Total pages in book: 74
Estimated words: 73963 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 370(@200wpm)___ 296(@250wpm)___ 247(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 73963 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 370(@200wpm)___ 296(@250wpm)___ 247(@300wpm)
I laugh and feel the heat between my legs at the same time. Max has a habit of turning me on at the oddest moments.
It’s been one week since our time alone at my house. We’ve settled back into a steady rhythm of dinners together, Max bringing me coffee or lunch, and helping Alex with his homework.
It’s completely normal, and it feels amazing.
Max turns off the highway about twelve miles out of town and onto the driveway of the Lazy K Ranch. We keep going past a big, old farmhouse where Jillian and her husband, Zack, live with their four children.
Across the pasture, where dozens of black cows are grazing, I can see the smaller house that Zack and Josh’s parents moved into several years ago. And, finally, about another mile in, we reach Josh and Cara’s home.
This is a true family ranch, with all hands on deck. Zack returned home about five years ago after retiring from the military. His son, Seth, was already here, living with Josh.
In the past five years, the family has grown like crazy. Cara and Josh have two young kids, both under four years old.
Seth is a junior in high school now, and a mirror image of his father and uncle, who are identical twins.
Zack and Jillian also have three-year-old twins, and another baby on the way any day now.
“Looks like Ty and Lauren are here, too,” I say with excitement. “I haven’t seen her since she had the new baby.”
“There are gonna be babies here?” Alex grumbles.
“Max, can you please give me a moment with my son?”
Max raises a brow but nods as he shuts off the car.
“You bet. Just come inside when you’re ready.”
“Thanks.” Max leaves, and I unbuckle my belt, then turn in my seat so I can look at my son. “What’s going on, Alex?”
“Nothing.”
“Stop playing with your zipper and look at me.” He complies. “We can’t always take Rocky with us.”
“But he likes the snow.”
“Listen to me. It’s not polite to bring a dog to someone else’s home, Alex. Rocky can stay home sometimes.”
“He’ll be sad.”
“And then he’ll be happy when you get home,” I remind him. “Alex, Rocky doesn’t run the show. He’s a dog, and we love him, but he’s still a dog, and sometimes, he doesn’t get to go with us.”
Alex sighs dramatically, something he’s started doing recently. The teen years are going to be a blast, I just know it.
“Fine.”
“Excuse me?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Don’t you want to sled?”
“I do,” he says reluctantly. “But I want to ski more.”
“We’ve talked about this,” I remind him, putting an end to the conversation. “You know how I feel about skiing.”
“Yes, ma’am,” he grumbles again.
“There will be lots of kids here today, and Max will sled with you, too. I bet Noah and Gray want to sled also.”
“Okay,” he says.
“Will you please shake the attitude?”
He frowns, but I leave it at that and jump out of the car. I open his door and hold my hand out for his.
“Come on. I bet there’re snacks and goodies in there, and we don’t want Max to eat them all.”
That catches his interest, and he jumps out of the car, then waits patiently as we knock on the door.
Max answers it and searches my face for answers. “Everything okay?”
“Yep.”
The King household is a riot of activity. Kids and adults alike, running and laughing, tackling each other. Jillian, even more pregnant than when I saw her at yoga last week, is sitting on the couch, letting Cara’s daughter listen with her little ear pressed against the baby bump.
Ty and Lauren are in the kitchen with Jeff King, the patriarch of this family, showing off their littlest.
I’ll never remember all of the names, or even who belongs to whom. I just know that it feels amazing to be in the hustle and bustle of this big family.
I always wanted a big family. I have an older brother, Jesse, who I never see. I haven’t heard from him in over a year, and we were never especially close to begin with.
Being in the middle of a family like this fills my cup.
“Mom, I think I’m the oldest kid here,” Alex whispers up to me, looking mortified.
“Seth is older than you,” Max says, pointing to the tall, lanky boy currently playing a video game with his dad.
But Alex is right. He’s at an awkward age, with Seth being way older, and the others being way younger than him.
“Hey, Alex,” Noah says with a smile. “I want to go sledding. How about you?”
“I guess.” My son glances around nervously, and I suddenly wish I’d thought to invite Pierce to come along so Alex would have someone his own age with him.
“I want to go, too,” Max says. “I’ll go out and get the gear out of the car.”
“Same,” Seth says, tossing his controller onto the coffee table. “Alex, you can ride on my four-wheeler if you want.”