Their Perfect Melody, page 16
part #3 of Matched to Perfection Series
He swiped a hand through the air, obviously annoyed with whatever was going down in his family. “Anyway, I can’t make the game and need to find someone to take my place. Eight kids is too many for one person to keep track of in a crowded ball park. I just hate canceling since Ben got us the tickets through his Cubs connections. And they’re bleachers seats. The kids are gonna love that!”
“Me too! Julia and I connected via phone last week since she and Ben are on the road, and she mentioned that he was working on it. I’m glad he was able to come through. Shouldn’t be too hard to find someone to replace you, right?” Lilí asked. “I mean, who doesn’t want to catch a free Cubs game?”
“This guy, apparently.” David gave Diego a bug-eyed, what’s-up-with-that? look.
Diego held up his hands in surrender. “Hey now, I didn’t say no. I said I needed to see about rearranging some plans.”
Lilí’s belly flip-flopped. The idea of Diego tag-teaming with her to take the group of middle school kids to Wrigley Field made her both giddy and nervously excited. Or maybe it was excitedly nervous.
Either way, it didn’t bode well for her. Feeling nervous was a warning—stay away from fire or you’ll get burned. Excitement, while it could lead to fun, oftentimes got her into trouble.
Rosa’s “look before you leap” cautionary motto wove through Lilí’s brain.
“I’m sure I can find another volunteer with security clearance,” she told David. Sidling up to the counter, she leaned against the edge. The corner dug into her hip through her black leggings. “There’s gotta be someone else interested in spending a sunny day at the ball park.”
“Wait a minute. I didn’t say I couldn’t go,” Diego protested.
He slid his guitar case to his left and matched her stance, leaning his right hip on the counter and facing her.
At the other end of the long check-in desk, one of the shift employees called out to David.
“You two hash it out,” he told them before stepping away. “All I can say is, you’d be doing me a solid if you would both say yes.”
Lilí waited for Diego to respond, but the pesky cop evidently continued to perfect his man-of-few-words routine.
“Look,” she finally said. “You’ve got plans, don’t sweat it. I’ll find someone else.”
She crossed her arms and blinked up at him like it was no big deal.
All the while her interest caught on the short whiskers darkening his jawline. The faint scar above his left brow. His earthy cologne invaded her senses. The same way it had when she’d roused from sleep, convinced he lay beside her.
“Why do I get the feeling you don’t really want me to go?” he asked, giving her a narrow-eyed, speculative look.
“Oh, I’m fine either way. Go. Don’t go.”
Please go.
She shushed the traitorous voice in her head.
“I haven’t been to a Cubs game yet this season,” Diego said. “Hanging out with kids from the center is usually a fun time. Hanging out with you has been—”
“You better say something nice or I’m gonna have to practice one of the class moves on you,” she warned.
He chuckled, the sound rich and throaty. And inviting. The laugh lines marking the corners of his eyes deepened.
Lilí couldn’t resist grinning back at him. Diantre, resisting his charms was about as easy as saying no to Rosa’s flan. That had yet to happen in Lilí’s lifetime.
“I was about to say ‘interesting,’” Diego replied. He dug his left hand into his back pocket, the motion stretching his tee across his muscular chest. “Amongst several other adjectives, but that one might be the safest.”
“Wise choice.”
“That’s me, a wise guy.” He punctuated his words with a flirty wink. “So, what time are we meeting here on Saturday?”
His question made her heart stutter step. Uh-oh, that meant trouble.
“You’re really going to chaperone?” she asked.
“Sure, why not? It’ll ease some of David’s stress.”
Sí, while adding to hers.
Now she’d spend the entire afternoon distracted, trying not to admire the easy way he connected with the kids, like when he’d filled in for Kent in her class. The same way he’d apparently done with little Gloria during Yaz’s dance recital. As well as with young Héctor. The man had been here an extra night this week offering the boy another free lesson.
How could she not be attracted to a guy who put these kids, many of whom needed positive role models like him, first?
Despite how wrong he might be for her.
Because, Dios mío, no matter how many times Rosa had told her not to play with fire when they were growing up, Lilí had always been the type that had to get burned before learning for herself. With Diego, if nothing else, everything leading up to the burn would feel really, really good.
“The kids were told to meet here at nine forty-five in the morning,” she said. “That gives us a little time for stragglers, then we’ll take the bus to Clark and Division and hop on the Red Line to West Addison. We wanna be at Wrigley when the gates open at eleven twenty.”
“Sounds like a plan.”
“David’s, not mine really.”
“And now ours.” A spark flared in Diego’s dark eyes, warming her. “Guess I’ll see you Saturday morning.”
* * *
“Yeah, baby! That’s what I’m talking about!” Lilí yelled.
Diego watched her high-five Héctor, then reach across the kid to slap palms with one of the girls in their group.
He’d known she was a Cubs fan and had found out about her six degrees of separation connection to the team thanks to her cousin’s boyfriend. Apparently she also had cousins in Puerto Rico who played ball. But when she’d shown up at the center decked out in a Cubs ball cap and jersey, miniature Cubs baseball-cap earrings dangling from her lobes, Cubs sneakers on her feet, a leather Cubs watch strapped on one wrist, and a Cubs wallet dangling from the other . . . he realized that when it came to her baseball team, Lilí put the “fan” in fanatic.
Get the girl inside the ballpark and her eyes lit up with excitement like a rookie cop’s after making their first collar.
Arriving at Wrigley Field just as the gates opened had meant the kids could take advantage of reduced food prices for the first hour. Lilí took a group who wanted to eat right away while Diego and the rest of them headed to find their seats.
Twenty minutes later she’d shown up with a hot dog and fries in one hand, a soda in a collector’s cup in the other. A bag of roasted peanuts wedged between her left elbow and side, her broad smile had rivaled the kids’ as she plopped down in the seat next to him.
Her shoulder had bumped his and he’d grabbed her hot dog as the foil-wrapped food threatened to roll off the paper boat of fries. Then, he’d nearly swallowed his tongue when she stretched out her shapely, toned legs and tugged on the hem of her too-short-for-his-own-good jeans shorts.
Now, the game was in the bottom of the fifth inning with the home team ahead by two, thanks to the home run that had precipitated Lilí’s high-five fiesta.
Food had been devoured and peanut shells littered the cement floor at their feet. Giver that she was, Lilí had shared her bag with him. He and a couple kids had just returned to their seats with soft-serve ice cream, his with an extra spoon for Lilí.
The beer man walked down the aisle, hawking his wares. He paused at the end of their row.
Diego shook his head when the guy made eye contact. Lilí had already waved the beer man off earlier. No alcohol when they were on chaperone duty.
“Yes!” Lilí cried, balling her fist and punching the air as she capped off her run-scoring cheer and fell back in her seat.
He held up the miniature plastic batting helmet full of chocolate and vanilla swirl ice cream.
“For me?” she asked, her eyebrows rising with her obvious glee.
She reached for the extra spoon when he nodded.
“Wow, you sweet talker, you.” She grinned, a little giggle escaping from her mouth.
He laughed, amused by her playful personality. Another side of her he found himself drawn to, along with the sexy, the determined, the dedicated, and even the hardheaded ones.
“What?” she asked around a spoonful. She slid the utensil slowly from her mouth, then stuck out her tongue to lick some cream off the back side. The provocative gesture sent blood surging south in his body and Diego nearly groaned.
She furrowed her brow in question. “You okay? Did you get a brain freeze or something?”
Or something, all right.
He shook his head, relieved when George, to his left, elbowed him to get his attention.
Lilí stuck her spoon back into the ice cream, her free hand sliding to cup his underneath the container to steady it. Her touch sent heat waves rolling through him, stronger than those beating down from the hot July sun.
“We get to stay for the whole game, right, Diego?” George asked.
“Yep, till the last out is called,” he answered. “And hopefully we’ll get to sing ‘Go Cubs Go’ at the end if the Cubs win.”
“When the Cubs win.” Lilí leaned over him, her upper arm grazing his chest as she held their dessert steady and shook her spoon to emphasize her point. “No if about it. When the Cubs win, we’ll sing at the top of our lungs. Got it?”
“Got it!” George fist-bumped Lilí, who sat back in her seat with a satisfied grin.
“We better eat this before it turns back into milk,” she told Diego, snagging another bite with gusto.
Diego stared at her in awe, continuously amazed by her many facets.
The positive energy she exuded with the kids, the sexy tomboy vibe she had going on thanks to her team gear, and the sparkle of mischief in her hazel-green eyes were a one, two, three punch combination pummeling his recent conclusion that he and Lilí’s relationship could remain both friendly and professional.
Volunteering to chaperone today had been his way of testing the friendship waters. Instead, he’d wound up leaving those slow-moving, placid depths and veering into the raging rapids of full-blown lust.
Life on the wild side was dangerous, but with Lilí he had a strong notion it would be worth it.
She tapped her plastic spoon on the edge of the mini Cubs helmet. He obliged, taking a bite of the melting dessert. The cold concoction tasted sweet on his tongue, but what he really wanted was to taste it on her lips. Lick the drop of chocolate caught on the corner of her mouth.
Whether she sensed his focus on her mouth or not, Lilí reached up to swipe the chocolate off with the back of her hand.
“Here.” Diego dug in a front pocket of his khaki shorts for one of the napkins he’d grabbed.
“Thanks,” she mumbled around another spoonful. “It’s getting messy, huh? You should finish it.” She pushed the container in his direction, then wiped her face with the paper napkin.
The Cubs players took the field and Lilí joined in with the cheering crowd.
Diego sat back to enjoy the atmosphere, especially the kids’ enthusiasm at being inside the ballpark. For many it was their first game and he was happy to be a part of their first Wrigley Field experience.
Lilí was a font of information when it came to her team’s history. Since most of the kids were budding baseball or softball players, they listened to her every word, off and on throwing questions at her. Despite her keen interest in following the game, she gave each child her undivided attention, ensuring they understood that whatever they had to say was important. That they mattered to her.
For a couple of the kids, this type of unconditional love wasn’t something they saw much of at home. The fact that she either knew this or was naturally an attentive, giving person made him respect her even more.
At the top of the eighth inning, Diego’s phone vibrated in his pocket. He dug it out to find a text from David, sent to him and Lilí.
Family party got over early. I’m down the street from Wrigley in the center’s van. Will meet you on the corner of Sheffield & Addison after the game.
Lilí was so engrossed in the Cubs manager’s pitching change decision, she didn’t seem to notice her phone had received the message.
Diego held his cell out to her. “Hey, David says he can pick us up so we don’t have to bother with crowds on the “L” and the bus.”
“Oh, okay.” She barely glanced at his phone, instead stretching up in her seat to yell at the umpire, “Come on, ump! Give me a break! That was a strike!”
Her fervor encouraged Héctor and a couple others to join in the cries. Diego made a mental note: In a tight game, don’t count on Lilí to contribute to important discussions.
While Lilí, the kids, and thousands of other Cubs fans in the park cheered as the pitcher struck out the next batter, Diego typed a message to David.
Sounds good. Will text when we’re outside.
David replied with the thumbs-up emoji.
A short while later the opponents were down to their last out. All the fans stood on their feet cheering, ready to sing the Cubs’ winning anthem and wave their white flags with the dark blue W signifying the team win.
The batter swung and missed and the crowd went wild. Including Lilí, who raised her arms high with a triumphant cry of “¡Wepa!”
Before he knew it she threw her arms around him for a celebratory hug. She smelled like sun and sweat with a hint of her coconutty-lime lotion. Absolutely delicious.
The hug was over much too fast for his liking. Then she was on to slapping high fives and singing along with the forty thousand plus others in the park. Including Héctor and the rest of their gang, who jumped up and down with huge grins on their faces.
Standing there, in the midst of all the chaos and cheers, it hit Diego. For the first time in a long while, everything seemed right in his world.
He had planned to spend today working on small renovations in his home. Trying to upgrade things that his mami had always talked about updating, but never gotten around to. Or more likely, hadn’t had the money for. Every completed project assuaged his guilt over not being able to provide enough before she had died.
Most days that guilt weighed heavily on his mind. But today, thanks to Lilí, he hadn’t thought about it at all.
Suddenly, as happy as everyone else was that the Cubs had won, Diego wasn’t ready for the afternoon to end. Not yet anyway.
Once the song had finished and fans started streaming out of the ballpark, while the kids were gathering their commemorative cups and anything else they’d brought with them, Diego grasped Lilí’s elbow gently.
She glanced at him, a question lingering in her eyes.
“What do you say to us letting David take the kids back, and we stick around to grab a drink at the Cubby Bear to celebrate? You up for it?” he asked her.
Lilí’s infectious grin spread across her kissable lips. “Heck yeah!”
And with that, his afternoon got even brighter.
Chapter Eleven
“Thanks again!” David called from the driver’s seat in the van.
“Anytime.” Lilí bent down to peer at him through the open front passenger window, still riding the high of her team’s win.
A round of thank-yous and catch-you-laters were shouted by the middle schoolers in the moments before Diego closed the vehicle’s side door, giving it a pat to alert David that he was good to go.
She and Diego stood on the curb, waving as the white fifteen-passenger van with the youth center’s multicolored helping-hands logo on the side pulled away. Around them Cubs fans of all ages crowded the sidewalk, laughing and joking, recalling, even reenacting, an amazing play from the game. Overhead the “L” rumbled to a stop on the raised train’s platform crossing Addison Street.
“You sure you’re up for a drink at the Cubby Bear or Sluggers?” Diego asked.
The smart thing to do was beg off and take the stairs up to the platform. Or hail a taxi and head home.
Lilí considered herself a smart person. However, with the joy of sharing the Wrigley experience with the kids sparking her enthusiasm and after spending the past few hours hyperaware of Diego’s every move beside her, she wasn’t ready to walk away from him. Not yet anyway.
Besides, they’d be in a crowded bar, what could she possibly do that she’d regret?
“Sure, let’s go,” she answered.
Diego grinned, then gestured for her to precede him. Like he had the other night when he’d driven her home after the photo ID, he looped an arm around her lower back, angling his body to shield her from the jostling fans at his side. The protective gesture was endearing, if old-fashioned, but since it put him a little closer to her, she didn’t mind.
“Great game, huh?” he asked.
“Any game that ends with us winning, is a great one,” she answered.
The bill on his cap created a shadow over the top half of his face, leaving his eyes shaded, but his white teeth flashed with his smile. She returned it with one of her own, a lightness in her step she recognized stemmed from the anticipation of spending more time with him.
One block later they reached the bar, showed their IDs to the bouncer, and waded into the revelry. Diego’s hand slid from her lower back to reach for hers. She linked her fingers with his, telling herself the gesture was simply to avoid them getting separated in the crowd.
It took them a good fifteen minutes before they were able to belly-up to the bar and order their beers. The place was a madhouse, packed with post-game partyers.
While they waited for their drinks, she and Diego chatted about the game, the kids . . . It was hard for Lilí to follow at times, seeing as how they stood facing each other, her thighs and hips occasionally brushing his in the crush.
Someone bumped into her from behind and Lilí stumbled into Diego. His arms looped around her to steady her and she grabbed on to his waist.
“Sorry,” she mumbled.
“You okay?” He peered down at her, his hands resting low on her back, his long fingers skimming the top part of her butt.
