Total pages in book: 59
Estimated words: 55353 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 277(@200wpm)___ 221(@250wpm)___ 185(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 55353 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 277(@200wpm)___ 221(@250wpm)___ 185(@300wpm)
The elevator doors opened and we stepped on. Harley pressed the button for the floor that his office was on. “You’re absolutely right.”
“What?”
Harley chuckled. “You’re right. I already told Quentin that was totally inappropriate, especially on your first day. It won’t happen again.”
Was I getting the bad cop, good cop treatment, or was he being serious? “Oh, um. Thank you.”
We climbed off the elevator and made our way down to Harley’s office. I smiled and waved at Garrett as we passed him, and he winked at me, and I also saw Holly, the Harley’s assistant who’d been present at my interview. He led me into his office, but before we were in all the way, he let out a deep sigh.
“Why are you here?” He continued into the office and I followed after him, realizing when I was far enough in the room, that the woman I’d met before was there; Malia, Harley’s fiancee.
“So nasty about the way you greet a fiancee, and in front of company?” Malia was sitting in Harley’s office chair, looking at me through a set of narrow, scanning eyes. “Hello again.”
“Hi.”
Harley looked at me and then back at Malia. “We have some training to do. So, is there something you need?”
“I just wanted to see my future husband.” She gave me another one of her close eyed smiles that was more daunting than it was friendly. “And, of course, I wanted to formally welcome Alexa to the company.”
Being in the middle of the conversation made my skin crawl. “Thank you.”
Harley walked over to his chair and turned it to face him. He leaned down until his face was hovering just above hers and I could hear that he was saying something to her, but I couldn’t make out what he was saying. Finally, he pecked Malia on the lips and she gave him a broad grin, that was much more warm than the ones she’d given me. She ran her hand over Harley’s face and then stood up from his chair, swapping places with him, so he could sit there instead. She picked up her purse, gave him another quick kiss on the cheek and then filed out of the office without another word, shutting the door behind her.
I let out a breath once she was gone. “Jealous type?”
Harley shook his head. “Uh, yeah.” He motioned to the chairs in front of his desk. “Please.”
I sat down, trying to push away the gnawing at my stomach at the lingering image of Harley giving Malia a kiss. “I got my assignment from Quentin and he told me I should come here next.”
“Yes, thank you. I’m hoping you can do your first telecast tomorrow? I know it’s quick, but the show you’re anchoring takes place once a week on Tuesdays, and we haven’t missed a week in close to ten years. I know that journalism is your thing, and you will have all the opportunities you want to control your own stories, but for this first telecast I’ve had everything completed already. Most of it by me, some of it by Huxley.” He picked up a folder from his desk and handed it across his desk to me. “All the stories are in here. Let me know if you wanna scrap any of em. We went heavy to make sure we had enough. Going forward, you’ll be in control of the writing team and making sure the stories are things you want to cover. I trust you to elevate the quality of our program.”
I took the folder, a feeling of confused warmth washing over me. “Thank you.”
“Is everything okay?” Harley asked. “Was it Malia? I’m sorry, that was weird.”
“No, that’s fine, I know relationships can be weird. No, it’s not her, it’s you.”
Harley’s eyebrows perked up. “Me? What about me?”
“You’re different.”
Harley sat back in his chair and folded his hands over his stomach. “Wow, really? All I’ve been told for six years is that I haven’t changed enough. Is it a good different at least?”
I smirked. “Yeah. You seem, I don’t know… warmer.”
Harley nodded. “Well, I feel warm.”
My body was getting progressively hotter the longer I sat there. “Me too.”
11
Harley
I couldn’t stop smiling as I watched Alexa giving her first newscast as our new head anchor. She was the perfect mix of beautiful and professional. Every time she cracked a joke or made a sweet giggle, I could sense our ratings going up. I could already see the headlines, ‘Foxx News’ replacement anchor is a change for the better.’
“To close out the evening with something to add a little joy to your Tuesday, Poppo the Pug will be at the Corvdale Mall this weekend, taking pictures with the young and the young at heart. Poppo and his owner, Angela, work for the World Wildlife Fund, and are doing their part to raise money to combat the extinction of many species that lost record-breaking numbers during the horrendous wildfires that hit Australia earlier this year. Poppo wants everyone to know that he loves taking pictures, puperdoodle treats, and belly scratches, so take some time to head to Corvdale Mall, do some back to school shopping, and snap a flick with Poppo!”