In It to Win It

by Morgan Kearns

  Someone cleared their throat behind her. Jane grimaced, knowing darn well who it would be.

  “You didn’t wait,” the girl pouted.

  Jane didn’t say anything because she wasn’t sorry she hadn’t waited and any other excuse would have been lame.

  The girl had her hands on her hips, her clothes in disarray. She held out her hand and Jane squeaked. Part of her wanted to bust up laughing until she pee’d a little; the other part of her was completely mortified.

  “Will you please give these to Grayson?”

  “No!”

  The girl’s hand moved closer in an insistent jerk. “You have to.”

  “Actually, no. I don’t.”

  Seriously, this girl was trying to get Jane to give Grayson underwear. Not that Jane was sure it could be called underwear. It was the tiniest scrap of nylon she’d ever seen.

  “I’m sorry, I can’t,” Jane told her.

  The hopeful expression on the girl’s face flashed into one of fury. “Who the hell are you anyway? You’re not even that pretty.”

  Jane just shook her head and walked away … as quickly as she could without breaking out into a full-on sprint.

  It was all unnerving. And sure as hell gave her a new perspective of being hounded by the paparazzi. She now understood the reasoning behind celebrities hitting the guys chasing them around with cameras.

  GRAYSON WANTED TO HIT SOMETHING, PRE-ferably the jackass who’d taken the picture of him and Jane and sold it to the highest bidder.

  She refused to take his calls and it was pissing him off. He’d apologized—or tried to—but she didn’t want to hear anything he had to say. Now her phone rang once or twice and went to voicemail.

  He didn’t leave a message.

  He wasn’t a loser.

  His phone rang and he jammed a finger at the button to answer the call. “’Lo?”

  “Grayson, it’s Kevin.” Grayson’s agent sounded giddy. “My phone has been ringing off the hook since those mags hit the racks. Good job, my friend.”

  Grayson rolled his eyes and ground his teeth together. “How can I help you, Kevin?”

  “I was wondering if you’d give me the name of the young lady in the pictures and let me release a statement to the press.”

  “Absolutely not!” Grayson saw red. “You are to stay away from her.”

  “It wouldn’t take very much to figure out who she is, Grayson. I know she’s a reporter. Think of what it could do for her career to be—.”

  “Her career is just fine.” Grayson’s hand tightened on the phone and it squeaked a protest. “I’m warning you, do not push this.”

  Kevin blew a frustrated breath through the phone. “I’m just trying to do what’s best for you.”

  “What’s best for me is to leave Ja- —” He bit down on his tongue. He’d been so careful to keep her identity as quiet as her local popularity would allow. He was pretty sure that the entire state of Utah knew her, but he wasn’t going to make her national news. “Leave her alone, Kevin. The subject is closed. I’ve said all I’m going to say about it. Leave her alone.”

  “Okay. Okay, I’ll leave her alone. Can you give me something else for those vultures to chase?”

  “Isn’t that what I pay you for?”

  Before Kevin could say anything he ended the call and made another. There was more than one way to accomplish his apology.

  THE LARGE GLASS DOORS THAT SEPARATED the newsroom from the lobby opened and in bobbed an enormous arrangement of multi-colored tulips. As Jane admired the flowers, the vase floated closer and closer until it stopped next to her desk. Wrinkled hands with pink nails pushed the vase until it came to rest on the corner with a soft thunk.

  Lydia, the gray-haired receptionist, smiled. “I know you said to hold your calls, but these aren’t exactly a call.”

  “No, they’re not.” They’re gorgeous. “Thank you.”

  Jane was entranced by the yellows and reds and pinks and whites. There were even ones that were more than one color. She glanced up just in time to see Lydia give the flowers one last appreciative glance before she headed back the way she’d come.

  Jane sank down into her chair and stared at the flowers. She was almost afraid to open the card. If this was yet another ploy by a reporter for a statement she would scream.

  “Look at you. Girl of the hour,” Molly giggled as she rested her behind on the corner of Jane’s desk. “Who are they from?”

  “I don’t know.”

  Molly tsked her tongue, dipping her head to sniff some bright yellow petals. “What do you mean you don’t know?”

  Jane waved toward the flowers. “I haven’t opened the card.”

  Molly raised a brow and quirked the corner of her lip. Jane knew that her friend was trying not to laugh. It really was ridiculous to be afraid of the flowers and the stupid card that accompanied them.

  “Don’t you dare laugh at me!” She huffed and plucked the card from the plumage while Molly walked away—laughing.

  The card was full-sized, not a little one that normally accompanied flowers. And the handwriting said that these had been picked out personally.

  Jane,

  I’m sure your association with me hasn’t been pleasant, and I’d love more than anything to make it up to you. I tried to call, but just got voicemail. I don’t know if you’re avoiding me or if it’s your defense against the world.

  She could almost hear his soft, low chuckle that indicated he was nervous. And the image in her mind’s eye made Jane smile.

  I hope it’s the world you’re avoiding.

  Call me.

  -Grayson

  She really shouldn’t.

  She knew she shouldn’t call Grayson.

  More to the point, she knew she shouldn’t want to call Grayson. But she did. And as she dialed the number he’d provided, her heart thumped wildly in her chest and her fingers shook. She ended up having to dial the number three times before she got all ten digits punched in the correct order.

  “’Lo?”

  “Grayson?” she asked, suddenly afraid he’d given her the wrong number. Wouldn’t that be a great joke?

  “Jane!”

  Nope, she had the right number.

  “I’m so glad you called.”

  “Thank you for the flowers.” Her voice sounded distant, and she was grateful to pull off the nonchalance—even if she was shaking like she’d been dumped out of a blender’s frappe cycle.

  “Tulips are still your favorite, right?”

  Suddenly she couldn’t breathe. Her chest felt tight and her eyes stung. He’d remembered her favorite flower. That was so sweet. So very, very sweet.

  “Jane, you still there?”

  “Yeah. I’m here.”

  Her thoughts tumbled around in her head and she couldn’t manage to hold on to one for longer than a moment before another swooped in and assaulted her. Grayson made no sense; one moment he was flirty and handsome and remembering her favorite flower, the next he was aloof and almost cruel.

  “I can’t do this.” She’d meant to only think the words and didn’t realize she’d spoken them until he responded.

  “Can’t do what?”

  Crap. She was glad when that word stayed in her head.

  “This.” Her hand waved between her and the thin air where she imagined he’d be standing if this conversation were happening in person. “Grayson, I appreciate the flowers. They’re very pretty. But I need you to stop contacting me.”

  “Why?” He sounded genuinely confused and that infuriated her.

  “Why? Come on, Grayson. This back and forth is giving me whiplash. I can’t do it anymore. Okay? My heart can’t do it anymore.”

  “I want to explain.”

  “What’s to explain? When we’re alone you’re charming and captivating and completely adorable, then when other people are around, you’re … well, if I’m being perfectly honest, you’re an ass. It’s so bad that even Nate’s noticed it. I’m done. Don’t
—”

  “That’s not me.”

  “Oh, that’s original,” she snorted.

  “There is a reason for all of that. Come spend a week with me.”

  She laughed; a hysterical sarcastic laugh that caused tears to gather in the corners of her eyes. “Seriously? You really expect me to come spend a week with you.”

  “Think of it as an exclusive.”

  “You can take your exclusive and shove it where the sun don’t shine!”

  “I’ll call Dale.”

  Well, hell. Dale would jump all over an exclusive with Grayson.

  Her eyes narrowed and she glared so hard an intern ducked back into the bathroom. “Listen, Grayson, I don’t know what kind of game you’re playing, but I’m not willing to lose my career just so you can pull one over on Plain Jane.”

  “Janie. Oh, my sweet—”

  “I’m not—”

  “—Janie.”

  “—your sweet anything!”

  “There is no game.” His voice was soothing, like fine chocolate. A warm fuzzy feeling started to build in her belly and it reinforced her need to put him at an arm’s length. “I only want you to know who I really am.”

  “I know who you—”

  “Baby, you don’t know shit about me.”

  “Which is just about all I want to know!” Her head pounded, her heart throbbed and her anger soared. “Just drop the charade. It’s not doing either of us any good. If you want a glowing package with my voice telling the world how wonderful you are, then … fine. I’ll do it. Over the phone. We can use stock footage, heaven knows we have plenty.”

  “That’s not what I want. Well, it is. I do want you to tell the world how wonderful I am. But what I want, Janie, is for you to say it because you actually believe it.”

  “Ain’t gonna happen.” She’d meant to say the words under her breath, but his sigh signaled he’d heard her.

  Grayson’s voice was quiet when he spoke next. “I promise you will never be in any danger and you can leave any time you wish.”

  “If it’s only me and you for a week—” The thought made her stomach flutter, and she wasn’t sure if that was a good or a bad sign. “—how am I gonna get my exclusive interview?”

  “Have Nate come the last day, and you can interview me. On camera. Any questions that I haven’t already answered, you can ask. Nothing off limits.”

  “Wow.” She was just about to chomp on the hook he dangled. Just about. “You’re really gonna trust me with questions like … how many women have you banged—this week?”

  He chuckled softly. “Not that you could put that on TV, nor is it any of your business—” She was just about to throw his nothing off limits back at him when he said, “None.”

  She scoffed, a loud snort that vibrated in her own ear.

  “Believe it or not, Janie. I promised to tell you the truth and that’s what I’m gonna give you. I haven’t banged a single woman … this week.”

  Her mind started spitting out questions, questions that she suddenly had the desperate need to have the answers for. “Okay, you want me for a week. Fine. If I discover one lie, one single, little itty, bitty white lie, I’m gone. I will not promise to be kind in the final interview. And I will not sugar-coat the story.”

  “Okay.”

  “Let me talk to Dale and I’ll—”

  “Don’t worry about it. I’ll call him.” She could hear the smile in his voice and her fingers tightened around the phone, the plastic cutting into her palm.

  “Damn you, Grayson Pierce. Damn you straight to hell,” she said to no one because he’d already disconnected the call. At the same time, she looked over her shoulder and saw Dale pick up his phone and smile.

  She busied herself by staring at the empty Word document she was supposed to be typing words into. Her nails tapped on the keys. Her teeth nibbled on her bottom lip. And she wasn’t surprised when ten minutes later her name was said over the overhead speaker, asking her to come to Dale’s office.

  In that moment, she had never hated Grayson more. How dare he! Actually she knew the answer to that. Even though they’d made a deal, he wasn’t giving her an option for an out. By calling Dale himself, Grayson made sure that Jane would show up … for their week. Her stomach did another flip and it had nothing to do with standing on the threshold of her boss’s office.

  “Jane, please come in.” Dale waved a hand at the chairs in front of his desk, taking a sip of his Coke before leaning back in his chair and popping his feet up.

  Jane didn’t say a word. Not that she could. Her heart was in her throat. Her stomach was full of butterflies and she had to breathe deeply through her nose to keep from vomiting all over Dale’s floor. And she didn’t even know what that pain-in-her-ass had said to her boss. She could guess though.

  “I got an interesting call just now.”

  “I can imagine.”

  Dale’s blond brows pinched together, but he just pressed on. “It seems Grayson Pierce wants to give KHB an exclusive interview.”

  “Really?” She put in a little too much sarcasm to come off as truly surprised, and Dale noticed.

  “You’re not surprised?”

  “Grayson might have mentioned something about the possibility of an interview.”

  His blond brows met his hairline, which was quite a feat since it was receding. “And you didn’t jump on it?”

  “I … well … I guess…” She’d be damned if she was going to lay out her painful past with Grayson on her boss’s desk for further humiliation. “I told him I’d do it.”

  Dale sighed and leaned forward just enough to grab the Coke can and take another swig. The can met the desk and sounded like a gunshot in the quiet room.

  “This could be really big, Jane.”

  “I know. I’m going to do it.” Her lack of enthusiasm was bothersome to Dale, it was written all over his face.

  He nodded; his mouth was so tight that little lines appeared at the corners. “He has stipulations for this exclusive.”

  Oh goody! He’d only named one in their conversation—that she come alone.

  “He wants one week,” Dale said.

  No surprise there.

  “A week in the life of Grayson Pierce, if you will. He has asked that you meet him in the parking lot of North Sevier High School day after tomorrow.”

  “No.”

  “No?” Dale’s brow rose again and he stared at her like she was crazy.

  “No, I mean … I …” She sighed, knowing she was beat. This just keeps getting better. “A week, just me and Grayson.” Did her voice really just squeak?

  “Yeah, just you. His second stipulation is that during that time there is to be no contact. No phones. No computers. No PDA’s. No communication to the outside world … for the entire week.”

  “Are you frickin’ kidding me?” she shouted. “And you agreed to those terms?” ‘Cause she sure as hell hadn’t. “What if he’s a lunatic just wanting to get me alone … for an entire week?”

  Dale smiled. And now, she hated her boss.

  What? Was she just some little puppet who had manipulate me written on her forehead?

  “Grayson explained that you went to high school together.”

  “Yeah, so?” She sounded like she was twelve and would have been embarrassed had her adrenaline not been in control.

  “So—” He slid a little metallic device across the desk. “—this is an alarm. If you need anything, you just press this red button and it will send a message to Nate’s cell phone. He will be going with you.”

  She felt a tad better. She still didn’t like the idea of being stuck with Grayson for a week. “Have you been to Salina, Dale? It’s a blip on the map with one stoplight in the whole town. Don’t you think someone will notice Nate?”

  “He and his family will be in Richfield. Close enough if you need them but still far enough away to avoid suspicion.”

  Obviously Dale didn’t know how small towns worked, especially this
tiny cluster in Central Utah, but she wasn’t going to argue him out of sending Nate.

  “Besides, if someone does see him, he can say that he’s just there early—with his family. Grayson said that at the end of the week, you could do the interview on camera. He’s met Nate, right?”

  She nodded.

  “So it wouldn’t be too far-fetched to think he’s there for the taping of the interview,” Dale finished.

  Wow! It’d been only minutes from the time he’d hung up with Grayson until she was sitting in Dale’s office. She had to admire Dale and his quick thinking and even faster planning. It would have taken her more time to get this all figured out. She just hoped that Nate was up for it.

  But why wouldn’t he be?

  Nate was always up for an adventure. And Roxie was up for getting an inside scoop on what might appear next on the front pages of the tabloids.

  Jane wrapped her fingers around what would be her only link to the outside world during her time with Grayson.

  Dale leaned forward, resting his forearms on the desk. His light blue eyes scrutinized her. “Make me proud, Jane.”

  “I always do,” she said, standing to leave his office.

  As she made her way through the newsroom toward her desk, her mind replayed through the conversation she’d had with Grayson. He was up to something, she was sure of it. She couldn’t figure out what just yet.

  This had prom written all over it.

  Jane had been beyond excited when Grayson had asked her to the Junior Prom, their senior year. With her mother in tow, they’d gone to the local dress shop and picked out the perfect dress. It was peach with an empire waist that flared out until the hem fell to just above her knees. The sleeves—what there were of them—wrapped around her upper arms, leaving her shoulders bare. Her mother had insisted on getting the matching wrap to keep her warm—and because her arms were ‘a bit flabby’.

  Jane had had other plans for staying warm. Plans that included nothing more than cozying up to Grayson.

  Three days before the dance, Jane was walking down the hall at school and overheard a couple of Grayson’s teammates razzing him.