Make Me Burn

by Marie Harte

  “W-what?”

  “We’re going to keep the paper in both print—for now—and digital, and we’ll take some of the onus of all our story ideas off you. You still get to write about features in Searching the Needle Weekly, but you get creative control of what we stream live. What do you say?”

  “I say that’s a lot of pressure.”

  “Did I also mention your work nailed the two dream backers I’ve been courting for months? They like a softer, more human-interest aspect to what we do. As well as the city myths. You know, alligators in the sewer, ghosts of the underground, that sort of thing.” When she still said nothing, he swallowed hard. “And did I mention another raise on top of the one I just gave you?”

  “Are you on drugs?”

  He laughed. “Just desperate. A lot is riding on you, I won’t lie. But this is a new direction for us, and I think you’re up for it.” He rubbed his hands together. “More advertising and a lean toward social media mean more opportunities for expansion.”

  His wheels were spinning, for sure.

  Avery’s gut told her to go for it, but her head told her to wait because this new direction seemed the exact opposite of the hard news her father wanted her to hit. What would Lennox say?

  Then she remembered Brad telling her to be her own person, to not let anyone keep her down, the way his friend had. “Okay, I’m in.”

  Emil smiled, turned, and tapped a key on his computer. “Great. I just sent out a group email announcing it.”

  “Sure I’d say yes?”

  “Hoping.” He stared at her. “Well? Get out. Take the day to enjoy your upcoming success and be prepared to go longer in two more weeks. We start our new format in May.”

  “That’s pretty quick.”

  “And you’ll be pretty busy, so take your time off when you can. I expect you here bright and early on Monday for our first streaming meeting. I want you to meet our new backers.”

  No pressure. “I think I need a drink.”

  “It’s five o’clock somewhere,” Emil told her. “Now, unless you want to sit here with me while I explain to Mark that he has to take on some of Alan’s duties, I suggest you go home.”

  “Oh, right.” Avery zipped out of the office, grabbed her purse, then grabbed Alan on her way out for a coffee.

  “Whoa. What’s the rush?” he asked as they found a new local beanery and ordered lattes.

  “I just agreed to a new twenty-minute Friday show. You’ll be producing it.”

  Alan grinned. “Outstanding. I told Emil I’d be the right guy for the job.” He studied her. “I don’t think you realize how this is going to blow up. We’re going to make you a YouTube star.”

  “Yeah, Banana and I will go far,” she said wryly. “I’m still events lady for the paper, and I’m still the human-interest focus for the video spot. Period. Except now I have to fill twenty minutes instead of ten.”

  He scoffed. “Easy. Just bring on more firemen and start a hookup service. Ratings will go through the roof.”

  “Ha ha.”

  “She thinks I’m kidding.” He swallowed his coffee loudly. “So, what’s up with you and Brad? Rumor has it you two are getting serious.”

  “Rumor?” Had Gerty been talking to Alan behind her back?

  “It didn’t escape my notice that the Battle brothers, all two of them, came to your house for Gerty’s date. Anyone with eyes can tell you and Brad are hooking up.”

  She blushed. “We are not.”

  “Ha. Right. You’re such a bad liar.”

  She toyed with her cup. “Can I tell you something?”

  “About Brad? Sure.” He leaned closer.

  “About the show, doofus.”

  “Oh.” He sounded disappointed. “Okay.”

  “I’m nervous. I actually want this to work.”

  “It will. Emil and I have been talking about it. And I know a guy who knows a gamer who has over ten million followers, and he thinks you’re hot. He’s all set to share.”

  “Oy.” She tugged on her hair, nerves aflutter. “My dad is going to hate it.”

  Alan patted her on the shoulder. “Ah, so that’s what’s got you nervous.”

  “And the idea of a million people seeing me. I’m not a celebrity. I do puff pieces.”

  “The kind of stuff people eat up. You were made for the spotlight, I’m telling you. You’re funny and good on paper, but face-to-face, you have what a lot of people in this industry don’t.”

  “What’s that? Glasses?”

  “It. You have it. Tara is good, but she’s too polished. You come across as goofy.”

  “Thanks a lot, Alan.” And there went her small step of confidence, that she might be able to pull off twenty minutes of fluff.

  “Goofy and relatable. People like relatable. Trust me.” He gave her a toothy grin. “I’m the guy who made you and Banana Seattle stars.”

  She groaned. Apparently, she and Banana had been spotlighted on TMZ last night. “Let’s change the subject. How are you and the good doctor? Back together yet?”

  His smirk said yes. “She realized she’s been sublimating mommy issues with me. Now we’re working through them.” Alan leaned closer. “Sexually.”

  She groaned.

  “Each day we try something new. Reverse cowboy to ride out her demons. Missionary to get her closer to God.”

  “Really? Now you’re a religious experience?”

  “What? Sex with me brings her closer to heaven every time. It’s like being blessed for a good three, no, five minutes.”

  Avery refused to laugh.

  “Then there’s blowing the old johnson.”

  She coughed. “I hate myself for asking, but how is that helping her?”

  “It’s a hand-to-mouth stimulus kicking in. Plus, it’s like sucking on a straw, which oddly stirs her creativity.”

  “A straw? Not a great comparison for your johnson, Alan.”

  He cringed. “Good point.”

  But he made her forget to be nervous, and they spent the next half hour teasing and laughing before Emil texted him—in all caps—to get the hell back to work.

  Avery walked Alan back to the office, then drove herself to the library, giving herself a free day. She found a few books she thought she might like, got herself a massage last minute at her mom’s favorite place in Queen Anne, bought a pound of chocolate from a pricey candy shop, then decided to surprise Brad.

  Some mind-blowing sex would top off her Friday, and since Brad didn’t have to go in until Saturday, she’d have him all to herself.

  She gleefully contented herself with how she now held the upper hand. Not one for games in a relationship, she nevertheless knew she’d best be cautious when dealing with a man like Brad.

  He missed her.

  That warmed her in all the right places.

  Because she missed the heck out of him. They hadn’t said much about just spending dinner together—sans the sex—the past Monday and Tuesday. It was as if by unspoken mutual agreement they wanted to see how they felt apart.

  She missed the crap out of him, which made her feel needy and pathetic. A guy as good-looking and friendly as Brad would never hurt for companionship. And when that calendar dropped, the wolves would be out, gunning for him.

  Was she really the best sex he’d ever had, or had he just been saying that? For her part, no question, Brad rung her bell. And continued to ring it.

  But it had been several days. She was due some heavy chiming.

  She pulled into his apartment complex and took her chocolates with her to his door. She knocked, curious as to how he’d handle her pop-in. Then she decided to surprise him even more.

  The door opened, and Brad smiled down at her, wearing lounge pants and a T-shirt. Lounge wear. Perfect. “Hey, Avery.”

  She launche
d herself at him and planted a doozy of a kiss. When they parted, both breathing hard, she declared, “Your barbarian sorceress is here for the sex. Get naked, Hollywood.”

  Loud laughter erupted from behind them in his apartment.

  Whoops.

  * * *

  Brad blew out a breath, his body tingling all over. Shit. He had to clear his throat to speak and raised his voice to he heard over laughter. “Uh, the guys are over, hanging out. Why don’t you join us?”

  His gorgeous, red-faced barbarian sorceress looked from him to the guys inside and sighed. “Might as well.”

  He leaned closer. “We’ll get to the sex after they leave.”

  She grinned up at him.

  He was falling deeper for this woman with no sign of stopping. “Guys, Avery’s here.”

  “No, that’s a barbarian sorceress,” Mack corrected him, smirking. “What level, Avery?”

  “Twenty-six, so suck it.”

  Mack and the others just stared at her.

  Brad frowned. “What’s the problem?”

  “That’s amazing.” Tex patted the spot next to him. “The nerds at the station can barely clear fifteen.”

  “Gerty—my roommate—is a forty-seven.”

  Even Reggie blinked. “No kidding?”

  Brad snorted. “Video games are for kids.”

  They all gave him pitying looks.

  “You sure you want to attach yourself to that?” Mack asked her. In a loud whisper, he added, “He has no idea what a level even is.”

  Reggie laughed. “I don’t play Arrow Sins & Siege, but even I know it’s massively popular. Hell, my sisters play.”

  “And how are your lovely sisters?” Mack asked, all innocence.

  Reggie glared, and Mack turned to Tex. “He has absolutely no social grooming. He needs help.”

  “He is right here.”

  Avery turned to Brad, biting back a grin. “What did I interrupt?”

  “We were trying to decide what to do. We’re bored.” Tex sighed. “And going for a run ain’t gonna help, Ken.”

  “Dick.” Brad gave Tex the eye.

  “Ken?” Avery looked from Tex to Brad. “He called you Ken? Is that your middle name or something?”

  “We call him Ken because he looks like a Ken doll,” Mack announced. “All hard body, blondish, and with that understated male anatomy.”

  Avery snorted. “Ken. Classic.” She saw his face and started laughing.

  “It’s not that funny,” he said.

  “It is,” Reggie and Tex said together. Reggie explained, “Everyone at the station has this Ken doll they put with other dolls doing unspeakable things. It’s hilarious.”

  “It’s not, really.”

  Mack looked at Reggie. “Do they make brown Ken dolls?”

  “No idea, but my sister used to play with my GI Joe action figure, Roadblock.”

  “Doll,” Avery corrected.

  Reggie repeated, “Action figure, and used to bury him in the backyard while she did spells, hoping to bury me for real. Nadia’s a little scary.”

  Brad stared. “Nadia? But she’s so sweet.”

  Reggie snorted. “To you. She didn’t like me messing with her crayons and pretended she was a witch, treating poor Roadblock like a voodoo doll.”

  “Voodoo and witchery are two totally different things.” Everyone turned to Avery, who flushed. “What? They are.”

  “Roadblock, huh?” Tex looked at Reggie with interest. “Hmm. I wonder where I can find one of those.”

  “Your turn to be Ken, I’m thinking,” Brad said, fervently wanting everyone to start picking on someone else.

  “So, Avery. You just here for the sex? Should we go?” Mack asked, super polite.

  Tex snickered. Reggie cracked a smile.

  Avery sighed. “It’s like in another life I was a complete ass, so in this life, I’m constantly either tripping over my own two feet or embarrassing myself.”

  “You’re saying Brad’s your punishment.” Mack nodded. “Makes sense.”

  Brad wiped a hand down his face. “You probably want to go now, don’t you?” he asked her.

  “Depends. I’ve earned a day off and a raise, so I’m treating myself to fun.”

  “A raise? Nice.” Tex held up his glass of water in a toast.

  “A raise? Congrats.” Brad kissed her in front of everyone, aware the guys were staring and not caring. “That’s awesome.”

  She flushed. “Yeah, well, I also got an offer for a twenty-minute regular Friday Feature. Streaming live on our new-and-improved streaming channel.” She swallowed loudly. “And apparently I was on TMZ last night. That clip of me and Banana. I’m getting kind of popular. It’s weird.”

  Brad didn’t like the popular aspect so much, but he could see her doing amazing things with it. “Are you happy about it?”

  “I think so. Yeah. I accepted the job.” She shrugged. “I just hope my dad doesn’t freak.”

  “Oh.”

  She sighed. “Yeah.”

  Brad realized they’d been ignoring the guys, so he turned to include them and had a better idea. “This calls for a celebration.”

  “We should go—” Mack started before Brad cut him off.

  “Scrabble and ice cream. Who’s for it?”

  “I’m in.” Tex nodded. “I don’t normally go for games where we keep our clothes on, but I want to see how many words Brad knows.”

  Brad flipped him off.

  Reggie grinned. “Count me in. Scrabble over a five-mile run? Hell, yeah.” Reggie said.

  “Just don’t blame me when you lose,” Mack said. “Warning for you, Avery, Reggie’s a sore loser when he doesn’t win.”

  “Bite me, Air Force.”

  “I’m sensing sobbers. My favorite kind of losers.” Avery gave an evil laugh and cracked her knuckles. “Prepare to go down, gentlemen. I’m a sorceress, or didn’t you hear me earlier? And with words, I’m a freakin’ queen.”

  Two hours and much laughter later, Avery had proven herself victorious. “You miserable curs should bow to my righteous acuity in the face of such plaintive doltishness.”

  “Okay, now you’re just being abhorrent.” Mack sniffed. “And in case anyone cares, I came in second.”

  Reggie snorted. “I don’t care.”

  “Me neither,” Tex agreed.

  “A rat’s ass, I could not give,” Brad had to add, which made Avery giggle.

  “Sorry. I’m heady with my victory. And maybe a little light-headed. Some victory chocolate should do the trick.” The sore winner took two and offered Mack, and only Mack, one. “He did come in second. Which is first place…for losers.”

  Reggie snickered. “True.”

  “Well, now that I mopped the floor with you big strong guys, I should probably go. Don’t want to interrupt the bro time.” She smiled as she said it, apparently having changed her mind about aftergame sex, and gave Brad a chocolatey kiss. She then danced toward the door singing queen’s We Are the Champions. “Text me, my handsome loser. I mean, Brad.” She grinned, a hint of chocolate on one tooth. “We can ‘hang out’ later if you’re game.”

  Then she left.

  They sat in silence before Reggie, Tex, and Mack all gave him a thumbs-up.

  “Huh?”

  “We like her. Keep her.” Reggie nodded. “She’s good for you.”

  “And she knows words like ‘cazique.’” Mack sounded in awe. “I had to google it. It’s a bird in the American tropics, by the way. Next time we play Scrabble, I get her as a partner.”

  Brad scoffed. “How’s that? She’s my girlfriend.”

  “Yet her intellect is more along my level,” Mack explained slowly.

  Tex grinned. “You gotta love when he does that snooty voice.”

 
; Reggie nodded. “Oh, I do.”

  Brad sighed. “Now I have to go convince the woman I’m not as stupid as I look.”

  “Which is pretty damn dumb,” Tex murmured. “Really, Brad? Spellin’ ‘czar’ without the ‘c’?”

  “Like you knew how it was spelled.” Brad had brain-farted. It happened.

  “I did indeed.” Tex grabbed his hat and shoved it on his head. “And since I can’t stand another insult without calling you out, I’m outta here.” He winked. “See you at work tomorrow, Romeo.”

  Mack followed him, a last parting shot over his shoulder. “That ends in an ‘o,’ by the way.”

  “Asshole.”

  Reggie was the last to leave, and he studied Brad for a moment. “Don’t treat her like you do the others.”

  “What does that mean?” Brad had never been cruel or ugly with his exes.

  “It means let her get close and see where it goes. Don’t break up with her because she likes peas. Or because she didn’t put the salt back in the right cabinet. Or because she put on her right shoe before her left.”

  “What?” Brad suddenly remembered breaking off with women and using those as excuses when teasing with the guys. “Oh, come on. I broke up for better reasons than those. I was just joking.”

  “Yeah? Because you break up with everyone after a few months. Women I actually liked for you, if you want the truth.”

  “Like who?”

  “Sal was cool. She let you be you, but you couldn’t take her laughing all the time.”

  “She laughed at weird stuff.” Funerals, death, balloons. Sally had been gorgeous but a little flighty.

  “Bailey?”

  “She wanted marriage. I didn’t.”

  “Why not?”

  “I don’t know. She wasn’t the right one.” He’d known it but couldn’t exactly explain it.

  “Amelia?”

  “I can’t remember.”

  “She was the salt chick.”

  “Oh, right.” She’d had a thing about rearranging his cabinets and toiletries. And her intrusive sense sent him packing.