Something to Talk About (11 page)

It was easy to see where Alicia got so
me of her good looks from; her A
unt
Gigi
was a beautiful woman, stunning from head to toe. Her African heritage was evident from the dark richness of her skin, but her Latin blood contributed its fair share of her comeliness. She was wearing a dress in a fantastic shade of tangerine that warmed her skin and flattered her trim figure. Even the smock she put on to protect her outfit was chicly patterned in a small leopard print. The gold bangle bracelets she wore on both wrists tinkled as she stretched her arms out to give her niece a hug.

“Ah,
mija
,
it’s so good to see you. And you, too, you handsome devil,” she added as she gave Adam a hug and a kiss on the cheek. Turning back to Alicia, she grasped her niece’s long braid and looked deeply into Alicia’s eyes. “So,
querida,
are you sure you want to do this? When you called me last night I thought you were kidding, but here you are. Are you really ready?”

Alicia was pale, but she nodded firmly.
“Yes,
Gigi
.
I’m tired of looking like a schoolgirl. Let’s do it
.
”

The night before she had taken a good long look at herself in the mirror in her bedroom and realized that before she got a new wardrobe the hair had to go.
And if she could
benefit a child while doing it
so much the better.
She just needed Adam to get her through the first cut, that’s all.

Gigi
dropped the braid and clapped her hands. “All right then. Let’s get to it
.
”

Before she could even think about her decision, Alicia found herself seated in a styling chair, draped with a cape to protect her clothing. As he promised, Adam was standing in front of her, holding both her hands. The other patrons and stylists watched with great interest as
Gigi
went to work.
Gigi
had loosened her hair from its braid and combed it straight down. Unbound, the hair almost reached the floor. She gathered it loosely in her left hand and with long barber’s shears she quickly cut across the wavy length of hair, shearing it off just above the shoulder. Despite her resolve, Alicia gasped and tightened her grip on Adam’s hands. The rest of the salon went into a stunned silence after a muffled shriek from an anonymous observer.

Gigi
, sensing distress, quickly soothed her niece. “Don’t worry,
mija
,
it’s going to be beautiful.
Locks of Love is
a wonderful organization, you know. They need ten inches of hair to make a wig for a child who has lost hers to chemotherapy or disease, and you’ll be giving them enough for two children.”

Alicia looked at her reflection in the mirror and winced. “Yes, I know,
Gigi
, but I look like hell, I look like a monster. It’s a haystack,” she moaned.

And it really did look dreadful. Her thick, abundant hair, free for the first time in its entire life, sprang out like a wild bush. Alicia couldn’t bring herself to look at Adam; she just wished he were somewhere far away from the debacle. Luckily,
Gigi
took charge.

“Ah, don’t worry your head about this, I’m just getting started,” she said bracingly. “You go in the back and I’ll be there in just a minute. In the meantime, I think Adam should go have a beer or something to pass the time. Come back in two hours, maybe two and a half, okay?”

He nodded in agreement with
Gigi
, but he leaned over, brushed the hair away from Alicia’s ear, and whispered something that only she could hear. She sighed shakily and gave him an equally shaky smile. The smile turned to a grimace as she glanced in the mirror again. Her eyes grew wide and teary and
Gigi
urged her to get in the back to a private room so the transformation could be completed. This time she didn’t hesitate. With a quick wave at Adam she got out of the styling chair and quickly left the main salon.

Adam waited until Alicia scurried to the back of the salon. He then turned his attention to the massive hank of hair
Gigi
was still holding in her left hand. Without a word of warning he reached over and took a piece of the hair,
agilel
y separating a one-inch section from the rest of the bundle. He wound it around his hand several times,
and
then said good-bye to
Gigi
.

“I’ll be back in about three hours. Take care of her,” he said as he turned to leave.

Gigi
stared after his retreating figure.
“Madre de Dios,
where was he when I was young?” she murmured. “That, ladies, is a real man.”

True to her word,
Gigi
worked miracles with what was left of Alicia’s hair. First, she applied a mild relaxer to make it easier to style. The hair that was so docile when confined to a braid was lively and vigorous in its new state.
Gigi
applied the chemicals so exper
tl
y that Alicia didn’t sense any discomfort through the process, she just sat back and let
Gigi
do her work.
After
she was rins
ed out the relaxer, she applied fragrant neutralizing shampoo.  While her fingers massaged Alicia’s scalp
,
Gigi
asked what had brought about the transition.

“
Mija
,
I thought you would never cut this hair. What made you do it? I don’t think it was just because you wanted to donate it to a worthy organization,” she said sagely.

Alicia was so enjoying the smell of the shampoo and her aunt’s thorough massaging of her scalp she was almost asleep, but the question roused her out of her lull. “You’re right,
Tia,
it wasn’t just because I thought Locks of Love is a great organization. I’ve decided I can look better than I do and it’s time I paid more attention to my appearance. I’m a career woman, not a
schlumpy
college student”

“Hmm,” was all
Gigi
said, but it was plain she didn’t quite believe her niece’s story.

“And I’m tired of looking like Adam’s little sister,” Alicia added. “We were out running one day and we both had on sweats and baseball caps and I heard this woman say to her friend, “Oh, look.
Twins!”
I don’t think Adam heard it, but it really bothered me. Adam is a good-looking man, but I don’t want to look like him,” she grumbled.

Gigi
smiled to herself as she rinsed every bit of shampoo out. While she was applying a conditioner that smelled like something delicious to eat, she probed gently. “So would I be wrong to say that you might be trying to catch a certain man’s eye?”

Alicia’s eyes opened in alarm and the look on her aunt’s face was hardly reassuring.
Gigi
had the dreamy, satisfied look of a
yenta
whose fondest wish is about to come true; she looked like she was about to start planning a wedding.

“Tia,
it’s not like that. Well, maybe it is, but please don’t say anything to anyone, at least not yet He doesn’t have a clue and I don’t want—” Her barrage of words was cut off by
Gigi
.

“
Chica
, please, I am nothing if not discreet. Do you have any idea how many secrets I carry around with me? All women confide in their hairstylists and I’ve been doing hair since I got off the boat, practically. Can’t you just imagine how many things I know? Pregnancies, divorces, abortions, affairs, there isn’t much that people don’t tell me. I know everybody’s business, honey, here in Detroit and in Miami, Atlanta, Baltimore, and Chicago, too!
Tia
knows how to keep her mouth shut, don’t worry.”
But I think your Adam has more than a clue,
mija
,
she thought After Alicia’s hair was relaxed, conditioned, and lightly toweled dry,
Gigi
shaped it into
a chic layered style with longer pieces caressing her nape and uneven bangs framing her face. It was shockingly becoming as the style drew attention to her big eyes and high cheekbones and made her sexy mouth even sexier. She looked sophisticated and charming, yet she looked like herself. Best of all, Alicia loved the feeling of lightness when she shook her head. She ran her hands through it and was excited to see it fall right back into place, thanks to her aunt’s expert cutting.

“Why didn’t I do
this years
ago?” marveled Alicia. “This feels so good!”

“And it looks fantastic, even if I
do say so,”
Gigi
said confidentl
y. “You are so beautiful, Alicia. The bo
ys won’t believe it’s their littl
e sister,” she teased.

Alicia smiled again, thinking about her family’s reaction. “You’re coming over for breakfast next Sunday, aren’t you?
Papi
and
Mami
and the boys will be home, finally. I can’t wait to see everyone.”

Her brothers both played for the Detroit Tigers and they, as well as Jose, had been on the road for almost three weeks with games in Cleveland, Minnesota, and Arizona. Her mother had naturally gone too because since her retirement Jose didn’t like to have his wife too far away and she loved to travel.

“Of course I’ll be there, we all will,” she said, meaning her sisters. “We’re bringing something special, too. Now, just let me tame those eyebrows a bit and put
some
makeup on that pretty face to make you glow. Adam should be back soon and you’re going to knock him out,” she predicted.

The “bit”
Gigi
did to the eyebrows was a waxing, a process Alicia had never had done and something she imagined would be quite painful. It wasn’t at all, thanks to
Gigi’s
skill. The result was amazing, though; her brows were still thick and lustrous but cleaning up the area underneath gave them a sharper arch and made them look very sexy and glamorous. As promised, she applied just a
little
makeup, just enough to give Alicia a healthy shimmer. A hint of gold eyeshadow,
two coats of
mascara
and liner in the outer corners of her eyes and she suddenly had huge, smoky eyes that beckoned and beguiled. Alicia drew the line at lipstick, however.

“I’ve never worn lipstick,
Gigi
. You know the boys call me Patti for a reason,” she said wryly. Patti was a twist on her real nickname,
Pato
,
the Spanish word for duck. Her brothers called her that because her lips were so prominent, especially when she was
small
.

Gigi
clucked her tongue in disgust “They call you that because they are idiots. Your lips are just perfect
.
Lots of women pay big money to get these lips, trust me. Now you just line them very lightly like so,” she said as she gently ou
tl
ined Alicia’s lips with a medium brown pencil. “Then you blend in it like so.” And she used her
pinky
to smooth the color all over the lips. “And then a nice soft neutral color followed by a gold gloss and see?
Very sexy, yes?”

Alicia had to admit it made a
huge difference. Just a few light
touches and she looked dramatic, mysterious, and undeniably feminine. “Nobody’s going to think we’re twins now,” she
murmured. “
Gigi
, this is worth every penny. I can’t possibly thank you enough for this. I love you, I really do.”

“Worth what penny?
I’ve never done your hair before, and you know I always do family for free. I wish you would try to pay me, I’d tear the check up in front of your face,” she said haughtily. “But there is something you can do to show your appreciation. Let me plan your wedding,
mija
.
That will be payment enough.”

Alicia blushed fiercely upon hearing those words, but she didn’t have time to get really rat
tl
ed. The receptionist buzzed to let them know that Adam had returned, so it was show time. She allowed
Gigi
to give her clothes one last brushing and straightening before going out into the main salon to greet him. If she’d been paying him more specific attention she’d have seen a look on his face that would have convinced her that
Gigi’s
line about wedding planning might not be too far-fetched.
 
She completely missed the utter rapture that took over Adam’s face as she reentered the salon. She also didn’t hear the oohs and aahs from the stylists and the applause from the other patrons as they admired her new look. All she could do was stare openmouthed at Adam, who had a long braid in one hand and a n
ewly shorn, neatly
styled head of hair—very short hair.

“Oh, my goodness, what have you done?” she gasped.