continued to chatter on, oblivious to it.

‘And guess what?’ she asked him.

‘What?’

‘I’m fulfilling a lifelong dream and learning to play the piano,’ she told her, lowering her voice slightly for the latter part as though it were some great secret.

‘I didn’t know you wanted to play the piano,’ Aiden said, frowning. He didn’t like the thought that Brandy was developing into a person he did not completely know.

‘Ever since I was young. My mother said it was a foolish notion as only the rich get to play the piano. But now I’m a working girl I can spend my money how I like and so every Wednesday, Thursday and Friday I’m having lessons!’

‘Good for you.’

‘By working girl, I mean, I got a job, not that I’m—’ Brandy fumbled her words, suddenly flummoxed. ‘People here, they often misunderstand me. Words seem to have…different meanings.’ She looked down at her hot chocolate and her sunny disposition briefly fell away to reveal a lonely girl struggling to fit into a world she didn’t really understand. Then, as quickly as her insecurities had manifested themselves, they were gone, and she looked back at Aiden, a warm smile on her face.

‘You’ve got a little,’ Aiden motioned to her top lip and Brandy blushed profusely.

‘Oh no, have I?’ she grabbed at a napkin and began to delicately dab the cream away. ‘Gee, I’m such a klutz sometimes,’ she berated herself. ‘Anyway, enough about me! What has been going on with you?’

‘Not much really,’ Aiden admitted. His life had carried on pretty much the same way since Brandy had left.

‘I’m still working with Edmond.’

‘Your wife and daughter, how are they?’ Brandy asked, but her voice had lost some of her sweetness and her smile no longer reached her eyes.

‘They are both good, thank you,’ Aiden answered politely. He desperately wanted to change the subject.

‘So are you any good at playing the piano?’

Brandy lifted up her hands so that her palms were facing him. He noticed that she wore a ring on her right hand which appeared to be encrusted with diamonds.

‘I have small hands, you see? Apparently that’s good for being a pianist as I can navigate the keys; look at me knowing what everything is called! But my fingers aren’t long and if they were, it would make things easier.’

She lowered her hands and giggled self-consciously.

‘That’s an expensive-looking ring you’re wearing.’ Aiden blurted.

‘Oh this,’ Brandy instinctively looked at the ring, which appeared to be white gold and covered in diamonds. An eternity ring.

‘It was a gift.’ She shrugged dismissively and drank some more of her hot chocolate, careful not to get any more cream on herself.

‘From who?’ Aiden asked, trying to sound casual but aware that he risked coming across as a jealous boyfriend.

‘Just a guy.’

‘A guy?’ Aiden queried, feeling his blood pressure begin to rise. He’d feared that this might have happened, that Brandy might have found someone whilst in Chicago and, worse, fallen in love. He wasn’t sure he’d be able to handle that, as hypocritical as it was for him to feel that way.

‘Yes, a guy. A guy who buys me nice things because he wants to get in my panties.’

Aiden raised his eyebrows at the bluntness of her comment and she smiled sweetly at him.

‘Aiden, I’m Southern, not stupid. I can smell a rat at ten paces. I’m looking after myself out here,’ her smile deepened and she held her hands out to him. He grabbed them across the table but found his jealousy getting the better of him. He turned her right hand so that the ring was blinking at him, taunting him with its opulence.

‘Why do you wear it if you don’t care about the guy?’ he asked her, trying not to sound hurt.

‘Because it’s expensive and I’ve never owned anything expensive before,’ Brandy admitted shyly. ‘I guess I was just overwhelmed that someone bought me something.’

‘Well I’m going to buy you something tonight!’ Aiden declared proudly.

‘You are?’

‘Yes, BrandyCotton, I’m going to buy you dinner.’

*

Aiden waited nervously in the lobby of the apartment building in which Brandy now lived. The cream walls and plush recliners which accompanied the solid pine reception desk were a far cry from the trailer she had once lived in. He wondered how difficult it had been for her to adjust to a world so far removed from her own.

There was a soft chime as the elevator arrived and the doors eased open to reveal Brandy, wearing the same coat as earlier but now her hair was up, sat neatly atop her head in a ballerina’s bun which accentuated her cheek bones and deep-set eyes. She walked towards him, her black peep-toe shoes clipping on the tiled floor as she did so.

‘Good evening.’ She smiled at him with lips which were slicked with gloss.

‘Evening.’ Aiden felt incredibly anxious. Brandy looked nothing short of stunning. Her eyes were set off by dark make-up which, against her pale skin, made them even more striking. Each time she looked at him he felt as though her gaze were penetrating him to his soul.

‘Where are we going?’ Brandy asked as they walked through the lobby towards the street and the awaiting city beyond.

‘I found a nice little restaurant nearby. They serve Southern cuisine.’ Aiden explained, immediately worrying that Brandy might not like his choice of venue. Perhaps the last thing she wanted was to be reminded of her roots.

‘Ooh, sounds lovely,’ she gushed. ‘I’ve not eaten anything Southern since…’ She didn’t conclude her thought, instead biting her lip and casting her eyes down at the floor.

‘I’m sure the food will be great,’ Aiden said. ‘It’s only a few minutes’ walk, if that’s okay?’

‘That’s fine,’ Brandy smiled, though her eyes had dulled and momentarily lost their sparkle. ‘If there is one thing a pageant girl knows how to do, its walk in high heels!’

The restaurant was charming in a quirky way. Almost every inch of the wall was covered in Southern-themed paraphernalia. The floor and dining tables were made of rustic wood, whilst in contrast the seats were plush and comfortable. Country music played softly overhead though it wasn’t overpowering enough to invade patrons’ thoughts.

Aiden and Brandy were shown to a table towards the back which was, thankfully, relatively secluded. Aiden felt sick as they settled down in their chairs and surveyed the menu. He knew he needed to tell her about Brandon’s love child, he just didn’t want to ruin their evening. But then it was all a façade. This wasn’t a legitimate date. He was a married man and she was too beautiful and desired by almost every man that saw her. Aiden couldn’t help but notice the countless heads which would turn to watch her as she strode down the sidewalk, but Brandy was completely oblivious to them, safe in the bubble of her own self.