“Wendy?”
“Yeah.”
Neil swore. “The marriage thing? Man, I’m sorry.” And he sounded it. Being the good friend he was, there was no gloating or the promised I told you so. “Is it over?”
“No, but I think she’s given me an ultimatum.”
“Did she say that? Give you a deadline?”
“Not in so many words.”
Neil blew out a breath. “I’ll be there in a few minutes.”
Jennifer liked Walt from the first minute she met him. Naked News was his idea. He could have been a jerk and a pervert or a mixture of the two. Instead, he was a forty-something businessman with thinning brown hair, a wedding ring, and a smile that made her comfortable.
He sat across from her at a metal conference table in a single-room office on the bottom floor of an older building in downtown Toronto. Nothing fancy or showy. This was a place where real work happened without the benefit of office staff or expensive furnishings.
At one end of the room was a wall draped with fabric and a small screen suspended nearby. A camera stood in front of the filming area while a man fiddled with the lens. They agreed to do a test run here and then try the pilot in a rented studio only if she was comfortable going forward with the plan.
With Preston at her side, as he insisted he be when he declared himself her agent, Walt spelled out what he expected of the pilot. Most impressive, his gaze never dipped below her chin. He kept it professional, which in turn eased some of the anxiety jumping around inside her.
Despite everything, she was at heart pretty shy. She didn’t grow up in a house that welcomed nudity. Her parents weren’t conventional and neither was her upbringing, but sexuality wasn’t discussed in the open either. She’d learned what she’d learned from Heather and the Duchess, who believed all young women should be armed with the fundamentals.
Stripping her clothes off in front of men she didn’t know would be a huge step from the past she clung to. Letting someone tape it and then show it to other women and possible investors was well out of Jennifer’s normal range.
Preston loved it. He showed her off as if he’d invented her. In a way, maybe he had. She walked into the studio with her best Victoria swagger. She wore a sexy wrap navy dress and her hair long and straight. She answered only to Victoria Sinclair and carried the self-confidence that came with the name and not with her own.
“I know this is a bit uncomfortable,” Walt said as he twirled the pen around in his fingers.
Preston touched his hand against hers. Didn’t hold it. More like patted it. “She’s fine.”
This one time she didn’t want Preston speaking for her. “It’s okay, Walt. Really.”
“I don’t expect the test to be perfect on the first shot. You’ll have some nerves. We’ll work through them and get you comfortable and keep editing until we get a run we all like.”
She appreciated Walt’s words. Loved the fact he talked to her and not through Preston. “Thank you.”
Walt’s smile was warm and respectful. “I want this to work, and the only way that happens is if you can sell it.”
“She can.” Preston leaned against her, moving his body into Walt’s line of vision while speaking.
She bit the inside of her cheek to keep from screaming at Preston and telling him to shut up. “I can.”
“Well, I don’t doubt that.” Walt poured a cup of coffee and slid it in her direction. “We’ll relax for a few minutes and then take some shots for lighting.”
Preston stood up. “Delaying is only going to make it worse. We should start.”
“We go when she’s ready.” Walt snapped the comment at Preston before turning back to her. “It’s just news, weather, and sports.
You read it every day. This time you’ll do it out loud.”
She glanced down at the paper in front of her but only saw a black blur of lines. Her insides were shaking too hard for her to concentrate. “I practiced the lines.”
“Good.” Walt glanced at the cameraman behind them and shook his head. “Whenever you’re ready.”
She spoke before Preston could answer for her. “I’m ready.”
She doubted she could even stand up. The bones in her knees had melted into liquid. But time was money, and she was not about to let her worries cost these men more than was necessary.
Before she could run or come to her senses, she stood up and walked to the screen set up on the other side of the small room. Standing there in front of three men, one who had seen her naked every day for years and two others who didn’t know much more about her than her name, was a surreal experience. She expected a priest to jump out at any second and scold her just for being there.
In front of the screen, with the lights blazing and the soft murmur of male voices shadowed in front of her, she struggled with an attack of jumping nerves. The first two times she tried to speak, she stumbled.
She’d known her name when she stepped up here, but it was beyond her right now. And she still had all of her clothes on.
While Walt said a steady stream of encouraging words, Preston stood with his arms folded across his chest. One look at his face and she knew she was blowing it.
The answer for overcoming the anxiety was easy. She needed to pretend he wasn’t there. That she was talking directly to a guy on his couch, a guy who liked pretty women and wanted to know the football scores.
She inhaled nice and deep, then nodded to the cameraman. “I’m ready.”
Walt stepped out from behind the equipment. “We can do a few more practice lines before we turn the camera on.”
“I’m okay.”
“It’s no problem. I don’t mind.”
The reassuring tone to Walt’s voice unknotted her tangled nerves. She saw his face and heard the buzz of the lights. She knew they were waiting on her and would continue to do so, but letting the minutes tick by would only prolong the initial agony. She had to try it and see.
If she hated it, she would walk out. That was the deal she had with Walt. Having an “out” gave her the confidence she needed to start.
She rolled her shoulders back and looked straight into the camera. She could do this. Own it and conquer it.
She smiled, letting the last of her nervousness fuel her resolve.
“Let’s get started.”
The light on the camera flashed to red just as she shifted her head and let her dark hair cascade down her back. Her fingers moved to the belt holding her dress together.“I’m Victoria Sinclair, and this is Naked News.”
Twenty
Beautiful naked women and information— it’s the perfect combination.
—Victoria Sinclair
“I WANT YOU TO DO IT.” WALT DELIVERED HIS STATEMENT over lunch a month later.
The water sloshed over the side of Jennifer’s water glass as she rushed to return it to the table. “Me?”
“You are a natural in front of the camera. It responds to you.”
She should have known he was talking about the professional angle. That’s who he was. Even without Preston there, Walt’s character didn’t waver.
And the compliments made her smile.
Preston barely acknowledged her some days. He’d be furious when he found out she stepped out with Walt and didn’t issue an invitation. In Preston’s mind, he made her decisions. In her head, he was nothing more than a boyfriend, and even that was a question lately.
Preston could throw out a line and think it made all the bad stuff before it go away. As if she was so shallow and needy as to be satisfied with kernels of affection rather than true affection.
With Walt, the words carried a note of genuine appreciation.
She knew his compliments came from an honest place with him.
He was a salesman of sorts and a successful businessman first, but he could deliver a line and make her believe it.
She toyed with how much she should admit and decided to honor him with the truth. “I was surprised.”
; “About?”
“How much I enjoyed the taping.”
“I could tell.” He sat back in his chair as the waiter cleared the plates and left. “You nailed it in two takes.”
Pride spilled through her. She’d always known she was smart and sort of pretty in a small-town, nonthreatening way. But in front of the camera, she felt special.
She didn’t worry about the thickness of her thighs or the size of her breasts. Her body came alive, every nerve ending tingling as she talked and let the clothing fall with each word.
It was about being in charge. For so long, Preston had tried to call every shot in her life. Sure, she owed this opportunity to him, but this was something that belonged solely to her. He couldn’t manage or direct it. He couldn’t step in and do it for her. It was all about her up there.
“The plan was for me to do the pilot to lure other women into participating.” She repeated the deal to avoid any miscommunication.
“Plans change.”
“It’s a huge step.” She unfolded and refolded her napkin. “I mean, I work in an office. I run meetings and get people where they need to be.”
“And I’m sure you’re good at it.”
She wound one end of the cloth napkin around her finger until the tip turned white. “I don’t even use the same name there as I do with you.”
“You could always think of Victoria as your stage name.”
“That’s how I view it.” That’s exactly what it was. A name that covered certain aspects of her, but not all of her. Preston missed the fundamental distinction and merged the personalities until Jennifer ceased to exist.
“Nothing more than a pseudonym for your protection and privacy.”
Heather had raised that issue several times, and Jennifer ignored it. “Protection?”
“I can’t promise every one who watches you will be decent or even nice. There are jerks and scumbags out there, but you could run into them just as easy in a big office.”
“And I have.”
Walt tapped his fingers on the table. “May I make an honest observation?”
“Of course.”
“You want to do this. I can see it in your face. You talk about the project and your eyes get big and your breathing kicks up. I don’t see the same enthusiasm for your other job.”
It was as if he could see right through her. She’d grown weary and bored in an office environment. The challenge was gone.
But that didn’t make this the right step. “Change is scary.”
“That’s why it’s called change instead of fun.”
She laughed.
“Look,” Walt leaned in. “The choice is yours. I can tell Preston to keep looking for another woman, or you can take it over and make it your own. The choice is totally yours. You won’t get any pressure from me.”
“I appreciate that.”
“I don’t pretend to know everything. I just think you should headline the broadcast. You’re the one. I can feel it.”
That made two of them. “What makes you so sure?”
“I’ve built a reputation and earned a lot of money spotting talent and nurturing it. There is this undefinable quality some people have.” He pointed at her. “You possess it. It spills out of you.”
The words piled around her like a protective shield against all of her fears. “I wish I was as sure as you were.”
“Think about it this way. If we find someone else tomorrow, how are you going to feel to hand over the reins and let someone else run with it?”
Anger simmered inside her at the thought. “Furious.”
“Then I think you might have your answer.”
Between the time it took for her to listen and to blink, her answer crystallized in her mind. “So what exactly is the plan from here?”
That fast, Walt morphed into businessman mode. He dragged a notebook out of his jacket pocket and flipped through a few pages until he found something and started reading. “You’ll be the audio and visual component of a comedy newsletter called The Daily Dirt. From there, we build interest and expand to short add-on segments on other programs.”
It was what he didn’t say that had her stomach flopping. “You have more in mind. I can feel it.”
He shrugged. “Eventually, I’d like Naked News to be a self-sustaining program. Not an add-on or short segment. A full broadcast with loyal paying viewers and numerous anchors. With you taking the lead, of course. With success, I doubt finding other women will be a problem.”
She’d be in charge. She’d have a boss but be the first and temporarily only anchor. That amounted to a lot of control. Walt had indicated he would listen to her suggestions, and she didn’t doubt that promise. She’d also make sure it was a provision in any contract they entered into.
“Interesting.” That’s all she said, but it took all the energy she had to keep her butt in the chair. Bouncing around and squealing with excitement wasn’t all that professional, and she wanted to show him she could be the face of Naked News and he wouldn’t lose his fortune.
“We’ll get started, and you’ll be the queen.”
The idea was so foreign to her. “I’ve never been the object of that much male attention before.”
He laughed.
The rough sound confused her. “What?”
“I’m betting you have.”
Flattery was a wonderful thing. She liked him. Trusted him. And boy, did she want this. Like, every-part-of-her-trembled-and-shook wanted this.
She reached her hand across the table. “Sounds like we have a deal.”
Three months later, she sat at her make-up chair in the makeshift Naked News office and scanned the printouts Walt had just handed her. Line after line, and they all said the same thing: the risk had panned out.
She had an hour before they taped. Hair and make-up would start soon. For the first month, she did all of those things herself. Now she had someone come in and help her. She also had two other anchors recently join her on camera. She’d trained them and welcomed the company.
Being up there alone in front of a room of cameraman and a producer could be daunting. Having someone else on the stage made it more of a sisterhood moment. Being one of the group also meant she could concentrate on the part of the broadcast she enjoyed the most—the news.
“Have you seen this?” She glanced up at Preston, who was always hovering nearby.
“What is it”
“The newest numbers.” She almost screamed the news. It bubbled up inside her, begging to get out. “We’re up to ten thousand subscribers. It’s only been three months.”
“I couldn’t be more pleased,” Walt said.
They’d exceeded all expectations. She’d left her daytime job to focus on Naked News. That gamble turned out to be a wise and potentially lucrative business move on her part.
And it was just the beginning. “I think we need more.”
Preston hadn’t stopped looking through the papers or even bothered to look up. Walt was paying full attention to her. “Of?”
“The show.”
For once, Preston didn’t take over the conversation or tell her how wrong she was in her line of thinking. He stood there, staring down at her and actually listened as she talked with Walt. “You should buy out the contract and convince the other investors and the show’s producers to make Naked News its own program instead of an add-on to something else.”
Preston pressed one hand against the back of her chair and watched her through the mirror. His expression stayed blank, but his body language was open, as if he were listening for a change.
“That’s always been the long-term plan,” Walt said.
“I get that, but there’s no need to wait.”
Walt leaned against the table in front of her, giving her his full focus. “The longer it goes on, the higher the viewership will be and the easier to land a full show. It’s a matter of positioning for the best possible price.”
“I get that, but you could strike now while
you have total control and before the bureaucracy rushes in. The investors become the board of directors and we move.”
Walt smiled. “Makes sense.”
“There’s enough material.” The words rushed through her, and she had to swallow a few times to get them out.
“Have you thought about the downside?” Preston asked.
She couldn’t think of a single negative. “Which is?”
“You might end up with a smaller role on the show.”
All her excitement vanished. He’d always had the power to do that to her. The wrong word at the wrong time and she felt as if she’d been kicked in the stomach.
“What do you mean?” she asked.
“More time likely means more anchors. You’re already down to news only.”
Walt waved off Preston’s concerns. “Absolutely not. She asked for the news segment and I gave it to her. She is my lead.”
Preston shifted until he stood half in front of her, blocking her view of Walt. “I think you should wait.”
“Why?”
“It’s prudent.”
Preston was wrong on this. She could feel it. Following his gut was the wrong choice. “I’m only suggesting this because I think it is best for my show.”
Because this wasn’t about him. Not anymore. She’s the one who took the risk. She’s the one who stood up there every night and opened her body up to being picked apart and dissected by the most vicious of critics.
If she was honest, that fear of being ripped apart had never materialized. The men who watched the show were fans and very supportive. She received all sorts of letters praising her, and very few that fell in the scary pile.
No one talked about the flaws she saw every time she looked in the mirror. No one called her names or made assumptions about who she was based on her decision to take off her clothes. Her immediate family knew, and her father struggled a bit with the idea of some of his friends watching his daughter, but he stayed positive.
But still the pressure of looking as good as possible and the never-ending panic of having someone judge her as wanting never went away. All those insecurities, ingrained in high school and nurtured by life since then, silently smacked her around from time to time.
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