Bayside's Most Unexpected Bride. Kerri Carpenter

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      He’d claim the whole thing was preposterous, but the numbers didn’t lie. The gossip column was the most viewed area of the online edition of the paper. He couldn’t help but wonder what his ancestors who’d started the newspaper would think of that.

      Still, he wasn’t letting her off the hook that easily. “You know I wasn’t on a date with Holly.”

      She raised her nose in a regal gesture. “I know nothing of the kind.”

      “She’s one of our best freelance photographers. We were meeting about an assignment.” Even he could hear the defensiveness in his voice. And why did he feel the need to explain himself to Riley?

      “You could’ve met here at the office.”

      “I needed caffeine.” And he’d needed to get away for a little bit.

      Running a daily newspaper wasn’t the easiest of jobs these days. Not that it ever had been. Balancing editorial with the business side, advertisers and marketing. Not to mention the dwindling circulation numbers.

      He really wished he didn’t have to mention that.

      “Is the Bugle in trouble?”

      Damn, she was the most perceptive person he’d ever met. Probably why she was so good at being the Bayside Blogger.

      He noticed the concern on her face. It probably mirrored his own. Still, he didn’t want to worry her or anyone on staff. So far he’d been able to keep all of the financial concerns to himself. “No more than every other paper in the country.”

      “Maybe you could raise the price. I’m sure people would pay...”

      He shook his head as she trailed off. “You know that circulation doesn’t keep newspapers afloat. Advertisers do.”

      A small line formed on her forehead as she considered that. “But you said that advertisers have been fighting to get in.”

      “Just in your section.” Which was true. Everyone wanted to appear in the Bayside Blogger’s section since they knew that everyone in town was reading the gossip. Bayside had its fair share of restaurants and local businesses, but a small town offered only so many resources. And without more advertising, they’d be closing up shop by the end of the next summer season.

      The truth was, Riley’s question was on target. The Bugle was in trouble. Sawyer had tried to stay on top of it by utilizing their website and digital edition and making sure the design was up-to-date. He’d even downsized the print edition to cut costs at every corner.

      But now he had some tough decisions to make, the biggest being layoffs. He was already running with a skeleton crew in the advertising department. He hated to think about shrinking the editorial team. He swiped a hand over his face. Employee layoffs at Christmastime. Could there be anything worse?

      “Sawyer, are you okay? What’s going on?”

      Riley’s voice pulled him out of his funk even though he knew he was going to have to deal with it soon. In the meantime, he’d explore all options and do everything in his power to not have to fire anyone. At Christmas or any other time. And he’d definitely work hard to keep this from his team. Even if it meant not drawing his own salary.

      “Nothing is going on and I’m fine. Stop worrying. On to other business. The upcoming Christmas Kickoff Festival.”

      Riley eyed him skeptically for another moment before flipping open her reporter’s notebook. “Day after Thanksgiving, just like always.”

      “With a twist,” Sawyer interjected. “Usually, this is a townie thing. But I was at the council meeting the other night. They want to go big, attract people from other towns and areas of Virginia.”

      “Impressive.”

      “They want it to be a smaller version of New York’s lighting of the Rockefeller Center tree.”

      He noticed her pen skip at the mention of New York. “I want you to cover the event. This is right up your alley. Plus, you lived there, so you’d have the experience of knowing what their ceremony is like.”

      “I never went to the tree lighting when I lived there,” she said in a soft voice.

      Sawyer knew that wasn’t true. Riley had lived in New York for four years. During that time, she’d always been active on social media, and he remembered seeing her Facebook pictures of tree lightings over the years. But, once again, she didn’t want to talk about New York. So, once again, he would let it go. For now.

      “Still, I’d like you to head up the festival for the Bugle. Let’s start getting some pre-event coverage in both the print and online editions.”

      Now she was scribbling in her notebook. Concentrating. Looking sexy as hell.

      Get a grip, Wallace.

      “Oh, I wanted to ask you about that recent social media promotion you and Claudia ran. Why were the numbers so low?”

      Her gaze flicked up quickly to his. Her eyes narrowed. “The numbers were fine. Normal.”

      “Not from the report you sent me. The reach was lower than the last contest.”

      She gifted him with an overdramatic sigh. “How many times do I have to explain social media to you?”

      The side of his mouth twitched but he held in the smile. One of his favorite things about Riley was how bright she was. Most people didn’t realize that under her coordinated outfits and talk of the latest docudrama airing on Bravo, Riley had a shrewd eye for social media, pop culture and how to use those things in business.

      “Humor me,” he told her.

      “You were looking at the total reach of the posts on all the platforms. Did you check the organic reach? The numbers were fabulous, especially considering how you cut our social media advertising budget to shreds.”

      “I don’t see how that—”

      She continued on her rant and Sawyer couldn’t follow it, although, he was impressed as hell. He might not understand a lick of what she was saying, but he really loved watching how passionate she became as she explained it.

      “Are you listening to me?”

      Her question jerked him away from his thoughts. He decided that talking to Riley about social media wasn’t going to help anything. Especially because he didn’t want to reveal that she was going to have even less money in the budget next year.

      “What are you up to this weekend?” he asked.

      If his change in topic came as a surprise to her, she didn’t show it. “Same as you,” she said with a bemused smile. He racked his brain and couldn’t think of any shared family gatherings until Thanksgiving. Riley rolled her eyes. “Tomorrow is Elle and Cam’s engagement party at the Dumont estate. There’s no way you could have forgotten that.”

      His turn to roll his eyes. “Blocked, perhaps.”

      “Sawyer, it’s not that bad. Most people love when the Dumonts throw parties.”

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