Hand In Glove

Chapter 26

By the time Chloe awoke the next morning, she could hear Ashton on the treadmill. It was unlike him. He usually waited until the afternoon to exercise.

Having slept so well, she felt rested and ready to start her day. She got up, showered and got dressed. As she prepared breakfast she glanced over at the counter and thought about what had happened, only now it all felt like a dream. It shouldn't be too hard to carry on as usual, she reasoned. They had just gotten caught up in the moment that's all. Things would be just fine, she convinced herself. Would he have kissed her? She sighed, feeling slightly light-headed at the mere thought of it.

She tensed as she heard Ashton enter the kitchen. "Good morning, Chloe," he said unceremoniously as he passed her on the way upstairs to shower. She turned just in time to see him all sweaty, wearing nothing but shorts and a small towel flung over his shoulder.

"Good morning," she answered as she felt the rush of blood to her cheeks. Okay, maybe it wasn't going to be so easy, she thought, turning her attention back to breakfast.

After taking a shower, he returned to the kitchen, thankfully remembering to put on a shirt. Breathing easier, Chloe placed his plate in front of him and served herself. "So, did you get your song all finished up?" she asked casually.

"It's all done and in the mail. Now I can get paid," he answered.

"Wow, you must have gotten up pretty early," Chloe commented.

"Well, actually, I didn't sleep. It took me till three in the morning to wrap it up and then I just figured I'd stay up and get it in the mail as soon as I could. After that, I still couldn't sleep, so I thought I may as well burn off some energy and I hopped on the treadmill. I hope I didn't disturb you," he said, watching her closely. Had she lost any sleep?

"No, you didn't. I slept like a baby."

"It figures," he muttered.

"What do you mean by that?"

"Nothing, never mind," he said, shaking his head, a strange expression on his face.

"Okay then, I guess you'll be sleeping until lunchtime. You must be exhausted," Chloe said with a hesitant smile. Should she apologize for last night? For what, though, pulling him close, or pushing him away?

"That's probably a good idea," Ashton said, yawning and pushing his empty plate away. He rested his head down on the table.

Chloe cleared the table as quietly as possible. Ashton pushed his chair back slowly, got up and went over to the couch to lie down.

"Wouldn't you be more comfortable upstairs?" she asked, walking over to him, but he was already asleep. Chloe shrugged and figured she might as well take the opportunity to tidy the upstairs. She started in the bathroom, sweeping the floor, wiping down the tub and shower. She tidied all of Ashton's things neatly in an organized manner. She removed the old towels and replaced them with new ones she'd bought the other day. His office just needed a quick dusting since he kept it quite neat.

Daring to enter his bedroom, she left everything alone except for the bed. She stripped the old sheets off and replaced them with the new ones she'd picked up, topping it off with the new duvet she'd picked out. She made sure the pattern was masculine enough with subtle blues and grays.

Hopefully, he'd like it better than the ratty old comforter. Just for fun, she'd also bought him some overstuffed pillows and tossed them on the bed. Feeling accomplished, she grabbed the laundry basket and went downstairs. Glancing at the couch, she could see that Ashton was still fast asleep.

Taking the laundry down into the basement, she stopped first, grabbing hers along the way. She was feeling pretty good, all things considered. She was glad to go about her business without worrying about feeling weird.