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Amanda, holding out my hand. “Hi, Jag Jensen. Nice meeting you.”
    She smiled widely and, man, was she gorgeous, her blond hair and bright blue eyes the total opposite of her husband’s dark hair and brown eyes. I could see why Bax had worked so hard to get her back. “No handshakes. We’re big huggers here, Jag.” She wrapped her free arm around my neck, pulling me down to her and squeezed then pulled back. “I’m Amanda. Gordon’s told me all about you.”
    I looked over at Baxter who’d come in the kitchen holding another of their k ids who looked to be around five. “Gordon?” I said with a smirk.
    “Fudge you, dude,” he said with a laugh.
    “Fudge?” I asked cracking up.
    “Little ears,” he explained with an eye roll, jerking his head toward the kid he was carrying.
    I nodded in understanding. I hadn’t been around little kids too much except for my sister’s two every now and then, so I knew I’d really have to watch what came out of my mouth.
    Baxter kissed his son he was holding on the side of his head before putting him down. “Cole, go get Josh and tell him we have company.”
    “’Kay, Daddy!” and off he ran.
    Bax went to Amanda and put his arm around her shoulders, leaning in and giving her a kiss. “How are you, babe?”
    “I’ll be better when you fix the toilet in Josh’s bathroom. I think Spencer flushed a G.I. Joe down it.”
    He’d leaned in to give his daughter a kiss when he pulled back asking, “Again? Godda…ng it.” He caught himself from cussing, which made me laugh again, then he looked at me, explaining, “That’s the second time this week. Kid thinks G.I. Joe’s a SEAL, I guess.”
    I laughed even harder at that. I couldn’t imagine having all this chaos around me, especially after coming home from a game, but I could tell Bax just ate it up. Spencer came back in with a Dodgers t-shirt. “Mommy! I need something to wite wif!”
    Amanda went to a desk and pulled out a marker, handing it to him, but not before she had him say “Please” and “Thank you.”
    “Here you go, Jag!” he said, holding the shirt and marker out to me.
    I saw that most of the other guys on the team had already signed it, so I did the same then handed it back to him as I ruffled his hair again. “There you go, buddy.”
    “Thanks! Yippee!” he shouted and was off and running again, but not before handing the pen back to his mother and yelling out a “Thank you!” to her.
    Just then a boy who was the spitting image of Baxter came in. He immediately walked over to his dad and Bax wrapped his arm around his son’s shoulders. “Josh, this is Jag Jensen. Jag, this is our nine year old, Josh.”
    “Hey, Josh,” I said, starting to hold out my hand, but remembered what Amanda had said about hugging, so I clapped him on the shoulder instead.
    “Hi, Jag,” he said shyly, looking down at the floor. He then looked up at me and said, “I want to be a pitcher when I grow up.”
    I gave a smirk to Bax who rolled his eyes again. “All right! Someone in this family who actually knows the game!” I held my hand out and knocked knuckles with Josh.
    “Yeah, whatever. But I guess I’d rather his arm goes before his knees,” Baxter said with a chuckle. “Babe, let me take her,” he then told Amanda, taking the little girl from her. “Hey, Chloe Badoey.” He nuzzled her neck and she squealed with glee, clapping his face with her hands.
    “Come on in, Jag. We were just about to have dinner,” Amanda said. “Would you like a beer?”
    “Uh, sure,” I answered. I followed her into the kitchen and she handed me two beers from the fridge for Baxter and me.
    “Let’s go o utside,” he said, carrying Chloe with him as he walked to the patio doors. Spencer and Cole ran up behind us then around us to beat us out the door.
    “Josh? Why don’t you call Kevin and you two can play video games for a bit. See if Sarah will let him stay for dinner,” I heard Amanda yell to her oldest son