Chapter Eleven

(At Chloe's house.)

Chloe quickly threw her long dark hair into a bun and padded down the stairs in her bare feet. She walked into the kitchen and made one more last minute check for tonight's festivities.

"Let's see... Popcorn, chips, soda... A gallon of ice cream. And a 5 mile run to burn off all the calories."

Chloe laughed at herself and shrugged. She tried to stay fit and healthy, but her penchant for junk food often made her forget all about that. Thankfully, she had invited Brady over, and nobody in the world could pile the food in like he could. He usually ate much faster than she would, leaving less for Chloe to consume, and saving her from overstuffing herself.

The doorbell rang loudly through the empty house and nearly startled Chloe. She checked the clock on the microwave and groaned in frustration. Leave it to Brady to always be 10 minutes early. It's not like he was overly conscientious about arriving on time to places normally. Chloe just figured he did it to aggravate her, the same way he was always rushing his usually tardy sister just to get on her nerves.

Chloe smoothed her t-shirt down and headed towards the front door. She didn't even have to look through the peep hole before opening the door, something inside always told her when it was Brady at the door.

She whipped open the door and nearly fell on her butt in shock. Brady was standing on her front porch wearing a black tuxedo, and a smile. Chloe could feel her breath taken away when she looked at him. He was always handsome to her, no matter what he was wearing, but something about the way he looked tonight and the sparkle of his blue eyes made the butterflies in her stomachs turn into birds.

Chloe blinked rapidly in succession, trying to snap herself out of a state of shock. "Brady... Aren't you kind of overdressed for a movie night at home?"

Brady grinned mischievously at her and shrugged. "Well, I kind of made other plans. You and I are going to have a night on the town. We're going somewhere nice."

"What? Why? Why do I feel like I'm walking into the middle of a play and I don't know my lines?"

"Listen... It's not like I have anything against a quiet night watching movies. But, I don't want to do that tonight. I wanted to take my best friend out, so I planned something really special for us. Besides, we haven't celebrated yet."

Chloe's eyebrows pursed together in confusion. "Celebrated what?"

"Your acceptance to Juilliard, of course. You've worked so hard for it, Chloe, and you deserve a little celebration."

Chloe smiled proudly, but still kept a look of confusion planted firmly in place. "But what if I don't feel like going out?"

Brady shrugged nonchalantly. "I'm not telling you what you have to do. I'm just asking you. If you'd rather stay here and do what you had planned, then we will. But, if you choose that, you won't know what you'll be missing."

Chloe nodded and then motioned towards her outfit. She was wearing a pair of old jeans, and a slightly worn grey t-shirt. "So, you think we should go out like this? You in your tux, and me dressed like a slob?"

"Sure. Why not?"

"Because, I look awful. I'm not wearing any makeup, my hair is a mess and my clothes certainly aren't up to your standards."

Brady smiled and placed his hands on her elbows, his blue eyes staring right down into her soul. "Chloe... You look beautiful right now, just as you are. You don't need all that makeup, or a fancy hairstyle, or expensive clothes. You are beautiful every second of the day, inside and out."

Chloe smiled bashfully and felt her cheeks flush red. She tried to avert her eyes away from Brady's, but the beauty of his eyes kept her glued to one spot. "Thank you, Brady. That's really sweet... But, we'd still look really ridiculous going out together like this."

"Ah, say no more. Just stay right where you are." Brady winked at her and jogged towards his jeep, leaving Chloe standing in the foyer to wait.

Chloe couldn't figure out what he was up to, but she didn't care. Whatever roller coaster ride of life Brady Black was on, she was determined to follow it through with him. Brady returned from his jeep and handed her a black garment bag. Chloe held the bag in her hands and stared at it as if it was something alien.

"What's this?"

"It's something for you to wear tonight. Don't worry, Belle helped me pick it out, so it should fit and she said you'd like it. She knows women's clothing better than I do."

Chloe looked up at him, still completely stunned. "You bought me a dress?"

Brady nodded proudly. "You need something to wear, so I thought I'd help out. There are also a pair of shoes in there that Belle picked out."

"I don't even know what to say, Brady. This is such a surprise."

"You don't have to say anything. In fact, we don't have time for you to say anything. You need to go upstairs, get yourself dressed and hurry up."

Chloe smiled and her entire face lit up. She impulsively wrapped her arms Brady and kissed him on the cheek. "Whatever you're doing for me tonight... Thank you. In case I forget to tell you later."

Brady nodded and let her slip away from his arms slowly. "You're welcome. Now, get going."

Chloe nodded and ran up the stairs in a hurry. Brady had been planning something special for her, and Belle had known about it and kept it secret. No wonder Belle had been pushing her to share her feelings with Brady tonight. She had known that tonight was going to be about more than just junk food and videos, that tonight would be special.

Chloe laid the garment bag on her bed and unzipped it anxiously. Her heart nearly exploded in her chest when she saw the dress that Brady had bought for her. Belle had told him about the dress. In fact, she had probably asked Chloe to come on the shopping trip with Mimi just to find out what kind of dress Chloe might have her eye on. Chloe pulled the dress out of the bag and sighed softly. It was the same sparkly blue dress that Chloe had been transfixed by just a few days earlier, and now it was hers. Not only that, she now had a reason to wear it.

She pulled the shoes out next and laid them beside the dress. Chloe was surprised that Belle and Brady had been able to find a pair of strappy heels that were the exact same color as the dress, and in Chloe's usual size eight.

Chloe went to the mirror and pulled her hair out of it's disheveled bun. Normally, she would spend a long time curling and arranging her hair, but Brady had said to hurry. So, she brushed all of the tangles out until it was smooth and healthy looking. She grabbed a couple of clips that sparkled like the glitter on the dress and used them to pin the sides away from her face.

Her makeup seemed to be done in record time. Brady had always told her that he preferred it when she wore very little makeup or none at all, so Chloe only put on the bare minimum. She wanted to make sure that the makeup worked with the dress, but she had also wanted to please Brady.

Chloe quickly undressed and slid her new dress on, struggling to zip it on her own. She finally pulled the zipper up and stood in front of her full length mirror to admire herself. The dress seemed to fit her in all of the right places, accentuating her curves and taking the emphasis off all of the places that Chloe was less than fond of. She wasn't sure how it happened, but rarely did a dress fit this well without first making alterations.

Chloe grinned at her reflection and slipped the matching shoes on her feet. She nearly laughed out loud when they fit her feet perfectly. "How very Cinderella..."

She stared at her reflection, proud of how well she had done with such limited time to prepare. Chloe smiled at herself, wondering if tonight was the night the glass slipper would fit for this Cinderella. She was trying not to get her hopes up, but she secretly wondered if there was more to this than just celebrating her acceptance into Juilliard. She knew that Brady was her prince, but would he take her in his arms tonight and make her his princess?

Chloe rolled her eyes at her own reflection and laughed loudly. "Yeah, right. Don't be silly."

She quickly sprayed on a little bit of her favorite perfume and then headed out of the bedroom door. Brady had been sitting in her living room, but when he heard the click of her heels on the stairs, he quickly moved to the foyer to meet her.

Chloe attempted to saunter gracefully down her stairs as she often saw women in movies do. She was doing fine until she hit the last two steps and fell forward, right into Brady's waiting arms. Chloe groaned in frustration and stabled herself, but Brady would not let go of her. He kept his strong arms wrapped tightly around her waist and grinned wickedly at her.

"Nice move, Diva."

Chloe rolled her eyes in frustration. "I was trying to act cool as I made my grand entrance. Wouldn't it figure that I'd crash and burn?"

"You don't need a grand entrance to impress me. You look..." Brady paused and gently brushed a stray strand of hair off her face. He let his hand linger on her cheek for a moment and then slowly let his fingers slide away. Chloe could see something different in his eyes, but couldn't decipher whether it was love, admiration or something else. "You look amazing... so beautiful... perfect."

Chloe smiled shyly and looked downward, hoping he wouldn't notice her cheeks flushing red with embarrassment. "Brady Black... You are the biggest kiss-ass I have ever met."

Brady laughed out loud. He placed one index finger on her chin and gently forced her to look back up at him. "Well, thank you. But, that's not what I'm doing here. I just... I am out of words to describe to you how beautiful you look tonight. And, that's a fact."

"Thank you..." Chloe smiled in appreciation and attempted to move out of Brady's embrace, but he held on tightly. He remained quietly staring into her eyes, and Chloe silently wondered if he could hear her heart pounding away in her chest. She tried to break the moment, knowing that if they stood here much longer like this, she would melt into a puddle all over Nancy's new rug. "Brady... You don't look so bad yourself, but you still didn't shave."

Brady grinned and let go of her waist. He rubbed his chin with his right hand and winked at Chloe. "What? You don't like the scruffy look? I thought chicks dig it when guys are a little rough around the edges."

Chloe laughed and shook her head. "No wonder you're still single. You have no idea what women want."

Brady frowned and his eyes pleaded with her. "Oh come on, you mean it's not even the least bit sexy? Brad Pitt gets away with not even brushing his hair half the time, and I can't get away with this? Come on..."

Chloe rolled her eyes. She didn't want to admit to him that she really did love his unshaven look. Chloe was never one to let Brady win an argument, no matter what. "Let's face it, Brady, you're no Brad Pitt."

Brady's expression turned into a mixture of shock and insult. "That is so mean, Chloe. Here I am trying to give you a great evening out, and you want to insult me."

Chloe laughed and it nearly turned into a wicked cackle. "I'm sorry, Brady. You're right. And if it makes you feel better... You are far more handsome than Brad Pitt could ever possibly imagine being. He only wishes he looked like you on one of your BAD days."

"Oh, well, now you're just mocking me... Aren't you?"

Chloe shook her head and her grinned softened into a sincere smile. She had never been one to heap adoration on celebrities, and she could certainly never imagine some actor being a more wonderful person than Brady Black. No other person, inside or out, could measure up to what Brady was to her.

"I'm not mocking you. I mean it. Your outer beauty, which is plentiful, is only exceeded by the beauty of your heart. And that is the sincere and honest truth. So believe it, because you know that you and I never lie to each other."

Brady smiled sweetly and nodded. "Thank you. So, are you ready to go?"

Chloe nodded and Brady took her by the hand and led her towards the door. "I'm definitely anxious to see what else you have up your sleeve tonight."

Brady raised one eyebrow and grinned devilishly. "Are you afraid?"

Chloe grinned back at him and paused in her thoughts. Being around Brady had always made her feel many things; happy, content, excited and cared for. But, never afraid. He was the only person in this world that she felt truly safe with, and tonight was no exception.

She squeezed his hand reassuringly and shook her head. "Never. Not with you."

Brady smiled contentedly and led her out to the porch, closing the door behind them. He held on to her hand all the way to the jeep, and opened the door for her without saying a word. As she waited in the passenger seat for Brady to get in, Chloe could feel something different in the air. Something that told her that her whole life was about to change in just one evening.

***