2000 Kisses Read Online Free PDF

big bucks
, Tess thought. But she was wise enough to keep her comments to herself. “Fine, you're the expert. I just want a change—but please, nothing outrageous.”
    “A change,” he repeated. “Okay, what have we got?” He scrunched, tugged, draped. “Good texture. Nice volume. We'll go for the max. I'm seeing, a texturizing cut here. We'll lay in a crisscross part, then maybe some copper highlights.”
    “Subtle,” Tess repeated firmly.
    “Subtle
plus
shine.” Vido gave her bangs a tweak. “Into the chair.”
    Ninety-one carefully positioned foil rectangles later, Tess stared into a broad mirror, regretting the impulse that had put her into the hands of the volatile Vido. She'd probably end up looking like Madonna on a bad day. Or maybe like Dennis Rodman on a very good day, which was even worse.
    A chrome hairdryer hummed around her head, making the tiny foil slips vibrate furiously. If there was any more ambient wind, she might reach flight velocity.
    The high-tech clock chimed twice. Tess closed her eyes, afraid to watch as Vido eased the foil squares free and snipped quickly along her neck.
    Damp strands fell. “Not too short,” she murmured.
    “Not to worry. You're going to turn heads with this hair.”
    Tess opened her eyes and gasped. Veins of gold, amber, and copper exploded through her hair, vibrating with primal color. She would turn heads, all right. She was going to bring traffic to a dead halt because people thought her head was on fire.
    “But you said—I told you—”
    “Fabulous! Very now! The highlights are perfect,” he said firmly. “Now we go for a razor undercut. Something very 2000.” Vido plunged his hands into her hair with savage energy, shaping and scrunching. “It's very fresh.”
    Tess swallowed hard at the sight of the stranger in the mirror. It was so different. It was so—
out there.
    Fifteen minutes later Vido was done, and Tess was paying the bill, studying her reflection in one of the salon's floor-to-ceiling mirrors. Soft curls kissed her face and the wild color lent radiance to her cheeks. She managed a small smile.
    Wasn't it time she truly went for something different? She was a success, and that meant she had to start thinking like a success. From now on, she would think big and reward herself for reaching her goals. It was also time that she conquered her fear of shopping. No woman should reach the ripe age of twenty-eight without developing solid skills at handling salespeople, mastering theirsubtle forms of intimidation. Tess decided to view it as a professional challenge.
    Where should she go first?
    When Tess walked out into the snowy street, her gaze was drawn to a store window filled with bright streamers decorating hand-tooled cowboy boots in a dozen colors. An exquisite concha belt slanted across a matching fringed suede jacket and a creamy cashmere sweater set.
    Now,
this
was shopping.
    Tess refused to be intimidated by the indecipherable, handwritten price tags and the saleswoman who appeared to have stepped right out of
Town and Country.
    No backing down. This was business. This was a life experience.
    Imagine Katharine Hepburn in
The Philadelphia Story
, she thought. Think of Grace Kelly in
To Catch a Thief.
    “Shop or die,” Tess muttered as she clutched her purse, straightened her shoulders, and marched inside.
    The boots were wildly beautiful. So were the silver concha belts and the fringed suede jackets. But the lingerie stopped Tess cold. She stared at it wistfully.
    The saleswoman, who Tess had immediately dubbed Madame X, hovered superciliously. “May we be of assistance?”
    There was only one person in sight. Probably she enjoyed the royal
we
, Tess thought. “I'm just looking right now.”
    Tess felt the chill radiate as the saleswoman dismissed her as someone who was far out of her league in this store. Irritation blended with embarrassment, and Tess was poised to leave when her tattered dignity resurfaced.
    She studied the display