I studied her for a moment. If there was one thing I didn’t do, it was dance. Admittedly, I hardly ever went to clubs, and hardly ever drank, but I seemed to be throwing all of my usual habits out of the window tonight. We smiled at one another, and I hopped off the barstool. Dawn reached for my hand and took it in her own. The room disappeared. All I could do was watch Dawn’s hips sway in that perfect black dress as she led me through the crowd to the dance floor. The music blared around us, the deep beat echoing the floors. Bodies surrounded us in every direction. Dawn was so close to me there was hardly any space dividing us.
For a moment I panicked, unsure of what to even do. It was the first time I’d ever danced at a club. All the alcohol left me feeling almost unable to care, and it was mere seconds before I began to move. I watched as Dawn disappeared behind me. Before I could react, I felt her body push against mine. Her hands came to my hips. Instead of panicking, I felt myself push back, our bodies moving together in unison to the music.
Dawn let her hands move over my hips, pulling me into her. My entire body was on fire. I wanted to turn towards her, but I could hardly seem to move. Her breath fell to the side of my neck, and I felt her lips graze against my ear. The imagery of her red lipstick leaving traces on my skin had me gasping softly.
We danced for a little while, our bodies grinding into one another. Finally, I could hear her voice in my ear. “Do you want to get out of here?” Dawn said to me, and I felt her hands roam up the center of my body. All I could do was nod in reply.
We’d barely made it out of the door, and our hands were all over one another. By the time we’d made it out of view of the patrons waiting outside, Dawn had me pinned against the side of the building, our mouths having planted firmly together. Her hands ran up my exposed thigh, and under the hem of my dress, her fingers raking down my flesh. I gasped loudly when our mouths parted.
The two of us waved down a taxi, and I gave the address to Kathy’s house. In the darkness of the backseat, we sat close to one another, giving flirtatious glances and exchanging touches. It made the drive impossibly long. When we’d managed to escape the confines of the vehicle, I led Dawn through the back gate of my sister's house to the guest suite in the backyard. It had been years since I’d stayed here.
As we reached the front door, I fumbled in my pocket for the key. Meanwhile, Dawn pushed me up against the frame, her mouth on my neck, hands running down my breasts and my stomach, landing in between my legs. Finally, I managed to get the door open, and we moved inside.
Our clothes fell to the floor almost immediately. If I had thought Dawn was beautiful before, it was amplified seeing her completely exposed. She had the body of a goddess. In her early forties, she had the firmness of a young woman in her twenties. Tall, lean, with flawless creamy white skin. My heart raced as she approached me. We stared at each other for a moment, and suddenly I felt very exposed. Wondering what such a pristine woman thought of a lanky young girl like me.
My questions were quickly answered when her fingers swept down the front of me, moving over my small breasts and stomach. Her intense blue eyes studying me over made goosebumps all over my skin. When her fingers fell between my legs, we met glances again. She watched me as her hand moved over me. My mind went wild, hardly able to keep standing.
We moved together towards the bed. As soon as I fell down on top of the plush comforter, she laid on top of me. Our naked flesh melded together as we kissed passionately. She knew exactly what she was doing. Every touch she made was confident and sure. Her mouth trailed from my lips, down the side of my neck. Kisses turned into nibbles at my flesh, that turned into hungry bites and licks. Her mouth moved swiftly over my breast, and I could feel the heat of her breath radiating on my skin. When her tongue flicked at my hardened nipple, I let out a small gasp.
The patterns of her movements were predictable but intoxicating all the same. She worked one side and then moved to the other. Her fingers scratched lightly into my skin as she moved down onto my stomach. I felt her tongue taste my skin all the way down to the apex of my thighs. When she stopped, we met eyes, and I could see the hunger inside of her. Her fingers trailed the inside of my thighs, while her breath tickled the folds of my middle. My entire body ached for her touch.
With one hand, she spread me apart carefully, eyes still piercing into me. I propped my body up to watch her as her lips trailed from my pelvic bone down till she fell onto me. Her tongue flicked over me lightly, and I gasped, wrapping my hands in her soft blonde locks. My body fell back into the sheets, captive to her touches. When I was pulled into her mouth, my hips rocked towards her.
Once again I felt her fingers teasing me, drawing circles near my entrance. My body ached, begging to feel her inside of me. As if she read my mind, I felt two long delicate fingers slide into the wetness of my hole. Painfully slow. I wanted to rock my body over them, forcing them deeper inside, but I let her work. When her fingers bottomed out, I was gasping for air. Her hand rocked into me while her mouth worked. My head spun, losing all track of the room.
All at once, she found a spot that sent me into a frenzy. My body convulsed, thrusting into her face. Her hand rocked harder into me, and I cried out loudly into the room. My fingers raked into the flesh of her head, gripping tightly as the pleasure overcame me. I felt myself clenching onto her as the waves crashed into me over and over. When I thought it had settled, she continued until another small burst rippled through me.
I collapsed, falling back into the bed. Dawn’s fingers slid from me. There was a brief moment she teased my aching middle once more. Then I watched her climb on top of me. Our mouths met, and I tasted myself on her tongue when she entered my mouth. I sucked at it briefly before she moved upward on me, letting her delicious small breasts fall on my face. One came into my mouth, and I nibbled at her nipples lightly. She moaned in pleasure. With my other hand, I gently tugged and pinched the other side. Finally, my mouth moved over and worked the other.
When she was satisfied, I watched as Dawn moved over me. Her legs straddled the side of my face, and all at once I was surrounded by the flesh of her middle, looming over me. It was glossy and wet, excited from the heat of our passion. I studied it for a moment before my tongue ran a broad stroke up it. She gasped, falling forward, catching herself with her hands. Her legs spread apart wider and the mound of flesh pushed into my face. I lapped at her furiously, teasing her center. Each touch brought moans and gasps. My face grew wet with her juices.
I let my hands reach up and grasp hold of each of her cheeks firmly, squeezing them. She bucked her hips, falling on me so much that I found it hard to breathe. While I groped her fiercely, my tongue slid inside of her, teasing her till I could feel her spasm. Her moans filled the entire guest house, and I worked till she calmed.
Once we were through, she fell down beside me. Our bodies intertwined. We stared at one another in the darkness. She stroked the side of my face softly, and I nuzzled against her. It wasn’t long before I found myself slowly drifting off to sleep.
When I awoke the next morning, it was the first time in a long while that I hadn’t been in my own bed. Once I’d wiped the sleep from my eyes, I realized I was at Kathy’s. Shortly after, it occurred to me why.
Had what I’d only fantasized about for years really happened? Dawn Reynolds, asleep next to me? I turned slowly, as to not wake her. Surprised, I found the bed was empty beside me. It had been vacant a while. It wasn’t even warm.
I called out to her in the room, to no avail. As soon as I sat up on the bed, my head spun and pounded. The amount of alcohol I had consumed last night was so atrocious that I should have been ashamed of myself. It was a wonder I remembered anything at all.
One thing was for certain. I’d brought Dawn Reynolds back to my apartment. What had happened after that remained a mystery.
My thoughts were quickly interrupted by my phone ringing. Instinctively I ran for it. I was so used to work calling that it didn’t occur to me till I’d put it
to my ear that I didn’t have a job anymore.
“Is this Elizabeth Mudd?”
“Liz, speaking,” I replied. The voice on the other end of the line was one that I didn’t recognize. “How can I help you?”
“My name is Tyler Fields. I work with WATV in Los Angeles.”
“Oh, Tyler, you’re the station manager, correct? I’ve heard the name.”
“Yes, ma’am. I’m calling because I have a referral here for you from Ed and Dana over there in Santa Barbara. I was calling to see if you’d be interested in a job.”
“I’ll take it!” I said, barely able to contain my excitement.
“I haven’t even told you what the job is yet,” Tyler noted, and I went quiet. “We’re looking for an executive producer for our morning news show. Ed said you have a background in the area. I was wondering if you’d like to come down for a little meet and greet.”
“When can I be there?” I asked, scurrying around the small guest house for my clothes.
“Can you make it by noon?” Tyler asked. I looked at the clock. It was already going on ten in the morning. Luckily I was only a short drive into the city.
“Of course,” I replied before he gave me the address to the building. We exchanged goodbyes, and as soon as I hung up, I rummaged for clothes.
“WATV?” Kathy said, raising a brow. “Aren’t they kind of bottom of the barrel?”
“Way to congratulate me, sister,” I replied, scarfing down breakfast. “Speaking of which. I need to borrow some clothes. And some aspirin.”
Lucky for me, Kathy had a plethora of business attire from her job, and we shared the same lanky frame, so it was easy enough to find something to wear. A short while later, Kathy and I’d headed out of the house. She’d insisted on dropping me off since I’d be on her way. As soon as we reached the towering building, I hopped out onto the sidewalk. Kathy gave me a wave before we parted. “Knock’em dead!”
Comparatively to what I was used to in Santa Barbara, the studio building in LA was spectacular. I’d never been in such a fancy place before. Marble and wood filled the rooms. The elevator spoke as it shot up the fifteen floors to the WATV studios. When the doors opened, I was greeted with the blue and white carpets and the large shiny logo of the station. A receptionist greeted me at the front and took me back to Tyler’s office.
When I entered, he was busy typing on a laptop, a phone to his ear. He ushered me into the room, and I took a seat across from him quietly. It was another few minutes before he finished what he’d been working on and turned his attention towards me.
“Ms. Mudd, I presume?” Tyler offered me a nod but didn’t smile. In fact, nothing about him was particularly inviting. I smiled back anyway and nodded. “Are you willing to start immediately? We just lost one of our co-hosts, and we’re hiring on a new one. We’d need you to be flexible with the transition.”
“I’m completely flexible,” I replied, shuffling through my resume and portfolio I’d brought with me to the meeting. “And ready to start whenever you need me.”
“I should warn you, the show isn’t doing the greatest,” Tyler said. “In fact, we’re not sure how much longer it will be on the air. The ratings are abysmal. It’s not very entertaining. Have you seen it before?”
Truthfully I hadn’t. I shook my head, and he seemed to not be surprised. “You and most of LA,” he scoffed. “It’s definitely bottom of the barrel as far as morning newscasts are concerned. You’ll be taking a pay cut from your previous job. It’s long hours. Less appreciation. The staff can be a little hard to work with..”
Wow, he really wasn’t pitching the job very well at all. It didn’t matter. He could have been telling me not to take the job and I probably would have taken it anyway. I certainly didn’t back down from a challenge. “I’ll take it.”
I mean, how bad could it really be?
Chapter 2
Dawn
“And we’re coming to you in 5...4..3...2” Jared, the producer, spoke in my ear, and I saw the red light of the camera flash at me. I centered myself, took a deep breath, and then spoke.
“Good evening, Los Angeles. I’m Dawn Reynolds, reporting live from the crime scene of the latest string of gang murders.” The police worked behind me as I stood on the sidewalk and the camera panned out around the area. “This will have been the fourth murder this month. Police still have no leads.”
Against the wishes of the police force stationed there, we walked around the perimeter, getting the best angle we could. We always got the best footage. Detective Marshall caught my glance and wandered over to me, not realizing that we were live. As soon as he was in line with the camera, I called out to him.
“Detective Marshall, do you have a minute?” I could tell by the look on his face that he was pissed I’d called him out, but he regained his composure quickly and moved to stand next to me.
“Can you give us any information about this latest case? Do the police have any leads?”
Much to his displeasure, Detective Marshall and I spoke for a minute before they cut back to the studio for the rest of the evening broadcast.
“Stay out of my crime scene,” Detective Marshall said once we’d gone off the air. “You know the rules, Reynolds.”
“You know I never go by the rules, Gary.” I flashed him a smile before I reached for my cell phone. There was a missed call from a number I didn’t recognize.
“What do they have you out on the field for anyway? Don’t you anchor the news?”
“And sit on my ass all night when there’s a good story to be told?” I buttoned my jacket and gave him a nod.
“I should have never asked,” Gary waved me off, shaking his head. “Have a good night, Reynolds.”
When I’d reached the WATV SUV parked out front, I slid into the backseat while David, the cameraman, packed up the equipment. As he worked, I dialed my voicemail. Not surprisingly, the call was from Jennifer with the Peabody Awards. They’d been late getting back to me this year. I waited for the typical announcement that I was up for an award, but I was instead, surprised.
“We’d like you to host the event this year,” Jennifer explained on the message. “Give me a callback and let me know if you’d be interested.” Hosting. I’d never signed on for hosting. If there was a bigger chore than entertaining a room full of your colleagues, I wasn’t sure what it was. I decided I’d call her back in the morning. No sense in letting her down tonight.
Just as I was about to pocket my phone, another call came through. This time, from a number I recognized. When I put the phone to my ear, I expected an earful. I wasn’t surprised.
“That was the second time this week you bailed on anchoring to go out in the field,” Jared, the executive producer of the weekday evening shows snapped at me. “You can’t just take over every time you see a story you like.”
“Says who?” I replied as David hopped into the car and started the engine. “I’m the best reporter you have, and you know it. I don’t do sitting still. Besides, we got some great footage for you as usual. Nobody would have been able to get the story we got, and you know it.”
Jared paused before he spoke again. “We need you at the studio, Dawn. Doing your damn job.”
“If you expect me to reduce myself to some set monkey reading a bunch of fluff pieces..” I trailed off. “Do you know who I am, Jared? I didn’t get where I am now doing mediocre anchor-work in a stuffy studio, I’m meant to be out in the field.”
“You’re meant to be doing what we paid you to do. I need you in my office. First thing tomorrow. Don’t be late.” Before I had a chance to protest, he hung up.
That evening when I’d returned home, a cabernet in hand, I stood on the balcony of my condo in downtown LA, admiring the city life below. The city had been my life for years now. Every time I saw it, it took my breath away. When the network had forced me into an anchoring position, they’d taken away a piece of me. All I’d ever wanted since I was a little girl was to be in the thick of it.
Seeing things. Experiencing things. How Jared could ever think that my life would be better behind the desk in a studio was beyond me.
When I’d made it back inside, the late night news was on. A familiar face cut into the frame, one who had been anchoring late night for WATV for even longer than I’d been reporting the news. His salt and pepper hair and dazzling green eyes hadn’t changed a bit. Even though it had been almost two years since we’d been married, my heart still fluttered a little bit when he’d show up on a broadcast, or I’d see him on a billboard around town. We’d made a fantastic couple for the ten years we’d been together. He was a good man. A man who deserved better than I was able to give him.
Robert and I had been best friends for years before we were even married. Our chemistry had been undeniable. Unfortunately, that was all we ever really were. Friends. So, when I came out to him one night after a few drinks, he wasn’t as surprised as I’d expected him to be.
“I think I always knew,” he had admitted.
After an amicable divorce, I rarely saw him. Our friendship dissipated. We both moved on. My life became a vicious cycle of one-night stands and flings with various women. I’d never settled. Even still, I knew I’d made the right decision. As difficult as it had been.
But it was still nice to see his face. To remember my friend from all those years ago. A little sad too, which prompted me to turn the television to another channel and fetch another glass of wine.
The next morning I arrived at the studio fashionably late, as usual. When the elevator doors opened on the fifteenth floor of the familiar highrise building, I was quickly ushered to Tyler Field’s office, the manager of the station. Jared was sitting inside, the two discussing one thing or another before I’d entered.
“Dawn,” Jared nodded at me. “It’s about time you showed up.”
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