Page 33 of Always a Chance
“What?” I stopped walking. “Why?” Mr. Irons had wanted this more than any story.
“Publisher got wind of it and has some pull with the board to stop it.”
“They can’t do that.” We got to decide what was printed, not our board or some publisher.
“They can, sadly. This media world is small. They can hinder us in the future if we won’t work with them now. I’m sorry, Talia. I know you were counting on this.”
For a brief moment, I wondered what this meant for my job, but it was more than that. Johnny needed this. He wanted to live his life with honesty for the first time in years, and he deserved that, no matter how I felt about him. If the publisher got to us, there was no legitimate publication who’d print it.
“This isn’t okay.”
“It’s the industry.” He sighed, sounding as tired as I felt. “I just had a long argument with a few board members about it. My hands are tied. We can find another way for you to show them you’re right for the digital team.”
“I don’t care about that.” The moment I said it, I knew it was true. My job had fallen into the background while I was here. All I wanted now was to report the truth, to help an old friend I’d walked out on.
“It is what it is. Come see me when you’re back in the city.” With that, he hung up.
I collapsed onto the porch swing, my mind racing a mile a minute as I tried to figure out what to do. My choices were simple. Do what I thought was right or return to my life and forget I’d ever known Johnny Kelly and his secrets. The latter would be smart.
The only problem? I’d never been known for doing the smart thing.
17
JOHNNY
“A book blogger?” I asked as Aidan scribbled notes in a notebook.
He looked up, his eyes tired. “A small one won’t get the word out, and the larger ones are too reliant on publishers. I can reach out to some contacts though.”
“What about writing a blog post myself? We could get it going viral on social…”
“I write your blog posts, but the publisher controls it. Do you know how any part of your business works?” He shook his head. “Social media could work since I handle that, but even so, the reach will be much smaller than a news article, and all they have to do is trot Sheryl out there and say you got hacked.”
“Would Sheryl help us? She’s the face everyone knows as Trinity. If she told the truth—”
“Trust me when I say that’s not an option. She loves being the face of a famous author and won’t give that up unless she has to. She might act like she works for us, but she’s the publisher’s pawn.”
I scrubbed a hand across my face. “Is any of this even worth it?”
Aidan didn’t respond at first. Getting to his feet, he crossed to where I sat hunched over on the couch. “How long have we been friends?”
“Long enough for you to have actual conversations with me instead of the occasional word you give everyone else.” Except for Talia. He’d talked to her.
“Most of our lives.” He lowered himself to the couch beside me. “Which means I can read you.”
“Yeah, and what am I saying?”
“If you don’t tell the world the truth, it’s going to be like a festering wound. A self-inflicted one, yes, but something that will only get worse. We have to find a way.” We’d hunkered down to brainstorm since early this morning when we got an email from theChroniclesaying the interview was off.
Aidan leaned back on the couch. “The way I see it, there’s one option.”
“Don’t say it.” I’d had the same thought I knew was rolling around in his head.
“Apologize, Johnny. Beg. Go on your hands and knees if you have to.”
“What makes you think Talia will help me now? Her paper doesn’t want to run the interview.”
He smiled, and I wanted to wipe it off his face. “Because she’s Talia. She’ll always help you.”
