Page 29 of A Way Out (Rock Star #2)

Chapter Twenty-Seven

A ll Maria wanted to do was chase after Oz.

What she needed to do was talk with her ex-husband.

That task was a hundred times harder courtesy of the damn near overwhelming urge to just walk out the door.

But she couldn’t, not until they sorted out this custody battle threat.

She was upstairs with Riley, hovering in her room while Riley reacquainted herself with her toys. She wasn’t needed here, but she was avoiding going downstairs and facing Vic.

“At least someone is glad to be here.”

Maria whirled around to face Vic. He stood in the hallway, his hands thrust into his pockets, his gaze on the carpet. She’d never seen a person look so uncomfortable in her life.

“She does practically have a toy store in there,” Maria pointed out.

“I bet she didn’t miss them while you were traveling.”

No, she hadn’t. She’d been having too much fun. Too much interaction with Oz and his kids and the bands to even care about her toys.

“Why don’t we go down to the kitchen? The coffee is still warm.”

She didn’t want coffee. She wanted to leave.

But she followed him down the stairs anyway.

Sitting at the island, she watched as he filled two mugs and then plopped the container of creamer on the counter in front of her. She added the creamer to her mug and stirred for longer than was necessary.

Vic leaned against the counter and crossed his arms. “I’ve had to learn how to do a lot of things since you left. I knew you ran this house, but I honestly had no idea what all that entailed. Your leaving has been good for me.”

“It has?” She hadn’t expected him to admit such a thing. He’d wanted her to leave, but he hadn’t really; he’d been reacting to his frustration over the divorce. Or so she’d believed.

“Don’t get me wrong. If you said you wanted to come back, I would not hesitate to welcome you with open arms. But I know that isn’t going to happen.”

“You do?”

Vic nodded.

They both sipped their coffee in silence. Maria thought back on all the times they’d done this exact same ritual over the course of the last ten years. It had been friendly. Relaxing.

Comfortable.

It had never been sexy. She did not eye Vic the way she eyed Oz when they drank coffee together. She did not covertly admire his butt. She did not think about the next time she could get naked with him.

Maria slumped in her seat and took another sip of the dark brew.

Vic cleared his throat. “I, uh, I don’t want full custody.”

Immediately, Maria straightened. “Really?” That was the best news she’d had all day.

He shook his head. “I don’t even know my daughter. How could I possibly take full responsibility for raising her?”

“You could if you had to,” Maria said slowly. “But you don’t have to.”

“I do want some time with her, though. I don’t know what you are planning to do or where you intend to live…”

“Me neither,” she admitted. Her feelings for Oz were complicated. Two days ago she wouldn’t have given them such a label, but now, everything looked different. Felt different.

He’d kept information from her, and it hurt. She’d offered him everything—mind, body, soul, and, yes, checkbook, and he’d given only a small portion of himself in return.

She’d lived in a relationship like that for ten years. She was done with men who didn’t give 100 percent.

“Do you think we can work something out?” Vic asked. “Split custody?”

Maria canted her head and studied him. “You aren’t upset about all those pictures Tim printed out?”

“You mean the pictures of you all having fun at your sister’s wedding?”

She blinked rapidly and then cleared her throat. “Yes, um, those.”

“You’re in love with him, aren’t you?”

“Who?” Maria said stupidly.

“Oz.”

“I’m not in love with him.” She wasn’t.

Was she?

“I…” She shook her head and sighed. “I don’t even know what’s going on in my head right now.”

“It’s obvious he comes from a different world. And it’s just as obvious that the two of you appear to be blissfully happy together. And Riley clearly adores him. And somebody named Izzie. Who is that?”

“Oz’s daughter. Well, his niece, although he’s the kids’ guardian. He has three of them.”

“So Tim’s research said.”

Right. Vic already knew all of this.

“So when I wanted another baby and you didn’t, it was because you didn’t want another one with me, wasn’t it?”

She dropped her gaze to the countertop. “I’m sorry, Vic. I tried. I just…”

“Don’t love me. I understand. I’ve known it for a long time. I had hoped if I emulated the homelife you were used to, you’d be satisfied even if you weren’t in love. It took me way too long to realize the last thing you wanted was to be exactly like your mother.”

“Wow.” She blew out a deep breath. “This is the deepest conversation I think we’ve ever had.”

“Ten years too late.”

He lifted his hand as she was about to speak. “I know, I know. We weren’t meant to be. But you know who you might be meant to be with? Oz.”

Maria scrubbed at her forehead. “It’s so weird to hear you say that.”

“The problem is, he’s very hurt now. He’s probably blaming you for everything your mother and I did.”

“What are you going to do about her, anyway? Seems like she’s still trying to run your life, even though I’m not in it anymore.”

“I’m going to call Tim and cancel the case, and then I’m going to let him know that I plan to find another lawyer who isn’t connected to your parents. I’ll just avoid her calls and turn the other way when I see her walking down the sidewalk downtown.”

Maria giggled and slapped her hand over her mouth. “I can’t believe you just said all that out loud.”

He shrugged. “It’s true. She’ll get the picture eventually. Look how she is with Holly. She doesn’t even acknowledge your sister exists unless she has to.”

Maria drained her cup. “I’m not staying here. In Roma, I mean. I…I suspect I’m going to move to LA.”

All she had to do was reach out to Oz, convince him to take her back. And listen while he told her his story. There was surely a reason he hadn’t divulged any of the information her mother had dug up. They had only been together for a week, and that was some pretty heavy information to digest.

If they’d had the time, she had no doubt he would have eventually told her everything.

“I’ve always wanted you to have a relationship with Riley,” she said.

“I am open to whatever custody agreement you want. Fifty-fifty works for me.” Part of her didn’t want to say it out loud; she was used to being her daughter’s full-time caregiver.

Handing that responsibility over to anyone, even Riley’s father, would be hard. But it was the right thing for Riley.

And Vic.

“That works for me too. I’m going to have a learning curve. When you leave her with me, I’m probably going to text you a hundred times a day until I figure it out.”

“That’s okay. I’ll probably need you to text me that often, for my own peace of mind.”

He smiled. He really was a wonderful man. Just not for her.

He had the makings of a great father, though.

“Hey, what do you think about starting right now? Maybe I can track down Oz and make up with him.”

Vic’s smile faltered but only a little. “Sure. We can do that.” He glanced at the refrigerator. “What do I feed her?”

Maria chuckled and pulled open a drawer under the island, extracting a notepad and a pen. “Let me write you a list.”

With a relieved look, Vic refilled their coffee mugs, and Maria set to work explaining to him how to take care of their daughter.

And then she bid Riley goodbye.

Her phone vibrated, so she dug it out of her gigantic purse and discovered a text from Holly. Why was her sister texting from her honeymoon?

Why is Oz texting me about meeting Regina? Are you two in Washington? Is everything okay?

It was a fair question. Why would they have come to Roma if everything was okay?

She canted her head and stared at the text. Oz met Holly’s friend Regina? She ran the coffee shop downtown.

Maybe Maria could waylay him before he left for his hotel. She grabbed the keys to her rental car and headed out.

Ten minutes later, she stood in front of the counter at Coffee A-Roma. Regina informed her that yes, Oz had been there, and she’d served him an extra-large double shot something or another that Maria didn’t really care about, because he clearly wasn’t here now.

“He seemed pretty bummed when he first got here, but he took a call and definitely perked up afterward,” Regina said. “And he implied you two weren’t together anymore.”

How did Regina even know they were together in the first place? As curious as she was, Maria asked a different question. “What do you mean, he perked up?”

Regina lifted her shoulders, let them drop. “I mean, he was practically vibrating, and that was before the coffee. And he said he had a long drive ahead of him.”

A long drive? He’d said he planned to wait at his hotel until tomorrow morning. Had he changed his mind? She needed to hurry so she could catch him before he left town.

“Thanks, Regina,” she called out as she raced for the door.

It was time to win back her man.