A/N: Did I ever tell you all that I'm a kinda insane Yankees fan? Well - I am. Hence the reason Quinn played for them. Also the reason for the reference in this chapter. Just thought I'd mention it so you can understand. LOL! Ok – NOW – a lot is happening in this chapter. Hope you can keep up!!! :) Most importantly - Grant and Chloe are almost there – YAY!! Until 18! xox-G
Chapter Seventeen
"Rafe." Alison said with a smile as she tried to twist from his arms. "I just came up here to get something for Abby. We don't have time...let me go."
"In a minute." He replied. "Come on. Please?" His lips caressed her cheek and he held her tighter.
"I..." Alison sighed as his mouth covered hers. "Rafe – we have people downstairs."
"They won't miss us." He said with a grin. He leaned down to kiss her again.
"I think you're mistaken." She replied as she returned his kiss. She leaned back in his arms and ran a hand over his cheek, staring into his eyes. "Oh God Rafe, you're killing me. This is crazy. I don't want to go. I'd much rather stay here." She giggled as she kissed him again. "I'm sorry...I hate to break it to you but if you want me alone you're going to have to take me away someplace."
Smiling widely Rafe grabbed her hand and tugged her. "Let's go."
"Rafe..." Alison laughed as she fell into his arms again. She kissed him quickly and moved towards the door. "I'll tell you what. You figure this out. Take me away. Wherever you want me to go, I promise I'll be there."
"Of course you'll be there." Rafe replied with a laugh, already making plans as he watched her go. "You don't have a choice."
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Chloe stood on the front porch of the house, with Becky's gift clutched in her hand. She was trying to get up the nerve to go to the door. She couldn't even believe she was here in the first place but Becky had asked her and she couldn't say no. It had been a year since she had set foot inside. She suddenly remembered how it had been years ago – that time she'd come to Becky's party before she and Grant had admitted to each other how they felt. It was worse now. Back then she didn't know what she was missing. Now she knew exactly what she had lost.
Alison walked down the stairs and caught sight of Chloe through the front window. She could see she was reluctant to come in. Her heart went out to her. Quietly, she opened the door and stepped outside.
"Chloe? Honey? Come inside." Alison said softly. "We've been waiting for you."
At the sound of her voice Chloe jumped a bit. "Mrs. Kovich. Hi." She replied, sounding far away. "I was just..." Chloe looked down at her feet as she continued. "I wasn't sure I was welcome."
"What?" Alison's voice was shocked. She walked towards Chloe and placed a hand on her arm. "Sweetheart – you know you're always welcome here."
Chloe shook her head. "I wasn't sure. I thought you might be angry with me. I hurt your son..."
"You love my son." Alison corrected her with a voice full of kindness.
Chloe blinked back tears and went to sit on the steps. She was so tired of crying – she was tired of being sad. She was tired of hiding how she felt about Grant –she was tired of hiding how she felt about everything.
"Yes I do." She whispered.
Alison fought tears of her own as she moved to sit down next to her. "I know you do. Chloe. I know this year has been so difficult for you. I know how much you miss your mom. I miss her too." Alison said with a smile. "She was an amazing person."
"She was the best." Chloe replied, smiling a bit herself.
Alison took Chloe's hand and gave it a squeeze. "She was. And you and I both know she would want you to be happy. Chloe - you're clearly not happy now."
"I know." Chloe said with a sigh. "I haven't been happy since..."
Alison could see that Chloe had pretty much stopped fighting the inevitable. Still, she wanted to make her say it. "Since when?" She prodded.
Chloe looked up into Alison's eyes. Her voice was soft but strong as she spoke. "Since the day I asked Grant to leave."
At least she was admitting it, finally. Alison thought this day would never come. "So what does that tell you?" Alison nudged.
She looked over at Alison and tried to keep her voice steady. "That he makes me happy." Chloe wiped the tears from her cheeks. "That I can't live without him. That I was a fool to even think that I should try." She let go of Alison's hand and moved away, the floorboards of the porch squeaking as she walked. "I know all of that now but it's no use. I'm too late. I waited too long."
Alison stood and faced Chloe, her face breaking out into a smile. "I wouldn't be so sure of that."
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Quinn stood at the edge of the yard – his gaze falling on Billie again. No matter how hard he tried, he always seemed to find himself looking at her. She looked happy today, a little skittish but she seemed a little less tense to him. The breeze ruffled through her hair, the sun glinting off the reddish gold highlights he'd just noticed she had. Taking a sip of his beer in an effort to gain some courage, he decided to go over and try to apologize. He put down the bottle and before he could take a step he felt a slap to the back of his head.
"Ouch! What the hell?!?" He whirled around and saw what had hit him. "Geez, Lia. What's the matter with you?
"What the hell's the matter with you – you jackass!?!" Lia spat at him. "You can run but you should know by now you can't hide from me. What imbecile told you you could write anyway?"
"That imbecile would be me, Julia." Cameron replied from behind her. "Listen to me. Don't cause a scene. Calm yourself down will you?"
Lia's eyes were on fire. She turned and shook her head at him defiantly. "I won't. The two of you should be ashamed of yourselves - hurting Billie like that. She's had enough heartache to last her forever and what do you do? You kick her when she's down."
"That wasn't our intention." Cam said with a sigh.
"I know that, Dad." She said, her voice lowering a bit. "I bet you warned him but he didn't listen – did he? I'm telling you something, Superstar here better get a hold of himself." She turned to face her brother and glared at him. "You fix this or I promise you – I'll start rooting for the Red Sox."
Quinn stared at her in disbelief. "You wouldn't dare." He gasped.
"Try me." She promised as she shoved him. Lia was about to say something else when she saw someone approaching. Her face softened and her eyes filled with tears. "Danny." She sighed as she ran towards him.
"God. That man's a saint." Cam chuckled to his son as he watched Lia throw herself into Danny's arms.
"Definitely." Quinn laughed back. Though he was smiling his mind was spinning - trying to figure out how to make things better.
Cam noticed the change come over Quinn. He followed Quinn's gaze and fought a smile. Cam wondered if he even realized how he looked at the girl he had slandered in his article. Lia had started but Cam knew he needed to add his two cents. His voice got serious as he all but ordered him. "Do what she says, though – Quinn. Apologize to Billie. You obviously got your facts wrong there. It'll be tough but you can do it. Use your column – do what you have to but fix it."
Quinn nodded. It suddenly became the most important thing to him that he does just that. He gazed across the lawn at Billie again as he replied. "I promise. I will."
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"Are you going to hide in here all afternoon?" Rafe asked as he walked into the kitchen.
"No." Grant replied his voice distracted. His eyes were glued to Chloe. He watched closely through the window and saw his mother was leading her around the side of the house to the backyard. He was struck speechless. As usual, Chloe looked absolutely amazing. He almost lost his breath just looking at her.
"Could've fooled me." Rafe said with a sigh. "Grant. You can't avoid her forever."
"That's not what I'm doing." Grant insisted lifting his beer to his lips and taking a long sip. Four more of these and maybe he'd be able to numb himself he thought with a sigh.
"OK." Rafe nodded. "Listen to me. I don't mind filling in for you every once and a while. You deserve some time off. God knows you work harder than anyone – but the gym is your responsibility now."
"I know." Grant said softly regarding the empty bottle in his hand. He walked over to the refrigerator to snag another.
Rafe took a deep breath and decided to meddle. It wasn't his strong point – but he was sure his wife would approve. It was obvious his son needed a bit of a push. "Let me ask you a question. Have you stopped loving her?"
He didn't need to explain who he was talking about. For Grant – there had never been anyone but Chloe. "No." Grant admitted, his voice broken.
"Do you still want a life with her?" Rafe asked then.
"Yes." Grant replied, unable to lie.
"Has she told you she still loves you?"
"Yes." Grant whispered, still staring through the window.
Rafe smiled as he finished. "Then don't let your fear stop you."
"Who said I'm scared?" Grant said, trying to sound casual about it all.
"I do. You must be terrified - because I know if you weren't you'd be out there dragging her away with you right now." Rafe laughed.
"Dragging her?" In spite of it all Grant grinned back at his father. "Is that how you finally got Mom?"
"Actually – it's not far from the truth." Rafe replied with a smile, remembering the times he'd done just that. "I know Chloe hurt you Grant but deep down you must realize that she didn't mean to. I've spent the last two days with her and I can tell you – she's beside herself. She doesn't say much but it's clear she's constantly thinking about how to make this right. She can't see the solution but the rest of us can. There's only one thing that will make her happy."
Grant didn't speak – he knew what was coming next.
Rafe's voice got quiet as he put an arm around his son's shoulders. "That thing is you – Grant. Trust me. Everyone around you can see it and if you stop lying to yourself – you'll know it's true. Do yourself a favor. Go to her. Make her listen. Don't let her push you away again."
He wanted nothing more – but Grant wasn't quite sure he could do it. If she pushed him away again it would kill him. He turned to his father and admitted, "Dad. I want to – but I don't think I can. It's too hard."
The poor kid was so tortured. It was about time they put an end to this. Rafe stared into Grant's eyes as he asked, "I know it won't be easy. Nothing in life worth having is. Tell me something. Isn't it harder to stay away from her?" He shivered as he remembered a time long ago. "Believe me - I know what it's like. I remember a time where your mother made me stay away. It absolutely killed me to be so close and not be able to be near her or hold her. There were times when I thought I would go crazy. I knew it was temporary and I got through it – though just barely. But what about you? Can you handle that? Chloe'll be at the gym with you every day. Will you be able to deal with that or are you prepared to fire her?"
His son shook his head. "No. I won't fire her. She's an amazing teacher." Grant replied. "She's amazing..." He whispered as he put down his beer and took a deep breath.
Rafe could see his son's mind was made up. He gave him a final push. "Then go out there now and talk to her, Grant. It's not going to get any easier until you do."
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"Oh look. Danny's here." Lynnie grinned as she watched her sister give him a kiss. "Lia didn't think he'd be able to make it."
Ethan smiled and leaned in to place his lips on hers. "You can't fool me. You saw this didn't you? You knew he was going to show up."
"I did not." She replied as she kissed him back. Ethan glared at her. "Ok. Maybe I did."
Billie sat back in her chair and watched them, jealousy creeping up and taking hold before she even knew what was happening. Lynnie and Ethan spoke in a kind of code – she could see they were two people so in tune with each other that words were barely necessary. Some people were so lucky, she said to herself. As she did she fought to push her own dreams away. Don't starting wishing now. It won't happen, Billie. You have to keep remembering that you aren't one of them.
Trying to distract herself she glanced at the people around her. It wasn't any use. Everywhere she looked there were couples. Nearby, Kate sat curled up with Colin – who barely left her side for more than a moment. She watched as Lia and Danny made their way over towards them hand in hand. It was amazing to see. Even their parent's seemed like newlyweds. Billie watched Kate's mom's face light up when her husband walked into the backyard. Lia and Lynnie's parents were giggling like kids in high school as they teased and joked with each other by the grill.
She saw Quinn turn his head as her gaze fell upon him. It was obvious he was avoiding her. Good. She thought to herself. I'm glad he got the message. It's so much less complicated this way.
Now that she'd surveyed the yard, Billie realized the only one who looked even close to as unhappy as her was Chloe. She stood nearby, fidgeting back and forth nervously, looking like a deer caught in headlights. Her heart went out to her it occurred to her she'd never seen anyone look so lonely.
Suddenly as Billie watched - it looked like that might be about to change. Her eyebrows went up as she saw Grant striding towards Chloe. She was startled as she saw him grab Chloe's hand and pull her to face him.
Chloe whirled around and staggered backwards a bit. Her heart began to pound.
"I need to talk to you." Grant whispered, his eyes looking intently into hers.
"Grant –" Chloe gasped thrown completely off guard. She looked down at their joined hands and then back to his face. "What are you doing?"
He didn't answer her question. "We can do this here – or you can come with me – your choice." He continued his voice deadly serious.
Billie wasn't the only one who noticed the scene unfolding. Becky glanced over towards them and grinned widely. She turned to Maggie and sighed. "Oh my God, Mags look at that! I think I'm going to get my birthday wish."
Alison's face lit up as she watched them together. She turned towards Rafe and noticed he didn't seem at all surprised. "What did you say to him?" She asked with a grin.
"Hmm?" Rafe tried to sound casual.
She eyed him suspiciously. "Rafe. Did you tell him to talk to her?"
"Maybe." Rafe laughed.
Alison's mouth fell open in shock. "You meddled? Rafe Kovich - he who always tells me to butt out – meddled in his son's love life???"
"They belong together." Rafe shrugged. "I just thought he needed a push."
Tears filled her eyes as she realized that if everything went the way she predicted, soon her son would be happy again. And her husband – unbelievably - was partially responsible. She knew she shouldn't be surprised. "I love you." Alison said as she leaned up to kiss him.
"I love you too." Rafe replied as he kissed her back.
Meanwhile across the yard, Chloe seemed paralyzed. She couldn't move an inch. Her heart was hopeful but she'd never seen him so determined. This was either really good news or something she was sure she didn't want to hear. She was too scared at the moment to find out which of her thoughts was the right one.
"Grant. Maybe we could do this later. I – I – I'm not sure this is the right time or place to have a talk."
"We're going to talk now. If you don't want to talk here - we'll go somewhere else." Grant suggested. It was clear he wasn't going to take no for an answer.
"It's your sister's birthday. I-I-I haven't been able to give her her gift yet." Chloe protested.
Grant wouldn't be swayed. His fear about all of this vanished in an instant. He'd finally made up his mind and nothing was going to stop him. "She'll get over it. I'm not asking you anymore Chloe – I'm telling you. Let's go." He glared at her as he tugged at her hand.
She tugged back, embarrassed. She could suddenly feel every eye in the yard on her. "Grant – please. Don't make a scene." She begged.
"Come with me now, Chloe. I promise you. I'm not letting you push me away anymore." He tugged on her hand more forcefully this time.
"Grant – please." She whispered again, digging in her heels and holding her ground.
He dropped her hand and gritted his teeth at her. "That's it. I warned you."
Before she realized what was happening, he bent down, curling his arm around her waist and throwing her over his shoulder. As he did, everyone around them laughed. Chloe was too mortified to find her voice to protest as he carried her out of the yard.
As she watched her son, Alison glared at her husband. "Rafe." She scolded. "Did you tell him to do that too?"
"Well. Not exactly." Rafe replied with a laugh. "But I guess it's true what they say. Like father – like son."
