Chapter One

 

Another long block of music coming up after news, weather, and sports. Now, here’s Debby Basso with the latest traffic update.”

 Jenny Reed, star of Reed-ing In The Morning removed her headset, threw them at Debby, and left the studio on a mission. Debby didn’t have time to ask her friend and co-worker what had gotten her so upset, but figured it probably had something to do with Brian Allen. Whenever Jenny was upset lately, the cause was usually the owner and general manager of KTKM.

Debby put on the headset and got the cue from Wes Woods in the engineering booth to introduce the traffic reporter who was patrolling over the congested freeways of downtown Los Angeles. “...and there’s a big rig overturned on the 405, both northbound and southbound lanes are at a standstill, so if you’re heading that way, you might want to take Sepulveda, although that isn’t much better. On the 101....”

Same shit, different day, Debby thought as she listened to another reason she was glad she didn’t own a car.

Jenny stormed out of the studio and headed straight for Brian’s office. When she opened the door, she practically ran over the tall stranger who was shaking hands with the source of Jenny’s irritation.

So, this was the sonovabitch who was going to be my new partner. We’ll see about that.

“Jenny, I’m glad you’re here,” Brian said.

Yeah, l bet you are.

“I want you to meet George Dimmock. I just hired him from a station in Minnesota.” Brian started.

“I haven’t used that name for ten years,” he corrected Brian. “Johnny King, Miss Reed. A pleasure to meet you.” He held out his hand and Jenny took it, reluctantly.

“I’m sorry, Johnny.” Brian corrected himself, then addressed Jenny. “He’s going to be working with you for awhile until I figure out where I want him.”

On a bus to Cleveland would be my first choice.

Jenny tried to be polite, but Johnny could see her eyes didn’t match the tone in her voice.

“Nice to meet you, Mr. King. Welcome to KTKM. I guess I’ll see you first thing in the morning.”

“Actually, Johnny is going to start right now.”

“Right here? Right now?” Jenny was fuming. “In the middle of my show? Brian, I only have an hour left. I already have everything programmed.”

“You’re a professional, Jenny,” he said in a not too obviously apologetic tone, “I know you can handle it.”

“Handle this. I’m going on break. Debby will cover for me, but I’ve got to get out of here.”

“Jenny...,” Brian was practically begging, “Don’t do this, I need you to help me here. You can have the six to ten p.m. slot.”

“I think I’ll head over to the studio and get acquainted with things. Jenny, see you later?” Johnny left the two of them to their argument and wondered how long they had been sleeping together. He’d heard some rumors before taking the job and he could see all the signs. No way would a station owner take that kind of crap from an employee unless there was a deeper relationship. Knowing Brian as long as he did, it was no surprise to Johnny that the guy was a cheating jerk. It was just a pity that the jerk was married to his sister.

As the office door closed, his suspicions were confirmed when he overhead Brian say to Jenny, “Look, I told you about this last night. I know you’re upset but I’ll make it up to you later.”

Poor Denise, Johnny thought. She deserved so much better than that jackass cheating on her with that blond big mouth. Johnny left for the studio before he heard Jenny’s reply.

“There won’t be any later, Brian. We’re finished. I’m going across the street for some fresh air.”

“In a bar? All that smoke will harm your vocal cords.”

“It’s better than the bullshit I’m breathing in here. Don’t worry; I’ll be back in time to babysit your Mr. King.” Jenny slammed the door and headed for the elevator. She hoped a brief escape across the street would calm her, but the trip was far too short.

Jenny exploded through the large oak door of Charlotte’s Bar and landed with a loud squish on an unoccupied seat.

“Bob, when are you going to get these obscene chairs fixed? Would you please pour a very large Jack Daniels for me, and leave out the Jack.”

Bob Cash, owner and sole bartender of Charlotte’s Bar and Jazz Emporium walked cautiously to where Jenny had perched her petite figure. At five foot-four and a slightly exaggerated half inch, Jenny looked like a child about to have a tantrum. Of course, Bob knew she was closer to thirty-five than she wanted to admit. Jenny did, at times, behave the way her looks implied.

“Now, Jenny,” he said through a wide toothed grin, “You know you have to go on the air in less than ten minutes. Whatever it is will just have to be satisfied with a Perrier.”

Bob retrieved the familiar little green bottle from the cooler, twisted the cap, and emptied the contents into a tall glass. Jenny didn’t even bother to ask how he knew she’d left in the middle of her shift.

In the five years that Jenny Reed had been working as a radio announcer at KTKM-FM, Bob Cash had become her close friend, confident, and psychiatrist when the situation warranted. They might have become more than that if it weren’t for the fact the Bob was more than twice her age and happily married.

It was times like these when Jenny’s immature side would surface and Bob would put on his best fatherly image for her. He guessed that this recent outburst had a masculine origin. He was about to discover that once again, he had guessed right.

“Men! They’re all schmucks. When you tend to forget, they tend to remind you!” Jenny fumed. “You know Bob, when I started out in this business I knew going in that it was going to be a struggle, but after all these years, you would think that I would have learned how to handle these incompetent idiots.”

“Which idiot are we referring to this time?” Bob tried hard to suppress a laugh.

“The chief idiot at our glorious station, Mr. Brian Allen, of course. Never trust a man with two first names!” Jenny fished the lime wedge from the icy water and bit into it.

 “First, he hires some jock-ass from Minnesota named George Dimmock, now he’s telling me Dimwit is going to be doing my morning shift with me, starting this morning. He totally screwed up my schedule and I spent all weekend planning my show. So, I told him I couldn’t change everything with such short notice and do you know what he said? That I was so capable and intelligent and all that crap. I mean, it’s true, but it was the way he said it. The final insult was when he offered me another shift. Know where? That wonderful time slot when everyone is making like a couch potato, six to ten during prime time television viewing. This is more than an insult, it’s a demotion! So, now I have to get up with the birds, before dawn, and babysit this Dimmock character. Brian is a real piece of work. I wonder how he sleeps at night.”

“Seems to me the last time you mentioned Mr. Allen, lack of sleep was the one thing you two agreed on.” Bob shot her one of his infamous all-knowing grins.

“Yeah, well, that poor excuse for a station manager has seen the last of my overtime. Oh great, if it isn’t the devil himself.”

Bob turned around in time to see the tall, stocky figure of Brian Allen enter the bar. From his appearance Bob figured he would want something a little stronger than bubbling water with a lime twist. Brian’s usual calm brown eyes were on fire as he glared at Jenny. His thick, black hair looked as if a bird had laid a nest in it. Even his mustache was twitching.

Brian went directly over to Jenny without as much as a greeting to his old friend behind the bar. That was another bad sign. Bob decided to stay out of it and pretended to dry some glasses, but with his back to them, he could still see everything reflected in the large mirror.

“All right, Miss Reed, just what the hell do you think you’re doing here when you have to be on the air in exactly seven minutes?”

“Suddenly everyone is Big Ben. I can still tell time, Mr. Allen. For your information, I’m having a nice non-alcoholic drink and cursing you out. And if it’s so important to you that someone babysit your new genius announcer, why don’t you do it yourself?”

“Look, Jenny, if this is about last night, we can talk later. This is business and you’re too much of a professional to let what happened affect your work.” He lowered his voice. “I’ll make it up to you later, Okay? Please get back before our listeners hear nothing but dead air.”

“You should be used to it since that’s all you have between your ears! And you can forget about later. After my shift I’m going home, then I’m going to bed...alone! Bob, put this on Brian’s tab. I’m outta here.”

Brian watched her leave. Her perfect body was silhouetted against the contrast of light when she opened the door. For that second, the sun ignited the natural blond highlights of her hair. He remembered the feel of it against his bare chest the previous night.

Brian smiled as he remembered the glow of Jenny’s wet skin and misty blue eyes. Those eyes! They were so full of passion and desire, until he had made the mistake of mentioning the schedule change.

 He admitted that the timing was all wrong. He should have known better that to talk shop when they were naked, but she had to know sooner or later and since the new schedule was going into effect the following morning, he’d thought it was as good a time as any to break the news to her. After all, what woman could get angry after three hours of fantastic love making? Jenny Reed was that woman as Brian had discovered when he’d found himself out of her apartment before he had the chance to put his pants back on.

Brian had told Denise he wouldn’t be home until after midnight. Unfortunately for Brian, he’d found himself locked out at ten o’clock, half naked, with two hours to kill and no place to go. After several unsuccessful door-knocking attempts to get Jenny to reconsider, he got dressed and sat outside her apartment for two solid hours.

Now, he had to figure out how to make it up to her, keep the new schedule, and pray that Jenny wouldn’t sabotage Johnny’s first day on the air. He also had to explain to his wife how he had injured his back.

Things were getting too complicated for Brian. His back hurt, his brain hurt, and his pride hurt. Something had to be done, but for now he had the immediate solution to his last two painful problems.

“Bob, give me that double Jack Daniels on the rocks and leave out the rocks.”

 

Chapter Two

 

There was no doubt in Jenny’s mind that Brian and she were through. Jenny could use the recent re-scheduling events as a convenient excuse to end the relationship, but the truth was, she was tired of Brian. Their love making, which had in the beginning been so explosive, had become more like a deflated balloon. It didn’t help matters any that Brian himself had begun to resemble the said balloon where it mattered most.

 Jenny wasn’t quite sure when she first noticed the change. It might have been just after his fortieth birthday. Soon after that milestone, Brian had begun losing his erection in the middle of sex. At first, Jenny thought it was the pressure of the business or the stress of his birthday, but whatever the reason, after six months of frustration, she had enough. Actually, she hadn’t had any, which was why she had decided to end it.

Unfortunately, Brian Allen was the owner of the station and her boss, and unless she handled it very carefully, she might find herself suddenly without more than an occasional orgasm. It was a shame the body couldn’t survive on physical pleasure alone, but the facts were she had to eat and to pay for that luxury, she needed the job.

Money wasn’t the only reason Jenny didn’t want to leave KTKM. She loved the station, the people she worked with and her faceless audience who sent personal letters to someone they had never met. Jenny enjoyed being a quiet celebrity. For four hours every day she was the famous Jenny Reed, yet when she went to the grocery store, she could blend into any crowd and not be recognized until someone heard her speak.

Her voice was a dead giveaway and had been ever since her first on air radio job over ten years ago. It was then, through the imagination of the airwaves, that overweight, mousey Doris Levine was transformed into the sexy, magnetic Jenny Reed.

When she graduated from High School, Doris entered the local community college with no particular interest or ambition. She took several liberal arts classes to appease her parents, who had given up on her finding a man to take her off their hands. They knew their daughter wasn’t thrilled with the idea of continuing her education, but when you didn’t have beauty, brains were always something to fall back on.

It was no secret to Doris that her parents felt as they did. She knew she would never be able to do anything about her height. At five feet four and a half, Doris felt small all her life. She tried to compensate her shortness with her weight, which tipped the scales at one hundred and fifty pounds when she entered her first year of continuing education.

Doris wasn’t lonely or particularly depressed at her roundness. She had dates and a busy social life. She had managed to give up her virginity to another freshman three days after leaving home. It was more of a relief than an event; more of a curiosity than an emotional attraction. Once she had experienced sex and found it to be no great deal, she could concentrate on other things, like what she was going to do with the rest of her life.

Quite by accident, the decision was made for her. She had been studying for an exam one night while listening to her favorite radio station and her favorite disk jockey, Russ McDonald. His voice was mesmerizing. Doris would sit and listen to his entire four hour show. One night, she heard Russ announce that the station was holding auditions for DJ’s, and after a friend suggested she try out, she called and set up an interview for the next day.

At that audition, the station manager told her she had a beautiful voice. The only thing she needed to get the job was a license from the FCC, but, in the meantime, she could start training with her late-night fantasy Russ McDonald. Doris couldn’t wait to meet him, but when she finally did, she was shocked.

Russ was short, fat, and had a face full of zits. His voice in no way resembled his features, and Doris knew she had finally found the perfect job for herself. After her initial embarrassment, they had gone out on a date. Doris noticed how everyone around them was talking about the wonderful, sexy Russ McDonald but no one associated the voice with the man seated opposite her.

“This is wild,” she had told him. “No one knows who you are!”

“Great, isn’t it? It’s like Clark Kent hiding his Superman identity. You do have a fantastic voice, Doris. I’m glad we’re going to be working together. We’ll make a great team.”

“As long as no one knows what we really look like!” she joked.

That was the beginning of the end of Doris Levine. Soon afterwards, Doris passed her license test and, with a First Class FCC paper in hand, began working full time at the station. She started out filling in for vacationing announcers, but it wasn’t long before she had her own nightly spot, calling herself Jenny (a name she had taken from a soap opera character) Reed.

Russ taught her everything about the radio business. She learned the techniques of changing and cuing up records, editing tapes, running network feed and reading the many power meters that kept the station alive. The best job of all was when Doris became Jenny Reed. The very first time her microphone went live, phone calls lit up the station’s switchboard. Everyone wanted to know who this dynamite new female voice belonged to. Jenny received proposals and propositions and Doris was having the time of her life. She quit school, found an apartment, and, for the first time in her life, was totally happy. Jenny enjoyed the illusion she created through the air waves and had resolved herself that she would be at her job forever.

It was soon after that resolution that Doris found out that forever lasts just about seven years. She was on-air one afternoon when Brian Allen walked into the studio. He introduced himself and told her he had heard wonderful things about her. After listening to her on the air, he told her he thought her work was just what he needed at his station in Los Angeles. She immediately accepted Brian’s offer on the condition that she would have a probation period of two months for both of them. Doris wasn’t quite ready to burn all her bridges.

She was ready, however to make another major change in her life. A move to sunny California meant revealing clothes. She could no longer cover up her extra pounds with heavy sweaters and overcoats. Doris put herself on a strict diet and strenuous exercise program. She said goodbye to Russ, the station, fifty-seven unwanted pounds, and her birth name.

That was five years ago. Now, Jenny was faced with the decision of whether to stay with the security of KTKM or try to find a new wall to hang her FCC License. At thirty four, she had paid her dues with her years of experience, so maybe it was time to move on. Whatever her future decision was going to be, the one fact that remained foremost in her mind was that there was nothing to hold her back, and no man holding her, either. Not now, not tonight, and maybe, not ever. It was a thought Jenny quickly put out of her mind as she opened the massive soundproof doors that led to the heart and soul of KTKM-FM.

 

Chapter Three

 

 

When Jenny entered the studio control room, she looked around at what had become her home. She sat down in front of the large control board and ran her fingers over the knobs. Fifty thousand watts of clear channel power were in her hands. She could feel the energy surging through her skin. When she was in command nothing could touch her. Surrounded by thick, padded walls, Jenny could shut herself off from the rest of the world. With the right combination of dials and switches, she could control what millions of people heard. It was a natural high, a fifty thousand watt orgasm, and for four hours every day it had been hers. Until today, when someone by the name of Johnny Kingshit was about to take it away from her, courtesy of that pencil-penis Brian Allen.

Well, she’d show him! She’d be the perfect professional. Just do her job, business as usual, and wait for the mail to do the rest. Even if Brian had let her down, she knew her fans wouldn’t. As soon as they found out she was sharing her show they’d write. Hell, they’d probably burn up the switchboard!

With renewed confidence, Jenny put on her headset and made the necessary entries in the daily maintenance log. She glanced at the oversized clock on the wall directly in front of her and jotted down the exact time her shift started. It seemed to Jenny that her entire life had been ruled by that obnoxious red hand that ticked off time in excruciatingly long seconds.

In any given day, she probably looked at that clock hundreds of times and yet if someone asked her what time it was, she wouldn’t be able to tell them. Jenny was so engrossed in her preparations that she didn’t notice the new body that was now occupying the seat she had kept warm since her first day at the station.

Through the thick glass partition Jenny watched while George Dimmock, aka Johnny King, was talking to Brian. Jenny moved the control switch into the cue position so she could overhear their conversation then turned her back to the two men and pretended to be busy.

“At least you could have told her about me, Bri. I mean I have to work with the bitch. It might help to get to know her first, if you know what I mean.”

“I know exactly what you mean Johnny, but I thought it was best if you two started off on the right foot first before you ended up putting that foot into your mouth. Believe me, it’s best to do this my way.” Besides I don’t need the competition.

“Whatever you say, you’re the boss, right?”

“That’s right. Even if you are Denise’s brother, this is still my station. I hope we have an understanding here.”

“Of course we do. Just don’t tell Denise, right? Just because dad left this place to her, I totally understand that it’s your baby now.”

“Yes, it is my baby, and I’d rather you didn’t spread that little bit of fact about ownership around, if you know what I mean.”

Through the glass, Jenny held up the five finger signal, indicating that they were coming out of commercial in five seconds. “Not to worry, Brian. I won’t tell anyone our little secret. Now, if you’ll excuse me, it’s show time!”

Johnny put on his headset as Brian left the studio. Brian hoped he hadn’t made a mistake. Johnny might be his brother-in-law and although he didn’t usually practice nepotism, in this case he’d had no choice.

The decision to hire George was made by his wife just before his “meeting” with Jenny. There was no room for compromise since Denise legally owned the station. He knew Jenny would be angry if she ever found out the truth, but he figured he could explain it to her when she calmed down.

Brian’s plan was to wait until they were in a romantic position to tell Jenny how he had to keep up an image and that it would look bad to have anyone know that his wife and not he, was actually in control. He knew Jenny would understand. Just as soon as she’d calm down about the abrupt shift change and hiring of Johnny. He just had to wait for the right moment. Unfortunately, she was showing no signs of calming down and he was becoming a bit doubtful if that right moment would ever happen.

In fact, Jenny was anything but calm. She had heard the entire conversation and was fuming. Denise’s brother? It was bad enough to lose her position to a complete unknown. Johnny King, what a stupid name. It sounded like the name of a fast food hang-out. But to find out that the decision had come from Brian’s wife was totally unnerving. Brian had told her that he owned KTKM and his wife was a silent partner. Everyone at the station was under the same impression, which Brian had done nothing to correct.

Jenny couldn’t believe Brian would jeopardize her career, but then again, since he was jeopardizing his own marriage, what was Jenny’s entire life’s work to him? If Denise found out, Jenny would have to start looking for another job whether she wanted to or not. There was no question now, she and Brian were through.

The ominous second hand was coming up to the hour mark and Jenny and Johnny - what a ridiculous combination of names! It reminded her of an old fifties song, barf - were ready to begin their first official show together.

Once again for the first time. Oh well, it won’t be forever. He’ll be terrible, Brian will have to fire him, Denise or no Denise, and I’ll have my shift back in no time! Piece of cake!

Jenny had no idea just how wrong she was.

Chapter Four

  

Gayle McGee was sitting at her desk in the outer office when the first calls started to come in. She had worked at KTKM since graduating high school, starting out as a file clerk, and then moving on to assistant manager. After seven years of learning the ropes, she had successfully climbed the ladder to her current position of Program Director. She had seen and heard her share of announcers, so another new voice wasn’t of much interest.

Until now.

“I’m with Jenny Reed for the last half hour of her show so we can get to know each other,” Johnny said into the microphone, “and tomorrow morning you and she will have someone wonderful to wake up with at six a.m.” He flashed a nasty grin at Jenny knowing full well the intent of what he had just told over ten thousand listeners. Jenny didn’t give him the satisfaction of acknowledging his comment, but in her mind she was mentally strangling him with the headset cord.

The minute Gayle heard his voice, she knew Jenny was in trouble. Even though the station had been getting a good share of the morning drive time audience according to the latest Arbitron numbers, they were losing points with the twenty-five to thirty-five audience. Gayle always liked Jenny’s style, but this new guy had something special. Gayle heard it right away, and judging from the sound of the switchboard, so had a lot of others.

Johnny King’s approach was elegant, a cross between Cary Grant and Clark Gable without any trace of an accent. Gayle had checked out his background only an hour before he was on the air. He was from a small town in Minnesota, went to a Catholic school, then to St. John’s University where he’d majored in broadcasting. Then his file had mysteriously skipped two years and picked up with his experience as an announcer at a small station outside of Minneapolis just before coming to KTKM.

Gayle puzzled about the lapse in his resume and wondered why Brian hadn’t made any notation of it in the file. Oh well, she thought, he was the boss and could hire whom he pleased. Gayle did take special note that Johnny was thirty-eight and had never been married. That in itself was mysterious and the most interesting fact she read from his bio. She’d put the file away and hadn’t thought much more about it until now. Gayle started to leave her office when she heard the voice of Johnny King coming through the speaker. A slight shiver created goosebumps over her skin. She didn’t even know the man, but listening to him was beginning to excite her in a curious and fascinating way.

“God,” she said to the empty room, “if the rest of our female audience is feeling this way, our ratings are going to go through the ceiling!”

As Gayle waited for Jenny to leave the studio, she wondered how she was going to break the news to her best friend. The greatest joy, as well as the most difficult part of friendship between women was honesty. Jenny and Gayle had that rare type of relationship that only women could share, but it was times like this that honesty could damage even the most solid of friendships.

Gayle remembered the first time she heard that Jenny Reed was coming to work at KTKM, and how they had locked horns the moment they met. Gayle’s first impression of Jenny was that she was a New York snob, and Jenny had made it quite clear that, to her, Gayle was a typical skinny Californian airhead.

Their first conversation was blatantly confrontational. Jenny had asked Gayle where the previous night’s logs were, then went on to describe what they were, as if Gayle were ten years old. When Gayle found the logs, she’d thrown them at Jenny, but instead of getting angry, Jenny invited her to go out for coffee to help clear the air. Although Gayle had wanted to clear more than the air with the worm from the Big Apple, she felt since Jenny had made the initial move, she accepted. Their coffee turned into the Irish kind, courtesy of Bob Cash.

Over several drinks, they had shared stories about each other. Jenny confided in Gayle about her real name and her overweight past. Gayle, in turn, had told her about her parent’s divorce and her being the oldest of five brothers and a sister. And the fact they were both over thirty and still single.

They became good friends, making Charlotte’s a nightly stop unless either one had a more important date.

Gayle knew how angry Jenny would be at Brian for having made the schedule changes at the last minute. She hoped it would get her friend angry enough to finally end the relationship. Gayle had felt guilty about it ever since she’d invited them to a party knowing that Brian’s wife was out of town. That was almost a year ago, and although Gayle was the only one at the station who knew about the affair, she knew it wouldn’t be much longer until the news got back to Denise.

Gayle went into the employee lounge and got some coffee. The speakers were turned on in the room and she heard Johnny King’s live public service announcement. Once again Gayle was mesmerized by the smooth, silky sounds emanating from her radio. She removed her shoes, sat down on the couch, and started making plans.

Chapter Five

Jenny tried hard not to stare at the man whose voice was making her ears tingle. She didn’t want to believe that the deep, soft, and sexy sounds were emanating from the same mouth who had callously called her bitch only minutes before. If she’d learned anything at all from her years in the radio business, she knew that when people changed their name, they also changed their personality. Jenny Reed was a person Doris had invented. The life that Jenny was leading, Doris never could. She wondered whether it was the same for Johnny King. Or maybe he was trying to hide something, like the fact that he was related to the boss’s wife.

Their abbreviated shift went by quickly.

“How am I doing?” Johnny gave her a sheepish smile as if to say he already knew the answer.

“Not bad for your first half-hour. But hosting full shift during drive time will be is a totally different test. We’ll see how well you do tomorrow morning. You know this was my solo shift for a long time.” And it still would be my shift if you weren’t related to the boss, dammit.

“Yeah, so I heard. I want you to know I had nothing to do with that. I didn’t even know about it myself until today. I hate to wake up early. I’m a night owl myself. How about you?”

Jenny glanced at the clock and said. “We can talk later, we’re on in three seconds.” She put on her headset and pretended to rehearse the commercial she was going to record later. She could feel Johnny’s eyes, like laser beams, scanning her entire body.

 I don’t like this man. I want him out of my face.

“How about lunch after the show?” Johnny persisted.

“Can’t. I have to record some commercial spots and answer some fan mail. I probably won’t get out of here until after six.

 Great excuse, girl.

“C’mon, you have to eat, or are all Californian women anorexic?”

Cocky sonovabitch Take away that phony tan, sandy brown hair, and those perfectly capped teeth and what would you have?

Jenny cued him to begin the next song intro and once again was amazed at the tones coming out of his mouth, which answered her own question

You’d still have that incredible voice, that’s what you’d have!

The flashing red light of the telephone interrupted Jenny’s thoughts. Sometimes she was so engrossed in her work, she wouldn’t see it. There were many times when she had kept someone waiting on hold for fifteen minutes or more. The damn thing annoyed her, but it was the only way to signal a phone call since a ringing sound could go over the air. Jenny set up the board for the next set of songs and commercials, and then picked up the phone.

“Where did he come from, how long is he staying, and is he married or gay?” It was Kathy from the switchboard. Jenny was surprised since Kathy usually she didn’t start work until after ten, after taking her two young boys to pre-school.

“Kathy? What are you doing working this early?”

“It was Brian’s idea. He asked me to get an audience response to a new announcer. Am I ever glad I took the kids in early. You would not believe what’s been going on here since our new Johnny King started talking! The calls have been coming like crazy. Jenny, I want all the dirty, little details.”

Jenny turned her back away from Johnny and whispered into the phone, “Down girl. The only thing I can tell you right now is that he’s Brian’s brother-in-law, he’s from Minnesota and his teeth are capped.”

“I’m not interested in his teeth!” Kathy said and they both laughed. “Jen, Marlene just called from her car phone. She’s stuck in that accident mess on the 405 and might not make it here on time. Can you cover for her?”

“Sure, no problem. I can cut that spot later. And it gives me a good excuse to get out of lunch with Johnny.

“Great. I’ll call her back and tell her not to rush. Rush hour is an oxymoron.”

Jenny hung up the phone and looked at Johnny who was grinning evilly, indicated he had heard her conversation.

“Sorry, 20-20 hearing. Great reviews, yes? By the way, my teeth aren’t capped.”

Jenny could feel her face starting to blush, but she remained in control. “For a short day, you were ok. We’ll see how you do tomorrow.”

Jenny once again took notice of the time and made the proper notation on the daily log in front of her. She was just about to sign it when the next engineer came in to relieve Wes.

“Have no fear, Marvin’s here!” Wes grimaced and left the booth.

Marvin Hooperman was one of six permanent staff engineers at KTKM and the one person at the station who knew more about electronics than Thomas Edison. He had been at the same job since the KTKM heated up its electrodes some fifty years ago. When Jenny had time, Marvin would tell her fantastic stories about the golden age of radio, before automation made the board practically run on auto-pilot.

“That’s your cue to leave. Our shift is now officially over.” She said to Johnny.

“So, why are you still here?” He responded.

“I’m waiting for Marlene. She got stuck in traffic. You can leave now. I can handle this alone. I have to talk to Marvin about some program changes during the commercial break. Don’t be here when I get back.” Jenny left the studio and entered the engineer booth.

“Marvin, did you know that Denise, not Brian owned the station?” she asked.

“No, is that a fact? It wouldn’t surprise me. I knew Denise’s father and was very surprised to find out that he had willed the station over to Brian when he died. Frank was a radio man. It takes a certain type of person to be a success in this business and I never thought Brian had it. The recent ratings prove my point. Now, out of the blue he hires a new guy? I always knew Brian didn’t have an ounce of radio blood in him, but I still thought he was in control of the decisions at KTKM.”

“That’s how the new guy got the job, Marvin. He’s Denise’s brother. You and I have worked our way up the ladder in this business and then Brian hires a complete unknown who thinks he knows everything. It sucks.”

 “He does have a nice voice.” Marvin said, stating the obvious.

“Nice is putting it very uh...nice, Marv. Anyway, I’d better get in there. Talk to you during the break and you can tell me all about Denise’s father.” And everything you know about her brother.

The conversation with Marvin had taken Jenny dangerously close to her air time. She was trying to avoid going into the control room while Johnny was still there. Every time she looked up through the glass, the voice with the perfect teeth was staring back at her.

“I know it’s my magnetism,” Marvin said, “but if you don’t get your ass in there we’ll be coming out of commercial with only the sound of the bugs on the wall to intro your show.”

Reluctantly, Jenny left the control room and walked into the studio. She was irritated to see that Johnny hadn’t moved from his seat. He motioned for her to sit on his lap when she entered the room.

“Please remove yourself from my chair. I’m on in fifteen seconds.”

“C’mon, Jenny. I’m sure we can take this show to new heights of excitement. Sit!”

“I have no intention of sitting on your lap.  Now will you please get out of here and let me go to work!” Jenny tried to keep her voice as calm as she didn’t feel, but the anger was beginning to churn in her stomach. She knew if he didn’t leave in exactly ten seconds, her audience was going to hear all seven words the FCC wouldn’t allow to be broadcast.

“All right, all right, I’m going.” Johnny rose from the seat. As Jenny started to sit down, he whispered to her “I’ve warmed the seat up for you. See ya later.”

She was just about to answer when the red light signaled that her microphone was on. Trying her best not to choke on the overwhelming smell of Johnny’s heavy cologne, Jenny began her show.

Jenny sat back in her chair and let the music take her thoughts away from the rude, obnoxious person who had just left the room. See him later? She’d rather be in conference with the heads of the FCC then see him later. Too bad she had promised Kathy she would try to get the inside info on the guy. Kathy had been recently divorced and it was the least she could do for her co-worker, but it wasn’t going to be easy, or a whole lot of fun.

Okay, Kathy. I’ll do it, but I won’t like it. You’re going to owe me big on this one, girl. I just hope that someday I’ll have a good reason to collect.

Jenny’s attention returned to the program. She was totally unaware that a very good reason to collect on her debt was, at that very minute, on a non-stop flight from Fort Lauderdale, Florida and that someday was just around the corner.

Chapter Six

 

Brian Allen was a frightened man. Although he was alone in his car, he carried with him the Ghost of Disaster Yet-To-Come. After his confrontation with Jenny earlier, he decided it might be better for his health if he were a safe distance from the radio station when the fireworks exploded on Johnny and Jenny’s first shift together. As turbulent as his life was at home, it was still a lot safer for him than work, especially after he’d complied with his wife’s request to hire her brother. He hoped Denise would be in a much better mood than she had been when he’d come home from Jenny’s apartment.

“Women!” He said aloud to his imaginary Disaster Ghost. “The only way to make them happy is to give them everything they want. Which doesn’t leave a hell of a lot left over for the rest of us.”

As usual, Brian’s car radio was tuned to KTKM. At first he only half listened to the station expecting to hear Johnny announcing along with Jenny. He would always listen to her when she was on the air. He so enjoyed her voice when they were lying in bed, or making love. Now he wondered if the only way he would ever hear those luscious tones again would be through his stereo speakers.

 It had been an unusual decision to put Johnny on so suddenly, and to introduce him during the last half hour of Jenny’s show, but Brian felt he needed the surprise element both for the audience and to give himself time to explain the situation to Jenny. Brian was uncomfortable about the intensity of the feelings he was beginning to have for Jenny. He had hired her for her talent, but after her incredible transformation when she arrived at KTKM, he knew she wasn’t an ordinary DJ.

 He admired her determination and professional style and was continually amazed at the ease with which she handled the complex control board. Every job he gave her she would accomplish with complete competency. Within months, Brian had begun to develop an attraction for her that was much more than physical.

For the first couple of years working with her, Brian had kept his distance. Denise had just found out about an affair he was having with a salesgirl and had threatened to leave him, taking the radio station along with her. After a six hour discussion, which was more like a plea bargaining session, Brian finally convinced her to stay, under the condition that he never stray again. Getting caught had been enough of a scare to keep him faithful, until Jenny came into his life.

It was after the station’s Christmas party that he’d asked to be invited back to her apartment. Making love with Jenny had been rough and wild and wonderful. Their affair became a weekly event, until, suddenly and without warning, Brian began having a problem maintaining an erection.

His lack of virility probably bothered Jenny, although she never commented verbally about it. But Brian could tell by the number of dates she’d cancelled over the past few months that she was losing interest as quickly as he was losing his erection. He was tempted to try the various erectile dysfunction mediations, but he would have needed to make a doctor’s appointment and fill a prescription. Brain didn’t want to take the chance that Denise would get suspicious and start asking questions, especially since he never had erectile problems with her.

Maybe it was the guilt, or maybe it was the fear of losing control, or maybe it was turning forty, or a combination of everything, but Brian fully understood that unless he could fix the problem he created by hiring Johnny, he wouldn’t need a solution to his other problem, because Jenny would be gone forever.

Brian knew he was losing control of more than his erection, and he hated it. It was one thing for him to know his wife was the legal owner of the station, but it was another for the rest of the staff, especially Jenny, to also know the truth. Now that he had been forced to obey his wife’s order to hire Johnny, everyone would know who was pulling the strings at KTKM. Brian was beginning to feel more and more like a helpless puppet than a General Manager of his own company and he didn’t like it one bit.

 Brian’s thoughts were suddenly interrupted by what he heard coming from his car radio. He nearly drove off the road when he realized that the voice he was listening to belonged to his brother-in-law. Brian pressed the digital signal to be sure he was still listening to KTKM and when he saw the familiar numbers flash on the display, he pulled to the side of the road and turned up the volume.

George, or rather Johnny was good. Damn good. In fact, he was terrific. Brian wanted to shout his amazement to the passing cars. The public service announcement that he had authorized earlier about adopting homeless animals, was sounding more like an invitation to ecstasy. Brian knew that no woman listening would ever again be able to pass an animal shelter without getting hot.

Brian was in a daze as he drove his Corvette into the garage. He was faced with the bitter task of having to tell his wife that her brother was actually talented and her suggestion to put him on the air was working out better than he had thought possible. He was also a little more than anxious knowing that Jenny was in the same room with that voice. After everything that he and Jenny had shared, the thought of her together with Johnny made his stomach hurt.

Damn, ulcers.

Brian headed straight for the bathroom and his little white bottle of instant relief. He looked at himself in the wall of mirrors that Denise had insisted on hanging when she had begun her millionth attempt to lose weight.

“Looking at myself naked everyday will give me the motivation I need to lose the weight,” she had told Brian. In spite of his attempt to convince his wife she looked fine, the mirrors went up and so had her weight. The few pounds that once were ten were now closer to thirty. Now Denise never used the bathroom, preferring to go across the hall to the smaller one with nothing on the walls but pink wallpaper. Unfortunately, Brian was now stuck with looking at his thinning hair and seeing himself full frontal nudity with nowhere to hide. He had learned, however how to take a leak without turning on the light so at least he could do that in private!

Brian felt much better after taking his ulcer medication and went into the living room where he noticed Denise talking on the phone. She motioned to him that she’d only be a minute then went back to her conversation. Brian sat in his overstuffed recliner, turned on the vibrating back massager, and closed his eyes. The image of Jenny was in front of him. She was smiling at him and teasing him with her mouth. She was the only woman Brian had ever known that could unbutton a man’s shirt using only her teeth. He heard her calling his name, and it wasn’t until he felt his wife’s hand on his shoulder that he realized the voice was coming from Denise.

“Brian...BRIAN! Wake up, I have something important to tell you.”

Impressum

Verlag: BookRix GmbH & Co. KG

Texte: Raven West
Bildmaterialien: Raven West
Lektorat: Raven West
Tag der Veröffentlichung: 22.02.2014
ISBN: 978-3-7309-8563-2

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Widmung:
To Mary Ellen Grable and Ann Simpson