The Color of a Promise (The Color of Heaven Series Book 11) by Julianne MacLean
Authors: Julianne MacLean
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gestured toward me. “Jack, this is Meg Andrews, our senior structures specialist. This lady is the best. She really knows her stuff. Meg, this is Jack Peterson.”
As soon as we made eye contact, the butterflies in my belly quadrupled. Up close and in person, he was even more handsome than he was on television—if that were even possible. The blueness of his eyes practically knocked the wind out of me.
I did notice, however, that he looked extremely tired and was in need of a shave. I also noticed a few small scars on his face that didn’t show up on the TV screen. Hidden under makeup, no doubt.
Fighting to push the butterflies down, I reached out to shake his hand.
“Hi, Meg,” he said. “Thanks so much for coming up with me today. I know how busy you must be. I really appreciate it.”
“It’s no problem,” I replied. “It’s an honor. Really.”
Oh God. Was that too much?
He gestured toward the helicopter. The pilot was already in his seat and the door was wide open, waiting for us.
“Ready to go?” Jack asked.
“Yes.” I gave Gary a quick look of disbelief as I passed him and followed the superstar newsman to the chopper.
o0o
“At least the rain has held off,” Jack said as we buckled in.
We sat beside each other in the rear passenger cabin while we waited for another CNN reporter to join us. We hadn’t put on our headsets yet.
I took a moment to look around at all the video equipment and monitors, the overwhelming array of buttons, knobs and gauges, while Jack adjusted the laptop console that operated the exterior camera. I had noticed it when I got in. It was housed in a nose-mounted gimbal out front, and could rotate 360 degrees.
“We’ll get some good footage with this machine,” he said, referring to the chopper in general.
“Will you be broadcasting live?”
“No,” he replied, “but we’ll be able to transmit the footage to the station right away.”
I craned my neck to look up at the sky. “I sure hope the rain continues to hold off.”
I knew that I didn’t have to explain anything to this man about how much more difficult the rescue and recovery would be if the weather turned. He’d seen and covered his own share of disasters of all kinds. He most certainly knew it.
“Listen…” I said, turning to him. “Thanks for that video you shot last night, and for sharing it with us. It’s going to be very helpful.”
“Of course,” he replied.
“It must have been terrifying,” I went on, “to have seen all that, right in front of your own home.”
“It was.” He inhaled deeply. “I’m still pretty shaken up by it, to be honest. I’ve seen a lot of things in my career, but that…” He gazed at me for a few seconds, seeming unable to find the right words to continue, and I nodded with understanding.
“And it’s my parents’ house, not mine,” he added, looking away, in an obvious effort to change the subject.
“Have they lived there all their lives?”
“Sort of. It’s a summer place. They still have their home base in Chicago where I grew up and went to school.”
“I see.”
I paused, watching his profile for a few seconds while he flipped a few switches on the video control panel. I couldn’t help but marvel at his looks. Strong jawline, nice lips and a perfect nose. God , he was unbelievably attractive. Impossible not to stare at. I wondered how old he was. Early forties, maybe?
I could probably google that, along with all sorts of other personal information about him if I wanted to—like whether or not he was married.
I glanced at his hand. He wasn’t wearing a ring.
Not that I wanted to date him or anything. I was already in a long-term relationship.
With Malcolm.
But even if I wasn’t, I was too busy to date. Too focused on my job. I was simply—for some reason I couldn’t explain—curious about Jack’s personal life, like some kind of voyeur. Maybe I wondered what it would be like to be him, so rich and famous.
“Which
As soon as we made eye contact, the butterflies in my belly quadrupled. Up close and in person, he was even more handsome than he was on television—if that were even possible. The blueness of his eyes practically knocked the wind out of me.
I did notice, however, that he looked extremely tired and was in need of a shave. I also noticed a few small scars on his face that didn’t show up on the TV screen. Hidden under makeup, no doubt.
Fighting to push the butterflies down, I reached out to shake his hand.
“Hi, Meg,” he said. “Thanks so much for coming up with me today. I know how busy you must be. I really appreciate it.”
“It’s no problem,” I replied. “It’s an honor. Really.”
Oh God. Was that too much?
He gestured toward the helicopter. The pilot was already in his seat and the door was wide open, waiting for us.
“Ready to go?” Jack asked.
“Yes.” I gave Gary a quick look of disbelief as I passed him and followed the superstar newsman to the chopper.
o0o
“At least the rain has held off,” Jack said as we buckled in.
We sat beside each other in the rear passenger cabin while we waited for another CNN reporter to join us. We hadn’t put on our headsets yet.
I took a moment to look around at all the video equipment and monitors, the overwhelming array of buttons, knobs and gauges, while Jack adjusted the laptop console that operated the exterior camera. I had noticed it when I got in. It was housed in a nose-mounted gimbal out front, and could rotate 360 degrees.
“We’ll get some good footage with this machine,” he said, referring to the chopper in general.
“Will you be broadcasting live?”
“No,” he replied, “but we’ll be able to transmit the footage to the station right away.”
I craned my neck to look up at the sky. “I sure hope the rain continues to hold off.”
I knew that I didn’t have to explain anything to this man about how much more difficult the rescue and recovery would be if the weather turned. He’d seen and covered his own share of disasters of all kinds. He most certainly knew it.
“Listen…” I said, turning to him. “Thanks for that video you shot last night, and for sharing it with us. It’s going to be very helpful.”
“Of course,” he replied.
“It must have been terrifying,” I went on, “to have seen all that, right in front of your own home.”
“It was.” He inhaled deeply. “I’m still pretty shaken up by it, to be honest. I’ve seen a lot of things in my career, but that…” He gazed at me for a few seconds, seeming unable to find the right words to continue, and I nodded with understanding.
“And it’s my parents’ house, not mine,” he added, looking away, in an obvious effort to change the subject.
“Have they lived there all their lives?”
“Sort of. It’s a summer place. They still have their home base in Chicago where I grew up and went to school.”
“I see.”
I paused, watching his profile for a few seconds while he flipped a few switches on the video control panel. I couldn’t help but marvel at his looks. Strong jawline, nice lips and a perfect nose. God , he was unbelievably attractive. Impossible not to stare at. I wondered how old he was. Early forties, maybe?
I could probably google that, along with all sorts of other personal information about him if I wanted to—like whether or not he was married.
I glanced at his hand. He wasn’t wearing a ring.
Not that I wanted to date him or anything. I was already in a long-term relationship.
With Malcolm.
But even if I wasn’t, I was too busy to date. Too focused on my job. I was simply—for some reason I couldn’t explain—curious about Jack’s personal life, like some kind of voyeur. Maybe I wondered what it would be like to be him, so rich and famous.
“Which
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