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Chloe gaped at her. That had to be a misunderstanding. Her parents were the strongest couple she knew. “What? No! When was that?”
“When you girls were very little. I’m not surprised you don’t remember. I got the house and your daddy went to live with a friend. We were split for a good six months.”
She never would’ve guessed her parents had split. The thought was too awful to imagine. Even now, with her mom confessing it to her, she didn’t believe it. “But, you guys made up.”
“It took some time.” Her mother smiled weakly and brought her hand to her neck. “But your father and I had to come to an agreement. He couldn’t put work above family and I had to find a way to deal with his long hours. It took dozens of counseling sessions and more tears than I care to admit, but we made it through.”
“Why are you telling me this?” Chloe asked, swallowing hard. Her parent’s near split certainly had nothing to do with that dirt-bag cheating Aaron.
“I just think that sometimes you put us on a pedestal and I want you to know that no relationship is perfect.”
She wrinkled her nose in anger. “So, what? Does this cheating guy get a pass then? Because no relationship is perfect?”
“Absolutely not,” her mother shot back, her eyes flashing. Deep lines formed around her mouth as she frowned. “This friend of your friend of yours needs to decide what she’s willing to forgive. But the point I’m trying to make is that relationships take work. They’re not perfect all the time. We’re humans, after all. We’re all deeply flawed. If you can find someone to counter those flaws, I’d say you’d have a match made in heaven.”
Chloe nodded her understanding, although the weary lines on her forehead made her look like she’d aged a few decades in those five minutes. “Thanks, Mom.” She slid off the stool, ready to head to bed. A good night’s sleep was all she desired. That would make things clearer. “I’ll think about what you said.” Her mother kissed her goodnight and she headed down to her apartment, the day’s events heavy on her mind.
Love was messy. That much she’d found out. Between Jordan’s relationship with his mother, the shocking revelation about her parents, and the crumbling relationship of her sister and her fiance, she wasn’t sure she wanted love anymore. It had a way of stripping you down to nothing, exposing your weak spots. Chloe didn’t like feeling weak.
Maybe she didn’t want this thing called love after all.
Chapter Eleven
Not even the annoying chirp of the singing elf with the dying batteries could ruin Jordan’s Saturday morning. He strutted around his motel room in his boxer shorts, belting a Journey song into his toothbrush. Today was a brand spanking new day. He and Chloe were hitting up the Christmas parade in town. Yesterday was nothing but a bad memory.
He was determined to move on.
Even Chloe’s distracted and distant mood at yesterday evening’s rehearsal couldn’t pull him down. Things rolled off his back as easily as a skee ball on ice. Tomorrow was Christmas Eve and the day of their big event. He wanted nothing more than to enjoy his last two full days with Chloe before he had to head back home and prepare for his big interview.
He glanced at his phone and blinked at the screen. No calls, no messages. Not even from Mary. He shouldn’t have expected his mother to call. She never did unless she wanted something from him. But he couldn’t help but to hope. Hope that maybe she’d come to her senses and left his step-father once and for all. That she’d beg him to come pick her up and help her start a new life. He’d do that for her. More than anything, that’s what he wanted for her.
But, that wasn’t happening today. He threw on a pair of jeans and a thick chord sweater before heading out into the brilliant winter morning. The sun shone down as if it had forgotten it was December. He waved to Ed, who was lounging outside with a cigarette dangling from his lips, before jumping into the Grand Am and speeding toward Chloe’s home.
And suddenly there she was, walking toward him in black leggings, an over-sized sweater that draped to her thighs, and brown boots. He tried not to stare at the way she’d twisted her braids on top of her head that morning or how her purple lipstick on made her mouth look so tempting. The moment she slid into his passenger seat, he leaned over and placed a hand on her cheek, gently pressing his lips against hers.
It was a slow, passionate embrace. Nothing rushed or harsh about it. She moaned into his mouth as his tongue darted into hers, her hands finding the front of his sweater. Electricity zinged between them. He ran his hand down her cheek and lingered for a moment longer, before pulling away.
“Good morning,” she said breathlessly. Her eyes were wide, staring up at him. He could almost detect a bit of desperation in them. “That was unexpected.”
“I’m full of surprises,” he joked, leaning back into his seat. Yep, today was going to go a million times better. He was sure of it. “Ready for the parade?”
She nodded silently. Jordan took them to the middle of downtown, parking across from the Blue Stem Bistro and hopping out of the Grand Am to open Chloe’s door for her. She took his hand and smiled weakly at him.
Finding Laurie and Gemma wasn’t easy in the New Hope crowd. It seemed that every single family in town had shown up for the big event. Santa was making an appearance at the end of the parade. Little children with sparkling eyes hopped up and down on one foot, eager to spot the big man himself. Chloe and Jordan finally found their friends down the block, each clinging to a cup of coffee in their hands.
“Coffee drips, stat,” Gemma cried when she saw them, handing each one their own source of caffeine. She groaned as she sipped at her cup and rubbed her tired eyes.
“Chloe, I’m surprised you made it,” Laurie said with a smile. Of the three, she was the only one looking slightly perky. She bounced on her toes, her hair moving with her little spurts of energy. “Last year, I believe we had to drag you out of bed for the Christmas parade.”
“Not a morning person?” Jordan asked her with a smile.
She shrugged, looking down at her coffee. “Not really. Especially on Saturdays. The weekend was God’s gift to us anti-morning people.”
“The morning is my favorite time of day,” Laurie chirped. A smile stretched across her freckled face. “I find it’s my most productive time.”
“In case you haven’t noticed, Laurie never wakes up on the wrong side of the bed,” Gemma told Jordan with a laugh. “She puts us all to shame.”
