Read Online A Thrill to Remember by Lori Wilde - Free Book Online Page A

Meggie’s dashing new coif.
    “Your friend’s right, darling. You look absolutely plucky,” Vincent enthused.
    Plucky? Her?
    Sure. Why not? Yes, by gosh. Her. Plucky.
    “You were in desperate need of a change,” Vincent continued, waving his hand with a theatrical flourish. “That bland Buster Brown blunt cut you were sporting was just too, too retro. I’m sooo glad you chose me to be the artist of your transformation. You are my masterpiece, my muse, my Mona Lisa.”
    Okay, so Vincent was a bit of a drama queen but he did have a point. The conversion was startling.
    Meggie stared into the mirror. The difference in her appearance astounded her. The spiky cut flipped out from her head in short, sassy wisps. The style not only slimmed her face and accentuated her green eyes but also lent her a hip, dynamic edge.
    She looked like the kind of woman who took life full throttle. It was exactly what she’d been seeking when she’d plunked herself in Vincent’s chair and asked him to create a wild, new, independent persona for her.
    “Wow,” she murmured and reached up to lightly finger her hair. “Wow.”
    “Wow indeed,” Wendy concurred. “You should have gotten divorced years ago. Freedom definitely agrees with you.”
    “It’s not just the divorce,” Meggie whispered to Wendy as she slipped Vincent a tip so big he actually purred.
    Normally, she wasn’t the kind of woman to kiss and tell, but she was filled to the bursting with thoughts of her erotic night with Don Juan.
    “Oh no?” Wendy rubbed her hands gleefully. “I smell a juicy story. What’s up?”
    “Come on. I’ll tell you later. In the meantime I’m buying a whole new wardrobe at La Chic Freak.”
    Wendy plastered a hand over her heart. “You? In La Chic Freak?”
    “Yep. I’m going for leather and lace and chains. And who knows? Maybe I’ll even get a henna tattoo.”
    “Omigosh, I thought I’d never live to see the day you decided to recognize your full potential and rebel against that good-girl image that’s kept you trapped in that tight little black-and-white box. I’m so proud of you, Megs.” Wendy wrapped her in a honeysuckle-scented hug.
    “Me, too,” Vincent chimed in. “You go, girlfriend.”
    Geez. She knew she’d been something of fuddy-duddy but she had no idea everyone had been holding their breath just waiting for her to cut loose. This had certainly been a week of prolonged self-discovery.
    And it’s all because you stepped outside your comfort zone and took a gamble.
    The evening she’d spent in the skaters’ cabin with Don Juan had been the most liberating experience of her life. Ever since that fateful night she felt changed in ways she couldn’t explain. Ways that made her long for all the things she’d missed. Why had she hidden her light under a bushel all these years?
    Well, no more. From now on, everything was going to be different.
    She and Wendy left the salon and headed for La Chic Freak. An hour later she emerged wearing a red mesh blouse and a matching red leather miniskirt so short it would have caused even Klondike Kate to blush. In her hands swung a shopping bag filled with equally intrepid clothing.
    “Okay,” Wendy said as they wandered down the street. “We’re out of earshot of anyone. Spill it. What in the world happened to you in Alaska?”
    She tried not to smirk, but couldn’t help herself. “I met the most awesome guy.”
    “Get out!”
    “It’s true.”
    Wendy stopped walking and smacked her forehead with a palm. “No, no, no. Please say it ain’t so.”
    “What?” Meggie felt perplexed. “I thought you would be happy that I met someone.”
    “Yes, in a year or so. Maybe. Not yet. It’s too soon after your divorce, sweetie.”
    “I’ve been divorced for six months.”
    “No good can come of this relationship. He’s nothing but the transition guy. A temporary fix. You need to live a little before you get involved with anyone else.”
    “Give me some credit, will