“Ooooh, therapy! Definitely put therapy on the list.” Corey nudges me sharply with her elbow.

Natasha clears her throat, ending that line of conversation, thank Loki. “So. Now that we’ve covered pitches and assignments, it’s time for the big news.”

We all straighten up in our seats. Natasha has been hinting at this announcement for the past couple of weeks, but none of us have any real idea what it could be. I pray she hasn’t decided to retire and leave us in the hands of someone else, because I don’t know if I can handle another breakup right now.

Natasha clasps her hands tightly together, resting them on her closed tablet, a hint of a smile tugging on her bold red lips. “ATF has been acquired.” She pauses as if she’s expecting an immediate reaction, but the room stays completely silent. “The Los Angeles Chronicle bought the site and we will now be operating under their umbrella.”

I scan my friends’ faces for some kind of indication of whether this is good or bad news, but we all wear matching confused expressions.

Finally, Corey comes out with it. “So, are we getting fired? What does that even mean?”

Natasha settles back in her seat. “No, no one’s getting fired . . . at least not yet. For now, it doesn’t mean many changes.” She hesitates for half a second. “But in the long run, it does mean there may be opportunities for some of you to write for the Chronicle.”

My heart jumps at this hint of possible good news. Natasha very pointedly doesn’t look at me, as she’s well aware of my desire to someday shift to writing for a paper like the Chronicle. “It also means that, for the next couple months at least, we’ve been asked to play host to a potential Chronicle employee.”

James makes a face. “Are we going to become the new Chronicle training grounds or something?”

The skin around Natasha’s lips tightens and I can see she’s also not exactly thrilled at the prospect of mentoring writers just so they can go work at another outlet. But when she speaks, her voice is measured and even. “I don’t believe so. In this instance it just happened to work out. We’re looking to expand our staff and they wanted to try out a news guy to see if he could transition to more of a lifestyle brand.”

“And when will said guy be joining us?” Corey asks the question innocently, but I know she perked up hearing there will be some fresh meat in the office.

Natasha checks her Cartier watch. “Hopefully any minute—”

“Hi, everyone, god, I am so sorry for being late on my first day. I feel like an absolute ass, but truly the traffic here is no freaking joke.”

Everyone but me spins in their chair, attention swiveling to the doorway.

But I can’t move.