Ooh I forgot to Disclaim: I disclaim!!!!

Chapter 2: Problems

Chloe came down the stairs and into the living room, her hair loose. She exchanged her white t-shirt for a tight black sweater. "Where's Brady," she questioned Nancy and Craig as they worked to get the green peas off of Craig's shirt with a wet washcloth.

"Changing Noah in the bathroom still. Me thinks young Noah is giving his father a hard time." Nancy joked as she scrubbed her husband's shirt.

"Here we are," said Brady as he strolled into the living room and to the foyer where Chloe was standing getting her purse and Noah's diaper bag ready. "Clean and smelling good, aren't you kid?"

"Mama," Noah cried as he reached out to pull his mother's hair from his place in his father's arms.

"No, Noah, don't pull Mommy's hair. Not nice." Chloe pointed a finger at him, smiled and resumed her task.

"Yeah Noah," Brady scolded. "No pulling mommy's hair okay?" He laughed as he tickled the child's belly sending the boy into a fit of laughter.

Craig grinned at the family in the foyer and whispered to Nancy. "You know I will never get sick of hearing those two speak baby talk. I think it's incredibly surreal."

"You said it." Nancy agreed. "I never imagined my daughter with a family but just look at them."

"Alright," Chloe broke into their conversation. "We'll be out. I have no idea where yet because Brady hasn't told me but I'll call."

"No need to honey. You're twenty-five, married with a child. We trust you." Craig began to usher the young family out the door. "Besides, before you know it, you and Brady will be back together again and you won't be calling this home anymore."

Chloe spoke over her shoulder. "Not likely Craig."

Brady gave his father-in-law a disapproving look after Chloe walked outside. "Seriously, Craig, it's over. Please don't make this any harder than it is."

"Sure Brady." he patted the young man's back reassuringly.

"For some reason, I think my plea to you went in one ear and out the other."

"Something like that. Have a great time kids," he waved. And with a kick of the door, "Don't come back."

"Brady, where are we going," Chloe whined as they pulled out of the Wesley driveway and proceeded down the street.

"Well, we don't have to meet Belle for another three hours so I figured we'd just go for a drive."

"Go for a drive?"

"Yes, and maybe go someplace special."

"Where?"

"It's a surprise."

"I hate surprises."

"Liar, you love them."

"Where are we going Brady?"

Noah began squealing. "Ahhh," Brady plugged one of his ears with a finger. "Saved by the squeal."

Chloe maneuvered in her seat to be able to turn to get a good look at her son in the back strapped in his car seat. "What is it sweetie?"

"Buh buh," the child answered while flailing his arms about as the tears flowed from his large eyes.

"Music? You want music?" she cooed to her son. "Brady," she tried to speak above the child's cries. "I left all of his tapes in my car."

"Not all of them. I have a few still. Check in the glove compartment."

Soon enough, the child's sobs ceased as 'Old McDonald' streamed through the speakers of the jeep, Brady and Chloe singing along.

As the trio walked through the park on this lazy Friday afternoon, Brady slowed as they came upon a lake. The body of water glistened as the sun beat golden rays upon the rippling surface.

Chloe watched as he took a seat on shallow embankment of the lake, put down a metal box to his left, and set Noah down to his right. Chloe couldn't help but smile at the picturesque scene but decided to play irritated instead. "What are we going swimming?"

Brady glanced at Chloe over his shoulder, a look of disgust written on his face. "In this water? Are you nuts? No way."

"Well, what is that basket? Are we having a picnic?'

He made a noise like a buzzer. "Wrong again. And this is no basket, my dear. It's what is called a tackle box."

"Fishing. We're going finishing. Brady, you no nothing about fishing."

"I do too. I used to fish when I was younger.sort of. And I think if we start Noah off really early, he'll be a pro before he turns ten. I never kept it up so consequently I forgot a few things and hence went to my local 'Barnes and Noble' and purchased this." He held up a copy of 'Fishing for Dummies' causing Chloe to burst into laughter.

The Blacks' ran into the Brady Pub, soaking wet from the downpour of rain that soaked the city. They spotted Shawn and very pregnant Belle Brady in one of the booths in the back.

Chloe sighed and took a seat, her two men in tow. "Well, we made it."

"Chloe," Belle squealed and reached over the table to hug her best friend.

"You look great Belle."

Brady agreed as he kissed his sisters cheek. "Yeah, you look gorgeous Belle. You're glowing."

Shawn huffed. "And what am I chop liver?"

Brady sloppily kissed his brother-in-laws cheek. "You look ravishing too sweetie." The group erupted into laughter as Shawn wiped the slobber from his cheek.

"So," Belle started. "I'm surprised to see you and Noah here Chloe. Did you and Brady finally come to your senses and kiss and make-up?"

"Nope," Chloe sighed as she glared at her husband. "No such thing has or ever will occur. Brady came by the house this morning and took Noah and me to the park. We were there to fish but Brady remembered everything but the fishing rods. So, like the nuts they are, Brady and his son went wading and tried to catch fish with their hands and of course were unsuccessful. Then, like I predicted this morning, it started raining and we made a mad dash for the Jeep and here we sit."

Shawn blew out a breath, a look of amazement on his face. "Eventful morning."

Brady frowned at his wife. "You could say that. Only thing is, is that Chloe is leaving out parts. Like the fact that she had a great time and kept checking out my ass when I bent down to catch the fish."

Chloe squinted her eyes at her hubby. "You are insufferable."

"And you, my diva, are altogether mean-spirited and vindictive and a party pooper through and through." He quickly kissed her nose. "We're perfect for each other."

"So," Shawn started as he wiped excess Guiness foam (a type of Irish drink if you don't know) from his lips. "You and Chloe don't look over to me."

Brady took a chug of root beer, coughing slightly as the drink's tiny bubbles left a slight burn in his throat. "Ahhhh, but that's where you're wrong. Chloe and I may not look over but in fact we are. We just can't live together anymore. Like, she does this one thing where she leaves her make-up all over the bathroom sink. It drives me crazy. She's got like ten make-up bags and none are being put to use."

Shawn gave Brady a 'yeah-right-and-my-butt-glows-in-the-dark' look. "Yeah right Brady. Belle does the same thing. Women are pigs, so what?"

Brady caved. "She says I work too much."

"You do work a lot."

"I'm president of a Fortune 500 company Shawn with offices in New York, L.A. and Miami. Success comes with work. And well, Chloe has her opera career that she's very successful at, but she hasn't been working since she had Noah a year and a half ago. And needless to say, she's gotten restless. She wants to get back to work and I say 'go ahead.' I think it's great that she wants to go back to work."

"Well, what's the problem then?"

"Well, she insists on staying home with Noah if I won't stay home with him. I told her there's a little thing called 'daycare.' She says she doesn't want strangers raising her child. I told her she and I were, for the most part, raised by strangers and that we turned out okay. But when she proceeded to throw a book at my head, I figured she was a little upset."

"What do you mean? Chloe wanted you to be a sort of Mr. Mom or something?"

"Strangely put but yeah.exactly. And, don't get me wrong, there's nothing in the world I'd rather do than raise my son but I have Basic Black too and ever since my father gave her to me, well she's been sort of a baby for me also. I can't see myself giving her up."

"Well, Brady. I think you have to make a decision. Which do you love more? Your work or your family?"

"No, I disagree Shawn. I think what Chloe and I both have to ask ourselves is: 'Why can't we have both? Why should we have to choose between the two?"

Chloe watched her husband and Shawn over Belle's shoulder as Belle rattled on about the rising price of lettuce. She sighed as she thought about her and Brady's marriage. All five years of it, for the most part, had been glorious. They had never doubted their love for each other these past five years and didn't now. But 'love' was not the problem. It was never the problem. As far as Chloe was concerned, Brady was the problem. Why couldn't he understand that she needed to work and he needed to stay home? Opera was something she cared about so deeply and ever since she'd had Noah, she'd felt like she lost a part of herself when it came to what made her who she was. It's not to say that she didn't gain so much more by giving birth and raising the product of her and Brady's love. But why couldn't she work like Brady did? Chloe sighed knowing that Brady had no problem with her working and traveling, something an opera singer was expected to do. But he had insisted that he keep his job at Basic Black's Salem office and that Noah attend daycare. Daycare. Chloe shuddered at the thought of a stranger putting their hands on their child. She and Brady had grown up with strangers having shaped a good part of their lives. Chloe in foster care and Brady away at boarding school for years and the end result was commitment phobia and self-doubt. She wouldn't allow that to happen to their son. She just wouldn't allow it.

"Chloe, are you thinking about my brother again?"

Chloe sighed and tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear. "No.yes.maybe."

Belle blew out a breath. "Why not just make up already? Everyone, and I mean everyone, knows that this split is only temporary but it's been three months and I think you're beginning to worry people."

"Good. They should be worried because Brady and I are through."

" I don't believe that."

"Well, believe it, because it's true. We just can't get along anymore."

"What? What do you mean? So you fight every now and then. That's normal."

"Every now and then may be normal but with me and Brady it's every five minutes. Everything we say to each other leads to a fight. We just irritate each other. Like for instance, I walk into the bathroom and there's always this thing with the toilet."

"So Brady leaves the toilet seat up. So? Shawn does it all the time. Men are pigs."

"Not only does he leave the toilet seat up but I'm thinking his aim isn't so good either. I'm constantly having to Lysol( the lower side of the counter by the toilet because he can't seem to get all his pee in one place."

Belle scrunched up her face and laughed. "I guess he's as bad as Noah, huh?"

"Well, Noah's not toilet trained yet but I'd hate for his father to lead by example." Chloe groaned as Noah spit out the grapefruit juice she tried to feed him in his highchair. "Noah, this is good for you, you need to drink this honey."

Brady and Shawn rejoined the women at the table. "Ah, but Noah's developing his sense of taste, in both senses of the word, and he realizes that grapefruit juice equals bad and that root beer equals good." He gave the child a bit of soda and Noah spit that out too. "Well, the child still has a ways to go I guess."

"So, Chloe," Shawn began. "Are you going to the dinner party with Brady at Dimiera's tonight?"

"Yes, I am going but not with Brady."

Brady was shocked. "You got an invitation too?"

"Yes, why are you so shocked?"

"I don't know. I'm thinking this dinner party just got a whole lot more interesting. Well, what do you say we go together?"

"I don't think so."

"Why not? Chloe, it'd be fun. It'd be like old times. Remember Lexie's party? Only this time we're married, and consequently, this time don't have to pretend we hate each other's guts. All married couple's really do hate each other's guts."

Belle broke in. "Shawn and I don't. We love each other just as much, if not more than we have before." The two proceeded to kiss and nibble.

Brady scoffed. "You're a rarity, a once in a lifetime, exception, uncommon occurrence."

Chloe agreed. "Yeah and it'll change. Kids change everything."

Brady glanced at Chloe with that remark and locked gazes with her. His eyes intense he continued as he held a hand out to her. "Come on Chloe. Just you and me. Let's do it. Let's find each other again."

Chloe eyes filled with just as much passion and hope. No, they couldn't solve all of their problems in one night, but maybe, just maybe, they could find their way back to each other. They needed this. She sighed and gave his hand a firm shake. "Did I ever tell you how much I absolutely hate you?"

Brady laughed. "Millions of times actually. Well, we've got five hours before show time and I need to get home and get pretty for my wife."

They all laughed and Chloe shook her head and smiled.

Belle grinned. "Tonight's going to be so awesome."