Page 29 of A Moment In Time

He scrolled down to the bottom, then zoomed out so he could see the full page layout.

“Okay. Let’s go with that.”

She looked up at him. “Really?”

He turned and looked at her. “Yes. Really.”

“Okay.”

“You can get out of my chair now.”

“Oh, right.” She stood. “It’s all yours, Captain.”

He sat, then pulled something from his pocket and handed it to her.

“What’s this?”

“It’s a check for three-hundred sixty-seven dollars and fifty-four cents.”

“You don’t need to do that.”

He glanced at her. “I can’t have you cleaning out your bank account for me.”

She wanted to tell him she’d do anything for him. But she just took the check and put it in her purse. “Thank you.”

“I want to show you the front page.”

She walked back over to his chair, then gasped when she saw the picture under the headline,Another successful Winter Festival.It was one of hers.

“You used my photo on the front page? Thank you. I’m flattered.”

“I didn’t do it to flatter you. I did it because it best captures the mood and the theme.”

“Still. I appreciate it.”

He nodded and made no further comment, then prepared to print out a sample copy. When he pushed print, Sydney went to the printer and waited for the six, two-page, double-sided printed sheets to come out. As they printed, Gage came up beside her. It seemed like he was very close and her stomach did a little flip-flop.

Stop. Whatever is on your mind, obviously isn’t on his. At least not on publishing day.

Gage took the pages to a large table and laid them out, then studied each one. He found four things he didn’t like, and he circled them in red marker. When he was done, he took a step back from the table.

“Make those changes, then print it. Make an extra fifty copies. Dale will be here in an hour to fold and box them up.”

“Okay.”

“I’m going to go get some breakfast.”

He left the office, and she sat at the computer again. He was his usual grumpy self, but it wasn’t completely the same as always. Something was different. Perhaps the weekend had made an impact on him as well.

She shook her head. “It’s just your imagination. Don’t get excited over the fact he didn’t raise his voice or reprimand you for doing something he deemed stupid.” He was still Gage Calaway, the unapproachable editor of the Calaway Report.

When Gage went into the tavern, he saw Clementine and Booker at a table. He walked over to them and she seemed surprised to see him.

“Don’t you have a paper to put out today?”

“It’s done. Sydney is printing it right now.”

“And you left her to do it all by herself?”

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