The rehearsal that Monday was hectic. Chloe was walking to the car with her mum to leave by the time I managed to catch up with her.
"Chloe!" I called as I saw them leaving.
"Oh, hey Harry," Chloe said, turning around and beaming broadly at me.
"I'll be in Carol's car," said her mum.
"Look, Chloe, I can't make Wednesday this week. It's my birthday. I'm supposed to be going out for dinner with my wife," I told her.
"Oh! Happy birthday for Wednesday! How about Tuesday then?"
"Um, well ... I'm not sure Tuesday works either," I replied.
"Why not?"
I coughed and glanced up to make sure Chloe's mum was out of earshot, then I leaned in to Chloe and spoke conspiratorially.
"Well, er, I think we may have taken this a little ... too far," I said. "Well, rather, I have. I've taken it too far."
"But you've been a perfect gentleman, Harry," Chloe said, taken aback.
I stood upright and looked at her suspiciously.
"I really haven't."
"Oh, but you have! I mean, you didn't take advantage of me. You could have done anything you wanted to me the other night and I would have let you. You know, because I was so drunk. But you didn't. You respected me. And you stopped me making a complete fool out of myself with Brian, for which I am so, so grateful! Thanks to you, nothing happened! We just did the rehearsal, didn't we? Like normal. Maybe it was a bit, er, wetter than usual, but we didn't do anything wrong per se."
"But I was watching you ... and you were watching me ... and we were ..."
"How's that different to watching porn, Harry?"
"Well ... I don't know, it's ..."
"It's no different. Anyway the college show is on Friday night, so this will be the last rehearsal. I'm sure one more won't do any harm, will it?"
"It could do a great deal of harm, and I'm sure you don't really need another rehearsal anyway."
"Oh, but I do, Harry. You're so good at it, I learn new stuff every time we do it."
"Do you?"
"Yes! Every time! You're helping me achieve my goals as an actor, Harry. You have no idea, you really don't."
"No, I really don't."
"Please, Harry! Tell you what, if you come a little earlier we can have dinner with my mum. I'll cook, it'll be like my birthday treat. And my mum'll be home the whole time, too, so you'll be perfectly safe!" she giggled.
"Well, are you and your mum getting on OK now? Last time you were arguing."
"Harry, we had a talk. She understands that I need space to develop, and I'm not a little girl anymore. She accepts that, so she's fine with whatever now."
"Well, I don't know," I said.
"I'll even get you a birthday present," she said melodically, fluttering her eyelashes at me.
Those damned eyelashes.
"Well, OK, then. But it had better be worth it!"
"It will be, I promise!" she said, smiling to herself.
--
The last time I went to her mum's house I was in a foul mood. My wife had given me such a hard time about allowing Chloe to cook me a birthday meal. She had planned something that night, apparently, and she'd told me that I couldn't go to see Chloe. I'd just walked out anyway, tired of being ordered around. It was my bloody birthday!
As usual, though, my night turned to day when I saw Chloe - in fact my jaw pretty much hit the floor when she opened the door to me.
She was wearing a red and white cheerleader's outfit - a little pleated minidress, and long white socks that came up just past her knees. Married or not, I immediately wanted to fuck her brains out.
She gave me a big kiss on the cheek and told me, "Happy birthday!"
"Thanks," I said. "What are you wearing?"
"Dress rehearsal tonight, Harry! I did tell you the play was set in America, didn't I?"
"I don't think you mentioned that," I said, stepping through the door. Then I leaned in to kiss her on the cheek. "You look so sexy," I whispered into her ear. I'd always had a thing about cheerleaders.
Once I was inside she gave me a card. I opened it and read it to myself.
"Dear Harry, Thanks for 'opening me up' to new experiences! Your help has meant so much to me, Hope you have a great birthday, Love Chloe." She'd also put a dozen hearts and kisses all over it. I sighed ambivalently as I remembered all the things we shouldn't have done but had somehow ended up doing anyway.
Then she passed me a glass of red wine. She'd bought a rather nice bottle for the occasion.
"Oh, Chloe, this is so sweet. You didn't have to do all this," I said.
"I know, but I wanted to, because you've helped me so much," she smiled, and she trotted back into the kitchen to finish dinner.
The table was laid and her mum was sitting there drinking a gin and tonic.
"She's right, you know," her mum said.
"About what?" I asked.
"You've really helped her these last few weeks. I've noticed a real change in her. She's so much happier now."
"Oh, I don't know about that," I said, looking at the ground bashfully.
"It's a shame she's moving away," her mum said.
"Is she? When?" I asked, surprised and a little disappointed.
"You mean you didn't know? She's moving in with some guy in Fuxham next week, so she can be nearer to college."
"Oh. No, she didn't tell me."
"Well it's not that far, maybe you could still visit her sometimes," her mum said. "She'll probably need more help with her scenes," she continued, and I'm sure she winked at me.
Chloe came back in with two plates, put them in front of me and her mum, then went back into the kitchen.
