“You’re not in this alone, Seamus. You and Caro have an entire island full of people who want to help make sure those boys are well loved. I love having kids over to the marina to go crabbing and out on the boat and lots of other fun stuff. You’ll teach them how to drive the ferries and the best Irish swear words. You’ve got a lifetime worth of wisdom to share with them. It’ll all be okay.”

“I’m going to take your word for it.”

“I’m rarely wrong about anything. Just ask my family.”

“And they say I’m full of blarney,” Seamus said with a laugh as he extended his hand to Big Mac. “Thank you.”

Big Mac shook his hand. “My pleasure.”

“You and I are in the biggest fight we’ve ever been in,” Mac said to Maddie as he drove them home.

She covered her mouth to keep from laughing, because she knew he wouldn’t appreciate that when he sounded genuinely pissed.

“If you laugh at me, I swear to God, Madeline…”

“What’ll happen?”

“I’ll take you to bed and spank your ass until it’s hot pink.”

“Mmm, can we do that even if I don’t laugh at you?”

When his head spun around to look at her, he nearly drove off the road.

“Mac!”

He swerved the truck back into the lane and didn’t say anything more as they drove the rest of the way home. When he took a fast right turn onto Sweet Meadow Farm Road, Maddie began to worry that he might be serious about that spanking. And why did her entire body go hot at the thought of it?

“I can’t believe you let me think there were going to be strippers there when all along it was nothing but a prank.”

“It was a good prank. You have to admit it.”

“I’ll admit no such thing. That’ll just encourage you.”

“Why are you really mad? Because I pulled one over on you, or because you think I’m interested in male strippers?”

Her adorable husband, who had an answer for everything, had nothing to say to that.

“Ah-ha! You don’t even know why you’re mad. And PS, you cost us two hundred bucks for being the first alpha beast to roar through the door tonight.”

“Let’s talk about you gambling on top of all your other sins. Here I thought I’d married such a nice girl, and it turns out she’s a mean, prank-perpetrating gambler who drinks, too.”

Maddie hiccupped loudly, which sent her into fits of laughter. “Those cosmos were gooooood.”

“I couldn’t even have fun with my friends tonight because I was so worried about strange men touching my wife. I hope you’re happy.”

She began to giggle again and couldn’t stop.

“You’re getting so spanked, it’s not even funny.”