Chapter 9
A fellow has it—or he hasn’t it.
Camdyn smiled as she watched Javier dance with her grandmother.
Granna loved events like these. Well, she loved any excuse to dress up, but the dancing was her favorite part.
And she was obviously chatting Javi to death, but he didn’t seem bothered.
Rather, he seemed interested in whatever she was telling him about.
Even from where Camdyn sat, she could see the happiness in his eyes and how his full lips curled into a soft smile.
He really was good looking, and he moved with such a natural, fluid grace.
He was also incredibly confident and that made him even more alluring to her.
She was surprised by his openness, like when he’d admitted to past dance lessons.
Not many men would have owned up to that, and yet she couldn’t shake the thought that he was right about dancing being innate for him.
She was sure that was one of the reasons he excelled so well as a catcher.
It was a demanding position that required him to command the team’s defense, so it shouldn’t have been surprising that he could be bossy, like when he’d christened her with his own pet name for her.
Just another thing she found attractive about him.
As they turned on the dance floor, Granna caught her eye and winked.
She’d be calling Camdyn tomorrow to chat.
By the time they finished dancing, Granna would have a personal opinion of Javier, and probably his full life story.
She’d be sure to share it all with her granddaughter.
She’d done just the same with Ricky, only Granna had never cared much for him.
She felt he was pretentious. When Granna had described Ricky that way, Camdyn hadn’t agreed.
She’d thought he’d just been trying to impress her, but clearly Camdyn had been wearing rose-colored glasses, because looking back… that was a great description of Ricky.
Her uncle walked back up to their table, where Camdyn was sitting alone, and slid into the chair next to her. “So you’re dating your brother’s teammates now?”
She turned to him with a smile. “Not really. I was kind of put on the spot by Ricky while I was meeting with Cal and Javier to discuss Javi’s family problem.” Camdyn didn’t miss her uncle’s grimace when she mentioned Ricky.
“I heard about the girl in Cuba. Pa said he’s taking it on, but he’s letting you do all the work on the case,” he commented.
She nodded and glanced back at her grandmother and Javi.
“Do you think you’ve got enough free time while you’re finishing up at Anderson to be working on that, too?” he asked.
She looked back at him. Did he think she wouldn’t follow through? “I’ll find the time. That little girl…somebody needs to be fighting for her. And cases like hers are what drew me to this profession.”
He reached over and patted her arm reassuringly. “I know, baby. I just wanted to make sure you don’t need help. If you need me, just ask, okay?”
Her heart warmed. Why did she keep thinking they doubted her? She knew her family loved her unconditionally, but she was obviously still struggling with her past decisions. Maybe it was fear of disappointing them further. She wasn’t sure. “Okay, Uncle Brett. Thank you.”
He smiled. “Anything for you. Now, tell me what happened with Ricky? Do I need to end his career?”
Camdyn couldn’t help but giggle. Not only did her family love her, but they were willing to do just about anything for her. “I hadn’t been happy with Ricky for a while. I had actually been looking for a reason to break up with him…and he gave it to me,” she replied.
“And what reason was that?” Brett pried.
She opened her mouth to answer but paused because she wasn’t sure how much she wanted to share. She found it embarrassing.
“Speaking of the snake,” hissed Uncle Brett.
Camdyn looked up to see Ricky heading towards their table.
“Do you want me to get rid of him?” Uncle Brett asked.
“No. No need to make a scene. After all, his dad just got an award. Maybe he’s just coming over to thank me for nominating his father,” she replied.
He scoffed. “I doubt that.”
She did, too. She and Uncle Brett were the only two sitting at their table.
Her grandpa was dancing with Mrs. Muir, while Javier continued to dance with her grandmother.
She wasn’t sure where their other tablemates had gone.
Probably off to dance or socialize, or maybe to pursue the silent auction offerings.
Ricky offered his hand to Brett first. “Mr. Callahan, it’s nice to see you tonight.”
Uncle Brett shook his hand. “Give your father my congratulations.”
“I will,” said Ricky as he looked at Camdyn. “Our Camdyn here wrote a remarkable nomination for him. And doesn’t she look beautiful tonight? Would you dance with me?” He offered his hand to pull her up.
“I’m afraid she can’t,” interrupted Uncle Brett. “She just agreed to dance with me. Didn’t you, darling?”
“Yes, I did. Excuse me, Ricky,” Camdyn replied as Uncle Brett pulled her to her feet.
“Of course. Maybe I can catch you free in a bit,” Ricky said.
“I don’t want to talk business tonight. If we need to talk, we can do that at work tomorrow,” she replied as her uncle led her onto the dance floor.
Uncle Brett muttered, “I’ve never liked him. I wasn’t a fan when you started dating him.”
“Why didn’t you say something?” asked Camdyn.
“Because you seemed happy, and you’re an adult. You get to make your own decisions, even if your uncle doesn’t agree with them.”
“That may be, but you’ve never failed in giving me good advice.
I wish I could go back and join up with you and Pa from the start.
While Richard has been a wonderful mentor—and I learned a lot from him; everything I wrote in his nomination was completely true—I do wish I hadn’t gone to work for him.
It hasn’t been a bad company, but all my life, I dreamed of working with you and Pa, and I let myself be swayed.
And that’s no one’s fault other than my own.
I’ve made so many errors in the past year, wasted so much time. I don’t like making mistakes.”
Her uncle laughed. “You never have, baby. That’s part of being a perfectionist, but you’ve made no errors that can’t be corrected.”
Camdyn released a humorless laugh. “That may be, but I’m not a girl who makes mistakes. I pride myself on being right. I can’t thank you and Pa enough for letting me come home where I should have always been.” Tears started to well in her eyes and she blinked rapidly to push them back.
“Oh, baby, don’t cry. It’s all right.” Uncle Brett’s hand rubbed her back.
“We love you, and we are so proud of you, and we are so happy that you’re coming to work with us.
But just know, even when we were disappointed that you had decided to work somewhere else, we never stopped loving you or being proud of you. ”
The song they were dancing to came to an end, and her uncle led them back to their table.
“For what it’s worth, if you decide you do want to date him, I like this one here with you tonight,” he said.
That got a giggle out of her. “Thanks. He seems all right, doesn’t he?”
They watched Javier escort her grandmother back from the dance floor.
“Did you have fun?” Camdyn asked Granna when they got closer.
“I did. You know I love dancing. I have a hard time getting your grandpa out there with me. He’s normally good for maybe one or two dances, so having more options to dance with just makes the night more fun.”
“Well, if that’s the case, Mother, can I have the next dance?” Uncle Brett asked with an outstretched hand.
Her grandmother put her hand in his. “Of course, Son. I would never turn down a dance with you.”
Javier moved to Camdyn’s side. “How about you, Cami? Do you care to dance?”
She looked at his dark eyes, dancing with mirth. He had little crow’s-feet at the corners. She would have thought they were probably from all the time he played in the sun, but she knew they also spoke of him being a happy, joyful person.
“I would love to dance with you,” said Camdyn.
Javi led her back to the dance floor and pulled her close. “These slow songs are nice, but Cami, I think I preferred our dancing in the Latin room of that club in San Diego.”
She sighed as she placed her left hand on his shoulder. “Me too. I hadn’t danced like that in years.”
He slid his hand down to her lower back. “If you want, we can try that bachata again when we get back to your place.”
As fun as that sounded, she knew that wasn’t the dance he really wanted to repeat. “I’d like that. I think we could probably say our goodbyes and leave after this dance.”
“Don’t we have to stay for the auction? You bid on that gold chain,” he stated.
She shook her head. “No, they’ll notify the winners if they’re not present.”
His grip tightened on her as they swayed to the music.
“Well then, let’s say good night to your family. After all, I have a game tomorrow. I need a good night’s rest,” he replied with his charming smirk.
She patted his shoulder. “Your game is tomorrow night. You’ll get more rest than I will. I still have to work.”
“All the more reason for us to get out of here. Aren’t these things normally on a Friday or Saturday night? Why plan this for a Thursday night anyway?” he asked.
She couldn’t help the laughter that escaped. “Clearly the upper-level partners, who barely work on Fridays as it is. It makes a great excuse for them to take the day off. It was also probably cheaper for the bar association.”
“I’m not complaining,” he was quick to interject with a smile. “I wouldn’t have been able to come with you if it had been on another night, so it seems like fate to me.”
Fate would explain so much, she thought.