Kathryn Shay - Be My Babies

“You’re staying in town?” His tone of voice was odd.

“For a while. I need to earn my keep.”

“I see.”

“Give me a half hour to shower and get over there.”

“I don’t think…”

“I insist I be allowed to help out. See you then.”

Lily hung up, wondering why Simon McCarthy didn’t want her at the Sentinel. She allowed a spark of anger to surface. She was on her way to becoming the woman she’d been pre-Derek and here was another man who seemed to want to hold her back. Well, not again. She’d be damned if she let Simon McCarthy interfere in her life.

SIMON DIDN’T WANT HER HERE. When she walked through the door, he felt trouble sidle in along with her. She looked rested today. Her cheeks were rosy from the walk here and the warm April wind had played havoc with her hair, tumbling it into wavy masses. The light blue top she wore with a navy skirt accented the color of her eyes. “Hi. I told you that you didn’t have to come.”

At that moment, Sammy poked her head out from the newsroom. “Simon, we need you back here.” She smiled. “Hi, Lily. Feeling okay?”

“Yes. Thanks.”

Just then, the phone rang.

Lily crossed to the desk. “Go back. I’ll get that.”

“Suit yourself.” He disappeared into the newsroom, cursing the curtness of his voice.

After he’d made the decision about which photo to use for the upcoming fair in town, he went back out front.

Lily was sitting at the desk, taking notes. “Why, yes, Mr. Martini, I think that copy reads well. Might I suggest a little tweak?”

Simon stood behind her and watched. She smiled into the phone and listened to the caller. “Perhaps replace cute with adorable. ” She paused. “All right, good. Do we usually bill you? What? Well, news travels fast. Uh-huh, I’m his granddaughter. Why, thank you so much. I’m glad to be here.”

When she hung up, she swiveled the desk chair around and saw Simon. “Lots of ads coming in today. That’s the third since you went back.”

“I know. It picks up on Friday. You’ve made yourself at home.”

Her eyes narrowed. The mirth had gone out of them. “I hope I’m helping.”

Running a hand through his hair, he said, “Sorry. You are.”

“Is there a reason you don’t want me here, Simon?”

About a thousand. He could never reveal his worry that she might make a claim to the paper, but eventually he was going to warn her not to hurt Gil. “Gil said you were exhausted. I don’t want to answer to him if you get tired out.”

Her hand went to her abdomen. “Didn’t your wife work when she was pregnant with Jenna?”

“No. She was sick a lot, throughout the first and second trimesters.” He glanced at his watch. “I’ve got an appointment with the mayor in ten minutes. I have to go. I hate to leave…”

“Don’t worry, I won’t run off with the company savings.”

His heart knocked against his chest.

“Kidding. I can hold down the fort.”

“Our advertising guy is out soliciting ads and Sammy’s only here in the mornings, but Evan, the other reporter, is in back.”

“Fine.”

“We usually close at lunchtime.”

Her expression was amused. “Really?”

“Uh-huh. Fairview’s pretty much a reincarnation of Mayberry, only bigger.”

“It’s a nice town. I like it.”

“You can go home at twelve. I’ll be back by one.”

“Trying to get rid of me?”

“Of course not.” He snapped the words at her, then started out.

“Simon, wait.” He turned back. “Have I done something to offend you?”

Just exist. “No, I’m sorry. I’m swamped, is all.”

“Then go unswamp yourself.” The phone rang and she picked it up. “The Sentinel. Lily speaking. Why yes, yes, I’m taking the information today.” She arched a brow at him. “Mr. Martini said what? Oh, how nice, Mrs. Conklin. Yes, I’ll help you with the phrasing.”

Simon scowled as he left the office. He’d never expected her to fit in here. Didn’t want her to. As he stepped outside into the bright sunlight, he felt a sense of things slipping right through his fingers. And Lily Wakefield was the cause.

AT NOON, AFTER LOCKING the front door as Evan had told her to do when he left for lunch, Lily had taken a twenty-minute nap on the couch and then she’d fixed herself some soup she’d found in the small kitchen out back. She’d just returned to the reception area with her sketch pad and tea, when she heard a knock at the door. Rising, Lily crossed to it. Jenna was there, wearing a light yellow top and capris to match and looking like sunshine herself. She let the girl in. “Hi, Jenna.”

“Hi, Lily. Is Dad here?”

“No, he’s gone out.”

“Darn. I wanted to have lunch with him.”

“I had some soup.” She nodded out back. “There’s more in the cupboard, if you want to eat and wait for him. I’ll make it for you.”

Her face was a lot friendlier than her father’s. “Cool. But I can fix it.”

Lily went back to the couch and began to sketch the wall where framed editions of old newspapers were. She’d learned this was Simon’s collection. As she drew, she thought about his daughter. Jenna had such an interesting face. A study of innocence on the verge of adulthood. Maybe she’d try drawing the girl today.

Jenna returned with a cup of soup and some crackers and sat on the chair. “Mmm, this is great.” She cocked her head. “What are you doing here?”

Lily told her.

“Poor Dad. He needs more staff, but I guess he can’t get it. I usually help out during summer vacations.” She nodded to the pad on Lily’s lap. “What are you doing?”

“Drawing.”

“What?”

“The wall of old newspapers.”

“Dad’s collection. He loves those things, but they’re expensive as all get out.”

“I’d like to draw you sometime, Jenna.”

The girl’s eyes lit up, accented by the sun coming in from the window. “Now?”

“How long do you have?”

“Lunch is forty-five minutes. Sometimes I stay here for the next class session. I have it free. The school doesn’t mind.”

“Then, now it is.”

They talked as Lily flipped the pages and began to sketch Jenna. “Tell me about yourself.”

“Well, my best friend’s name is Katie Welsh. We’re tight and we always hang together.”

“It’s nice to have friends. What do you take at school?”

“Same old, same old. I like English best.”

“You do? Why?”

“I dig reading. Dad’s read to me since I was little and I’ve never stopped. And my English teacher, Miss Jameson, is the bomb. She lets us pick a lot of independent stuff.”

“What are you reading now?”

“ Ordinary People. I love the book, and we’re seeing the movie next week.”

“I loved that book, too. It’s sad, though.”

“You read?”

“Not much lately.”

Jenna waited a beat. “Are you in trouble, Lily?”

“Not like you mean.” How much should she tell this girl? “I left my old life because I didn’t feel safe there.”

“Why?”

She looked up and almost succumbed to the sincere expression on Jenna’s face. Amazing how, after only one week, she had to remind herself she didn’t know any of these people all that well. “Some of it’s private.”

Unselfconsciously the girl rolled her eyes. “Dad says I ask too many questions.”

“No, you don’t. Just so long as you can accept it when people don’t want to answer them.”

“I can. No worries.”

“What else do you do?”

“I’m in the plays here. Katie, too. We do one a year, and then there’s a summer production. Last fall, I was the second lead in No, No, Nanette. ”