Free Charitable Hearts by EJ McCay Page A

the entire time we were together. The only reason she married me was for the money and the face time on the red carpet. We dated, married and divorced in less a year.”
    Maggie took a deep breath. “I can’t even imagine. I’m so sorry.”
    “You know what? It doesn’t excuse my behavior. I’ve been a complete jerk for the last few years and I’ve used Amelia and Rachel as an excuse. If Amelia were alive she’d have beaten me to a bloody pulp. Actually, she’d never have let me marry Rachel.”
    “Really?”
    “She hated Rachel. Flat out told Rachel to her face she didn’t like her. My sister was not a pushover and she never hid how she felt. I should have known. Amelia was always right about people. As much as she hated Rachel, it would have been a cage match between her and Sonja.”
    Maggie chuckled. “I think I would have liked your sister.”
    “She would have loved you.” Levi picked up his burger and took a bite. “Oh,” he said, making a face. “I let it get cold. It’s okay, but I don’t care for cold mushrooms.” He dropped it back on the plate.
    “Want some of my fries? They taste pretty good.”
    Levi reached over and snagged a couple of fries. “Look, I wondered if you wanted to come hang out with me and Gary tonight after we eat?” he asked between bites. “We’re going to play video games, eat absurd amounts of junk food and just chill in the basement. I know it sounds like a blast. You can probably barely contain your excitement.”
    Maggie chewed her lip and smiled. “Gary will be there?”
    “Yes.”
    “Okay, but I’ve never played video games.”
    “I think Gary needs a foosball rematch.”
    “It won’t matter.”
    His face lit up and he laughed. “Oh, big talk!”
    She shrugged and took a sip of her drink. “Hey, why hide my foosball greatness?”
    “How about we get this stuff to go?”
    “Sure.”
    “Being completely honest, the only reason I brought you here was to tell you about Amelia and Rachel and to apologize for the evil twin you met earlier. I promise he is locked away in a dungeon and will never be seen or heard from again.”
    “Does he have an iron mask on? Cause an evil twin has to have an iron mask.”
    Levi laughed and flashed a lopsided grin. “Yeah, definitely.”

Sixteen
    Gary met Maggie at the bottom of the stairs with a Twizzler hanging out his mouth. He was ready for game night with his headset on and controller in hand. It didn’t stop him from picking her up at the waist and spinning her which she was starting to realize was their thing. He sat her down and she looked at him. “Holy cow! You shaved?”
    He shrugged and rolled his eyes. “Yeah, I was tired of it. Plus, it was really itchy.” Gary scratched his chin as if just the thought of the beard made him itch.
    “You look like you’re sixteen with it gone.”
    “Sixteen? Aw, man.”
    “A cute sixteen.”
    “A cute sixteen? Okay, I can be sixteen as long as I’m cute.” Gary bumped her with his shoulder. “So, you ready to kill some zombies or maybe take out some bad guys in the dessert? Oh, maybe aliens or something?”
    “Um, I don’t have any idea. Maybe something kinda easy since I’ve never really played video games before. You know, really, if you guys want to play and I’ll just kinda hang out, it’s okay.”
    Gary tapped his chin. “What? Are you kidding? We don’t invite people over and make them watch the mayhem. You’re either in or not.”
    “We could always forgo the video games and do some foosball.” Maggie wiggled her eyebrows and grinned.
    “My ego can’t handle a rematch just yet.”
    Maggie held up her hands in defeat. “Okay, but you guys may regret it.”
    “Doubt it,” Levi said and sat down on the sofa.
    The coffee table was littered with all sorts of snacks. From candy to cakes to chips. Sitting next to the gaming system was a refrigerator, which she’d missed the last time she was in the basement. She suspected it was stocked with