Out Of The Friend Zone

by Stephanie Nicole

  "But you had a whole list there. Brynn, I don't mind answering your questions, if it's going to make you feel better," Chandler protested.

  "There is only one question that I need an answer to. The rest of them don't matter anymore." Brynn drew in a deep breath. "Where do you see this going between us?"

  Chandler looked at her for a long moment. "Brynn, if I thought that either of us was ready for it, I'd ask you to marry me today. I think you still have some trust issues, and are trying to work past the insecurities you have about my marriage with Brooklyn. And I'm finally able to let go of a marriage that ended three years ago. We have some work to do before I ask you to marry me, but I promise you, that day will come."

  He leaned over the table and took her hand. "I can't see myself spending one more day of my life without you, Brynn. And I think that living together will help us come to where we are ready to go the next step and make it official. I love you Brynn, so much so that it scares me sometimes," Chandler told her.

  "I love you too," Brynn told him, feeling surer of their relationship now than ever. "And after everything blows over with Linda, I want you and Willow to move in."

  "You do?" Chandler asked excitedly. "Are you sure?"

  Brynn laughed. "I've never been so sure!"

  Chandler squeezed her hands. "I love you so much Brynn!" Brynn giggled as he started placing kisses all over her face. He didn't stop until the waitress brought their food out.

  "So, what did the lawyer say?" Brynn asked.

  "Just that there's no chance in hell that woman will get my kid," Chandler said. "He said that if she does try to pursue a custody battle, we will first go in for mediation, since the family courts are too full. If we can't reach an agreement in mediation, then we will have to go to court. It's best to settle with the mediator, because the court battle could take forever."

  "Well, let's hope it doesn't come to that. Mediators are usually pretty fair."

  "Plus, my lawyer is putting a letter together for Linda telling her that I have done nothing wrong, and that it's ridiculous for her to want to uproot Willow from her school, friends, and family just for personal reasons. She lives in Florida for nine months out of the year, then the other three months she spends traveling. How is that good for Willow? He's going to make it sound all legal and lawyer-ly, so hopefully that will stop her before she tries to start anything."

  "Lawyer-ly? Did you get that one out of the dictionary?" Brynn teased.

  "It just so happens I did. They were selling the dictionaries down on the street corner for $0.25 apiece. I got one for you too," Chandler joked.

  As she watched him eat, her mind started to wander to all the dirty things she wanted to do to him. She was getting hot just thinking about it.

  Chandler noticed that Brynn's eyes were glossed over, and her face was getting red. "Baby, are you okay?"

  Brynn grinned. "Do you have a busy afternoon today?"

  "Not really. Why?"

  "Well, I was just thinking that the babysitter was taking Barrett and Willow to the zoo today to celebrate their last day of freedom before heading back to school tomorrow, and my afternoon is empty, so..."

  "So you were thinking about a little 'afternoon delight'?"

  "You could say that," Brynn grinned. "I was just sitting here watching you, and thinking about how sexy you are...I guess I got myself a little excited."

  Chandler took out his wallet and threw thirty dollars on the table. "We'll take my car. I just have to stop at the office quick to get some paper work that I need to get done by tomorrow."

  Brynn smiled as they walked out of the restaurant. She was still smiling as they got into the vehicle. Chandler drove over to his office, and when he parked, he told Brynn he didn't think he'd make it until they got home.

  "Rylee is out to lunch, she won't be back for another half an hour, and my office has a lock on the door. Let's go," he said, pulling Brynn out of his car and into his office building.

  As soon as they got into his office, Chandler locked the door and shut the blinds on his window. Clothes were shed in a mad fury before they met in a passionate embrace. Brynn hopped up on his desk and they joined together. When things started to fall off his desk from the zealous coupling, Chandler picked Brynn up and sat back in his leather office chair, with her on top of him. She rode him to their climaxes, kissing him at that point to drown out both of their groans of ecstasy.

  Brynn laid her head on his shoulder, as they both tried to regain their breath. After a few minutes of silence, Brynn started giggling. "Well, now every time you sit at your desk to do paperwork, you'll think of doing me," she laughed, and got up, starting to gather her clothes.

  Chandler stood up and looked at his desk. "Yeah, especially since you left an ass print right there."

  "What? You're kidding, right?" Brynn asked, not believing him as she ran back around his desk to see.

  "Look for yourself!" Chandler told her.

  "Oh shit! Will it come out if we clean it?" Brynn asked. She turned to look at his chair. "Looks like you left one on your chair too."

  "Ah, just some souvenirs of our love," Chandler said, pulling her into an embrace. "I'm sure they'll both come out when I clean them. I have some furniture polish around here somewhere, though I don't know what to clean the leather with."

  Brynn handed Chandler his clothes, and then got dressed herself. After they were both presentable, Brynn left to go to the ladies room, leaving Chandler in his office to clean his desk.

  As he sprayed the polish on the desk, he heard a soft knock on his door. Thinking it was Brynn, he called for the person to come in.

  "Hey boss, just wanted to let you know I'm back from lunch," Rylee said, as she walked into Chandler's office. She looked around at the papers on the floor, along with pens and pencils that were once together in a cup on the desk. "Damn, was there an earthquake or something?"

  Chandler could feel the blush rising up his face as Rylee surveyed the mess. "Um, I was just cleaning..." he stammered out as Brynn walked back through his open office door. She stopped when she saw that there was someone else in the room with them, a woman with short blonde hair and a curvy figure. "Uh, Rylee, this is my girlfriend Brynn. Brynn, this is Rylee."

  Rylee turned around, a knowing look across her face. "Hi Brynn. Nice to meet you. When we spoke this morning, I didn't think I'd get to meet you so soon."

  Brynn turned the same color red as Chandler was. "Nice to meet you too. I hadn't planned on coming over here today. We were just going to take the afternoon off, and Chandler said he needed to pick up some paperwork before we left."

  "Oh, I see. And he just thought he'd clean while you were here?" Rylee teased.

  "Yeah, I'm going to be moving in with her soon, and I just wanted to show her that I know how to clean," Chandler said, trying to sound believable.

  Rylee just laughed, and bent over to pick up some of the stuff from the floor. "I guess I better help, so that you two can get out of here and enjoy the rest of your day."

  "How about you show Brynn around the office, and I'll finish cleaning up in here?" Chandler suggested. He didn't want his assistant picking up after him and his girlfriend, who just had sex in his office.

  "I can do that. Besides, I'd like to get to know the woman who put a smile back on that sour puss face of yours," Rylee said, as she headed for the door.

  Brynn followed behind, leaving Chandler alone in his office. Yes, he was embarrassed, but it was so worth it!

  "You and Chandler seem to have a great working relationship." Brynn said as she walked with Rylee.

  "Yeah, he's a great boss, very laid back and easygoing. It's not often that you can tease your boss without having to worry about crossing the line," Rylee told her. "So is it true that he's going to move in with you?"

  "Yeah, we just decided today at lunch."

  "Ah, so it was a celebration of sorts back there in the office," Rylee teased.

  "No...well, yes, but no. I don't think we
're going to actually celebrate until it happens. Brooklyn's mom is being a thorn in our side right now, so we're trying not to get too ahead of ourselves," Brynn explained.

  "Chandler told me what she's threatening. You know, if you want her taken care of, I know some people..."

  "What?-I'm just kidding!"She showed Brynn to the break room where they got a couple of sodas and sat down. "You know, I meant what I said this morning. I've worked for Chandler for a long time, and I've never seen him this happy."

  Brynn smiled. "Can I ask you a question?"

  "Absolutely."

  "What was his relationship with Brooklyn like? Did she make him happy?" Brynn asked, almost feeling guilty as the words poured out of her mouth.

  Rylee sat there for a minute, trying to decide on how to say what she was thinking. "Chandler and Brooklyn had a different relationship. The only way I can describe it was that they were like best friends who weren't really in love, but were too afraid to not have each other. You know, like they both knew that their love for each other wasn't the normal type of love that a husband and wife share." Rylee paused, thinking. "I think she made him happy in some respect, but not in the way I've seen him happy in the past few months."

  Brynn nodded. "I can understand that."

  "They did fight a lot, and there was one time when they almost divorced, but Brooklyn found out she was pregnant, so they decided to stay married. I think that the only reason Chandler has held onto the memories of Brooklyn for so long is because he feels guilty that he didn't love her the way he should have. I know he's felt a lot of guilt since her death, for one reason or another, and it's kept him for truly living his life...until now."

  "Wow." Brynn sat in silence for a moment, then decided it was okay to confess. "You know, I've been so hung up worrying that I'll never be as good for Chandler as Brooklyn was. I was worried that I'd never make him as happy as she did, and that I'd constantly be living in her shadow."

  "Well, it's time you stopped worrying. The relationship that you have with Chandler is so different than the one he had with Brooklyn that it's like comparing grapes and watermelons." Rylee touched her hand reassuringly. "Trust me, you make him happy. If you didn't, then he wouldn't be with you. He's been single for three years since Brooklyn died. He wouldn't suddenly attach himself to someone who doesn't make him happy."

  Brynn smiled. "I guess you're right. Thank you so much for talking to me about this. You have no idea how much weight you just lifted off my shoulders!"

  "Glad I could help. Now, let's go see if my boss has cleaned up from his little romp he had in his office with his girlfriend," Rylee said, as Brynn's face got red again. Both women laughed, enjoying the new camaraderie.

  When the girls returned to the office, Chandler was sitting in his chair, gathering some papers to take home with him. Everything seemed to be in order, just like it was when Brynn had first entered the office earlier in the day. She handed him a Pepsi that she bought for him in the break room. "I thought you might be thirsty."

  "I am, thanks." Chandler said, as he opened his soda and took a long drink.

  "Must have been some workout in here earlier. Brynn just about drank hers all in one sip," Rylee teased. As she watched their faces get red again, she turned to leave the office. "I'll leave you two alone now. You want me to close the door and lock it on the way out?"

  "No!" Brynn and Chandler said at the same time. Rylee snickered as she walked out to her desk.

  "So, are we ever going to live that down?" Brynn asked.

  "Probably not. At least I got most of it cleaned. You can still see a faint outline of our butts on the desk and chair though, but only if you look close enough."

  "Hey, don't blame me. It was your idea!" Brynn laughed.

  "And what a good idea it was, too." He kissed her softly. "Let's go home."

  "Sounds good to me," Brynn said, as they gathered their stuff. They waved goodbye to Rylee on the way out, letting her know they were leaving. Brynn mouthed a silent 'thank you' to her, and Rylee gave her a smile and a nod of her head, knowing exactly what Brynn was thanking her for.

  As Chandler drove Brynn back to their houses, Brynn replayed her conversation with Rylee in her head. She felt she was in a whole new place in her relationship with Chandler, and was finally going to be able to move past her insecure thoughts of Brooklyn.

  Chapter 22

  When Chandler and Brynn got home, both of them were tired and decided to use the time alone to relax, rather than get in another 'workout'. The kids and babysitter would be back from the zoo shortly, so they decided to just sit in the hot tub and unwind.

  Brynn brought out some wine, along with cheese and crackers for them to enjoy as they sat in the steamy water, trading back massages and talking.

  "So, how do you like Rylee? Did you ladies hit it off?" Chandler asked Brynn as he worked his magic fingers on her tense shoulder muscles.

  "Yeah, we hit it off. She seems really nice. We had a pretty good conversation, and she made me feel a lot better about some stuff," Brynn told him, trying not to give him too much information about their private conversation.

  "Oh yeah? What pearls of wisdom did she pass along to you?"

  "That's for me to know and you to never find out," Brynn laughed. "She just helped me with some ghosts that were following me around."

  "I'm guessing it was a private conversation about me, then?"

  " Nothing you need to worry about. But that reminds me, I want to take her to lunch soon to thank her," Brynn said, making a mental note for herself. "So, did you take Willow out shopping for school clothes yet?"

  Chandler grimaced at her question and moved to the other side of the hot tub to sit facing her. "Oh! I knew there was something I was forgetting," he groaned. "You know how much I hate shopping. I guess it just slipped my mind."

  Brynn rolled her eyes. "Well, whether you hate it or not, we are taking her shopping tonight. She isn't going back to school tomorrow wearing last year's clothes. I bet she's grown out of most of them anyway."

  "Are you making me go with you?" Chandler asked.

  "Hell, yeah. You're buying, after all. We'll make it as quick and painless as possible, maybe just getting her a few outfits, then we can shop for some clothes on the internet this weekend. The poor girl!"

  "See, that's why Willow needs you around. You are so much better with the girl things than I am. She really does look up to you as a mother, you know."

  "Well, I look to her as a daughter, too. I love Barrett, but I've always wanted a little girl. Willow is the little girl I never got to have."

  "Well, before we go shopping for my beautiful daughter, how would my beautiful girlfriend like to go and take a shower with me?" Chandler asked, pulling Brynn across the hot tub into his arms.

  "I think you might be able to talk her into it," Brynn said as she stood up. She led Chandler out of the hot tub and put the cover back on it before they went in the house. Chandler trailed behind Brynn, aching to reach out and grab her bikini bottom in his hands.

  When they finally reached the bathroom in Brynn's bedroom, Chandler couldn't resist any longer. He reached out and pulled her into his arms, and as he planted a hot kiss on her lips, his hands wandered down to her bikini bottom.

  Brynn broke the kiss before it got too heated. "Now, now. None of that. The kids will be home soon. All you asked me was to take a shower with you. I didn't agree to any nookie!"

  "But honey! I can't help it," he whined with a winning grin. "I'll be quick, I promise!"Brynn laughed at his pathetic plea for some shower loving. How could she resist when he looked so cute begging? She pulled him into the shower and her lips immediately found his. He untied the strings of her bathing suit, and watched as the pieces fell to the floor of the shower.

  Just like he promised, Chandler did hurry, but made sure to bring pleasure to Brynn before himself.

  When Chandler and Brynn were finished with their shower, they dried off and got dressed. Little voices could be hea
rd downstairs, letting them know that their kids were home.

  Brynn sent the babysitter home early, then took them all to the mall. Chandler only appeared inside the stores when the bill needed to be paid. The rest of the time, he and Barrett either sat on the benches, or they browsed in the sports stores.

  When they left the mall three hours later, Willow had all she needed for the upcoming school year, while Chandler had a headache and an empty wallet. Willow was so happy with her new clothes, the look on her face made the whole trip worth it for Chandler.

  Brynn called and ordered pizza for dinner when they got home from the mall. She didn't feel like cooking after the day she had. Chandler had worn her out, not to mention all the shopping she had done.

  Chandler and Willow left shortly after dinner, so that Chandler could get her to bed at a reasonable hour. Brynn hated saying good night to them, but it made her feel surer she was right in saying yes to Chandler, and having them move in. When Barrett went to sleep, Brynn sat on the couch with a small sketch pad and started drawing ideas for how she wanted to decorate Willow's room.

  By the end of the night, Willow's room was planned out on paper, with a list of supplies Brynn would need to make the bedroom over.

  The next couple of days went by in a blur. Both Chandler and Brynn were trying to adjust to having the kids back to school, getting them into patterns with sleep, homework, and meals. They didn't get to spend much time together until that weekend.

  Brynn had made her yearly check-up appointment with the doctor for Saturday morning, bright and early. To her surprise, Chandler wanted to go. He shrugged when she asked him why. "I'm just curious," he said. "I kinda like the idea of sitting there waiting for you to come out and tell me what the doctor said."

  She smiled. "It's just routine!"

  "Yeah, but it's extra time we get to spend together, right?

  Brynn couldn't argue with that.

  "You know, I can't wait for this stuff with Linda to blow over. I hate having to say goodnight to you during the week," Brynn said, as they sat in the waiting room. "I can't wait for you and Willow to move in with us."