Page 42 of Love on the Byline

Ollie grinned as he walked out the door.

9

There was something about urban decay that people with moneyfound charming, nostalgic even. There were YouTube channels dedicated toexploring modern ruins—abandoned mansions, dilapidated amusement parks, andvacated neighborhoods—as if those places didn’t represent the end of a way oflife.

People who struggled to put food on the table were expertsat repurposing. Where means were scarce, nothing went to waste. This was whyBlake wasn’t surprised that Play L.A., a local community center that providedclasses for underprivileged kids, was located in an old department store on aonce thriving, now barely surviving, stretch of boulevard in south central LosAngeles.

The mid-twentieth-century building had been divided intothree storefronts, with Play L.A. nestled between a check cashing shop and adry cleaner. If her contact hadn’t given her such explicit directions, shewould have missed the place.

There was plenty of parking and she pulled up right outfront, grabbing her bag before she got out of the car. Los Angeles was in themiddle of a heat wave, and she knew her seats would be scalding when she cameout, but there was no helping it.

She pushed inside and was greeted by a faint combination ofa musky scent rising from the painted cement floors and notes of vanilla from afew carefully placed air fresheners.

“Can I help you?” A young woman, no older than seventeen,sat at a desk in the front room. Her eyes were bright against her dark skin, herhair in a million tiny braids that hung past her shoulders. She seemed to be inthe middle of doing her math homework.

“I’d ask you the same question, but I suck at that stuff,”Blake said, pointing to the book splayed out on the desk.

The girl rolled her eyes and returned to her work. “Well, Ijust need to pass this class and I’ll never have to look at these formulasagain.”

“That’s the spirit. I’m Blake. What’s your name?”

There was a long, uncomfortable pause as the girl looked up,assessing her without even raising her head. Finally, she shrugged andstraightened in the chair. “Micah. And my pronouns are she and her,” she addedas if it were a challenge.

“It’s nice to meet you, Micah. Same. And you’ve got theright idea. The only way out is through. Y’know?” Blake offered her mostreassuring smile. The young woman was not impressed. “Is Deanna around? Uh, Imean Ms. Lopez?”

“She expecting you?” Micah scribbled something down, erasedit, and sucked her teeth.

“Actually, no.” She leaned in, lowering her voice as ifinviting the girl in on a secret. “But we’ve been emailing back and forth, andI want to interview her for my paper.”

Micah’s head popped up, her lip curling. “You’re areporter?”

Sensing imminent defeat, she nodded. “I am. I can show youmy—”

The girl smiled, and it managed to be both unnerving andinsulting. “I’m so sorry. Ms. Lopez is not available, but you can leave amessage,” she said overly bright.

She took a step back and tried to think of a new approach.“Look, Micah… I know people in my line of work don’t have the best track recordaround here, but I think Ms. Lopez will want to talk to me, if youcould just—”

“Hey, Micah.”

Blake froze, the hair on the back of her neck standing atattention at the improbable sound of a familiar voice. Turning slowly, shestared at the man who’d come through the door.

“Oliver?”

Eyes the color of storm clouds blinked at her in surprise.“Blake?”

“You two know each other?”

“Yeah, we..,” Ollie said, the words barely a whisper beforehe cleared his throat. “This is...becoming a habit. Hi.”

“Hey.” For a moment, she forgot where she was. She hadn’t expectedto find him in a place like this. Years without a sign of him and, suddenly, hewas everywhere.

After a beat, they both leaned in for an awkward, one-armedhug. He somehow smelled like California, and Blake found herselfbreathing him in.

“What are you doing here?” Ollie stepped back, and thenwinced. “Sorry, that’s rude. I meant to say what brings you here?”

Blake was glad to know he hadn’t changed much. From hisshock of untamed hair to his wire-framed glasses to his unfairly symmetricalface and gorgeous smile, Ollie was still…Ollie. Even knowing he worked forBrandon somehow made sense, though she hated the idea of it.

“I’m working on something and had a few questions for Ms.Lopez.” Aware that the young girl was watching them, she turned to her. “I’mnot having any luck there, though.”

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