The Simple Life

Memorial Day Shenanigans

It wasn't every day that you find yourself in this kind of situation. Unfortunately, with the man I married and his family, it really wasn't that hard to believe.

Memorial Day Weekend was spent in Boston. Of course it was. After three years of marriage, a year and a half of engagement, three years of dating, and two and a half years of being friends, I think being married to the most family-man of men was a dead give-a-way. But, it's okay. As far as his family, I loved every single one of them. They were a close-knit family, which is something my family - and I have three older brothers, two older sisters, and one baby brother - could learn from.

I even had a great relationship with his mother which was a relief as I had definitely seen and heard too many mother in-law and daughter in-law horror stories to last a lifetime.

At this point in time, Kevin, the latest child to reach the age of five, was hugging me around my white pants with colored chalk all over him. It wasn't that I minded - of course I wouldn't, he was my nephew and he could do no wrong - it was just that he then reached up and pulled on my rather expensive shirt - something Charlie, my eldest brother, had purchased for me from Vera Wang even though it wasn't my style, at all - and my brother was there to witness it. He seemed even more upset about this catastrophe than I was about skipping on my morning coffee and then having to pull a double at the little vintage café I had opened up about four years previously (I'm a baker and adding drinks to the menu became my thing).

Uncaring of how I looked now that I was completely covered in chalk (although, if I'm being honest, that's exactly why I wore that stupid shirt in the first place, the pants were just a bonus), I picked Kevin up as I laughed along with the rest of the gang. The loudest laugh came from my husband.

"Oi, sexy, what happened?"

I stuck my tongue out at him playfully before smiling cheekily, "Your nephew got it in his head to give me a hug."

As Chris walked over to me as the rest of the gang got back to barbequing and chit-chatting, he beamed and nodded his head, "That's my boy."

A suspicion snuck up on me as I looked between my husband's proud and knowing look and Kevin's younger yet still prideful and mischievous smile. When he reached me, I smacked him upside the head, "Christopher Robert Evans, how dare you bring a child into this."

Chris chuckled as he rubbed the back of his head and shrugged his shoulders, "He wanted to help his favorite auntie and I couldn't let him down."

I glared at him for all of five seconds before bursting into fits of laughter, which Chris and Kevin both joined in. It was hard to stay mad at Chris when I know he was only trying to help me and I really couldn't fault Kevin as he didn't understand what it meant that he just ruined an entire outfit.

I kissed Kevin on the forehead before setting him down, "Why don't you go play with your cousins, okay?" He nodded his head and quickly ran off in the direction of the younger group still drawing on the cement patio.

"You look very bright, Lexi."

I beamed up at Chris and winked, "Well, I did have a little help."

He bent over to give me a lingering kiss, pulling me close so that I had to bend backwards to keep our mouths locked together. When he pulled away, Chris simply smiled a soft smile as he stared into my eyes. As a last little bout of intimacy, Chris bent back down and bumped his nose with mine and gave my lips a quick peck.

"I love you, Alexis Justine Evans."

The gentle look he was giving me caused a light blush to form on my cheeks. But, before he could comment, I buried my face in his chest mumbling that I loved him as well as he chuckled. I pulled back and squeezed his left butt cheek as I said, "Come on, Captain America; let's get back to the festivities."