Page 107 of A Bossy Surprise

“So, you’re actually serious. I’m the moderator for the very first presidential debate?”

“As serious as a heart attack,” Arthur says.

“We only have a month to prepare. So we have to sit down and start planning immediately,” I say.

“Of course, all four of us should be there, but I think we would benefit from having the rest of the news department involved,” Kayla says.

“Yeah,” Arthur adds. “I think that’s a good idea.”

“I’ll see who I can wrangle within an hour. Not everyone will be able to be there because we still have things going on, but I should be able to get enough people that it will make a difference,” Kayla says.

“Great. Let’s meet in the conference room in an hour and we go from there,” I say. Everyone turns around and starts leaving. “Kayla, can you wait a second?”

Arthur and Consuela leave, closing the door behind them.

“What do you want?” Kayla asks, a bit snippy. “I have a lot to do.”

I smirk. “I’m going to call my dad and tell him the good news. I figured you’d want to be in the room for that, but if you would rather go herd cats, be my guest.”

A smile spreads across her face as she walks over to me. “Just make the call.”

I pull my phone out of my pocket and dial my dad’s number and put it on speaker.

He lets it ring six times before he answers. “Yes?” comes his clipped voice.

“Hi Dad, I hope I’m not bothering you.”

“I’m a very busy person. Whenever you call you are bothering me. What do you want?”

Kayla rolls her eyes and I snicker under my breath.

“I have some news that I wanted to express directly.”

“Good news I hope? Have you come to your senses and decided to pull out of GNN?”

“No,” I say with a smile.

I’m sure he can hear my grin over the phone because he snaps at me. “Adam, I don’t have time for this. What do you want to tell me?”

“Just that GNN’s Consuela Alvarez has been selected to moderate the first presidential debate.”

The line is silent for a moment. “Are you sure it’s the presidential debate and not some local debate?”

“Yes, I am sure it’s the presidential debate.”

“The debate between Eustis Pine and Alton Jackson?”

“Yes, Dad. Do you think I would be making this call if I didn’t verify that?”

“How?”

“We applied. We’re good at what we do and it would seem the Commission on Presidential Debates agrees.”

I can tell he’s talking through clenched teeth when he says, “I don’t know how you managed to get this done, but I hope you haven’t done anything illegal.”

“Illegal like what?”

“Blackmail or bribe your way into this. If you did, it will surely come out and blow back on Grant Media. I won’t to go easy on you if that happens.”