God, he was an asshole. He should feel ashamed about being such a jerk.

Instead, he was grinning.

It was probably because he spent most of his days being friendly, even helpful. Since taking over the store from Josh last September, Max had been on his best behavior. Customers didn’t come back if you made fun of them, so he didn’t get many chances to be a snarky bastard.

Max didn’t need to worry about Emma returning, or about making her a happy customer.

He’d barely finished that thought before another popped into his mind, of Emma on his bed, her cheeks flushed, skin glowing with sweat, the very picture of a satisfied customer. Max stumbled over an invisible tree root as he made his way toward the lodge, where the teams were gathering for orientation.

Get it together. Mental images like that were almost unavoidable when he saw Emma, but that didn’t mean his cock got to make decisions for him. He was supposed to have grown out of that once he became a business owner, Scout leader, and all-around valuable member of the community. His dick could live with disappointment for a week.

Not like she’d go for you anyway.

Max grimaced. According to Ruby, Emma’s last three conquests had been an MLB player, an up-and-coming director, and the son of a Greek shipping tycoon—and even those only lasted a month or two. Max didn’t think he was insecure, but he was a realist. Emma might flirt with the small-town guy who worked in retail, but she’d never take him seriously.

With more force than necessary, Max pushed open the front door to the lodge to discover pure chaos waiting for him. In the middle of it stood a familiar dark-haired woman, because of course she’d be there. Where there was chaos, Holly was rarely far behind.

His little sister was surrounded by a dozen backpacks, their contents strewn across the floor in what could charitably be called an organizational system created by surrealists—and she was wearing a camp shirt.

Max strode to her. “No.”

Holly broke into an easy grin that had more than a hint of mischief. Like any younger sibling, Holly had figured out early that being an occasional brat was an effective survival skill. One master’s degree in psychology later, and she still knew how to be a brat. Now she was just a self-aware one.

“No?” she repeated, blinking the blue eyes that matched his.

“Didn’t we agree you weren’t coming to camp?”

“You agreed I couldn’t come to the end-of-summer bash because you’re a prude who doesn’t want to see your baby sister get drunk and hook up. No one said anything about Scout wars.”

“I’m not a prude,” he grumbled. Holly was a grown woman who probably did that stuff anyway, but she was right, he didn’t want to see it.

At least there was an upside to her attending camp this particular week—a chance to give in to his genetic need to compete with his sister. “Let me get this straight. You paid for a weeklong opportunity to lose to my team?”

“Lose? You’re feeling optimistic.”

“I am the local Scout leader. That gives us an advantage.”

“You think six months makes you an expert?”

“Heather thought so. It’s why she hired me.”

“Really? Here I thought it was because the other guy canceled at the last minute and you lived nearby.” Her smile was pure saccharine.

Holly wasn’t wrong. The camp owner had approached him a couple of weeks ago, and it had sounded too fun to pass up. Max was proud to co-own the hardware store with his best friend, but it was still a job, and he was craving something different. It had been easy enough to hire a local to work the register for a few days.

“Do you know who your leader is?” Max dug the piece of paper he’d grabbed from Jessica out of his back pocket. In keeping with Scout tradition, the teams had been named after local animals. He led the Bears, and the women’s team was the Wolves.

Max scanned the list. “You’re not here.”

His eyes lingered on Emma’s name. He was still surprised she’d chosen to stay.

“That’s because I didn’t pay to be here. They’re paying me.”

Sure enough, there was her name at the top of the page. Scout leader. “You’re kidding.”

“Remember those years you and Josh were too cool to hang out with your little sister? Remember me wearing my cadet uniform once a week?”

Max folded the pages and stuck them back in his pocket. “I remember the cookies.”

“I was a Scout from kindergarten through ninth grade. So what I’m saying is, get ready to be humiliated.”

“You’re a Wolf.”

“Leader of the pack.”

He’d already been determined to win, but this took it to another level. If Holly beat him, he’d be hearing about it for the next ten years.

And while smack talk was a time-honored family tradition, Max knew Holly was a serious threat. The overexcited teenager she’d been had developed into a dangerously competent woman, one he’d be a fool to underestimate. Max had already altered his scheduled morning activity based on the Bears’ list of names, but it might be worth reevaluating his plans for the rest of the week as well.

While they’d been talking, more people had entered the lodge and were gathering under the banners for the Bears and Wolves. Time to get to work.

Before he could step away, Holly waved at someone over his shoulder. “Emma!”

His sister smiled at the woman who joined them, oblivious to Max’s distress. True to her word, she now wore a T-shirt with the camp logo and a pair of black drawstring shorts. “Sorry if you get this all the time, but I wanted to say how much I love your feed. I’m so glad you’re in my group.”

Max boggled at his sister. “You haven’t worn makeup since your junior prom.”

Holly looked at him like he was simple. “I can’t paint either, but I like going to museums. You don’t need to do something to appreciate it. Emma’s an artist.”

“With makeup.” He meant to clarify, rather than disparage, but Emma’s straightened spine told him that wasn’t how she took it.

“You’re welcome to play with my new palette to see how easy it is,” she offered. “I have a metallic charcoal shadow that would do remarkable things for your eyes.”

Holly glanced between them, her eyes widening in that expression he knew far too well. It was the pure glee of a sister certain her brother was about to get in trouble.

A sharp whistle filled the air, and everyone quieted enough to listen to Heather Tully, the camp owner. “Welcome, Scouts, to a week of fun, sun, and a perfectly polite, civilized Battle of the Sexes.”

The whoops that followed her announcement called into question the truth of that statement. Heather’s grin said she already knew that. “By now, everyone should be in your groups. Meet your Scout leader, say hi to your teammates, and prepare yourself. First competition starts in…” she checked her watch, “…one hour.”

The group applauded and cheered, eager and bright-eyed. The energy was contagious. Max grinned, the competitive edge building. “See you on the battlefield,” he said.

* * *

It really wasn’t fair how hot he was. Max was a bastard who refused to take her seriously, but he was also a bastard who looked really good from this angle, with his dark T-shirt clinging to perfectly sculpted back muscles that tapered to a tight waist and lower to…

Emma shook her head and refocused her attention on Holly, the woman who would lead her to victory over the enemy.

“Let’s go over the rules,” Holly said.

The words seemed to be directed at Emma. She’d already been marked the clueless newcomer. She couldn’t say the assessment was wrong.

“There are two teams of twelve people. Us.” Holly circled her arm, indicating the group gathered around her. “And them.” Her lip curled in mock disgust, and the women hissed in response. “Exactly. Each day, both groups will perform challenges, one in the morning and one in the afternoon. We’ll alternate who goes first. Each contest is loosely based on a merit badge. I’m drawing from the Girl Scouts, and the Bears are using the Boy Scout badges. So we all have to do challenges using the other side’s supposed strengths. There are prizes for each contest as well as shiny souvenir trophies for the overall winners.”

A short redhead with remarkable hazel eyes raised her hand. “When do we know what the contests will be? The camp schedule doesn’t say what they are.”

Holly squinted at the woman’s name tag. “Sorry, Caroline. That’s secret. You’ll find out right before each challenge.”

A woman with gorgeous eyebrows and a conspiratorial smile piped up. “But if you happened to accidentally leave your notes behind in one of our cabins…?”

Holly gave the aspiring cheater an almost approving look. “I respect your competitive spirit, Danielle. But what you may not know is that’s my brother over there.” Everyone craned their necks to get a better look at Max. Emma was pretty sure one woman licked her lips. “Max is one of the good guys. You know the kind. Anything worth doing is worth doing honestly. If we cheat, I’ll be hearing that our victory was invalid at every Thanksgiving for the rest of my life. I’m not that desperate, especially when I know we can win on our own—because he is my brother. I know how his mind works better than anyone alive. I did a case study on him for a senior project, just to torment him. Ladies, that group over there might have larger muscles than we do, but we’ve got the mental edge. What do you say? Have we got this?”

Danielle’s smile dipped into evil. “Abso-fucking-lutely.”

Emma started to wonder if Danielle might want a camp friend—and not only because Emma wanted to get a photo of the woman’s perfect brows. She’d look great in the Burnt Honey brow fix paired with the Butterscotch shadow.

Emma had insisted on naming her neutral colors after food instead of the more typical earth-based names. There were already a dozen eye shadows named after clay, and she wanted more appetizing options. So many makeup companies focused primarily on visual marketing, but there were four other senses she could appeal to. After years of carefully sculpting her public image, Emma loved the challenge of working behind the scenes. Her contract stipulated that she still appear in the ad campaigns, but she’d insisted on being involved in all product development and marketing decisions. She hadn’t cultivated her brand so carefully to watch someone else be reckless with it.

“So what’s first?” Emma asked, watching the Bears rather than Holly. The group’s carefree enthusiasm was evolving into something more determined. Max was likely giving them the same we’ve got this speech Holly was delivering.

“Max won the coin toss, so the guys have the first challenge today.” Holly smiled at her brother. They clearly gave each other shit, but that kind of affection couldn’t be feigned. For brief moment, Emma allowed herself to feel that small, hollow part of herself that had grown up in a quiet, lonely house.

Emma shook it off, then surprised herself by speaking. “The guys are going to try to power through it, aren’t they?”

Holly laughed. “Figured that out already, did you? My brother will take what he considers the fastest path to victory. Expect a lot of strength exercises, especially ones that require more upper body.”

Max broke away from his group and stepped onto a small platform. He didn’t need a megaphone to capture their attention. As soon as he looked ready to speak, the group quieted down.

“The first challenge is…” he paused for added drama, “…the kayaking badge.”

Everyone cheered, though she noticed the guys cheered a little louder.

“What did I tell you?” Holly muttered.

“You have something better planned for this afternoon, right?” Danielle asked.

Holly nodded. “We can worry about that later. For now, let’s try not to get our asses kicked too thoroughly, okay?”