Last Love | Book 3

Chapter 2

(Jennifer)

"Tilt your head back, please, Miss Lawrence." I do as I'm told and tilt my head back further into the sink. Warm water floods my scalp and soothes me. I close my eyes and let the hairdresser massage shampoo into my hair. His hands, accompanied by the warm soapy water, feel amazing. He rinses my hair, being extra gentle so he doesn't pull any of my hair out. "Okay, you can sit up now." I sit up and he towel drys my hair. "Follow me." I follow him to one of the chairs on the other side of the room and sit down, watching myself in the mirror. "So, what are you doing when we finish up here?" He asks, as he parts my hair. "I'm going to drive around for a while, then go get my kids from my brother." I say, smiling at the thought. I have the whole day to myself. "Oh, leaving your brother with the kids so you can have the day to yourself?" I laugh, watching him comb through my hair. "Yeah, something like that." He gets his scissors out of a drawer and sets the comb down. "My sister dumps her kids on me all the time. I wouldn't mind except her kids are bad. They trash my house and never go to bed on time. It's a disaster." I giggle again, wondering how my kids act with Ben. They're crazy with me. How do they act when I'm not there? "So, you said you wanted just a trim right? Then layers and bangs." I nod, being serious for the first time today. "Yes. Trim, layers, bangs." I confirm, watching him start cutting my hair. He's being super careful as he makes sure each cut is even with the last. He finishes cutting my hair and sets the scissors down. It looks nice, but I can't really tell because it's wet. "You want me to dry it?" He asks. "Sure, take your time. My brother's watching my kids." I smirk at him and He starts drying my hair.

I shake my hair out like a dog, getting all the loose pieces out. "Do you like it?" I nod, looking at myself in the mirror. It looks good. It's still long, but not too long. Just perfect. "I love it. Thanks." I get out of my chair and go up to the cash register to pay. I leave a twenty dollar tip in the jar and walk out.

I start the car and drive around town for a while. I stop at McDonalds and go through the drive through and get an ice cream cone. I drive off, towards Ben's house, taking the slowest route possible. I lick my ice cream cone, dancing and singing along to every song on the radio. I love being a stay at home mom, almost more than anything, but these rare moments I get to myself are special. I bite my ice cream cone, getting crumbs everywhere as I nod my head to the beat of the song, swerving my hips at every turn.

I knock on the door and Bear opens it. "Aunt Jenny!" He jumps up and hugs me when he sees me, making me smile. "Hi, sweetie!" I pick him up and spin him around. "Where's your dad? You shouldn't be opening the door by yourself." I set him down and he points inside the house. I walk in and close the door behind myself. "Ben?" He appears in the living room with Ava and Cole hanging on his arms. "Mommy!" Ava jumps off him and runs over to me. "Hey, what's going on in here?" I pick her up and hold her against my hip, looking around the room. There's toys everywhere and the couch pillows are crammed behind the TV. "Oh, yeah....I let bear watch them while I made lunch and well...." He laughs, looking around. "Okay, fun uncle. I've gotta get home before Josh so give me a hug." He sets Cole down and hugs me. "So, speaking of Josh, how are you guys?" He asks, as I set Ava down. "We're good." I say. "Jen, I can tell when your lying." He raises his eyebrows at me and I laugh. "We're fine, really." I assure him, more convincingly this time. "Seriously, Jen. You can tell me anything. You know that right?" I nod. "We're really really fine, Ben." I roll my eyes at him. "Okay, If you don't feel comfortable talking to me about it then you know you can talk to Meredith, right?" He watches me, waiting for a response. I sigh, annoyed by his persistence. "Yes, Ben." He hugs me again. "Okay.... I'll see you later." I nod. "See you later." I smile at him, before taking Ava and Coles hands and walking them out to the car.

I set Ava on the counter and start boiling some water to make Macaroni and cheese for dinner. It's Josh and Ava's favorite. I pour the box of pasta in and throw the box in the trash. The door opens and I take Ava off the counter so we can go and greet Josh. "Daddy's home!" I tell her, pointing to the door so she'll be the first one he sees. She runs towards the door and screams when she sees him. "Ah! Hey, little munchkin!" I hear him laughing and I walk out to the living room. He's holding her and smiling, while she pulls his hair. "Hey, you got your hair cut." He smiles at me, flicking a strand of hair away from my face. "Yeah. Looks like you need one too." I say, pulling on one of his longer pieces of hair, gently. His hairs been getting long in the front, almost to the point where it covers his eyes. "I don't want a haircut!" He fake pouts at me, pushing my hand away. "Fine. I'll let you keep it long a little while longer." I walk back into the kitchen and stir the pasta. He follows and sets Ava back on the counter. She loves watching me cook. "What are you cooking?" He asks, watching me. "Mac n cheese." Ava perks up at the words, clearly recognizing them. "Mmm... My favorite." Josh says, making Ava giggle. I drain the water and look over at him, to see Cole wrapped around his leg. I stir in the cheese and milk and get four bowls out of the cabinet, one for each of us. "Let's eat in the living room tonight." I suggest, giving Josh a quick kiss on the lips.

A/N: I'm sorry this story's so boring but I promise it'll get better in the next few chapters