Free Yuletide Defender by Sandra Robbins Page A

out of his mind since.
    It had been a long time since he’d met a woman that interested him like Rachel did and even longer since he’d had dinner with anyone as beautiful. This might not be a regular date. It was their work that had brought about their meeting. He would try to put the meeting out of his mind during dinner because the thought of gangs and murder wasn’t going to keep him from enjoying her company tonight.
    Â 
    Matt drained the last drop of coffee from his cup and set it back in the saucer. In spite of his earlier resolve, he couldn’t get his mind off the encounter with her source that would come later.
    â€œYou’re sure you don’t want me to go with you to the park bench to meet your source?”
    Rachel frowned and set her fork down on her plate. “Do we have to go over this again? I’ve explained it to you. We don’t need to scare him off. You’ll be close enough that I’ll call if I need you.”
    Matt pushed his plate out of the way, leaned forward and crossed his arms on the tabletop. “I want to make sure that you’re safe.” He grinned. “I don’t want to read a headline that says a reporter was shot while a policeman hid behind a tree.”
    â€œYou don’t have to worry about that. My source sounds young to me. Of course, I don’t know how young, but he doesn’t strike me as being violent.”
    Matt’s eyebrows arched and he laughed. “He’s in a gang, Rachel. Of course he’s violent.”
    She shook her head. “But he said he’s a believer. He wants to please his mother by getting out of the gang life while hecan. He’s asked me to help him get out of the city and I’m going to do it.”
    â€œAnd just how are you going to accomplish that?”
    â€œI’ll talk to David. He has contacts all over the country. Maybe a director of another center can find a temporary home for him away from the streets of Lake City.”
    There was no denying the sincerity in Rachel’s voice. She really did want to help this boy. “So he’s more to you than a story.”
    She settled back in her chair. “Of course he is. I don’t want to see him hurt. But I do want to tell his story.” Her brow wrinkled. “No, it’s more that that. I’ve got to tell his story.”
    A subtle change had come over Rachel and Matt didn’t understand what had happened. “What do you mean?”
    â€œI realize you don’t know very much about me, Matt, but one thing you need to understand is that my job at the Beacon is temporary.”
    He sat up straight, his eyes wide. “Temporary? Have you taken another job somewhere else?”
    She shook her head. “No, but I plan to. I want to advance to something bigger. An investigative reporter for a big TV station. Something that pays more money than what I make here.”
    Disappointment surged through him. “You said something about that the other night. Now it sounds more like an obsession. Are you saying that money is important to you?”
    Rachel nodded. “A job that pays me a lot is important to me.”
    Matt swallowed and searched for something to say but his mind was blank. He still didn’t understand fully what she’d said. It wasn’t a bad thing to want to advance in your career and be paid for your work, but something in her eyes told him it was more that just getting a better job.
    She’d never struck him as a girl whose head could be swayed by money, but that’s what he’d thought before andhad been proven wrong. Their date Saturday night should be an opportunity for his questions about Rachel to be answered. Until then they had other things to worry about, like a confidential source and a vigilante on a killing spree.

SIX
    R achel pulled her rental car into the same parking space she’d used two nights before and glanced at the trees behind the picnic area.