The salon owner remembered the phone I almost lost

I met Derek because I left my phone at a store counter.

My name is Marissa. I am 42, Hispanic, full-figured, and live near Lake Geneva, Wisconsin.

I had been shopping for clothes when I realized my phone was missing. I emptied my purse twice and started retracing every place I had visited.

Derek noticed me looking under tables and asked what I had lost.

He was 35, Vietnamese, and dressed much better than most men I usually saw while shopping.

Instead of just pointing me toward customer service, he helped me check several stores. We eventually found my phone sitting beside the register where I had paid for a sweater.

I thanked him and joked that I owed him something for saving my entire life.

He said I could visit his nail salon sometime.

That was how I learned he owned a salon in Lake Geneva.

I thought he was attractive, but I assumed he had only mentioned the business because owners always looked for new customers.

A few days later, I searched for the salon online.

I needed my nails done anyway, so I booked a manicure.

At least, that was what I told myself.

When I walked in, Derek was helping at the front desk. He recognized me immediately and smiled.

He said he had wondered whether I would actually come.

That surprised me.

I asked if he told every woman he helped to visit his salon.

He said no. Then he admitted he had wanted to ask for my number at the store, but I had seemed stressed about losing my phone, so he did not think it was the right moment.

Derek normally handled the business side of the salon, but one nail tech had called out that day. He offered to do my manicure himself because he had worked as a nail tech before becoming the owner.

While he worked, we talked about family, dating, and how difficult it was to meet people in a smaller town.

I told him I had assumed a younger man like him would not be interested in me.

Derek looked surprised.

He said he had noticed my smile before he noticed anything else, and my age had never crossed his mind until I mentioned it.

I liked hearing that, but I was still unsure whether he was simply being charming with a customer.

When the manicure was finished, I paid and prepared to leave.

Derek stopped me near the door and asked whether I had dinner plans.

That was when I realized he had truly been waiting for me to return.

We had dinner that evening at a restaurant near the lake.

He later told me he had checked the appointment list several times after meeting me, hoping to see my name.

We have been dating for six months now.

Derek still teases me about losing my phone.

I remind him that finding it was the only reason we met.

He says the phone was lucky.

I think we both were.