“Emma, wait. We’ll see about you going anywhere. Don’t set your heart on it.”

She made a face at him. “We won’t see. Nurse Tell-Me-What-to-Do can leave and I can have my house back.”

“We’ll see,” he repeated.

“If the doctor says I’m fine, then I want to go into the city and pick out a dress for the party.” When he frowned, she glared at him. “Unless you’ve changed your mind,” she said hopefully, “and decided I don’t have to go with you.” Although she was still going to get out of the house and off the ranch and just breathe for a while.

He massaged the nape of her neck. “You’re not getting out of it. If I have to go, you have to go. I’m not suffering alone.”

“Fine, I guess we’re going. So I’ll need a dress. I’ve never owned anything like what I’d need for this event.”

He tapped a pen on the top of a side table, his frown lines not just around his face but also crinkling his forehead, giving her warning of what was to come. “You don’t have to go out. We’ll have dresses sent from some shops and you can choose.”

She almost gritted her teeth. “I want to go out. Susan and I have been looking forward to going shopping. I’m sick of being cooped up.”

“You’ve never felt cooped up before.”

“Well, I do now. I want to go into the city and go shopping and get away from all this . . .” Testosterone. She felt overwhelmed by him sometimes, especially when he hovered so close when she was hurt. She felt like one of the children. She might as well be one of the children, lying next to him without him touching her. No, that was wrong—touching her without doing anything about it. She set her mouth mutinously. “I’m going shopping.”

His eyebrow shot up. “Really. I doubt you’ll go after Drake talks to you.” He paused and called Drake on the intercom. “Emma would like to go into the city—shopping.”

Jake heard Drake hiss and he folded his arms across his chest and leaned his hip against the wall, waiting. There was plenty of satisfaction in knowing Drake was going to take the brunt of her anger, not him. Which was a good thing; she was getting edgy again and his experience with Emma was that if she felt pushed past a certain point, her sharp little claws would come out.

The security team was in place—her security team—and if Emma wanted to go dress shopping rather than have dresses sent to the ranch for her to try on, she was going to have to accept what Drake was saying to her. Things had changed significantly since he put that ring on her finger, although she wasn’t going to like how. He sighed, wishing his life weren’t so complicated. This would be one more added pressure, one more thing Emma would balk over.

Emma said nothing, dropping back into her chair, drawing out the silence until Drake arrived along with Joshua. Drake came in and took the chair opposite Emma. Joshua closed the door and stood by it.

Emma tilted her chin and shifted her gaze from Drake’s stern face back to Jake. She didn’t look as if she was going to be blaming anything on Drake.

“You want to go shopping today?” Drake asked.

“Yes.” Her voice was firmer than ever. “If I don’t get out of here, I swear I’m going to lose my mind and there will be bloodshed—preferably Jake’s.” Her skin crawled with a thousand little ants, and it took every ounce of self-control she had to remain seated and not fly at someone and rake them with claws until they just got out of her face. She had the waves of heat that seemed to rush over her, until she was so hot she needed to tear off her clothes and stand outside in the cool air. “I’m getting snappy with the children and more than once I’ve thought about clawing out someone’s eyes.” Again she looked at Jake.

Drake’s eyebrow shot up and he flicked a quick glance at Joshua and then Jake.

Jake shrugged. “Just a minute ago she was being really sweet, Drake. I didn’t do anything.”

“If the doctor has okayed you leaving . . .”

“I swear, Drake, if one more person says that to me,” Emma snapped, “I’m going to hit him over the head. I don’t care what the stupid doctor says. I’m not staying in this room another minute. No one else is going to take care of my children. And everyone is going to stop telling me what to do.” She was beginning to feel like a child herself, with parents standing over her telling her what she could and couldn’t do. “And, Joshua, you can get away from the damned door before I throw something at you.”

She could hear her voice swinging out of control, but she felt caged, the three men looming over her, intimidating her.

“Baby,” Jake spoke quietly, “I’m your target, not him.”

That made her ashamed. A reprimanded child throwing a tantrum. She just wanted . . . out. Away. Gone.

“Emma.” Drake’s voice was utterly low, but held that same commanding note Jake often got when he meant what he said. “You’re engaged to Jake. That makes you a target. You don’t have to like it, no one likes it, but it is reality. Jake doesn’t leave the house without a bodyguard, and you can’t either. If you want to go shopping, we’ll go, but we have to make certain it’s safe. I never want you to feel as if you’re a prisoner here.”

“I’m used to you going with me, Drake, and I’ve never objected. I know you have to be there if we’re taking the children, but I thought Susan and I would go out together. If you want to come, I certainly haven’t objected.”