Chloe remembered his mother and couldn’t help smiling because she had been so wonderful the one time that they had met. “Good luck with that. Mothers can be a handful at times especially when it comes to grandchildren. I know my brothers have been in that position, at least a couple of them anyways.” Finishing off her drink, she shook her head to let the bartender know she didn’t wanted another one right now. Chloe felt a little warm and was considering getting some air but part of her and she wouldn’t admit how large that part was, didn’t want to end the conversation. Even though she was hurt with what happened between them, she did miss him a lot. Maybe, after this cruise they could try being friends again. Anything else, she didn’t have any idea but she wasn’t opposed to it though that may be the alcohol talking.
Speaking of their relationship, Chloe bit her lip when Michael mentioned them breaking up. She couldn’t help blushing at the comment about her being the one for him.“You, um, probably should get on that. After all, I know we both wouldn’t want her to read about it in some paper.” Tucking some hair behind her ear, she tried to relax her posture as she was suddenly how tense she was sitting on this chair. “You know…..I don’t hate you for what happened.” There was more she needed to say, wanted to say but this wasn’t the time for that. She was going to take it one step at a time though she could admit, the alcohol did help her otherwise she didn’t know when she would have told him this. It felt nice to say it aloud and to Michael. Chloe looked away from him, unsure of how he’d react.
“Yeahhhh...” Michael dragged out his agreement with what she said, thinking about the earful he would get in the very near future. Luckily, his mother wasn’t one to pay attention to celebrity gossip, but Chloe made a good point, he had to break the news to her sooner or later. “What?” He replied to her admission, not one hundred percent sure that he heard her correctly. Studying her softened features reassured him that she said exactly what he thought she said. “I mean, I’m stoked that you don’t hate me, but-” Cutting himself off before he could ruin whatever progress they were making, he switched gears. “But nothing. I’m glad you don’t hate me.” As a warm smile spread across his lips, a fleeting thought of whether or not this meant he was able to fully squash the animosity she felt towards him shot through his mind. But he wasn’t ready to ask her flat out, so he decided to let it go and live in the moment.
Pushing himself up away from the bar, he couldn’t help but notice that there were more patrons now than there were when he first started talking to Chloe. The combination of loud, droning conversations and the increase in temperature from the extra bodies was more than enough to influence his decision to step out for some air. “I think I’m going to head out to the deck... You can join me, if you want?” He nodded in the direction of the exit before standing up from his stool. It was getting late, but not late enough for him to be content with going to back to his room; he wanted to make the most of the cruise, and he wanted to spend more time with Chloe. Whether or not she felt the same would remain to be seen. Taking the lead, Michael made his way through the room and out to the open deck, finding himself a short distance from a pool that was surrounded by sun loungers. They weren’t the most comfortable chairs in existence, but in this moment, they looked just like the oasis he was searching for. Collapsing onto the closest one, he let out a comfortable groan, before checking to see if the brunette took him up on his offer.