“Yeah, I know.”

“Don’t worry, though. We condition thoroughly here, and your hair won’t suffer any damage.”

“Good.”

“Take a look.” She handed me a color chart. “Which color works best?”

Pretty crazy to consider. I hadn’t actually seen my natural color in years, other than in my roots. I chose a honey blond, which was slightly lighter than what I imagined my natural color to be.

“Perfect,” Eileen said. “Let’s get started.”

From there I was prodded and pampered for the next four hours.

By the end, I was blond again with glowing skin, freshly waxed eyebrows in their natural brown, and fingernails and toenails painted a sparkly light blue to match my eyes.

I left the spa feeling brand new.

So brand new that I felt I might be able to tell my story after all. Especially if it would help Reid.

I had no alibi for the night of Derek Wolfe’s murder, as my show had been dark. But I was innocent, even though I had a motive. I’d been here in Las Vegas. I wouldn’t show up on any flight log, and I’d performed the night before and the night after.

I felt strong. Stronger than before.

Maybe I felt like me again. The Zee before all the turmoil. Looking in the mirror, I saw her. Tidbits of her before those horrible few days.

I inhaled and made up my mind.

I was going to New York.

Reid stood, gawking at me. Did my new hair make that much of a difference?

“It’s me,” I said.

“I know. My God, you look beautiful, Zee.”

“I should thank you. Your gift made it possible.”

“But…why?”

I sighed. “I don’t know. I guess I just wanted to look like myself again. Weird, really.”

“You were gorgeous before, but now… Wow.” He smiled.

How I loved that smile! When Reid smiled, I saw Reid. Not the son who looked so much like his father.

Just Reid.

That was who I wanted to see.

Two flight attendants—both gorgeous—fluttered around me. “Anything to drink, Ms. Jones? Mr. Wolfe ordered bottled water for you, but would you care for anything else?”

“Bottled water is perfect,” I said.

My massage therapist had told me to drink a lot of water today.

I was so relaxed. More relaxed than I’d been since…

It was the therapy, of course, but perhaps it was also the fact that I’d decided to go to New York. To tell my story. To help put away the priest and any others the authorities could find.

Perhaps it was being with Reid.

How was I falling so hard so quickly?

I never felt like this about men. In fact, I’d often wondered if I’d ever have a relationship. If I could ever be whole enough to.

Reid showed me to a lush seat and sat next to me.