immensely, starting with his drive to work in the super lush SUV and discovering another reporter had snagged Jimmy to assist them with a project. Too soon, it was time for him to head to the news station to meet with Jude and his station manager, Jed.
He stepped into the restroom to check his appearance once more, chiding himself for his foolishness the entire time. Felix found Minerva waiting for him in the hallway. She had her signature extra-large tote bag on her shoulder and sunglasses resting on top of her head.
“Ready?” she asked as she turned and walked away.
“You’re going with me?” he asked, falling into step with Minerva. She hadn’t said so the day before. Had she detected his reluctance to work with Jude and was ensuring things went smoothly?
“I’m just tagging along for the free lunch,” she quipped. “Okay, maybe I want to supervise the photo shoot.”
Felix skidded to a stop. “Photo shoot?”
Minerva stopped too and looked at him with wide eyes. “Did I forget to mention that part?”
He wasn’t falling for her innocent act. It worked like a charm on most people, but not him. Felix shook his head. “You didn’t mention they were feeding us either, but I was willing to let it go. I consider it a welcome surprise. But a photo shoot? Come on, Minerva. You didn’t do this with the other cross-promotional segments.”
“Lower your voice,” Minerva hissed as she hooked her arm through Felix’s and resumed walking. Felix could either go with her or make a scene. There really was no choice here. “The others will hear you, and I plan to blame Jed for the extra attention given to you and Jude.”
“What’s going on?” Felix asked when they cleared the building.
Minerva stopped and looked up at him. “The other reporters offer great value to the paper, but none of them have your star power. Have you ever looked at yourself in the mirror?” He knew he wasn’t unattractive, but that could be said about tons of people. “It’s more than your looks though. Your intelligence and passion for making things right just add to the total package. People are drawn to you like a magnet, Felix.”
Unfortunately for him, it was usually the wrong kind of people. Trouble with a capital T.
“And Jude,” Felix said. “I’m sure his appeal factors into the decision.”
“He’s not unfortunate looking,” Minerva said coolly. A girlish giggle bubbled out of her, totally ruining her casual vibe. Her eyes widened, and she slapped her hand over her mouth.
“For fuck’s sake, Minerva. You’re acting like you just belched.” Felix was so charmed by it that he momentarily forgot his irritation with her.
“In business, belching is much preferred over giggling. I’ve battled the dumb blonde label my entire life. I’ve learned to stifle my laughter, cloak my sense of humor, and mask my intelligence just so people would take me seriously.”
Felix smiled. “I don’t think less of you because you giggled.”
Minerva smiled. “Thank you.”
“Now, why don’t you tell me the real reason you’re going to all the trouble of a photo shoot to promote this joint venture? Besides my dashing good looks and cleverness, that is.”
“You’re going places, Felix.”
“Come on, Minerva,” he said, shaking his head.
“I’m serious. Your talent is too big for this market. It’s only a matter of time before HBO, Oxygen, or the ID channel comes along and steals you away from us.” Minerva sighed. “As your friend, I’m so proud of you and excited to see where your beautiful brain and passion for justice takes you. As your editor, I want to benefit from your brilliance for as long as I can. New subscriptions to our paper have tripled since you started your Sinister in Savannah podcast. Tripled! That’s unheard of in this day and age.”
“Minerva, I’m flattered by your high praise, but I’m not going anywhere. Savannah is my home, this is where my friends are, and I love working for you. I’m totally fine with you getting good usage from whatever notoriety I have. God knows you’ve had my back since day one. Just be upfront with me going forward. I hate surprises.”
“Unless it’s during an investigation,” she countered.
God, he loved uncovering a juicy scoop. “Those are the only good surprises.”
“You have yourself a deal.”
They ended up driving separately to the news station, which worked in Felix’s favor so he could get his riotous emotions under control. He’d spent way too much time replaying and analyzing Jude’s apology. While he wasn’t an expert on