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The lobby was empty that early in the morning except for the concierge. Cain waved at him, making his way out of the Crimson Moon Hideaway into the lush forest surrounding the property. There were several hiking trails, some for beginners, some intermediate, and some experienced. Cain chose experienced. The first half mile was uphill, and he was feeling it as the sun started to rise, shining between the tall, towering trees. He agreed with Nova, it was one of the most beautiful places they had ever stayed.Was it that beautiful? Or was it because they were around their own kind? A place he and Nova didn’t have to hide who and what they were. Nova. He loved her. He did. But was he in love with her? Had he ever been? After this much time he just felt like something was missing.Cain picked up the pace, guilt making him feel uneasy. He kept an eye on the sunrise to his left.Nova would be awake soon. Would she wonder where I went? Does she feel the same way I do? Should I try to talk to her about this?Cain ran even harder as the trail began to level out then drop steeply down. He squeezed his butt cheeks together as he slid more than jogged down the trail, a trick his grandmother had taught him when he was a young boy. He was grateful to still carry the memories of his life before he was turned. Before Beau Bryant “saved” him and he was forever indebted to the other man. He shook his head. He didn’t want to think about those memories now. It was almost time for the retreat to begin and he needed to be focused.
Beams of sunlight were streaming through the trees as Cain reached the front of the resort. Cars and taxis were pulling up dropping off guests. Slipping in through the carts full of suitcases smiling bellhops, and guests staring down at their phones, Cain turned towards The Poisonous Bean but stopped in the doorway. Nova would be upset if he got coffee without her, and she wouldn’t dare order for her. Her coffee choice changed with her moods. Hopefully today was an ‘iced caramel mocha latte’ day and not an ‘extra shot of espresso in black coffee’ day. He hopped he could make it back to their room without running into the Bryant’s. When the elevator doors opened, his hopes were shattered as Beau and Katherine stood at the door to the suite he shared with Nova. He debated going back to the coffee shop, but the concierge saw him and called out “Good morning!” Cain smiled widely.
“Good morning.” He walked towards the suite. “Everything good here, Bryant’s?”
“Cain,” Beau shook his hand, as he did every time they see each other, even if they see each other several times in a day.
“We’ve been knocking on this door for a while and our daughter isn’t answering.” Mrs. Bryant said. She looked past Cain. “Can we assume she was with you?”
Suddenly the door flung open. “You can assume she’s lazy and wasn’t getting up before the sun to go for a run.” Nova stood to the side waving them in.
“No need for us to come in. We were just checking to make sure you were ready for today.”
“Yes, daddy. We’re ready.” Nova rolled her eyes.
Mrs. Bryant leaned in, kissing her daughter on the cheek. “Good luck today, sweetheart. Come on, Beau. Let’s let them get ready for the day.”
Nova mouthed ‘Thank you’ to her mother and turned to hug her father, patting him on the back and guiding him toward the elevator. “Thank you both for checking in. We’ll see you at dinner tonight.”
The Bryant’s stepped into the open doors. “Nova, please go back into your room until you’re dressed appropriately.” The doors closed just before Nova flipped her father the bird.
“Nova!” Cain admonished as the concierge tried, and failed, to hold back a smile. She winked at the man with smile.
***
The conference room had been set up precisely as Nova had asked for it to be. The chairs were lined up in three rows at the front of the room and in pairs, back-to-back in the middle. She and Cain’s podium had been set up in the far corner with a bookshelf set up behind it. She placed the welcome bags in each seat. One of her favorite things in the planning process was designing and picking the items that came in the “Welcome” bags. Nova had pressed her father to pick more low-key items for the retreat. In her opinion there was no reason for their recoverees to flaunt that they were trying to get sober. It was a personal decision in most cases.
Cain arrived with their coffee and Nova felt her entire body calm with the first sip of her Pumpkin Spice latte, it was October after all, and she never claimed not to be basic.
“You ready, babe?” he asked.
“I am. You?”
He nodded but Nova thought he looked stressed. “Hey, this is going to be great. We’re going to kick ass!”
Cain laughed. “I agree. Oh hey, I already made lunch plans today, but we’ll catch up dinner, right?”
“Of course,” Nova smiled, wondering who he’d made plans with but refusing to ask. They weren’t that kind of couple, and she wasn’t the jealous type. Not that there was anything to even be jealous of.Focus.She reminded herself. Checking her watch again she realized people would start trickling in at any time. There’s always had a few early birds, a few who tried to sneak in a little late, and one or two that wouldn’t show up until the second day.
Nova stood behind the podium with her roster list pulled up on the iPad. Her eyes immediately went to Lottie’s name, and she noticed the booking had been canceled. Her face fell. She was looking forward to seeing Lottie again.Not seeing her but helping her through this challenging time in her life. That was her purpose here. But why had Lottie dropped out? Was it because of her?She needed to find Selena and see if she knew anything about this but first, she had a job to do.
***
Cain took a deep breath once he was finally able to slip out of the conference room. Nova announced the two-hour lunch break over fifteen minutes earlier, but Cain had been stopped by one of the mothers who had dropped her daughter off earlier that morning but hadn’t left the resort yet. The daughter was half vamp, half werewolf. The mother blamed herself for a wild one-night stand during a full moon. The vampire half had taken control young, and the daughter had been feeding without her mother’s knowledge but only on people she felt weren’t worthy of life. One of the reasons she began to volunteer working with foster children.
Watching as Lottie walked towards him, Cain smiled and waved.Am I supposed to stand up? This isn’t a date.Sheasked to seeme.
“Hi Lottie.” He stood, leaning forward for an awkward half hug.
“Thank you for meeting with me, Cain.” Lottie smiled as they sat down.
“Of course. Your request was a little…surprising but I’m always happy to understand why someone feels the need not to go through with the course.”
“Well, if I’m being honest, I was doing it for the wrong reasons.” She reached across the table, laying her hand on Cain’s arm.
With a slight raise of his eyebrows, he gently pulled his arm back then quickly looked around to see if anyone was watching them. Luckily, the coffee shop was fairly empty and the other patrons who were there seemed engrossed with their phones or laptops. Several thoughts flowed through Cain’s mind, but he wasn’t sure what to say next.Is she hitting on me? I thought she was a lesbian or something.
“Lottie, I can understand thinking you’re trying to get sober for the wrong reasons, but you can come back, see what the program is all about, get a sponsor. Even if you don’t get sober most people take something away from the retreat.”
