Page 27 of Only If You Dare

“I guess the jokes on them,” she said.

I smirked. “Yeah, I’d say so.”

“Why did you decided to move to Houston, Desiree?”

She shrugged. “I needed a change of scenery I guess.”

“How old were you when you left?”

She inhaled a deep breath. “Twenty years old. I was full of inspiration and was determined to take the world by storm,” she chuckled.

“And did you?”

She glanced up at me questionably.

“Take the world by storm, I mean.”

Her lips twisted. “Not exactly.”

“What happened?”

“For starters, I was young. I had no idea what taking the world by storm would entail, but I soon found out it wasn’t easy or as fun as I thought it would be.”

“You spoke earlier about having a blueprint mapped out before moving here. Was your world domination included in those schematics?”

A saucy laugh found its way from her mouth, sounding like a soothing melody I could listen to over and over.

“Not exactly, well,” she said. “I thought it did at the time. It involved me getting a position at the Houston Report and writing breaking news stories that would make me one of the youngest top reporters in town. My mission was pretty simple. I’d only go after the biggest stories and be the first one to report on them. Sooner rather than later, I’d gain the attention from prestigious companies, and they’d all be vying for my attention.”

She laughed again.

“Boy was I naive, although I’ve gotten some pretty big stories wrapped. I’m in the same position today I started out in, and I’ve been with the Houston Report for what, six years.”

“And that’s why you want to leave.”

“That’s why I am leaving. This assignment will be my last.”

“You never know, it may be a blessing in disguise,” I said.

“Hmm, maybe, maybe not. Either way, I’m getting out of here before I end up in jail for strangling Fredrick.”

I tossed my head back and laughed.

“Did I say that out loud,” she asked with a grin on her face.

“Yeah you did. But don’t worry, your secrets safe with me.”

“Hmm, time will tell,” she said.

My arms grew tighter around her and the heat from our bodies wrapped us in a blanket of warmth. Desiree cleared her throat, and an overwhelming fever crawled down her skin onto mine. I didn’t know if I’d ever get used to the way my heart sped up or how my body reacted to her closeness. But it was becoming my new normal.

“I saw you on the news today,” Desiree said.

This brought another smile to my face.

“I think that reporter followed me to the barbeque joint. I remember seeing the news van behind me about a mile down the road. Then, while I was inside, they circled about three times before finally deciding to pull into the parking lot and wait for me to come outside.”

Desiree shook her head and laughed. “That sounds about right.”

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