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“It’s good what you do for students and for a lot of aspiring entrepreneurs from the Humanity Program. You help people from all reaches of economic background. That’s wonderful.”
He grinned.
“What’s so funny?”
“Oh, nothing. I was briefed about your work before you got here, just so that we are clear. I wanted the people at human resources to gather as many clips of your work for me to peruse.”
“Oh?” Blue felt morbid. What else had he seen in those footage? Of course, a man of Zack’s stature would never just trust his grandfather’s preliminary interview to agree to work with her.
“There was a clip of you covering the Anti-Poverty Rally at Queen’s Park.”
“Oh.” Her stomach lurched. She was practically inadvertently tossed around from side to side as the protesters rushed to the picket line—it looked comical at first. Then when she got out of their way, she’d backed away slightly…into the water fountain. She came out dripping wet but continued her story as if it was nothing out of the ordinary. All in a day's work.
When she looked at Zack, she noticed his grin fade. “You were not harmed, so that’s why it was amusing. You are tenacious. A lesser woman would have stormed out or backed down. I love a woman with tenacity. You stuck it out and you made light of it later at the news desk. It takes a strong, confident woman to humor herself in a…difficult situation.”
Strong? Confident? She sure didn’t feel like it that day. She merely got on with the job the best way she knew how. Yes, it was comical and it was the only time that a few of the protesters actually grinned when they learned she was okay.
“Everyone falls some times,” he continued. “But getting back up and back into the game takes courage.” His silky tone rang with seriousness. Blue captured raw hurt glinting in his eyes. What had his heart gone through in the past? Blue wondered. Zack was a mysterious man. But she was somehow in awe of him. She felt connected to him. His very being. She loved the way he took a spin on life. Sure, he had taken some hard knocks according to what she knew about him, but there he was, a true Romero. Those men always seem to get back up fighting. No matter what life dealt them.
Being on the giving end of the camera was one thing, but Blue couldn’t handle being on the receiving end of the news. How awful to be captured at any given time for the world to see…in print and online.
“Thank you,” she responded to his encouragement. Elliot never championed her, come to think of it. Her ex seemed to take great pleasure in belittling at the most insignificant of foibles, disguising it as jest, humor. But many a truth was spoken in jest as the saying went.
Still, she was glad to have been assigned the human interest stories such as the anti-poverty movement.
She was covering the event but she also felt passionate about the way low-income families could not provide for their children. She was all for raising the minimum wage. She took nothing for granted.
The thought caused moistness to sting her eyes. Blue knew how it felt to not have much. But then, she’d learned about Zack’s background, too. He’d been through humbling impoverished times as a youngster before he met his famous grandfather. But she was not about to bring that up. She would allow him to. Since she knew it was a raw spot and it wasn’t something that the Romero brothers flaunted when they worked within the community.
Blue learned the Romero brothers were known for their compassionate work, not for their boastful words.
“You can begin recording,” Zack ordered her, in his commanding, deep voice. He walked so powerfully and dignified with his shoulders squared.
Conscious of her own posture, Blue straightened up. Her eyes scanned the breathtaking scenery at the estate. It was a massive sea of greenery with fresh grapes tinting the verdant view as they dangled from vines. There was a beautiful mini cottage that was the garden shed but it was more like a beautiful home with its own shrubs, stone pathway and a double French door like the main house. How marvellous they designed it that way. It was Zack’s brainchild, apparently.
The scent of his cologne was irresistible to Blue's nose. Everything about the man was. She felt her nipples getting hard, straining under her bra and through her knitted summer top. She prayed Zack would not look directly at them. It would be so embarrassing. Her skirt was beginning to ride up again. The fabric was not one she was used to wearing and had a bit of stretching Lycra material in it to complement her curves. She just wished she’d worn it beforehand to understand how it would behave. What a day to wear this outfit. Blue tried to change the direction of her thoughts back to her work.
