SeekingR - you hit on a good point, and Ben's upcoming book, Hostile Takeover, will actually touch on that a bit. The K&A men are definitely a pack, and very protective of what they consider theirs. What emerges in HT is that as the children were growing up, the men stepped into surrogate father/brother roles for most all of the younger children, giving them that needed male influence in their lives (just as Steve Pickard, noted in Controlled Response, offered somewhat more of the grandfather/male role model). Marcie was a bit of a different animal. Though they obviously always acted appropriately around her, you correctly noted that she was very attuned to them, and quickly figured out what they were. That becomes a factor in her feelings for Ben in the upcoming book.
Now as far as whether they were TOO protective, particularly to the girls, I think that's where Cass, Savannah, Dana and Rachel's influence come in. Just like most mother/father balancing acts, they probably helped rein back any overly rabid reactions to prospective dates for the girls, etc (grin).
Hope reading the story out of order didn't detract too much from your enjoyment, and nice to have you on the forum! Let me know if you have any other questions. :>