by Nan Ryan
They were happy lovers. The world, cold and frozen though it was in Denver, was incredibly beautiful. Life was sweet. Everything was funny. Sullivan and Kay were still laughing when they stood outside Sullivan’s front door, Kay jiggling the key in the lock, Sullivan standing behind her, loaded down with luggage.
Once inside, the laughter subsided and finally ceased.
Sullivan dropped the suitcases to the floor, drew off his gloves and hurried to build a fire in the grate. Kay, leaving on her coat, found the thermostat and shoved it up to eighty degrees. She stood shivering before the tall glass windows, watching Sullivan pile piñon logs atop one another. Soon flames shot high into the air and Sullivan came over to Kay.
Rubbing his hands up and down her arms, he said solicitously, “Cold, sweet baby?”
“Hmm.” She nodded. “Freezing.”
Sullivan pulled her close, lifted a hand to her chin and tipped her face up to his. “Think I can warm your blood?”
Kay tilted her head. “Like to try?”
Sullivan grinned, slowly pulled her coat apart, slipped his hands inside and lowered his mouth to hers. “Yes,” he said, his voice low and husky, “I want to warm you. To build a fire inside you.”
His lips touched hers in a slow, unhurried kiss. Inside the coat, his hands went to her sweatered back and he gently urged her body against his. Kay’s hands hung loosely at her sides as she let Sullivan take complete charge. She let him mold the soft contours of her body to his solid length. She let his mouth move leisurely upon her lips, warming, awakening, persuading.
It was glorious.
Like clay in the hands of a master sculptor, Kay was his to touch and smooth and mold into his own creation. He did just that, expertly changing the shivering woman into a heated, naked work of art.
The transformation was done with love and patience by the artist. When his masterpiece was stretched bare and beautiful before him in front of the roaring fire, Sullivan disrobed and made love to the lovely, living creation. Indeed, he became a part of the priceless art object.
Sullivan and Kay were back on their early-morning radio show the very next day. Working together had always been challenging and fun. Now there was an added dimension to their relationship and the dim control room fairly crackled with electricity on that cold, dark morning.
There was an abundance of touching and playful kissing between the pair as records spun and cassettes unwound. When they weren’t kissing, they were laughing. Everything seemed outrageously comical as their spirits soared. Love had conquered and its warm glow made the cold winter day appear brighter, the music prettier, the coffee more palatable, their well-timed patter more humorous.
A lengthy record played on the turntable. Kay, her chair turned to Sullivan’s, leaned forward to say, “When do you look for the rating book?” Kay was looking into his eyes and saw a puzzling flicker in their dark depths. It immediately vanished and Sullivan smiled.
“Be any day now, Kay.”
“You’re surely not worried about it, are you?”
“No.” His answer was a little short, the tone of voice a bit brusque.
“Sullivan,” she questioned, her eyes narrowed, “is something wrong? I thought you were very optimistic about our expected ratings. Why the—”
“Sweetheart.” He smiled, lifted a hand up to cup a cheek. “I am positive that our show will get a very high rating. There’s no doubt in my mind.”
“Then I don’t understand.” She studied his face. “When I brought it up you—I don’t know—” she lifted her slender shoulders “—you looked worried.”
“Darling,” Sullivan laughed easily and leaned closer. “You’re imagining things, I assure you. Now give me a hug before this song ends.”
Relaxing completely, Kay smiled, threw her arms around his neck and pressed her cheek to his, supremely happy. She never saw the look of doubt filling the expressive black eyes of the man she loved.
Sullivan clasped her to him and silently battled the small tight core of fear expanding in his abdomen. He was sure they’d get a good book. Positive. And that entire broadcasting industry would know of their success.
Would he lose her again?
Sullivan bit his bottom lip, closed his eyes and tightened his embrace.
That very morning, during the nine o’clock news break, an out-of-breath, excited Jeff Kerns, hurried into the control room. Sam Shults was right behind him, grinning from ear to ear.
The familiar blue and white Arbitron rating book was clutched in the blunt fingers of Sam’s beefy right hand. Sullivan saw it first.
Sam lifted it high, shook it at them and announced, “It’s here, kids. Just came in.”
Kay swallowed and grabbed Sullivan’s hand. His dark, smooth face was devoid of expression, but she saw a muscle dance in his lean jaw and his fingers gave hers a brief squeeze. Evenly, he said, “Out with it, Sammy. Are we the hottest team in radio or not?” An easy smile lifted the corners of his full mouth.
“Sullivan, Kay—” Sam Shults, looking from one to the other, proudly confirmed “—it’s even better than we’d hoped for! I mean your morning show pulled a whopping sixteen share…more than our wildest expectations. Congratulations to you both. You two are an unequaled hit. No one else came close.”
He leaned over the control panel to shake Sullivan’s hand. He handed the rating book to Sullivan, gave the beaming Kay a kiss on the cheek and said, “The champagne will be cooling in my office. Come on in as soon as your show ends.” The stocky man turned and went to the door. Pausing there, he turned and said, “I’m just delighted, kids. About the fantastic ratings and about everything else. You know what I mean.” Sam’s face pinkened.
“No, we don’t know, what else?” Jeff was his usual devilish self. “What are you trying to say, boss?”
Sam Shults shook his head, made a dismissive gesture in Jeff’s direction and left the room.
“So.” Jeff turned his full attention to Sullivan and Kay. “How about that book?” Sullivan was already back in his chair, bent over the columns of figures denoting audience shares. “I even came up one percent. But best of all, K10S took the gas. I mean we sucked ’em right up our tail pipe in every time slot. You guys must have taken nearly all of their previous audience.”
Sullivan continued to study the book before him. Kay, her eyes alight with happiness, leaned over his shoulder, following the movement of the dark thumb hurriedly sliding down the columns of telling numbers. “Did we, Sul? Did we take our biggest competitor’s listening audience?” The sound of her tinkling, happy laughter filled the control room.
“Sure did, honey.” Sullivan never looked up. “You stole ’em all.”
“No, Sul, we stole them.”
Sullivan’s dark eyes lifted from the book. “You’re sweet, but in last spring’s rating book I didn’t—”
“Damn you, Sullivan,” Jeff cut in, while Kay looked worriedly at Sullivan’s hard, handsome face. “Man, you’re crying with a loaf of bread under each arm. What the hell would it take to make you happy?” Jeff shook his head and added, “I’m going to get a head start on the champagne. See you guys later.”
After Jeff had gone, Kay said, “Sullivan Ward, you just listen to me. We, and I repeat we, are a success. Not me. Not you. Us. The two of us together are a hit. We’re a team and it’s the team that pulled high ratings.”
Sullivan lifted his eyes to hers. Kay smiled, her lips parted, her eyes pleading with him. Sullivan felt his chest expand with love for this beautiful woman who was every bit as sweet as she was lovely. He smiled, lifted a hand up to slide his fingers into her hair at the side of her head and said in a deep, sure voice, “Kiss me, partner.”
Kay’s smile grew brilliant. “I will,” she breathed, slowly leaning to him. “And it takes us both to do that, too. Teamwork. Your mouth and mine.”
Sullivan chuckled and the sound of his deep laughter rumbling from his chest filled Kay with added happiness. Her lips touched his. Laughte
r ceased, but dark eyes, wide open, looked into hers as his mouth took command, kissing her with fiery abandon. Kay did her part, too. After all, it was a team effort; a feat impossible to perform alone.
Ten
The week following the arrival of the fantastic rating book was one of sweet, undiluted pleasure for everyone’s favorite radio team. Kay and Sullivan were together every moment, day and night, happily learning all the little idiosyncrasies of each other’s complex personalities.
Kay learned that Sullivan Ward always put on his socks and shoes before stepping into his pants. She thought it odd and extremely funny. She’d go into peals of happy laughter when the man she loved stood before the mirror brushing his hair, dressed in shirt, shoes and socks, his long legs bare.
She found that the very last thing he did before going to sleep was to comb his hair, a habit she found endearingly charming. The first thing he did on waking was to reach, bleary-eyed, for his first cigarette of the day. He liked black coffee, toast and three scrambled eggs for breakfast. Kay, sipping freshly squeezed fruit juice, watched him and wondered how anyone could eat anything at 4:30 a.m.
Kay learned that Sullivan Ward liked to lie on his long sofa in the evenings, with her stretched out beside him while he flipped from one channel to the next on the television, read a book, and talked to her all at the same time, remarkably following the plotline of the show they watched, comprehending the book he was reading, and never missing one word she said to him. He was a strange, complex, totally fascinating person, this man she loved so dearly. She looked forward to all the happy months and years it would take to fully understand him.
Sullivan, too, found there were many things he’d never known about the charmer now sharing his apartment. She was a sweet, talkative companion, but she said nothing for at least forty-five minutes after awakening each morning. He found this strange, since the moment he opened his eyes, he was awake and ready to discuss the day’s plans. It took only a couple of mornings for him to learn that Kay liked being kissed awake, but conversation was taboo. He didn’t mind. She was so irresistibly cute and warm when she woke up; silvery hair all tousled, her sweet, soft lips moving under his. What did it matter that she frowned if he asked her a question?
Sullivan also learned that he’d never fully realized just how lonely his life had been without this woman whose tinkling laughter was music to his ears. She came to his arms whenever he held them out to her, which was often, dropping whatever she happened to be doing to step into his embrace. She was his sweet, adorable Kay; his to touch and teach and treasure.
That’s how it would always be.
Sullivan and Kay were well aware that the unprecedented success of their morning show made their services infinitely more valuable. They’d discussed at length the amount of increase they planned to request at contract time.
Rating points of the magnitude they’d pulled meant much more expensive commercial spots in their morning show, which led to an increase of hundreds of thousands of dollars in revenue for Q102. Since they were responsible for the value of the thirty- and sixty-second commercials shooting skyward, they were entitled to be momentarily rewarded and were well aware of it. So was Sam Shults. He’d already hinted at a figure he had in mind. Sullivan had smiled easily, knowing Sam Shults would offer far less than the amount he was authorized by ownership. Bargaining was all a part of the game. Sullivan Ward was good at it.
Sullivan and Kay, their air trick finished for the day, were seated in Sullivan’s corner office, Sullivan again going over with Kay what he thought they should ask for in the way of their salary increases. Kay, in her hand an envelope of photographs she’d taken on their Bahamas trip with the tiny gold camera Sullivan had given her, was nodding her agreement while she studied the pictures before her.
“Oh, Sul—” she looked up, interrupting him “—you’ve got to see this one.” She handed the picture across his desk. It was one she’d taken of him standing beside the plane, just before they departed from Miami to return to Denver. “You look like some handsome, famous movie star.” She smiled at him.
Sullivan glanced at the picture, handed it back and said, “Show me the ones I took of you.”
Kay complied and watched as his dark eyes lit up. He held a small picture between thumb and forefinger, smiling broadly. The photo showed only Kay’s face and bare shoulders; she was frowning into the camera and in her eyes was a distinct look of embarrassment.
“I love this, honey.” He grinned at her. “I want this for my wallet.”
Kay shook her head. “If you ever…”
“…tell anyone that you were naked when I snapped this and that’s why you’re scowling?” His hooded eyes mocked her. “I won’t, sweetheart, but I know, that makes the picture precious to me.”
Kay shrugged. “You’re weird, you know that, Sullivan?”
“Yeah, but when I look at this picture I can see your…” The buzzing of the intercom on the corner of his desk interrupted them. Sullivan grimaced and punched in the button. “What?”
Sherry Jones’s excited voice filled his ear. “Sullivan, is Kay in there with you?”
“Yes, she is.”
“Oh, good. Tell her that she has a very important telephone call from ABC.” Sherry drew in a quick breath. “That’s in New York City, Sullivan, did you know that?”
“Yes,” he said, “I knew that. I’ll tell her.”
“All right, the caller’s on line three. Tell Kay it’s urgent.”
Sullivan replaced the receiver. “I suppose you heard that, Kay. You’ve a call on line three.”
“Hand me the phone, will you.”
“You might want to take it in your office, Kay.”
Kay rose from the chair, smiling. “Why on earth would I want to do that? I’ve no secrets from you.” She leaned over, punched in the blinking light, lifted the phone and said, “This is Kay Clark.”
Sullivan, lounging nonchalantly back in his chair, hands laced behind his head, watched Kay. He saw her eyes widen and sparkle with excitement, and his stomach tightened. Nervously she twisted a long strand of hair while she nodded and said, “Yes, yes. I…well, thank you.” She listened for several minutes, then was again speaking, her voice animated, a look of shocked elation glowing in her eyes.
Sullivan never changed his lazy position. He looked for all the world like a man totally at ease, in charge, relaxed. Sullivan’s reaction was a great shock to Kay when, after she’d ended her telephone conversation she honestly informed him that it had been the program director from ABC in New York City. He was telling her that they’d seen the ratings and wondered if she’d be at all interested in flying up to discuss the possibility of becoming the first air partner of their dynamic morning-show star.
Sullivan’s hands slowly came from behind his head. His jaw clenched and his eyes were cold and hard when he said, “So when do you leave?”
Kay looked at him and laughed. “Leave? Sul, I didn’t say—”
Rage, unchecked, showed on his face and his voice took on a deadly timbre. “Your eyes said it for you.” He rose from his chair, shoved his hands into his pockets and walked to the window.
Kay felt terror rise to her throat. Those eyes looked so furious, so menacing. She knew she must at once clear up any misunderstanding on his part or she was in danger of losing him again. Kay hurried to him, put a hand on his shoulder and said softly, “Listen, I don’t—”
Sullivan spun around to face her. “Listen? I did, Kay. I heard every word you said and I don’t remember a single no coming from those lovely little lips.”
Kay’s apprehension grew alarmingly. “Sullivan, you didn’t hear me say yes, either. My lord, give me a little credit.”
“Credit?” he parroted. “Oh, sweetheart, you get all the credit. You’re the smoothest little number on the airwaves.” His black eyes snapped with fury. “New York City!” He shook his dark head. “Just what you wanted. That’s wonderful, Kay, truly great.”
“I
’ve no intention of going, Sul, I just—”
“Why in hell not?” he barked. “That’s what you’ve been waiting for, isn’t it?”
“No, it’s not.” She was losing her temper fast. “You know very well it’s not.”
“I know you told me New York City is where you belong.”
“I said that only because…because you made me.”
“Damn it, I didn’t make you say anything, or do anything.” He was leaning close, glaring down at her. “When are you ever going to take responsibility for your actions?”
“The same could be said for you, Sullivan.” Kay gritted her teeth, balled her hands into tight fists and tried to regain control. “Sullivan, don’t let this happen. Don’t let this happen to…”
“There you go again,” he interrupted angrily. “What have I let happen? Answer me that, will you? Let you use my phone to talk to your next partner? That it?”
“I can’t believe you, Sullivan.” She shook her head to clear it.
“Well, then, sweetheart, I’m ahead of you on that score, because I sure as hell can believe you.” He laughed hollowly. “Yes, baby, it’s all too easy for me to believe you. And if you think for one minute I’m blaming you, set your mind at ease.” Sullivan turned to walk away.
Kay, her fists immediately coming unclenched, grabbed frantically at his arm. “No! Don’t walk away from me. Damn you, Sullivan. I’m not going to let you.” Her face was flushing with heat, her hands trembling with emotion. “You stand here and face me and tell me that you want me to stay here with you!”
“No way, sweetheart.” Sullivan sneered down at her. “I’m not about to give you that final satisfaction.”
“Satisfaction?” She stared at him incredulously. “You’re not making a great deal of sense. The satisfaction I want is for you to tell me, and mean it, that you can’t bear to have me leave you; that you want me.”