Chapter 44 Hawk
FORTY-FOUR
hawk
Sitting in Boston during spring training, I felt torn between the part of my job I loved—baseball—and the business side. We had finally signed Carlos Martino to a multi-year contract, a negotiation that we hadn’t expected to be so difficult. It had also cost more than we had planned.
After a night of absolute bliss in Stowe, Kendra and I had been like ships in the night. When Nonna demanded that we meet her for lunch, I suspected there was an ulterior motive.
Me: We have lunch with Nonna today.
Kendra: Um, do we have time for that?
Me: It’s not optional. The driver will be here at 12:15.
At 12:20, I stood outside, checking my watch and wondering what had made my punctual-to-a-fault girlfriend late.
“Sorry.” She breezed out the door and hurried to give me a kiss. “I was trying to check in on Kylie, but it seems that she also copes with emotional distress through excessive working.”
“It’s okay. We can blame it on the traffic. It’s only five minutes.”
“Did you read the reports?”
“Yes. And I think the final roster might look a little different from expected.”
“I figured as much.” She smiled wryly.
“Milligan was hitting on Monroe’s wife, Ashley. And now we can’t let the two of them be alone together.”
Her eyes snapped to mine. “Are you fucking serious?”
“I wish it weren’t true. Ashley has a history of straying as it is, and last year his performance suffered while they worked things out off the field.”
“Shit, you’d think it was only the guys who strayed.”
“The schedule is tough on marriages. You can ask my grandmother when you see her how much shit she put up with over the years. And Granddad wasn’t traveling every other week.”
“Do you think that’s why your father wanted nothing to do with it?”
“Partially. But my father didn’t have the same passion for the game.”
We were only five minutes late when we pulled up in front of my grandmother’s favorite restaurant.
“Huh. I’m surprised she didn’t pick Italian.”
“No, she prefers her own cooking and is never satisfied with any Italian restaurants. Seafood is her go-to.”
I held Kendra’s hand and led her to the table where Nonna was already seated. She stood and beamed at Kendra, pulling her into a hug before greeting me.
“Thank you for meeting me. And yes, I know that this isn’t convenient for either of you. I don’t care, family is always more important than the game.”
Kendra nodded. “It’s been a bit hellish. But things are coming together.”
“Take it from me, it’s never over. The game, the season—it’s a cycle. Even if the team wins it all, it starts over the next day. The only thing important to the fans and the media is who is winning today.”
“Well, there wasn’t a game today, but we look good for the first pre-season game. It should be a good year.”
“The season is long.” Nonna looked between the two of us before continuing. “I love that you found someone as passionate about this team as you are. But I worry that the two of you might lose focus.”
Before she finished her thought, the waitress arrived and took our drink order. Nonna also placed an order for a dozen oysters. I glanced over at Kendra to make sure the thought of oysters hadn’t caused her to turn green.
“Do you like oysters?” I asked.
“Love them.”
“Back to what I was saying. My marriage was often stretched and challenged because of the stress of owning this team. And I’m hoping that you can learn from us, and not have to hit the same bumps I did with your grandfather. Are you making time for each other?”
I nodded. “We spent the weekend in Stowe.”
“Good. Dinner together every night?”
Kendra looked sheepish. Last night she had canceled because she needed to let in a repairman at her apartment.
When I had offered to bring dinner to her place, she said that she was getting takeout with her sister.
I understood why she didn’t want to hoist our relationship on Kylie while she was coping with the roller coaster of her relationship with Luc.
“Most nights,” I said.
“That’s good. Because dinner in the suite gets a little old.” She paused and directed her following statement to Kendra. “He can watch the game from his penthouse. He doesn’t need to be at every single one.”
She nodded in agreement. “We’ve already discussed that in depth.”
“Granddad walked away because he knew you could handle it. Not so you can give your life to a team that will never love you as much as you love it. This town loves harder than any place in the world when you’re winning.
But they’re brutal when you lose. Understanding what part of that is within your control is the only path to sanity. ”
Listening to her now, I had a different perspective on the battles that they had over the years. She had always been pushing my grandfather to find balance, something he’d only found since I had taken over.
“Don’t you wait until you retire to enjoy life.”
“We both love what we do,” Kendra said.
“Loving what you do and living it at the expense of other loves—that’s when it changes from being a job to an obsession.”
“And we’re both workaholics,” I said.
“I can tell. Right off the bat—pardon the pun—I knew you’d met your match. I love that for you—I do—but it also brings back years of me waiting for my husband to put his happiness before the team’s success. I am so thankful that he didn’t put himself into heart failure before that happened.”
After the oysters arrived, the server explained where each was harvested—offering a welcome respite from the direction of the conversation. We placed the rest of our food orders before we had the chance to dig into our appetizers.
“Ooh, did I hear those are from Matunuck, RI?” Kendra asked, getting giddy.
“Have you had these before?” I asked.
“These are some of my favorites. Just wait until you try it.”
She watched as I put a dollop of horseradish on the oyster and slipped the oyster off the shell into my mouth. The sweet, briny flavor exploded on my tongue.
“Wow.”
She finished hers after gauging my response. “Yeah. Just as good as I remembered.”
Nonna quietly enjoyed her food, all while raising her eyebrows at me. She hated when women wouldn’t let themselves eat, and Kendra’s joy in sampling the oysters had pleased her. When she tore off a hunk of bread and swirled it in olive oil before taking a big bite, Nonna smiled even wider.
“Kendra’s running the marathon in April.”
“Yes, the training is ramping up, and I can’t seem to eat enough food to replenish the calories I’m burning.”
“Is this your first marathon?” Nonna asked.
“No, I had to qualify first. But I’ll be honest, training for a fall marathon is a lot different from training for April.”
“Is there a home game scheduled for Marathon Monday?” Nonna asked.
“There is.” She gave me a knowing look, all the sign I needed that she’d be planning a celebration.
“Great. I’m taking over the suite that night.”
“Be my guest.”