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Post by Kpatch on Jan 3, 2015 12:21:36 GMT -5
I'm posting the last two chapters of Stealing Home as a refresher of where we left off.
Here's Chapter 25 of 25
Stealing Home, Chapter 25 of 25 - Finale
Chloe jumped up when she heard the key in the door and she quickly placed Philip’s gift back under the tree. “Daddy’s home, angel,” she said, kissing her son’s head as he played with his toy trains on the floor. Parker got off the floor and ran to his father, beating Chloe to a hug.
Philip lifted Parker in his arms, then wrapped an arm around Chloe, kissing her hello. “Nice greeting, guys. I’m feeling loved,” he quipped.
“That’s because you are,” Chloe said between kisses.
Philip put Parker down and the boy ran back to his train track. Chloe grasped Philip’s hands and walked him into the room. “Now I’ve got you all to myself for eight whole days.”
“And nights,” Philip said, pulling her close. “Don’t forget about the nights.”
“Oh don’t worry, Soldier, I’m looking forward to those as well.” She kissed him hard to show him she meant what she said.
Their kiss was interrupted by Philip’s cell phone. “This better not be work,” he said, reaching for the phone in his pocket. He looked at the display. “Hmm.” Pressing the answer key, he put the phone to his ear. “Justin, hey, what’s up?”
While talking to Justin, Philip slipped his coat off with Chloe’s help. She held his coat and watched him start to pace and rub the back of his neck. This can’t be good, she thought, recognizing his nervous mannerisms. She hung Philip’s coat in the front closet, never taking her eyes off him.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” he said into the phone. “No, you’re right. I don’t know why I should be surprised. This sounds exactly like something she’d do.” Philip stopped pacing to look at Chloe. He looked lost in his thoughts. Justin’s voice brought him back to the present. “Sorry, what did you say? Right. ... Yeah, I’ll let you know. ... Christmas? What? Oh. Right. Of course, Merry Christmas to you and Adrienne and the kids. ... I will.”
Philip put his phone down and approached Chloe. He looked like he’d seen a ghost. “What’s wrong, Philip,” she asked. “You’re scaring me.”
He rubbed her shoulders soothingly. “Nothing, everything’s fine.”
“Don’t lie to me, Philip, not after everything we’ve been through. No secrets, remember? What did Justin want?”
Philip sighed wearily. “He wanted to tell me that he knows where my mother is. Her exact location. Seems she’s living with some drug lord in Venezuela. I’m sure she figures by living with a mobster, she’ll be protected. Wouldn’t be the first time she’s done something like that.”
“Venezuela is a dangerous place, Philip. You’re not planning to....”
Philip finished her thought. “I told Justin I’d let him know after the holidays.”
“Let him know what?”
Philip looked away from her to avoid her questioning eyes. “Exactly what you’re thinking. I’ll let him know whether we want to send someone in there to get her out, bring her back here to stand trial.”
“Tell him no,” Chloe said decisively.
Philip’s brow knit as he turned back to face her. “What??”
“I said, tell him no.”
“What do you mean “no”?” Philip was incredulous. “She can’t get away with what she did to us, Chloe. What she did to you was barbaric. Needless shock treatments. You would have had a lobotomy if we didn’t get you out of there when we did. Don’t tell me you forgive her.”
“Forgive her? Are you kidding?”
“Well,” Philip shrugged. “You’re always quoting Father Matt about how all things are possible with forgiveness.”
Chloe smirked. “Maybe so, but Kate is the exception to that rule. If I was a better person spiritually, then maybe I could find it in me to forgive her, but I’m definitely not a saint. I’m human and I hate her as much as you do. Trust me, I have all kinds of fantasies about evilness befalling her.”
“So, if you want your fantasies to come true....”
“No! God no. That’s not what I meant. What I really want is to stop the insanity.” Chloe was getting agitated. “I want this to be over.”
Philip took a step toward her. “Shhh. Let’s change the subject.”
Chloe walked toward the Christmas tree, away from from Philip. “Don’t you see, Philip? She isn’t going to get away with it. She’s not getting away with it, even now. It’s the holidays. She can’t be happy where she is, and she isn’t safe there, not really. She’s far away from her family and she’s living with dangerous people. I believe that’s God’s way of dealing with her.” She turned to face Philip. “It’s not up to us to pass judgment. It’s up to God.” Chloe began to get teary-eyed. “Besides, if you send someone in there to get her out, people are going to get hurt. Your people. I don’t want that on my conscience, Philip.”
“Okay. Shhh. Shhh.” Philip walked over and put his arms around her. “Whatever you say, sweetheart. I’ll tell Justin to let it go.”
“Promise?”
Philip took a step back and squinted at her. “I said we’ll let it go.”
Chloe could tell Philip was getting annoyed with her questioning him, so she backed off. “I’m sorry, Philip. I know you’ll keep your word. It’s just that, I don’t want revenge,” she said. “Not that kind anyway.”
Philip raised his brows. “Okay. What kind of revenge do you want?”
“This,” she said, indicating the three of them. “You and me and Parker. We survived Kate. Look at how long it took us to get to this place. But we did it. We proved that nothing she can do can destroy us.” She touched the chain around her neck that had one of Philip’s dog tags hanging from it. “That’s why we wear these, right? It’s proof that we got through it, we survived the wars, and we can get through anything.” Philip silently nodded. “You know the saying that living well is the best revenge? And we are. We’re living well, right?”
“Better than well,” he smiled, taking her hands. “You’re right, sweetheart. We’re happy. And that’s all I want. All I want is to see you happy.”
“I am, Philip. I’m happy and healthy and whole. I feel so blessed. I have everything I want now. I have you. And I have Parker. I love you both so much.”
“Well, hopefully, I’m about to make you even happier.”
Chloe knit her brow. “What do you mean?”
“I have something for you. Your Christmas eve gift. But really, it’s the gift of a lifetime.” Holding both her hands, he led her over to the couch as he spoke and they both sat down.
Chloe started to laugh. “Another O Henry gift?”
“Not this time. At least I hope not.” Still holding both her hands, he looked at her and took a deep breath. “I’ve made a lot of mistakes in my life,” he said, “but loving you was never one of them. It was just our timing that wasn’t always the greatest.”
Chloe nodded, but she wasn’t exactly sure what he meant -- until he slid off the sofa and lowered himself onto one knee in front of Chloe. He put his hand in his pocket and took out an engagement ring. Holding it between his thumb and forefinger, he asked, “Remember this?”
Chloe’s lips parted as she looked from the ring to Philip’s eyes. She was speechless. She hadn’t even given any thought to the Christmas eve gift Philip was going to give to her. She was too focused on what she was giving to him. Her eyes pooled with tears as he spoke.
“I put this on your finger over a year ago,” he continued, “after you proposed to me. Remember?” He chuckled. “I know you remember it now. ... Well, now it’s my turn.” His voice cracked with emotion, so he paused for a moment to collect himself before continuing. “When we came back to Chicago, I promised I’d give this to you again when the time was right. And I’m hoping it’s right, like ... now.” He cleared his throat. Chloe thought he seemed a little nervous and she felt so touched. “Chloe, when I was 16, I fell in love with an incredible girl. She was smart and talented and beautiful and loving and funny. I just knew she was the perfect girl for me and I was sure that I could never love anyone more. Well, guess what? I was wrong,” he said. “You’re all those things and more, and I love you more today than I ever have before. You’re everything to me, Chloe, and I want to spend the rest of my life with you, if you’ll have me. Let’s make it official. Marry me.”
Chloe was so overwhelmed with emotion, she thought she must be dreaming. She wasn’t sure if she was speaking or not, but she was pretty sure her head was moving up and down. The huge smile on Philip’s face seemed to confirm it. He slid the ring onto her finger, then he sat on the couch beside her and pulled her into an embrace. He leaned away and took her face in his hands, kissing her lips as he leaned her back onto the sofa.
Lying beneath Philip’s body, getting lost in their kisses, Chloe was surprised to feel an extra pair of hands poking her arm and she gently pushed Philip back. They both turned their heads to find Parker standing next to the sofa. “What you doing to Mommy?” he asked Philip.
Philip laughed and sat up on the couch. Lifting Parker onto his lap, he said, “We were kissing, big guy. You want to know why?” Parker nodded.
Chloe kissed Parker’s hand as the three of them sat on the couch together. “We were celebrating, angel,” she told him. “Your daddy and I are going to get married.”
“Okay,” Parker said, wrinkling his brow. He wasn’t nearly as moved by the big news as his parents were. They laughed as he pushed himself off of Philip’s lap to resume playing with his train set.
Chloe admired the ring on her finger. “I wasn’t expecting this, Philip. This is the best gift,” she told him.
“No,” he said, leaning toward her. “You’re the best gift.” He kissed her and started to push her back onto the sofa cushions when she pulled away.
“Oh wait. I almost forgot,” she said.
“Wait? For what? What’s wrong?”
Chloe smiled coyly. “I have something for you too. You’re going to flip when you see it.” Chloe went over to the tree and retrieved a flat wrapped box.
As she returned to the sofa and handed it to Philip, he said, “What’s this? A shirt box? Don’t tell me. It’s an ‘I Survived Kate’ t-shirt.”
Chloe laughed. “Hardly. Open it.”
Philip pulled off the wrapping paper and separated the lid from the bottom part of the box. His brow knit as he looked at a flat envelope. He looked at Chloe who was smiling from ear to ear. He reached inside the envelope and pulled out a certificate. His lips parted as he read it silently, then he looked at Chloe with amazement. “Oh my God. Is this for real?”
“Congratulations,” she said, smiling proudly. “It’s official. You’re a father.”
Philip looked at the paper again, and this time, he read it aloud. “Parker Wesley Kiriakis. Date of birth - November 11, 2010. Mother - Chloe Lane. Father - Philip Kiriakis.” Philip swallowed hard. “Chloe. This is ... incredible. ... I’m speechless.”
Chloe laughed. “Ha. I finally figured out how to shut you up.” She put her hand on his knee when she saw the tears in his eyes. “I’m so happy you like it, Philip. But I have to tell you, getting them to change that back was no easy feat.”
“Why not?” He continued to look at the certificate.
“Because I’m over the limit. The woman at the Division of Vital Records gave me such a hard time. I’m sure they talk about me around the water cooler,” she laughed. “They told me this was the very last time I’m allowed to make a change.”
Philip laughed. “What did you say?”
“Oh, I told them it was definitely the last time, and they wouldn’t be hearing from me again.”
Philip rubbed his chin. “Hmmm. Well, they might.”
Chloe scowled at him. “What?? Why?”
“Because we’ll be needing a marriage license,” he winked.
Her lips curved into a broad smile. “I’ll give you the phone number,” she teased. “You can call them this time.”
“It will be my pleasure.”
The End
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