by Emma Miller
“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.
“Jolie, you always do such a great job. I don’t know where this office would be without you.”
“A lot slower and a lot less interesting.” She grinned on her way out the door.
Chapter Seven
Gavin paced back and forth near the bench. It was a park playdate on a normal Saturday afternoon, nothing to be nervous about. He couldn’t help glancing at the parking area every few seconds. Evie said her cousin was blonde and had a little boy Sean’s age. They were fifteen minutes late. Allison didn’t seem to mind, but he desperately wanted them to see Denver as a friendly, welcoming city. Being stood up for their first playdate didn’t fit that picture.
Of course, a lot of people ran late. Or maybe the cousin forgot. It wasn’t personal, these things happened.
But if felt personal. He shouldn’t even be here with the office running twenty-four hours. He should be checking on the lab, meeting up with the hospital emergency-room doctors, something other than hanging out in a park on a Saturday.
The article had run in last week’s Sunday edition, and the office had been flooded with calls for pertussis boosters on Monday. And Tuesday. And every day after. That was a small measure of success.
He hadn’t heard anything from McHale’s office on whether the article was sufficiently slanted to positively reflect on the office. He didn’t want to call and find out. He battled back a surge of anger at the thought of the office conversation. He hadn’t said anything to Allison. She didn’t need the anxiety. At least Evie’s columnist had made it seem effortlessly connected, a human interest story on the epidemic and the hardworking CDC officials.
He stared out at the playground teeming with kids. Spin was second nature to reporters. They seemed to handle the truth like it was something to craft, to mold into whatever image they wanted to portray. He couldn’t imagine living like that, day in and day out. Evie was different and sometimes he got the faintest flash of sadness in her eyes. That didn’t jibe with his idea of journalists. Arrogant and pushy, maybe. Ready to sell their souls for a buck, definitely. A heart for social justice and an active concern for vulnerable people of the city, not at all.
Sean yelled and waved from the top of the slide and Gavin raised an arm, grinning. Evie was young to be a full-fledged editor, and an owner. Even a small paper in bankruptcy must have cost an enormous amount. Maybe she’d taken an early inheritance. He shrugged inside his coat, irritated with himself for wondering. It wasn’t any of his business, really. He railed against gossips, but sometimes his own curiosity brought him just as low.
There was a touch at his elbow and he sucked in a breath of surprise. Evie had come up from behind him, cheeks pink from the cold, breath coming fast. For a moment, his mind went completely blank. He forgot about the playdate, about being welcoming. He wanted to put his hands to her face and drag her perfect lips to his. He stepped back, instead of the direction he wanted to go.
“I’m so sorry, they can’t come. Stacey had her baby!” She was smiling widely, and she put her hand on his arm.
“Wonderful! Everyone healthy?”
“Perfect. He was early, but he’s just fine. I saw them a few hours ago. I was going to bring Jaden to play, but he was absorbed in watching the baby. Do you think your nephew will be too disappointed?”
“He’ll be fine. We can reschedule.” He wanted to tuck the wisp of dark hair into her hood, but didn’t. He also wanted to introduce her to Allison. His head was telling him to keep them apart, but his heart said Evie wasn’t a danger. She was solid, faithful. He took a breath. “Do you want to meet them?”
“Sure.” Evie smiled, both dimples showing. “Oh, before I forget, Jack says ‘hi’ and something about...”
“About?” he prompted.
“There were cords on the cheese wedge, I think it was.”
His expression cleared. “Oh, okay.”
“And that means something to you?”
“Sure. Snowboarder lingo. But I can’t tell you what it means or I’d have to teach you the secret handshake, too.”
“Fine. I didn’t want to be part of your little club anyway.”
His smile deepened and he held her gaze for longer than could be considered necessary. The world had shrunk until they were the only two in it.
“So, are you going to point them out or should I try to guess?”
“I suppose you could try.” Gavin crossed his arms over his chest. He tilted his head at what seemed like hordes of small kids each running in different directions. “In fact, I’d like to see it.”
“Challenge accepted.” She narrowed her eyes and scanned the playground.
Gavin watched her from the corner of his eye. It felt so right to stand here with her on a Saturday, surrounded by families. In fact, it felt right to have her by his side wherever they were. Lord, if this isn’t what You want, tell me, because I want to go with my heart.
* * *
She gave him a mock salute with one blue mittened hand and scanned the playground. That smile always gave her courage; she wasn’t sure why. Courage to flirt, to tease. Totally unlike her. It would be scary if it didn’t feel so right. The top of his coat was unzipped and she could see his tie was crooked, which gave her a jolt of pleasure at the familiar sight. Evie gave him a quick once-over and told herself not to gawk. Dark blond hair peeked out from under a dark knit hat, just a hint of stubble, brown eyes intent on her.
She couldn’t help noticing the shadows under his eyes. She knew his office was under a lot of pressure. Maybe he was headed back to work after this. There weren’t many guys wearing ties on Saturday morning between the swings and the rock climbing wall.
Surveying the play area, she tuned out the rhythmic shriek of the swings, stopping at a pair of young boys near the slide. They were rolling snowballs up the slippery chute and trying to catch them on the way down. One little boy was wearing a coat that looked a little too new, as if he’d just moved from a warmer place, like Florida. But the next moment his mother called his name and he ran toward her, across the play area and away.
Evie felt Gavin shift next to her, following her gaze. She sensed his amusement and tried not to laugh. This was silly, but she couldn’t help playing along. She was determined to win. Struggling to block out the sight of him, the sound of his slow breaths, the faint scent of soap, Evie focused.
She was going at this all wrong. She should be looking for Sean’s mother. Evie’s lips twisted in triumph at her new plan, but she kept silent. Within seconds she spotted Sean. His mother was near but not hovering. Tall, slender, with a red scarf wrapped haphazardly around her throat, the strikingly pretty brunette leaned against a metal pole. A few feet away, three little boys worked on moving a large snowball through the toys. Allison didn’t scan the park for friends, wasn’t texting on her phone. Sean’s mother was watching him intently but from a short distance.
Evie could guess from Allison’s line of sight which boy was hers, and when he turned she could se
e the resemblance to his mother. Straight blond hair peeking out from under a brightly striped knit hat, but his eyes were blue, features a little sharper.
“And what’s the reward if I prove myself?” She slid a glance at him and felt her cheeks warm as he raised his eyebrows and made a sound that was part surprise, part laugh. She should be ashamed of her flirty tone. But it was hard to feel guilty.
“You won’t be able to pick him out of the crowd, I’m sure. If you fail, I have a proposal.”
Evie turned, mittens on hips, and shot him a look.
Gavin turned to face her, one side of his mouth quirked up as if he was trying not to laugh. He rubbed a hand over his jaw and pretended to contemplate the situation. “I was thinking that when we’re not working together professionally... Dinners are always so awkward. Sitting at a table, trying not to spill food on your nice clothes. I think we could find something more fun to do. If you wanted.”
Chewing her lip, she glanced at him, then back to Sean. Her cheeks were feeling downright toasty. She thought she knew where he was headed. Then again, maybe they weren’t on the same page after all. “You mean, like a park date?”
This time he laughed out loud, a deep sound that made her unable to tear her gaze away from him in spite of herself. “I don’t know how I’ve given you the wrong impression, but I don’t need free babysitting.”
She’d gotten a lot of impressions. And one of them was that he didn’t like her at all, but it seemed like that was changing.
“And if there’s a man who thinks you’d make a better babysitter than a dinner date, he’s certainly not standing right here.” Voice low and words measured, he meant what he said. His warm brown eyes were locked with hers, speaking volumes.
That small space inside, the one that held all the old grudges and hurts, eased just a bit. So many times she’d felt invisible, growing up as Jack’s twin, the daughter of a business owner who didn’t think girls were good enough. It had become second nature to assume people were interested in her paper, her brother, her family. But not Gavin. He made her feel as if she were captivating.
“How about we head up to Echo Mountain for the day? Maybe on Saturday, we could go skiing, or boarding, whatever you’d like. There’s a great restaurant at the ski lodge.”
A drive, mountain scenery, gorgeous slopes, excellent restaurants, cozy chats by the enormous lodge fireplace as they sipped hot cocoa. Evie couldn’t help grinning.
“Sounds great, but there’s one problem.”
“You don’t accept rides from strangers?”
Evie gave him a shot to the arm. It was the unconscious, playful move of a girl crushing on a boy. Part of her wanted to groan. The other part thrilled at his answering expression of mock pain.
“I don’t ski that well. I would only slow you down.”
“We don’t have to ski. There are nature trails, too. We could snowshoe. If all else fails, we can just wallow around in the snow like little kids do.” He flapped his arms for emphasis.
“I suppose I could manage that.” She stood, smiling up at him, lost in the idea of a day in the mountains with Gavin on a Saturday when she’d have a little more time off from the paper. But he’d said she couldn’t pick this kid out of the crowd, and she was stubborn. It would be easy to point out the wrong kid, but she didn’t play dumb for anybody. It just wasn’t in her. “But you can’t win a day with me. You have to ask nicely.” She pointed. “Sean is the little boy in the yellow ski jacket, by the jungle gym. Allison is the woman leaning against the pole a few feet away.”
If she wasn’t a little irritated at herself for having to be right, she would have laughed at his expression. “I just looked for the mom who wasn’t all wrapped up in her own circle of friends, or stuck to her smartphone. She’s new here so she’s sticking close to him.”
“That will teach me to set myself up for disappointment.”
“She doesn’t look anything like you.” Evie swept a glance over his wavy blond hair, strong jaw and broad shoulders. Allison was dark and slight, with a pointed chin and delicate features. She looked familiar, somehow.
“We’re not related except by marriage. Her father, my mother. She’s technically my stepsister, but I don’t bother with the step part.”
She smiled a little, thinking of the way the world was always drawing lines in the sand and raising invisible fences. Gavin preferred to step over them, arms wide open.
A few fat flakes of snow drifted lazily down between them. Did she really want to give up a date, just to be right? Before she thought it through, Evie slid a glance at him. “But Shakespeare said, ‘the quality of mercy is not strain’d, it droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven.’” She held out a hand and a wet, clump of snowflakes dotted her mitten. “Or snow, as the case may be.”
Gavin faced her, hands in his coat pockets, head tilted down. His voice was soft. “He also said, ‘it blesseth him that gives and him that takes,’ an attribute to God Himself.”
“Right. So, we both win. I think we should go to Echo Mountain and have some fun.” The flakes were falling thick and fast. Evie lifted her face to the sky, unable to keep the warmth from spreading from near her heart, settling somewhere in her belly and translating into a goofy smile.
He reached out and turned her mitten, examining the snowflakes in her palm. Their eyes met and Evie felt the warmth in her chest transform into something full of possibility, tenuously hanging in the air between them. The thrill that went through her was chased by a healthy dose of fear. Getting close to Gavin meant telling the truth, all of it, including how she’d bought the paper.
“Uncle Gavin!”
They both turned as Sean ran toward them. His small face was alight with happiness, huge smile revealing widely spaced front teeth. “It’s snowing, it’s snowing!”
“Yup, it tends to do that here, buddy.” Gavin leaned down and rubbed his hand over Sean’s knit cap. “This is your welcome to Denver.”
“You must be Evie.” Allison was just steps behind her son, dark hair pulled to one side and tucked into the collar of her coat. She held out her hand, but her smile contained a bit of wariness. Again there was that flash of memory, something struggling up to the surface of Evie’s consciousness.
“It’s nice to meet you and Sean. I hope you’ll enjoy your time here.”
“I do, too. We’re making a whole new start in Denver. We’ve been hiding for too long.” She took a deep breath and smiled.
Evie wondered if Allison was being literal. Hiding from what? Gavin’s expression was cautious.
Allison went on, “I don’t know if we’ll be able to get Gavin to lay off the eighty-hour workweek for a while.” She cocked her head. “We’ve never been able to before. But maybe things are different now you’re in the picture.”
Heat rising to her face, her gaze slid to the man beside her. His expression was inscrutable, but he didn’t look at all irritated by the implication that Evie was going to cut into his workaholic ways.
“Which reminds me, I’ve got to get back.” Gavin dodged a snowball that Sean lobbed at his kneecap.
“You’re not staying?”
“I really wish I could. But there were five more reported cases just today. They’re talking about restricting travel in and out of Denver International. That would mean disaster at any time, but right now, near the holidays, it would be a bigger crisis than we’ve seen in a while.”
Evie paused, wondering what to say, to ask. She could feel her pulse pounding in her throat. “City-wide quarantine?”
“Not quite. For this they’d make sure people stayed home, skipped the holiday parties. It would put a huge damper on the Christmas festivities at the Mission. The kids would be crushed if the parties were cancelled.”
Rubbing a hand over the back of his neck, he went on, “Antibiotics can help, but not a
fter the first three weeks because the damage is already done. People just aren’t bringing the kids in soon enough. They just give them cough medicine, and then their lungs are already filled with fluid, their kidneys are starting to fail. The way this is going, it’s only a matter of time before there’s a fatality.”
The snow seemed to pause in the air, time slowing down as Evie processed his words. Her hand went to her throat of its own accord. A fatality, just like his best friend. She couldn’t imagine how hard it was for him.
Gavin’s face was pained, tone subdued. “Almost certainly it will be an infant. All the cases have been, so far.”
Feeling her throat closing in fear, she struggled to get the words out. “I knew whooping cough was hard on kids. But I thought you just got vaccinated and everything was okay. I didn’t imagine it spread so fast, or could kill. Is Stacey’s baby safe in Memorial?”
“They’re keeping the pertussis cases under strict quarantine.” His expression turned stony and he was silent. Then he said, “Unless you recognize the signs, you can still be infected and pass it to an infant. It’s the education that’s missing. People aren’t heeding the signs. Soon it will be too big to stop and we’ll be working under a city-wide alert that includes shutting down all public spaces. Schools would close, the Mission would be shut for the holidays. People who need services will go without until it’s under control.”
People weren’t heeding the signs because no one read the paper anymore, just like Jack said. Their column hadn’t made much difference. She should get out of the paper business and get an internet news domain. She felt sick with powerlessness. “Oh, Gavin, we’re almost ready with the internet site for The Chronicle. The IT crew told us a week, maybe two.” She reached out and touched his arm, feeling her heart constrict. “We’ve got to pray hard this doesn’t claim any lives.”
“We’ve had a lot of calls. I don’t mean to sound as if there’s no hope.” He drew in a breath, as if her touch was giving him strength.
“Uncle Gavin! Catch me!”
