I pull my date tight against me and lift my body up off the seat, being sure to rake the ring across her sensitive spot with just the right amount of pressure. She goes off, and I feel her body succumb to the tremors, and I kiss her long and hard, claiming her in every way.
Sated, she nestles against my chest, breathing deeply, kissing my neck and jaw. I lick her earlobe. "Feel good, darlin’?" I ask, allowing my Louisiana accent to peek through, knowing how much women like Southern accents.
"Harper … god … yes."
I smile. It’s gonna be a good day. I glance around at the crowd, and wouldn’t be surprised if we got applause. You gotta go to clubs with expensive cover charges to see what we’ve just provided for free.
"Come on, I need to start my day." I wrap my hands around her waist and lift her up and off the Fat Boy. I follow her, swinging my leg over the long body of the bike. She staggers, still weak, and I steady her. Over her shoulder, I see what I am looking for.
I whistle, one of those piercing whistles my brothers taught me growing up. It’s the same one dad used to call us home in the evening. We could hear that shrill sound wherever we were in the neighborhood. A cab immediately pulls over to the sidewalk and I open the door for my date.
She grabs the lapels of my leather jacket and rubs her breasts against mine sensuously. "Please call me."
"Sure, baby," I promise. I lie. I can’t even remember her name, but I did enjoy her company. To distract her from my obvious lack of sincerity, I kiss her again. Once she is safely inside the confines of the car, I close the door and walk away.
My audience is still there. I recognize one of the women immediately, now that my focus isn’t otherwise distracted. Kelsey Stanton, the hot, young anchor for the network is staring at me, looking like a pickled fish. Obviously, she thinks I’m a cad of first order. I stand still for a long moment, taking her in. She’s shorter than I expected, but, damn, if the proportions aren’t all right. I wouldn’t mind giving her a ride on my bike. I might even use my hands, just to enjoy the feel of her. Knowing it will infuriate her, I smile and wink at her. I can’t believe she’s straight. Doesn’t seem right.
Time to go in and greet my new boss.
As I walk down the very staid halls of a network television station, I have to chuckle at what brought me, a tabloid camerawoman, here.
My phone started ringing off the hook with job offers the morning after I gave away my best penlight. The cops insisted it be kept as evidence, pissing me off entirely. It’s not like it was worth a lot, it was more the principle of the matter. I figure, if I disarm a nutjob, I should be able to keep the penlight as a souvenir. Now some crappy pissant evidence clerk will steal it and auction it off on e-bay, earning a bundle.
The first message that interested me was from KNBC, the Los Angeles NBC affiliate. Ronald Chambers, Division Chief, personally called me and asked me to come work for their news division. Needless to say, I was surprised to get such a respectable offer. I had always been told that a stint with True TV would successfully derail my career.
We met at a hotel bar in downtown LA for the interview. I figured he didn’t want me coming anywhere near the station and upsetting his precious employees. Like Kelsey Stanton, for instance. Gary told me last week at the bar that she despises our kind. Of course she would, our ratings kick her ass week in and week out.
Chambers told me what they needed: good camera work by someone not afraid to go after the story. He feels like his reporters have become too soft, too used to using their prestige rather than their gut in getting at the truth. I am supposed to "get out there and mix it up" or some other lame ass expression Chambers used. All he’s asking for is a taste of tabloid for the upright citizens who watch KNBC.
I can provide that.
As part of the deal, I insisted that my crew come along – Jimmy, my assistant, and Conrad, my editor. Best damn crew in the business, that’s us. And now we belong to Chambers. Hell, for the salary he gave me, I’d belong to just about anyone.
And the best part is: he promised me Kelsey Stanton.
Straight, my ass.
<fade out>
Coming next week to a computer near you …
Must Read TV
Exposure
Episode Four
Next week on Must Read TV …
I chuckle. "No. Pero soy mejor que un policia." I'm better than a cop. I can bring the whole damn world on someone with just the right camera angle. Which is exactly what I’m going to do with this bastard. For Cristina. And all the other kids who get used and abused by adults with guns.
<cut to>
As I make the slow circle, praying I’m not gonna get shot in the back, I notice that somehow my Betacam has made it to the top of the desk. It is pointed right at us and the light is on. Apparently Kelsey wants videotape of my death to play at the office Christmas party and other festive occasions.
<fade out>
Episode Four: READING IS FUNDAMENTAL
I stand silently in the large conference room off the newsroom. It’s early yet and the reporters and anchors haven’t shown up, leaving the building in relative silence. I meet my crew today, though the only one who concerns me is Kelsey Stanton herself.
It hadn’t taken much convincing to get her on the team. Chambers knows that she’s a little gold mine. She’s a publicist’s dream come true, even if she is a director’s nightmare. She’s intelligent, charismatic, and already in the public’s eye due to her relationship with Collins. She’ll be a good draw to our pieces, as long as she holds her own. She has to have done field work to be where she is now. I’m just not sure how much and in what market. I could have asked, I suppose.
Her attitude will be troublesome. Chambers warned that she didn’t want the position, that he’d had to pull rank. I suspected as much. Rumor is she hates tabloid television so I figure she must hate me as well since that’s where all my experience is.
I’m looking out the window over the sound stage, which is bathed in darkness and silence, when Jimmy strolls in. I hear his clompy too-big shoe approach so I don’t need to turn around.
"Olson," I say by way of greeting.
I know he’s checking me out, unused to seeing me with anything but jeans. I went for the soft look this morning: I’m wearing black cotton pants and a deep blue silk shirt. My long thick hair is braided away from my face.
"Hello?" I try again, still not turning.
"Oh!" Even without looking, I know he’s blushing. "Morning. This is it, huh?"
"Yup. We’ll have a quick team meeting this morning and then Chambers wants to talk to us. That’ll leave us time for some equipment checks before lunch."
"Cool." He scrapes a chair back and drops himself into it. He’s about as graceful as a hippopotamus sometimes.
Conrad comes in next and silently plants himself next to Jimmy. I’m still not watching them.
"What do you know about Kelsey Stanton?" the orange-haired kid asks, hating silences. He talks to hear himself talk; it was the first thing I learned about him.
"What about her?" I query. I don’t know a ton, but I sure do have my suspicions.
"I hear she’s a bitch on wheels," Conrad speaks up. "The whole news room hates to work with her. They fight over who has to do her stories and promos. The makeup lady dreads that part of her day."
"Yeah," Jimmy agrees. "I hear the same. Why did we have to get the bitch, Harper? That Samantha woman seems like a better bet."
"Every team needs a problem child." I shrug. "And we all know it ain’t one of us," I drawl softly, pleased with myself. It isn’t until that moment that I turn around to face the room.