by Cee, DW
“It’s all true. The lack of dating, the lack of men in her life, and the ultimate truth—her husband adores her.”
“He does more than adore her. He worships her.”
Emily’s lips curled up once again. “All the men in our family are good to their women.”
“You have any single Reids left for me?” I lamented.
“The key to finding the right man is being the right woman, Chloe. It’s not as complicated as you might think. If you’re willing to open yourself up to being happy and possibly a little sad, love will find you.”
“In the meanwhile, do Jake, Donovan, or Max have brothers?”
“One, none, and two,” Emily answered. “Say the word and I’ll introduce you to all three.”
“I’m going to show up on your doorstep one day, Emily Reid,” I threatened.
“You’d be very welcomed, Chloe Darcy,” she promised.
I lost two men in New York but found three in LA. Not a bad trade-off, I’d say.
Michael: Asking Friends
After a few minor comments/offenses, I’d lost a friend again. Women, I tell you…too damn complicated! Especially, this woman sitting in front of me, across the kitchen island. By the outfit and the sweaty head, she appeared to have done something I’d never seen her do in all my life. She exercised! I guess Chloe was serious about losing a stone or two, not that she needed to, in my opinion.
Right now, Chloe had a cup of coffee in her hand, her tablet in the other hand, and she’d not uttered a sound. I went about fixing us something to eat—to which she happily partook—but without words. DAMN! How to fix this problem…
Ding dong. Ding dong. Fantastic. There was ammunition.
“Hello, Chloe Darcy. How did you fare last night after we lost you?” Brendan waltzed in confidently. Chloe’s body language spoke volumes when Brendan leaned in to kiss her and she turned her body away from him. Regardless, he wouldn’t be defeated. He kissed the back of her sweaty head as consolation. “I see you found your way back to the apartment. What did you do with yourself? I don’t know if Michael’s apologized yet, but I did try and call you last night. Did you listen to my apology? It’s on your voicemail just in case your phone was turned off or the battery went dead.”
Asshole totally threw me under the bus. With a smug grin, he took Chloe’s phone, opened up her voicemail, and had her listen to his message. When Chloe could care less what the hell was on the message, I returned the self-satisfied look.
“What time is our meeting at ABC Carpet and Home?” I asked this question knowing she couldn’t stay mute.
Instead of answering, she opened up her calendar on her iPad and left the kitchen. DAMN! and DOUBLE DAMN!!
“Shit, she’s mad!” Brendan whistled.
“You think?” I questioned with heavy sarcasm. “What the hell was that? You threw me to the wolves to be eaten alive.”
“Sorry, Your Grace.” Brendan joined with his share of sarcasm. “What do we do about her?” As if he needed to tilt his head in the direction Chloe walked.
“Who the hell knows? I’m not the one dating her.” Thoroughly annoyed, I went about the business of cleaning up.
“Yeah, but you’ll be the one hanging out with her all day today. I need to get to work and then I have a client dinner. I thought I might take her to dinner with me, but forget it! The clients will bail before dinner is served.”
“You’re leaving me with her? What am I supposed to do with her moods?”
“I don’t know. If you figure it out, clue me in.” Asshole drank the rest of Chloe’s coffee, that I brewed just the way she liked, and stood up to leave. “Good-bye, Your Grace.” Just to annoy me even further, he added that honorific gesture.
“Shut up and get your ass to work, Commoner.” I gave as good as I got.
Brendan laughed. “Where’s Chloe’s room?”
“Why?” I asked too suspiciously, possessively.
Brendan had a funny, undecipherable look. “Because I want to say good-bye. I can’t just disappear; I’d be in deeper shit with her.”
“Last room to your right. Knock first. She doesn’t like it when you barge in on her.”
That look was still there. He shook his head with a slightly exasperated expression and walked away.
“Chloe?” I heard the smooth whisper. “Can I come in? Work is calling me and I’d like to see you one last time.”
She must have agreed because he waltzed in with no problem. While I slaved away in the kitchen, putting everything to right, I heard giggles from both parties within minutes. What the hell?! I’d turned into their housekeeper while they played house.
No sooner was I upset than Brendan strutted into the kitchen and waved a smug good-bye. “We’re all good. Enjoy your day.”
“Wait!” I stalled his gait toward the door.
“Yes?” Babe-magnet Brendan O had such a satisfied look, I wanted to smack it off him.
“You going to clue me in?”
“How can I possibly school a future duke? All I can say is that she wasn’t as upset, with me at least, as I thought. I’m late. See ya.”
Asshole rushed out the door and left me to fend for myself. Whatever. I didn’t need that babe-magnet’s help. There were others I could turn to in these desperate times.
“Emily?” I breathed a sigh a relief when she finally answered the door. I guess with three kids, it’s not easy to move around.
“Mikey!” The little princess greeted me. “Come in.”
“Elizabeth,” her mom warned. “He’s Mr. Bennington to you.”
“OK, Momma.” She grabbed my hand and whispered loudly, “You wanna play with my brothers and me, Mikey?” As Elizabeth Reid giggled to my newfound name “Mikey,” it finally dawned on me. I would never, ever, ever outsmart a woman. If a little girl who looked no bigger than two or three years old played havoc with my mind, how could I stand up to a twenty-something-year-old? If Elizabeth was a sign of what women grew up to be, I was in trouble.
“Hello, Michael.” Jake reached out and shook my hand as he picked up his daughter and kissed her loudly on the cheek.
“Daddy! Stop it. That tickles.”
“And you love it, Ellie Reid.” He “tickled” her a lot more.
“Me too, Papa.”
“My oldest wants to be kissed? I must oblige.” Jake handed Ellie to me, picked up James, and gave a repeat performance.
“Me. Me. Me.” The youngest wanted his turn.
“How can I say no to my youngest?” Like déjà vu, a child was handed to me and a grand finale occurred to the delight of all three kids. “OK, Munchkins. Mr. Bennington wants to talk to your mama and me. Can you sit and have your snacks while we converse?”
“What’s converse, Papa?”
“It’s when people talk to one another, James. Could you give us a few minutes?”
“Yesh, Papa,” he agreed in words and with a violent nodding of the head. Ellie and JR followed with the consenting head-bob.
I followed Jake into a kitchen that looked eerily like my own and sat the three kids in their seats. Elizabeth gave clear instructions on who sat where.
“What can we do for you, Michael?” Emily asked. “I’m sure you’re not here to watch our circus act.” Emily chuckled as she watched the kids devour their snacks.
“Chloe?” There was the magic word. How did Jake understand?
“How’d you know?”
“We ran into her at the park this morning.” He mocked me with his grin.
“Damn. She told you everything?” I asked Emily more so than Jake.
“She told us everything!” The mocking started with Jake, continued with Emily in the form of a giggle, then three little ones “ha ha ha’d” at me—literally.
“What do I do?” This time, I faced Jake.
“My turn?” he asked his wife.
She consented with a nod and I was taken from the kitchen to Jake’s office with all the k
ids waving bye-bye.
“You have a great family. I envy you.” That statement came from nowhere.
“Thank you. I am a lucky man. My wife makes everything possible for me.”
“Any more of those at home? You have any more sisters?”
“There are a few cousins, but I think your heart is with the woman across the hall.”
“What?” I almost shouted. “My heart isn’t with Chloe. I’ve just wronged her in all ways possible. I came here hoping you and Emily might hand out some advice.”
This was when Jake proceeded to tell me about all his mistakes with Emily. Boy! Jake made his share of ugly mistakes! I almost felt like a winner compared to Jake who left his girlfriend to fend for herself in Arizona.
“You think I was an idiot?” Jake had an evil grin while speed dialing someone.
A very familiar voice answered the call. “What’s up?”
“Do you remember when you made the huge error of thinking my sister was the woman for you?”
“What the hell, Cousin. Why are you bringing that up now when my wife is about to drop two babies in my arms?”
Jake laughed. “I’m trying to give a friend here some hope. Even after you chased after my sister and had the gall to kiss her, everything worked out well with you and your wife, didn’t it?”
“You’re an asshole for bringing up my sins. Let’s not go down that road, ever again. Jane is almost happily married to Max. I am unbelievably happily married to my beautiful Delaney. Thanks for the trip down memory lane—not!” Like the Donovan I knew, he rudely hung up.
“You see.” I actually did not see. “You leaving Chloe at the airport and making a few not-so-appropriate comments is not the end of the world. You can still recover.”
I seriously didn’t understand why Jake was comparing us to their married life. Considering he was trying to help, I didn’t argue.
“What should I do? What can I do?”
“Have a heart to heart with Chloe and apologize for everything. Even the stuff you didn’t do wrong—just go ahead and own them as your bad.”
“Seriously?”
“Seriously. That’s the key to a successful and happy relationship.”
“Damn.”
“Go grovel, Michael.”
“Groveling will make everything better?”
“For the time being…until our next mistake…until we die…?” We laughed heartily.
Taking a cue from a man who lived a contented life, I’d have to figure out a way to grovel.
Chloe: Sorry Friend
“Where’d you run off to all morning?” Michael said not a word in response. He pretended to look through his paperwork during our cab ride. “Hello?” I said a little louder.
“Wha??? Huh? Did you say something?”
Was that how it was going to be? He was getting me back for this morning’s silent treatment? Two could play that game. “Nothing,” was all I said, as I became besties with my cell phone.
How are you, Pretty Lady? Brendan texted.
I’m good. Why are you texting? Shouldn’t you be working?
Sitting here listening to an ugly guy explaining inflation.
You need lessons in becoming inflated? I laughed at my crass humor.
Give me two minutes in a room with you and I’ll show you the meaning of inflated!
TWO minutes? Other men have claimed as little as two seconds.
What OTHER men? Not that LITTLE man sitting next to you, right? I died laughing.
That was a mistake. Michael grabbed the phone from me and read our private text. He threw the phone back at me and stopped talking to me the rest of the day.
The car ride to ABC Carpet and Home was barely tolerable. The meeting with our lighting expert was painful. Michael talked. I talked. But there was no conversation. We barked out instructions and left the lighting guy more confused than before we started.
The silence was ridiculous. Michael was so mad, I’d forgotten it was me who was supposed to be mad. “Michael.” I tried to relieve the awkwardness. “It was a joke. We were kidding around.”
“In all the years we’ve been friends, I’ve never used you as the butt of my jokes, Chloe Darcy.”
“Maybe not, but you’ve left me at the airport for hours wondering whether you were dead or alive.”
Immediately I found out that was the wrong thing to say. “When the hell are you going to let that one go? I’m sick and tired of it. You can’t punish me the rest of my life for my one huge mistake. If you’re going to use that every time we get into an argument, then let’s end this friendship now. Either forgive me or forget me.”
Shit. What a mess. I decided I wasn’t in the forgiving mood just yet. There was also the earlier conversation between Brendan and him about me being a pain. If I was such a bother, I’d leave him the hell alone.
The silent treatment was on again.
Michael had the cab driver take us back to the apartment, and he excused me for the day. Supposedly, he had errands to run.
I walked away without a look back and went up to the apartment with my head confused and my heart bothered. In all our years as friends, Michael had never been this upset with me. I talked big by not talking to him, but I couldn’t ever forget him. He, Ruby, and I were best friends. All those months we hadn’t talked, I missed him. I didn’t need to go back to those lonely days.
“Hello?” I answered the phone in hopes that Michael was reaching out.
“Hello Beautiful. Whatcha doing right now?”
“Are you sure you work, Brendan? For someone who’s always off to foreign lands because of his job, you don’t sound too busy.”
“I learned all the facts about inflation. Now I’m calling you for inspiration. Are you in bed thinking of how to inspire me?”
“You’re all talk, Brendan O’Shaughnessy,” I accused. “I just got in and I’m about to walk into my room.”
“You have a room in every one of the duke’s apartments?” He was the one accusing now.
“Ruby has a room which means I can use her room in every one of the duke’s apartments.”
“As soon as you walk in, I want you to lay down. Lay down and think of me…” Brendan continued talking but I stopped listening. Instead, I sat on the bed and read the note that sat on an ornate purple box.
I’m sorry that I haven’t treated you like my best friend since we returned to England. I hope this will make up for some of my wrongdoings. It didn’t take me long to remember all your favorites. It did take me a very long time to run around Manhattan and collect all of these items. Enjoy, Chlo-No.
Inside the box were smaller boxes with instruction cards. “Eat Me,” said the first one.
“Chloe? Hello, Chloe?” I’d forgotten Brendan was on the other line.
“Hey. Sorry. Can I call you back? I have something here I need to take care of immediately.”
“Think of me,” were his last words as we said good-bye.
I opened up the cold “Eat Me” box and in it was a small ice cream cup surrounded by dry ice. Carefully lifting the cup, I opened the lid to find my favorite strawberry gelato from Italy. How did I know it was my favorite? Because the name Venchi il gelato was written on the white cup. How on earth did he get this gelato here to New York? That would be a mystery until Michael and I were on speaking terms again, so until then, I decided to enjoy the fruit of his labor before it melted.
While noshing on my creamy gelato, I decided to open the “Drink Me” box. This one was a hot gift.
What the hell is in here, Michael Bennington? You’re making me feel awfully bad about having been a bitch to you today. Damn. I sighed. I shouldn’t have been so hard on Michael.
Opening the “Drink Me” box, I found a stainless steel mug from Blue Bottle Coffee. Somehow, Michael had picked up my favorite coffee from San Francisco and the contents were still hot! Rather than wondering how, I enjoyed a mouthful of gelato, a sip of
coffee perfectly made for me, and ventured to the next box.
“Use Me,” were the next two words about to be ripped open. This was a larger box with several smaller boxes inside. In all the boxes were Malin+Goetz products that I’d hoarded from the first-class amenities kits Michael brought home after a trip. These products were too expensive to purchase for myself, but I made sure Michael understood to bring back samples for me every chance he got. “Smell Me” contained a Morrocan fig-scented perfume. “Wash Me” was peppermint shampoo, conditioner, and body scrub. There was even a grapefruit face cleanser! “Treat Me” came with body lotion, lip balm, and a rose candle. I loved all these products!