Chapter 17:
The Next Morning.
Chloe groaned, and pulled her covers over her face, as warm rays of the sun beat harshly against her swollen face. At least night she'd been able to have a good cry. But now she was just so tired. Well, it was Saturday morning, no rush to get up. If it weren't for her phone ringing then she'd have happily gone back to sleep and pretend the last two months were a horrible nightmare. "Hello," she slurred into the phone.
"Hi. Chloe?"
Chloe's eyes snapped open. "Brady? Why are you calling?"
"I just had to tell you Chloe. I've been trying to get this out for so long."
"Get what out? What is it?" She felt her heart rate speed up and her stomach flutter.
"I love you, Chloe. I'm in love with you."
She felt herself tear up a bit. "Say it again, Brady. Please?"
Brady chuckled. "I Riiiiiinnnnnngggg. Riiiiiinnnnnnggggg."
"Huh?"
The sound of Chloe's phone ripped her out of her sleep. "Dammit," she muttered. "Dammit. It was a dream." She blew out a calming breath as the phone continued to ring. "It just felt so real," she murmured as she reached for her ringing phone. "Hello?"
"Hey Chloe, you okay?" Belle's soft voice on the other end of the phone line was warm and sympathetic.
"Belle, I'm fine," she dragged herself out of bed and walked to the bathroom to wash her face. "How did you know?"
"How did I know what happened?"
"Yeah," she lathered up a washcloth and gently began scrubbing away at the dark smudges of mascara caked on her cheeks.
"Brady called me. Told me it was over. He just said that you two were never really married. He explained about the judge and everything but."
"Is that all he said?" Chloe held her breath. She didn't know why but some place in her heart hoped he'd said more, like admitted his undying love for her to his sister. As if.
"Pretty much, Chloe. What happened between you two? He won't talk to me. You haven't called me."
"It's true. We aren't married, never were. The certificate is not valid."
"Yeah, he explained all that but whether you guys were married or not, I thought that you two were getting closer."
"Yeah well, I thought so too. But he rejected me-"
"You're kidding."
"I kid not, Belle." She squeezed a glob of toothpaste on her electric toothbrush. "He doesn't want me Belle. And I'm not going to fawn and swoon over some guy who's just not worth it. No offense since he's your brother and everything."
"None taken but Chloe.this just doesn't add up. Shawn said-"
"Look I don't care what Shawn said and thinks or what you say or think. I don't want to discuss Brady with you. I don't want to hear about him." She had to blow out a calming breath, as she felt her anger rising and the tears begin to sting her eyes. "Or talk about him, or think about him, okay?"
"Okay." Belle could tell Chloe was on the verge on tears.
"I'm sorry," Chloe wiped her face as tears began to course down her cheeks. Dammit, why couldn't she stop crying? She was certain Brady hadn't shed a tear over this, so 'Toughen up, Chloe,' she told herself.
"No, honey, it's okay. From now on we don't mention my brother at all. What do you say we go to lunch, hmm? That might cheer you up. We could go shopping, maybe hit the spa."
"No thanks. I'm not really in the mood. I think I'll just stay in today. and tonight." She added "tonight" too in case Belle got any ideas.
"Okay," Belle sighed sadly, twirling the phone cord around her fingers.
"Bye Belle."
"Bye Chlo," Belle hung up the phone and stared at it. She wanted to throw it out of her bedroom window, Brady and Chloe were [i]that[/i] frustrating. First, Brady had called her early this morning, wanting to explain what had happened and give her the news that he was taking a little vacation. Belle could understand that her brother might need a break. I mean he'd come straight here from the very busy New York branch of Basic Black and completely taken over the Salem offices with relative ease. That was a feat within itself. Furthermore, he'd also landed several accounts pretty easily that even his father might have had a hard time winning. But this was NOT why Brady was leaving. He was running away. Belle knew he was running away, because he was hurt. She didn't know how though, because he wouldn't explain. And hell, now Chloe didn't even want his name mentioned around her. Belle groaned. She knew, knew for a fact, that her best friend and her brother were in love.
"Don't," Shawn stared at his wife and gave her a wink, as he leaned against the doorjamb of their bedroom.
"Don't what?" She gave him a quizzical look.
"Don't interfere. You've done enough interfering in Brady and Chloe's lives in the past. Let them work this out themselves."
"I don't know if they can Shawn," she walked over to him and laid her head on his chest, wrapping her arms around his waist.
"Look, Brady's going away for a few weeks, right?" He kissed the top of her head.
"Right."
"Well I bet you.twenty bucks that he comes back early or Chloe goes after him. They'll miss each other too much Belle."
"I hope you're right, Shawn."
*************************
Brady heard the knock on his old bedroom door at his parent's penthouse and knew it was time. "This is for the best," he sighed before welcoming John and Marlena.
"You ready to go, kid?" John raised an eyebrow at his son.
"Yep," he held up his suitcase and they descended the penthouse steps.
"Are you sure about this Brady?" Marlena cocked her head to the side, giving him a look of quiet concern. "Running away is not the best-"
"I'm not running away," he smiled to soften the coarseness of his tone. He didn't want to take his anger out on anybody, especially his family. "I'm just going back to New York for a couple of weeks. I just need to clear my head. I'll be back before you know it. Just in time for Shawn and Belle's anniversary party."
John followed them out of the door and to the elevators. "You sure you don't want to take the jet?"
"I'm sure dad," Brady chuckled. "The drive will be good for me. It'll force me not to get shamelessly drunk and play Russian roulette with my semiautomatic."
"Where did you get a semiautomatic weapon?"
"Dad! No, I'm kidding. Relax." Brady laughed. "I'll be fine. And I'll be back before you know it." They hugged and said their goodbyes as the elevator doors closed. Brady frowned as he walked over to his waiting rental car and packed his suitcase inside the trunk. He hoped these few weeks away from Salem would put that happy go lucky bachelor spring back in his step, and help him forget about Chloe. He certainly hoped that whole thing about absence making the heart grow fonder was false. Flipping on the radio and vowing to put one Chloe Lane Wesley out of his mind, he drove off in the direction from whence he came a little over two months ago.
***********************
One week later. The Java Café.
Resting her head against the palm of her hand, Chloe sat, swirling her iced tea with her straw. She'd had an awful week. First she'd heard through the infamous Salem grapevine that Brady hightailed it out of town for a few weeks, leaving her the shoulder the brunt of curious questions from nosy Salemites, who were shocked to learn Brady and Chloe had anything less than a happy marriage. Brady. She couldn't stop thinking about him. Everything reminded her of him. And she must have watched 'Tootsie' twenty times this past week alone. Who was she kidding? She missed him. And when Brady got back from New York, if he only wanted friendship from her, she'd gladly give that to him, she missed him that much. She wasn't angry any longer. She was just sad. She missed her friend. Because that's what Brady was and had been: a friend, and a great one at that. She realized she had been so angry that last morning she spoke to him that she hadn't given him a chance to explain. So what if she was in love with him and he didn't feel the same way. Why was that his fault? He'd stopped them from making love to each other because he knew it would be wrong. She'd have expected something more from him and he wouldn't have been able to give her that. She should be thanking him. But, God did it still hurt.
"Chloe," Philip sat across from her table. "You wanted to meet me?" He gave her an expectant grin, hoping that she was here to say that she finally wanted to be with him again.
"Yes," she took his hand in her own. "I wanted to tell you that I forgive you."
"Oh Chloe," he picked up her hand and kissed it softly. "Thank you, thank you."
She nodded and gave him a small smile, pulling her hand from his grasp. "I just don't want you to get the wrong idea."
"What do you mean?"
"Well, we aren't together, Philip. Do you understand that I do forgive you, but that that is it? I don't want to be involved with you any longer. I just want to make it clear now, if I haven't made it clear enough in the past. So no more sending me any gifts, no more calling me at all hours of the night, no more thinking that somehow we're ever going to be together." She said her words with deliberate slowness, hoping to get through to him once and for all.
"Does this have anything to do with Brady?"
"I can say with absolute certainty that it doesn't. I'm doing this because I don't love you Philip, not in the way a woman loves a man. And I don't want to lead you on or give you any false hope."
"Okay. Okay I know. I screwed up."
"Philip," she smiled warmly at him. "We weren't right for each other. I know that now."
"Because of Brady." he added, knowingly.
"Because of Brady." She gave him a sheepish smile.
"You love him." He couldn't help but frown, feeling as if he'd lost first prize to his undeserving nephew.
"I don't think that's any of your business." She wasn't going to deny it, but she sure as hell wasn't going to announce it to the world, especially to her ex-fiancé.
"Okay."
"Okay?" She questioned him, wondering if he truly understood her.
"Okay." He stood to leave. "Look, I'm not wishing you guys luck or anything, because there is no way I like the idea of my ex-fiancée and my nephew together-"
Chloe rolled her eyes. "Philip-"
"I'm just saying, Chloe, be careful with him. He may end up hurting you."
"Like you?"
He grimaced, realizing she was right. "Like me."
"Good bye Philip."
**************************
New York.
While the setting sun settled behind some feathery clouds in the horizon, Brady looked out over the ocean as the Staten Island ferry headed back to the city. Gripping the rail with steady hands, he closed his eyes and breathed in the salty air, letting flecks of water spray against and tickle his nose. 'Chloe would love this,' he thought. Chloe. He'd thought about her a lot lately. Hell, he hadn't stopped thinking about her. Even the noise and distractions of New York City hadn't helped. All the noise in the world couldn't keep Chloe from invading his thoughts. As he stared out upon the intense, swirling blue water, he couldn't help but think of that song: 'She's a brick and I'm drowning slowly, off the coast and I'm headed nowhere.' That was him. "Chloe's my brick," he murmured to himself. He almost laughed at how pathetic he sounded. Oh well, who was he kidding? He was never going to stop thinking about her. Dammit, he was going back to Salem tonight. So he was a week early, so what? He had to see her. Even if she slammed her door in his face, just to know she still existed would satisfy him. Because here, among all these people, amongst all this noise, he had never felt so alone in his entire life.
The Next Morning.
Chloe groaned, and pulled her covers over her face, as warm rays of the sun beat harshly against her swollen face. At least night she'd been able to have a good cry. But now she was just so tired. Well, it was Saturday morning, no rush to get up. If it weren't for her phone ringing then she'd have happily gone back to sleep and pretend the last two months were a horrible nightmare. "Hello," she slurred into the phone.
"Hi. Chloe?"
Chloe's eyes snapped open. "Brady? Why are you calling?"
"I just had to tell you Chloe. I've been trying to get this out for so long."
"Get what out? What is it?" She felt her heart rate speed up and her stomach flutter.
"I love you, Chloe. I'm in love with you."
She felt herself tear up a bit. "Say it again, Brady. Please?"
Brady chuckled. "I Riiiiiinnnnnngggg. Riiiiiinnnnnnggggg."
"Huh?"
The sound of Chloe's phone ripped her out of her sleep. "Dammit," she muttered. "Dammit. It was a dream." She blew out a calming breath as the phone continued to ring. "It just felt so real," she murmured as she reached for her ringing phone. "Hello?"
"Hey Chloe, you okay?" Belle's soft voice on the other end of the phone line was warm and sympathetic.
"Belle, I'm fine," she dragged herself out of bed and walked to the bathroom to wash her face. "How did you know?"
"How did I know what happened?"
"Yeah," she lathered up a washcloth and gently began scrubbing away at the dark smudges of mascara caked on her cheeks.
"Brady called me. Told me it was over. He just said that you two were never really married. He explained about the judge and everything but."
"Is that all he said?" Chloe held her breath. She didn't know why but some place in her heart hoped he'd said more, like admitted his undying love for her to his sister. As if.
"Pretty much, Chloe. What happened between you two? He won't talk to me. You haven't called me."
"It's true. We aren't married, never were. The certificate is not valid."
"Yeah, he explained all that but whether you guys were married or not, I thought that you two were getting closer."
"Yeah well, I thought so too. But he rejected me-"
"You're kidding."
"I kid not, Belle." She squeezed a glob of toothpaste on her electric toothbrush. "He doesn't want me Belle. And I'm not going to fawn and swoon over some guy who's just not worth it. No offense since he's your brother and everything."
"None taken but Chloe.this just doesn't add up. Shawn said-"
"Look I don't care what Shawn said and thinks or what you say or think. I don't want to discuss Brady with you. I don't want to hear about him." She had to blow out a calming breath, as she felt her anger rising and the tears begin to sting her eyes. "Or talk about him, or think about him, okay?"
"Okay." Belle could tell Chloe was on the verge on tears.
"I'm sorry," Chloe wiped her face as tears began to course down her cheeks. Dammit, why couldn't she stop crying? She was certain Brady hadn't shed a tear over this, so 'Toughen up, Chloe,' she told herself.
"No, honey, it's okay. From now on we don't mention my brother at all. What do you say we go to lunch, hmm? That might cheer you up. We could go shopping, maybe hit the spa."
"No thanks. I'm not really in the mood. I think I'll just stay in today. and tonight." She added "tonight" too in case Belle got any ideas.
"Okay," Belle sighed sadly, twirling the phone cord around her fingers.
"Bye Belle."
"Bye Chlo," Belle hung up the phone and stared at it. She wanted to throw it out of her bedroom window, Brady and Chloe were [i]that[/i] frustrating. First, Brady had called her early this morning, wanting to explain what had happened and give her the news that he was taking a little vacation. Belle could understand that her brother might need a break. I mean he'd come straight here from the very busy New York branch of Basic Black and completely taken over the Salem offices with relative ease. That was a feat within itself. Furthermore, he'd also landed several accounts pretty easily that even his father might have had a hard time winning. But this was NOT why Brady was leaving. He was running away. Belle knew he was running away, because he was hurt. She didn't know how though, because he wouldn't explain. And hell, now Chloe didn't even want his name mentioned around her. Belle groaned. She knew, knew for a fact, that her best friend and her brother were in love.
"Don't," Shawn stared at his wife and gave her a wink, as he leaned against the doorjamb of their bedroom.
"Don't what?" She gave him a quizzical look.
"Don't interfere. You've done enough interfering in Brady and Chloe's lives in the past. Let them work this out themselves."
"I don't know if they can Shawn," she walked over to him and laid her head on his chest, wrapping her arms around his waist.
"Look, Brady's going away for a few weeks, right?" He kissed the top of her head.
"Right."
"Well I bet you.twenty bucks that he comes back early or Chloe goes after him. They'll miss each other too much Belle."
"I hope you're right, Shawn."
*************************
Brady heard the knock on his old bedroom door at his parent's penthouse and knew it was time. "This is for the best," he sighed before welcoming John and Marlena.
"You ready to go, kid?" John raised an eyebrow at his son.
"Yep," he held up his suitcase and they descended the penthouse steps.
"Are you sure about this Brady?" Marlena cocked her head to the side, giving him a look of quiet concern. "Running away is not the best-"
"I'm not running away," he smiled to soften the coarseness of his tone. He didn't want to take his anger out on anybody, especially his family. "I'm just going back to New York for a couple of weeks. I just need to clear my head. I'll be back before you know it. Just in time for Shawn and Belle's anniversary party."
John followed them out of the door and to the elevators. "You sure you don't want to take the jet?"
"I'm sure dad," Brady chuckled. "The drive will be good for me. It'll force me not to get shamelessly drunk and play Russian roulette with my semiautomatic."
"Where did you get a semiautomatic weapon?"
"Dad! No, I'm kidding. Relax." Brady laughed. "I'll be fine. And I'll be back before you know it." They hugged and said their goodbyes as the elevator doors closed. Brady frowned as he walked over to his waiting rental car and packed his suitcase inside the trunk. He hoped these few weeks away from Salem would put that happy go lucky bachelor spring back in his step, and help him forget about Chloe. He certainly hoped that whole thing about absence making the heart grow fonder was false. Flipping on the radio and vowing to put one Chloe Lane Wesley out of his mind, he drove off in the direction from whence he came a little over two months ago.
***********************
One week later. The Java Café.
Resting her head against the palm of her hand, Chloe sat, swirling her iced tea with her straw. She'd had an awful week. First she'd heard through the infamous Salem grapevine that Brady hightailed it out of town for a few weeks, leaving her the shoulder the brunt of curious questions from nosy Salemites, who were shocked to learn Brady and Chloe had anything less than a happy marriage. Brady. She couldn't stop thinking about him. Everything reminded her of him. And she must have watched 'Tootsie' twenty times this past week alone. Who was she kidding? She missed him. And when Brady got back from New York, if he only wanted friendship from her, she'd gladly give that to him, she missed him that much. She wasn't angry any longer. She was just sad. She missed her friend. Because that's what Brady was and had been: a friend, and a great one at that. She realized she had been so angry that last morning she spoke to him that she hadn't given him a chance to explain. So what if she was in love with him and he didn't feel the same way. Why was that his fault? He'd stopped them from making love to each other because he knew it would be wrong. She'd have expected something more from him and he wouldn't have been able to give her that. She should be thanking him. But, God did it still hurt.
"Chloe," Philip sat across from her table. "You wanted to meet me?" He gave her an expectant grin, hoping that she was here to say that she finally wanted to be with him again.
"Yes," she took his hand in her own. "I wanted to tell you that I forgive you."
"Oh Chloe," he picked up her hand and kissed it softly. "Thank you, thank you."
She nodded and gave him a small smile, pulling her hand from his grasp. "I just don't want you to get the wrong idea."
"What do you mean?"
"Well, we aren't together, Philip. Do you understand that I do forgive you, but that that is it? I don't want to be involved with you any longer. I just want to make it clear now, if I haven't made it clear enough in the past. So no more sending me any gifts, no more calling me at all hours of the night, no more thinking that somehow we're ever going to be together." She said her words with deliberate slowness, hoping to get through to him once and for all.
"Does this have anything to do with Brady?"
"I can say with absolute certainty that it doesn't. I'm doing this because I don't love you Philip, not in the way a woman loves a man. And I don't want to lead you on or give you any false hope."
"Okay. Okay I know. I screwed up."
"Philip," she smiled warmly at him. "We weren't right for each other. I know that now."
"Because of Brady." he added, knowingly.
"Because of Brady." She gave him a sheepish smile.
"You love him." He couldn't help but frown, feeling as if he'd lost first prize to his undeserving nephew.
"I don't think that's any of your business." She wasn't going to deny it, but she sure as hell wasn't going to announce it to the world, especially to her ex-fiancé.
"Okay."
"Okay?" She questioned him, wondering if he truly understood her.
"Okay." He stood to leave. "Look, I'm not wishing you guys luck or anything, because there is no way I like the idea of my ex-fiancée and my nephew together-"
Chloe rolled her eyes. "Philip-"
"I'm just saying, Chloe, be careful with him. He may end up hurting you."
"Like you?"
He grimaced, realizing she was right. "Like me."
"Good bye Philip."
**************************
New York.
While the setting sun settled behind some feathery clouds in the horizon, Brady looked out over the ocean as the Staten Island ferry headed back to the city. Gripping the rail with steady hands, he closed his eyes and breathed in the salty air, letting flecks of water spray against and tickle his nose. 'Chloe would love this,' he thought. Chloe. He'd thought about her a lot lately. Hell, he hadn't stopped thinking about her. Even the noise and distractions of New York City hadn't helped. All the noise in the world couldn't keep Chloe from invading his thoughts. As he stared out upon the intense, swirling blue water, he couldn't help but think of that song: 'She's a brick and I'm drowning slowly, off the coast and I'm headed nowhere.' That was him. "Chloe's my brick," he murmured to himself. He almost laughed at how pathetic he sounded. Oh well, who was he kidding? He was never going to stop thinking about her. Dammit, he was going back to Salem tonight. So he was a week early, so what? He had to see her. Even if she slammed her door in his face, just to know she still existed would satisfy him. Because here, among all these people, amongst all this noise, he had never felt so alone in his entire life.