Chapter 19

This hiss of the air pump and the repeated thwack of the nail gun kept her focused.  She’d been replaying their conversation in her head all week.  How could he walk away from the only “job” he had known for the last 30 years and not say anything to those who mattered most?  He still hadn’t answered that particular question. 

Hiss.  Thwack.

She shook her head and re-aligned, she had to keep her mind on what she was doing or risk nailing her hand to the framing she was working on.  When the last nail was in place she set the nail gun aside and stood, letting the team raise the wall she had framed in. 

It was rewarding, fulfilling work; building houses for other people.  Putting a roof over someone’s head who was putting in as many hours, often times more, to make their dream a reality in the only way that was possible at that moment.  Stephanie grabbed the bottle of water from her tool box and took a long drink. 

Was Richie that unfulfilled, that unrewarded at his “job” that he felt he had to walk away without mentioning it to anyone?  Or was there some other underlying reason? 

There hadn’t been any anger when he told her what he’d done.  She thought back.  No, he seemed excited about the prospect of trying something new, something different.  She could sympathize.  Hadn’t she herself been scared and excited about leaving her paying job behind to go totally outside her box and pick up a hammer and build houses?  Maybe he really did need to do something different, work with different people, just like he had said.  But still, he had to talk to the guys.  He couldn’t leave them hanging like this.  They needed to hear from him personally, not just in relayed message from their tour manager. 

That was where she was having her biggest issue with this whole life change he was embarking on.  You don’t just walk out, walk away from a lifetime of friendship and musicianship without a word to those you were closest to.  And you don’t do it in the middle of a world tour for crying out loud.  It was beyond rude.  It was disloyal and she couldn’t even begin to imagine how betrayed and hurt Jon, David and Tico must be feeling.  Or maybe that was just her projecting her touchy-feely, girly feelings onto the manly men from Bon Jovi.  She snickered. 

Okay she really needed to stop thinking about all that and concentrate on what she was doing.   She tossed her empty water bottle toward the recycle bin.  They’d talk more when she got home.

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“All right, darlin’.  See you next week.”  Richie ended the call.  Orianthi was coming back to town next week and they were going to finish up the songs they had started the last time she had been there.  And then maybe he could convince her to collaborate on an album instead of just a few one-offs.

A glance down at his notepad showed him his schedule would be keeping him hopping.  He had a song to write for a new movie coming out, he had been asked to appear at a couple of fundraisers, had been asked to play at the Kentucky Derby and Ava had a school function he needed to attend later in the week.  Good thing he hung up his tour shoes.  He’d missed enough of Ava’s life being on the road.  It was good to be home for these things instead of hearing about them second hand. 

He turned the phone over in his hand.  As good as it was to be home, he did kind of miss the comradery with the guys.  It was quiet in the house this morning.  Stephanie was off working on her Habitat project, Ava didn’t live here all the time and she was at school anyway and Lily was with Jenna at swimming lessons. 

He was totally alone.

He turned the phone over again, noticing the time.  He could still hear Steph in his head telling him he needed to talk to Jon at least about this decision he had made.  Not that the David, Tico and Hugh were any less important. But she was right when she said Jon was his best friend and he should give Jon the courtesy of a phone call.  At the very least.  The fact that she was right didn’t make the impending call any easier. 

They had been attached at the hip for so long, spent so much of their lives in each other’s pockets, he had to believe that Jon hadn’t been all that surprised to get the news from Paul.  He also had to believe that Jon wasn’t that pissed off at him.  Hell, he’d left a tour before.  Granted it was for a stint in rehab and he had come back from that, but still. 

He flipped the phone over once more.  So many variables to consider.  How had they really taken the news from Paul?  From the news bits on the television and the way his phone continued to blow up, not very well, no matter what he would like to believe.  But he could only blame himself for that. 

A long, breathy sigh resigned him to the fact that he had to do the right thing here and talk to Jon. 

Had he let too much time pass to smooth things over?  Jon would be up and around by now.  He could call, try to explain his reasoning for ditching in the middle of the tour.  Would it really matter now?  Stephanie thought it would.  They had gone over and around this one point a million times in the past week.  She never wavered from her stance.  Do the right thing here Rich.  It seemed to be her mantra lately.

Waking his phone, he opened his email.  Call him a coward, but a written note might possibly smooth the way toward a phone conversation with Jon.  He had seen the man’s temper in full force and effect.  He may deserve it, but he still didn’t have any desire to take it full on in the face if he could avoid it.  Maybe a personal note would diffuse the temper and soothe the beast a little.

His fingers moved quickly as he started to compose the note.  

It was worth a shot.