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My heart pounded in my ears and I bit my lip. I felt really awful, fighting back tears.
Jo shook her head without moving away from Liam. “You didn’t! I love them!” It was hard to believe her when she was still sobbing. Liam shook his head, scooping Jo into his arms.
“Alright, let’s go back upstairs. You can show me your present while you calm down. I told you staying up all night reading wasn’t a good idea.” He chuckled, carrying her up to their room. When they were out of sight, I glanced back at James. He was fighting hard against a smile.
“Pretty sure you just convinced Jo to have a baby.”
I glanced up the stairs and then back at him, frowning. “How do you figure that? I just made her cry!” Guilt still wracked me and my chin trembled. James pulled me against him, dipping down to pick up the rest of the bags and scoop me up at the same time.
“It’s a hunch. You can tell me if I’m right when you meet up with her after lunch.”
ChapterTwenty
We atelunch in the kitchen with a bunch of the guys who worked with James. They had an easy camaraderie and were constantly poking fun at one another. They also had no filter when it came to talking about work so I heard a lot more than I probably should have about mob business. I worried they might get in trouble for talking about it in front of me but no one said anything to the contrary.
Gabi showed up with Dmitriy a little while later, looking a little pale.
“Are you okay?”
She glanced up at me. “Hmm? Oh, yeah. I’m fine. Just had a rough morning. Where’s Jo?”
“Upstairs. Elizabeth made her cry,” Jaime supplied, dropping into the seat next to me. I whimpered, burying my face into my arms on the table. There was a loud whack and Jaime grunted. “Shit! Sorry, I was just teasing! You really need to stop doing that.”
I felt James run his fingers through my hair. “Stop giving me a reason to do it. She feels bad enough.”
Jaime nudged my shoulder. “I’m sure she’s fine. From the noises I heard when I passed their room, they’re in a pretty good mood right now,” he snickered.
My head jerked up, swiveling to face him. “Really?”
He nodded, making a face. “We really need to soundproof their room. Jo and I spend more time together than anyone, she’s basically my little sister. I do not need to hear that every time I pass by.”
I relaxed a little. I was really worried she’d skip out on hanging out with me after everything. I really like Jo and felt like a crappy friend for making her cry.
Gabi leaned forward in her seat, her eyes dancing. “What’d you do?”
I opened my mouth to answer but Jo and Liam took that exact moment to stroll into the room. Jo was beaming, dropping into Liam’s lap when he joined us at the table. When she made eye contact with Jaime, she stuck her tongue out at him.
“Shut up.”
He put his hands up defensively. “Hey, I didn’t say anything.”
“I can see it in your face. Stop eavesdropping, pervert.”
His jaw dropped, his eyes wide as the room burst into laughter. “I was not eavesdropping! You two are loud as hell!”
Jo flushed but didn’t reply. She sat back, leaning against Liam as the guys who were in the room teased Jaime. When she looked at me, she cocked her head.
“Why do you look so upset? Did something happen?”
I grimaced and James pulled me into the crook of his arm. “She feels bad because she thinks she made you cry. And Jaime won’t stop teasing her about it.”
Jaime jerked his attention back to us, a scandalized look on his face. “One thing! I said one thing! Why is everyone out to get me today?”
Jo ignored him, leaning across the table to take my hand. “You did and you didn’t. I was overwhelmed. You were right, I hadn’t really been thinking about the fun stuff. You’re a really good friend, please don’t be upset.”
Jaime grumbled beside me, crossing his arms. “You already have a best friend. You can’t have two.”
Jo smirked at him, winking at me. I gave her a relieved smile.
