Chapter 20

Jesse kept focused as she began to compile her notes into a document and started the process of creating an article that was fit to be displayed in their magazine. She read it over and over as she wrote, and she couldn’t help feeling dissatisfied with the article as a whole, especially after she had gained so much knowledge about the personal life of this incredible celebrity.

At length, Jesse sat back in her chair and rubbed her eyes. She knew that even after adding quite a lot of ornamentation, it left a lot to be desired. Sure, there were little snippets here and there that the public had never seen before, but it was mostly just a reiteration of things people already knew. It was certainly not the breakthrough in her career that she had been anticipating.

Jesse sighed in frustration and tapped her fingernails against her desk. Unable to think of anything better to do, she allowed her mind to wander to the subject of the article. She vaguely wondered what Hal was doing with his time just now and imagined he was having lunch at some other fine dining establishment. As she thought of food, her stomach growled, and she reached into her bag to withdraw the apple and sandwich that she had brought along for lunch.

As she nibbled, she pondered over what else someone like Hal could be doing in their spare time. She wondered if he was even in the country at this point, for surely he could afford to go off wherever he wished and whenever he wished to do so. She released a long stream of air and couldn’t help imagining him strolling about in all manner of different places that she could barely even afford to visit.

Jesse shook her head quickly and blinked her eyes, embarrassed that her thoughts were so actively occupied with Hal Roberts. She had spent one whole afternoon with him, and suddenly she couldn’t get him out of her head. She felt like a high school freshman with a crush on the senior quarterback. In a lot of ways, the situation was indeed similar, except that it was magnified tenfold.

Jesse also couldn’t clear her mind of the compliments and optimism that Elaine had expressed to her about the potential of beginning a relationship with Hal. She would never have wasted time even thinking about that if Elaine hadn’t said something about it. Now, though, it seemed that it was all she could think about. She imagined other photos of them making their way into the papers. Maybe at dinner, or maybe just taking a stroll along the sidewalk.

Even at the mere thought of it, Jesse felt warmth rise up in her stomach, and a small smile lifted the corners of her mouth. She hadn’t experienced what it was like to have a crush in a very long time, and her employer even said that she might have a legitimate chance.

All of a sudden, something snapped in Jesse’s brain, and she felt exceedingly foolish for having those thoughts.

Jesse looked around to see if anyone had noticed her—as if they could somehow read the contents of her thoughts and daydreams. Of course, nobody found anything out of the ordinary, and all of her coworkers were busily typing away at their desks.

Jesse sighed and resolved to finish her sandwich and get back to work. It did not take her long to finish the small meal, and then she was eagerly typing away. Jesse found as she worked, though, that she surely did not need as much time as she had originally anticipated to finish this article and that she could likely have it edited and ready to publish by the end of the next day at the absolute latest.

Jesse felt a little disappointed with her work and annoyed that she had let her momentary reaction to an emotional story compromise her entire article, and as a result, the progress of her career. The more she dwelled on it, the more irritated she became. She huffed to herself and shook her head as she read over the article. She wanted to take a break and perhaps work on something else. Unfortunately, she had no other obligations, as she had expected to be entirely engrossed in this project for a much longer period of time.

Jesse had little choice but to press on and keep working. She found herself constantly looking over at the clock on her desk, praying for time to move faster so that she could at last go home. Finally, there was only an hour remaining until she could do just that.

Jesse propped her elbows on her desk and buried her face in her hands. She rubbed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose. She was becoming increasingly frustrated and put out with her situation, and she would have considered just taking off early if it hadn’t been for her escapade the previous day. Unfortunately, she really felt that option was not on the table.

Jesse was about to resume her work when her office phone rang. Again, she was somewhat perplexed that she was being called there, but she answered it anyway if only to quiet the ringing of the phone.

“This is Jesse Clarke at the Edge,” she answered as cheerily as she could muster.

“Hi there, Jess …” Jesse sat bolt upright as she recognized the voice of Hal Roberts. “How are you doing today?”