Love Letters (15 page)

“
I’m just teasing.”

The tables were nicely arranged with seashells on top of the table napkins. Chloe gasped when she saw the breathtaking view of the Pacific Ocean. Her imagination was working again.
This is so romantic
.

The waiters served Shrimp Cocktail, Fried Calamari, Baked Oyster Rockefeller, and Chili garlic Prawns for their appetizers. After eating the appetizers, they had a choice of Manhattan Clam Chowder or the New England Clam Chowder. Matt and Nicole chose the Manhattan Clam Chowder, while Chloe and Josh chose the New England Clam Chowder.

“
Chloe, the food is so good here. We should have lunch here soon,” Nicole suggested.

They ordered the lobster and crab with two sides, and for dessert the four of them shared one of Sam’s Famous Pistachio Ice Cream Sandwiches and Warm Dark Chocolate Cake.

Phil was busy talking with the other surfers and signing some autographs for friends, so the four of them were alone.

“
This is amazing, the four of us together again. It’s like it used to be in middle school,” Matt said.

Nicole gave him a big kiss. “I can’t believe it’s been that long.”

Josh was grinning from ear to ear, but Chloe felt uncomfortable so she changed the subject. “My mom’s arriving in a few days.”

“
Have you thought about how you’re going to ask her about Ignacio?” Josh said, leaning closer to her.

Chloe shook her head.

“
What’s this about?” Matt asked.

“
Chloe’s mom has a mysterious lover,” Nicole whispered.

“
A mysterious lover?”

“
Yeah, Chloe found letters from this Peruvian sailor to her mom dated forty years ago,” Nicole said.

Matt shook his head. “Unbelievable.”

“
Chloe, you should talk to Suzanne in person. You don’t know how she’ll react,” Josh said.

“
You’re right, maybe I should.”

The four of them went outside to look at the view. Matt and Nicole had gone to sit by the corner, which left Chloe and Josh alone. Josh saw two empty spaces beside the fireplace corner and clasped Chloe’s hand. Chloe took a deep breath and felt warm all over.

“
Sit down, the fireplace should keep you warm,” Josh said, rubbing Chloe’s cold hands.

Chloe didn’t say a word as Josh continued to hold her hand.
What am I doing?
Though a part of her felt guilty when she thought about Richard, she couldn’t find it within her to let go of Josh’s hand.

They were silent for a long time as they listened to the waves.

“
Do you want to know why I came back to Half Moon Bay?” Josh asked.

Chloe swallowed hard and looked at him. She knew deep in her heart that he had come back for her.

Before he could answer, three people joined them to watch the view. She wanted to ask him if he had come back to Half Moon Bay for her, but she couldn’t find the words to say it.

Josh continued to hold her hand as he deftly changed the subject. “So, the wedding is June fifteenth.”

She looked down and nodded. “Four o’ clock at the Ritz.”

Josh didn’t say a word.

She let go of his hand to look at her watch. “I need to get going, Josh.”

Josh stood up. “Yes, it’s getting late.”

They were silent in the car on the way home. Chloe’s mind was jumping in circles. She knew that it wouldn’t be fair to Josh if she kept him hanging, but on the other hand she felt guilty that she hadn’t been truthful to Richard. When they arrived at her house, he walked her to her doorstep to give her a hug. Chloe nervously looked down as she said good night.

“
I had a nice time,” Josh said.

“
I did too, thanks.” Chloe turned her key to open the door.

Greta immediately dashed out to give Josh a lick. They both laughed.

“
You sleep well, Chloe.”

“
Goodnight, Josh.” She watched as he vanished into the night. Her wedding was in two months and her situation wasn’t getting any easier.
What on earth am I going to do?

Chapter Eight

Chloe woke up that Sunday morning to the sound of the doorbell buzzing.
It’s seven o’ clock. Who can it be?

Greta was barking loudly as the doorbell buzzed again. “In a minute!”

It was the first week of April and her mother had returned from South America yesterday. Chloe had called her last night to set up a meeting with Richard tonight, over dinner. A week had passed since the Maverick competition. That was the last time she had seen Josh, yet the memory of him holding her hand continued to melt her heart. He didn’t get the chance to tell her why he had come back to Half Moon Bay, but she knew in her heart it was at least partially because of her. With the wedding in two months, Chloe couldn’t decide whether she would proceed as planned or call it off.

She put on her robe, tied her hair back and rushed downstairs to open the door.

“
Good morning, Chloe. I have a client who wants to look at your home,” Barbara said as she stood in the doorway. “This is Mrs. Feinstein.”

Chloe rubbed her eyes and sighed. “Barbara, I’m only going to repeat this one more time. I have asked that you call me directly and not my fian—”

“
Correction, Chloe, I did not call Richard. It was Richard who called me. He said this was the best time to bring my client,” Barbara interrupted.

Chloe raised her eyebrows in disbelief. “Richard told you that?”

“
As a matter of fact he did.” Barbara folded her arms.

“
Do you know what time it is? The house is off-limits to buyers or agents today,” Chloe said, closing the door.

Barbara knocked again and shouted through the closed door. “Chloe, my client is very interested in buying your house!”

Angry and frustrated, Chloe ignored Barbara and sat on the couch to watch TV. Greta continued to bark loudly.

Chloe overheard Mrs. Feinstein asking, “Are you sure she wants to sell her house?” After a few minutes, they finally left.

Chloe shook her head as she dialed Richard’s number.
Richard, I’m going to get you for this!

“
Baby, do you know what time it is?”

“
Why did you tell Barbara that it was okay for her to bring her client at this unholy hour?”

“
Oh.”

She was shaking with rage. “Is that all you can say? Oh! You better have a better explanation than just, Oh!”

“
I’m sorry, but she said that her client was really interested in buying your house at a much higher price than you were asking. The wedding is in two months and, well … I just thought this would be good for us,” Richard said, his voice sleepy.

“
You know, Richard –” Chloe paused trying to lower her voice. “I’ve decided that I’m not selling the house. I mean my dad gave—”

“
Are you joking? Don’t tell me you’re changing your mind? Do you know how much your house is worth? Mrs. Feinstein was willing to pay eight hundred thousand, which is two hundred thousand, more than what it’s worth. Can you imagine how much money we’ll have?” Richard interrupted.

“
Is that what this is about? Money?” Chloe raised her voice. “First of all, I never intended to sell this house, nor leave Half Moon Bay. This whole thing has been your idea from the start. I also need to discuss this with my mom.”

“
Baby, you’re not making any sense. I thought we both agreed that we’d sell the house and live at my place in the city. Why do you need to ask your mom?”

Frustrated, she closed her eyes, only opening them once she’d gained control of her emotions. “Richard, we really need to sit down and talk. You’ve been very busy and it’s important that we discuss this.”

Richard didn’t say a word.

“
Look, you’re a loan agent and you hardly ever meet your clients in the office. I don’t see why we have to live in the city.”

Richard lowered his voice. “Baby, Half Moon Bay is a sleepy town. I need to work and live in the city to be mentally stimulated. It’s all about networking and most of my clients are in San Francisco. This is where the money is.”

“
It’s all about what
you
want. Have you ever considered what
I
want?” Chloe had had enough. “I don’t want to move to the city. I’m not going to give up my job, nor give Greta away, and for the last time, I’m not selling this house!”

“
Baby, you need to calm down. You’re just upset because Barbara woke you up too early. I promise I will consult with you before sending any more clients there. This is the last time it will happen; you can trust me. Now, go back to sleep and I’ll see you tonight for dinner with your mom.”

“
You don’t get it do you?” Chloe banged the phone down.

Her body was shaking. She had never yelled at Richard that way before. The truth was that she was fed up with all his demands. Why did he have to control her so much?

She went outside to pick up the San Francisco Chronicle, which was on her doorstep, and brought it to the kitchen. She prepared a cup of coffee and bagel with cream cheese. The headlines showed heavy foreclosures around California. She brushed through the pages and read about more people losing their jobs in the car industry.
What’s happening to our economy?

She wondered if Richard was scared that her house wouldn’t be worth much if she waited to sell it
.
She sensed that there might be something bothering him that he wasn’t telling her. She turned the pages of the newspaper until she saw a cover story about a couple with a photo of their wedding. A woman named Agatha had recently reunited with her first love, Ernest, after more than forty years. Ernest had been in the military and stationed in Vietnam in 1966. He promised Agatha that he would marry her when he returned, but Agatha’s parents didn’t approve of their relationship. Agatha moved from Florida to New Mexico and Ernest’s letters went unanswered. Three years later, Agatha married a man named William and they had two children, but she had never forgotten Ernest.

After William died, Agatha felt compelled to search for Ernest and her son suggested they look for him on Facebook. That’s where she found Ernest again, who had never stopped loving her. It was hope that led them back together.

Wow, what a story! Facebook.
“Hmm!” Chloe set the newspaper down. She was convinced that if Agatha and Ernest could reunite after forty years, so could her mom and Ignacio. It was never too late.
The power of technology.

She ran upstairs to get her laptop and opened the Facebook site. She created an account for Suzanne Rogers and looked at the applications she would need to add. She filled out her profile, providing her date of birth and school information. She didn’t fill out everything
.
She went to the attic and picked up one of the recent albums where she found a photo of her mom taken four years ago. She was wearing a navy blue blazer over a white blouse. Chloe looked like her mother except her mother had short hair. They both had beautiful eyes and radiant skin, according to their father.

After putting away the album she went back to her room to scan the photo of her mom. She cropped it to fit in her Facebook profile.
There you go. Now I need to look for Ignacio Rodriguez.
After doing a search for Ignacio Rodriguez, she found at least five hundred of them. She bit her lip. This wasn’t going to be easy. She tried narrowing the search by adding Peru after his name and she found four people with that name.

Chloe’s heart was pounding as she looked at the profile pictures of each of them. Two of them looked much younger than her mom. One had no profile picture but he was the right age, while the other one looked old enough to be Chloe’s father. “Bingo!”

Chloe sent a friend request to the two older Ignacios and wrote a simple message saying, “I think we met before.” Then she sent a friend request to both of the younger Ignacios with a different message asking if their father’s name was also Ignacio.
That should work.
Next she opened her drawer and took out Ignacio’s photo from the envelope. Looking at her watch, she saw she had time to swing by Walgreens to have them restore the photo.

She took a long shower and put on olive green Capri pants and a black tee. Spring was in the air and the weather was warm and balmy. She was meeting Suzanne for lunch at the Miramar Beach restaurant which was famous for their steaks and seafood. No doubt her mother was still battling jet lag after her return from South America. Chloe wasn’t sure how her meeting with her mother would go after more than two years of not seeing her. Richard would be joining them for dinner to meet her mom for the first time.

After walking Greta down the street, Chloe hopped in her car and drove to Walgreens. There was one lady ahead of her in the Kodak shop inside Walgreens. When it was Chloe’s turn, the customer service representative said they would be able to restore Ignacio’s photo and she could pick it up in an hour. Chloe thanked the lady and then got back in her Jetta. There was a light breeze but overall the weather was perfect – not too hot, not too cold, and the wind hadn’t picked up yet.