“Positive.” She passed Valeria to me, who gave me a skeptical look but did not protest me holding her. I sat backdown, positioning the baby sideways onto my lap so she could still see her sister.
Valeria babbled happily at Maya and Adelaide but continued to side-eye me. This dynamic soon had Adelaide in a fit of giggles.
“She really isn’t sure about you at all, is she?”
“I am obviously a very suspicious individual.” I tried bouncing my knee, hoping that would placate her. Instead, she turned to fully face me, opened her mouth, and spit up all over my shirt.
“Oh, all right then!” I exclaimed in surprise as Adelaide’s giggles devolved into full-on hysterics, Maya joining in with her own high-pitched laughter.
“I suppose she told you, huh?” Adelaide managed to calm down enough to say. We both looked at the baby, who was now grinning widely at Adelaide again, a single bottom tooth breaking up her gummy smile.
“¿Dios mío, qué pasó?”Carmen asked as she returned and took in the scene before her: Adelaide, Maya, and Valeria giggling, and me covered in baby spit up.
I lifted Valeria back to her mother. “I guess she took umbrage with my shirt, though I tried to explain that it has her dad’s number on the back,” I answered matter-of-factly.
Carmen blushed furiously. “Oliver, I am so sorry!” She started digging in her bag and passed me a pack of baby wipes. “I’ll go speak to one of the staff and have them bring you a new shirt.”
I shook my head as I used a wipe to clean up. “Don’t fret over it. She’s a baby, it happens.”
As I changed into a new shirt, my prediction about the game proved correct as it became more and more heated leading up to halftime.
During the break, the girls’ nanny appeared and scoopedthem up to take them home, with Maya promising to show Adelaide her favorite toys in the morning.
The rest of the game passed quickly. Madrid was able to come back to win by one point, resulting in thunderous cheers and a resounding celebratory chorus of “¡Hala Madrid!…y nada más” as the home crowd poured out of the stadium.
Carmen led us through a private exit to their car, Faxon following in our wake as he communicated via his headset with the rest of our security team. Adelaide smiled at me, her expression a bit drowsy, slipping her hand into mine and leaning her head against my shoulder as we wove through the streets of Madrid to my friends’ home.
“Did you enjoy your first football match?” I asked, my lips brushing the top of her head.
She nodded, squeezing my hand. “I did, very much. Maybe I can be a Sporty Spice after all.”
I chuckled, moving my arm around her shoulders and tucking her against my side. “I guess miracles do happen, then.”
As we pulled up to Anton and Carmen’s house, I was thankful to have taken advantage of the beloved tradition of the Spanish siesta that afternoon. It was just shy of 11:30 p.m. and I knew that we still had a meal and probably a few bottles of wine ahead of us. I had mentally prepared for the Spanish and their night-owl tendencies, but my body was still protesting a bit.
Anton and Carmen’s gated property was near the edge of the city, in one of Madrid’s most affluent neighborhoods. Inside, the sprawling three-story Mediterranean Revival home was furnished with dark wood floors and accented with black wrought-iron stair rails and leaded glass windows. Outside, I spied a pool just beyond a stone patio, blocked from sight of the neighboring homes with a tall stone wall and a row of hedges. Even though we were still technically in the city and the homes were close together, it felt secluded and private. I could see why the couple had chosen this property as they navigated raising a young family in the public eye.
Their nanny greeted us as we entered the spacious living room, rising from where she had been reading a book on the couch. She and Carmen spoke for a moment before the young woman wished us goodnight and headed for the front door.
“The girls are asleep,” Carmen said as she turned back to us, gesturing for us to take a seat on the plush cream sofa. “With any luck, they’ll both stay that way for a while. Although I’m sure Maya will have Anton up early. She loves to have him do her hair in the mornings.”
“That’s adorable,” I said.
Carmen smiled, pride and love emanating from her. “It is. There was a time that Anton wanted a boy, but we struggled to get pregnant after Maya was born. It made us even more grateful to have two healthy, beautiful children, and made him extra fond of being a ‘girl dad.’ You should see the way he lets Maya dress him up in her princess crowns and play jewelry.”
My heart constricted, both at hearing that they had struggled with secondary infertility and at the way she spoke of her husband’s love for their girls.
A knock at the door interrupted us. Carmen went to answer it, leaving Oliver and I on the sofa. He leaned toward me, brushing a stray lock of hair out of my face.
“How are you hanging in?” he asked.
“Me? Oh, I’m fine,” I answered, pushing away the thoughts that were threatening to break through. Had he noticed the change in my emotions just now?
“If you get too tired, I know Carmen and Anton won’t mind at all if you want to turn in. We’ve had a long week, and you should get some rest if you need it.”
I suppressed a sigh of relief; he was just worried aboutme being tired. “I’ll be okay, but thank you. Carmen seems wonderful and I can’t wait to meet Anton.”
Carmen returned. “That was your assistant dropping off an overnight bag for each of you; they’ve been taken to your room.”
