It was time to celebrate.

Emma had let Monica and Sadie know that Jake and Brandon were both gone and, assuring them that Jake wouldn’t be setting foot on the property again.

After everyone had left for the night, Emma had big plans to do nothing more than soak in a bubble bath with a glass of Merlot but she couldn’t quite shake her restlessness. But unlike poor Buster, she had a newfound grip on her freedom and she was going to make the most of it, even if it meant braving the people from town who weren’t exactly fans right now. She was tired of holing up on the property. She had nothing to hide. Between that realization and shedding the millstone Jake had been around her neck, Emma felt like nothing was going to bring her down tonight.

Emma even had a little skip in her step as she jogged up the stairs to the front door of Know Place, Hidden Falls’ solitary sports bar. Tonight she was going to have a beer or two, play a game of pool and show the people in this town that this was her home, just as much as theirs. She hadn’t felt this carefree since coming back to town and it felt good.

The door was tugged open from inside as she reached for it. “Nope, not tonight, turn around.”

Standing in front of her, as solid a barrier as any brick wall, was Ben in cargo pants and a navy t-shirt with a Hidden Falls Fire Department emblem on it. His broad shoulders blocked some of the noise and nearly all of the light from inside. Her body broke out in goose bumps. She might not be able to see his face, but she knew it was him.

“Excuse me?” She tried to take a step forward, expecting him to back up. Instead, he moved toward her, pulling the door shut behind him and forcing her to take a step backward. “Kindly move.”

“You’re not going in there, Emma.”

“Oh, yes I am.” She planted her fists on her hips. Just who did he think he was? “You don’t get to—”

“Trust me, I’m doing you a favor.” He frowned and glanced backward at the closed door and the commotion coming from inside, growing louder by the moment. “Turn around and get back in your truck.”

“Who the hell do you think you—Hey!” she yelled as she was suddenly flipped upside down over his shoulder and lifted from the ground. How freaking tall was he anyway? She felt like she was twenty feet off the ground. Emma wrapped her arms around his waist to keep from falling. “Put me down!”

“Not until you agree to go home.”

The concrete blurred with every long stride he took across the parking lot, his shoulder jabbing into her diaphragm, his amazing ass just inches away from her face. If she wasn’t so distracted with possibility of tumbling headfirst to the ground, she might appreciate the view more.

“McQuaid, you’d better put me down this instant,” she ordered, doing her best to force authority into her voice when her palms were itching to cup his rounded bottom.

“Or what?” She could hear it in his voice. He didn’t think she’d do anything.

“Last time I’m asking,” Emma warned.

As exhilarating as it was frightening, Emma couldn’t help but be slightly turned on by his caveman approach. Ben made her feel like she was stepping off a cliff and free-falling, but she trusted him to catch her, even if she couldn’t explain why. She kicked her feet slightly, letting them connect with his abs, but not hard enough to cause any pain, but with enough pressure to make him realize that she wasn’t going to be manhandled, not even if his manhandling was actually gentle.

When he didn’t react, she kicked her foot against his stomach again and his arm tightened around her legs behind her knees, locking her legs in place. He slapped one hand against her butt, making it sting slightly and causing her to yelp with surprise. It might have been unexpected, but it certainly wasn’t painful or unpleasant. Her body instantly responded to his hand on her rear, growing warm and tingly. Unfortunately, her mind reacted the way she’d learned in self-defense class. Clasping her hands, she brought them down against his lower back.

Ben grunted and dropped her onto her feet under a light in the parking lot. Trying to regain her bearings, she shook her head and took a step back, bumping her hip against the vehicle beside her. “Ow! Damn it!”

“Shit, Emma.” He bent over, reaching one hand to his lower back, massaging where she’d caught him in the kidney.

“I told you to put me down,” she pointed out. “I’m not some fire hose for you to throw around.”

“Damn, you make it hard to be nice to you.” He looked up and the light bathed his face. One cheek had a monstrous goose egg already forming near a cut beside his eye, his lower lip was split and swollen and she could see several bruises already forming.

“What happened?” All thoughts of him trying to force her to leave against her will fled as two new ones took their place—he was hurt and she’d just added to his injuries.

She reached her fingers to the split at the corner of his lower lip, spinning to locate her truck only to realize they were already beside it. Lifting the back hatch of the cover over the bed, Emma flipped the tailgate down. “Here, sit.”

Digging for her keys in her pocket, she unlocked the vehicle and pulled the first aid kit from under her backseat, setting it beside him at the back of the truck. “Talk.”

“About what?” He pressed his thumb against his bloody lip and eyed the front of the bar again. “The fact that we should leave?”

She arched a brow. “I’m not going anywhere until you tell me what happened and how you ended up looking like . . . well, this.” She waved a hand at his battered face.

The front door of the bar opened and his gaze immediately shot toward it. He sighed when no one exited. “Jake’s inside.”

He acted like that explained everything. It didn’t tell her anything at all. She took a step back and crossed her arms, waiting for him to explain.

“You fired him?”

“Not that it’s any of your business but, yes.”

She opened a bottle of water from the case she kept in the back of her truck and dug some sterile gauze pads from her gear, tearing open the packaging and wetting the cotton. She moved closer to him, looking at the various cuts on his face to determine which was in most dire need of treatment. Dabbing the wet pad at the cut on his cheek, she cleaned away the coagulating blood.

“He’s not happy about it.”

She lifted her brows. “Would you expect him to be? I just fired him after five years working with my father.”

His fingers closed over her wrist, making her stomach tumble and her pulse throb. “Why?”

She met his intense gaze with one of her own. “For the same reason I asked you to leave. It’s time I surround myself with people who trust in me, and people whom I can trust.”

“You don’t trust me?” She could hear the disenchantment in his voice as she slid her wrist from his gentle grip.

His dark gaze continued to bore into hers. “I’m not sure,” she answered honestly.

Ben snapped his attention back to the front of the bar where some sort of commotion had begun at the door, breaking the connection between them. He hopped off the back of her truck, lifting the tailgate and slamming her vet box closed. “You’re going to have trust me now. Get in and drive.”

“What?” A ping hit the side of her truck and she looked up in time to see Jake squatting to pick up another of the small river rocks that decorated the flower beds near the front of the bar.

“You bitch, I told you’d regret—”

Ben shoved her toward the open driver’s side door and into the truck, following her inside and slamming the door closed. “Keys?”

Without questioning him, she handed them over, just as another rock bounced off the car parked beside her. Jake stumbled down the steps, obviously drunk, with two guys groping for him, trying to reach for his arms which, luckily for her, kept him from getting off a well-aimed shot. Brandon stood behind his brother watching the situation unfold. It seemed like every time she was anywhere near Ben, trouble wasn’t far behind.

“Damn, looks like I didn’t hit him as hard as I thought I did.” Ben drove out of town and pulled her truck onto the main highway.

“You hit him?”

He shot her an incredulous look. “The guy just chucked rocks at you and you’re going to give me a hard time for knocking his ass out?”

“No. I’m mad you didn’t give me the opportunity to hit him myself.”

“I mean, the least you could have done was hold him and let me take a shot.”

Emma never failed to surprise him. She actually sounded disappointed.

He’d realized from the start that Emma had a temper but he’d never thought she’d be such a firecracker. He’d expected her to be outraged that he’d gotten into a fight, to be upset that he’d sunk to using brute force, but it had never crossed his mind that she’d be jealous that she hadn’t had a chance to throw a punch at the guy.

“Please tell me you’re joking.”

“Uh, no, and if there’s a dent in my truck, I’m driving back and putting a dent in him.”

“Emma, you can’t go around slugging guys.”

“I can if they dent my truck.” She arched a brow at him. “You seem to be forgetting that you hit him, Boy Scout. What makes you think it’s okay for you to do it defending my honor but I can’t?”

“I did that to keep him from coming out to find you.”

“Yeah, well, you should have hit him harder.” She glanced toward the window. “I’m so sick of the double standard you men have. Why is it okay for you but not me?”

“Because he’d hit you back. That guy isn’t exactly a gentleman.”

She snorted with an unladylike laugh as she turned back to him. “And you, McQuaid, are too much a gentleman for your own good.”

Ben couldn’t help but recall the last time she’d accused him of being “gentlemanly,” straddling him, just before they’d made love. He felt himself instantly grow hard at the memory and bit back a groan.

“Look, I have wrestled alligators, been charged twice by a brown bear and been bitten by a tiger. Do you really think Jake could do anything that would actually scare me?”

Ben slowly turned toward her. “You’re kidding, right?”

“It comes with the job when you’re working with exotic animals. There are just some inherent dangers you have to accept.”

Ben stared at her in awe.

“What?”

“You’re a pretty tough chick,” he admitted. She shrugged a shoulder then appeared sorry she’d mentioned it. “Must make it hard for a guy to impress you when you have more balls then they do.”

She gave him a wary look. “For all your bravado, men generally have extremely sensitive egos, I have yet to meet a guy okay with dating a woman who is stronger, tougher or more courageous. I’m not going to girl it up just so a guy can feel macho.”

Is that what they were doing? Dating?

“Sounds like you’re speaking from experience.” She rolled her eyes at him. “A two-year relationship down the tubes. Said he didn’t want to bury me in pieces.”

She fell silent and Ben knew she wouldn’t elaborate, but it explained why she was still alone. She’d been rejected, because of her job, by a man who felt weakened by her strength. He didn’t push her for more details and turned off the main highway, down the road leading to her place.

“You’re taking me home?” Surprise and what sounded like disappointment colored her voice.

“Yes. Is that a problem?”

“It is when I was hoping to escape for the night. I’ve been cooped up on this ranch for months.”

Ben could recognize a hint when he heard one but he didn’t have much choice. Try as he might to convince himself differently, Ben knew that if given the choice between Emma in his bed or sleeping alone, he’d choose her without thinking twice. This woman drew him like a moth. He knew the danger but simply couldn’t resist the flame.

“I’ll tell you what,” she began, her voice dangerously seductive as her hand reached over to lay on his forearm. “We can head back to your place and I promise to doctor up the rest of your wounds.” She met his gaze with her siren smile. “And anything else that might ail you.”

She reached up, her fingers careful as she tipped his face to one side to inspect a cut on his jaw. A sizzle of heat exploded in his chest. He wanted her, in a bad way, but he also knew it was a horrible idea. They were different, too different.

He reached for her hand, turning his head to press a kiss to her palm. Her eyes lit up like jewels. “As great as that idea sounds, it’s Game Night at my place and all my brothers are there starting their all-night poker game.”

“Great.” She spun in the seat. “I’m in.”

“What do you mean, ‘you’re in’?”

“I mean, I was going to the bar tonight to relax, have fun and blow off some steam. What’s the difference if I have fun at the bar or somewhere else?”

Ben looked over at her. He couldn’t blame her for wanting to have some time away from the recent troubles at the animal sanctuary. Between the constant, backbreaking work, the backlash from the articles and dealing with Jake, a night out might be exactly what she needed to come back with fresh eyes and a new perspective. He couldn’t imagine living at the fire station 24/7 or the stress it could potentially cause. Everyone deserved a night off.

“You might be sorry. They’re sort of a rowdy bunch, but I guess you’re in luck. Only four of them will be there tonight.”

“As long as there’s beer and food, I can take whatever they throw at me.”

Ben had no doubt she could.

Emma hadn’t been sure what to expect when they pulled up in front of the old bunkhouse. Ben hadn’t mentioned that he still lived at home, now that she was here, there was no doubt that was his situation. Well, technically his parents lived in the house across the driveway, but he was still living on their property, just across a gravel road.

She bit back a smile when she realized he was worried about her judging him for it. Why would she? She been planning on moving back as well, a woman in her late twenties returning to stay with her father. Nothing said success that way that did. Instead, she was living on his ranch which, thanks to his will, now belonged to Sierra Tracks and her, since he’d never gotten around to naming anyone else in his trust.

Laughter spilled out from the open windows as someone yelled.

“That would be Andrew.” Ben rolled his eyes. “Sounds like he’s hot again tonight. He’s killed us the past three weeks.”

She shot him a confident grin. Emma knew she should probably keep her mouth shut since she and Lady Luck hadn’t exactly been on good speaking terms lately but she couldn’t resist. “That means he’ll have plenty for me to take from him tonight.”

“You think you’re that good, huh?”

“The park I worked at had some animals doing a show in Vegas for two weeks. I went along and picked up a few tricks while I was there.” She wagged a finger at him. “But don’t you dare say anything.”

“Your secret is safe with me.” Ben laughed. “It’ll be fun to watch you take him down.”

Opening the door for her, Ben led her into the living room where furniture was shoved aside to make room for a game table and several folding chairs. Food was scattered across the bar that separated the kitchen and living room and the spicy scent of pepperoni and grease made her stomach growl. As they made their way into the main room, five heads swiveled their direction and the laughter immediately gave way to curiosity.

“You guys up for two more?” Ben grabbed two more chairs and slid them closer to the table.

“I thought you were having drinks with Angie?”

Emma recognized Andrew, even without his uniform, and tried not to acknowledge the stab of jealousy at the mention of Ben out with another woman.

“She had a ride home.” Ben glared at him. “Emma, you remember my brother, Andrew. This is Grant, and the twins, Jackson and Jefferson.”

“I’m Maddie, and so excited that I’m not the only girl here tonight.” She rose and shook Emma’s hand. “We need a little less testosterone in this room.”

“My sister,” Ben clarified when she looked his direction. “This is Emma. She’s taken over for Conrad at Sierra Tracks.”

“Jefferson,” one of the twins said, holding out his hand. “We were all really sorry to hear about your father, Emma. He was a good guy,” one of the twins said.

Emma immediately liked him. “Thank you. I really appreciate that.”

“Are you two playing?” Maddie asked. “Did you at least warn her about Andrew’s cheating?” She shot her brother a dirty look.

“I don’t cheat. I’m a cop; I uphold the law,” he insisted.

“And I raise cattle. Doesn’t mean I won’t barbecue one of those suckers. You always were the best liar of us all growing up,” Jackson said with a laugh.

“Not to mention the biggest troublemaker,” Grant pointed out. “How many times did I nearly have to bail you out of jail in high school?”

Andrew waved them off. “Kid stuff. I make up for it by following all the rules now.”

“Hmm.” Maddie gave a snort and rolled her eyes. “Forgive me for not believing you, liar.”

“I can’t help it if you guys suck at poker.”

“You really sure you want to subject yourself to this tonight?” Ben asked, laying a hand at her lower back and directing her toward the kitchen. He pulled open the refrigerator and she could see what looked like several cases of beer bottles but without labels. “This is mild compared to what it will look like after they get a few more of Andrew’s stash in them. I doubt this is what you had in mind when you headed into town to escape.”

He passed her a bottle and she stared at it, curious about the contents. “Home brew?”

“I know it seems a little weird but he’s actually pretty good at it. Just don’t tell him I said so. He’s already way too cocky.” Ben chuckled as he slid pizza onto two plates, passing her one before popping the top from the bottles and tossing them into the trash. “Make yourself at home, eat whatever you want. Just stack the bottles on the sink. Andrew washes and reuses them.”

She took a long draw from the bottle, surprised at the citrus-pine flavor that burst on her tongue just before the bitter hops kicked in.

“He makes a good IPA.”

Ben’s brows shot up in surprise.

“What? A girl can’t know her beer? Don’t even get me started on Scotch.” She tipped the bottle toward him.

“I see your father raised you right.”

“Damn straight.”