Page 29 of The Baby Dragon Bakery (The Baby Dragon #2)

“Oh!” A variety of emotions clashed through Lavinia. She was pleased at the effort Calahan made; he really was swoon-worthy. Then there was guilt: she should have suggested that! And then there was something else, a little voice that told her that maybe this was a bad idea.

But why would it be a bad idea?

“Yes, definitely!” she found herself saying, because it had already been too long of a pause. “I don’t think the game will be super long, anyway.”

“Great, send me the address,” he replied. “I’ll meet you in the parking lot there and we can walk in together.”

“Perfect!” she squeaked. Lavinia hung up, then sent him the location, a strange feeling spreading through her like a chill. But maybe that was just the weather, reminding her how close winter was.

These plans with Calahan were good. The more time they spent together, the better. While she still wasn’t sure yet that he was The One, she was determined to make things work with him. Besides, it wasn’t like she had other options.

Lavinia rolled her shoulders, making it to her car. She sat down, closing the door against the cool autumnal air. The weird feeling remained, even as she drove over to the field.

She was happy with Calahan, and she knew that as long as they were together, she would be happy.

But was she the happiest she could be? She didn’t know what to do. She wanted to see the map of her entire life and make the right choice. Being unable to was debilitating.

Shouldn’t it have been easy?

The thing was, it would be easy, if it was up to her. She didn’t allow herself to think it, but deep down, in the shadows of her thoughts, tucked into the darkest corner of her heart, she knew she would choose Theo. She wouldn’t hesitate, and there would be nothing to second-guess.

But would he choose her? She already knew the answer.

So then why . . . why would she jeopardize things with Calahan? Ruin something good for someone who didn’t even want her!

Tears pricked her eyes, and she squeezed them shut. She rubbed her temples, releasing a long breath. It was almost the end of October. She’d had all this time, all these years, to find her person—if she wasn’t settled by the winter, she never would be.

Calahan liked her, and he didn’t seem to be getting tired of her. He seemed—dared she say it—committed. It had almost been a month since they had started seeing each other, which wasn’t long, but his affections only seemed to be growing, not lessening.

And she wanted to be loved. She wanted to be loved so badly. Didn’t people always say it was better to be loved? She couldn’t remember who exactly these people were, or where she had heard that, but she was sure it was a thing.

Stop thinking so much , she mentally scolded herself. She was getting exhausted at herself and all these emotions.

Things would work out, and she would get used to it. These doubts would go away, and she would be settled.

Lavinia arrived at the location of the match, then waited in the parking lot for Calahan. She could see the guys out on the field, warming up, and about fifteen minutes later, Calahan’s car parked beside hers.

He got out of his car, then walked around to the passenger seat, which was next to the driver’s seat of Lavinia’s car. She stepped out, and he smiled at her. “Hey,” he said, kissing her cheek. “Brought you something.”

He opened the door to the passenger seat and pulled out two coffees, as well as a bakery box, the goods all decorated with the Baby Dragon Cafe logo, a coffee cup with wings.

The other side of the bakery box was decorated with the words The Baby Dragon Bakery and a cupcake with wings, which was adorable.

“Ooh, yum,” she said, as he handed her a drink. She took a sip; it was a latte, one she hadn’t had before. “What is this?” she asked, trying to figure out the taste.

“S’mores latte,” he replied, shutting the door of his car. “It’s a chocolate mocha topped with roasted marshmallows and crushed graham crackers.”

“Oh! You know, usually I’m a mocha hater, but this is pretty good,” she said. They began walking over to the field.

“Why are you a mocha hater?” he asked, holding the bakery box with one hand and his drink with the other. “I thought you loved coffee.”

“No I do, but mochas just taste like chocolate milk to me,” she said. He laughed, and they made it to the field, where there were a few other friends and partners of the players on the sidelines, watching. The viewers were sitting on blankets on the grass or on folding outdoor chairs.

“So,” Calahan asked, turning to the field. “This is a league or something?”

“Yes,” Lavinia said, taking a sip of her mocha. “All these guys get together to make a team and practice and then meet up with other guys who have also gotten together to make a team and practice. Just for fun.”

“Who’s the ref?” Calahan asked. There was in fact a man in a referee outfit with a whistle hanging around his neck.

“I think they all pay for someone to come,” Lavinia said.

“Very official,” Calahan said, taking a sip of his coffee.

“Oh, very,” she agreed. Calahan met her gaze, and she laughed. This was obviously not the World Cup; it was just for fun. But Theo took it very seriously, and she knew that he loved whenever she came to watch him play.

Lavinia drew her attention away from Calahan to look for Theo, who was warming up with the other players on his team. They were all wearing black T-shirts and shorts, while the other team was wearing gray T-shirts and shorts.

She gave Theo a big smile and waved. His face lit up and he jogged toward her, smiling—until his gaze shifted to Calahan beside her. His brow knitted together, something dark coming over his expression.

Theo slowed his pace, walking over. “Hey,” he said, the word flat.

“Hiya!” she replied, going over to hug him with her coffee-free hand. He hugged her back with one light hand, his shoulders stiff. “Who are these guys?” Lavinia asked. “Have you played them before? Give me the rundown.”

Theo usually explained the other teams and their stats to her: which players were good, which were bad, how many games they had won, how many they had lost. Today, however, he was quieter than usual.

“They’re not bad,” Theo said. He looked over his shoulder. “I should probably get back.”

Her heart sank. “Oh. Okay.” She took a breath, forcing a smile. “Have fun!”

“Good luck,” Calahan added, and Theo jogged back onto the field.

Once the football match began, Lavinia’s attention was focused on the field. Calahan tried to chat with her, but she didn’t really respond; she was so invested in the match.

She loved watching Theo play. It was one of the few times he was wholly stress-free, similar to how he got when he was baking. He simply enjoyed himself without worrying or thinking too much.

Though something was off. Usually, Theo was pretty good at the sport, but today, he was all over the place. As the game continued, Lavinia wondered if he was off his game because Calahan was here.

Maybe it had been a bad idea to invite him.

A little while later, Lavinia finished her mocha, and she walked over to the garbage can to throw out the to-go cup. As she was walking back, she saw Theo had the ball on the field, and he was running.

She cheered. “Go Theo!”

He weaved between players, growing closer to where she was standing by the opposite team’s net, and Lavinia’s heart rate picked up with excitement as she watched him play. She whistled with her fingers, hooting as he got closer and closer.

He took the shot—and scored!

“YES!” she screamed, jumping up and down. “WOO!”

For the first time since the game began, Theo smiled. He ran straight to her, and before she knew it, he had scooped her into his arms, hugging her.

“Ew, stop,” she shrieked, “you’re so sweaty!”

He hugged her tighter, his sticky skin pressing against hers as he picked her up off the ground. He spun her around, and she screamed, laughing. Theo whooped.

“Okay, okay, get back to your match,” she said, hitting his shoulders. He set her down and ran back to the field, looking over his shoulder to flash a crooked grin her way. She felt like she was floating, and she skipped back over to Calahan.

“He scored!” Lavinia said, smiling wide. Calahan furrowed his brows ever so slightly.

“I saw,” Calahan said. He looked a bit surprised by how she’d reacted, and she calmed down a little bit, realizing how obnoxious that had probably been.

Calahan hadn’t seen her so hyper, especially since most of their dates took place at the university library.

It was true that she could be loud with Saphira at the cafe, but that had been back when Calahan didn’t know her that well, and then Lavinia had started working less at the cafe anyway, and so had Saph.

Lavinia felt a little self-conscious, then, and she fussed with her hair, letting it fall out from behind her ears to cover her warmed cheeks.

They continued to watch the game, and a little while later, Theo scored again.

He immediately looked over to see her reaction, but this time, Lavinia didn’t jump up and down or yell. She just clapped, smiling widely at him.

Theo frowned, and she knew he had noticed her toned-down reaction. She willed him not to say anything about it. She couldn’t be that obnoxious with everyone, anyway.

Theo’s gaze shifted from Lavinia to Calahan. His expression darkened, and she felt her stomach twist.

She looked over at Calahan, who was noticing the look on Theo’s face. Then, it was Calahan’s turn to frown.

Anxiety spiked through Lavinia. She felt stuck in between them.

Maybe it was good that the three of them hadn’t hung out together.

Now she just needed to get through this match in one piece.