See Me in Your Dreams (31 page)

Now
he was insulted. He didn't fabricate stories. He didn't
knowingly perpetuate lies. “Let me see if I have this straight," he said,
fighting his clenching jaw muscles. “You want to pay me to whitewash your
family's dirty laundry."

Though she
flushed, Rosalind persisted.
“How much?"

"Not
interested, Roz." He deliberately allowed his gaze to wander up the length
of her long legs. “Taking money from you wouldn't be ethical."

Her
berry-tinted mouth gaped. She drew herself up to her full height. “Your
telecast wasn't ethical."

"I didn't
embellish on the facts. They've all appeared in print for everyone to
read."

"But how
much personal research did you do?"

"The
murder happened more than thirty years ago–"

"Exactly!"

"So I did
what I could," he continued.
“Used documented knowledge.
Oh...and I had my assistant contact you, as well as others germane to the case.
I'm sure you'll remember you turned down her request for an interview with me.
No one wanted to talk."

She paled and
sat in the chair he'd offered earlier. “Who else did you contact?
Surely not my mother."

"Your own
mother didn't tell you about our offer?
Curious.
What
about your grandfather?"

Her breathing
was as unnatural as her color. She didn't answer immediately. She appeared
almost ill...and as if the wheels in her head were wildly spinning.

Finally, as if
to convince herself as well as him, she said, “Undoubtedly they thought to
spare me."

His momentary
irritation with her fled. “I don't understand. You weren't even born when this
all happened. What's your stake?"

Her blue eyes
widened. “My family's reputation and standing in the community is my stake. And
what about the innocent people involved here? My grandfather and mother are
flesh-and-blood human beings, you know, and they have been hurt enough."

Her eyes had
to be the most beautiful in the world, Skelly thought, mesmerized by their
transparency. In them, he read pride.
Resentment.
Determination.

She wasn't
going to let him alone until he agreed to do something – but why? To soothe
some emotional hurt he might have caused? She wasn't the naive type. She
couldn't believe that journalists based professional decisions on personal
feelings –
not even on their own
. Could be she knew
something he didn't about the case...

A thought that intrigued him.

The brass had
been impressed with his personal involvement with the Cheryl Leighton case.
That had led to his being considered for the promotion. He'd been wishing for a
ripe story and this could be it. Should he grab the opportunity and it panned
out, his career would get another boost and in a direction that might make him
happier...might even make his father proud.

Skelly decided
he might enjoy being badgered by Rosalind Van Straaten. Contrary to her
assumption as to his character, he couldn't be bribed. Though he worked in a
segment of the television industry that sometimes played fast and loose with
hard news,
The Whole Story
never
knowingly ran an untruth.

Besides, he
had his own brand of integrity.

"Give me
something significant to run with," he said, “and I'll consider doing a
follow-up."

"That's
your
job. You're the reporter. For once
in your life, give your audience the real 'whole story.' Give them the
unvarnished truth."

Rather a version of the truth that she wanted to hear,
Skelly
thought cynically.

Skelly figured
he was in a win-win situation. He might get the story that would make his
career. And if not, at least he would spend some quality time with a woman who
was as interestingly strong-willed as she was beautiful. Both attributes turned
him on.

"I'm a
reasonable man." He stared into that stunning face, and a weird feeling
washed through him. Part of him wished The McKenna Legacy was more than fiction
even as the cynic in him resisted believing it might be. Keelin had gotten to
him good with her not-so-subtle romantic prodding. “I'll dig for the truth, but
only if you'll cooperate."

"How?"
Her
expression grew immediately cautious.

"You'll
have to work with me. And not censor me. That could very well mean opening your
family and its past to even more unfavorable public scrutiny."