Love Letters (29 page)

Chloe felt hot, despite the cool wind blowing in through the window. “She’s a Martha Stewart type and, well, I’m a career woman.”

“
Oh.” Suzanne giggled. “Why didn’t you say so in the first place?”

Chloe sighed. If only her mom knew what was going on in her life, she’d understand. She wished she could tell her everything about what happened with Josh or even about Ignacio, but she couldn’t deal with that now. She was meeting Nicole for lunch and had to plan what to cook tomorrow. “Well, now you know how she is.”

“
Yes, but just because you’re different from her, doesn’t mean she should despise you.”

“
Mom, nobody said she despises me. I guess she has a lot of issues to deal with raising eight kids while having to cook, clean, and work in the garden. You can’t blame her. She probably thinks I had it easy while she had to work hard.”

“
Eight kids! I had only one and it was a handful.” Chloe could hear the grin in Suzanne’s voice.

“
Mom!”

“
Just kidding. You know how much I love you, Chloe.” Suzanne laughed.

“
I know Mom. So will you please help me?” Chloe begged.

“
Chloe, I don’t understand why Richard would even suggest that you cook and on such short notice.”

Chloe shut the window and put a stack of papers on her desk inside a folder then filed it. “I know, Mom, but if I’m marrying Richard, I care about what his mom thinks about me.”

“
Chloe, you don’t have to prove anything to anybody. If she doesn’t like you, it’s not your problem.”

“
I know what you mean, Mom, and a part of me wants to buy food and say that I cooked it.”

“
Now that would be lying.”

Chloe bit her tongue. “I know, Mom. I wish she was more like Richard’s dad. He’s cool.”

“
Wait a minute.” Suzanne paused. “I have a brilliant idea.”

“
What is it?”

“
How about we invite Jill and she can come early. That way you and she can cook together. She’s a great cook.”

Chloe gasped. “Now, why didn’t I think of that?”

This time Chloe was certain Suzanne was grinning. “Mothers know best.”

“
That’s a brilliant idea, Mom. That way I am being truthful because even if Aunt Jill would be helping me, that’s something we can do together,” Chloe said tying her hair.

“
Exactly.”

“
Thanks so much, Mom.”

“
I’ll make sure Jill and I come over early tomorrow afternoon to help you prepare,” Suzanne said. “I’m excited to meet Richard’s parents, and we’ll be spending Friday and Saturday together.”

Chloe’s palms felt clammy. “Mom, I hope you don’t have any hidden agenda, okay?” she said, and immediately felt guilty. After all, who was she to talk about hidden agendas when she was surprising Suzanne with Ignacio.

“
What do you mean?” Suzanne asked, feigning innocence.

“
I don’t want you going at each other’s throats,” Chloe said, closing her drawer and grabbing her purse to leave.

“
Martha Stewart meets Joan Collins.”

“
Mom!”

“
I’m just joking, Chloe. I will discreetly show her that just because you’re no Martha Stewart doesn’t mean you’re not a decent woman.”

Chloe wanted to ask her what she meant by “discreetly” since her mother was anything but discreet. However, she was meeting Nicole for lunch and had to leave. She said goodbye and told Faye and Maureen that she would be back after an hour. Fortunately, the shop was not too busy when she left.

Back in her Jetta, Chloe put on her seatbelt and checked her lipstick in the rearview mirror. She still had ten minutes before she would pick up Nicole, so she drove to Josh’s shop and parked her car behind the shop. Putting her bag on her shoulder, she stepped out and locked her car. Was she doing the right thing? She took a deep breath before she entered the shop. Inside, three customers were busy looking at the display, while Justin was ringing the cash register yet there was no sign of Josh. Justin nodded at Chloe who went to look at the new stock of surfing key chains and bracelets as she patiently waited for him to
finish assisting the customer. Justin soon approached her.

“
Hey, Justin,” Chloe said, looking around to see if Josh had popped in.

Justin leaned against a rack. “If you’re looking for Josh, he hasn’t been here all morning. He’s meeting with an important client who wants to market our clothing and apparel line in Hawaii.”

Chloe nodded. That probably explained why he couldn’t take her call. “Thanks, Justin.”

“
I’ll let him know you came by.”

She said goodbye and went to pick up Nicole. One way or another, she needed to talk to Josh today.

When she arrived at
Nicole’s work, she found her friend talking to Matt on her cell phone. Nicole only hung up when they arrived at Pizza Mia. The waiter took them to their table and gave them their menus. They ordered a garlic supreme pizza and soda, which the waiter promptly brought to their table.

“
So?” Nicole said, drinking her soda.

“
So what?”

“
What’s the deal between you and Josh?”

“
Nic, there’s no deal between Josh and me. I’m getting married next month,” Chloe said, flashing her ring.

“
You didn’t sound that way when you called me the other night,” Nicole said, shaking her head. “You were excited…and happy.”

The waiter brought their pizza and Chloe immediately took a bite. She couldn’t get over what had happened last night. Everything seemed so fuzzy, like she’d dreamt it – Josh betraying her and Richard turning a new leaf. She wanted to tell Nicole what Trish had said but she needed to talk to Josh first. She needed to hear it straight from him – if what Trish said was true.
“Richard opened up to me about how difficult his childhood was, and about how his dad worked two to three jobs to feed eight kids.”

Nicole rolled her eyes. “Chloe, give me a break. You hear one sad story and you have a change of heart? Richard knows what a sucker you are for sad stories. I wouldn’t be surprised if he made up that story.”

Chloe frowned. “It’s true, Nic. He said the reason he works so hard is because he wants to provide for his family and retire at an early age.”

“
And you believe that?” Nicole tapped her nails on the tabletop. “That doesn’t give him the right to neglect you.”

“
It’s actually my fault, and now I understand why he’s like that.”

Nicole pretended to gag on her pizza. “Your fault? Are you okay, girl?”

“
Richard said that I revolve my life around him, which makes me needy and crave his attention,” Chloe said. “He said I need to be passionate about other things besides him.”

“
Now that makes him sound more self-centered than he already is. You have a life. You have your job and your friends. I don’t know what he’s trying to imply.”

Chloe knew her friend was right, but she changed the subject anyway. She informed Nicole about her plans to be a wedding planner and Millie’s plan to sell. “It’s perfect timing.”

“
That’s great news, Chloe, but what does that have to do with Richard?”

“
Get this. He agreed not to sell the house and was very impressed about my idea. I’ll be too busy to complain about him not spending time with me.”

Nicole shook parmesan cheese onto her pizza. “Hmmm…I don’t know about
you
, girl, but
I
smell something fishy here.”

“
Look, Nic, I know how much you dislike Richard, but could you give the guy a break. He’s had a rough time with money growing up, and I’d probably do the same thing if I were in his shoes.”

“
Okay, chill,” Nicole said. “One thing I can say for sure – I’ve never seen you as happy as you were with Josh.”

Chloe swallowed a bite of her pizza. “I left him a message to call me back, but he hasn’t returned my call.”

Nicole raised her eyebrows. “I hope you’re making the right choice. Marriage is a big decision.”

“
I am.” She paused, thinking of Josh. “I’m actually cooking for Richard’s parents tomorrow.”

Nicole almost choked on her soda. “You what?”

Chloe nodded.

“
I swear you’re going to give me a heart attack, Chloe,” Nicole said, grinning from ear to ear. “If I didn’t know you better, I’d think you were having mood swings. One moment you’re elated to be with Josh and the next moment you’re sucked into Richard’s sad story. Now you plan to cook for his in-laws? Chloe, this is one for the books.”

Chloe frowned but Nicole only laughed. “So, will you be wearing your apron and hat tomorrow?”

“
Nic, I’m serious, I will be cooking for them.”

“
You’re joking, right? Please tell me you’re joking, Chloe.” Nicole was laughing so hard that people from the other tables kept looking at her, but she didn’t seem to care. “I’ve known you all my life, Chloe, and cooking is definitely not you.”

Chloe put her finger to her mouth signaling Nicole to lower her voice. “I know, Nic, but to make a long story short, Mom and Aunt Jill are coming over to help me.”

“
The things you do for Richard.” Nicole shook her head. “I hope you’re making the right decision, my friend.”

Chloe pursed her lips.

Chloe and Nicole split the bill as soon as the waiter handed them the check. They walked outside to Chloe’s Jetta and climbed in. Chloe looked at her watch. She still had time to chill before going back to work
.
She needed time to be alone, to grasp the series of events that had transpired, so she dropped Nicole at work and kissed her goodbye.

“
Don’t worry, Chloe. I’m sure the dinner tomorrow will turn out fine. Don’t forget to save some leftovers for me,” Nicole said, as she closed the door.

Chloe smiled. “Thanks, Nic. I’ll definitely do that.”

Chloe decided to take a drive to the beach. With things moving so fast, she wasn’t sure about the direction she was going. She needed to talk to Josh and he wasn’t returning her calls. And what about Richard? Why the sudden change of heart? Was he hiding something too? She was too trusting?

She was crossing the traffic light to turn right to get to the beach on the next block when she caught sight of a blue Ford Mustang going the same direction.
Is that Josh?

***

Josh horsed down the last two bites of his sandwich then drove back to work to relieve Justin who had managed the shop while Phil was busy giving surfing lessons. Josh had been busy all morning meeting with Tom Barnard, a surfer who owned several shops in Hawaii. Tom had fallen in love with Josh’s apparel line and proposed to carry their brand in his shops. As he drove to the shop, he checked his voicemail. He had received two messages from Chloe who sounded upset. He hadn’t spoken to her for two days. He didn’t want to pressure her, but was hoping that she had called off the wedding with Richard.

He had received another message from Trish who said she was in town visiting a friend and wanted to see him. How many times did he have to convince her that it was over between them? The last time he spoke to her – three months ago – he made it clear it was over. Trish needed to move on.

As he entered the store, he punched in Chloe’s number but had to cancel the call when a customer requested his assistance. He was busy helping the customer when someone he didn’t expect entered the store.
Trish!
His heart sank as he signaled that he would assist her as soon as he was finished helping his customer.
How did she know where I work?

Trish nodded as she browsed Josh’s shop. She went to the fitting room to try on some shorts and when she came out Josh had just finished with a customer. He walked towards her, his arms folded. “What are you doing here, Trish?”

She tilted her head to the side. “What’s the matter, Josh? Don’t you know how to say hello?”

He scowled as she walked around the shop looking at the t-shirts. She picked up three shirts to match her shorts and then walked to the counter. “Can you ring this up for me?”

Josh walked behind the counter and scanned the items as Trish pulled her credit card from her purse. She had cut her long blonde hair short. She looked like she had aged since the last time he saw her. He noticed dark circles under her eyes and she must have lost one dress size because her clothes seemed too big for her. “What brings you to Half Moon Bay?”

She signed the bill and glanced up at him. “I’m sure you got my voicemail saying that I was in town. I thought I’d pop in to see how you’re doing. You have a nice shop.”

Josh put the clothes inside a plastic bag and handed it to Trish. She took the charge card and returned it to her purse. “So, aren’t you going to invite me for a drink? I didn’t fly all the way here just to buy clothes.”

Josh took a deep breath. “I have work to do.” She was still the same demanding Trish he knew who liked to boss him around – so different from Chloe. Trish always belittled his dreams of being a surfer and now she was admiring his shop.
Can’t she see that I’ve moved on?