Free Love of a Rockstar by Nicole Simone Page A

would make her happy. The problem was sometimes our daughter got in these moods where nothing could console her. She wanted to fight the world.
    “Jellybean, what do you want to do?” I asked.
    Her bottom lip jutted out. “I don’t know.”
    Sneaking a peek at my watch, I saw I had twelve minutes to get halfway across town. Luke probably didn’t want to be left alone with a pouty child but too bad. It was about time he saw what the title “parent” really meant. I grabbed my jacket and slid out of the booth. Nil skittered out after me.
    “Mommy where are you going?” she questioned.
    I bent down on one knee, eye level with her. “Work, but you will get to hang with your dad while I am gone. Won’t that be fun?”
    Tears gathered in the corner of her eyes, indicating a full-blown meltdown was on the horizon. Today was an overwhelming day for her and if I could stick around I would, but responsibility called. Nonetheless, maybe Luke wasn’t the best person to watch over her today. Camille caught my eye and without a word understood exactly what I needed. Closing her textbook, she approached our booth.
    “Hey Luke,” she said.
    He smiled warmly up at her. “Hey Camille, it’s nice to see you. You look good.”
    “Thanks.”
    Camille and Luke had clashing personalities but they put their differences aside because they had one thing in common. Me. And for that I was grateful.
    I tucked a strand of blonde hair behind Nil’s ear. “Do you want to hang out with Camille instead and play Barbies?”
    She gave me a watery nod. With that settled, I rose back up and slipped on my coat.
    “At four o’clock, Doris will come by the house to watch her. If you need anything, don’t hesitate to call,” I told Camille.
    I looked over at Luke to apologize for the change in plans. The shattered expression on his face told me he wasn’t happy about it.
    “I’ll walk you to your car,” he said to me.
    On the way out the door, Luke stopped and smiled at Nil. “It was nice to meet you.”
    She timidly avoided eye contact by fiddling with the necklace Luke gave her. “You too.”
    He hesitated a second. A thousand unsaid words hung between them. He seemed to come to the conclusion that action not words would repair their relationship as he followed me outside with one fleeting glance back at his daughter. The short walk to my car was done in silence.
    “This is me,” I said, stopping in front of the car.
    Whenever something weighed heavily on Luke’s mind, he tapped his fingers against his pants leg, which was exactly what he was doing right now.
    “She will warm up to you.” I soothed. “But you couldn’t except it to happen in an hour. In her eyes, you’re a stranger.”
    Luke’s fingers stopped tapping. “Thanks for reminding me of that Marlene,” he bit out.
    While his anger was directed at me, the person he was truly mad at was himself. I opened the car door and climbed inside. Sticking my key in the ignition, the old beetle coughed to life.
    “You made your bed Luke, now you have to sleep in it,” I said, right before closing the door.
    I pulled out of the parking lot into traffic and headed toward work without glancing back.
     

     
    SINCE I HAD to swing by my house to pick up the mini chocolate cake I baked as a thank you to Josie, I arrived at work ten minutes late. A fact I couldn’t care less about when Robert made me come in on my day off. Josie was flipping through a magazine when I walked into the break room.
    Smelling the chocolate, she glanced up. “Is that for me?”
    “Hello to you too.” I placed it on the table. “And yes, it is.”
    “Thank god. It’s been a nightmare of a week.”
    I could understand that. Unfortunately, cake wouldn’t solve my problems. Grabbing a fork from the stack in the middle of the table, Josie dug in.
    “I wish I had something to drink,” she mumbled around a mouthful of chocolate crumbs.
    Always prepared, I pulled a carton of milk from my purse. My