“You’re such an ass.”
Xavier chuckled. “Well, maybe you’re not such a sissy. That was a grade A-takedown you gave Templeton. But how did he get one over on you?” Xavier nodded at Mack’s face.
“Sucker punch with two beefcakes to back him up.” Mack explained what had happened at the gym.
Xavier nodded, asked him questions. Then Mack asked some back.
Before he knew it, he was talking and laughing with his brother again.
He couldn’t wait to tell Cass.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Sunday afternoon, Cass laughed with a few of the women present, thoroughly impressed by the little girl Emily’s knowledge of planets.
“How old are you, Emily?” she asked.
The party at Reggie’s was raging. Mack’s best friends, Brad, Tex, and Reggie, had brought their A games. Their dates were enjoyable and amusing, and Reggie’s almost-stepdaughter was a true joy. Adorable and intelligent, with a serious attitude and tons of questions about tasers and weapons.
“I’m almost seven.” Emily smiled, holding a fuzzy brown bear with an ax strapped to its back. A scarred pit bull puppy sat at her side and watched her with adoring eyes.
“And too young to be tasering people,” Mack said as he lifted Emily in his arms and held her upside down as he tickled her.
She giggled and tried to zap him with her fingers while yelling, “Zap zap,” until Mack set her down.
Then she growled and warned, “You’d better be nice, or Reggie-Dad will decimate you with contusions.”
Cass and Mack stared after her as she raced back toward the cookies.
Mack shook his head. “Don’t ask. Yes, she’s a little genius. And yes, she’s more than a little scary.”
“I might have to look up the word ‘decimate’ later,” she said, grinning.
“Naked Scrabble? Yes.” He kissed her.
Next to them, two womenawed.
“Look, Avery,” Tex’s gorgeous girlfriend said. “We didn’t even need to set him up with our friends.” Bree looked at Cass over the rim of her glass. “And I have model girlfriends, woman, so treat him right.”
Avery, the pretty reporter in glasses who put Cass in mind of Clark Kent, nodded. “And I know all the aliens, monsters, and weirdos in this city. I can hook him up with the Queen of the Dead in a snap.” She snapped her fingers and laughed. “Or Mummy Dearest. She’ll be in the next issue ofThe Needle. Don’t miss it.”
Personally, Cass loved the wacky free paper, though she had yet to see the latest Seattle Psycho, a canine/feline mix who screeched during the night. Supposedly if you heard it, you’d lose a tooth the next day.
Now hundreds of young children claimed to have seen the dastardly dog/cat. Brad’s girlfriend was a little zany but warm-hearted. She made Cass’s parents laugh since they tuned into her segment every Friday. She couldn’t wait to tell her parents she’d met Avery Dearborn.
As she glanced around, she saw nothing but joy and laughter. “You know, your friends will really like Jed and Shannon. I have a feeling we’re opening up a whole new friend group.”
Mack blinked. “What do you mean ‘will really like’? That implies they will all meet at some point.”
She’d cleared it with Reggie via Tex yesterday. For some reason, Jed had had Tex’s number on hand.The two must have really bonded at that bar a few weeks ago, was all she could think.
“Well, sweetcakes, I wanted to celebrate tonight with you and me all alone. Together.” She leaned closer and whispered, “Without clothes.”
“Ah.” He cleared his throat and blew out a breath. “Keep it clean. There are kids present. And I don’t mean Brad.”
Hearing his name, Brad looked toward them and frowned.
Cass swallowed a laugh. “Right. Well, I thought we could kill two birds with one stone.”
