Army Ranger with Benefits_the Men of At-Ease Ranch Read online

  “I can’t seem to get enough of you,” he said against her lips.

  A thrill like she’d never known raced down Emma’s body, leaving her needy and confused. Should she admit the same thing, or run and hide? It was foolish to get involved with him. He was leaving in less than two weeks. Tipping her head back, she drew in a breath. “I…I should get back to Macy.”

  Disappointment flashed through his eyes, but he nodded. “Of course.” He walked her back to her booth. “Thank you for the dances, ladies. I should go check on my brother and friend.”

  “Okay.” She slid into the booth and rubbed at her suddenly tight chest, feeling that same disappointment, and a bit of remorse.

  “Vince?” A stunning blonde approached, a wide smile on her face. Before he could react, she pulled him in for a hug. “It is you!”

  His eyes went wide. “Tiffany,” he said, trying to draw back. “This is unexpected.”

  The woman released him much too slowly for Emma’s liking. “Are you here alone?”

  A strange prickling spread across her shoulder blades. Without thinking, she rose to her feet, stepped next to Vince, and slipped her arm around his waist. “No. He’s here with me.”

  The blonde’s brow arched above a disappointed gaze. “And you are?”

  Vince wrapped his arm around her shoulder and pulled her in close to his side. “This is Emma. My girlfriend.”

  Two words.

  Two simple words, and yet they held such a heavy impact. In a good way. Which was bad, since they were a lie.

  “It was nice to see you again, Tif,” he said, then turned to Emma. “I’ll be right back.”

  “Okay.” She went along with the ruse, and since it seemed like he was the one who needed a fake girlfriend, she lifted up on tiptoe and kissed him, feeling his smile against her lips.

  This was no time for him to be amused. She kissed him again, this time a little deeper, until his smile disappeared and his hands gripped her waist.

  Much better.

  She broke the kiss and lightly caressed his cheek. “Hurry back.” And because she could barely feel her legs, she retook her seat and reached for her wine, ignoring the smirk on Macy’s face.

  “Will do,” he said, then headed toward a snickering Dom and Leo.

  She didn’t care. Whatever.

  “You’re one lucky lady.” The woman sighed, adoration in the gaze glued to Vince as he walked to the bar. “He’s the whole package. Sweet. Sexy. Loyal. Great in the kitchen.”

  Emma sipped her wine and nodded. “His meals are delicious.”

  The blonde twisted back to face her. “It wasn’t his cooking I was talking about.” With envy darkening her eyes, Tiffany sighed and walked away.

  “Huh.” Macy tapped her chin. “I wonder what she meant.”

  That persistent prickling across Emma’s shoulder blades almost persuaded her to acknowledge she was jealous. But she refused. That was silly. He would have to mean something to her for jealousy to take root. Which was even sillier.

  Except it wasn’t.

  He certainly was “great” in the kitchen. Her body went up in flames just thinking about that kiss. Where would it have gone if his brother hadn’t called out for help?

  Better question. What in the world would’ve happened if Dom had wandered into the kitchen instead of calling Vince from down the hall?

  This was bad. Very, very bad.

  Macy grinned. “You’re thinking about it now, aren’t you?”

  “Yes,” she muttered.

  Her friend sighed. “Me, too.”

  Their gazes met, and a beat passed before they burst out laughing. Macy was a good friend. So was Vince. He really was, and that was why he meant something to her. But, man, everything was getting all screwed up.

  Time to get things back on track.

  She exhaled and took another gulp of wine. Then another. And another. “I should tell Vince to hook up with that blonde.”

  “No way, girlfriend.” Macy shook her head and frowned. “Don’t do that.”

  She downed the last of her drink, hoping it would make things clearer. “Why not?”

  “He’s your boyfriend.”

  “No, he’s not.” The thought made her head spin in delicious little circles. So much for thinking clearer. More wine seemed like the answer, though, so she swiped the glass out of Macy’s hand and gulped down the rest of her friend’s drink, too.

  “Hey.” Macy frowned. “That was my wine.”

  She shook her head and pushed the empty glass across the table. “I needed it more than you.”

  A smile twitched Macy’s lips. “Because Vince is your boyfriend?”

  “No, see that’s the thing.” She nodded, then shook her head, because one of them had to be right. “He’s only pretending to be interested in me, until I start to date…um…” Shoot. She forgot his name. Her friend from high school. The doctor. Doctor who? It was on the tip of her tongue, but her tongue was too numb to remember.

  Or was that her wine-fogged mind?

  Why was her mind wine-fogged anyway? She’d only had a glass and a half. Although, a good portion of that was before she’d had anything to eat. And the glasses were pretty huge.

  “You mean Stephan? The man who left ten minutes ago?” Macy stared at her, eyes full of knowing with a side of amusement.

  “Yes.” She slapped the table. “Him. Stephan.” She grinned, happy to have a name to go with the face swimming before her eyes. Wait…Stephan left? Funny, she hadn’t noticed. But it did explain why the face in front of her had dark hair and eyes the color of warm whiskey. “Does warm whiskey taste good?”

  She bet it did.

  “Whiskey?” The face frowned. “I thought you wanted wine.” He glanced at the glass he set before her.

  “It was…I mean. I did,” she stammered, willing the room to stop spinning. Sheesh, she was such a lightweight.

  “Maybe you shouldn’t have any more,” he said, joining her in the booth.

  The guy with the sexy voice. And sexy mouth. And…

  “I know you,” she blurted, grabbing that sexy face with her hands. “You’re my secret fake boyfriend, Vince.”

  He laughed. “It’s not going to be much of a secret if you don’t lower your voice.”

  “Right.” She released him to place a finger to his lips. “Shh…”

  He kissed her finger, then grasped her hand and set it on her lap. “Yeah, you definitely need to be cut off.” He glanced over at her friend. “Isn’t that right, Macy?”

  The woman had a big-ass grin on her face. Emma blinked, tipped her head, then shook it. Nope. Still smiling.

  “Why are you showing so much teeth?” she asked her friend.

  “I’m smiling because I’ve never seen you let loose. This is rare, so I’m enjoying it and you should, too.”

  “Well, there you have it, Vince.” Emma grabbed her new glass of wine and enjoyed a big mouthful per her friend’s suggestion.

  Why not? Everything was going to crap. She was confused as crap. Might as well get smashed as crap, too. Thanks to her lightweight status, she was more than halfway there. “And no, it’s not because of that blonde chick.”

  He glanced around. “Who? Tif?”

  Damn. She must’ve said that out loud. “Don’t mind me. I still have another three-quarters of a glass of wine to enjoy.”

  But this time, when she went to reach for it, a large hand whisked it out of reach and set it on a tray of a passing waitress.

  “Consider yourself officially cut off.” Vince slid from the booth and held out his hand. “Come on. I’ll take you home.”

  Probably a good idea.

  After helping her to her feet, he slid an arm around her waist. A nice, muscular, strong arm. And because she liked the feel of him, she stepped close and ran her hands up his yummy torso.

  Mmm…hard ridges.

  He smiled down at her. “You ready to go home?”

  Man, he was cute.

  �
��Sure. You can even drive my car. But Texas is too far. Let’s go to my home instead.”

  His chuckled. “Whatever you want.”

  “Perfect.” She turned to Macy. “We’re going home now.”

  Her friend smiled. “I gathered that.”

  “How about I walk you out,” Vince said to Macy.

  Emma patted his chest. It was solid and warm…like the man. “Aw, that’s sweet.”

  “It is. Thanks,” Macy said, “but I see some of the girls from book club. I’m going to go join them. You two go on. Have fun.”

  “Okay.” She saluted her friend.

  Why?

  No clue.

  Laughing, she slipped her arm back around Vince’s waist and fell into step alongside him. Okay, technically, she was leaning on the guy, and he was doing the walking, but it was all right. She trusted him. He knew what he was doing.

  Which was a good thing, because she didn’t.

  Not by a long shot.

  …

  Although he enjoyed the feel of Emma’s sweet curves pressed into his side, Vince would’ve preferred her to be sober and willing, although, inebriated and willing looked cute on her.

  She glanced up at him. “Why are you smiling with all those dimples showing?”

  “Because you’re adorable.” He tightened his hold as he led her toward the bar to tell the guys what was going on and hand Leo his keys.

  They were there celebrating the fact Leo’s friend had located Dom’s buddy Amir, and the two had talked on the phone. When Vince had left them to dance with Emma earlier, his brother and the owner of the bar, Shamus Kelley, a veteran and father of one of the guys in Dom’s unit, had been deep in conversation. The poor man had been a little shaken to see Dom back and battered.

  It brought back memories from active duty Vince would rather forget.

  “Sexy is better, but adorable is good,” Emma said, bringing his mind back to the present. “I like adorable.”

  Happy for the distraction, he dipped his head toward hers. “So do I.”

  A pretty blush infused her cheeks, and his whole body warmed. He was in trouble. The woman was definitely getting to him without even trying.

  “Don’t you two look cozy,” Dom said as they approached.

  Shamus was down at the other end of the bar serving customers, and Leo was reaching for his ginger ale—his drink of choice lately, although he still enjoyed an occasional beer with the guys at the ranch.

  As they neared, his buddy turned around on his stool and raised a brow, but said nothing.

  Emma nodded. “Vince thinks I’m adorable.”

  “I bet he does.” His brother smirked, but there was definitely a warning in his eyes directed at him.

  She smiled at Dom. “And it’s okay, because I think he’s hot. But don’t tell him I said that.” Her body pressed closer as she lifted a finger to her mouth. “It’ll be our secret.”

  Another, bigger wave of warmth rushed through Vince. Damn. The woman made him feel good, despite the fact he didn’t want her to.

  Dom’s gaze narrowed under a disapproving brow, while Leo ducked his head and smiled into his ginger ale. At least his buddy saw the humor in the situation.

  “You must be Sebastian—I mean Leo,” she said, thrusting a hand out to his friend.

  Leo shook her hand. “Nice to meet you, Emma. Thanks for the pie. It was delicious.”

  “I’m going to take Emma home,” Vince said.

  Her deep sigh rumbled through him. “Yeah. I had too much wine. Who knew a glass and a half was too much? I didn’t. Did you?” She continued to stare straight at Dom.

  His brother shook his head, apparently still dumbfounded.

  “Me, either.” She shrugged. “But I think it’s making me say things I shouldn’t. And I know I shouldn’t drive. And I’m talking too much. So I’m going to shut up now.”

  Dom nodded slowly. “O-kay.”

  “Because it’s the smart thing to do,” she continued. “And I’m smart.”

  A smile tugged at his lips. “Usually.”

  “Yeah…hey.” Frowning, she stepped toward Dom, but clutched Vince’s arm. “What do you mean by that?”

  Dom lifted a shoulder. “Nothing. Would you rather I drive you home?”

  She stepped back and burrowed into Vince’s side. “No. You’re not supposed to drive yet. Besides, your brother thinks I’m adorable. And I think he’s hot.”

  “So you’ve said. And you don’t think I’m hot?” The idiot conjured a mock-hurt expression.

  She snorted. “Of course not. You’re Dom.”

  Holy shit.

  It was the first time Vince had ever witnessed his brother being dissed by a woman. It was momentous. Classic.

  Too great to hold in.

  Vince laughed and tightened his hold on the sweet woman. She truly was a gem, and the fact the barb was unintentional made it all the more humorous.

  Leo chuckled and nudged Dom’s shoulder. “You’re losing your touch, man.”

  His brother snorted. “Apparently.”

  “I think Vince should take me home now.” She frowned and poked Dom in the chest. “Don’t drive drunk!”

  Damn, he really liked this woman.

  Smiling so much his face hurt, Vince fished his keys from his jeans and dropped them in Leo’s hand. “I’m sure you remember the way back to Dom’s.”

  “Of course.” His buddy nodded, and it was the first time that night a modicum of censor entered his friend’s eyes. “Be careful.”

  That sentence had nothing to do with driving. He acknowledged it with a nod then brushed it aside. The two men were acting like he didn’t know what he was doing.

  They were wrong.

  And it went both ways. “Don’t stay too long,” he told his brother. “This is your first time out since leaving the hospital. You don’t need to overdo it.”

  A scowl crossed Dom’s face. “Yes, Mom.”

  Emma straightened up. “Your mom’s here?” she asked, glancing around. “Where?”

  His mother would love her.

  Vince chuckled. “She’s not here. That’s just Dom being an idiot.”

  “Oh.” She blinked. “He’s really good at it.”

  On that note, he escorted her out of the bar, and was still smiling at her parting shot when he pulled into her driveway seven minutes later.

  “I had a great time tonight,” she said with a soft sigh. “And it all started when I danced with Stephan.”

  He’d noticed that the instant he’d entered the bar, but had tried not to think about it. Deciding to play dumb, he raised a brow. “You danced with Stephan?”

  “Uhum.” She yawned. “Around the time you got there. And my stomach even fluttered.”

  “Oh.” His gut twisted and turned to lead, which was dumb considering that was the goal of all their fake stuff. “What did you feel when you danced with me?” Damn, the question was out before he could stop it.

  Turning to face him, she grinned. “With you it was much stronger. Like a tornado with strong gusts, and a whole lot of thundering in my chest. Probably because my heart was pounding so hard.” She smiled and got out of the car. “You are one potent guy, Vince Acardi,” she stated, then shut the door.

  Ah hell…

  With her keys in his hand, he sprang from the car and caught up with her in the middle of the driveway. “A tornado, huh?” Smiling, he slipped his arm around her waist again—to steady her—he told himself as he walked with her to her side door.

  “Yeah. An F5 because it was intense. Like your kisses.” She fumbled in her purse.

  Grinning, he jiggled her keys. “Are you looking for these?”

  “Yes. I forgot you had them.” She rolled her eyes. “My house key is on there.”

  Locating the key, he opened her door and helped her inside because she needed help, not because he enjoyed the feel of her brushing against him.

  He handed her the keys. “Here, you should put these back.”
/>   “Thanks.” She dropped them in her purse. “It’s a shame, though.” She moved away from him to pull the strap over her head and set the purse on the counter.

  “What is?”

  She waved a hand between them. “The whole tornado F5 kiss thing.”

  It was a shame, and also amazing. But he was suddenly curious to know why she thought so, too. “Why is that a shame?”

  “Because you’re my ‘casual’ fake boyfriend,” she said, making air quotes, “and we only go on ‘casual’ fake dates.” Then she smiled a brilliant, beautiful smile that lit her whole face from within, and for a split second, he forgot how to breathe. “But…they haven’t been fake for me. Confusing, yeah, but not fake, which is probably why it was confusing.” She stepped closer and ran her hands up his chest. “And I have a great idea about where you can take me.”

  Something in her eyes made his blood run hot and completely dried out his throat.

  “Where?” he asked, hardly recognizing his low tone.

  “To bed,” she said, shoving both hands in his hair while lifting up on tiptoe to capture his mouth for a kiss that rocked his world.

  Uninhibited from the wine, no doubt, she demanded and gave with a hunger that shocked the hell out of Vince. Over and over she plundered, taking what she wanted, practically climbing up his body.

  He knew it was wrong—knew he should pull away—but when her tongue slipped inside his mouth, all reason left his head in a fierce gust of need. An F5 equivalent that leveled his rationale and sent need spiraling through his body.

  Chapter Sixteen

  With a groan, Vince glided his hands down Emma’s back to cup her sweet ass and crushed her close. She moaned and rocked against him. Stars exploded behind his eyes. He didn’t think that was possible, but it happened. Emma happened. With her gorgeous body and a desire that matched his own.

  Her hands were all over him, touching, caressing, driving him out of his mind. He wanted her. Bad. Which was equally bad, for several reasons. First and foremost, she wasn’t sober. He’d never take advantage of her. And second, she was his brother’s neighbor, and he had no intention of ruining that dynamic with what could only ever be a fling. He had to do the right thing.