Total pages in book: 95
Estimated words: 92547 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 463(@200wpm)___ 370(@250wpm)___ 308(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 92547 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 463(@200wpm)___ 370(@250wpm)___ 308(@300wpm)
“I’ll stay as long as you want me to.”
“Thank you for holding my hand through this day.”
“It’s my honor, Chloe.”
After a few minutes, she’d calmed down enough to want to return. A little while later, Fawn ended up going to the small podium and saying a few words about their mother, which was the least she could’ve done, in my opinion.
By the time the wake ended, Chloe was spent. She rested her head against the passenger seat of my truck as we headed back to my rental home. I’d given her a choice as to whether she wanted to continue staying at the big house, but she’d said she preferred to stay with me tonight. Effie would be sleeping at Drew’s. I didn’t know what Chloe’s plan would be now that her mom was gone. No one had been expecting Judy to pass when she did, despite how much worse things had gotten in the weeks before.
Chloe put her feet up on my coffee table when we got home, and I let her decompress for a bit while I made waffles for dinner—her request. I brought them over to the couch so she could keep her feet elevated. Then I got my plate and sat beside her.
“Thank you,” she said softly.
“For what? You don’t need to thank me.”
“For everything. For giving me a safe place to stay while I was going through the most difficult time of my life, for showing me how a true man operates, for standing by my side today.”
“I’d do anything for you.”
She took a bite of waffle. “Right before I had the panic attack, I noticed you talking to my dad. What did he say?”
“He thanked me for having your back. He expressed regret over how things have played out, but he also said how grateful he was for the time the three of you have spent together over the past week.”
She nodded. “I think I’m going to the storage unit for the entire day tomorrow. I really just need to be done with that mess.”
“Do you need my help?”
“No. You need to get back to work. You’ve taken enough time off this week for me.”
“Well, you know I’m the boss, right? I can take more time if you need me.”
“Thank you, but I’ll be okay.”
I hesitated. “Do you have any idea how long you’re staying?”
Chloe looked into my eyes. “I guess that depends.”
Was she trying to tell me it depended on me? Was she waiting for me to ask her to stay? I wanted that more than anything, but I had to be sure it was what she really wanted. I didn’t want her to stay out of obligation to me or Effie. I wanted Chloe to want to be here more than she wanted anything else. But how was it fair for me to expect her to give up the life she’d built over the past decade in Chicago? This needed to be her decision.
“I think you need to go back to Chicago,” I told her.
Her eyes widened.
“Hear me out,” I continued. “I’m not saying that because I want you to leave. It’s just the opposite. I want you to stay very badly. But you have a job there, right? I don’t know how important it is to you. But I don’t need to tell you that in order to be here, you’d have to leave everything you’ve built there. I would never ask you to do that. I’m a firm believer that you have to let something go in order to know if it will come back to you. You’re going through too much right now to make a sound decision about anything.” I took her hand. “But if you go back to your life there, and all you can think about is being back here with us…maybe that means something, you know?”
Something seemed to click behind her eyes. “While I’d hoped you’d be asking me to stay, not leave, I understand what you’re saying. And you’re right. It’s not like I can avoid going back anyway. All of my stuff is there.”
“Well, I have a truck. All I’d need is a phone call to drive across country and bring the rest of your shit back here, Chloe.”
A smile tugged at her lips. “Including me and my emotional baggage?”
“Fuck yes.”
“You’d really do that?”
“Are you kidding? Effie would love a road trip.”
“Okay…” Her breath trembled. “So hypothetically, if I went back to Chicago, and I was miserable and wanted to move back here…where the hell would I work?”
“I know a power plant.” I winked.
She laughed. “What would I do there?”
“We had an up year. We have the funds. I’d create a position for you. We’d figure something out.”
“You make it sound so easy.”
“It doesn’t have to be hard.” I squeezed her hand. “But maybe we shouldn’t be making big life decisions on this particular day. It’s been difficult enough.”