Yours For The Taking Part 12

"That's Trapper, my cousin." Trapper leaned against his black Sequoia dressed as if he were on his way to Shorty's-the cowboy bar-for ladies night. He had his black cowboy hat pulled down low, so his curly blond hair peeked out from beneath it. He wore tight Wranglers, a big belt buckle along with his black leather biker's jacket, and boots. Gina was drooling. Ben told himself it was because she'd had too much vodka, but even he didn't believe it.

Trapper pushed his hat up and took a good long look at Gina. A crooked smile split his face when his eyes made contact with her s.h.i.+rt. Ben wasn't sure if it was because of what was written on it, or what was beneath it. s.h.i.+t.

Ben pulled Gina closer to his side. "Gina, this is Trapper. Trapper, this is my wife, Gina." A few weeks ago, Ben would have done just about anything to avoid saying those words aloud. Now, he'd like to have a d.a.m.n nametag made for her that said, "Ben's woman. Hands off." He had half a mind to wipe that grin right off Trapper's face with his fist. Ben wasn't sure where that came from. He'd never been the possessive type, but then, he'd never been married to a minx before either.

"Gina." Trapper took her hand and pulled her into a hug. "Welcome to the family."

"Thanks. So are all the men around here as good-looking as you and Ben or are you two exceptional?"

That d.a.m.n grin was back on Trapper's face. "I don't know. You'll have to ask my little sister, Karma, about that. I don't check out men, but you're a welcome sight. We don't get many women as pretty as you around here. Those are great boots."

"You like them? Ben was teasing me about them."

Ben pulled her away from Trapper. "Only when I was trying to get them off you."

He shot Trapper a warning look that his cousin completely ignored. "Let me guess, you're off to ladies night at Shorty's."

"Yeah, Karma and the guys asked me to pick you and Gina up. Everyone wants to meet Gina."

Gina graced Ben with another one of those smiles and wrapped her arm around him. "That sounds great, doesn't it?"

No, what sounded great would be going home to bed, the same bed, not fighting off his cousins and every other man on the prowl at Shorty's. "Yeah, just great."

Trapper grabbed the bags from the airport staff and stowed them in the trunk. "Joe can take your Land Rover home and I'll drop you two off at the house later."

Gina accepted Trapper's help stepping into the Sequoia before Ben had even thought of it. He cursed as he went around to the front and hopped in. Gina buckled herself into the middle seat and leaned forward. Trapper removed his hat and threw it in the back before getting behind the wheel.

"So, Gina. How did you and my cousin meet?"

"We met at Annabelle and Mike Flynn's wedding. Annabelle, his partner, is my boss' sister."

Trapper looked at her in the rearview mirror. "Which is why I never date women I meet at weddings-that's dangerous territory."

"Oh, come on, a big guy like you afraid of weddings?" She squeezed his shoulder. "I'm surprised some smart woman hasn't gotten to you yet."

Trapper laughed. "That's why I never date smart women. When I meet a woman, I introduce myself as Fakie McNamerson. If they don't blink an eye, I know she's the girl for me-at least for the next seventy-two hours. I've realized it's impossible to be nice any longer. After that, I turn into an a.s.shole."

Ben laughed. "I'm surprised it takes that long."

Gina gave his arm a push and turned back to Trapper, which was really chapping Ben's a.s.s. "I guess there's nothing wrong with playing the field. So are your brothers anything like you?"

Trap shrugged. "They're not judges, if that's what you're asking."

"You're a judge?"

"That's what the nameplate on my office door says. They make me wear the black robe and everything. Every day I'm in court is like Halloween."

Gina giggled. Ben had never heard that sound come out of her mouth before. She didn't seem the giggling type, but then she'd never flirted with him.

"What do your brothers do?"

"Ben hasn't told you about us?"

Gina shook her head, which let her hair fly around her face. Trapper spent more time watching her through the rearview mirror than watching the road.

Ben smacked him. "If you two want to chat, why don't you let me drive?"

Trapper hit him back. "No, I'm good at mult.i.tasking." Trapper smiled at Gina. "Fisher is an orthopedist in Boise, and Hunter manages the ski school at Castle Rock in the winter. During the summer months he's a white-water rafting and fis.h.i.+ng guide."

"It sounds like your parents named them wrong."

Trapper laughed. "Yeah, I guess. Maybe they got them mixed up after they were born. The two of them used to be almost identical."

"All three of you are single?"

"Yup, Karma is too. She's the baby."

"I have a little sister too. Are you hard on Karma's boyfriends?"

"Only if they don't behave. It's not smart to screw with a judge's little sister. I can cause a man a world of hurt."

Ben leaned back in his seat. "Which is why Karma never introduces you to any of the guys she dates. She's no dummy."

Trapper looked at him sideways. "She doesn't?"

"h.e.l.l, no. Between the three of you, she'd never see a guy more than once."

When Trapper parked, Ben hopped out even before the ignition was killed and opened Gina's door for her. If he was going to take Gina into Shorty's, he was definitely going to walk in with his arm around her. He wondered how he got talked into taking his Brooklyn bride into a cowboy bar on her first night in Idaho. Talk about a culture shock.

The bar was a mob scene. The dance floor was packed with line dancers shaking it to the house band playing a rendition of Alan Jackson's "Good Time." Everyone who wasn't dancing stared at the newcomers, and Gina stood out like the Statue of Liberty in the New York Harbor. Ben pulled Gina closer to his side and looked around for the gang. Nothing like jumping from the frying pan into the fire. Karma stood, took one look at Ben, and ran for him. He had to push Gina away in case Karma did her usual stunt. Which of course, she did. s.h.i.+t. He caught Karma mid-jump-right before she wrapped her boot and jean clad legs around his waist.

"Benji! You're home!"

Gina didn't know why Ben had pushed her aside until she saw the kamikaze suicide-blonde running toward him. Benji?

Ben wasted no time putting the girl back on the floor. "Hey, Karma. You gotta stop jumping me every time I see you."

"Why?"

The Amazon actually looked perplexed.

"Because you almost kicked Gina."

"You brought her? You said she'd never step foot in Boise. Where the heck is she?"

Gina rolled her eyes. Okay, the girl stood almost a foot taller, but still, was she blind? "You might want to look down here." Gina raised her hand and waved it.

"Oh, I didn't expect someone so... short."

"Yeah, that was obvious. I guess they grow everything bigger out here."

It looked as if Karma didn't know what to say to that so she just stuck her hands into the pockets of her jeans and stared. Gina knew she was being measured, but she couldn't find the energy to be annoyed. It was obvious by the way everyone else's attention was riveted on her that no one knew quite what to make of her. Just as well, let them wonder.

Ben put his arm back around her and led her to the table where his cousins waited. Trapper was already there. Women buzzed around the table and Gina could see why. Jeez, were all the Idaho men this good looking? The twins stood as soon as they reached the table. Hunter, the bigger of the two, shook her hand. "Gina, it's great to finally meet you. And let me just say, Ben's description didn't do you justice."

Ben pulled her closer. "Cut the s.h.i.+t, Hunter. She's married, remember?"

Fisher gave her a smile. "I'm Fisher, the smarter twin. Not to mention better looking." He pulled a chair over for her and held it as she sat.

"Nice to meet you both."

Hunter grabbed his chair, spun it around, and sat. "Do you drink beer? Or can I get you something else?"

"Do they have Grey Goose Dirty Martinis here?"

"Is that a girly drink? 'Cause if it is, I'll have Karma fetch it."

"No, it's not girly. I know a lot of real men who drink it."

"Yeah, but that's not saying much. Look at who you married."

Ben gave him a shove. "I'll get our drinks. Do you guys want another pitcher?"

They didn't bother answering. They just divvied up what was left of the pitcher and handed him the empty.

Ben leaned down to whisper in her ear. "Don't move."

"Where do you think I'm gonna go? I don't even know where I am."

"You're in Boise. I'll be right back."

Ben turned to leave as Trapper sat and pushed his hat back. "Ben's the real deal, huh? He's turning into a regular ball and chain."

Gina decided it was best if she kept her thoughts to herself. She looked around. "Karma, do you know where the ladies room is?"

Karma pointed at the far corner of the bar, on the other side of the dance floor.

"I'm just going to go freshen up, it was a long flight."

The guys all stood as she left. At least they had manners in Idaho. She walked around the dance floor and begged out of a half a dozen offers for a good time, not likely, as well as dances, as if she knew what the h.e.l.l they were doing on that dance floor. She finally made it to the restroom, did her thing, freshened her makeup, and when she exited she ran into a mountain of a s.h.a.ggy man. He smiled and a gold tooth winked out at her. "Excuse me." She moved to her left to get past him and he blocked her.

"I was wait'n for you."

"That's a shame. I'm not interested."

She stepped right and he blocked her again, but this time he wrapped his paw around her waist.

"Look, I said I'm not interested. Now I'm warning you. Get your hand off me or I'll be forced to hurt you."

The man laughed at her. "Why, a little thing like you couldn't hurt a fly."

She put one hand on his neck, pushed down on that spot Sam had shown her and, at the same time, pulled his thumb back with her other hand. It worked like a charm; the man was on his knees in less time than it would have taken her to kick him in the b.a.l.l.s. "Told you."

As soon as the brute dropped, she saw Ben hurrying toward her with a look on his face that made her want to go back to Hairy-almost.

"I told you not to move! I knew something like this would happen."

Gina put her hands on her hips to keep from giving Ben the same treatment she gave Hairy. "I'm more than capable of going to the ladies room on my own." She looked down at the guy who was pulling himself off the floor. "I've wrestled bigger c.o.c.kroaches than him in Harlem, so don't you dare give me any of your c.r.a.p."

Someone behind Ben started clapping and Gina looked up to find Hunter, Fisher, and Trapper backing her up. Trapper tipped his hat at her, which she took as some kind of cowboy salute, so she smiled at him, walked past Ben, and went back to the table.

The guys taught her some strange dance called the two-step, which entailed walking backwards most of the time, something at which she excelled, while Ben spent the night stewing. Karma pulled her into a line dance, which was easy to pick up, and then Gina accepted dances from a few other guys who'd asked nicely. The entire time, Ben looked on from the edge of the dance floor as if he wanted to kill someone. Since it wasn't her problem, she didn't waste time worrying about it. It occurred to Gina the only man she hadn't danced with was Ben, which was just as well; she figured he'd just spend his time lecturing her. Frankly, she got enough of that from her brother-in-law Sam, although she'd have to thank him for showing her that pressure point move. It certainly came in handy.

Ben wanted to pick his wife up off the dance floor where some guy had his hand too d.a.m.n close to her a.s.s, throw her over his shoulder, and leave, but she was already dancing with someone else. When he went back to the table, Trapper gave him a look and Ben was tempted to leave to avoid what he knew was coming, but he had nowhere to go.

"Gina sure is having a good time. Who'd have thought your big city girl would get along with all of us rednecks so well."

Ben watched some guy twirling her around the dance floor and growled.

"Wanna tell me why you're sittin' here when your wife is out there having a great time with everyone but you?"

Ben took a sip of lukewarm beer and refilled his mug.

"You could get off your fat a.s.s, change that scowl you're wearin' into a smile, and cut in."

Ben took a long drink from his beer and ignored Trapper. What did he know?

"You're just p.i.s.sed you weren't there to save the damsel in distress. Well, s.h.i.+t, Ben. I hardly know Gina, but even I know she can take care of herself. Looks to me like she's been doing it for years before she met you, and that was in New York. Shorty's hardly compares to Spanish Harlem, even on a night like this."

Trapper tipped up his hat and looked Ben in the eye. "Ignore me all you like, but you'd get a whole lot farther with your wife if you were more proud of her standing her ground than p.i.s.sed off at yourself for not being there to protect her. I don't know when you turned into such a horse's a.s.s, but if you want the little lady talking to you for the rest of your so-called marriage, you better change your tune."

Ben had about as much of Trapper's advice as he could stand without planting his fist in Trapper's face. If he did that, he'd have to answer to Kate, which was never a good thing. He got up, stalked to the dance floor, and cut in. Gina looked shocked to see him. He tried for a smile as the song changed to a slow one, pulled her close, and for the first time all night, relaxed.

"You want to tell me who p.i.s.sed in your Cheerios?"

"What?"

"You heard me, you've been sitting at the table grimacing or standing on the edge of the dance floor looking like you were... what was it that guy said? Loaded for bear? Whatever that means. I guess it's Idaho vernacular. You can explain it to me."

"I was worried about you when that guy-"

"Fell to his knees? Oh yeah, I was in some danger there. Give me a break. You're going to have to come up with something better than that."

"I told you not to move."

"Do you mind telling me where in the marriage vows it says I'm supposed to obey? Here's a clue-it doesn't. I think that was taken out of the vows in the '70s. You really have to keep up with this stuff, Ben."

"Can we stop fighting and just dance?" He tucked her head under his chin.