Page 100 of The Closed Off Captain

Chloe

Stephanie steps into view. “I’m so sorry, Chloe.”

I feel overwhelmed and don’t know what to do. “Oh, good grief, you two. Stop penning her in.”

My eyes drift over to Amber. “You’re all here.” It’s all I can manage to say.

“Uh, that’s my fault,” Bri admits. “I couldn’t stop crying, so Aiden called Amber to come with me. And we called Stephanie.” She bites her lip. “I’m sorry; this is probably so overwhelming.”

“No.” I blink back tears. “I’m too scared to be alone right now, so this is...perfect.” My voice is shaky, and I knot my fingers in Gunner’s shirt.

“Oh, Chloe.” Bri starts crying and walks over to me and wraps her arms around me. Her belly pushes into me, but it doesn’t bother me. I’m just grateful for the hug because I feel like I’m falling apart.

“Chloe, I’m so sorry.” That’s from Stephanie, and I feel her join us.

“Oh for goodness’ sake,” Amber says, but she doesn’t sound upset. I’m pretty sure she joins our group hug. “All right. You know what we need?” she says a moment later.

“Snacks,” Stephanie calls out.

“And a movie,” Brielle adds.

“And pizza,” Amber adds. “I’m on it.”

“Can you even order pizza at ten in the morning?” I ask.

“Oh, you are such a newbie,” Amber says, shaking her phone at me and then turning away a moment later to talk to whoever’son the phone. “What kind do you like, Chloe?” she asks a moment later.

“I can’t have pizza,” I tell her.

Her mouth opens in shock, and the other two turn to me as well. “You can’t have pizza?” Stephanie asks. I almost laugh at the awful expression she’s making.

“I’m dairy free and gluten free.” Amber scrunches her nose in distaste and turns back to the phone. “I’m going to go find some clothes to put on,” I tell the girls.

“Just be sure to have that back on when Gunner comes home today,” Bri says.

I frown and look down at Gunner’s shirt. “Why?”

“Because you wearing nothing but his shirt will make him absolutely feral, and we are here for that,” Stephanie says with a grin.

“I don’t think he—”

“Oh, he will,” Amber calls out, even though she’s still on the phone.

“Come on, Chloe,” Amber says. “We’ve never seen Gunner lose it before.”

“Yeah,” Stephanie adds.

“O-kay,” I say slowly.

“I’ll make sure we have popcorn for the show,” Amber throws out.

“For when Gunner comes home?” I ask incredulously.

They all three nod, and I don’t even bother fighting it. “All right. Fine.” I walk back to Gunner’s room and throw on the pair of sweatpants he handed me last night. They’re still big, but it beats walking around in just a t-shirt. I snag one of his hoodies and pull it on, taking a moment to breathe in the scent of him that still lingers. I think I’ve officially lost it.

Seeing all three of them sprawled around the living room and even taking in Riley, who’s currently crawling across the floor,eases something inside me. I’m so glad I don’t have to be alone right now. I settle into one of the available chairs. “Thank you,” I tell them. “I really didn’t want to be alone today.”

“Of course,” Bri immediately says. She gives me a cautious look. “Do you...do you want to talk about it?”

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