Nine

Sky

Don't leave me alone

"That fucking Jay," Marley bitched, looking down at her phone while I stood at my bedroom mirror putting on my makeup. It reminded me of when we were younger, only I'd been the one sitting on her bed while I watched her get ready for dates. She might be eight years older than me, but back then, there had been some serious hero worship going on for me. And she'd been a cool older sister, taking me places and letting me tag along with her a lot. Kinda like tonight since I was tagging along with her to the concert.

"What about it?" I asked.

"Ever since Wednesday, he keeps disappearing. I wanted him to do some PR stuff yesterday and today. But no . He just noped out of it. Nowhere to be found. Even his brother had no clue where to find him. So I have no idea where the big, long-haired, tattooed bastard went. If he didn't sing so damn good, I'd find a ditch to bury him in. I swear to God, if he's developed some sort of drug problem or sex addiction, I will kill him."

I slowly set down my makeup brush, my Spidey senses on high alert while she complained about one of the rock stars she'd been babysitting since last year—babysitting being her word for it. And not just any rock star. Jay, Waterstone's lead singer. Their long-haired, tattooed band member. Who kept disappearing to who knew where…

Promise me you'll remember I want to talk about things later.

Jerrin's cryptic words blared through my head. They'd been on repeat since he'd said them, but I'd been telling myself not to worry. But now, they return with a scream.

No effing way.

No way.

Impossible.

Why wouldn't he have told me?

Why didn't he tell me?

You're going to have some questions.

Damn straight, I did.

"Is that his name? Jay?" I asked, trying to be nonchalant with my question. The last thing I wanted was to trigger Marley. This was for me to deal with. I didn't need my big sister to handle my problems.

"Yeah. Sort of." She shrugged and dropped her phone onto the comforter beside her, before she crossed her legs and met my stare in the mirror. "I'm not supposed to say. He goes by J. Waterstone. It's his initial, the letter J. He doesn't tell anyone his first name."

That wasn't true. He'd told me. So many of the things he'd said started to shift into different places. I'd filed away all the information as if he'd been road crew. In another light…? My God, I'd been spending time with a damn Grammy-award winning rock star. He must think I was a complete idiot.

And I was so going to kick his ass.

"It's Jerrin," I said flatly. "His first name is Jerrin."

"Yeah—wait. How do you know that?" She stared at me then her head drew back, and I saw the light dawning across her features. "He's been with you . When he's up and disappeared, he's been with you. But you didn't know who he was, did you?"

I shook my head slowly, feeling so dumb, betrayed. "No. He acted like he was one of the road crew. And you know I don't follow that stuff. Hell, until last year, I though the people you worked for were a little band called Waterpark —which I thought was a ridiculous name. Clearly, not as ridiculous as me."

Angry tears pricked my eyes. Thank God, I had waterproof makeup on, because there was nothing like finding out you'd been played like a fool. What the hell had this all been to him? A game.

"That asshole. You want me to kick his ass for you?" my bloodthirsty sister asked.

"No. I'll handle him. Can I, um, have a second?"

Marley picked up her phone and stood, shoving the cell into her pocket. She pulled me into a hug. "Sure. But I'm right here if you need me."

"Don't text him. I'll deal with this myself. This is between him and me for now. Promise me."

She grimaced. "I promise—under duress. Are you still coming to the concert?"

If I got asked that one more time…

"Yeah."

With a nod, she left me. As soon as the door closed behind her, I sank onto the end of the bed in the spot she'd just vacated. Gripping the edge, I closed my eyes. My head dropped forward while I ran over the past few days. The clues I hadn't recognized. The times he'd looked as if he'd been about to say something but didn't. What he'd said this morning…

That jerk knew full well I'd find out tonight. Which meant I had a choice to make.

Tell him to fuck off and never speak to me again.

Forgive him and move forward.

Or make it clear as crystal I was pissed. Then… Well, then he could grovel.

After that, maybe, I'd forgive him. Maybe. Right about now, I didn't feel like listening to bullshit explanations, and the more I thought about it, the angrier I got. I might not be part of the celebrity scene, but I wasn't someone he could just play with that way.

With a growled sigh, I levered myself up and marched toward the door.

"Let's go," I snapped as I grabbed my wristlet and the lanyard with my VIP pass off the kitchen counter on my way to the apartment's exit.

"What? Okay," Marley said, straightening from where she was leaned against the living room wall. She finished typing out a text then shoved the phone into her pocket. "I wasn't texting him," she explained, following me. "I was taking care of some business I need to do afterward. I can…cancel it, I suppose, if you need me."

"No. Don't."

We didn't say a word as I started my car to make the now-familiar trip to the festival grounds.

"You know, Jay isn't actually an asshole," she said after a few minutes. "As far as rock stars go, he's one of the better ones, and I've dealt with a lot of them over the years."

"Don't try to defend him. He dug this hole. He can climb out on his own. And apparently, I'm gullible."

"Do you, um… Do you have feelings for him?" she ventured.

That was my problem. I had unbelievably deep feelings for him, though it had only been days. My parents had always told us kids, When you know you know . The last few days I'd thought they were right and I knew , so to speak. Clearly, I made a mistake. Realizing that didn't help the pain in my heart, though.

I pressed my lips together, unable to answer Marley. I was too close to crying.

What had this been? A game? Had he been playing a game with me? Was I part of some asshole betting pool the band and crew had going? A wager to see how far he could get with an unsuspecting girl he met while on the road?

And just look how far he'd gotten with all his lines.

"Are you okay?" Marley asked.

My eyes burned again—still—and a rock had taken up residence in my throat. My chest ached, the weight of disappointment bearing down on me.

I gave the tiniest shake of my head. "Nope."

"I'm gonna kill him. I really am, Sky. Do you… Look, you don't have to go. I have to. I can come to your place right afterward. No. Never mind. Fuck this job. Who cares about it? I'll ditch the gig and—"

I shook my head. "No. We'll go. I'll…come with you. This is my fault. I shouldn't have let things go so far."

"It's not your fault he lied to you!"

"No."

"You don't have to—"

"I want him to know I know. And then after that… What did you tell me that Stix said to Stone yesterday? That he can fucking fuck the fuck right off."

"Something like that."

"Well, his brother, Jerrin— J. Waterstone —can do that. He can just fucking fuck right the hell off, too."