1 GAME NIGHT

I probably should have expected this, but watching Orion meticulously arrange Monopoly money by denomination was still somehow both hilarious and oddly attractive. He had that little wrinkle between his eyebrows—the one that appeared whenever he was concentrating too hard on something that absolutely didn't require that level of focus.

"I still can't believe you own Monopoly," I said, trying not to smile too hard. "Actually, scratch that. I can totally believe you own Monopoly. I bet you have spreadsheets tracking your win-loss ratio."

"Don't be ridiculous," Orion said, but his ears turned that adorable shade of pink that told me I'd hit close to home. "I don’t need to write them down to keep track. It’s all in my head."

We were all crammed into Orion's perfectly ordered apartment for our first official family game night—Remmy's idea of "bonding time." Colton and Jessica took up one side of the coffee table, while Eleanor and Davenport looked cozy together on the loveseat. Remmy sprawled next to me on the floor, both of us watching my perfectionist fiancé arrange everything like he was preparing for a military inspection.

"The better question," Colton said, "is why we let the real estate mogul pick Monopoly. This feels rigged."

I caught Remmy's eye and we both grinned. "Everything's rigged when you play with Orion," she said. "Remember when he made an actual contract for our Candyland tournament when we were kids?"

"That was different," Orion protested, straightening a stack of bills that looked perfectly straight already. "You kept trying to sneak extra turns."

"I was six!"

I was about to defend my future sister-in-law when Goblin chose that moment to execute what I can only assume was a carefully planned attack on Orion's perfect money piles. My beloved Catman watched from his new favorite perch on Orion's bookshelf, his one eye gleaming with what I recognized as approval. A moment later, he jumped unexpectedly, flying spread-eagle through the air to land on the table and finish the job Goblin began.

Orion’s perfectly ordered bills and game pieces went flying to every corner of the table, and many pattered to the floor.

Goblin and Catman joined forces to aggressively swat the loose pieces under furniture and into other distant places—probably never to be found again.

Orion was oddly motionless as it all happened. Meanwhile, everybody else was trying very hard not to laugh.

Finally, Orion broke the silence with a few words. “Your cat is pure chaos. Just like you,” he said, lifting his eyes to mine with the faintest twinkle of amusement.

"Goblin loves having him around, though,” I protested. “They’re a perfect match, just like their owners." I couldn't help the warmth that spread through my chest when he smiled at that.

Eleanor leaned over to Davenport with an exaggerated whisper that was clearly meant for all of us to hear: "Young love is so entertaining, isn't it?"

"Indeed," Davenport agreed, patting her hand in a way that made Eleanor beam. Watching them rediscover their teenage romance in their golden years gave me hope for... well, everything.

"So Monopoly is off the table,” Jessica said.

“Literally,” Colton added with a chuckle.

“Darn. I was really looking forward to that game,” Remmy said, voice tinged with sarcasm.

“Nobody needs to worry. I made sure to have a few backups of each game on hand for circumstances just like this. I’ve got another set.”

Everyone groaned. I think I groaned loudest.

“Okay,” Orion said once he was done clearing the table and setting up the brand new Monopoly set to his satisfaction again. “Before we begin, we need to establish some rules.”

There was another round of groans from everyone in the room, but not without a few smiles.

"Rule one," he continued, completely unfazed, "no property trading without proper documentation of terms."

"Oh my God," I laughed, already knowing where this was going. "You actually made forms, didn't you?"

When he pulled out a stack of papers, I couldn't help but kiss his cheek. "Never change."

Two hours later, the apartment was a battlefield of broken alliances and bankruptcy. Remmy and Colton had gone down in flames, while Jessica revealed a cutthroat business sense that honestly scared me a little. Eleanor and Davenport played as a team, giggling like teenagers whenever they collected rent.

"You're suspiciously good at this," Orion said as I collected rent for my hotel on Boardwalk.

"What can I say? I learned from the best." I grinned. "Also, I may have been practicing on my phone app."

"That's my girl," he said proudly.

"Gross," Remmy said.

That's when our cats decided to join forces in what I can only describe as a coordinated strike against capitalism. Goblin led the charge while Catman provided air support from above, both of them claiming the board as their new domain.

"No!" Orion actually dove with both arms out in an attempt to save the board, but it was too late. Game pieces went flying as our cats asserted their dominance.

"I think that's game over," Colton said as we watched Goblin bat the race car piece under the couch.

"Thank God," Jessica muttered.

"We'll need a rematch," Orion said with adorable seriousness. "I'll draft new rules about pet interference."

"Or," I suggested, "we could play something less intense next time. Like Operation."

"Absolutely not," Jessica said. "I deal with enough of that at work."

"Pictionary?" Remmy suggested.

"Only if you want to see Orion try to draw feelings," Colton laughed.

"I can draw feelings," Orion protested.

"Honey," I patted his hand, "you once made a pie chart to explain why you love me."

"You told me it was sweet,” he protested. “And pie charts are ubiquitous for a reason. They’re effective.”

“Super effective,” I agreed, smiling as I cupped his cheek.

As everyone debated next game night's activity, I leaned against Orion's shoulder, watching our cats claim joint custody of the Monopoly board. This was what happiness felt like—this weird, wonderful chaos we'd created together.

"This is nice," I said softly.

From their new throne of scattered property cards, Goblin and Catman watched us with what might have been affection.

But knowing our cats? Definitely judgment.