"Well, then, I guess you can kiss your paycheck goodbye. Just like me.”
She hangs up the phone, and I just stand there, staring at Emma.
"Holy shit. We're in trouble."
"What is it?" she says. "Also, do you want any water?" She heads to the sink and grabs a glass.
"Yeah, I'm a little parched. Thank you." I watch as she turns on the faucet and fills some glasses. "Did you know that your brothers were thinking about selling the newspaper?"
She turns to me and shakes her head. "What are you talking about? They would never sell the newspaper."
"I mean, maybe not all of it, but would they sell part of it?"
She looks at me for a couple of seconds. "I mean, they would sell a stake. Maybe. They don't fill me in on all their business plans and ideasbecause I'm just a girl, and I don't understand." She rolls her eyes. "They're freaking annoying."
"Emma, we might be in serious trouble here. Holly sounded really nervous. I've never heard her sound anything but confident."
"What exactly did she say?"
"Apparently, if part of the paper is sold and we still have these low circulation numbers, the print side is gone. We're just going to be completely online, and I don't know about you, but I don't want that."
"Yeah, I don't want that either. TheWhisper Cove Guardianmeans something. It means something to the community, and it means something to be a reporter there." She blinks rapidly. "Fudge. So that's why she's been on our asses."
"Yeah.” I nod. “She sounded really scared. If I don’t come up with a story, I feel like not only am I risking my job, I’m risking the paper.” I pause. "Well, the physical paper. The online one will still exist because, as the Jennys always love to tell us, monthly ad revenue is up there."
Emma lets out a deep sigh. "Shit, I need to eat something," she says. "I wish I could call my brothers, but they don't care. They're clinical. They're not going to give me the time of day if I say that I think this is a bad decision." She blinks rapidly. "So do you think you can get a story?"
"I don't know. I don't even know what the story would be. I haven't met any other Waverlys other than Enid and Preston, and I mean, I doubt there's a story there. They're just this happy old couple that has a lot of money, and they're a little eccentric. Who wants to read about that?”
“What about the grandson?”
“Haven’t met him yet.”
“There has to be something else there. You need a story, Gina.”
“I guess I'm going to have to play detective," I say, wrinkling my nose. "I mean, I did like readingHarriet the Spywhen I was a kid."
"Yeah, you loved that book. Remember, one year for Halloween, you dressed up as Harriet? Well, three years in a row," she says, grinning.
"Don't remind me," I say, giggling. "I guess I do have to go back, huh?"
"Were you really not going to go back?"
"I mean, no, but I am nervous that I don’t have it in me.”
“You got this.”
"I'm glad you have faith in me. I just hope I can pull it off."
"You will, and who knows? Maybe you'll have a hot summer with that gardener, as well."
"The gardener and I arenotgoing to have a hot anything."
"You wouldn't have one hot night with him?"
I run my fingers through my hair and giggle. "I mean, if he keeps his mouth shut, maybe.”
“He doesn't need to keep his mouth shut completely," she says with a straight face, and we both burst out laughing. I grab my bag and head to the bedroom.
