by Cee, DW
The evening at the art gallery was much more enjoyable than expected. It helped that I knew many of the attendees.
“You’re having fun?” Helene asked with some doubt.
Placing my arm around her, I answered, “I am. Thanks for inviting me. I’m glad we got a chance to hang out again.”
“Yeah?” She still sounded unsure.
“Yeah.” I pulled her closer. “Dinner?”
“Sure.” She smiled. Without a smile, Helene was a pretty woman. With a smile, she was beautiful. I could get used to looking at her. “There’s a great new place that just opened up a few doors down from here. Do you want to walk over?”
“Sounds great.”
Tonight was more than enjoyable. Had Helene not made the first move, I would’ve been stuck in my usual rut. This was a pleasant surprise. I looked forward to spending the next few hours getting to know her better. Who knew? This could lead to something more than friendship.
“Michael?” A familiar voice called me as we were being seated.
Speaking of more than friendship…
Brendan: Interrupted Relationship
“Michael?” Chloe asked, befuddled.
“Helene?” I asked, even more befuddled. What was she doing here, and with Michael of all people?
“You two know each other?” Michael asked.
“Brendan and I briefly dated a few years back.”
“And by the looks of it, you two are out on a date?” I asked Michael more so than Helene. What was it with me and this guy having the same taste in women?
Helene answered my question. “We dropped by Alain’s art show and walked here for dinner. How come you didn’t drop by?”
“I was going to drop by after dinner. It’s open until eleven. How was the show?”
“Fascinating,” Helene answered with a slight laugh. Michael joined in the chuckle. “I don’t want to ruin the surprise. You’ll see for yourself very soon.”
“Good turnout?”
“Very.” Now Michael was engaged in our conversation.
“How did you two meet?”
“We met at Philippa’s party a few months back.”
“How’s Pippa doing?”
Michael spoke. “She’s well. You might catch her at the gallery if you get there soon. She was waiting for some friends to pick her up.”
While this conversation ensued, I realized I had totally ignored my date. She actually sat back down and played with her phone. “Chloe,” I interrupted her texting. It gave me an odd sense of joy to recognize the annoyance in her expression when I called her out for finding refuge in her phone.
“Yes?”
“Come meet my beautiful, brilliant, and talented ex. This woman can talk physics like Stephen Hawkins, paint like Vincent Van Gogh, and cook like Nigella Lawson.” Chloe stood with her phone still in hand. “Helene Whitman, Chloe Darcy. Chloe, Helene.”
“It’s nice to meet you. How do you know these two handsome men?”
Watching the woman who was my date tonight, I wondered if anyone noticed her pissed-off expression. It popped up briefly, but to those of us who noticed, it was unmistakable.
She answered, “It’s nice to meet you as well. Michael and I are childhood friends, and Brendan and I are roommates.”
To say I was pissed and disappointed was speaking mildly. She negated the fact that we were dating.
“Friend and roommate?” Helene questioned our status in Chloe’s life.
“Yes.” Chloe confirmed and turned to me to explain, “I have to go.”
“Go? Go where?” This woman was pushing me to an ugly place.
She showed me her phone. It made no sense until she explained, “I’m coordinating a wedding at the duke’s villa in Florence for a family friend, and I leave first thing in the morning. The duke just let me know that we’ll be stopping by my parents’ home, first. He wants to leave by five.”
“It’s only nine-thirty.”
In her defense, she did look apologetic. What she told me came from left field, but it wasn’t an excuse to get away from me.
“I’ll drive us home, then.”
“No. Stay,” she encouraged. “We have a great table here, there’s food still coming, and you have two friends who can keep you company.”
“Is this the wedding Laney was talking about? Jane’s wedding?”
A look of surprise donned Chloe’s face. “Yes. How did you know?” An accusation was in there somewhere.
Who the hell were Laney and Jane, and what was this talk of a wedding in Florence?
Michael must have sensed the accusation, too. He quickly explained, “Laney called while Helene was in the car.”
As if she, too, was processing all this confusing info at hand, Chloe slowly nodded. For some reason I couldn’t understand, Chloe appeared hurt, almost betrayed by Helene’s knowledge of Laney and Jane. Damn. I must be going crazy to see all these emotions flickering through her eyes. Not one word during this conversation should have offended or hurt Chloe.
“Have a nice dinner. I’ll see you back at the flat.” Chloe said nothing else and left.
When I glanced at Michael, he shrugged his shoulders and let me know he had no idea what had just happened. “All yours, Bud.” He slapped my back as I walked after Chloe.
“Chloe.” I called her out. She stopped at the sidewalk and waved for a cab. “What was that?”
“What?” she asked with innocence.
“That entire exchange with Helene. Surely you noticed the weird pissing contest in there.” She shook her head no. “How can you say that? You were the main player in this I’m-mad-at-the-world game.”
Those were not the right words to say. She lashed out at me. “Look, Handsome Man.” She was mocking me, Helene, and Michael, too, I hoped. “I have a plane to catch very early in the morning. My sister is at Mom’s with the new baby, and I’d like to go home and wrap all the presents I’d purchased since my nephew’s birth. Why don’t you go back to your ‘beautiful brilliant and talented ex? The woman who can talk physics like Stephen Hawkins, paint like Vincent Van Gogh, and cook like Nigella Lawson?’ Good ole Chloe Darcy will be heading home.” As if evil spirits were chasing her, she jumped into a black cab and left.
Seriously! What. Was. That? Had I said something wrong? Had I misjudged Chloe’s sweet nature? Was she jealous of Helene? There were too many unanswered questions. I needed guidance. Michael was the man to turn to in these misunderstanding-Chloe times.
“She leave?” Michael asked.
“Yeah. She wanted to get home and wrap presents for her new nephew. Did you know her sister had a baby?” Michael nodded. “I didn’t even know she had a sister.” Was it bad that I didn’t know the woman I was dating had a sibling? “How many more Darcys at home?”
“Chloe had a brother who died when he was an infant and her ‘sister’ is really her cousin. Judith lost her parents in an automobile accident when she was a wee girl. She lived with her grandparents during the year, but stayed with the Darcy family during the holidays. Judith and I go way back, too.”
“So Chloe is really close to Judith?”
“We all are—Chloe, Rubes, and I. Speaking of,” Michael said, looking at his phone, “if you’ll excuse me Grandfather is calling.”
Helene carefully watched our exchange. “I didn’t realize you and Michael knew one another.”
“We met a while back. We’re not close, but we have Chloe in common.”
“Who is this Chloe to you and to Michael? Is she really just a roommate and a friend?”
“None of that is incorrect.” How was I to explain the rest? Did my ego want my ex knowing a woman was ashamed to admit she and I were dating?
“So what is correct, then? I feel as if I’m missing some big secret here.”
“No secret. What Chloe said is what we are.”
“Sorry about that.” Michael put away his phone.
“
When did the duke start sounding like a woman in labor? That was one loud conversation,” I commented.
“Try listening to that from my end. Ruby, my sister,” he explained to Helene, “called to say she got a part in some musical.”
“That’s sweet she called to tell you. Are you two close?” Helene looked as if she was sweet on Michael.
“I guess so. There were only three children on our estate, so we had to bond.”
“My brother would not consider me his good friend.”
“How is Ronnie? I haven’t seen him since you and I parted ways.”
“He’s married now, with a babe on the way.”
Helene always reminded me of a Stepford wife. Her clothing, her speech, her hairdo, her makeup—every last part of her was perfect. In short time I realized, it was hard keeping up with perfection.
“Well, it was great seeing you both and always enjoy catching up with you, Helene. I hope you’ll stay in touch,” was my way out of this gathering. “I’ll leave the tab open. Please order what you like on me.”
“Thank you, Brendan. It was lovely seeing you again, too.” She stood up and we did the whole air kissing business. I shook Michael’s hand and rushed back to the flat.
When I arrived, all the lights were off except for a small one in Chloe’s room. I knocked softly.
“Come in.”
“I worried you might have turned in for the night. Are you ready to leave again?”
She pointed to her suitcases by the door. “You’re back earlier than expected. I didn’t think I’d see you for the next two weeks.”
“Is that how long you’ll be gone?”
“More or less. Max and Jane’s wedding is in ten days and they’re in a bind. Their original wedding venue shut down so they reached out to Grandpa Harry.”
“And the duke asked you to help?”
“Yeah, he did. However, I would have volunteered even if he hadn’t asked. I love planning weddings.”
I treaded cautiously with my next question. “Can I ask you why you were so pissed after meeting Helene? Was it me, Michael or Helene who set you off?”
“What ‘set me off’” another faux pas on my part, obviously, “was the way you introduced your past to your present.” Before I could reminisce on the error of my ways, Chloe reamed me good. “You waxed poetic about your Miss United Kingdom/Cosmologist/President of Académie des Beaux-Arts ex and then painted me as Plain Jane Chloe Darcy. I might not hold any of those titles, but when a myriad of adjectives come before someone’s name, it’d be nice to have a few before mine.”
Uh…geez…damn…were all women this complicated and moody? “It’s not as if you gave me any complementary adjectives aside from ‘roommate.’” Once again, open mouth, insert foot.
With an infuriating glare, she grunted, “Let’s talk again in two weeks,” and excused me.
What. The. Hell! Who did she think she was giving me the boot? This was all because I complimented Helene and not her? No woman had ever treated me so poorly. At first I thought the sass was cute. Now that I knew better, I didn’t need the PMS attitude. “You know, maybe Daniel was right earlier today.” Chloe waited for my boot to connect with her arse. “The office gave me a promotion but the job is in Los Angeles. I was about to ask you to move to the States with me, but maybe this is the perfect time to part. Forget talking again in two weeks. Have a nice life.” I walked out feeling good about having had the last say.
Less than half a second later, I felt bloody awful.
Damn!
Chloe: Questioning Relationships
“What’s the matter, Chloe? You haven’t been yourself since you arrived. Not even my Iain is bringing out a smile.”
“That’s not true, Judith. Your Iain is so precious. I’ve been contemplating how I can produce one of these myself.”
“You need to learn about the birds and the bees? Well, when a man becomes excited, his wee…”
I had to stop my sister from explaining further. “All right! I’ll tell you what’s wrong.”
“You sure you don’t want to know about what happens when a man gets excited?” she teased.
“I believe I remember plenty.”
Judith’s eyebrows wiggled and waggled. “I’m sure that duke of yours gave you plenty to remember.”
“Oh my gosh, Judy! That was ages ago. I haven’t had any relationship with Michael since my teenage years.”
“Oh pish posh, Chlo-No. You’ve had a relationship with him since you were born. Why you practically slept with one another since infanthood. If that isn’t being physical, I don’t know what is.”
I raised my own eyebrows at her. “You’re making innocent babes sound dirty.”
“All babes are dirty throughout the day, aren’t you, Iain?” My sister picked up her beautiful baby and rocked him.
While she put my nephew down for a nap, I gave Judith a brief explanation on all that had happened with Michael, what had happened last night with Brendan, and my work with the duke. Between Judith and her husband Adair living in Dublin and me having been in the States the past few years, it wasn’t easy for us to have these face-to-face, heart-to-heart conversations. It was wonderful to be in the same house with her.
“What do you think? Was I wrong to be mad at Brendan?” Judith sat quiet. “I mean, it’s not that serious between us. We’ve only been dating for a month or so, and if it ends here and now, it’s fine. He says he’s moving to Los Angeles so it shouldn’t be awkward for too long.”
“Let’s start with your feelings for Michael.”
“What feelings for Michael?” I had no idea what she was talking about.
“Those feelings.” She called me out and told me to dig deeper until I uncovered those feelings.
“What we had was back in our earlier days. Michael and I haven’t been together in a very long while. We are only friends.”
“And you are all right with that?” Concern was written all over Judith’s face.
“Why wouldn’t I be? Michael is looking for his duchess and I’m not it.”
My sister tried another approach. “So if Grandpa Harry and Michael asked you to plan Michael’s wedding at the castle in Fife, your heart wouldn’t hurt even a wee bit?”
OK. She had me there. At this very second, I couldn’t imagine Michael, a bride, the castle in Fife, and me planning this joyous occasion. That would happen over my dead body! I needed to change the topic.
“When will Adair arrive? I haven’t seen him in years. Does he still have that look of love in his eyes every time he catches a sight of you?”
Judith smiled knowingly. Even talks of her darling husband didn’t get me off the hook. “If you’re evading the Michael question, let’s talk about Brendan. Would you move with him to the States?”
“No.” That wasn’t an option. I was staying put in my home country.
“That was easy. Would you be OK with your relationship with Brendan ending?”
I paused with that question. “It’s early. If it ended today, it wouldn’t devastate me.”
“BUT?”
“But, I like him. He’s kind, caring, funny, and has a good job.” My sister smiled as if I’d told her I was getting married. “BUT,” this news was going to turn her smile into a frown, “he doesn’t like me anymore—moot point, we’re done.”
“Do you really believe that?” Judith proved me wrong; her smile stayed put. “The man wanted to ask you to move thousands of miles with him.”
“Matters not what I believe. His last words were, ‘have a nice life’ which pretty much translates to a good-bye.”
There was silence between us. It gave me time to think about my life.
I was twenty-six. I had a dream job. My parents were happy, healthy, and retired, thanks to the duke. My sister married a fantastic, upstanding, thinks-she-is-God’s-gift-to-earth kind of man—and as a cherry on top; they have a precious baby boy. Michael, Ruby, and I resu
med our friendship. Cat, Daniel, and I would continue to live together. What else did I need in life?
The answer was obvious—but I didn’t want to go there.
“How long will you stay, Chloe?”
“I have to leave in the afternoon now that Grandpa Harry isn’t coming with me; he’s been called back to London. There’s lots to be done since the wedding is happening in about a week.”
