“No fucking way,” Andrew muttered, throwing his cards on the table as Emma gathered the pot and stacked it in front of her with a victorious smile. “What the hell did you even bring her here for, Ben?”

“Vengeance,” Maddie supplied.

Andrew pursed his lips, trying not to look pissed but Ben knew better. He was pouting like a baby after losing six hands straight to Emma. “I saw her hand. How the hell did you pull that off?”

“I thought you said you didn’t cheat, Officer.”

Guffaws and cat calls sounded from the table as Emma called Andrew out on his slipup.

“At least now we know how he does it.” Ben laughed as he rose. “Anyone want another round?”

“Nope, I’m heading home.” Grant rose from the table. “I promised Bethany I wouldn’t be too late and I’m taking James out fishing in the morning so she can get some wedding planning accomplished.”

“Soon you’ll be a shackled man.” Jackson laughed as he rocked back in the chair, dangerously close to tipping it. He slowly began to whistle “Taps.”

“Well, I’m headed to a warm bed with a woman who loves me. You’re headed to a bunkbed with your twin brother,” Grant pointed out. “Not sure you have any room to talk shit, baby bro.”

Ben laughed. “Need a ride?”

“No, I stopped a while back.” He held up his can of soda. “Besides, Emma’s going to need an escort. These guys may jump her on the way out to get their money back.”

“What is it with you guys and your outdated chivalry?” Emma shook her head and finished off what was left in the bottle in front of her. “I’ll bet that my overweight black bear at home has better wrestling moves than any of you, and his signature move is to lie down.”

Jackson laughed and Jefferson’s eyes lit up at her challenge. No way in hell was Ben letting either of those two get their hands on her. Jealousy shot through him, even as he reminded himself that none of his brothers would break the unspoken code they’d always had. No screwing with another guy’s woman.

“We’ll leave the wrestling to Ben.” Jackson slapped Ben on the shoulder. “But next time, warn me before you bring the cardsharp, you dick. I won’t bring so much money.” He took his bottle to the counter and grabbed one Ben had just taken from the refrigerator. “She cleaned me out.”

“I’m tapped too.” Maddie rose and headed into the kitchen to put away the food. Emma rushed in to help but Maddie shooed her away. “You’re a guest and, judging from those sour faces, you may not be welcome again,” she teased. “However, as far as I’m concerned, you’re welcome anytime, even if it’s only to help me terrorize those guys.”

Ben watched Emma laughing with his siblings. She fit in with them as if she’d been born part of his family. He’d assumed that being an only child wouldn’t have prepared her for the chaotic party that made up his family. He adored them, but he also knew they could be a lot to handle all at once. They were too loud, too rambunctious and too obnoxious at times. But Emma had taken it all in stride.

“So, Emma,” Jefferson sidled up beside her and looped an arm over her shoulders, a little too wobbly on his feet to still be sober, and jabbed a thumb in Ben’s direction. “Please tell me you’re going to get this guy to loosen up. Him and Andrew are so straight-laced, the rest of us never get to have any fun.”

“You have no room to talk, so stop complaining,” Maddie said as she plucked the half-empty beer bottle from his hands. “Try being the only girl and the youngest.” She grabbed Jefferson’s arm and shoved him toward his room. “You need to go to bed before you embarrass yourself.”

Ben shot his sister a look of pure gratitude. He owed her big-time for that one.

Jackson came into the kitchen with a groan. “I can’t believe it’s two a.m. Dad is going to be in here in three hours.” He slid his half-empty bottle onto the counter. “I would just like one day, just one, to sleep past six.”

“Lightweight,” Emma shot at him.

“Watch yourself, Red. Those are fighting words,” Jackson laughed. “But, because you’ve got balls, you’re welcome here any time. As long as we’re not playing cards,” he amended.

“Chicken,” Ben said with a laugh.

“No, just smart. I can beat you guys. She’s a different story.”

Maddie tossed the washcloth at Andrew. “I’ve put all the food away and sent the youngins to bed. You can finish cleaning.”

“Hey! I thought the winner cleaned.”

Emma patted his shoulder as she moved closer to Ben, a fact his body responded to instantly as his pulse kicked up a notch. “Not when the winner is a guest. Suck it up, buttercup. You’ll live.”

Maddie’s eyes met Ben’s, bright with humor. “I like her.”

“I had no doubt you would.” He put an arm around his sister, rubbing his knuckles on the top of her head the way he had when they were younger.

“Knock it off.” Maddie slapped at his hand before turning back to Emma. “We need to hang out some time. I could give you the lowdown on this guy. You might want to turn and run while you still can.”

“Aw, he’s a teddy bear.”

Emma patted his chest and Ben felt heat sear him, circling lower until it settled in his groin. Maddie looked from Emma back to his face and a slow, knowing grin spread over her lips as if she knew something he didn’t.

“We should totally hang out. You have your phone on you?”

“It’s in the other room.”

Maddie led the way out as Emma followed her. Ben couldn’t take his eyes off her until Andrew’s quiet laughter drew his attention.

“Man, I knew you were going to do this. You just keep screwing yourself. One of these days, you might learn.”

Ben clenched his jaw, forcing himself to remain silent. Andrew would just turn anything he said into a debate and he didn’t want to deal with him.

Andrew shook his head sympathetically. “She’s not your type, Ben. This one is not right for you.”

“No?” It was all he could manage through his gritted teeth.

“The twins’, maybe. Or mine, but not yours. You’re like Grant. You’re the level-headed guy, the guy women want to have a family with, the guy they bring home or marry. White picket fence, two point three kids and a dog. I get the feeling Emma wants no part of a relationship. I saw what happened to you after Angie, then Laura. Why are you so ready to get your heart broken again?”

Ben wanted to prove his brother wrong, wanted to assure him that he could be with a woman and not end up in a relationship or falling in love. She’d made it clear she didn’t want any sort of serious or permanent relationships in her life. So, there really wasn’t even a “him and Emma” at this point.

“It’s not like that this time.”

“Sure it’s not.”

“This is a casual thing. We’re . . .” Ben paused, trying to find any word that might describe what he and Emma had, or how he felt when they were together. Lovers? Friends?

Andrew shook his head. “Give it up, Ben. Casual just isn’t who you are.”

“You might be surprised.”

Emma came back into the kitchen with her phone in her hand and smiled at the pair. “Your sister said she’d talk to you both tomorrow. I should probably get back to the ranch too. Monique texted me that she fed Kit but I have to be up early to do it in the morning.”

Ben pulled her keys from his pocket. “I’ll drive you.”

Her brows lifted in question. Since he’d left his car at the bar, if he drove her back to the ranch, it would leave him stranded for the night. Andrew glanced her way, arching a brow expectantly. Then back to Ben, his eyes widening as if he’d come to the same realization. While he had no plans of taking advantage of Emma, there was no denying he wanted her. He also wanted to wipe that arrogant smirk off Andrew’s face.

Emma looked at Andrew curiously, taking in his grin, before turning her gaze back to Ben. As if she were able to read his mind, she smiled up at him. “You sure you’re okay to drive?”

He held his glass of water aloft. “I switched over a while back too.”

“Good, because I didn’t,” she admitted, trailing her hand over his bicep with a sly wink. Ben immediately felt himself grow hard. Andrew choked on the last of the beer he’d just swallowed as she held her empty bottle out to Andrew. “This is really good.”

“I’ll have another batch ready next weekend. Come over.” As Andrew’s gaze slid over her, Ben felt every muscle in his body clench with tension.

“I’d like that.” Emma cast his brother a dazzling smile as she tucked her hand into the crook of Ben’s arm and he felt his patience snap. He was going to punch his brother, or throw her over his shoulder again.

“We should go.”

Andrew chuckled as they headed for the front door. “You do realize, you’re just proving my point, right, bro?” he yelled as they headed outside.

Emma had seen the rage in Ben’s eyes at Andrew’s invitation. Maybe she’d had one beer too many and it dulled her senses, but she suspected Ben was angry at her as well and she hadn’t done anything but flirt with him.

Let him be angry.

At first, she’d decided it was best to give him some time to settle down, but he just seemed to get angrier with every mile that passed between their ranches and, now, she was second-guessing her decision.

“You want to tell me what that was about?”

“Nothing.”

“Oh, I see. Being a child must just be part of your boyish charm.” Ben simply clenched his jaw again. “You know, if you keep doing that, the muscle in your jaw might just stay that way.”

She saw him relax his jaw slightly but he still didn’t look her direction.

“It’s good to see you hold fast to tradition, that you perpetuate the cliché.”

He turned to look at her, slowly, his eyes dark, daring her to say more. But luck had been on her side tonight playing poker and she’d firmly believed in pushing it as far as it would go.

“You know, the strong, silent type.”

“I know the cliché.” He pulled into the driveway and punched the security code she’d given him into the keypad at the gate. “I thought Andrew told you to change this.”

“I will, when I’m ready.”

“How about now since you’ve pissed off an employee and someone is vandalizing your property.”

“Don’t go getting all caveman on me again, McQuaid. I’ll do it when I’m ready.”

“I see you’re not bucking the stubborn Irishman cliché.”

She gave him a tentative grin. “You know I’m Scottish but touché. Maybe some clichés are based more on reality than we like to think,” she offered. “I will change it in the morning when I have light.” He tipped his chin down in disbelief. “I cross my heart. You want to tell me what sparked your temper?”

He looked back out the front window and she could see him shutting down on her again. “Andrew.” He took a deep breath. “And you.”

“About him offering for me to come try his new beer?” He couldn’t possibly be serious.

He parked the truck in front of the house and turned it off. There was no sound but the slight ticking of the engine as it began to cool from the short trip. The muscle in his jaw ticked in time with the sound and she could see he was trying to work up his nerve to answer.

“Look, if you want to hook up with Andrew, I’m cool with that—”

“Are you? Because this,” she said as she circled her open hand in front of her, “tells me that you’re not cool with it.” She flipped the console up between them and slid across the seat so that her thigh pressed against his. “And, for the record, I don’t want to ‘hook up’ with your brother.”

Emma slid her hand down his bicep. There was only one McQuaid brother she wanted to hook up with and she was finding it increasingly hard to remember that this was supposed to be a one-time, no pressure thing, that she was supposed to keep her distance from him emotionally because she couldn’t do serious. She had enough trouble in her life without adding a relationship to the mix, or burdening him with her drama.

But Ben McQuaid had a way of worming himself into her thoughts when she least wanted him there. When she was working, it was all she could do not to call and ask him to volunteer again so she could watch him work. It wasn’t just the sexual attraction to him—hell, she’d have to be dead not to be attracted to him. But she wanted to be the one to give him new experiences. He made her laugh, even if it was due to his discomfort around the animals. More than anything, she liked that he’d been willing to take a beating, or give one, for her. No one had ever stood up for her like that, and it made her feel guilty for her previous accusations about the articles in the newspaper.

“Emma, we still need to talk about this . . . thing, with us.”

He reached for her hand but instead of removing it, he simply curled his fingers between hers. It was tender, sweet and comforting.

And exactly what she didn’t want from Ben.

She had to find a way to stop these feeling for him, this emotional longing, from developing. This was supposed to remain completely physical. It had to, or she had to walk away now. She didn’t have the emotional stamina for anything more permanent than a few nights.

“If you don’t want this, McQuaid, all you have to do is say so. We could call it quits right now.” She prayed he wouldn’t stop her as her hand dropped to his firm thigh. Ben sucked in a breath as her fingers trailed upward, brushing over his zipper where his erection strained against the material.

“No, we can’t,” he admitted, his voice strained.

She laughed, surprising herself with the huskiness of the sound. Ben made her feel things she shouldn’t, didn’t want to, too. “So I see.”

Emma swung one leg over his, and settled herself into his lap, leaning back against the steering wheel and pressing both hands against his chest. “You know, you’re not really the strong, silent type. Your mouth might be silent, but the rest of you gets the message across loud and clear.”

“Is this all you want, Emma?” His face was shadowed and she couldn’t quite read his expression, lit only by the stars in the sky and the small sliver of a moon outside. There were no lights on, except those within the animal compound across the driveway. “Do you even know what you want?”

His hands found her hips, his fingers dug into the flesh slightly, as if he was trying to maintain control of himself.

She almost laughed at his question. She wanted him, this. She didn’t need to talk about it. She wanted Ben to lose control, to stop thinking. But she understood he was trying to protect her from herself, to give her an opportunity to change her mind or back out but it wasn’t going to happen. In spite of her earlier comment, she did trust him, had from the moment she’d met him. Maybe not completely, but as much as she could trust anyone.

There was a quiet confidence in Ben, a fortitude that assured her that she was safe with him, protected. She wasn’t sure how she knew it, he’d almost shot her with a dart gun, after all, but she had no doubt he’d have thrown himself between her and Buster if it had come down to it. Ben didn’t just look like a superhero, he was one. He was a guardian, a protector. Not because it was his job but because it was in his DNA. It was who he was in every thought he had and he’d simply chosen a profession which let him be what he was inside.

She’d seen it when he was with her and when he was with his family. He was a good man, too good for her. He was going to make someone a good husband, a father. If she had half a shred of decency, she’d walk away from him now and let him find a woman who could love him the way he deserved, instead of a woman who could only offer him a little fun.

His hands moved up her sides to cup her face and she reveled in his touch, leaning into it. She cursed her own weakness. She didn’t want to admit it but she needed him. Far more than she wanted to.

Needed the way he helped her forget her fears, the way he made her feel desirous, the way he made her feel like she could be a good person too. She needed to keep feeling like she could be the woman he believed she was, even if she knew it wasn’t true.