Author: Kimberly Blakes

The lease for my suite was signed, and the supplies were flowing in. I was all set, except for the fact that I had to give the spa my two weeks’ notice. That was the worst part of everything. I hated to let anyone down, and I felt like I would be letting Anne Marie…

I took the letters with me to work that following day. After I finished the service, I would discreetly take the letter from my apron pocket, give it to them, and tell them to read it when they got home. After all the letters were distributed to the 20 names, there was nothing left to…

A few days later, Tam called and said, “I have something to tell you.” I said, “Okay, spit it out.” She said, “While you were dating so-and-so, he was dating three other women at the church—well, three that I know of.” Even though I wasn’t with him anymore, I was suddenly disgusted at the thought…

I sat in church, trying to choke back hot tears, as he sat there with another woman in that same dingy sport coat. When I was briefly dating him, I thought he was a great catch because he was a minister and physically attractive. The problem was, I had created a fictional character in my…

When he would call from time to time, he would dominate the conversation, which was fine because I kinda liked hearing about various recording artists and their secret lives. He had years of stories about infidelity and scandals involving some pretty high-profile names. I didn’t love this, as my image of them was somewhat tarnished.…

It’s amazing how reliving your past helps you see where it all began and how things happened. While at the spa, I started talking to a musician from my church. He was the first narcissist I had ever met. I see it now. At the time, I had no idea what the word meant, nor…

I was booked to do a basic manicure one afternoon for a client named Michelle, so I went to the relaxation room to get her. When I called her name, and a tall blonde wearing a robe—having just had a massage—stood up, smiled, and said, “That’s me!” We went to the manicure room and got…

Working at the spa put me in front of so many amazing women and men. I have formed lifelong friendships with a few—one of them is reading this now. Her name is Bridgette, and I consider her my friend. She never looked down on me, and I never felt judged because I wasn’t refined and…

My problems with Denise lessened, and all it took was for a house to sell. Unfortunately, she had a new target and only bothered me when she got really bored. I no longer wanted to leave the spa at all because it felt like I should be there, at least for the time being. I…