Max bent down and picked her up, thinking he could get used to carrying her around. He loved the feel of her in his arms. He was beginning to think he wasn’t going to let her go. Never had he thought of happily ever after with one woman, but the more time he spent with Cassie, the more the thought appealed to him. He couldn’t imagine letting her go.
“It looks as if you’ve been swept off your feet, Cassie,” Amy said, surprising them both as they walked into the inviting den.
“Looking like a Knight in Shining Armor, Max,” Lucas said with a chuckle. Cassie felt her cheeks warm.
“I hurt my foot,” Cassie said with embarrassment. She was sure the situation looked a lot worse than what it was. Max had just carried her from upstairs, and she was wearing one of his old shirts and way oversized sweat pants that were barely hanging on to her hips.
“Oh, darling, there’s no need to hide our love,” Max said with a wink, which had her face flaming even more.
“Max, quit teasing her,” Amy came to her rescue. Max set her on the couch and immediately pulled up a footstool and propped her foot.
“What are you out doing?” Max asked.
“We were stopping by to see if you wanted to join us for dinner, but it looks as if you’re a bit busy at the moment,” Lucas answered.
“Cassie came out to the Habitat site and was in the wrong place at the wrong time. A piece of wood fell from the roof and landed on her foot. Luckily, it’s not broke, but she can’t put any pressure on it for at least a few days,” Max told them.
“I’m sorry, Cassie. As soon as you get better, we’ll have to get pedicures,” Amy said, sitting next to her and giving her a quick hug.
“Thanks, Amy. I would love that,” Cassie told her.
“Dad wanted us to stop by and make sure you’re coming to Mom’s party next weekend,” Lucas said.
“Of course, I wouldn’t miss my aunt’s birthday. I know Joseph would hunt me down for sure,” Max said with laughter.
“Are you going to come, Cassie. You’ll love it, I promise. Before you start shaking your head, realize the house is always over-crowded for these parties. My father-in-law doesn’t consider it a success unless half of Seattle is there to worship his wife,” Amy said with enthusiasm. How could Cassie say no to that?
“I suppose I could stop by, but I’d feel out of place,” Cassie hedged. She could take the opportunity to speak with more of the Andersons about Max, though, and justify being there by having it be a working thing. As if Max could read her mind, he poked at her.
“The house will be full of people who know all kinds of things about me. You’ll be able to write an entire book by the time the evening is over,” he told her with his signature wink.
“Ah, you know just how to convince me,” she said with a smile. She had enough information to write an article about him unlike anything else that had ever been written, but she couldn’t pass up the opportunity. She was now getting in far deeper than she should, but she felt a bit trapped at the moment.
“Good, that’s settled, so why don’t we change our plans, order pizza, and play Uno,” Amy said. Cassie was thrilled with the thought. Her heart couldn’t take any more alone time with Max, plus she enjoyed Amy’s company.
“Sounds great to me. I’m going to make some calls and see who else can come over,” Lucas said, walking from the room.
Within an hour the pizza was delivered, and several of Max’s cousins and siblings arrived. They turned the den into game central, setting up a large table and pulling out several board games. After a few rounds of Uno, Max pulled out Pictionary, and then laughter reigned as everyone fought to win.
Cassie had to smile as she looked around at the close family. She was in a room of very alpha males, who jabbed one another, and tried their hardest to win, even if it was only a board game. The women all laughed at their antics. It was all done in good humor, though, with a lot of ribbing, without anyone getting upset.
“Time for Charades,” Max called out, which had the group of people groaning. If they’d been competitive before, it would be nothing compared to how they’d be playing charades.
“Girls against guys,” Emily called, making the men groan.
“Okay, but no cheating,” Mark said as he quickly bent down and kissed his wife.
“We wouldn’t even think about it,” Jennifer defended with a wicked smile.
Soon, the real competition was on, and Cassie found herself laughing so hard, her stomach was in pain. The women were ahead by three points and the men were huddled together as if it were a game of football. They broke apart and the deep concentration on their faces caused the women to go off in another round of laughter.
Max stood at the front of the room and looked at his card. Amy started the clock. He held up his hand with one finger.
“One word,” Lucas shouted, as if he’d just solved a complex puzzle. Max nodded yes, then looked around in a bit of panic. Cassie could see he was having a hard time trying to act his card out. Finally he dropped onto his hands and knees, which caused her to start laughing again. He started moving around the floor slowly, taking huge, exaggerated steps.
“Cow, horse, rhino,” Mark shouted. Max turned his head and glared at his cousin. He moved his head back and forth, and the girls couldn’t help but laugh even harder at the ridiculous picture he made on the floor. Then, he stuck his arm in front of his face and started moving it up and down. Cassie figured it out and quickly whispered it to her team, but had to wait for the timer to run out.
“You suck, Max,” Trenton called out, earning his brother a glare. The buzzer went off, and Cassie called out.
“Elephant.” The girls cheered when Max glared at his partners, before nodding his head at the women.
“Great job, Cassie. We won!” Jessica shouted as she jumped from the couch and did a little dance. Alex quickly grabbed her up in his arms and gave her a long kiss, which quickly became heated.
“Don’t mind us,” Max said with a laugh. The two of them broke apart, but it was obvious they were done with the games and ready to be alone together.
“Thanks for putting this all together, Max. I haven’t had so much fun in a while,” Jessica told him before first giving him a hug, then Cassie. Everyone went around the room, saying their goodbyes and promising to make the game night a monthly thing.