Thanks for your reviews EC Brenway and good to have you back Kelly!

EC - Elly is a bit of a lost puppy ain't she? Chloe a Charlie's Angel going on a secret meeting? You never know! It is more realistic that she's meeting up with a friend, family member or Hendrix - but do I do realistic lol?

Kelly - Glad you're looking forward to what Chloe's hiding from pierce! Always a good time!

The Chemistry In Darkness

Chapter Twenty-One

Friday 22nd November 2024

Ten minutes later, Elly slowed her car down and pulled it over to park in a free bay that she was lucky enough was there before where Chloe's Uber was parked so she didn't have to overtake the car and risk Chloe seeing her.

Elly's car was five cars down from where Chloe was getting out of the Uber. Elly watched the blonde from afar as she walked across the road from her to a shopping strip.

"Well, at least I wasn't lying to Karl when I said I was going to the shops," Elly mumbled to herself.

Elly lowered her eyes when she saw Chloe turn towards a hairdresser's shop and was greeted at the door by a man whom immediately brought Chloe into a hug on the footpath in front of the shop.

"Oh…kay…not what I was expecting at all…" Elly sighed, "Chloe looks cosy with him…well…not that kinda cosy cause I hope I'm not making assumptions but my first impression of this guy is that he's…okay yep he's gay…he just checked out the guy walking past them…okay I guess he could still be bisexual like Chloe…my instincts suggest he's gay."

Why is Chloe hiding the fact she's taken an Uber to a hairdresser's and is somewhat close to the guy who…I guess is her hairdresser or runs the place…? I'm missing something here…

Elly continued watching as the guy wrapped his arm around Chloe's shoulders and led her inside the shop.

Well, this was a total waste of time and I feel like an absolute fool for following Chloe when all she's doing is getting her hair done…but why would Chloe feel the need to hide that from Pierce? Does Pierce not want his wife to have her hair done by a guy whom I very much assume after seeing him for a few seconds at a distance is a gay man?

That doesn't make any sense… If Pierce was ever worried Chloe would want to be with anyone else in the world, then a gay man is the exact person Pierce should feel the least threatened by… Am I just reading too much into this? Maybe Chloe wants to surprise Pierce with a new do?

I should go home and pop over to Chloe's after she's picked up Mark and Aaron's kids to see if I can convince her to come to dinner tonight and check out her new do then…

Although I did manage to get Karl to take Aster for a little while so it wouldn't hurt if I stayed here for a little while to make sure Chloe's fine…ugh you're such a stalker and this is not the way to go about treating your mate…when did you even come to start referring to Chloe as your mate?

Nearly two hours later, Elly was still sitting in her car, the window down, letting the cool air in but she was frustrated as anything, "What the hell am I still doing here? Did Chloe slip out the back door of this place and left another way? You need to go home to Aster and stop making excuses to Karl as to why you need him to keep looking after your daughter!"

As Elly placed her key in the ignition, she grumbled, "Oh, now Chloe finishes up at the hairdressers…damn she's so beautiful…seriously that leather jacket she's wearing is something else! You need to stop thinking and saying things like… Wait, what exactly did Chloe get done to her hair that took nearly two hours? She looks the same as when she went into the hairdressers…"

As Chloe stood out on the street, typing on her phone, Elly assumed ordering an Uber to take her back home or to the school to pick up the kids, Elly continued staring at the blonde. Elly's eyes slowly adjusted to being able to see more than your average human being.

A trim? Chloe was in the hairdresser's for nearly two hours to have a centimetre or less cut from her hair? I know Pierce is a billionaire and Chloe could afford to go to the most expensive hairdresser's in the city but there's no way this place is it nor anyone would wait that long for a trim… Plus, hiding a visit to the hairdresser's from Pierce…something is going on with Chloe…and I need to find out what…

Several hours later, Elly bounded back up the steps to #24 with Aster in tow. Knocking on the front door, Elly grinned as Chloe opened the front door.

"Hey, you! Any chance Aster and I can talk you into joining us for dinner at your brothers place?" Elly asked pleadingly.

"Please, Chloe, we'd have lots of fun with you there tonight!" Aster smiled up at the blonde, keen for Chloe to spend as much time with her mum as she could hoping Elly would find happiness as she completely believed Chloe was Elly's mate and they needed to be together for the rest of their lives.

"Hey, girls," Chloe greeted them, "Pierce should be home from the hotel soon. He always aims to get home early on Fridays to start off the weekend well. I would love to but I should really spend the evening at home. You have plenty to catch up on with Mark, Aaron, David and especially Paige, Elly, you haven't seen her since she left Erinsborough. You don't need me there."

"Please, Chloe," Aster begged simply once more.

Elly ran her hand through Aster's hair, "Pierce…can join us too when he gets home if he wants. Your brothers would love to see you. I'd love to spend more time with you and let's face it…can you really say no to this cute little nearly 4-year-old face?"

Wow am I desperate to spend more time with Chloe…I just invited Pierce to join us!

Elly's just being polite inviting Pierce to come with us…what is it about Elly that is making me want to spend all the time in the world with her that I can…? Yet I don't know if I can…

Chloe stared down at Aster and the look on the little girl's face that was pleading with her to join them, "I suppose since it's such an early dinner I could maybe go for a bit."

"Yeah?" Elly was almost surprised she had managed to twist Chloe's arm to come with them yet was silently concerned that Chloe was so hesitant to come with them.

Why is Chloe so hesitant to come to dinner with me to her brothers' place? Is it because it's spending time with me? That Chloe feels this pull to me because she's my mate except she doesn't understand it and is trying to fight it because she doesn't want to leave Pierce? Or has Chloe become so co-dependent on Pierce that spending a meal away from him isn't something she likes doing? Or has something happened between Chloe and her brothers that has strained their relationship? I've been away for so many years, Hendrix refuses to talk to Pierce anymore…anything could've happened between Chloe, Mark and Aaron…

"Just for a bit," Chloe repeated, then glanced behind her back into the house before turning back to them, "I had dinners prepared for Pierce and I that I was going to heat up later tonight…I'll just have a drink at Aaron's, I'm not hungry yet for dinner. Pierce doesn't like me wasting the food our chef makes us anyway."

"Okay, sounds good," Elly shrugged, unable to hide her excitement at Chloe agreeing to spend more time with her.

"I'll just leave Pierce a note about where I am and let him know to come over to Aaron's when he gets home if he wants," Chloe decided then wandered back inside the house to do so.

Aster grinned up at her mum, "Chloe wants to spend time with you, Mama. She likes you."

"Shush it with those types of things my lil girl," Elly replied calmly, "We're just friends who hang out with one another. I don't need to remind you that Chloe's married and as long as she is nothing will ever happen between us."

"Mmm hmm," Aster giggled her disbelief.

"We all ready to go?" Chloe asked as she reappeared holding her handbag, phone and keys.

Elly smiled over at Chloe, "Let's do this."

A few moments later, Elly knocked on the front door of the house across the street from Chloe's place. Aaron answered the door, smiling brightly, "Come in, come in. Gosh it's really good to see you, Elly. I know we bumped into each other the other day but it's still kinda incredible to see you alive and well. And this must be Aster, you, lil girl, look exactly like your mum!"

Elly nudged Chloe who was standing beside her, "And guess who I talked into joining us."

"Chloe," Aaron nodded at his younger sister, "It's been a couple weeks, you doing well?"

A couple weeks? What is going on with the siblings?

"Yeah, sorry about that, Pierce has been busy the last few weeks so we haven't had a chance to come over to see you guys," Chloe apologized.

Since when does Chloe need to wait for Pierce to be free to go spend time with her brothers?

"Good to see ya, sis," Aaron greeted warmly.

Elly smiled over at Chloe as the pair of them led Aster into the house as Aaron stepped aside.

Why can't I have this? Chloe and I being together and bringing my daughter over for meals with her family cause the three of us are a family too? You haven't even been back here a week and you're wanting Chloe to be part of your family…could Chloe ever feel the same? If she's my mate, then will she feel the need to be with me too…and act on it?

When Elly walked into the familiar living room of the Brenaka's house, she was almost immediately beset upon by Mark, David and Paige. Elly was surprised the most by Mark's reaction to her being back seeing as though he was her ex-husband whom she'd cheated on twice including with his sister, Chloe, and then having a child with her other extra-marital cheating incident. But it seemed like the years that had gone by had given Mark a new lease on life.

As Mark hugged her, Elly was glad that he genuinely seemed happy to see she was alive and well. Paige, Elly's friend she hadn't seen in years before she was last in Erinsborough as Paige had moved to the Gold Coast to live with family and the father of her first child, Gabe, before obviously finding a way to reunite with her ex-boyfriend, Mark, marry him and have their own child together. Elly was excited to see her again after so long and was glad the feeling was mutual.

David hadn't changed in the years Elly had been gone, Elly immediately noticed as she gave him a quick hug.

After Elly had quickly caught up with the three of them plus Aaron to let them know she and Aster were both doing well back at home and that the past few years away from everyone was now behind them, Elly silently watched as Mark seemed just as surprised as Aaron to see his sister.

As Elly knelt down next to Aster, introducing her daughter to everyone, she watched as Mark walked over to Chloe, giving her a quick hug.

Elly's hearing was soon split between her own conversation with Aster, Aaron, Paige and David, whilst she was capable of following Chloe's conversation with Mark too. It had taken her several years to master the ability to do so but she'd been successful eventually to being able to listen to two conversations at once.

"It's good to see you, Chlo," Mark greeted, "Where's Pierce?"

"Still at work, I left him a note that I'm here if he wants to join us when he gets home. I won't stay for dinner as I have our meals at home waiting for me but Elly talked me into coming over for a drink at least. And Aster, that lil girl could talk me into just about anything," Chloe enthused.

That's my girl! Can Aster talk you into accepting that you may just be the love of my life and nothing in the world could keep us apart?

Mark seemed surprised, "I don't think I've seen you without Pierce hanging off your arm the entire year I've been back here. It's good to see you have a mind of your own for once and for that I'm glad Elly's back if she's the only one who could talk you into spending time with your family."

Elly narrowed her eyes at Mark's words, then also at Chloe's, "I do have my own mind, Mark. You wouldn't understand. Elly being back has nothing to do with me spending time with my brothers. Do you want me here or not?"

What is going on with the siblings for Chloe to be this disconnected with her brothers?

"Of course, I do, Chlo. I just wish it hadn't taken Elly to get you to spend time with us and you would've come over here without Pierce hanging off your arm months ago," Mark whispered.

"Me too," Chloe admitted back quietly.

Elly's attention was quickly brought back to her own conversation with everyone else when Paige smiled as her own daughter walked down the hallway from her bedroom and the two women were soon introducing the two young girls to one another.

Rose quickly latched onto Aster, dragging her down the hallway to meet Gabe, Felix and Daniel.

With Chloe swapping to chat to David and Paige, Elly let her be to sidle up to Mark who offered her a drink.

"Thanks for getting Chloe to come over here," Mark said quietly.

"What is going on between Chloe and you guys? I know I've been away for years and things change but the Brennan siblings have always been close, not even Chloe and I broke you guys apart forever. Why are you and Aaron so disconnected with your sister?" Elly asked directly.

Mark chewed on his lip as he stared at Chloe across the room, "You really want to know?"

"Yeah, I do," Elly answered quickly.

Mark shrugged, "Pierce controls every aspect of Chloe's life, she refuses to see it let alone accept it and Aaron and I are done trying to tell Chloe that she deserves better."

Am I that someone better? Even if I am…how does Chloe see that if Pierce is as controlling of Chloe's life that her siblings have given up trying to help her? Without losing control of myself because if Pierce is as controlling as what Mark says...so much for nothing in the world being able to keep Chloe and I apart if I want to kill Pierce for how he treats the woman I love...

Next time - Elly makes a promise to Mark about Chloe. How does Pierce react when he finds her spending time with her family and Elly?

And will I answer what was going on with Chloe's visit to the hairdressers?