WLUV Box Set: Ignited, Consumed, Burned (9 page)

Wes had his invitation. After days of Macy skirting him, she
wound up begging him to spend more time in her orbit. Advantage, Wes! She
wasn’t begging for exactly what he’d hoped but hey, she wanted him around, even
if it was to spend money. He was used to that with women.

There was electricity between Wes and Macy, and anytime
she’d gotten within an inch of him they’d wound up wrapped around each other.
Thoughts of Macy had preoccupied him all week and made it difficult to
concentrate on anything else. Now he wouldn’t have to.

Wes locked up his office and headed down to the newsroom. He
had to admit, the energy was contagious. Macy had staffers running around,
people were on the phone, the WLUV anchors were engaged and talking to
producers about scripts.

Fawn Clawson caught his eye. She was a beautiful woman and,
having worked at WLUV for years, was the highest paid employee on his books.
He’d thought about cutting her and then hiring Macy’s three photographers with
the salary she made. Clawson was the franchise, though, her blonde good looks
and crisp delivery were one of the few things the station had going for it.

He had entertained the idea of Clawson, but her disdain for
her surroundings was as unmistakable as her beauty, and that turned him off.
Other times he had visited down here, he’d found her haughty and uninvolved.
But today she was working with the young producer, asking questions, even
laughing! It was quite a turnaround. The annoyed briskness she’d displayed in
the past seemed to have disappeared, and she was enjoying her job.

Although Wes had always found Clawson beautiful, when he
looked at her now – even with her apparently renewed enthusiasm which made her
more approachable than before – she didn’t have that indefinable extra that
Macy Green possessed. Macy was the only woman who’d ever driven him to
distraction like this.

Wes needed to get close to Macy any way he could. He was
certain that her ginger spice, her smell, and the way she reacted to him had
all pretty much ruined him for any future women. Even the Nordic good looks of
Fawn Clawson paled next to the fiery Macy Green.

Macy was in the news director’s office and he allowed
himself to watch her. Reporters and producers orbited her. She directed her
attention to their needs and then sent them on their way. As gorgeous as she
was, watching her in her element, in charge, filled him with admiration. She
was just a little too hard-headed for her own good, and she’d need to trust Wes
before she would really let go for him.

So that’s what he would work on. Supporting her in this
element, letting her see he could be more than just sex, so much more. That was
the key to fully unlocking Macy.  What that that meant in the long run for him,
well he’d think about that when she finally did let those walls down.

She was on the phone when he walked into her office. He
smirked to think of it as her office.

“Listen, Gordon, I understand,” Macy indicated for Wes to
have a seat. He did, and she continued her conversation. Leaning forward, she
uncrossed her legs and focused intently on the call with Gordon. “Just go over
her intro one more time. Make sure she keeps it short and the same with the
tag. Good, read that again…”

Macy was in constant motion; she leaned back again and, as
she did she threw a smile at Wes. Shit, that did it. He was hard as a rock just
from that. It was like the 7
^th
grade around her.

“Sodium chloride? No. It’s salt. Have her say salt, okay?
Thanks again Gordon.” She hung up the phone.

“What’s going on?” Wes asked.

“I’ve got Gordon mentoring Shelby Virtue on her first live
shot. I’m trying to use his experience to help her get better, but I’m a little
uneasy about Gordon. I guess we’ll see if he’s a team player or not.”

“I’m going to go with not, but maybe he’ll surprise us.” Wes
wasn’t a fan of Gordon, but Macy hadn’t recommended any firings since the
disastrous Pat Walters exit.

“Let’s hope.” Macy nudged the volume up on WLUV as the news started.
The other two stations were also audible but mostly so she could be sure they
weren’t being scooped, something that happened with regularity up until two
weeks ago.

 The other two stations started right off with weather, just
as Macy had argued WLUV should do. And yet he watched Fawn Clawson say they’d
get right to weather in a moment, “but first, a shocking report from the Grand
City Police.”

Wes looked over at Macy and she returned with a sly grin.
God, if these walls weren’t glass…

She looked back at the screen and Alva Carrey’s exclusive
report about expired rape kits at the police station. It meant that dozens of
rape investigations would have to be scrapped, Carrey explained. Wes looked at
the other stations, both still in their weather coverage of an inch maybe two
of snow.

“That’s awful – how did Alva come up with that story?” Wes
couldn’t believe it was on WLUV.

“She caught wind of it on the state level and then, sure
enough, the department was scrambling, trying to figure out what to do. You
give her a little leeway she’ll find you a story. Love that woman.” Alva was
shining when given the chance, and Wes could see how excited Macy was about it.

“Wow. Good job, Alva.” Wes turned back to the screen and now
WLUV was also in weather mode, giving a quick forecast. Macy turned to Wes to
explain the way they’d chosen the order of stories of tonight’s newscast.

“This weekend a big storm is headed our way, but it’s two
days out. We knew this police story would help us stand out. We’ll blow the
doors off weather coverage on Thursday and Friday. That’s why Shelby has a prep
story— ”

She cut herself off when she head Fawn, “And we go live to
Shelby Virtue at the Grand City Street Plow Garage. Shelby?”

Shelby looked young and earnest, but her belted winter coat
showed how tiny she was. Wes worried the wind would knock her down. There was
no denying she was a lovely little thing. Wes pulled for her, hoping she could
do it.

They tossed to Shelby. She stood there, saying nothing.
There was more nothing and then Gordon’s voice, off camera, “GO SHELBY, I SAID
GO.”  It startled Shelby and she jumped, dropping her notebook.

“This pile of sodium clor, sodium clor, clor, sodium chlorox
will be the first line of defense against the coming winter storm slaughter.”
The young reporter walked toward the salt pile behind her, but she stumbled
slightly. She was flustered.

“TAKE THE PACKAGE!” Macy yelled to no one. The story on tape
rolled and Macy got on the phone.

“What the heck is Gordon doing?” Wes deduced she was talking
to the producer in the booth.

“Are you looking at her now? Is she okay? Ask her in her
ear, calmly while this package is running. And don’t scream at her. I want her
to finish this so she isn’t a lost cause.” Macy hung up the phone.

“Lost cause?” Wes asked.

“If I dump out of this disaster she’ll never get back on the
horse.” Macy threw the analogy at him.

“Gotcha,” they both held their breaths as the package ended
and Shelby popped back up on the screen, smiling.

“Starting on Thursday, crews will be working twelve-hour
shifts to stay ahead of the storm that, according to our WLUV Storm Team, could
bring as much as twelve inches to the greater Grand City area.” Shelby had
recovered, and she nailed it.

“Thank god.” Macy breathed. “Okay, so my Gordon idea clearly
didn’t go so well.”

“She recovered, and you had an exclusive to lead the newscasts.
Not bad.” Wes was impressed and wanted Macy to know it.

“Ugh, yes, well, the next few days will be the real test.
We’re going to push everyone in a way they’re not going to like.” Macy seemed a
little devilish with that pronouncement.

“Wall-to-wall weather from Friday. They’ve never done it,
but they’re going to. And you’re going to see why I need some photographers.”

“
You
need them, G?” Wes realized that Macy was more a
lynchpin than a consultant at this point. She blinked.

“WLUV needs them.” She corrected herself, then turned her
attention to him “And I suggest you go home and grab clothes you don’t mind
getting a lot of snow on. You’re
going to be working wall-to-wall, too.”

Macy definitely challenged him. If he wanted to wear her
down, he’d have to keep up with her first.

“You’re the boss,” Wes replied.

Macy was pretty sure Wes had never worked the way they were
working at WLUV the moment the snow started. Fielding phone calls, keeping up
on closings and cancelations, routing crews to where the worst of the snow was
supposed to hit— all of it was second nature to Macy and Bernie, too. The rest
of them were experiencing growing pains.

But they were doing it. A major snowmaker had blown across
the entire Midwest. Just about everything was getting buried.  It made Macy
smile when she would secretly watch Wes handle the millions of things that a
newsroom dealt with during a snowstorm. He ordered food, typed in school and
event closings, and even answered phones. She tried to suppress a giggle when
she overheard his end of a viewer call.

“Peeing? Uh, what do you mean? You want to know if it’s too
cold for your dog to pee outside and you’re considering letting it pee inside
during the storm. Is that right? Well… I think if you keep a close eye on her –
oh, it’s a he? Uh, he should be okay to take a quick, uh, potty break. I’d say
you shouldn’t let your dog pee in the house, generally, but I’m not a vet. Oh?
That’s…interesting. Unless it’s a Bichon, then maybe put a bow or something
colorful on her?”

Macy recruited sales people, interns, and anyone else she
could find to help during the storm. The WLUV phone rang incessantly, and the
station owner answered each call with patience and care. Macy had to admit, Wes
was showing her a side she would not have predicted. He didn’t act haughty or
play the boss card; he just pitched in where needed. No job was beneath him,
the billionaire’s son.

“St. Luke’s Bingo canceled, got it. We’ll get it on the
ticker.” In a snow event, the phones did not stop ringing and Wes did not stop
answering.

The on-air product was pretty good. But the lack of
additional live trucks and photographers frustrated Macy. She hoped Wes could
see the issue and why they were needed. Because they had fewer live abilities,
Macy had the reporters calling in phone reports from every part of viewing
area. She paid close attention to the demographics. Some of the outlying areas
of Grand City were fairly heavy populated, but the other stations didn’t spend
much time on them, focusing instead on the city and near suburbs. Macy knew the
research; a rich little vein of viewers lived in the outskirts, ignored by the
other stations. She needed to get them to start choosing WLUV.

She had the meteorologist emphasize these remote areas in
their forecasts.  She lined up interviews from sheriffs in these little towns
that never got air time. The anchors interviewed them and while it wasn’t as
good as live pictures, Macy hoped WLUV would start making inroads into new
viewers by focusing on the residents currently neglected by the competition.

Friday night would be big. Macy wanted the eleven o’clock
newscast to showcase what they could do. Despite Gordon being absolutely no
help to Shelby on her live shot, she needed him now. The man would be perfect
live in the weather, his presence could command attention, and once upon a time
he had reported from war zones. A snowstorm should not present too difficult a
challenge.

She and Bernie consulted in the early evening about where
the best live shot locations were. Did they stay nimble, and just wait for a
situation to evolve from the snow, or did they choose a place right now? Macy
wanted to wait for as long as possible so that if something happened, breaking
snow news, she could send Gordon and have him on the scene as it unfolded.

Bernie wanted to set something up, “Listen, if they get
stuck somewhere and can’t get to the location, then you’ve got nothing.”

“I want something
unfolding
, though.” Macy knew she was
being stubborn and Bernie’s opinion wasn’t off the mark.

“I understand. Well, who’s going to go with Gordon?”

“I will. That’s the deal. I won’t ask the staff to do
something I’m not willing to do. I’ll take a ride in the live truck. I’ll also
be in place to field produce and show them what I want.”

Macy was excited just thinking about getting out in the
field.

Tonight’s eleven was a real make or break. If they had the
best, or even demonstrably improved, storm coverage, they could move the ratings
needle. They’d have a chance to get viewers to sample their product.

As Macy and Bernie listened to scanners and fielded calls,
it was clear that the worst of the weather was causing some serious trouble
outside of town on I-96 West.

“The snow is one thing, but the wind is what’s knocking
semis off the highway.” Bernie had just gotten off the phone with the Kent
County Sheriff.

“It’s a mess and cars are likely to start piling up fast.”

“Good.” Macy blurted and Bernie raised an eyebrow.

“Ya don’t want the general public to hear you, now do you?”
Bernie asked.

“No. Sorry. Good for breaking news, bad for every other
person on the planet,” Macy clarified.

“Gordon. We’re up. Gary is loading.” Gary, the photographer,
would have to pull double duty and run the live truck. It wasn’t ideal, but at
least they had a photographer.

“I’m not going.” Gordon declared in the middle of the
newsroom. It was loud enough to cause everyone else to clam up.

“You’re not— what?” Macy couldn’t believe her ears.

“I just heard you talking about how treacherous it is out
there. I am not going to put my life on the line for a snow storm. I don’t know
if you’ve checked recently, but this is Michigan. It
does
snow. Who
cares?” Gordon’s tone had an unmistakable Pat Walters ring to it.

“We have planned this for days with you as the centerpiece.
Clearly it
is
a unique event as our competition is also on wall-to-wall.
Furthermore, going into treacherous conditions and reporting about this is what
we signed up for as journalists.”

Macy’s tone was carefully contained. Gordon, however, dug in
and decided to be a total dick. “I served my time a correspondent during two –
count them,
two
– wars, all while you were filing reports about
cafeteria food at your college campus radio station.”

“Certainly safety is paramount for anyone who works at WLUV.
Mr. Thompson has made that very clear.” She looked over and Wes, who had gone
from answering phones to restraining his obvious desire to punch Gordon,. She
tried to throw him a look to indicate she could handle this. She didn’t need
him leaping in.

“I’d like a volunteer. Is there a reporter or producer
willing to go to this scene, one that’s not currently assigned?” Macy hoped a
particular volunteer would step up. And she did.

“I want it. Let me do it.” Shelby Virtue was already putting
on her boots.

“Great. Gordon, help answer closing and delay calls.” She
simply dismissed him, and with that Macy went to the Glass Cube and bundled up
as well.

Wes followed her into the office.

“Are you safe? Is Shelby? That wasn’t bullshit, what you
said. I do value the safety of everyone here.” Wes’s worry was sweet, Macy
decided. It had been a long time since someone worried about her. She couldn’t
remember last time, actually. Crap, she was supposed to be hardening against
Wes and here he was being lovable.

“Yes, we’ll be safe, and we won’t take any risks. Just let
me remind you that this is part of things. We work nights, holidays, weekends,
and snowstorms. And a great journalist does her best to bring the information
to the public, even if interferes with her personal comfort.” Macy was no longer
really talking to Wes, “Gordon has forgotten that, but I have a chance with
Shelby.”

“Okay. Be careful.” Macy saw Wes start to lean in and then
catch himself. To her surprise she wished he would have sent her off with a
hug. Ugh. This was not the direction she was supposed to be headed.

She scurried off with Shelby and Greg. They had about a
45-minute trek through nasty weather to reach the location of the worst highway
trouble.

And it was every bit as bad as they’d reported; snow was
coming down in huge chunks, and visibility was low. They traveled in a news van
that contained two bucket seats in the front and a chair bungee-corded to a
small desk space in the back. There were two monitors in the van along with an
assortment of dials, gauges, editing equipment, and a huge mast on top to beam
their signal back to the station. Macy sat on the chair in the back and did her
best to brace herself with the small desk attached to the wall. If this van
rolled, she’d be done for. Gary handled the vehicle well, though, and they made
it to a highway overpass.

They’d set up the live shot on the overpass. That way Shelby
and Gary could see the expanse of the increasing northbound pile up below. 

They were ready to go live, but it was clear Gary was having
trouble with the equipment. While he continued to work with it, Macy
concentrated on Shelby.

Macy had talked Shelby through what she should be doing, she
had touched base with authorities, and she’d even interviewed a few drivers.
“If you’re going to get anywhere as a reporter,” she quipped, “knocking on car
windows is something you need to be comfortable doing.” Shelby did it with
pluck!

But Macy began to get more nervous as she watched Gary
reconnect cables, jiggle things and call back to the station’s engineering team
all in an effort to get a signal. He moved as fast as possible in the slippery
conditions with the wind and the clock working against him.

Despite everything, they’d done to prepare this could go
south fast. No signal meant that the only live shot they had would be gone. It
meant they’d be a joke as the other stations crushed WLUV.

Gary finally diagnosed the issue. The good news was that it
was just a dead battery on the camera. The bad news? They only had one battery.

Macy was beyond livid. All this work and it would come to
nothing if the anchor tossed it to Shelby and the television screen was black
because they didn’t have a live shot. She racked her brains thinking of how to MacGyver
the situation. The long-term fix was to have the photographers double-check the
equipment before they left; the short term, they’d have to scrap the shot.

Since Macy had told Shelby there was no crying in news, she
jumped out of the van when she felt her eyes get hot so no one would see her
break her own rule.  The snow stung her face as she blinked away the tears of
frustration.

Sure, she could hold people to the fire and make all kinds
of new rules, but in the end it was her fault. She should have double-checked
the battery herself; she should have reminded Gary to double-check. This one
lousy detail fell through the cracks on her watch, and it was everything.

She’d pushed the entire staff at WLUV and she was about to
let them down, all of them. Everyone had worked so hard! Bernie, Shelby, even
the anchors, they’d all stepped out of their ingrained habits and pushed to
bring the best coverage they could to the screen, and now the few viewers they
had were going to turn to the competition. She wanted to punch something, kick
the van.

That’s when she saw a set of headlights aiming straight for
her. What the…? A WLUV Jeep pulled over to the side of the road and parked
behind the van. Out climbed Wes Thompson, looking a thousand miles away from spoiled
heir. He had on a down parka and he battled through the wind towards her. He
ended up half an inch from Macy’s face.

“I don’t want to hear your tirade about why I shouldn’t be
here. I wasn’t letting my staff brave this without me. And besides— I happen to
know you need an extra battery.”

Macy grabbed the fur on each side of Wes’s parka hood and
planted her frozen lips square on Wes’s warm ones.

“I’m glad you’re here,” she said.

“That’s the best breaking news I’ve ever heard, G,” said Wes,
who looked as shocked as she felt by her affectionate outburst.

“Now hand me that battery, we’re on in five.” Macy had a
live shot to get on the air. Wes’s warm lips could wait, but not for long.