Note: This is part of a series:
"MOM! UNCLE BEN IS HERE!"
Ben found himself with his arms full of teenage girls as his nieces greeted him at the Brownstone door. "Hey." He took a step back and held the girls at arm's length. "Holly." He smiled at the twin with the short hair which was now dyed flaming red. "Jess." Holly's twin sister's hair was a slightly more subdued green. "Nice hair."
"Thanks!" Holly chirped. "We figured we'd get into the holiday spirit."
"And give your grandfather a heart attack at the same time?" Ben laughed. "Guys, I want you to meet my husband, Michael, and this is our son, Hunter."
"Hi!" Jess waved. "It's nice to meet you. Come on in." She tugged on her uncle's sleeve. "Mom's been going all cleaning Nazi on us. Dad says that if she makes him polish the coffee table one more time, they're getting divorced."
Ben slid his free arm around Michael's shoulders. "Magpie! Where are you?" He called out. "Ohhhh, Magpie!"
The kitchen door swung open and a tiny woman with honey brown hair and green eyes behind a pair of glasses rushed out, wiping her hands on a dishtowel which was tucked into her apron. "Ben!" Hurrying over she wrapped both her arms around Ben's waist. "Let me look at you." She took a step back and looked Ben over from head to toe, over the rims of her glasses.
"Well?" Ben spread out his arms. "Do I pass inspection?"
"You'll do." Maggie nodded, then turned her attention to Michael. "Michael. It is so good to finally meet you." When Michael held out his hand, Maggie ignored it in favor of a hug. "Please. No formalities. We're family." She cast her critical eye over Michael. "And you look like you're starving."
Ben burst out laughing. "See Michael? It's just like being at home. Michael's mother is always trying to feed him too."
"Hmmph." Maggie smiled at Hunter. "And you're Hunter of course. It's so good to meet you."
Unaccustomed to so much attention, Hunter actually was quiet. "It's nice to meet you too..."
"Oh you can call me Maggie or Aunt Maggie. Nobody calls me Margaret." She turned to Jessica and Holly. "Girls? Why don't you show Hunter up to his room and let him get unpacked?"
Jess grabbed Hunter's suitcase and Holly grabbed his other bag. "You're staying in my room. Try to ignore all the pink. I sort of went through a 'phase' when I was twelve. Mom hasn't let me live it down ever since," Holly informed Hunter.
"We thought, later, after dinner we'd take you out and sort of show you around the neighborhood. There's this club that lets you in even if you're under eighteen. You have to wear a stupid ID bracelet, but the music is cool. What kind of music do you like?" Jess and Holly kept up a steady stream of chatter all the way up the stairs.
Ben shook his head watching them go. "I see the girls are still the quiet, shy types?"
"Can't imagine where they get it from myself." A deep baritone voice commented from the doorway. "Hello, Ben. Good to see you."
Ben turned around and hugged his brother-in-law. Dan Vaughn was stocky and built like the ex-college linebacker that he was. Most people looking at Dan would think bouncer at a biker bar before interpreter at the U.N. But beneath his rough looking exterior was a wickedly clever and unflinchingly honest man. Ben would have hated to see his Maggie wind up with anyone less than she deserved. "Dan. What do you say we get together a game while I'm around?"
"God no! I told you both last time, you're not allowed to play basketball together!" Maggie broke in with a beseeching look at Michael. "Please, tell me you don't play ball."
"Me? I don't even watch it." Michael shook his head.
"Thank God. Maybe you can talk some sense into them then. The last time our husbands played basketball my husband wound up in traction for two weeks after throwing out his back and your husband was on crutches for how long, Benjamin?" Maggie placed her hands on her hips and glared up at Ben.
"Nine days. Maybe ten."
"No basketball. We'd like to have an injury free holiday. Now come on. I'll show you two to your room so you can get cleaned up then I want to hear all about Toronto."
Alone in the guestroom, Ben pulled Michael down onto the bed.
"Ben!"
"So what do you think?" Ben ignored Michael's protest and toed off his shoes, making himself comfortable.
"I think I'm glad we're here." Michael followed Ben's lead and kicked off his shoes as well.
"Maggie seems glad we came."
"I was talking about you." Michael touched the corners of Ben's mouth with his fingertips. "You haven't stopped grinning from ear to ear since we walked in the door." He rested his head on Ben's chest. "Maggie's wonderful. Just one question, though?"
"Yeah?"
"She's shorter than I am. Which one of you is the freak?"
Ben snorted. "Both of us actually. Maggie's short for the rest of the family and I'm tall. Gabe and Tess are more like Mom and Dad."
"So no basketball huh?"
"That's what she thinks. If Dan and I disappear for a couple of hours..."
"Don't you think she might notice when you come back on crutches and her husband winds up in traction?"
"It was the one game! One! Back when they first got engaged. I sort of didn't like Dan very much and he wasn't all that fond of his fiancée's smart ass brother. He fouled me. I fouled him back." Ben shook his head. "Let's just say it escalated from there."
"Wild man."
Ben laughed and kissed Michael. "Not really. After I grew out of my fat, awkward stage I really grew out of it. All of a sudden, I was taller, faster, stronger than most of the kids I went to school with. I admit I went through sort of a bad ass phase."
"I do love a bad ass." Michael batted his eyelashes up at Ben. "Promise to play rough with me sometime?"
"Hmm...on the court or off?" Ben pulled Michael so that he was on top.
"Up to you. Of course, you'll have to talk me through it. I'm terrible at group sports."
"Then we'll just have to play one on one." Ben murmured. "First, and this is crucial, is ball handling." Ben watched as Michael struggled and failed to keep a straight face at such obvious innuendo. Then he broke out laughing and Ben couldn't help but join in. Wrapping his arms around Michael, he kissed him deeply. "God, I'm glad you're here with me."
"Speaking of where we are, you know there's no way you're actually going to get laid while your family's just down the hall, right?" Michael asked conversationally.
"Then tonight. They're heavy sleepers." Ben protested as Michael wriggled out of his arms and began going through their bags to find a change of clothes.
"Dream on."
"Michael!"
"Don't you 'Michael' me. You'd better take cold showers for the next few days."
Ben came off the bed, grabbed Michael around the waist and picked him up, heading for the adjoining bathroom. "Only if you're with me. Just think. If we have sex in the bathtub, you can really hold your breath!"