Free We Ended Up Together by Veronica Makers Page A

beside his side table and placed his keys in a bowl on the coffee table.
    "Sorry about the mess. I stopped by my old apartment and picked up a couple of things," Chloe explained, hesitantly glancing at him.
    "Don't worry about it. What are you up to now?" Brad asked as he stepped over a bag and sat on the couch beside Chloe. He loosened his tie slightly as he relaxed, waiting for her reply.
    "Um, these are my divorce papers. I stopped by my lawyer's office and picked them up. I'm going to fill them out and then just get my ex-husband to sign them," Chloe explained.
    "I know how hard it is to go through a divorce, trust me. So if you need anything I'm here for you," Brad said, sincerely. Chloe looked at him and smiled.
    "Thanks Brad for everything. I really appreciate it," Chloe replied with honesty in her tone.
    "I'm glad I can help," Brad said. For a moment Chloe felt tears in her eyes. Brad was just so sweet. She swallowed the lump in her throat as she just stared at the calm expression on his face.
    Luckily the phone began to ring at that moment. Brad rotated on the couch and picked it up, turning away from Chloe.
    "Hello?" Brad answered.
    "Brad, it's Kathy," Kathy's voice spoke from the other side of the phone.
    "Oh hi, what's going on?" Brad asked, inquiringly.
    "I wanted to remind you that you have Jake this weekend," Kathy said. Brad furrowed his eyebrows in confusion, before recalling these plans. Chloe watched him with interest.
    "I completely forgot. Listen, I have company and she really needs my undivided attention right now. I thought it was your weekend," Brad responded. Feeling uncomfortable under Chloe's watch he stood up and paced to his living room window.
    "No. Remember, Harry and I are taking a trip to the Hamptons," Kathy said carefully. Brad felt a pang of discomfort ripple through his body. Anything to do with his ex-wife and her boyfriend still hurt for him to hear about.
    "I'm sorry. That completely slipped my mind. But, we did discuss that," Brad apologized, unable to hide his sadness. "When will you drop him by?"
    "I'll bring him tomorrow at 10:00," Kathy replied, somberly.
    "Okay, I'll, uh, see you then," Brad responded. As much as he loved his son, he had hoped he could have this weekend alone with Chloe. She needed him right now, with what she was going through.
    Brad and Kathy exchanged goodbyes and then Brad walked over to his side table to hang up the phone. As soon as Chloe heard the click of the handset hitting the base, she broke the silence.
    "Is everything okay?" Chloe asked softly. Brad glanced down at her, as she still remained seated on the couch.
    "Um, well, my son has to come and spend the weekend. I'm really sorry," Brad apologized.
    "Brad that's fine. Don't worry about it," Chloe said, dismissing him with a hand wave.
    "It's just that I usually take Jake to visit Vanessa. I'm sure you're welcome to join us if you'd like," Brad suggested, kindly. Chloe took her focus off of his face and looked at the floor.
    "I don't know if that's such a good idea," Chloe mumbled. Brad stepped around the arm of the couch and sat down beside her once again.
    "What do you mean?" Brad asked as he stared at her with a perplexed expression.
    "I haven't seen her in years. We promised to stay in touch, but that didn't happen," Chloe explained, still looking at the ground as the guilt caught up with her. She looked up into Brad’s concerned gaze.
    "Chloe, I'm sure she'll be fine. I bet she'll just be happy to see you again," Brad stated.
    "Okay, I guess you know her better than I do. I'll come," Chloe decided.
    "That's great," Brad exclaimed.
    Chloe still hadn't convinced herself that this was a good idea. It was the reason why she didn't call Vanessa after Brad had given her Vanessa’s number. She was scared that Vanessa would be bitter about the way they left things.
    Chloe had met James in college. As soon as she started dating him, her parents discovered that James’ parents were in the same country