AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“You’re a dedicated jackass.”
Lexi couldn’t stop laughing as she listened to them and took bites of the delicious pancakes. Some things never changed, she thought, and the Abbott siblings’ comical bickering was exactly as she remembered it.
Caden and Savvy came running in with Daisy in hot pursuit.
“What have we here?” Lincoln asked as he came into the dining room.
“Gramps! Dad got me adog named Daisy, and she’s the cutest dogever, isn’t she?”
Linc got down on a knee to greet the newest member of the family. “She is the cutest ever. What a wonderful daddy you have, Caden.”
“I know! He’s the best.”
“Happy birthday, Caden,” Lexi said.
He barely glanced at her. “Thanks.”
While most of the others stopped what they were doing to greet the dog, Lexi turned to Dani. “What can I do to help?”
“We need to finish the goody bags and blow up the balloons.”
“Put me to work.”
ChapterTen
“To love and be loved is to feel
the sun from both sides.”—David Viscott
The party was utter madness and the most fun Lexi had had in years. There were kids everywhere—Caden and Savvy’s many cousins, as well as their classmates, the kids’ parents and other siblings. She got to see all of Max’s siblings and to meet their spouses and children as Dani ran the party with military precision, moving the kids from snacks to games to presents to cake to goody bags.
“She’s good at this,” Cameron said when she sat next to Lexi in the dining room with baby Murphy in her arms.
“So good,” Lexi said.
Mia sat on the other side of Lexi. “Look at us only children over here taking shelter.”
“Dani is an only, too, but look at her go,” Cameron said. “I want to hire her to supervise my kids’ parties.”
“I bet she’d love that,” Mia said.
“Remind me again who you’re married to,” Lexi said to Mia.
“Wade. Those are our kids, Carlee and Corbin.” Mia pointed out two kids with golden-brown hair and eyes like their daddy, who stood watch over them.
“They’re beautiful.”
“We like them. Most of the time.”
Cameron hooted with laughter. “Ain’t that the truth?”
Dani led the kids and adults outside to play for the final half hour of the party.
Lexi surveyed the wreckage left behind. “Wow.” Wrapping and tissue paper were strewn about, new toys in boxes were stacked in two piles—one for each of the guests of honor—and cake was ground into the carpet.
Mia laughed. “This is fairly typical for an Abbott/Coleman kids’ party.”
“Molly is a saint for letting them take over her house,” Lexi said.
