“Please talk to him.” Kate reached for Michael’s forearm. “You’re like brothers.”

Michael lowered the bottle of beer from his lips and eyed Jake from across the room. “He could’ve gotten you killed back in Charlotte, Kate.”

She turned into him, pressing her body against his as she reached for his beer and set it on the table next to them. “This is our engagement party. He came all the way here. Please. For me.” She looked up at him and purposefully bit her lip.

“You’re not playing fair.” His hand swooped down her back and cupped her ass, squeezing it a little.

“Well, I learned how to play dirty from the best.” She chuckled.

“Hey, I’ve been nothing but a good boy since I met you.” He lifted a brow and leaned forward, softly nipping at her lip. Even that small gesture had her legs tightening. He’d been out of town for work all week, and then they had to come straight to the party. They hadn’t had time to make love since he’d been home.

Seven days without feeling Michael inside of her? Unbearable.

But he was trying to distract her with sex right now, so she had to resist.

“Don’t make me threaten you,” she said softly, narrowing her eyes. “I bought this tiny little red number I was going to wear for you tonight. But maybe—”

“What happened to my fiancée? I go out of town for one week, and when I come back, there’s a—”

“Watch yourself,” she teased, “or you’ll be going another week without getting any.”

She could feel his erection harden against her body, and she tried to hold back the soft mewl that threatened to escape her lips. She wanted him so damn badly . . . but she wanted him and his best friend to make up, even more.

“Fine,” he grumbled, “I’ll talk to him. But I want you naked in my bed in less than an hour.”

“What about the red—”

He leaned forward and pressed his mouth to her ear, the sensation sending chills through her body. “Screw the lingerie—I just want you.”

Something inside her body squeezed as her eyes flashed, and she had to check a wild impulse to drag him right out of the pub and take him home.

“Hey, two can play at the game,” he said, giving her a quick pinch on the ass.

She folded her arms and blew out an exaggerated breath as he walked toward Jake, who was standing on the other side of the bar alongside a few of Michael’s other buddies: Connor and another guy she’d met earlier tonight—Ben Logan was his name. Ben was also a former Marine, and he now ran a private security company out in Vegas. Michael was already making plans to visit him . . . and to get in a lot of trouble in Sin City, she was sure. Of course, he’d told her that they’d be spending most of their time in bed, but who was she to complain?

“You got them to talk? It’s a bloody miracle.”

Kate glanced over her shoulder at the man to her right, and then she looked back at Michael as he scratched the back of his head and began talking to Jake. “It’s been months, so I thought our engagement party was the perfect time. Thank you again, Aiden, for throwing the party. I’m used to being the event planner, but you and Julia really surprised us. Your pub is great. Love the Irish charm.”

In fact, Kate and Michael had been two buttons away from skipping the red lingerie when his sister had come barging in their front door, demanding they come with her to the pub. When they had arrived, they found fifty of their friends and family there.

Kate glanced over at her dad and stepmom as they chatted with some of Kate’s old college friends. She still couldn’t quite wrap her head around what her dad had done, and maybe she never would. But she had forgiven him, even if she worried that she might never quite trust him again.

“When’s the wedding going to be? Might I recommend Ireland for a setting?”

She’d gotten to know Aiden in the last few months they’d lived in Boston, and she was beginning to feel a little sad that Michael’s best friends were all unattached. They were fun and always kind to her, but it would be nice to have a few girlfriends around. When they had fiancées and wives, then they could all go on couples’ trips together.

There was the planner in her. She hadn’t quite managed to kill that compulsion, but maybe she shouldn’t. Being a planner could be useful . . . just as long as she allowed herself to be flexible when the situation called for it.

“I’ve never been to Ireland, but I’ve heard great things about it.” She released a deep breath when she saw Michael patting Jake on the back. Then the two of them began to head toward Kate and Aiden.

“I think they’re mates again,” Aiden said.

“Thank God.”

“Congrats again, Kate,” Jake said, and Michael narrowed his eyes a little at her before angling his head toward the door. The man had his priorities. Fortunately, she shared them.

But she had friends and family here, and they couldn’t ditch their own party, could they?

“How was London last month? As boring as I remember?” Aiden brought his beer to his lips and took a swig.

“Actually, it wasn’t anything like I planned,” Jake answered, his brows pulling together. Kate felt a surge of curiosity, but she didn’t want to pry.

“You met someone, eh?” Aiden asked.

Michael was standing next to Kate now, and he slid his hand up the back of her silk blouse. At the feeling of his warm fingers on her skin, her breasts tightened with need.

“It’s complicated,” Jake grumbled.

“Complicated women can surprise you,” Michael said, and Kate wasn’t sure if she wanted to elbow him in the ribs or kiss him.

“Yeah, well, we’ll see . . .” Jake smiled and raised his drink. “In any case, cheers to you guys. May you have years of wedded bliss and lots of babies and yada yada yada.”

Kate chuckled. “Maybe you shouldn’t give a speech at the wedding,” she joked.

Before anyone could respond, Kate noticed Connor, Julia, and Ben coming up behind Jake.

“I’m thinking this party needs a little livening up,” Connor said, giving a mischievous shrug. “No—don’t have him play that techno shit of yours,” Jake called as Connor turned toward the DJ’s table.

“It’s better than that twangy country shit,” Connor shot back.

Julia folded her arms and shook her head. “Boys.”

When the music blasted, Michael tilted his head back and laughed. He shook his head back and forth, spreading his fingers over his belly.

“What? What am I missing?”

Then she recognized the tune—“Thunderstruck,” by AC/DC. As Jake, Connor, Aiden, and Ben came up alongside Michael, their heads began to rock forward and back like guitar players at a metal concert.

Michael was still smiling.

“We used to listen to this in the desert,” Michael said into Kate’s ear. “Got us pumped up before missions.”

Kate grinned. She loved to hear about his good memories. She hoped they would one day help him shed some of the pain. And seeing him here with his friends, happy, was the best engagement gift she could imagine.

“Come on, man. Belt those lyrics,” Ben said to Aiden, a smile spreading across his face.

“You sing?” Kate laughed as she began to groove to the music.

Aiden threw his hands in front of him and began playing an air guitar, and Kate clapped her hands with glee as these five badass Marines joked and played around together like boys. She grabbed her phone from her purse and snapped a photo of them, capturing the moment, loving every moment of her life as they formed new memories together.