Monroe, Melody Snow - Truth and Seduction [The Callens 2] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) by Melody Snow Monroe Read Free Book Online Page A

more of the fight. The whole thing was ridiculous. She held the phone to face her. “Well, there you have it, folks. Make sure you repeat your order so mistakes don’t get made. This is Jessie McCallister reporting from the Burger Haus.” She stopped the recording.
    Cody was right. Damn . This place was a walking violation.
    She got out of there fast. Could this day start off any worse? She needed breakfast, but she sure as hell wasn’t going to order anything from here. She got back to the office and wrote up what happened. She needed to pass it by Ichabod even though she knew he’d kill the story. Stepping on sponsors’ toes was always bad for business.
    He leaned over her computer. “You got a lead?”
    Her heart lurched at the unexpected interruption. She looked up. “Yes. It’s called the war between curly and straight fries.”
    “Show me.” Was he serious? She turned her computer and played the sixty-second spot.
    “You can’t use that.”
    “It’s too ridiculous, huh?”
    “The part about the fight is good, but you can’t show the roach. That could kill Burger Haus’s business.”
    “Maybe it ought to. That place is disgustingly filthy.” The joint hadn’t been so bad when she was in high school.
    “Cut the roach part and show the rest.”
    “If the store is that dirty, why shouldn’t they be exposed?”
    He blew out a breath. “McCallister, there’s a lot you need to learn about the business. You know Burger Haus is a corporate sponsor. We don’t piss on who’s paying our bills. Do I make myself clear?”
    Jerk . “Perfectly.”
    He did a spin maneuver and headed back to his cave. She wouldn’t become unglued because she couldn’t show the roach. Rocking the boat this early on in her career wouldn’t be smart.
    Now she had to call Cody and tell him the bad news.
    “So you’re going to let Walt kill the story?” he said.
    “He’s letting me keep the fight.”
    “Chicken, chicken, chicken.”
    She chuckled. “I can’t do anything about it. I’m not the boss.”
    “Bok, bok, bok.”
    “What do you want me to do? Even if I did a full-fledged investigation on Burger Haus’s filth, I couldn’t get the story past my boss.”
    “Suit yourself, but in my world, covering evidence is tantamount to lying. That’s about the only thing that turns me off. Someone’s on the other line. Talk to you later.” He disconnected.
    Well, that was abrupt.
    Uh-oh. Did he really mean it about the lying? Was he saying that he would never be interested in her if her boss never ran controversial stories? It wasn’t her fault. She’d tried to do something, and it didn’t pan out.
    Whatever .
    Once she finished making the story politically correct, she leaned back in her chair and rubbed her eyes. So far, other than the Tanner fire and the domestic violence call, nothing deserved to be aired.
    Wanting to give one more try to connect with Rhonda’s mom, she dialed the Indiana number. There was no answer, so Jessie left another message just in case the woman missed the first one.
    She spent the rest of the morning reading downloaded police reports for something to investigate. Nothing really caught her attention. Her cell rang. The caller ID said it was Shane.
    “Good morning.”
    “I was wondering if you’d like to join me for lunch.”
    She hadn’t eaten any breakfast, and she was starving. “I’d love to.”
    “Pick you up in fifteen minutes?”
    “Great.”
    The last time she’d seen him, he’d kissed her. She jetted into the ladies room, fixed her hair, and reapplied some lipstick. Not wanting to keep him waiting, she rushed outside. The day was perfect. The sun was out, and the temperature was a wonderful seventy-five degrees.
    Shane pulled up to the curb in his truck and got out. “You look nice. Ready?”
    “Yup.”
    He held open the door. Men in Denver didn’t have as nice manners as Shane and Cody. “Where are we going?”
    “To one of my favorite places. It’s a throwback