Firefly Lane

Page 21

 

  The only problem in Kates life—and it was a biggie—was her upcoming graduation. She was going to graduate next month with honors, with a degree in communications/broadcast journalism, and she still hadnt told anyone that it wasnt her dream job.

  Now, though, she was going to come clean. She was in one of the third-floor phone rooms, folded up to fit, and shed just dialed home.

  Mom answered on the second ring. "Hello?"

  "Hey, Mom. "

  "Katie! What a great surprise. I cant remember the last time you called in the middle of the week. You must be psychic: Dad and I just got home from the mall. You should see the dress I got for graduation. Its beautiful. Dont let anyone tell you JC Penney doesnt have great clothes. "

  "What does it look like?" Kate was stalling; with half an ear, she listened to her moms description. Mom had just said something about shoulder pads and glitter when Kate jumped in. "I just applied for a job at Nordstrom, Mom. In the advertising department. "

  There was a noticeable pause on the other end, then the telltale sound of a cigarette being lit. "I thought you and Tully were going to be—"

  "I know. " Kate leaned back against the wall. "A reporting team. World-famous and rich. "

  "Whats really going on, Kathleen?"

  Kate tried to put her indecision into words. She just didnt know what she wanted to do with the rest of her life. She believed there had to be something special out there for her, a path that was hers alone and held happiness at its end, but where was the start of it? "Im not like Tully," she finally said, admitting the truth shed known for a long time. "I dont eat, sleep, and breathe the news. Sure, Im good enough to get all As and my profs love me because Im never late with an assignment, but journalism—TV or print—is a jungle. Ill be eaten alive by people like Tully wholl do anything for a scoop. Its just not realistic to think I can make it. "

  "Realistic? Realistic is your dad and me trying to manage our expenses when they keep cutting his hours at the plant. Realistic is me being a smart woman who cant get a job at anything better than minimum wage because I have no education and all Ive done is raise kids. Believe me, Katie, you dont want to be realistic at your age. Theres plenty of time for that. Now you should dream big and reach high. "

  "I just want something different. "

  "What?"

  "I wish I knew. "

  "Oh, Katie . . . I think youre afraid to reach for the brass ring. Dont be. "

  Before Katie could answer, there was a knock at the door. "Im in here," she called out.

  The door swung open to reveal Tully. "There you are. Ive been looking everywhere. Who are you talking to?"

  "Mom. "

  Tully yanked the phone from Kate and said, "Hey, Mrs. M. Im kidnapping your daughter. Well call back later. Bye. " She hung up, then turned to Kate. "Youre coming with me. "

  "Where are we going?"

  "Youll see. " Tully led her out of the house and down to the parking lot, where her new blue VW bug waited.

  All the way into downtown Seattle, Kate asked where they were going and what was up until they pulled up in front of a small office building.

  "This is where I work," Tully said when she turned off the engine. "I cant believe youve never been here before. Oh, well, youre here now. "

  Kate rolled her eyes. Now she knew what was happening: Tully wanted to show off some new triumph—a reel, a tape, a story shed done that had actually been aired. As usual, Kate followed. "Look, Tully," she said as they made their way down the colorless hallway and into the small, cluttered space that was the Seattle office of KCPO-TV, "I need to tell you something. "

  Tully opened the door. "Sure. Later. Thats Mutt, by the way. " She pointed to a huge, long-haired, hunched-over guy standing by the open window, who was blowing his cigarette smoke outside.

  "Hey," he said, barely lifting a single finger in greeting.

  "Carol Mansour—shes the reporter—is at a city council meeting," Tully said, leading Kate toward a closed door.

  As if Kate hadnt been hearing Carol Mansour stories forever.

  Tully stopped at the door and knocked. When a male voice answered, Tully opened the door and pulled Kate inside. "Johnny? This is my friend Katie. "

  A man looked up from behind his desk. "Youre Kate Mularkey, huh?"

  He was, hands down, the best-looking man Kate had ever seen. He was older than they were, but not by much; maybe five or six years. His long black hair was thick and feathered back, with the barest hint of curl at the ends. Prominent cheekbones and a smallish chin could have made him look pretty, but there was nothing feminine about him. When he smiled at her, she drew in a sharp breath, feeling a jolt of pure physical attraction that was unlike anything shed ever experience before.

  And here she stood, dressed for work in her preppy Gloria Vanderbilt jeans, penny loafers, and red V-neck sweater. All of last nights curl had fallen out of her hair and she hadnt redone it this morning. She hadnt bothered with makeup, either.

  She was going to kill Tully.

  "Ill leave you two alone," Tully said, skipping out of the office, closing the door behind her.

  "Please. Have a seat," he said indicating the empty chair across from his desk.

  She sat down, perching nervously on the edge of the chair.

  "Tully tells me youre a genius. "

  "Well, she is my best friend. "

  "Youre lucky. Shes a special girl. "

  "Yes, sir, she is. "

  He laughed at that; it was a rich, contagious sound that made her smile, too. "Please, dont call me sir. It makes me think some old guy is behind me. " He leaned forward. "So, Kate, what do you think?"

  "About what?"

  "The job. "

  "What job?"

  He glanced at the door, said, "Hmmm, thats interesting," then looked at her again. "We have an opening for an office person. Carol used to do all of the phones and filing, but shes going to have a baby, so the cheap-ass station manager has finally kicked in for a little help. "

  "But Tully—"

  "She wants to stay an intern. Says that thanks to her grandmother she doesnt need the money. Between you and me, shes not great at answering the phones anyway. "

  This was all coming at Kate too fast. Only an hour ago, shed finally admitted that she didnt want to go into broadcasting, and now here she was being offered a job every kid in her department at UW would kill for.

  "Whats the pay?" she asked, stalling.

  "Minimum wage, of course. "

  She did the math in her head. With tips, she made close to double that much at Starbucks.

  "Come on," he said, smiling. "How can you turn me down? You can be a receptionist in an ugly office for next to no money. Isnt it every college grads dream?"

  She couldnt help laughing. "When you put it that way, how could I refuse?"

  "Its a start in the glamorous world of TV news, right?"

  His smile was like some kind of superpower that scrambled her thoughts. "Is it? Glamorous, I mean?"

  He looked surprised by the question, and for the first time he really looked at her. His fake smile faded, and the look in his blue eyes turned hard, cynical. "Not in this office. "

  He got to her. She didnt know why, but it was powerful, this attraction she felt. Nothing like how shed responded to college boys. It was another reason not to take the job.

  Behind her, the door opened. Tully came through, practically bouncing. "Well, did you say yes?"

  It was crazy to take a job because you were hot for the boss.

  Then again, she was twenty-one years old and he was offering her a start in television.

  She didnt look at Tully. If she did, Kate knew shed feel as if she were selling out, following again, and for all the wrong reasons.

  But how could she say no? Maybe in a real job shed find that passion and brilliance she needed. The more she thought about it, the more possible it seemed. School wasnt the real world. Perhaps that wa
s why the news business hadnt seized hold of her. Here, the stories would matter.

  "Sure," she said at last. "Ill try it, Mr. Ryan. "

  "Call me Johnny. " The smile he gave her was so unsettling she actually had to look away. She was sure somehow that he could see inside her or hear how fast he made her heart beat. "Okay, Johnny. "

  "All right," Tully said, clapping her hands together.

  Kate couldnt help noticing how her friend instantly seized Johnnys full attention. He was sitting at his desk now, staring at Tully.

  That was when Kate knew shed made a mistake.

  Kate stared at herself in the small oval mirror above the dresser. Her long, straight, highlighted hair was drawn back from her face and held in place by a black velvet headband. Pale blue eye shadow and two coats of green mascara accentuated the color of her eyes, and pink lip gloss and blush gave her skin some color.

  "Youll learn to love the news," she said to her reflection. "And youre not just following Tully. "

  "Hurry up, Kate," Tully called out, knocking hard on the bedroom door. "You dont want to be late on your first day of work. Ill be down in the parking lot. "

  "Okay, so maybe you are following her. " Grabbing her briefcase off the twin bed that was hers, she left her bedroom and headed downstairs.

  In this last week of school, the hallways were crazy-busy with girls studying for finals, saying goodbye, and packing up their things. Kate wound through the melee and went out to the small parking lot behind the house, where Tully sat in her brand-new VW Bug, with the engine running.

  The second Kate sat down and slammed the door shut, they were off. Princes Purple Rain soundtrack blared from the tiny speakers. Tully had to yell over the music.

  "This is so great, isnt it? Us finally going to work together. "

  Kate nodded. "It sure is. " She had to admit she was excited. After all, she was a college graduate—or would be soon—and shed found an excellent starter position in her major field. It didnt matter that Tully had gotten the job for her, or that she was essentially following her best friend. What mattered was doing this job to the best of her abilities and finding out if broadcast journalism was for her. "Tell me about our boss," she said, turning down the stereo.

  "Johnny? Hes totally good at what he does. Used to be a war correspondent. In El Salvador or Libya; who the hell knows? I hear he misses combat, but hes a great producer. You can learn a lot from him. "

  "Have you ever wanted to go out with him?"

  Tully laughed. "Just because I slept with my prof doesnt mean every boss is fair game. "

  Kate was relieved by that; more so than she should be. She wanted to ask if Johnny was married—shed wanted to ask the question for almost a week—but she couldnt quite form the words. Theyd be too revealing.

  "Here we are. " Tully pulled up to the curb outside the building and parked. All the way up the stairs and down the hall, she talked about how great it was going to be to work together, but once they were in the small, cramped set of offices, she made a beeline for Mutt and huddled with him.