Happily Ever After (Read 53,717 times)

[unavitasegreta]

Oooooh! Philip, Philip, Philip! How do you forget that woman when you've been on business trips with her?! But in his defense Chloe wasn't giving context and he might have been too confused to know who she was referring to with her comments.

Things don't look good for these two. Their relationship is splintering. I can't wait to see what happens with Parker. I'm loving all the background info about the relationship. These two needs some counseling. And perhaps some sex. That'll ease some tension, right? Just a suggestion.

[Kpatch]

Chapter 13b


“Huh?”

“Oh you know very well who I’m talking about, Philip,” Chloe folded her arms across her chest. “Pretty young thing in the office. Shoulder length dark hair, about five foot two, big chest, just your type. She works in Marketing. Oh yes, and you go on business trips with her.”

“Oh,” Philip finally realized who Chloe meant. “Monica Frasier,” he said innocently. “Right. She’s a sharp kid. Young. Ambitious. Recent graduate of Northwestern. She has some really good ideas.”

“I’ll bet she has ideas. And you say she’s young? Around Melanie’s age?”

Philip winced. “Melanie?? Why would you bring up Melanie out of the blue?”

“Why do you think?” Chloe spat. “Because you’re having a thing with her.”

“A thing with who? With Monica?” Philip raised his eyebrows. “I am? This is news to me.”

“Don’t play innocent.”

Actually, he wasn’t playing. “Wait. You’re serious! Chloe, come on, I’m not having a thing with Monica.”

“Really,” Chloe said, the sarcasm oozing off her tongue. “Then why did she say you get amorous when you’re drunk?”

His jaw fell open. “Crap! She told you?”

“Aha!” She pointed a finger at him. “So you admit it.”

“I admit nothing,” Philip was adamant. “But she wasn’t supposed to tell anyone I said that.”

“Said? … Said? What do you mean ‘said’?”

“I was giving her advice,” Philip pointed out. “She has a crush on someone she works with….”

“You.”

“No, not me,” Philip shook his head. “Someone else. So I was telling her how to get him to loosen up.”

Chloe squinted. “Really?” She sounded like she wanted to believe him.

“Yes really. Sweetheart, I can’t believe you would think I was having an affair.” In fact, he was shocked. “I have everything I want right here with you. Why would I screw things up?”

Chloe got quiet and looked down at her lap. “I don’t know.”

Suddenly the light dawned. “Oh. So that’s why you mentioned Melanie. Because I screwed up that relationship by having a fling.”

Chloe looked up at Philip and knit her brow. She started to say something but appeared to change her mind. “I guess.”

Philip smiled. “It’s not gonna happen, babe. Not to us. Come here.”

When he held out his hand, Chloe got up from her chair and went over to Philip. He pulled her into his lap and kissed her. “You’re the only woman I want.” Pushing her hair back with his fingers, he said, “You’re everything to me. You know that, right?”

Chloe nodded. “I get insecure sometimes.”

“Well don’t. There’s no reason.”

As Philip ran his knuckles along her cheek, Chloe’s eyes filled with tears. “Thank God. I really don’t want to lose what we have.”

“Neither do I,” Philip whispered. “So let’s not.” He pulled her toward him again and kissed her lips.

[heroicmuse]

Awww. So sweet. Too bad Philip and Chloe live in the land of no happy couples. It saddens me to know this isn't the end of their troubles.

[gapeach]

I knew Phillip had a good explanation for the comment Chloe heard. Now he needs to open his eyes and realize Chloe IS RIGHT! That girl has a crush in HIM!!

[melly]

Dear Philip--it is a terrible idea to get involved so personally in the lives of your employees, especially the young, pretty ones. You're welcome.

Smh....men.

[phloefansince2000]

Ooh great chapter. I just love it when Phloe kiss and make up! If Philip really wasn't having an affair then, when did he start? And why? He said he had everything he ever wanted, and wouldn't screw it up. I can't wait to find out what really caused Phloe to not be happily ever after.

[fluffysmom]

I'm glad they are okay for now. I wonder if Philip was completely honest and if Chloe truly believes his explanation.

[unavitasegreta]

This chapter makes me happy and sad at the same time. Happy that they made up and it's okay. But sad that they're still getting divorced in "real time." Happy that Philip assuaged Chloe's fears. Yet sad that she somehow revived her belief that he's having an affair. You are so good at conflicting emotions. Speaking of ... what kind of cliffhanger are you going to kill me with tomorrow?! You have the worst/best Fridays. I hate them because I want to know what happens next and I have to wait all weekend, yet I love it because it's like the "old" soap days when you just wanted it to hurry up and be Monday. So ... bring on the Friday!

[rahma2701]

Sweet ending This is getting better!

[melly]

Can I request weekend previews in advance?

[Kpatch]

Chapter 14


February 2015

Chloe was getting ready for work one morning, finishing her makeup. She heard the sound of Parker’s train set coming from the living room, so she popped her head out of the bathroom. “Parker, finish your breakfast. We’re leaving in ten minutes,” she called to him.

She sighed, tired already before the day even began. Life was so much easier when there were two of them to share the responsibility for getting Parker fed, dressed, and ready to go every day. In fact, everything was easier when there were two of them sharing their lives.

Looking in the bathroom mirror, she applied her lipstick and pressed her lips together. Her mind wandered to a different shade of lipstick.

After she discovered the lipstick print on the wine glass, Chloe knew she had a decision to make, a big one. She’d given Philip the benefit of the doubt after she heard Monica tell a coworker about how Philip got amorous with her. Mostly, she didn’t want to believe it, so she willed it away and she accepted Philip’s explanation. But this … the lipstick … that was physical evidence, and it could not be ignored.

So when Philip came through the door that night after not seeing each other for days, she didn’t move from her position on the sofa.

~~~~~
November 2014

“Hey beautiful,” he said, leaning over the back of the sofa to kiss Chloe. “I’m glad you’re home. I missed you like crazy.” He stroked her cheek, but Chloe stiffened. “Sweetie, what’s wrong?”

Chloe glared at Philip but said nothing. How could he act like everything was fine, like it was just any other day, when she was so hurt and angry she was practically trembling.

He definitely noticed that she wasn’t her usual self. “What?” He straightened up but continued to hold onto the back of the sofa.

“You know what,” she hissed, barely turning to look at him.

“No,” he said slowly. “If I knew, I wouldn’t be asking.”

“I know Philip,” she blurted out over her shoulder. “I know you’re having an affair!”

Philip started to laugh but he could see Chloe wasn’t joking. “You’re serious? What … where is this coming from this time?”

Chloe got up off the sofa and went into the kitchen. She opened the cabinet where they keep the stemware and pulled out a glass. “This. Explain this.”

Philip cocked his head. “It’s a glass. A wine glass. Is this a test?”

She held the glass out and tried to hold it still, but she was shaking with fury. “Look closer!”

“Hmmm.” Taking the glass from her and examining it, he said, “Dishwasher didn’t do a very good job. We should get a repair guy out right away,” he joked.

“You’re a riot, Philip,” she said, not laughing. “The problem isn’t the dishwasher. It’s that you didn’t do a very good job of covering your tracks.”

She could see Philip was getting annoyed, or pretending to be. “What the hell are you talking about?”

“You never run the dishwasher except when you’re trying to conceal evidence. Like this,” she said swiping the glass from his hand and holding it up again. “Who’s lipstick is this?”

“Um. Yours?”

If Parker wasn’t in the other room, she’d be screaming at the top of her lungs after that flippant comment. Instead, she grit her teeth. “Not only is it not mine, but I didn’t drink from this glass. I was unloading the dishwasher when I found it. It’s not even my color Philip,” she said, choking back tears. “How do you explain that??”

“Oh. Oh okay, I know what happened,” he said a little too calmly. “And it’s not at all what you’re thinking.”

[fluffysmom]

This is not looking good for Philip. I feel bad for Chloe.

[heroicmuse]

I want to hear Philip's explanation, though I'm sure Chloe won't buy it. I wonder if he had a meeting with Chloe's agent about Chloe's singing somewhere and that's where the lipstick came from.

[unavitasegreta]

Yep. There it is. The dreaded but loved Friday cliffhanger. You are so evil. Yet so great. Yet evil too. But also great. I know Chloe won't buy whatever explanation but I am choosing to believe Philip. If he were cheating, he'd be covering and not caught off guard. I'm curious why Chloe is so quick to jump to conclusions. Maybe she's feeling guilty or insecure about something!

[fluffysmom]

I don't blame Chloe for being suspicious when time after time these clues keep arising.