Mary sat at her desk, still trying to make sense of what had just happened. She had actually offered Sue Ann Nivens a job in the newsroom. It probably wasn't a great thing for any of them, most especially Mr. Grant. And yet, Mr. Grant had encouraged her to offer the former Happy Homemaker a job. After her show had been canceled, the owners of WJM had tried to force her to quit, rather than work out her contract. The station had given her a series of horrible jobs, including one on a kiddie show.

After seeing Sue Ann being berated by two puppets, Mary gave in and offered her a job. All because she felt sorry for Sue Ann. As shocking as that turn of events was, what surprised Mary even more was what Mr. Grant told her. He had once hired someone seemingly unqualified, simply because he felt compassion towards her. That person was Mary herself.

Over the seven years that she'd been at WJM, Mary had become a whole different person. She was no longer that fragile girl who came in here that first day. She was now a Teddy Award-winning producer, a fact she was very proud of. It wasn't wrong to be proud of the job she'd done. But somewhere along the line, Mary had forgotten that she wouldn't even be here right now if it hadn't been for Mr. Grant taking a liking to her.

Suddenly, she got up and walked towards her boss' office. With barely a knock, she entered. "Um...I just wanted to say thank you."

Lou looked up from the paperwork on his desk. "For what?"

"For taking a chance on me. I guess I'm so used to just doing my job, trying to get the news show together, that I forgot how far I've come."

Lou smiled. "Don't mention it. You sorta reminded me of my daughters. I figured I'd want somebody to give them a break when they needed it."

Mary blushed. "Well, thanks. I know hiring Sue Ann won't be the best or most noble thing I'll ever do, but it's the right thing. Someone once gave me a break, so the least I can do is help someone else out."

"Exactly," Lou said. "But you know once she's working here, there are certain things I'll expect of you."

"Like what?" Mary couldn't quite understand what he had in mind. Sue Ann's exact duties still hadn't been decided yet.

"You keep her out of this office! I'd rather have Ted come in here!"

Mary laughed. "You've got it, Mr. Grant." She turned, about to leave the room.

"I'm sorry," Lou muttered under his breath.

"What, Mr. Grant?" Mary turned back around.

"I'm sorry for what I did the other night...making you the bad guy with Sue Ann. I just feel strange around her now, because of..." Lou didn't have to come out and say it; they both knew he was referring to the night he'd spent with Sue Ann.

"It's OK," Mary said. "I mean, it was a pretty rotten thing to do, but you were in kind of a tight spot."

A wave of relief went through Lou. Mary usually was pretty forgiving, but then again, she also wasn't afraid to let him know when he'd done something wrong now and then. "You know, I probably don't tell you this often enough, but I'm really proud of you." The words came out, almost before Lou realized he'd spoken.

Once again, Mary felt herself blush. "Thanks." She couldn't help looking at the floor in embarrassment.

"I mean, you came in here with no qualifications, but you worked hard and learned the ropes. I had my doubts about you at first. But now, you're one of the best producers I've ever worked with."

"Come on, Mr. Grant. You're embarrassing me."

"OK, OK. That's enough of that. You feel like going out for a drink?"

Mary considered this offer for a moment. She'd been looking forward to going home, and putting this whole Sue Ann situation behind her. But then she remembered what he'd said earlier, how he took a chance on her when no one else would have. "All right. One drink."

Lou shook his head. "No way, Mary. This isn't going to be 'one drink.' I'm going to have to see Sue Ann every day from now on. I'm thinking about giving myself one of those blackouts. Even the worst hangover in the world would still be better than that."

"Oh, come on, Mr. Grant. Don't you think you're exaggerating just a bit?"

"Are you kidding me? She's going to make Ted look like a model employee!"

Mary wanted to protest, but she knew there was more than a little truth to what her boss said. "You've got a point," she admitted. "How about I buy?" Mary smiled at him before finally leaving the office.

Lou grinned. "I was hoping you'd say that." He followed Mary out of his office. Yup, hiring you was definitely the right choice, he thought.

The End