Page 12 of Rockstar Retreat

“Hey, Sharon,” he said, almost sounding disinterested, ignoring my question. He frowned slightly. “Where were you the past couple days?”

I squirmed a little, not wanting to admit that I’d tried to hide from him. Though I hadn’t exactly been trying yesterday.

“I do work here, Jerrik. It’s not like I’m a guest and can come and go as I please,” I said, my voice low, apologetic. “I’m sorry I couldn’t come to meet you before.”

He sighed and moved to lean against the doorjamb, folding his arms across his chest as his frown deepened.

“So what are you doing here now, Sharon?”

There was an edge of sarcasm to his tone, and I decided to ignore that, as he’d ignored me. Instead, I took a step closer to him and noticed him tense, though he looked like he was trying too hard to pretend nonchalance.

“Jerrik, what’s wrong?”

We stood there, staring at each other silently for a while. Neither of us spoke, and I refused to be the first one to cave. Lucky for me, he relaxed his stance and sighed, his eyes sliding away before he met my gaze again, the bleakness in his eyes enough to make my heart ache.

“Sorry,” he said slowly, and I was surprised he even bothered to apologize. “It’s just the date isn’t good for me. If you’re here to tell me I have to go somewhere, can you please just leave me alone?”

I frowned. “What’s wrong with the date?”

He looked away again and took a deep breath. I also thought his eyes looked suspiciously shiny before he blinked and turned back to me, composed.

“It’s the anniversary of my mom’s death, Sharon. You have to understand why I’d rather be alone for a few days, right?”

Oh. I felt guilt stab at my chest and wanted to smack myself. Yeah, I knew about his family, I just didn’t pay attention to the date. It happened after I left, but we came from a pretty small town; someone heard and let me know.

But I couldn’t just leave him now knowing what day it was.

“Would you like to do something with me today?” I asked abruptly.

He frowned. “Like what?” he asked, wary.

“Just… I’m not working on the clock right now, and I’m sure you don’t have anyone else who knows about your mom, right?”

Silence met my question, and it was a good enough answer. No wonder he was going through a rough patch. He was trying to do everything alone. I wondered if it was just how his lifestyle was, or if he didn’t think he could trust the people around him with the real Jerrik.

“I thought we could light a candle together, for your mom. Would you mind?” If he didn’t want to go, I wouldn’t force him, of course.

He was still for a few moments, considering me before he slowly nodded.

“Fine,” he murmured. “I just need to shower and change. Can you wait for me here a bit, or would you like to come in?”

I hesitated, before slowly shaking my head. “No, I think it would be best if I just waited for you. Would twenty minutes be enough for you? I need to do something and then I’ll be right back.”

“All right,” he said simply.

I’d expected an argument. He went back inside, and I turned and rushed back to my room.

I had an idea of where I wanted us to go for the day and, hopefully, he would like it. I rummaged through my things, hoping I had candles. I could always buy some, but it would require a detour. I took a few more things, made sure I had my purse with my phone and cash in it. We’d have to get something to eat outside the retreat because I wasn’t waiting around for breakfast.

With a shawl pulled over my shoulders and everything else packed in my bag, I went back to meet him. I ended up back at his door to find him waiting for me. I gave him a small smile and waved with my hand for him to follow me.

“Come on. I have a car.”

“Are we allowed to leave here, anyway? I never asked.”

I shot him a look. “It’s not a prison, you know. Of course, you’re allowed to leave. I don’t always spend my days off here, you know.”

“And where exactly are we going?”