"Well, my money's on you," Brooke said.
"Mine's on Cam," Mina said. "Come on, Cameron. You know you want to."
"The hell I do."
"You should," she pressed. "We're still one guy short."
Tyree frowned. "Are we?"
Jenna nodded. "We don't have a hard rule that it has to be twelve contestants for each slot, so I wouldn't say we're short. We did manage to get twelve. But then one guy had to drop out. He got called out of town on business."
"See?" Mina pressed.
"Could he do it?" Brent asked. "I thought we were having local celebrities narrow down the applications to the final twelve."
Jenna lifted a shoulder. "I could get his application to them on Monday. I know they'd say yes."
"Um, hello. Right here."
Mina started to say something, but Brent pointed a finger to hush her. "If Cam wants to enter, he can tell Jenna later."
"Fine." Mina lifted her hands in surrender.
"I've had way too many of these," Brooke said. "I'm going to the ladies room. Back in a sec."
She was still thinking about the expression on Cam's face when she left the restroom a few minutes later. Maybe he would enter. She hoped he did. He was damn sure good-looking enough. True, he had a sweet, shy streak that made him seem younger than his years. But toss a little confidence his way, and--
"Oh!" She jumped, then realized that the hard body she'd walked into in the dark was Spencer.
"I was looking for you." Heat infused his voice.
"Were you? How interesting."
"Mmm." He pressed her up against the wall, caging her in. "Wasn't that long ago I held you like this with a completely different motive."
"My, how things changed." She hooked her arms around his waist then rose up on her toes to kiss him. "Did you find me out here for a tryst?"
"Actually, I have news. The tryst is just a perk."
"News?" She heard the excitement in his voice. "Spencer? What's going on?"
"I got an email from Richie's attorney."
Brooke's heart started to beat double-time. "This late? That can't be good."
"Actually, it is. She said she was working late on his case and realized she hadn't given me a heads-up."
"His case? I thought he was out of appeals."
"He's up for parole." Spencer's voice was tight with hope.
"What? That's incredible."
"I know. He's already had his interview."
"When will he hear if parole is granted?"
"We're not sure." He ran his fingers through his hair. "Fifteen years, Brooke. It's forever, but if he can get out now, he can still make a real life."