Jake swung her from his shoulder, cradling her for a moment, then held her out from his body and dropped her unceremoniously into the large horse trough. She came up sputtering, splashing water ferociously at his face, laughing so hard she could barely stand.

Jake stood over the horse trough, water cascading over him as she used the flat of her hand to send a huge wave into the air. Time slowed down so that the droplets of water glistened like diamonds and the sun seemed to surround her head, turning her red hair into a bright halo of light and gleaming off her pearly teeth. Her laughter was infectious, melodic, irresistible, and he found himself laughing with her. Laughing. Deep inside, happiness blossomed and spread. He’d never thought much about being happy. Not like this—something simple. Something not revenge, or dark and ugly. Something not about making money. Just laughing at the absurdity of their argument.

He reached into the trough and hauled her out, swinging her easily to the ground, one arm locked around her waist, holding her wet body against his. The air was crisp and cold and she shivered, but her laughing face was turned up toward his and—God help him—he was tempted almost beyond all control. He was beginning to understand the story of Adam and Eve.

“You’re crazy, Emma. You know that?” His voice was gruff. Husky. He could hear the need almost as much as he felt the ache, not in his groin—although he was as hard as a rock—but in his chest. He actually pressed a hand over his heart. “Let’s get you back inside. I didn’t realize it was so cold out here.”

She slipped under his shoulder naturally, as if she belonged there, her arm curling around his waist, still laughing up at him.

Snickers broke out behind them and she ducked beneath Jake’s arm to peer at the ranch hands. They stood with wide grins on their faces, doubled over laughing.

“Having a little trouble, boss?” Joshua called.

“Need a hand there?” Darrin, another hand, yelled.

“Hey!” Emma objected. “No cookies for either of you for a month.”

The leopard in Jake scented genuine camaraderie, an honest shock at his out-of-character behavior and real laughter. He didn’t know how to react. A part of him wanted to join in the laughter, to share in the moment the way Emma did, to have fun. Hell. This silliness was fun. He didn’t know how to react, or even what to say, so he just grinned, waved them back to work and kept her walking toward the house, slightly uncomfortable that his work crew had seen him acting so childish, but still feeling a small glow.

“I’m never living that one down,” Emma said, smacking his chest. “I can’t believe you dumped me in the horse trough.” She smacked him again. “And you spanked me. Sheesh, I’m not two, you know.”

His palm immediately dropped to the enticing curve of her bottom, rubbing caresses. “I couldn’t resist.”

She made a face. “I don’t think that was an apology.”

“No? Imagine that.”

She reached behind her and removed his hand. “And now you’re just being a perv.”

He bent his head until his lips brushed her ear. “Not a perv, Emma, an opportunist.”

Emma kept her head bent. He kissed her often, touched her often, but never with that lingering, possessive hint to his touch. Was it her imagination because she was suddenly so aware of him? Because he’d kissed her senseless with his birthday thank-you? She had to get a grip. She was so out of sorts, so restless and moody lately.

She told herself as she lay in bed at night, unable to sleep, that she missed a man’s touch, the feel of his body. She definitely missed Andy. He’d been nothing like Jake, so different it was nearly impossible to find any common ground with the two of them.

Andy had been fun loving and uncomplicated. He didn’t harbor obviously painful secrets. There was no intrigue about Andy at all. He was exactly what you saw—open and honest and ready to help anyone. Not closed off emotionally, as Jake was. He trusted people, and always thought the best of everyone. Jake trusted no one and expected people to double-cross him at every turn. Andy had boyish good looks and charm, where Jake was all hard edges, a brooding, dangerous man who exuded sex from every pore, a man in every sense of the word.

Jake rarely smiled, he barked orders and he was so protective the children could barely move without bodyguards getting under their feet. She doubted if Andy would have noticed danger even if it hit him in the face, let alone simply imagined it or suspected something or someone was out to hurt them. Andy took it as his right that she would cook and bake and do all the little things she loved doing for him, where Jake always seemed shocked and even a little wary of any kindnesses done for him. He noticed everything she did, and often didn’t seem to know what to say or do in return—but he noticed.

Jake’s hand wrapped around the nape of her neck. “You’ve gone away again, Emma. You’ve been doing that a lot lately.”

She managed a quick, reassuring smile. “I know you’ve got work to do this evening, Jake. You always do. But I made you a cake. I thought after dinner you could do the birthday thing with the kids. They’ll make a terrible mess, but they’ll love it.”

She couldn’t keep the anxiety from her upturned face. She shouldn’t have told the children they were going to have a birthday party with him, but she’d been planning his surprise for days and they’d seen the preparations. She held her breath.

“Emma, do I let you and the children down often?”