Love Inspired November 2013 #2 (46 page)

He let out a long breath. He hadn't had dinner. He'd missed his run that morning. The pertussis epidemic was weighing on his mind. He wasn't sleeping like he should. McHale was breathing down his neck and asking him to do something he felt was unethical. Nothing more than that. Nothing a vacation wouldn't straighten out.

Okay, truthfully, maybe he was feeling like it was time to settle down and start a family. Maybe it was seeing Grant and Calista wrapped up in their new baby. He'd dated a few girls who had turned into great friends. But he'd never felt this pull, this inability to get his body to follow his brain. And his brain was telling him that this woman next to him was going to complicate his relatively straightforward life in all sorts of ways.

Allison and Sean are complications, and you wouldn't let them go for the world.
The little voice in his head reminded him that sometimes love was that way. It walked in and rearranged the furniture in your heart, changing everything around, making you feel like a stranger in your own place. And when it was all done, you realized you were happier.

Evie had held that baby like the precious gift he was. He'd been caught up in the moment; his chest had contracted at the sight of the tears in her eyes. Then he'd remembered Allison. His sister who had made terrible choices, who had given birth to a child no one wanted, who had hidden from the world until her shame was too heavy to bear all alone.

Allison, the sister who always walked on the wild side, believed she would be a big star someday. When she met a man and fell in love, she hadn't cared that the man was married and had children. It was always about her feelings, her dreams. But he was in the public eye, so it was only a matter of time before the gossip hounds found them out.

Sean, who should have been welcomed into the world because he was innocent, was hidden away like a stain on the family honor. Gavin hadn't even known Sean existed for a year. The thought of those missed moments, and of Allison's broken heart, made him sick inside.

“Gavin?” Evie was watching him, a question in her eyes.

“Sorry, I was thinking.”
About you and love and complications.
He tried to catch up to the topic they'd been debating. He couldn't let his feelings dictate his actions. That was for weaker men, men like McHale. Commitment and focus was his rule, because the world didn't need more messy drama.

* * *

“It's Friday. Go have some fun. You never take a day off.” Jack slouched in the chair across from Evie's desk, feet propped on the corner of a cabinet. He sounded bored, which was his usual reaction to frustration. He'd spent the morning schmoozing new clients.

“If I did, I wouldn't spend it snowboarding.” Evie shuffled papers and tried to ignore her brother's annoying presence. He'd had only one meeting today and the rest of the day was free. That's what happened when you were a figurehead and not a real manager. He knew it. She knew it. They didn't really talk about it.

“Do you even know how to take the day off? Or would you end up back here, sorting through stories and fighting with the lawyers?”

Evie rubbed her temples and tried to beat back the angry words that swirled in her head. Jack was acting like she didn't want to have a life. She did. It just didn't include acting like a teenager. She wanted to do something real.

There was a light knock on the door and Amy Morket popped into view. Evie was fairly sure what was going to come out of Amy's mouth in the next few seconds.

It was a surprise she'd gone most of the morning without bumping into the overeager reporter. Working dynamics were complicated, especially where women were concerned. A woman who took charge was labeled differently than a man who had initiative. But Amy grated on her nerves. She was always nosing into stories that were assigned to more senior reporters. Where Jolie was bright and tough, Amy was sly and determined.

“Ms. Thorne, I've heard there was a lot of trouble with the sweatshop story. I think I could help out, if you'd let me in on it. I could go undercover.”

Evie wanted to drop her head to the desk. Amy had dark hair but ivory skin that paired perfectly with her bright blue eyes. She was going to infiltrate a slave labor ring that shuttled groups of South American aliens from warehouse to warehouse? It would have been laughable if it wasn't such a terrible idea.

“We're working on it. We've got source issues. When it's back on the front burner, I'll let you know.”

“I have lots of contacts. I hear rumors.” Amy leveled a gaze at Evie and narrowed her eyes. One manicured hand on her slim hip, shoes that cost more than the normal weekly take at
The Chronicle,
and Amy was probably the last person to hear rumors about slave labor. But Evie wondered what she could have been hearing. She cut her eyes to Jack, who shrugged.

“What kind of rumors?”

Amy's eyes widened. “Does this mean I'm on the story?”

“No, it means if you have something helpful, we could see if it will
save
the story.”

Amy looked like she was deliberating. “I'll write up what I know and send you an email.”

“Okay, that's fine.” Evie gave her a smile and waited for the door to close. Then she waited another few beats. “What do you think she knows?” she asked Jack softly.

“When all the big sales are scheduled. She has nice shoes. And legs.”

Evie rolled her eyes. That story was on hold, and it made her angry that they couldn't run something that would save people from modern-day slavery.

“She sort of reminds me of you.”

“Excuse me?” Evie tried to put all her umbrage into two words.

“I don't know what it is. Her drive, maybe.” Jack was staring at the door, frowning.

She wanted to protest but felt the uncomfortable brush of the ugly truth. Amy was driven, just like she had been. No matter the cost, she was going to be successful.

Shaking off the thought, Evie rubbed her eyes. “I just want to do something real. I'm tired of stumping for advertising dollars.”

“Real? Everything you print is real.” Her brother paused, choosing his words carefully. “I think you're overcompensating. You made bad choices, repented, changed your life and bought
The Chronicle.
But that doesn't mean you can't have fun once in a while. Plus, nobody even reads papers anymore. If you really want to do some good, you need to get an online presence.”

“You call it overcompensation and I call it doing something worthwhile. And we're working on the online subscription system.” They'd told her it would be up by the end of the month. She hoped they could hold out that long. If the paper lost many more subscribers, she wouldn't have to argue whether running so many community service articles was overcompensating or not because there wouldn't be any articles at all.

She rubbed her temples. The hum of the enormous machines running thirty feet of newsprint a minute echoed through the floor below. Of course she could do good in the world without a paper, but this was what she did best. God knew her strengths and weaknesses, and this paper was a weapon she could wield against poverty and injustice. As long as she could keep it running.

“Good. You can't afford to ignore the internet.” He sat forward, eyes somber. “Seriously, Evie. I don't want to see you beat yourself up about a few mistakes made a really long time ago. I think if you weren't still holding on to guilt, you'd be away from this desk a lot more.”

“I know that I can't fix what I've done with a few columns.” How ridiculous to think she could. “But I'm not working from a place of unresolved guilt. I just don't want to waste any more time.”

“Do you ever think you'll miss something important by working all the time?” His voice was quiet. The afternoon light from the large window put half his face into shadow, sharpening his features. “I just don't want you to miss your chance at happiness.”

She felt her eyebrows rise. “Do I only get one? Why the sudden philosophical bent?”

“I've been thinking about things.”

Uh-oh. So, it wasn't just her that had a revelation while holding Gabriel. “Things?”

“Specifically, my present employment.”

Jack, groomed from birth to take over the family business and shuttled off to business school, rethinking his job? “Colorado Supplements would survive without you.”

“Of course they would. I don't really do anything. But Dad might never forgive me.”

The sound of the busy newsroom faded away as Evie waited in the moment. She'd never believed it would come. “You have to be true to your purpose in life.”

He looked up, eyes bright. “Exactly. I've let myself live a life that was designed for someone else. That's like a slap in the face to God, don't you think?”

She nodded, her breath tight in her chest. She knew exactly what that type of life felt like.

“I want to be who I was meant to be.”

“And who is that?”

He sat back with a sigh. “I have no idea. But you know, I'll figure it out.”

Evie nodded, eyes moist. “I'm proud of you. Have I said that recently?”

He grinned over at her, his usual teasing tone back in evidence. “Not recently. But that's gonna change.”

She tried to wipe the tear from her cheek without being too obvious. Was there anything more powerful than watching a person embrace their calling? Jack wasn't sure what his was, yet, but he was willing to be led wherever God wanted him to go.

“Now that I've made you cry, I should say something to make you mad. It will be just like old times.” He put a finger to his chin and pretended to be deep in thought. “How's Gavin? Seen him lately?”

Evie rolled her eyes and pretended to straighten papers. Why did the phone ring all day long until this conversation? And where were all her reporters?

“He's got a thing for you.”

Evie snorted. “He's got a thing for the paper. We're working on a series about the pertussis outbreak.”

“And you don't feel anything for him?”

Evie felt her mouth drop open. Jack wasn't one to ask about feelings. “I'm not sure what to say. There are feelings and then there is something that has an actual chance at surviving the reality we live in.”

“Have you ever been in love?” Jack's voice held no hint of sarcasm or teasing. In fact, he was deadly serious.

She'd know if she had been, right? “I don't think so.”

“A few years ago you said there wasn't a man in Denver you'd really consider.”

Evie knew what he was saying; she'd felt it herself. Gavin was different. But she was afraid to hope, afraid to say anything in case it all crumbled to dust.

“I think there's one that deserves a second look.”

“I'm not sure what I feel. Maybe it's something important and I'm going to miss my one chance. Or just maybe it's that he's a disease specialist and he's infected us with something horrible and we're all going to die.”

Her brother dropped his feet to the floor with a bang. “You're the most unromantic person I've ever known.”

“I don't really have the time to be romantic.” She tried to keep the frustration out of her voice but couldn't quite manage it.

“Maybe you should make some time.”

She glared at him, weighing her words. The door cracked open and Jolie stuck her head inside. “Sorry to interrupt. You've got someone coming from the Downtown Association in ten minutes.”

“Thanks for the reminder.” Evie gave her a smile and tried to ignore Jolie's obvious appreciation for Jack's backside as he stood up, stretching his arms over his head.

“Later, little sis.” He leaned over the desk, dropped a kiss on her head and went to open the office door. “And where love is concerned, you better trust me.”

He passed through the door and Jolie reappeared. “Safe to come in?”

“Why wouldn't it be?” Evie sat up straight and pretended like she wasn't absolutely rattled. Jack was going to quit their family business. He'd given her a speech on getting a life. He said she needed to give Gavin more than a passing glance. As if she could help it.

“Usually I hear you two laughing up a storm in here. Today was...quiet.” Jolie dropped into the chair across the desk, a folder on her lap, fluffy neon pink skirt in sharp contrast with her black-and-white-striped T-shirt, lime-green tights and black Converse shoes.

“Well, we were just disagreeing on a course of action. And he doesn't like it when I disagree.” She said the words lightly, as if it didn't matter what her twin thought.

“It's about that vaccine guy, Gavin, isn't it? Is Jack getting overprotective? Wants to run him over with his car?”

Evie let out a startled laugh. “Why would you ever think that?”

“I finally outsmarted Miss Observant, didn't I?”

“It's not what you think. It sort of concerns him, but not the way you're implying.” Oh, boy, Evie was digging a hole.

“Uh-huh. A gorgeous man shows up here, there are all sorts of sparks flying around, and then Jack's unhappy? It doesn't take a genius to figure that one out.”

“It's too complicated to explain. And I don't know where you get the sparks part because you saw him for about four seconds when he came through the newsroom.”

“Which was three seconds more than I needed. I may be a lot younger than you, Ms. Thorne, but I can definitely tell when a man is interested.” She sighed. “Which is a horrible burden to bear when you realize your crush isn't into you. Jack didn't even stop to chat on his way out.”

Evie offered up a short prayer of thanks for that one. She thought Jolie was wonderful, but Jack really didn't need a nineteen-year-old girlfriend.

“Anyway, here's the next set of ad mockups for the Sunday inserts.” She stood up, handing the folder to Evie.