Part 13 (1/2)

When a huge, bright yellow mug was placed on the table in front of her, Maggie could have laughed herself silly. It had to hold over forty ounces. On the outside the words STAY BACK AND REMAIN SILENT UNTIL THE CONTENTS HAVE BEEN DRAINED were printed in bold red letters.

”Oh, you guys are just too funny.” She shook her head as they laughed, as if they had just played the best joke ever. Lifting the monstrous mug carefully, she took a sip, closed her eyes, and sighed. ”Perfect. Now, let's eat before this delicious concoction Sean made gets cold.”

Breakfast was excellent. They didn't rush through it. She picked up a piece of bacon, offering a bite to Max when she saw him eyeing it. His, of course, had disappeared. Strong white teeth gripped it and gave it a yank. She was left with a piece between her thumb and forefinger. She stared at him as he chewed away on the delicious treat, chuckling as he did so.

Once they were finished they went into the family room to read the newspaper together. She looked around the room as she snuggled in between Sean and Ethan on the overstuffed couch. There was a lot of her grandfather's style in the room. The colorful gla.s.s windows were set into the wall so that the morning sun came through them. The weathered blue door was on the ceiling, above the stairs which led to nowhere. The mosaic waterfall had been taken from the old bathroom and was now against the wall near the fireplace. She liked looking at the things her grandfather had made with such whimsy and love. She hoped that she could bring the same kind of love to her own family's lives.

”We should go play in the snow later,” Ethan said as he looked out at the new snow through the French doors.

Maggie s.h.i.+vered. ”You go play in it. I'll watch from here.”

”This is our honeymoon. We're staying in for hot, crazy, wild s.e.x,” Sean told him.

”And breaks,” Max added. ”We need lots of breaks. But none of it includes additional time freezing my a.s.s off in snow.”

Ethan pouted, but went back to reading the paper without further comment. Two hours later Maggie was wearing her best winter clothing and was being towed outside by Ethan. They played for about a half hour, until her face felt as if it was about to freeze.

Hot chocolate was waiting for her. Max took her winter gear and Sean wrapped her in a blanket. Then she was settled in front of the fire with the hot chocolate and her e-book. Yeah, she had the right guys. They were perfect.

They took their places around her and turned on the TV. Football. Maggie shook her head. Okay, they weren't perfect. Still, she couldn't envision a life without them.

The phone rang and Sean answered it. A moment later he was handing it to her.

”h.e.l.lo?”

”Hi, Mama. This is Emily.”