Page 19 of My One and Only (Blackhawk Security #10)

C am knew he needed to focus on work, but all he wanted to do was watch Jo. Remember how she’d felt and sounded last night, when they’d made out on the couch. Her smooth, warm skin. Her soft, so-sensitive breasts. The screams she’d muffled against his chest when she came.

God! They’d barely gotten naked, but he’d come harder than he ever had in his life and judging by Jo’s volume and the way she’d clung to him, he suspected it had been equally good for her.

He glanced over at her desk -- not the first time he’d done that today. This time, she was alternating between writing in a notebook and scrolling on her phone. He wanted to ask her what she was doing this morning but didn’t want to be a creeper. Whatever it was, he was sure it had something to do with her job. Jo took that very seriously. The last thing she would do was goof off when she was working.

The heat of his gaze must have singed her because she swiveled on the chair. When her eyes caught his, his skin rippled as if she’d touched a live wire to it. Every molecule in his body stood at attention, anticipating Jo’s touch on him.

Instead of looking away, her eyes became molten pools of need. Desire stirred in him, and he shifted in his chair. Finally, clearing her throat, she said, “Should I call Mel and ask her to send you a contract? After last night, there’s no way I’m leaving now. Not until you know who’s behind the break-in at your house and the bribery scheme. And I doubt we’re going to figure that out in three days.”

“Yeah, give her a call. I’ll sign a contract, pay for you to protect me and Fiona until we figure out who’s behind the bribes and the sabotage of the houses.” His jaw worked. “As well as the attack last night. Until everyone involved is locked up.”

Jo nodded and grabbed her cell phone. Tapped a number, waited a moment, then said, “Hey, Mel.”

Her boss responded, and Jo eventually said, “No, everything’s not going well. Can you send a contract for Cam to sign? We had an incident last night. Armed intruder at Cam’s house.”

She recited his email address and gave her boss the details of the break-in the previous night. “I won’t leave until whoever’s behind these incidents is apprehended and in jail. God knows what would have happened last night if I hadn’t been here.” Her knuckles whitened on the phone. “He has a six-year-old daughter, and she was in the house, as well.”

Jo listened for a moment, then laughed. “First time I’ve heard about that. Clearly, marriage has made you soft, Mel.” She grinned as she listened to her boss, then said, “Tell Dev he’s a lucky guy. I’ll talk to you soon.”

When she hung up, she shook her head, still smiling.

Cam said, “Your boss say something to amuse you?”

Grinning, Jo said, “Mel said she was giving you the ‘friends and family discount.’” Jo shook her head. “She and her partner Dev got married a few months ago. The tough woman I signed up to work for wouldn’t have said anything about a friends and family discount.”

“The power of love?” Cam said, his mouth twitching.

“Must be.” Jo smiled back at him. “She and Dev went through a really rough patch before they worked everything out.”

“She doesn’t have to give me a discount,” Cam said. “I want to pay you what you’re worth. And besides, the company will be paying for your services, since this is a company problem.”

“She was just yanking my chain,” Jo said. “As far as I know, there’s no friends and family discount.” She smiled. “But it’s really good to see Mel happy.”

Cam’s face flushed. His pupils dilated, and he held her gaze for a long moment. “I hope you and I are much happier in the next few days, as well.”

Jo’s expression tightened and her cheekbones reddened as she leaned toward him. “I think there’s a very good chance that we will be.”

They stared at each other for a long moment, and Jo looked away first. But he saw her hands shake as she picked up her pen.

Satisfied, Cam turned back to his to-do list. He’d opened his computer to check on the delivery status of flooring he’d ordered for the houses that were almost completed when there was a knock on his door.

“C’mon in,” he called.

Don opened the door and walked in. He studied Jo for a long moment, his mouth tightening, then looked at Cam. “Heard you had some excitement at your place last night.”

Cam frowned at his partner. “Who told you that?”

“I ran into a cop I know early this morning,” Don said. “I was getting my morning coffee and he was coming off shift. He knows we’re partners. Told me what happened. Said you didn’t recognize the guy.”

Cam wasn’t surprised. Don probably knew every police officer in Ogden. Now that he was an adult, he was the kind of guy who had a huge network of friends and acquaintances.

Don glanced at Jo, who had headphones on. Jo must have felt his gaze, because she looked up. Held Don’s gaze for a long moment, nodded, then looked back at whatever she was working on. But Cam didn’t miss the way her mouth tightened.

“Nope, didn’t recognize the guy,” Cam said. “No idea who he was or what he wanted. But whatever it was, it wasn’t good. The guy had an arsenal with him.”

Don glanced at Jo again. “The cop said Jo was there. That the guy was on the floor, trussed up, when they got to your place.”

“What if she was there?” Cam shot back. “We’re both adults. Both unattached. Since when did you become the morality police?”

“Hell, Cam, I’m not judging anyone. Good for you. Jo’s an attractive woman, and I know you were close back in high school. I’m glad you’re fucking her.”

Don’s crude words lit a flash of anger in Cam’s chest. He glanced at Jo, but she had her headphones on. Hopefully she hadn’t heard Don.

“That’s a disgusting thing to say,” he said to Don, trying not to clench his teeth. “It’s disrespectful to both me and Jo, but especially to Jo. I know you and Silvia have had your problems, but I’ve never stuck my nose in your business. So keep your nose out of mine.”

Don held up his hands. “Easy, partner. I didn’t mean to get you all riled up. Guess I should have left it at ‘I’m happy for you’.”

Cam nodded slowly, holding Don’s gaze. “Yeah. Would have been a good idea.” He cleared his throat and forced himself to relax against the back of his chair. “What’s up? You have some business we need to discuss?”

Don nodded. “Just wondering if you’ve heard from any of Jo’s friends. We need to get more workers on those houses.”

“Yeah, we do,” Cam said, loosening his grip on his chair now that they were discussing business. “I’ll talk to her today. See what she knows. As soon as I have solid information, I’ll pass it along.”

Don smiled. “Thanks, partner. I appreciate it.”

Don turned around and exited Cam’s office, closing the door with a quiet snick as Cam stared after him. Why the emphasis on partner? What was going on in Don’s head?

A minute later, Jo took off her headphones. “What did Don say that got you worked up?”

Cam sucked in a breath. Blew it out. “He was just being Don. A pain in the ass.”

Jo frowned at him. “That’s the first time I’ve ever heard you say something negative about Don.”

Cam thought about his complicated, guilt-laden relationship with Don. Because Don’s parents had abandoned him, Cam always tried to give Don the benefit of the doubt. And Don told him he’d saved him from that attack in the park.

So he swallowed and shook his head. “I love that guy like a brother. But even brothers get on each other’s nerves sometimes.”

“Too true,” Jo said with an easy smile. “My brothers and I used to fight all the time.” She laughed. “I even punched Will in the nose once. Made a huge mess. Blood everywhere. My mom made me clean it up.

“I still get into occasional battles with my brothers, but not very often anymore. We don’t see each other often enough. By the time there’s friction, I’m usually on my way home.”

Cam wasn’t going to tell Jo what Don had said about her staying at his place. What was the point? She wasn’t going to leave, and maybe it was good that Don and everyone else just thought Jo was sleeping with him. After the way she’d handled the intruder last night, he was confident she’d protect him and Fiona. And it was better that no one knew she was actually his bodyguard. Anyone else who came after him would be surprised as hell at how good Jo was at her job.

“So what did Don want, other than harassing you about me?”

His anger at Don had made him forget what Don had actually wanted. “He was wondering if you’ve heard from any more of your former associates. We really need to get some people working on our houses.”

“Actually, I’ve heard from five more. That’s nine total. I sent out sixteen emails, so we might hear from even more.”

“Could you give me their phone numbers? I’d like to talk to them before I give their information to Don.”

Jo frowned. “Don won’t think you’re stepping on his toes?”

“I don’t think so, and he’d be a fool if he did. He’s got a lot of work to do, trying to hire people to replace the ones we fired. I think he’d be grateful that we saved him a step.”

“Okay.” She pulled up a screen on her computer and looked at his desk. “What’s your printer name? I’ll send this document right to your printer for you.”

“It’s an Epson. Should be the only one that shows up.”

Jo’s fingers flew over her keyboard, and several seconds later, his printer clicked to life. After a minute, it spit out a piece of paper with a list of names, email addresses, phone numbers and what their skills were.

“Thanks, Jo. I’ll start calling them.”

He talked to each of the nine people and explained what PK Builders did, where they were located, and described the apartments he’d fashioned for his workers the year before. Of the nine people, there were two couples, so they’d only need seven apartments. That left five more, in case they found more possibilities.

Finallly, after talking to the last one, he hung up the phone and turned to Jo. When he caught her eye, he motioned for her to take off her headphones.

“I talked to all of them,” he told her. “They all want to come. There’re two couples, and we have a few apartments that are bigger, so that will work out well. I’m gonna give these names to Don and have him call. He can discuss when they can start, their salaries, the housing situation, although I mentioned it to all of them.”

He tilted his head and studied Jo. Had he been able to hide his fury with Don’s comment from her? He hoped so. “You’re saving our asses here. You know that, right? With these nine people, we’re almost at full staffing. And if a few more of your friends are interested, we could get another crew going.” A smile crept across his face as he studied her. “Thank God you came to visit your mother and looked at her house. And I say that both professionally and personally. I’m really glad you’re here, Jo.”

“I am, too, Cam.” Her voice was soft, and so was her smile. “This wasn’t what I expected when I came to visit my mom. But I’m so happy we reconnected. And that I can use my skills to protect you and Fiona.”

She looked at her watch, then looked at him and grinned. “Lunch time!” she said. “Instead of eating in your office, I think we should go out. I’m sure we can find a restaurant near a pharmacy. Kill two birds with one stone.”

“I like the way you think. Let me take these names down to Don and have him start calling. I’m gonna ask him to get your friends here ASAP.”

“Good.” She leaned toward him. “When they arrive, I think we should take them out to lunch or dinner in small groups. Explain what I’ve seen and what you’ve found. They can be nine sets of eyes and ears on the job, watching for problems, and I’m certain none of them would agree to use inferior parts in houses they built.”

“Great idea,” Cam said. “I love the idea of having our own set of spies.”

“Yeah. We’ll make sure none of them say anything to anyone. I’ll tell them to act dumb but keep their eyes and ears open,” Jo said.

Cam studied her for a long moment. How had he ever let Jo get away? Why hadn’t he made a move on her when they were still in high school? Biggest mistake of his life. Finally he said, “Having you show up in Ogden? It’s the best thing that’s happened for me in a very long time.”

Jo gave him a slow, heated smile. “Me, too, Cam. Me, too.”