Camdyn’s family started to arrive and she knew that Javi must have been plotting with Cal when they bought tickets for the game. They’d managed to keep the whole crew together near the home team dugout.
The game was a good one; their boys were on fire. Cal was supposed to close, but one of their other pitchers went out with an injury and the manager had decided to move him to starter for game three. Only two games left until Javi was free for the offseason.
He already had a house rented in Oasis and Camdyn had moved some of her things over from her parents’ place. She was ready to have a break from the long commutes into Phoenix.
Lola didn’t know it yet, but tomorrow morning they’d be throwing her a birthday party at Javi’s apartment. She would be turning thirteen and Camdyn had just felt that called for a celebration. After all, it was her favorite number and Javi’s player number as well.
She’d booked a caterer for brunch and ordered Lola a pretty cake in her favorite color. She was sure the girl would be thrilled. Especially when she got Javi’s gift.
CHAPTER 26
I never thought catching was hard. I liked it.
– Roger Bresnahan, Baseball Hall of Fame inductee, 1945
Javier walked into the dining room holding the last wrapped present. This gift was special, and so was the box. There were multiple quarter-sized holes in the sides of the white box, and there was a wide purple ribbon wrapped around it, forming a Tiffany-style bow on top.
“All right, here’s your last present,” announced Javi as he entered the room.
Lola was beaming, sitting at the head of his dining room table. She’d never had a birthday party before, and Cami had convinced him that they needed to do something special. She was turning thirteen, officially a teenager.
They hadn’t had time to plan anything elaborate, but having lived in an orphanage the majority of her life, he didn’t think Lola had been expecting anything special at all. And she seemed quite thrilled with the party that he and Cami had managed to pull together.
Though really, most of the party planning had been executed by Cami. She always noticed details, and she had been the one to point out the upcoming special day.
They’d invited the guys from the team and their families, along with Cami’s extended family. There were even a few kids, though none Lola’s age. They were all younger, but it didn’t matter. Lola still enjoyed playing with them, especially Lionel’s children, who she frequently interacted with since they lived next door.
Cami had arranged for the party to be catered and had ordered a beautiful two-tier cake. It had been frosted in different shades of purple with elaborate swirls of icing and a multitude of different sprinkles.
Lola had already opened her other presents. She’d received some very nice things. And Javi found it comical that some of his teammates, who also didn’t know what to buy a thirteen-year-old girl for her birthday, had hit up the stadium’s team shop for Diamondbacks gear. She now had more team merch than he did. She’d also amassed quite the collection of baseball cards, which she was currently ripping into, the guys hovering nearby to see who she pulled. He was going to have to pick her up a binder to store them all.
After discussing with Cami at length what he should get Lola, he’d settled on the one thing he’d always wanted at her age. Cami had pulled her phone out to film and several of the guys positioned themselves to snap photos as well.
Javi sat the gift in front of Lola and she looked at him questioningly. “Go ahead. Open it,” he prompted.
Slowly, Lola lifted the lid. She looked inside and gasped. “A puppy!” she squealed. Reaching into the box, she pulled out a ball of dark chocolate-colored fur.
“She’s mine?” she asked Javi, as tears filled her eyes.
“He,” he corrected. “Heis yours.”
“Does he have a name?” she asked as she snuggled the pup’s silky fur against her cheek. The little pup looked around before trying to lap at Lola’s face.
“Not yet,” Javi replied. “You get to pick his name. He’s all yours. He’s a nine-week-old Havanese.”
He’d also consulted with his mother about getting Lola a puppy and she’d recommended a Havanese, the national dog of Cuba, though the most common dog on the streets weresatos, little mixed-breed mongrels. Probably the type of dogs Lola was familiar with. But pre-revolution, the Havanese had been a status symbol of Cuba’s upper class, and he had to assume that’s why his mother found the dog desirable. Maybe he’d buy his mother one when she finally retired.
“I love him. Thank you,” said Lola.
“You’re welcome,” replied Javi as the other children tried to gather around so that they could also see the puppy.
“Daddy, can we get a dog, too?” asked Lionel’s son, Leo.
Javi should have been dead on the spot from the glare Lionel shot him, but he just laughed.
“Maybe one day,” replied Lie.
The guy was struggling with his single-dad role but seemed to be doing well. There wasn’t much he wouldn’t do for his kids, but it seemed adding a puppy to their chaotic life was a step Lionel wasn’t ready to take, and Javier could understand that. He wasn’t sure how things were going to work out with this dog. He’d probably end up taking care of it himself, but Camdyn had been sure that Lola was old enough and responsible enough to care for a dog. After all, she was used to helping with the younger children in the orphanage. And having the responsibility of looking after the little dog would probably be good for her. Hopefully, he could help her get the little guy potty-trained during the offseason.
