Chapter 4 – Marco
It wasn’t my favorite thing in the world to have to tell the girls that Bea wasn’t coming home yet after all.
Both of their little faces looked so sad, and when she called me the next morning, I almost didn’t answer it. But I eventually give in.
“Hi.”
“Uh, hi. Are you okay?”
I go out into the garage so my children don’t hear me bickering with her.
“Honestly, no. You’ve been hyping Aurora and Alessia up for days that you were going to be back by now.”
She sighs. “I know. I’m sorry.”
“Plus, you didn’t even think to call and talk things through with me. All I got was a text.”
“First of all, please lower your voice. I’m super hungover and have a massive headache. Secondly, I figured you were busy at work. And that’s why I’m calling now…to talk.”
I cross the arm that isn’t holding the phone up to my head around my chest. “Okay, so talk.”
“Blakely and I—”
“Hold on. Who is that?”
“The guy who was in the video with me. He and I have a meeting with Peninsula Records later today.”
I’m confused. “I thought you were on the fence about signing with a record label?”
“I mean, it was easy to say that when someone wasn’t calling from one and saying they want to work with you.”
“Okay. So, what is the meeting going to be about?”
“I don’t know. I assume that is what it would look like if we signed with them. Oh, and they said they want me and Blakely as a duo.”
“Are you serious?”
“What? He has a serious girlfriend—you don’t have to worry about that.”
“No, I just can’t believe you made so many life-changing decisions without talking to me first.” She doesn’t know this, but I was planning to propose to her in the next year. So, I thought our futures were something we’d decide together.
“I’m sorry. I had to make them. And fast. This is my dream we’re talking about.”
I run my fingers through my hair. “I understand that. But I just…”
“What?”
“I thought I was part of that dream.” A single tear rolls down my cheek, and I wipe it away.
“You are.”
“Are you sure? It really doesn’t feel like it.”
“Professional dreams and personal ones are different, Marco. I never complained when you had to work late.”
“That’s like comparing apples to oranges, Bea. If I’m late one night, it’s that. One night. You’ve been gone for a month.”
“I know. I’m sorry. But this is just what I have to do. And if we do get signed, Blakely said we might have to travel around here. I’m not sure how long that will be for.”
I’m hearing train whistles in my ears by that point. “Are you kidding me?” A few months ago, she was too afraid to sing on stage, and now she’s fine with being away from us for an indefinite amount of time to do just that. I also feel so stupid because I was the one who pushed so hard for her to go back up on the stage in the first place. I never imagined any of this would happen…at all and as fast.
“Or we could come to the U.S. I just don’t know.”
“Well, why don’t you refrain from calling me again until you do.”
“Marco, wait—”
I slam the phone off, and I block her number for the time being. I don’t need this. I’m so angry at how flippant she’s being about all of this. I thought she loved our family and would hate to be away from us.
I wish I could go back in time to when she just worked at the little record shop down the road. Everything was perfect then. I could even pop in during my lunch hours and see her throughout the day.
Thoughts roll through my mind like a rolodex. And I never wanted this. I never wanted a girlfriend. I was happy with it, just being the three of us. But she pushed and pushed. Then, as soon as I give in and consider a forever together, she pulls this. I work myself so much that I take one of my golf clubs out of the bag and throw it across the wall.
“Daddy?” Aurora sticks her head out the door. “What was that?”
“Nothing, sweetie.” I furiously try to get the tears off my cheeks, but I fail to do so before she notices.
“You’re crying? What’s wrong?”
I just crouch down and open my arms for her to hug me. She does.
“Are you okay, dad?”
“Yeah, I’m just sad. But that’s okay. Sadness is a perfectly normal thing to feel once in a while.”
“Did Alessia or I make you sad?”
“Oh, my gosh. No. Of course not.” I hug her again.
“Then, what did?”
“It doesn’t matter. I’ll be okay.” I’m not actually sure of that myself, but she doesn’t need to know that.
She pulls away and gives me a kiss on the cheek. “I love you.”
“Oh, I love you too. Thank you for that kiss.”
She then sticks her tongue out. “It was salty.”
I laugh. “That’s because tears are salty.”
“Really? Why?” I appreciate her childhood wonderment about anything and everything because it’s distracting me from the current situation.
“Because the electrolytes in our bodies contain essential minerals like sodium.”
“Oh.” She nods like she understands what I just said.
“Are you and your sister all ready for school?”
“Mhm.”
“Great, let’s get going.”
I drop them off like usual, and I have yet another strategy meeting with Jeff before his custody hearing.
“You seem even more off today than you did before,” he mentions.
“Yeah, it was a really bad morning.”
“Did something happen with Bea?” he leans over and asks.
“Yeah, but it isn’t very professional for me to be talking about my girlfriend”s problems with a client.”
He flicks his wrist at me. “Consider me a friend by this point. So, if you want to talk about it, I will listen.”
I sit back in my chair. “She’s just making all of these huge decisions without even speaking to me first.”
“Like?”
“Like, apparently, now she wants some fancy record deal with Peninsula Records, and she’s being put together with that guy from the video. I guess they want them to be a duo.”
Jeff nods. “They are very good together.”
“I know that. But all of that means she might be in England even longer. I just never thought she’d be okay with being away from me and the girls for so long.”
“That is tough. Do you want my two cents? As a divorced dad who would put up with just about anything to have a sweet, young girl like Bea in my life.”
I smile. “Yes, please.”
“Just let her live her life. She’ll come back.”
“But I don’t know when that will be.”
“Let me ask you something else: do you love her? Like really, really love her?”
“With my whole heart.”
“Can you imagine life without her?”
“No. I was going to propose. I already have the ring and everything.”
“Well, I guess you don’t have any choice but to do what I said then.”
I put my elbow on my desk and rest my hand on my dark hair.
“It sure sounds to me like she’s worth it.”
“She is. It’s just this in-between part that is killing me.”