Stripped (27 page)

“That’s my only offer. Take the girls to spite me if
you want, but you won’t get any money. I survived you; they will, too.”

“You think you’re so high and mighty with your rich
doctor boyfriend?” Kathy spat bitterly. “You’re still trash, Abby.”

“You need help, but whether you get it or not, I
don’t want anything to do with you.”

“What if I’m sick?” Kathy asked, looking a little
scared. “There won’t be anyone to help me.”

“I can’t do it anymore, Mom,” Abby said, her voice
choked with emotion. “You can’t treat someone the way you’ve treated me and
expect them to be there for you.”

“You took Audrey and Sara’s father away from them,
and now you’re taking their mother away, too.”

“You did this,” Abby said, walking away.

She closed her bedroom door and pressed her back to
it, finally letting the tears flow. It had been terrifying and exhilarating to
finally stand up to her mother. She glanced at her phone, smiling when she saw
that Chris had written her back.

Miss you, too. Wish you were at home in
bed waiting for me. xo

Abby was exhausted as she climbed into her own bed.
She exhaled deeply, heartened at the idea of a life without her mother in it.
And for the first time, she didn’t feel guilty about it.

As soon as Abby walked in the front door to Chris’
apartment, he swept her into an embrace, kissing her deeply.

“You look good,” he said.

“So do you. It’s been so hard to get time alone
together. How long has it been?”

“Eight days. Let’s go make up for lost time and eat
later.”

“Can we take Molly for a walk first?” she asked,
pulling away suddenly. He gave her a puzzled look.

“Now?” he asked.

“Yes, if it’s okay. I do want to make up for lost
time – later.”

“Okay.” His disappointment was evident as he found
Molly’s leash and put it on her.

Abby reached for Chris’ hand as they made their way
down the sidewalk in front of his apartment. It was a typical winter day in
Chicago, and she wrapped her scarf around her neck to block out the chill as
they walked.

Molly tired quickly, her tongue drooping as she
slowed.

“We’d better turn around,” Chris said.

“Just a little further.”

“What’s with your enthusiasm for walking?”

She grinned at him as they continued.

“I have a surprise for you,” she said, stopping in
front of a row of brick townhouses.

“What?”

“I’m moving into this building with Audrey and
Sara.”

“Abby! Really?”

“Yes. We’ll be neighbors, sort of. We can have
dinners together before you have to go to work.”

“That’s great … wait, did you say you and Audrey and
Sara?” He looked at her hopefully.

“Yes. Justin’s getting an apartment near his school
and my Mom moved into her own apartment yesterday.”

Chris looked at her with amazement.

“Just like that?”

“No. I forced the issue.”

“Oh, Abby. I hope I didn’t make you do something you
didn’t want to do.”

“I did it for me, and for Audrey and Sara. You
helped me see what I needed to see. And this … it’s a fresh start. The girls
will be at a really good school, and it’ll be nice to be closer to you.”

“Do you want to talk about it? How did your Mom take
it?”

“She was mad, but she went anyway,” Abby shrugged.

“And she just gave you the girls?”

“I offered her money.”

Chris nodded knowingly.

“How much did it cost you?” he asked.

“Nothing. When the time came, she refused the money.
She…cried, actually, and thanked me for taking them. Said she knows she’s a bad
influence.”

“Are you sure you’re okay with it?”

“I am. It was time. I’ll never stop hoping she’ll
get it together. But this is what’s best for me and Audrey and Sara. And
Justin, too. He needs to break away from us and be a normal 20-year-old.”

Chris smiled as he pulled her hand to his lips and
kissed it.

“Have you made a deal on one of these yet?” he
asked.

“No, but I hope to tomorrow.”

“Before you do, there’s another place I think you
might like. Will you look at it?”

“Sure. Is it closer to your apartment?”

“No, it’s a little further out, actually, but I
think you’ll like it.”

“I’m freezing, let’s get back inside. Justin’s got
the girls all afternoon. What are we going to do?”

“I’ve got a few ideas,” he said, grinning. “I’ll
warm you up in a hurry.”

Reed was animated and happy as he related an
anecdote about his shift the night before, and Chris smiled, though he wasn’t
really listening.

Charlotte, who was grating fresh parmesan cheese
onto the Caesar salad she had made, was also smiling at Reed but watching Chris
from the corner of her eye.

“Something on your mind, Chris?” she asked as he
stared down at the dark wood table.

“Hmm? Oh, no.”

“You seem preoccupied.”

“Yeah, you do, what’s up?” Reed said, serving
Charlotte’s salad into bowls for the three of them.

“I don’t know,” Chris said, shrugging. “I guess it’s
this nagging feeling I’ve got. Things are finally good with Abby, and it’s what
I’ve wanted since I met her, but something’s bothering me.”

Charlotte and Reed looked at him expectantly, and
Chris sighed. He paused, trying to think of the best way to say what he was
thinking.

“What is it?” Reed finally asked.

“Irony, I guess. She’s always been insecure and felt
like she wasn’t good enough for me. We’re past that, now, but the truth is,
I’ve realized I’m not good enough for her.”

“How so?” Charlotte asked, looking puzzled and soon
after, worried. “God, Chris, tell me you haven’t cheated on her.”

“No, no, nothing like that.” He looked back at the
table, lost in thought for a few seconds. “The thing about Abby is … she’s the
best person I’ve ever known. I’m not just saying that because I’m sleeping with
her or because she’s beautiful. She’s smart, resilient, and just so … good.
She’s been supporting her deadbeat mother and taking care of her brother and
two sisters for most of her life, and she doesn’t even see it as a sacrifice.
I’m selfish. What have I ever done for someone else that was a sacrifice? I’m
so shallow compared to her.”

“Where is this coming from, Chris?” Charlotte asked.
“You’re a great person.”

“I get what you’re saying, man,” Reed said. “I felt
the same way when Charlotte and I started getting serious.”

“What?” Charlotte turned toward him, looking
shocked.

“Yeah, I did, but I never said anything. I had
everything I ever wanted growing up, and more. You know, you seemed embarrassed
about taking me home to your Mom’s little three bedroom ranch, but honestly, I
was embarrassed about taking you to meet my parents on their yacht. It felt so
pretentious, especially after meeting your Mom, and having her make us meatloaf
and chocolate chip cookies. She worked hard when you were growing up, and she
made you into a hard worker, too. You worked your way through medical school.
What have I ever had to work for?”

“Reed, I never knew you felt this way,” Charlotte
said, covering his hand with her own. He shrugged.

“I guess I got past it.” He turned back to Chris. “I
got past it when I realized this was the real deal. This was the woman I wanted
as my partner. I wanted her to be the mother of my children. And I try to be
deserving of her by being a good husband.”

“Reed …” Charlotte squeezed her husband’s hand as
his words sank in.

Though Reed had his quirks, he and Chris had a lot
in common. Chris had never understood why Reed had gotten married so young, but
he finally did as he looked at him with Charlotte. He’d found the love of his
life. Chris hadn’t known what that felt like until it had happened to him.

“Look at it this way, Chris,” Charlotte said. “How
does being with you affect Abby? Do you make her happy?”

He nodded, a smile playing on his lips.

“I do. We make each other happy.”

“If you love her and make her happy, that’s all that
matters,” she said.

Chris finished his salad and got up from his chair.

“Thanks for dinner, guys. I have to go so I can see
Abby before work.”

Abby wandered through the dark, a grin on her face.
The blindfold over her eyes blocked out the world as Chris led her by the arm.

“How much further?” she asked, shuffling her feet
tentatively.

“Maybe 40 feet. We’re close to the door. Come here,
just get on my back and I’ll carry you.”

Abby reached around his neck and hopped up, wrapping
her legs around him. She smiled as she pressed her nose to his neck, taking in
his woodsy, familiar smell.

“If this place is worth a blindfolded surprise, it
may be out of my budget,” she said. Chris had been bursting with nervous
excitement about showing her the place he had in mind for her and the girls to
move to. He had blindfolded her as they were walking over, just a quarter mile
from his apartment.

“I have to put you down so I can unlock the door,”
he said, sliding her feet to the ground.

She took a deep breath as the keys jangled,
reminding herself to be excited and like the place no matter what. He was so
happy about it, and it was so close to his apartment.

“This way.” He led her by the hand, and she tried to
get a sense of the place by the smell, but she only picked up on wood and
something that reminded her of old clothes.

“I feel wood floors,” she said. “That’s good.”

He stopped, taking a deep breath before he pulled
off the blindfold. Abby pasted on a smile, but it dropped away in an instant.

“Oh. This is … nice,” she said, craning her neck to
look up. They were in an old warehouse, and she realized he must have a
renovation in mind, which she didn’t have the budget or the time for.

“Hear me out,” he said, seeing her confusion. “This
building – if you want it to be – will be your dance studio. You can teach
classes here. You’d be an amazing teacher, Abby.”

“Wow,” she said, smiling in spite of her shock.
“I’ve never even thought of doing that, but it would be pretty great. I don’t
know, though. I can’t afford to leave my job for something uncertain.”

“If we make this your studio, we can renovate the
upstairs into a living space for us and the girls. This used to be a textile
plant. It’s such a neat building, and I’ve already had an architect look at it
and make up some plans. It’s perfect for us, Abby.”

“It is beautiful,” she agreed, admiring the high
windows that let light pour onto the dark wood floors. The brick walls and open
steel beams gave the building an industrial feeling, which she liked. It would
make a perfect dance studio: spacious, open and full of natural light.

“The studio would be ready to open quickly, but the
upstairs reno would take about eight months,” he said. “You’d love it when it
was done, though. You can pick out everything so it’s your perfect home.”

“Oh, Chris. You’re so sweet. If I was ever going to
live with a man, it would be you, and it would be here. But you know I can’t.
Not with the girls. I have to give them stability, and with my income from the
club gone, I’m just on too tight of a budget to leave my job.”

“Just wait. I’m not done yet,” he said, fishing in
his pocket. As he dropped one of his knees to the wood floor, Abby’s eyes
widened with shock. One of her hands clamped against her chest, and her knees
wobbled with uncertainty. Was this what it looked like?

“Abby Gillis, I love you more than anything. I’ve
never wanted anything as much as I want to make a life with you and Audrey and
Sara. Will you marry me?”

His dark brown eyes were full of hope and worry and
love as he looked up at her. Abby was lightheaded as she held his eyes. The
moment felt like a dream she had never dared to imagine.

“Chris,” she finally managed. “This is such a
surprise … But I don’t want you to marry me just so we can live together.”

“I want to marry you because I want you to be my
wife. I know it seems fast, but I’ve never been more sure of anything. I’ll
spend every day loving you and supporting you.”

“I love you so much,” she said, her tone nearly a
whisper. “I really do. But Chris, I pretty much have two kids who are nine and
12. I’m not like other 25-year-olds. You deserve someone you can have a real
newlywed life with – walking around the house naked, traveling, going out all
the time. I can’t do any of that, and you are so perfect, so amazing, that you
deserve all that.”