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Matt's family was huge — and Maddie was glad for this, because it meant that neither of them would be alone for a single moment. Maddie actually only knew Matt’s oldest sister, Nell, and his parents.

His other three sisters welcomed her warmly, though, giving her as big a hug as their partners did until, finally, Maddie was introduced to all of their children.

All told, there were nine of them. Matt was the only one who wasn’t yet married and had no offspring, something he’d been reminded of several times in the first ten minutes.

Nevertheless, Matt was his easy-going self. He kept reminding them he wouldn’t invite any of them to his wedding if they kept it up.

Maddie wondered if he honestly wanted to get married one day or if he was just saying that.

“Matty, if you make it to the playoffs this year, you’ll get us tickets, right?

” his youngest sister, Cassidy, asked as she placed flower vases on the numerous beer tables in the garden.

Since she was a guest, Maddie was not allowed to help.

Meanwhile, Matt was forced to carry stones from one side of the terrace to the other, which were supposed to form a wall around the property at some point, but had not yet been put to use because “Who has the time to build their own wall? I told Jeff that right from the start, but the stubborn guy wouldn’t listen to me.

” At least, that was what Mrs. Payne said.

“Of course he’ll get us tickets,” Matt’s father piped in immediately. “And this time, we don’t want to go to that silly VIP lounge, Matthew. We want to be right in front of the action.”

Maddie suppressed a grin. Fans usually fought over the silly VIP lounge .

Matt made a face as he carried the stones.

He was dressed in a white shirt and suit trousers (“Put on something sensible, Matty!”).

He didn’t break a sweat. That was probably the only reason his mother had suggested it: She knew her son’s strength was boundless — and she obviously didn’t care about a few stains on his white shirt.

The main thing was that he made an effort.

“Ah, I don’t know, Dad. You’re bad luck. The last game you attended, we lost.”

“Bad luck?” Nell exclaimed, putting her hands on her hips. “You only lost the game because Dax Temple couldn’t tell his stick from the boards.”

Maddie grinned. She’d have to tell Dax that one.

Matt’s eyes met hers. Her grin was reflected on his face…

because he was thinking the same thing. She knew that.

And, for a moment, everything was normal again.

Everything was in harmony. Her heart was light simply because he was smiling and they had reconnected.

“Well, okay,” Matt replied slowly. “I’ll think about it again. But only if you all bring a sign that says, Matt, you’re the best of us and we’ll never make fun of you for not doing laundry again .”

“Oh,” said Jen, the second oldest, and shook her head. “Then we’ll have to rethink that. Mom doesn’t like it when we lie. And, Matty, you let enough women touch your boxers. No reason to make an employee at the dry cleaners one of them.”

The other sisters laughed loudly and Matt looked grim, but there was no sharpness in his expression.

It was so obvious his sisters adored him and that Matt loved them more than anything in return.

Maddie’s heart ached sweetly at the sight.

She couldn’t remember the last time she had been in the same room with Lucy and Rachel, or the last time they had talked about their lives, not just about their father.

It must have been before their mother died. So, years ago. They used to be…close. They had discussed everything together and shared their worries.

“Okay, you’ll get tickets,” Matt finally said with a sigh. “And, Mom, I’m starting to sweat.”

“Oh, then you better stop right now or else you’ll stink,” she replied promptly. “And you have dirt on your cheek. Why don’t you go freshen up. The guests will be arriving soon.”

“You made me haul rocks!”

“Yes, and I paid for you to have muscles like that, so I bought your labor,” she replied with a smile.

“Darn right,” her husband agreed seriously. “So, don’t complain.”

“Yeah, Matty, don’t complain,” Cassidy agreed.

“It’s so nice to be home,” he murmured with a sigh. But as he went in to wash, a smile tugged at the corners of his mouth.

Maddie bit her lip to keep from laughing. As the only boy among so many controlling women, he must have had a difficult childhood.

“Oh, we just made him stronger,” Nell immediately contradicted her, sinking down onto the bench next to her because, of course, Maddie had said it out loud.

“And he’s benefited greatly from having so many sisters!

We always gave him tips about women. He wouldn’t be called Charming if it weren’t for us. ”

Maddie smiled. “And he certainly wouldn’t be so down to earth.”

“Or that,” she agreed immediately, hooking arms with her. “I’m so happy to see you again, by the way. You’re proof that Matt has a private life and that not everything revolves around hockey. That wouldn’t be good. Everyone needs other things besides work, don’t you think?”

“Oh, definitely. I’ve had far too little other than work in recent years. Things are going better now, though.”

“Yeah, I saw the ESPN interview. Man, don’t tell anyone, but my brother knows what to say to make people feel like they’re in the right place, doesn’t he?”

Maddie laughed. “Yeah, he does.” In fact, he always made her feel that way. That is, when he wasn’t angry with her. “We can’t ever tell him that, though, or he’ll become unbearable. We used to accuse him of not being able to do anything other than hit other hockey players.”

“Hey, Matt doesn’t fight that often,” she stated quickly, defending him.

“No, I know. But it was a good way to annoy him.” Nell shrugged innocently. “But, let’s talk about something more interesting than my brother: How are you? You said business is going well. What about other areas of your life?”

She snorted…and that was all she said because the tone pretty much covered how the other areas of her life were going at the moment.

“That means bad,” Nell translated. Her brown eyes were so similar to Matt’s that Maddie sometimes felt uncomfortable looking her in the face. They…triggered things inside her. “Then you're in luck! I’m going to make your life better.”

“Really?” she asked skeptically.

“Yeah. I bet people who run dating agencies never get matched! Because everyone thinks they match all the good ones with themselves, but that’s bullshit, isn’t it? You keep all the good men for the other ladies.”

Maddie’s cheeks turned pink. Well, Matt had…er, tested her out. “Yeah,” she answered vaguely.

“Wonderful. Because I have the perfect guy! He runs a winery in San Diego, not that far from Los Angeles. He’s incredibly handsome.

If you like masculine men that have penises and stuff.

Not my cup of tea, but to each his own.” She grinned broadly.

“He makes good wine, always a plus, and he’s pretty intelligent. You need someone intelligent!”

Maddie blinked, perplexed, and opened her mouth, not knowing what to say.

“I mean you’re single, aren’t you?” Nell asked.

At that moment, Matt stepped back onto the porch and glanced down into the garden.

“Yes,” she murmured. “I am.”

“Good. Then I’ll tell him about you.” Nell wiggled her eyebrows. “We’ll see if I could have had a career as a matchmaker.”

Yes. Maddie guessed they would see.

All the guests started arriving at six. Mr. and Mrs. Payne had obviously not skimped on the invitations.

When the buffet opened at seven, it took a full half hour for everyone to get their food.

That was okay, though, because it meant Maddie could avoid the torture of being squeezed next to Matt on one of the beer benches for a little longer.

It would have been far too conspicuous not to sit next to him…

but at least Matt wasn’t trying to start arguing with her again.

Instead, he was unbearably polite, as if they had only met that evening, and spoke exclusively with Nell’s wife Harriet, who was sitting directly across from them.

That was okay. Not ideal or normal, but better than arguing with her.

After a while, Maddie was no longer certain about that, though, because an argument would, perhaps—just perhaps—have been less grueling than this tragic spectacle of a damaged friendship.

A bright clinking sound caught her attention and she looked up.

Matt’s father had stood, tapped a spoon against his glass, and was now looking around.

“Have a fantastic evening, everyone,” he said and the guests burst into applause.

“Yes, I hear you. We still know how to throw a party.” He waved his hand and smiled broadly.

Just like Matt: Heartfelt, friendly, and incredibly warm.

“I can’t tell you how happy I am to see so many of you here.

Getting my wonderful family together is difficult enough, but then also my friends…

Well, at least none of you others are hockey players with impossible schedules. ”

Some laughed and Matt sighed, but the smile didn’t fall from his face. He knew that no one in his family meant any harm.

“No, just kidding.” Mr. Payne cleared his throat.

“I couldn’t be prouder of my son or my daughters.

It’s strange when your children grow up, no longer needing help and suddenly, they’re offering you theirs all the time…

and at first you have to pretend and say ‘no’ because you don’t need it, but in the end, you’re grateful for everything and say yes and amen. ”

Maddie swallowed and kneaded her fingers in her lap.

“Um, Jeff, we both know every morning your back sounds like a stone wall crumbling. Let our young offspring break theirs,” Sandra added.

Everyone laughed again, their children the loudest.

“I need my back! So you can keep making jokes about my job,” Matt interjected.