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As Josh pulled through the Hamilton gates, tacky TV madness had taken over the school.
Instead of the empty lot, there were eight vans, about forty people, and a set of police barriers blocking the high school entrance. Lights and flags lined the sidewalk. Kids and parents were pushing and shoving themselves in front of cameras while cops waved the jostling news crews back toward the parking spaces. A mess.
Fortunately everyone was too busy acting stupid to notice Josh’s approach, so he steered well clear, hugging the outside lane and hooking around toward the back and the loading zone where deliveries reached the cafeteria.
After parking his truck, he pulled his hood up and tucked his chin, sticking close to the wall. He popped open one of the emergency exits with his keys. More noise at the main doors and around the high school office, but he didn’t see Principal Carver.
A cold knot settled in his stomach. Was this more library blowback? Or had Cilla finally blabbed? Had someone caught wind of her fake jockstrap story? Was all this why Tyler had been so cagey on the phone? A weird blend of fear and rage chilled him as he navigated the dim halls to his office.
As Josh arrived at the Hamilton Athletics office, he was surprised to see Elise coming out the door with her purse and a cardboard box of personal items.
“What’s up?”
Elise shivered like a puppy. “I’m taking the day off. And then some.” She looked down at the box. “Driving to San Diego. Well, to be totally honest, I just handed in my notice to Carver, and I could pee.” She bobbed in excitement. “I should have said that first. So not the day, I guess I’m taking the rest of my life off. Eee!” She actually squealed.
Josh gawped at her. “Elise. Why would you do that? Are you okay?”
“So get this,” Elise announced. “I’ve been offered a TV show by station KSDF.”
“What now?” Josh faltered, not certain he’d heard that right.
“After some vigorous conversations”—Elise flashed her eyes excitedly—“station KSDF, Channel Twenty-four, wants to produce and broadcast Yoga for Oldies for thirteen weeks to start. And they’re even paying for cosmetic surgery to fix the bite mark on my arm.”
He cocked his head. “You sent the evidence.”
She smirked and arched an eyebrow. “So much evidence. A mountain range of evidence.”
“Because of Cilla flipping out before Three Musketeers.”
“Well, that and everything else. You warned her. We gave her plenty of chances to save herself. But nope. Her phone was chock full of landmines. Gracious!” Elise seemed to relish the redheaded reporter’s comeuppance. “Let me say, her former producers have been incredibly accommodating. The station lawyers couldn’t kiss my butt fast enough.” She nodded, a smug smile spreading across her face. “We made a deal to settle any claims against them. Originally they even offered me some weather girl position, but it’s California! I was like, ‘What weather?’ so I negotiated for my own yoga program instead.”
Josh stood awkwardly in the doorway. How would her departure or Cilla’s arrest impact his own situation? Or Tyler’s, for that matter?
“I’m really sorry, Elise.”
“Sorry! For getting me a television show? Boo-hoo.” Heartbroken she wasn’t.
“The chaos. All of… this.” He gestured at the parking lot outside, filled with cameras. “Just a bummer. But I’m really happy for you.”
“No bummer. I’m going to be in San Diego, where Captain Fantastic has been known to brown his buns. Maybe whenever you two are around, we can double date. ’Cause I plan to be dating finally. Plenty of fish there. Better than Cinnamar, for sure.”
He nodded. “When do you leave?”
“Right now, actually. My bags are in the car. I have a meeting at ten thirty with the Channel Twenty-four lawyers to finalize the settlement,” Elise replied. “I just came by to give you and Carver the news, had no idea the press would be swarming outside so soon.”
Josh twisted to try and see, but the scrum seemed to be focused on the front doors across from the office. “Is that because of Cilla? I figured she must have run her porn thing or my jockstrap. Some gross story that got the vultures circling.”
Elise gave him a funny look then. Her brow furrowed, her eyes flicking to the right. Was she telling him everything?
“What?”
She shook her head with a worried frown. “I think…. Uhh. So he hasn’t called you.”
“Carver? No!” Why was she eyeing him like that? “Elise, you’re killing me.”
“It kind of sounded like Carver’s already trying to find a replacement. You know… just until things calm down. Everything has been nuts. Plus the board terminated Myra, and so they need a college counselor too, so I think he’s trying to kill two birds with one stone. He got on the horn immediately.”
Josh felt a spike of anxiety, wondering if he was next on the chopping block due to all the stupid melodrama of the past three months. Hell, the past week.
