Obsession Falls - Page 155

He twisted so he was looking at me. “Before you go, ask yourself a question.”

“What?”

“Do you still want the job?”

I nodded slowly. He was right, that was something I needed to consider. Was a small-town newspaper the right place for me? Surprisingly, the answer came easily.

“Yes. I actually do still want the job. Not if he’s going to act like a jerk and pretend that he didn’t do anything wrong. But if he’s going to keep the paper open, and we can get past what happened, then yes, I do want to work there. I actually like it a lot.”

Josiah nodded. I understood. He’d support me, whatever I decided to do.

I was so lucky to have him.

* * *

The empty newspaper office looked so sad. My desk was the way I’d left it, with a pencil cup, a stack of random paperwork and mail, and a framed photo of Max. Sandra’s was empty. Apparently she’d cleaned out all her things, as if she really didn’t ever intend to come back. Ledger’s desk looked like it always did when he wasn’t there—messy. But his absence was felt all the same.

Lou appeared in the doorway to his office as soon as I walked in. “Hi, Audrey. Come on back.”

I went into his office but this time, I wasn’t nervous. He was either going to apologize or he wasn’t. From there, it would be up to me to decide what was best. I didn’t relish the idea of being out of a job again, but there were some things I couldn’t control. All I could control was me.

“Thanks for coming,” he began and I didn’t miss the uncharacteristic softness in his tone. He paused to clear his throat. “Obviously I owe you an apology. I won’t make excuses. I should have trusted you. I’m sorry. I was wrong and I hope you can forgive me.”

The simplicity of his apology betrayed its sincerity. “Thank you. I appreciate that.”

“And I’m sorry for everything that happened to you. Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I am. It’s been a lot, but I’ll be all right.”

“Good,” he said, nodding. “How do you feel about coming back to work?”

“That depends.”

“On what?”

“Are you going to bring back Sandra and Ledger?”

“If they’re willing. Sandra hasn’t replied to my messages yet. And I figure Ledger will probably wander back in at some point.”

“He probably will. And I bet Sandra will come back if I do.”

“Hope so. I never meant to drive everyone away.” He met my eyes. “Like I said, I won’t make excuses. This mess is my fault.”

“Well, you’re doing what’s right to clean it up.”

“So will you come back?”

I smiled. “Yes, I’ll come back.”

“Good. I have plans for the paper and they won’t work without you.”

“What do you mean?”

“I’m aiming to retire in a couple of years. I’d hate to see the Tribune close. I know newspapers aren’t what they used to be, but I think the town still needs us. So I’m hoping I can teach you to take over.”

“Me? Why not Sandra? She has more experience.”

“Sandra is the backbone of this place in a lot of ways, but what the Tribune needs is someone like you. Someone with vision who’s willing to take risks. You’ve already done more for this paper than anyone in decades.”