I nod, unable to decide if I should be amused or touched at her earnest offer of a cow. “Thank you. But no matter how prime his beef is, don’t forget—he told everyone he doesn’t love me.” Doesn’t hurt for me to say it because I don’t love him back. Right? I don’t.
“Boo!” Kim and Hilary say in unison.
“What are you booing about?” Mark Pryce sticks his head into Hilary’s camera view. The man’s handsomely dark, as all the Pryce family members are.
“A man who should be worshipping the ground Jo walks upon says he doesn’t love her,” Hilary explains.
“Men can be slow about their feelings. They only notice when emotions run them over like a semi. Maybe a tank,” Mark says, then places a kiss on the crown of her head.
The gesture is so natural, but also intimate because his love for his wife shines through even on the tiny phone screen. And a longing to have that for myself grips me so hard that I almost gasp. I’ve never felt something this intensely. Is it because I’m pregnant and the baby wants me to have a loving husband and a doting father for my child?
“I need to go over some numbers, but I’ll check in with you later. Don’t stay up too late. Gavin works you too hard, and you need your rest,” Mark says, before waving us goodbye and vanishing.
Hilary sighs, her eyes all gooey as they follow her husband.
It’s Kim who speaks up first. “Mark’s right. His dad got divorced for it.”
“My boss almost got divorced too,” Hilary adds.
“My parents are okay, but Dad’s smart enough to take Mom out for a fancy dinner and a show once a month. And buys her purses. She has the best collection,” Yuna says.
“When you talked about Edgar, it sounded like you want him too,” Hilary says.
“He’s good in bed,” I say, trying hard to sound like I don’t care that much. Except I think I’m doing a bad job, like I’m passing by some really cute shoes and declaring they’re just okay.
Hilary’s giving me a long, probing look.
“Okay, he’s good at other things, too,” I admit. If he didn’t live so far away or hadn’t said he doesn’t love me so baldly, I might be open to the possibility of more. Falling in love, even.
Kim grows thoughtful. “So the only real problem here is: he thinks he doesn’t love you.”
“Make him admit he loves you,” Yuna says. “I’m sure he’s in denial. Nobody does what this man is doing unless he cares. I’ll get you a dossier on him if you want.”
“A…dossier?”
Yuna shrugs. “If you want to find a good angle to get him to understand what he’s really feeling and admit it out loud…I can get you a very thorough background report.”
Hilary is frowning, but Kim nods. “I’ve seen one. They’re really thorough.”
“Edgar probably already looked you up anyway,” Yuna says. “I would, if I were him.”
Thankfully, she isn’t. “Oh my God. Did you look me up too?”
“Well, yeah.” She laughs. “But don’t worry. Everything was complimentary!”
“Really?” Am I supposed to believe her and get offended or just accept that somebody in her position needs to be careful? She’s a wealthy heiress, and I’m sure she’s had experience with people trying to take advantage. It would be foolish not to be careful. But her going through my background feels vaguely…violating.
She shakes her head. “Just kidding. God, people have no sense of humor these days.”
Hilary smiles a diplomatic smile. “Regardless, Jo, you’re totally adorable. And I’m telling you as a person who’s working for a boss who likes to buy extravagant gifts for his wife. No matter how rich, men don’t buy multimillion-dollar homes for women they don’t care about. Rich people don’t become—or stay—rich by being stupid with their money. Think about that.”
Chapter Twenty-Four
Jo
Thinking about it is the last thing I should’ve done. I balefully glare at my tired reflection in the bathroom late the next morning.
Dammit, he shouldn’t have said what he said at Nieve. Not if he wanted me to have a good night’s sleep.