“Good luck.”
People crowded in behind me. I waved at the boy and pushed my way through the mass of bodies in search of a nice place where I could inspect my goodies. Laugher and chatter bounced off the coffee colored walls and drifted up the vaulted ceiling. I’d been lucky enough to grab the only spot for media coverage. Strange that a media whore like Mercer would only allow one reporter, but I guess he wanted the group to focus on completion and not be hassled by an endless stream of questions. Of course, that made my job more difficult as I had to balance finding juicy stories with not being too much of a nuisance. Sheridan stepped out from one of the side rooms with a tablet gripped in her arms. I smiled. The perfect person to kick off an interview.
I walked up to her. “Hey, Sheridan, everything seems to be going well.”
She glanced up at me with an excited smile. “It’s going great so far.”
“I was surprised to see you. I didn’t know you’d be the organizer for all this.”
“It was sort of last minute, after Tessa.”
The air took a grim turn, and my excitement faded with the mention of Tessa’s name. “Oh, right.”
Sheridan shook her head with a sigh. “It’s so sad. Whoever thought someone like Tessa would kill herself? She always acted like she would take on the world.”
“We all have masks,” I said quietly.
“I know, but that’s like saying you’d do something like that.”
I laughed nervously. “Well, no, you don’t have to worry about me.”
She lowered her voice. “Her roommate was pretty devastated to find her body, and I heard the police are still asking questions.”
I nodded. “Yeah, Marty was covering the story, so I don’t know all the details.”
“I’m surprised you didn’t grab it since you know.” She waved her had at the throng of people.
“They didn’t want Proprius to start in a negative light, so they are downplaying that she was supposed to be the organizer.”
“Well,” Sheridan said. “Despite the circumstances, I’m glad I was chosen.”
Mercer stepped out of the doors of the auditorium followed by three of his aides. I tilted my head as I watched those snug slacks moves against his well-shaped ass. Sheridan’s eyes glazed over as she followed him with her gaze.
“Anything to be close to him,” she said.
“I know what you mean.” I licked my lips as my gaze followed him. “Think he’ll give me an interview?”
She chuckled. “Already trying to move in for the kill?”
I snorted. “I doubt he’d be interested in any of us. But, he’s so good to look at.”
“You never know until you try.”
I raised an eyebrow at her. “And you plan to?”
She smiled mischievously.
“He’s like seven years older than us.”
She shrugged. “With a body like that, who cares?”
I turned back to watch him leave. She had a point. I shook my head with a sigh. Back to work.
“So I didn’t come over here to talk about that,” I said. “I wanted to do a preliminary interview with you.”
She nodded to a girl waving to her from one of the tables. “Well, I’d be happy to, but it’ll have to be later. The day isn’t over yet; I still have a few fires to put out.”
“We can set something up later next week,” I said.
“Sounds great.” She hustled off. “See you at the party tomorrow.”
I hadn’t gotten an interview yet, but at least I had one set up. The crowd had dispersed until all that remained was around thirty people. Serenity stood next to the concession stand among five others. She had her arms crossed and seemed to glaring at a black-haired boy. Great. Of course James Thorne, my ex-boyfriend, had made it as part of the development team. He was almost as good at writing code as Serenity was, though he thought he was better. I took a deep breath and headed in their direction. I might as well rip this bandage off now.
“Hi guys.” I put on my bright and cheery voice. “You have time for a few questions?”
James spun my direction and his expression darkened as his attention landed on me. Our love had gone up in a glorious blaze, leaving nothing but ashes. No, it was nothing that great. It ended when I caught him with another girl and poured a steaming bowl of Texas chili over his head. My hair wasn’t the only thing that was kissed by fire.
“Back off, Wayne.” James sneered. “Go find another group to pester.”
I crossed my arms. “You’re going to go far with that can-do attitude.”
Serenity sniggered behind him. He flushed a bright red, and his sneer shifted to a full on grimace. James had always had a problem with witty come backs.
“Just get lost,” he shouted.
“Not a problem,” Serenity said. “I think I’m going with her. I’ve had enough of this bullshit.” She grabbed my arm and pulled me toward the exit. As the door swung shut, another glimpse of Mercer sent my heart pounding. This day changed everything.
Chapter 3