Hand In Glove

Chapter 43

Sure enough, Chloe awoke the next morning with the sounds of cars pulling up, doors slamming and, of course, a whole lot of swearing. Quickly glancing at the clock, she saw that it was only four in the morning. They must have driven all night, she thought with a contented sigh, fighting the urge to close her eyes again. Their voices got closer and louder as they entered through the back door. She giggled softly at all the shushing and shoving. Then she heard the fridge door opening and closing, the familiar hushed male voices. Unable to resist any longer, she jumped out of bed and quickly threw her robe on over her pajamas.

She opened the bedroom door, crept around the corner and watched them from the hall. They sat and stood in various positions, all still in stage outfits and makeup. A stranger might have found them freakish and scary but Chloe found them beautiful. They reminded her of rockstar superheroes, right out of the pages of a comic book. The glow of the stage still shone on their features, and the satisfaction of doing what they loved lingered on their handsome faces. They were the lucky ones. The rare few who found what they truly loved to do and were successful at it.

Chloe took a deep breath and willed herself to enter their circle, but her legs were frozen with sudden shyness. Feeling awkward and out of place, she attempted to go unnoticed and started to retreat into her room. But her subtle movement caught their attention and one by one, they turned to look at her standing there. She was about to apologize for interrupting, but before she could open her mouth, they all beamed at her. It was obvious that they were all just as glad to see her as she was to see them.

"Hey, girlie," Jamie said, giving his knee a suggestive tap. "Ah, come on, I won't bite."

Chloe smiled shyly and looked away from him. Her eyes searching out Ashton. He stood casually up against the counter, facing her, the look in his eyes causing her to blush.

"Welcome home, gents," she said, leaning demurely into the doorframe. She bashfully smiled at Chris and finally Nick who stood closest.

"Hey, Chloe Belle, there you are." Nick approached her with cautious steps, in reflection of that fateful night not so long ago. This time, she didn't cower away from him and with gratitude, he pulled her into his embrace. "Were you just going to go back to bed without saying hello?" He gave her devastating pout. "We've missed you, you know? Oh, you should've been there with us," he said wistfully, hugging her tight. "It was awesome." He twirled her around so that she stood centrally in their midst.

"Yeah, that's what I tried to tell her," Ashton said, taking her hand and tugging her close. He wrapped his arms around her. With her backed up against his chest, he rested his nose in her hair and inhaled her sweet scent. "But, Chloe here, thinks somehow she'd be in the way."

"In the way?" Nick balked.

"In the way of what?" Jamie scoffed, furrowing his brow.

"I don't know, that's just it." Ashton smiled and kissed the top of her head. "Maybe she thinks you guys don't want her around, like she'd cramp our style or something."

Embarrassed, she pulled his arms up to cover her face.

"That's enough. Quit picking on Chloe," Chris said, taking pity on her. "Come here, you." He took her from Ashton's grip. "Silly girl, how could you ever be in the way?"

She could only smile, overwhelmed by all the attention. When Chris hugged her, she felt incredibly calm and untouchable, like nothing in the world could get past him.

"I don't know what I was thinking," she said with a sigh, resting her cheek on his chest.

"Yeah, I don't know either," Jamie said, sitting across from her. "Seems to me, having a hot little chick around would only boost our image. You know, inspire all those other gals to try harder if you know what I mean." He chuckled. "Now, where's my hug?" he said with his arms out.