Chapter 21

Wednesday morning Chloe arrived at the recording studio with her songs and music she wanted to record. Troy greeted Chloe and introduced her to everyone that would be working with her. By the end of her second week she had 4 songs reordered and Adrian was doing the art work for her CD cover.

The weeks flew by and before they knew it was Labor Day weekend. Gabe and Izzy were working so Adrian and Chloe decided to drive up to San Francisco for the weekend. On their drive to San Francisco they were listening to the radio when Chloe heard her song being played. She totally forgot that they were releasing her song this weekend to see how it would do. Adrian squeezed Chloe's hand and told her she sounded great. It was a pop/dance song and she was hoping people would like it but she wasn't going to worry herself if they didn't.

They finally arrived in San Francisco a little after 3:30pm. They checked into their hotel then went and found a little Irish pub and got an early dinner. After they ate they took the trolley to head to Pier 39. The trolley was full of people getting off and on at different stops and some just jumped off at random places. Chloe couldn't help but laugh as they were going up one of the steep hills that nobody has fallen out. They finally reached their stop and jumped off the trolley. They walked the rest of the way to the pier. They could hear the seals the closer they got. They shopped around and got a few things then went and stood in front of the very loud seals. Alcatraz was in the background so Chloe made Adrian get a picture of her and the island. Adrian asked Chloe if she would like to go and see Alcatraz. She said she would love to so Adrian pulled out his phone and called the hotel and had them book them an excursion to Alcatraz for tomorrow.

As they were making their way back to the trolley Chloe said she wanted to go to Ghirardelli's and Adrian told her that anything she wanted she would get. When they got there they both got sundaes and they both agreed that the sundae was one of the best they have ever eaten.

They made it back to the hotel around 10:30pm. They went to the front desk to see what time their excursion was. They were told to be out front by 7:30am and there would be a shuttle there to pick them up and bring them to the ferry that would bring them to Alcatraz.

The next morning they were up at 6am. They ordered room service and while waiting for that they both took a quick shower, well as quick as one could take while making love in the shower. They were downstairs and out front by 7:20am and the shuttle was already there so they got on and they were told that they were waiting on 6 more people. They were on the ferry by 8am and on their way to Alcatraz they were told that there would be three ferries' leaving to come back to the mainland at noon, 2 and 4pm.

They were in a group with a guide but they were told they could go off and do their own thing. They stayed with the guide for 2 hours then they headed off to do their own exploring. Chloe said she could feel something in some of the cells they were in. She believed in the supernatural and believed that there ghosts that still stayed behind for reasons they would never know.

They took the 2pm ferry back to the mainland. They enjoyed their time on the small rock but were ready to leave it. They were sitting outside watching them leave the rock and the sun was actually out and the sun on the Golden Gate Bridge made the bridge look absolutely beautiful. Chloe got out her camera and started taking pictures. When they got back on solid ground they got a cab and told the driver that they wanted to go to Lombard Street. They paid the driver and got out. They walked down the street while taking pictures. When they were done there they made their way over to Chinatown. They went to a little shop and got them some noodles for a quick late lunch.

They got back to their room around 8pm. They showered and got dressed to go out for a few hours of dancing.

The next morning they checked out around 7am. They were going to take their time driving home along the coast. When they finally did arrive home it was around 3:30am. They went straight up to their room and stripped out of their clothes and fell onto the bed and didn't wake up until 11am that morning. When they did get up the dressed in their swim suites and were going to the beach to do some surfing. When they got there they saw Izzy. Izzy told them that her and Gabe were off at 3p, and wanted to know if they wanted to have a little cookout. Chloe said that sounded nice and Izzy said that was good since she and Gabe bought steak tips, burgers and Chinese sausage and some chips this weekend hoping that they would be home in time for the "last" cookout of the summer. Izzy told them they would be home by 4pm and would start cooking when they got there and she and Adrian were to do nothing but just sit and relax. Izzy said bye and went back to work. Adrian found them a spot to put their things down; they grabbed their board and enjoyed their afternoon of surfing.

Adrian and Chloe arrived home around 4:30pm. Gabe and Izzy had set the table out by the pool and also had out chips and dip to munch on while the steak tips and burgers were on the grill. When the food was ready they all sat down and talked about the trip to San Francisco. Izzy told Chloe that she heard her song on the radio all weekend long and people were calling in asking who Chloe was and wanting to hear her song again. After they were finished with their meal Izzy went into the house to grab dessert which was a cheesecake. Chloe told Izzy not to worry about cleaning up that she would take care of it. Izzy thanked her and then she and Gabe excused themselves and said they were going to go in and get ready for school tomorrow.

The next morning Chloe was woken to her phone ringing. When she answered it it was Troy telling her that her song was the most requested song over the long weekend. He told her to come in tomorrow and record some more songs, they want to try and have her CD released by the end of October and he also set up a bunch of small clubs that she will be performing in around Los Angeles starting September 30th.

The weeks passed and Chloe finished her CD. Adrian did the cover art for her CD. Gabe had settled into school and both he and Izzy were doing fine so far.

The record company released a second song to see how it would do and like the first one this one did great too. On Friday September 30, Adrian and Chloe drove to the club that she would be performing in. The club only held about 200 people but Chloe was feeling very jittery but Adrian told her she would be great and he would be here supporting her. When it was time to go on stage she was surprised to see that it was almost a full house. She sang for over an hour then thanked everyone for coming and told them she would be signing autographs if anybody wanted one. Adrian gave her a big hug and told her she was fantastic. Her and Adrian went out to get ready to sign autographs and she was surprised yet again how many people were already in line.

For the next few months a couple of days a week Chloe had the same routine, sing and sign autographs and every time the lines to meet her were always bigger than the last one.

Adrian finished his paintings and his agent sent them to Paris for his showing and he also did a painting for Andie that he was going to give her on Thanksgiving when they were going there for dinner along with Andie's parents.

Thanksgiving morning everybody got into Adrian's car and made the trip to Gabe's home. Andie greeted everyone when they got there and gave everyone hug and thanked them for coming. Gabe gave his grandparents a hug and said he missed them. They lived in Boston so they didn't get to see them very much. Andie then introduced her everyone else to her parents, Michael and Linda.

After all the introductions were over Gabe asked his mother if dad was coming. She sighed and said no, she decided to tell Gabe the truth about them separating. After Andie was done telling Gabe, he gave his mother a hug and said he knew something was up she asked him if he was made at her for not telling him sooner. He said he wasn't but he did notice how much happier she has been since dad wasn't around. Andie hugged Gabe and said he was happier. Gabe grabbed hold of his mother's hand and walked back into the living room where the rest of his family was.

The meal was great and everyone enjoyed each other's company. After they had dessert, Adrian excused himself and went out to the car to bring in Andie's picture. Adrian handed Andie her picture and she started crying. It was a picture of her and a younger Gabe in a garden full of different flowers of many different colors. Andie hugged Adrian and said she absolutely loved it.

When it was time to go Gabe told his mother and grandparents that he and Izzy would be back tomorrow to spend the weekend with them and they would be here early so breakfast best are ready.

On the way home Adrian received a call from his mother asking if they wanted to stop by but Adrian was trying to come up with an excuse so he said they were still at Andie's. She then asked him if they could stop by tomorrow, he didn't' see how he was going to get out of this so he said the four of them would be by later for a little while. After he hung up he apologized to everyone and said they were all going to his parents for a while and there was no way in hell that he was going alone. Chloe grabbed his hand and said it was ok and he would never have to face them alone ever again if he didn't want to.

When they got there they were brought into the living room. Max was there and he got up to greet Gabe. Gabe told his father he knew about the split, then he said hello to his grandparents. Ellen got up to hug Adrian then say hello to Chloe and Izzy.

They stayed for an hour then left and the visit wasn't as bad as Adrian thought it would be. His father only talked to Max and Gabe but his mother made Chloe and Izzy feel welcome.

When they got home Gabe said he and Izzy would be leaving very early in the morning and wouldn't be back until sometime Sunday late afternoon.

After Gabe and Izzy went to their rooms Adrian asked Chloe if she would like to join him in the hot tub, she nodded so they went upstairs to put on their swim suites.

Friday morning they got up early to do some black Friday shopping. They needed clothes for their Europe trip. They got new clothes for their week in Paris and their week in London. They also did their Christmas shopping for Izzy and Gabe. Chloe told Adrian that she didn't want anything for Christmas; just being with him was a gift in itself.

When they got home around noon, Adrian called a masseuse to come to the house and pamper him and Chloe for the next 2 hours and when that was done he and Chloe made love for the rest of the day. They only got out of bed when they were hungry and needed to refuel.