Page 21 of My One and Only (Blackhawk Security #10)

A s Jo was starting the car in the drug store parking lot, Cam pulled out his phone and tapped one of his contacts. Moments later, he said, “Hey, Mom. Are you busy right now?”

“Not if you need something, Cam. What can I do for you?” she asked

“I really hate to ask, since you do so much for me,” he said. “But I need a favor. I have to pick up a loaner while they’re repairing my truck, and Jo won’t let me drive yet. Do you think you could drive Jo and me over to the Enterprise location in Geneva?”

“Of course. Want me to meet you at your office?”

“No, we have to drop off Jo’s car at my house anyway, so we’ll meet you there.”

“Okay,” she said, and he could hear the smile in her voice. Like she was excited about the chance to do him a favor. “See you in a few minutes.”

“We’ll be there shortly.”

While he’d been speaking to his mom, Jo had opened the glove box and stashed the condoms there. Out of sight of anyone who might look in his car. “Good thinking,” he murmured.

She turned to him, her eyes twinkling. “Yeah. Don’t want to advertise what we’re planning for our spare time.”

“Absolutely not,” Cam said, shuddering at the ribbing he’d take from everyone who worked for him if they spotted condoms in his car.

Ten minutes later, they’d pulled into the driveway of his house. His mom was in her car, parked in front of his house.

As Cam unbuckled Fiona’s car seat and stashed it in his mom’s trunk, Jo climbed into the back seat. Leaning forward, she said, “Thanks for doing this, Mrs. Pierce. I really appreciate it.”

“I do, too, Mom,” Cam said as he got into the front seat. “I hate interrupting your day.”

“Not a problem, Cam,” she said breezily. “I was heading out soon to do the grocery shopping, so it’s just an extra stop.” She glanced at him, and Cam recognized the look -- the interrogation was about to begin.

“I got up to get a glass of water last night and saw lights on in your kitchen,” his mom said. “And were those police cars in front of your house?”

Cam clenched his teeth. He’d hoped his parents had been sound asleep and hadn’t seen any of the activity the previous night. Finally, he took a breath. Blew it out. “Yeah, those were police cars in front of the house,” he said. “A guy broke in. But Jo heard him and stopped him. By the time the police showed up, she’d cuffed his wrists and ankles and had him on the floor. He’s the police department’s problem now.”

Cam’s mom looked over her shoulder at Jo. “Thank you for keeping my son and granddaughter safe, Jo. You must have been scared.”

“Not really, Mrs. Pierce,” Jo said. “I’ve trained a lot for that kind of scenario, so it was all instinct. And I always have zip ties with me when I’m on a job, so the guy last night was down and secure in less than a minute.” She smiled. “Before he could figure out what was happening, he was immobilized.”

“Jo, we’re all adults now. I’d really prefer you call me Carole. Mrs. Pierce reminds me of my late mother-in-law.” Ellen made a face, and Jo suppressed a smile.

“Will do, Mrs. … Carole.”

“Thank God you came home to visit your mom,” Cam’s mom said to Jo. “And reconnected with Cam. You might have saved both his life and Fiona’s last night.”

“Just doing my job,” Jo said, and Cam heard the discomfort in her voice. He knew she didn’t want anyone to know that she was his bodyguard. His mom had to know, but he hoped she hadn’t told anyone else.

“And speaking of which, Mom, you haven’t said anything to anyone except Dad about Jo being my bodyguard, have you? And Dad hasn’t told anyone, has he?”

“Your dad hasn’t said anything, and neither have I.” She pursed her lips. “Even to Gloria, and you know how close we are.”

“Jo and I appreciate that, Mom.” He glanced over his shoulder at Jo and saw her nodding. “After this is over and the people behind this are locked up, you can tell all your friends about your son’s bodyguard.”

Carole laughed. “You can be sure I will. No one I know has ever had a bodyguard. Never needed one.”

As they pulled into the Enterprise parking lot, Carole turned into an empty parking spot. “You gonna be okay if I leave?”

“Absolutely,” Cam said. “They told me they had a truck ready for me.” He leaned over and kissed his mother’s cheek. “Thanks for the lift, Mom.”

“Glad I could do it,” she said, patting her son’s face. She swiveled and said, “Take care of my boy, Jo.”

“Don’t worry, Carole. He’s my number one priority until I’m certain everyone behind this scheme is locked up.”

She opened her door, got out and headed around the car. Scanned the parking lot for a long moment before she opened his door. As soon as he’d retrieved the car seat from the trunk, they hurried inside the building. Cam’s mother pulled out of the lot and drove off.

The truck was ready for Cam, and he made sure that Jo was covered to drive the vehicle. When assured that she was, Jo waited until Cam had installed the car seat in the back, then helped Cam into the passenger seat. After sliding behind the wheel, she checked out where all the controls were, then started the truck and guided it out of the lot.

She glanced at him as they drove toward Ogden. “Back to the office?” she asked.

Cam wanted to tell her no. Wanted her to drive back to his house so they could open that package of condoms, but he nodded. “Yeah. Back to the office. We only have a couple of hours before we pick up Fiona, and I still have lots of work to get done.”

There must have been some frustration in his voice, because Jo glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. “Yeah,” she said, her voice soft. “I wish we could go back to your place, too. Maybe tomorrow we could have lunch at home.”

Cam shot her a smile. “I like that plan. A lot.”

“Good. Lunch at home it is.” Jo gripped the steering wheel as she guided the car back to his office.

Cam glanced at the dashboard clock. “I called Fiona’s teacher this morning and arranged to meet with her after school.” He glanced over at her. “It’s warmed up a lot today. You could probably take her to the school playground. Let her play there while I talk with her teacher.”

Jo frowned at him. “I don’t like you being in the school and me being outside. Goes against all my rules.”

“I know, but you saw the security at the school. No one’s getting into that building who doesn’t belong there. And I don’t want Fiona with me at the meeting -- she does not need to hear that I’m worried about her interactions with other kids. I’m hoping it’s a short meeting. That Fiona isn’t having any problems at school, and that she has some friends in her class.”

“I hope so, too, Cam.” She reached over and touched his arm, and he wanted to put his hand over hers. Keep her there. But she only lingered for a moment while the light was red. As soon as she began driving again, she eased her hand away from him.

As she drove toward his office, Jo’s head moved constantly. From one side of the truck to the other. Into the rearview mirror. Scanning all the traffic coming toward them. The cars and trucks behind them.

By the time they reached his office building, he was exhausted from the stress. Jo, on the other hand, didn’t seem at all affected by the possibility of someone targeting this truck.

Him? He was nervous. Edgy. Would be until this nightmare was over. Good thing he wouldn’t be driving, because he’d be watching everything each time they got into the car. Always looking for a threat. Thank God Jo was here to take some of that stress away from him.

As they pulled into the parking lot of his building, he said, “I’m sorry we didn’t get lunch. We can heat up some mac and cheese or have a PBJ before we leave to get Fiona.”

“That’s fine,” Jo said. “I’m not picky. And if you don’t finish the work you mentioned earlier, we can always bring Fiona back to your office after your meeting,” she said. “I could help her with her homework while you got more work done.”

Cam pressed his lips together. He saw her fingers whiten as she tightened her grip on the steering wheel. Realized she thought he was pissed off at the idea of her helping Fiona with her homework again.

Was he really unhappy with the idea that Jo would help Fiona with her homework? Was he that petty?”

He hoped not. Someone needed to pull his head out of his ass. And he needed to apologize to Jo.

“Thank you for helping her with her homework yesterday,” he said. “Not only was it a huge help, but Fiona clearly enjoyed having your help. So, yeah, if I don’t get all my work done, we’ll go back to the office after my meeting. As long as you’re sure you don’t mind helping her.”

Jo frowned. “Of course I don’t mind helping her,” she said. Her shoulders relaxed and a smile lingered on her mouth. “I enjoyed it. Fiona’s a smart kid. She’s very sweet.”

“My mom usually gets her started on her homework, and Fiona and I finish it together.” He took a deep breath. Having Jo here, being a part of his family life, was temporary. It was just until they caught whoever was behind the damage and the bribes. “But she seemed to enjoy having you help her.”

“The novelty of someone new,” Jo said easily. “Kids, I think, are very susceptible to that.” She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. “This is a moment in time, Cam. I’ll be gone in a week or two. Maybe a little longer. But this isn’t permanent. She’ll be all yours again soon.”

Cam sighed. “I’m not trying to protect Fiona from you,” he muttered.

She slanted a gaze at him, then looked out the windshield again. “You sure about that?”

Was he sure about that? Everything he’d said to Jo would make her think that was the case, he realized.

“Jo, everything about this is new to me,” he said, swallowing. “Someone targeted me. Deliberately hit my truck. I still haven’t completely recovered from that concussion.” He shook his head. “I’m a builder. I design houses. Build them. What most people would consider really boring work. I’m still trying to wrap my head around the fact that someone deliberately tried to hurt me.”

As she pulled into a parking spot outside his building, he reached for her hand. Held it tightly. “And now you’re my bodyguard. The one who got away. The woman I’ve always regretted losing. I’m kind of discombobulated right now. Stuck between the past and the present. So forgive me if I sound confused. Disoriented. Sooner or later, I’ll figure things out.”

Jo shifted in her seat to face him. “There’s not a lot to figure out,” she said. “Me -- bodyguard,” she said, slapping her chest. “You -- protectee.” She trailed her fingers down his chest but drew her hand away before he could grab it. “I call the shots.” Her mouth curled into a smile. “Which means I get to boss you around and tell you what to do. And you have to do what I tell you to do.”

“Goes against my code, Jo,” he said, shaking his head. “In my world, the man protects the woman.”

“That’s not how it is when you have a bodyguard,” she said immediately. Then she leaned closer. “But if you like, maybe I’ll let you boss me around in bed,” she said, a sly smile curling her mouth. “Would that make you feel better?”

“Oh, God, Jo,” he groaned. “How do you expect me to concentrate on work when you talk like that? Concentrate on my meeting with Fiona’s teacher.”

“You were good at multi-tasking back in high school,” she said. “Brush the rust off those skills and use them again.”

He slanted a look at her. “You’re an evil, evil woman, Jo Hatch.” But his mouth curled up into a delighted smile. “What am I going to do with you?”

She held his gaze for a beat too long. “I’m looking forward to finding out, Cam.”

Cam closed his eyes. How was he supposed to walk into that building? He hadn’t had this much trouble controlling his cock since high school. But a few sexy words from Jo had him hard as a rock. And impatient as hell.

It was going to be a very long afternoon and evening before Fiona fell asleep. And he was pretty sure Jo would keep dropping innuendos into their conversations for the rest of the day.

He wasn’t sure he’d survive it.

Not sure he wanted to.