Page 16 of Be Mine Forever

There’s that foolish, shit-eating grin again.

This would not do. Hope was not her friend. Hope didn’t give it to her straight but fed her the lie that one day Cam might notice she was in love with him. Might love her back. The last fifteen years or so had taught her that hope was a sneaky bitch who sidled up to you, ingratiated her way into your good graces, only to shove a knife in your back when you least expected it.

But the sketches…

They had been sketches of her back, with her hair pulled over one shoulder and the zipper peeled away to reveal her bra and panties. Did a man sketch something like that if he wasn’t interested?

How would she know anymore? It had been so long since she had a man in her bed. The good thing about sexual frustration? If you found a healthy outlet for it, say running your ass off—literally—it wasn’t so bad.

Between running ten miles a day and knitting, Jo had avoided meaningless one-night stands and STDs.

Tone Loc’s “Wild Thing,” the ringtone Meredith had fittingly programmed for herself, interrupted Jo’s running playlist. Jo answered, earphones still in as she slowed and walked into the Chevalier Hotel lobby.

“Hey, Mer.” Jo offered the two staffers at the front desk a warm smile before boarding the elevator and heading up to the penthouse.

“G’morning. How the hell are ya?”

Jo hadn’t had many “girlfriends” through the years, but she enjoyed the easy friendship she and Meredith had developed.

“I’m good. How are Kerris and the girls?”

“Awesome, but Kerris will be a lot better once Walsh is back.”

“I can imagine. Walsh missing the birth…He would have given anything to be here.”

“Seems like he’s been missing a lot lately.”

Jo frowned up at the ascending numbers in the elevator.

“What’s that mean?”

“Just that every time I’ve talked to Kerris lately, Walsh has been working or out of town. I just hope he’ll slow down long enough to enjoy his new babies.”

“Well, of course he will.” Jo’s hackles raised an inch or two in her cousin’s defense. “Youdounderstand that Uncle Martin had a heart attack? Walsh is under tremendous pressure from the board to keep investors and shareholders confident Bennett Enterprises won’t skip a beat until his father returns.”

“Don’t get defensive.”

“I’m not, I just think it’s hard for you to grasp—”

“Rich people’s problems?” Meredith’s drawl dripped sarcasm. “So I’m pooranddumb?”

“Don’t put words in my mouth.” Jo took her time walking to Etinette’s suite door. “I’m just saying Walsh has a lot going on.”

“Is anything more important than those two baby girls? Than Kerris?”

“No, of course not.” Jo blew out a ragged breath, part frustration, part exertion from her run. “Just let up on Walsh. He’s trying his best.”

“You will always defend those guys ’til the end, won’t you?”

“Guys?”

“Walsh and Cam.” Meredith let out a little gasp on the other end. “Wait! You stayed at the hotel. You and Cam finally shared a bed last night?”

“We didnotshare a bed.” Jo rolled her eyes, leaning against the wall, in no hurry to see little Miss La Vie en Rose this early. “We didn’t even share a bedroom.”

“You sound disappointed.”

“I…Well, I’m not.” Jo pushed away from the wall, preferring Frenchie over Meredith’s interrogation after all. “I’ll see you in a couple of hours when I come to the hospital.”

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