Dare to Stay (Puppy Love Romances Book 3)

by Georgia Beers

  At the commercial break, Sydney could hold it in no longer. “You’re amazing at this, Jessica,” she said as she sidled up next to her.

  Jessica’s expression was dubious. “You sort of have to say that so I don’t have a crisis of confidence on the air.” She gave a half-grin.

  “True, though I don’t think it’s possible for you to have one of those. But I’m not saying it because I have to. I’m saying it because it’s true. I can’t believe your last crew didn’t have you in front of the camera more. You’re a natural.”

  And there came the blush. Sydney had to admit that she’d waited for it, loved seeing it, loved being the cause of it even more. They stood in silence and Sydney absorbed the company. After a moment, she glanced at her watch and said, “Halfway done.”

  “Thank God,” Jessica replied. “It’s so nerve-wracking. Every year, I look forward to the telethon because it’s so good for the shelter. But I’m always thrilled when it’s over because it’s not good for my stress levels.”

  “Only three hours to go. Then you can subdue those stress levels with a glass of wine. Sound good?”

  “Is this wine you’re actually going to drink? Or will you be leaving me with it again?” Jessica’s direct tone held a hint of teasing, but she looked at her then, right in the eye, and Sydney had a flash of the previous night. The muscles in her abdomen tensed up in that delicious way and she swallowed hard as a rush of heat shot through her body.

  “Oh, no, I’ll be drinking it,” she said, her voice throaty.

  Jessica said nothing, simply nodded in response and moved to her mark as the count was given until they went live again.

  Over the next hour, Sydney watched and worked and the amount of donated money climbed higher and higher. David, who sat in a corner of the control area with the production assistant who was running the social media tickers threw her a thumbs-up and a big smile every time she glanced his way, which made her laugh after the fifth or sixth time. They were trending on Twitter and had snagged over 100 new followers on Instagram in the last forty-five minutes. Not bad. Not bad at all. The video featuring Maddie and Rex played next and there was yet another noticeable uptick in phone calls, just as Sydney had expected.

  “You weren’t kidding. That’s a great interview,” Connor said quietly in her earpiece. She nodded and gave him an I-told-you-so look just before the camera cut back to her and they moved directly from the video about an adoption success story into the next dog available for adoption. Lisa brought out an obvious mixed breed of some sort with a huge, broad chest, sweet brown eyes and a wagging stump of a tail.

  “Here’s Lisa Drakemore again, the head of adoption here at Junebug,” Sydney said, shifting her gaze from the camera to Lisa. “Hi again, Lisa.”

  “Hey, Sydney.” Though a bit stiffer and obviously more nervous than Jessica, Lisa wasn’t bad in front of the camera. Sydney was used to walking inexperienced people through interviews and such, so this was no big deal.

  “And who do we have here?”

  “This is Millie,” Lisa said, resting her hand on the huge square head. “She’s been here for a while, so we’ve gotten to know her pretty well. She’s a big sweetheart.”

  “She looks a little…intimidating,” Sydney said, following the “script” she and Lisa had come up with to put people’s fears around mixed breeds—especially those thought of as pit bulls—at ease.

  “She does,” Lisa said and ran with it. “But what we need to keep in mind is that there are really no bad dogs, only bad owners. A lot of the dogs here at Junebug are brought to us because they’ve been seized from less than ideal conditions and they’re simply in need of love and an owner with the patience to teach them kindness.”

  The whole time she spoke, Sydney stroked Millie’s broad back, rubbed her velvety ears between her fingers. “She’s so sweet,” she said.

  “She really is. Kind. Smart. Lovable. Good with other dogs. Cats, too, from what we’ve seen.”

  “And up for adoption today?”

  “Absolutely. Though I’ll tell you guys a little secret.” She leaned toward the camera in a perfect display of mock collusion and stage whispered, “Jessica, our fearless leader, and Millie have a little bit of a thing going, so if you want Millie, you may have a fight on your hands.”

  “Really?” Sydney said, grinning.

  “Scout’s honor,” Lisa promised, crossing her heart.

  “Hey!” came Jessica’s voice from off stage and the phone bank volunteers laughed. It couldn’t have happened more perfectly.

  *

  By hour five, people were starting to get a little punchy, Jessica noticed. Herself included. Who knew doing a live, six-hour telecast could be so draining? Well, she did, but hadn’t been this involved with the actual telethon…ever. She was on the air nearly as much as Sydney was and by the fourth hour, didn’t even care anymore. She felt like an old pro, knowing which camera to turn to even before the red light went on. More than once, she’d caught Sydney smiling with something that certainly looked like pride, though Jessica was tired and might have been imagining it.

  They’d gone through a quick-and-dirty history of the shelter early on in the first hour of programming, but it only scratched the surface. Now that it was going on 5 p.m. and they had the older demographic, Sydney wanted to delve into that a bit more. At least, that’s what she’d told Jessica when asked. Now she watched as Sydney talked to the camera, giving the viewers a bare-bones overview of Jessica’s grandmother’s vision of Junebug Farms.

  “I can stand here and talk at you,” she said to the camera. “But I thought it might make more of an impact if you heard it from Junebug herself.”

  What? Jessica’s brow furrowed as she turned her gaze to the monitors so she could see what was being broadcast live and there was her grandmother. Smiling and jubilant and talking right to the camera. Jessica recognized it as an interview she had done about ten or twelve years ago. Then the voiceover came on. Sydney.

  For the next five or six minutes, Jessica was lost in memory, in love for her grandmother, in delight at being able to see her and hear her again. She watched in awe, as there were four more interview clips of her grandmother talking about how important animal rescue efforts were, how vital the participation of the public was. She was adamant and strong and well-spoken, just like Jessica remembered her. No-nonsense, but soft-hearted. There was video of the barn being built, segments from previous telethons, even a couple shots of a much younger Jessica when she was still learning the ropes. She hadn’t noticed how her eyes had welled with tears until one slipped over the edge and slowly coursed down her cheek, a salty droplet of joy and love. When the video ended and they cut to commercial, she turned her gaze to Sydney, who stood across the set looking at her, and whose smile was so wide and gorgeous that it momentarily stole the breath from Jessica’s lungs. She mouthed thank you and Sydney gave her a nod.

  The money board continued to jangle and ring, as did the phones in the phone bank, and the next hour went by so swiftly that when Sydney started to do her wrap-up, Jessica was startled.

  “That’s it?” she asked aloud, on the air, before she could stop herself.

  Sydney laughed. “What, six hours on live television isn’t enough for you? You want more?”

  Jessica chuckled, too, and hoped she wasn’t blushing too badly as she felt the heat in her face. “It just seems like it went so fast.”

  “I feel the same way,” Sydney said. “Let’s take one last look at the donations.”

  They turned to the big board with the large red numbers that shuffled like a Vegas slot machine. When it stopped, the final number left Jessica completely speechless, her jaw dropped open like it had disconnected from her skull. She whipped her head around and caught David’s eyes across the set. He wore the same expression.

  Sydney announced the final number, thanked the sponsors, the volunteers, and everybody who’d helped make the telethon the huge success it had been. She mentioned t
he animals, invited viewers to drop by and visit, or better yet, volunteer. Then she laid a gentle hand on Jessica’s shoulder.

  “And this woman,” she said to the camera, then turned to look at Jessica. “This woman is one of the most amazing people I’ve ever met. She works tirelessly for these animals, carrying on the tradition of love and support that her grandmother started. She is here seven days a week, sometimes fifteen, sixteen hours a day. Sometimes more. She has seen more cruelty and heart-wrenching sadness than any of us should have to, and yet she continues on because of her love for the animals and the rewards they give. This city and these animals owe her more than we could ever possibly repay.” Turning back to the camera, she went on, even as Jessica’s eyes welled up yet again and she felt her cheeks warm. “You can donate to Junebug Farms all year long, so if you missed out today, no biggie. Like us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter, Instagram, SnapChat, and Tumblr. Visit our website shown at the bottom of your screen. Not every city is lucky enough to have a Junebug Farms, because not every city is as lucky as our city. Thanks so much for spending time with us.”

  A beat went by, then a voice shouted, “We’re clear!” And suddenly, everybody who had remained quiet burst into noise and movement. Applause rang out. Hands were shaken. High fives were slapped. Whoops went up. A pile of papers was tossed into the air and floated to the ground like too-large confetti. Jessica watched it all happen, a huge smile on her face, her eyes overly wide. She managed to keep from openly crying, but it wasn’t easy. She just kept smiling instead.

  “You know, you look just this side of creepy with that enormous grin.” Sydney’s voice was close. And teasing.

  “Shut up,” Jessica replied with a laugh. “I can’t help it. This was an amazing day. I’m just…I’m speechless. All I can do is smile this creepy smile right now. Deal with it.”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  “Hey, Sydney?” Jessica lowered her voice so that in the din, only Sydney could hear her.

  “Hmm?”

  “That piece? On my grandmother?” A lump closed Jessica’s throat for a moment and she had to stop, swallow, collect herself.

  “Did you like it?” Sydney’s face, her tone of voice, the way she caught her bottom lip between her teeth, all told Jessica that she was honestly worried Jessica would say no. Seriously? How could she think that?

  “It was beautiful. You captured so much of who she was. Smart, compassionate, obstinate but a sweetheart. I don’t know how to thank you.”

  Sydney’s expression was one of obvious relief. “You don’t need to thank me.”

  “Where on earth did you find all that stuff?”

  “I researched. I questioned. I dug.” At Jessica’s raised eyebrows, Sydney cocked her head. “I’m a reporter. It’s what I do.”

  “Well, you’re damn good at your job.”

  “I know.” Her wink took away any hint of conceit.

  By seven, the important equipment and paraphernalia was packed up and headed back to Channel Six. Most people had headed home and Bill Tracey locked up the front doors behind the last straggling visitors. Jessica was in her office, sitting in her chair and letting her brain decompress from the constant activity of the day. Outside, she watched Jeff loading the last of his stuff into a van, Connor talking to him as Bridget climbed into the passenger seat. A couple spots over, Lisa was getting into her car, and she waved to Connor. Jessica blew out a long, slow breath, closed her eyes, and leaned her head back against the chair.

  “Tiring day, huh?” Sydney’s voice was soft, gentle, so it didn’t startle Jessica so much as stroke her back to attention.

  “Exhausting.” She opened her eyes and turned her head to smile in Sydney’s direction. “Hi.”

  “Hey, you.” Sydney came into the room.

  “How do you do this all the time?” For the first time that evening, Jessica noticed the slow pace of Sydney’s step, the increased blinking of what were probably scratchy eyes, the way she sunk into the chair slowly as her breath left her lungs. Sydney was beat, too.

  With a quiet chuckle, Sydney said, “Six hours of live television? I don’t do this all the time. This is definitely not a normal work day for me.”

  “Me neither.”

  They sat in silence. Comfortable silence, for the most part. “Wow,” Sydney said. “Even the dogs must be tired. They’re hardly making any noise.”

  “That happens after a big day of constant people. They’re as overstimulated as we are.” They were quiet again for a beat before Jessica leaned her head back and closed her eyes again. “So here’s my problem.”

  “Tell me.”

  “I’m starving, but I can barely get out of this chair, let alone decide on a restaurant and drag myself there.”

  “That is a dilemma.”

  “Right?”

  “Might I offer a solution?”

  “Sure.”

  Sydney sat up, forearms on knees. “What if we ordered a pizza, have it delivered to my place, and just hang out for a while? Decompress a bit?”

  Warning bells went off all over the place.

  “Oh, I don’t know. I really have some things to take care of here.”

  “You’ve been here all day. What could you possibly need to do?” Sydney’s voice was calm. Reasonable.

  “Yes, I’ve been here all day, but I’ve been on TV, not doing my work.” Sort of lame. Okay. But not a lie.

  Sydney cocked her head. “You worked your ass off today. You deserve a break.” Jessica hesitated. Sydney obviously saw her opening. “Come on. Just this one night, leave before you think you should. What’s it going to hurt?”

  The warning bells continued to clang, but Jessica fought to ignore them, instead nodding and saying, “That sounds perfect,” before she could talk herself out of it. Meanwhile, the other voice in her head screamed, What are you doing? She’s dangerous. You like her too much already and you saw where that got you last night. Spending more time with her will only make things worse!

  Wondering when she’d become so adept at ignoring her conscience, she took a deep breath, pushed herself up from her chair, and began to gather her things together. “I’ll meet you at your place in…an hour?”

  Sydney grinned widely and looked almost surprised, which made Jessica wonder if she thought she’d put up more of a fight and ultimately end up with the answer being no. As it should have been! the voice shrieked.

  “I’ll text you my address,” Sydney said, pulling out her phone.

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  Sydney’s building was nice, a neatly kept large house—as many of the apartments in the downtown area were—that had been broken up into a handful of individual dwellings. The siding was a deep slate blue, the trim a clean white, the fixtures brass. Jessica climbed the front steps, inhaled, and blew out the breath slowly. With a swallow, she reached for the bank of doorbells and pushed the one that said, “Taylor.”

  The door buzzed less than two seconds later, and Jessica smiled at the possibility of Sydney waiting for her. Then she furrowed her brow and tried to shake off any delight as she reached for the knob. No, she’d thought about this on the drive home. Sydney had some explaining to do. If last night had been nothing more than a one-night stand, so be it, but Jessica needed to know, needed to hear it from Sydney. Of course, she didn’t really want to hear it, but…

  Her thoughts were interrupted by Sydney’s voice from above her. “You found it.” She stood one flight up, forearms braced on the railing. She’d changed her clothes and now wore cute gray workout pants and a white, feminine T-shirt with a logo so faded, Jessica couldn’t make it out.

  “Wasn’t that hard.” Jessica smiled and headed up the stairs. “This is a nice place.”

  “Thanks. I like it.” Before either of them could say more, the door to Sydney’s left opened and an elegant looking elderly woman came out from the apartment next door with a trash bag. “Hi, Dr. Green,” Sydney said and reached for the bag. “Can I take that down for you?”
>
  “You’re in your pajamas,” the woman said, but still handed over the bag.

  “I won’t let anybody see me,” Sydney replied with a wink, then turned to Jessica. “Jessica Barstow, this is my neighbor, Vivian Green.”

  Vivian stuck out her hand as she said, “I know you. You run that animal shelter. I saw you on TV today. Gave you some money, too.”

  Jessica shook her hand. The skin was soft and papery, but the grip much firmer than she’d expected. “Well, I and the animals thank you for that. It’s nice to meet you.”

  Sydney pushed the door to her apartment open. “Go on in. I’ll be right back.” She headed down the stairs. Vivian smiled at Jessica and retreated into her apartment and Jessica entered Sydney’s.

  “This is nice,” Jessica said as Sydney returned. She looked around. “A bit on the sparse side, but nice.”

  “Thanks.”

  It was a nice place. Jessica could tell that despite the lack of color or almost anything personal. The walls were white, the furniture was basic. There was nothing on the walls and only two photos she could see. One that had to be Sydney and her parents—she looked just like her mother—and one with Sydney and a blonde woman, both in graduation attire. She picked it up. Studied it. Sydney looked happy and the blonde was beautiful. A friend? Roommate? Ex-girlfriend? It bothered her that it bothered her that she didn’t know who it was.

  “That’s Laura,” Sydney said and pointed at the pizza box on the counter. “Hungry?”

  “Famished. Who’s Laura?”

  “College roommate. Best friend. Voice of reason.”

  “Ah. It’s good to have one of those.”

  “She’s talked me off a ledge more than once.” Sydney got plates out of the cupboard and set them on the small counter that separated the living room from the kitchen. “She helps me with career stuff and life stuff and gives great advice. I’m waiting for her to call me back. I got an interesting e-mail from a station in Austin. I want to know her take, if she thinks I should counter. She’s really smart about life and always helps me see things from a perspective that never occurred to me.”