Stripping on Live

The Sunday morning sun was streaming in through the curtains as Lisa opened her eyes and glanced toward the window. Turning away from the light, she gazed lovingly at the sleeping figure beside her and reached out to gently run her fingers through Natalie's hair. She heard Natalie purr softly, like a contented cat, and she snuggled closer.

Slowly all the events of the previous night came back into focus, not just what had happened at the strip club but everything afterward. The shared car ride, Lisa's somewhat awkward invitation to Natalie to come up for a drink when both of them knew it was for something very different. The tumbling into bed, the exploring of each other's bodies in ways that Lisa had never known and, until just the last few weeks, had never really seriously thought about at all.

Natalie stirred, turned toward her in the bed, and kissed her passionately. "Mmmm," she said, starting to lick lightly around her lips, cheeks, and chin. Someone's been doing something naughty. Can that be me I'm tasting?"

Lisa giggled. "I wouldn't be surprised. I don't know how many times you came last night. Grinding that sweet pussy of yours all over my pretty face."

"Well who can blame me? For your first time, you certainly figured out how to use that nasty little tongue of yours."

"At least I kept it where it belonged. Seems to me somebody else's tongue got itself into some very naughty places," Lisa recalled with a smile.

"Oh," Natalie pouted, putting on a hurt expression. "And here I thought our little reporter was enjoying that." Sliding down in the bed and disappearing below the sheet, she continued, "Hmmm, I wonder what sort of trouble I can get into this morning."

Lisa shivered as she felt Natalie's tongue lightly circling her belly button, then softly kissing her abdomen and descending lower as she whispered, "Here, clitty, clitty. Does little clitty want to come out to play?" Lisa felt the electric jolt surge through her body as Natalie skillfully probed between her pussy lips, teasing and circling her nub. Involuntarily she arched her back, pushing herself against Natalie's devouring mouth and moaning with pleasure.

*****

Almost an hour later, Lisa arose, slipped into a robe, and went to the kitchen to prepare some coffee. After a few minutes she returned bearing two cups as Natalie propped herself up in bed, her breasts peeking out from beneath the sheet.

"You know," Lisa began as she handed her one of the cups, "I still should be furious at you for what you did last night, tricking Art into announcing to the whole world what was going to happen. It really was unforgivable."

"Then why do I feel like you've already forgiven me?" Natalia purred, reaching over to lightly stroke Lisa's cheek with the backs of her fingers.

Lisa turned and kissed the caressing fingers. "I guess I have. You know, so much seems to have changed. I'm not sure how I can simply return to anchoring the news twice each day. And I'm not sure the station will want that...not after my strip show last night. And besides that, I've been thinking that I may be ready to push things a little further. I mean, why not take on a different role and embrace what I've learned about myself?"

"What, that you're a shameless exhibitionist?" giggled Natalie, "or that you really are one very naughty lady in bed?"

"Oh shush, you bad girl. You know what I mean. That I really do enjoy the things I've been doing the last few weeks and I want to find a new position that will allow me to keeping doing them," she continued, beaming at the beautiful woman stretched out beside her.

"Then you should go for it," Natalie cheerfully concluded. "You'll be the best at whatever you do."

Lisa let out a big sigh. "You know, you're absolutely right." She paused, and then added, "I can't tell you how wonderful it is to have someone to confide in and help me with this. I'm just one lucky girl."

"Luck had nothing to do it with. You know I worked for weeks on figuring out how I could get you in bed. And see, it worked!" Natalie beamed.

"Oh, so now you're the brains behind all of this and I'm just the ditzy blonde, is that it?" Lisa laughingly continued.

"Well, someone has to think this all through." Natalie put her cup down, then grew silent and sank deep in thought while Lisa tenderly stroked her hair. After a few minutes, she brightened up. "I think I know what to do. You should meet with Bill in the morning and tell him that you need some time off and that when you come back, you want to do only late night broadcasts where you can be more...um....adventurous."

She paused, as if thinking through all of the possible obstacles, and then continued. "I really think you can get the station to go along with this. I've heard Bill say he's concerned that you've already pushed the limits of what you can get away with. And he's been especially worried about how the 6:00 audience is perceiving all of this. So, tell him that he has to make a choice. Either you can continue to anchor the news or you can produce more 'dare to bare' types of reports. But you can't keep doing both." She paused and looked at Lisa to see her reaction.

A small frown crossed the blonde-haired beauty's face as she pondered her reply. "I know you're right. The audience wants more but we just can't go there while I'm anchoring the news. And after my performance last night, Bill may already be thinking that he doesn't want me sitting at the news desk. He'll probably be relieved if I offer to give it up. But I really do need a break, and I'm not sure he'll want me taking time off, especially now when we've been drawing bigger audiences and getting all this attention." She paused, taking another gulp of coffee. "What do you think?"

Natalie brightened. "Don't worry. I've got a plan. Just tell Bill that you're exhausted and need to get away for a few weeks. Point out that we also need time to come up with new ideas for these reports. But you can offer to stay on for this week and do one more Friday Night Special. I'm betting they'll jump at it because the story about your strip show at the Starlight is going to be on every television station and in every paper within the next twenty-four hours. In a few days it will be old news and they'll look silly if they try to run that segment next week."

"You're right," Lisa agreed. "Besides," she continued, "I'm kind of proud of what I've accomplished these last couple of months, and the last thing I want to do is make it look like I'm running away and hiding. Besides, I think I can come up with something and have a little fun this week."

"Oh, does that mean what I think it means?" Natalie asked as Lisa broke into a broad smile. "That you just might already have some naughty plan for your final Friday Night Special?"

"Well, you'll just have to wait and see. Right now, I'm going to go take a shower."

"Oh no you don't, not without me," Natalie said, popping out of bed and standing fully nude before her. "I'm not letting you get away from me that easily." Together they held hands and walked into the bathroom. Lisa turned on the water, slipped out of her robe, and stepped into the shower stall.

"Hey did I say it was okay to get in first?" Natalie chided her as she entered the stall and closed the door behind her.

"Oh, I'm so sorry," Lisa said, responding instinctively to a certain tone in Natalie's voice. "Have I been a bad girl?"

"Yes, you have. A bad girl who does very naughty things." As she said that, Natalie put her hands on Lisa's shoulder, gently pushing her downward. The older woman felt an unexpected thrill as she assumed a kneeling position, realizing that Natalie was going to continue to surprise her in all sorts of ways.

*****

Bill called Lisa later in the afternoon to tell her that the station was going with a segment on the news that night about her strip show. He had already been contacted by the local newspaper for a comment on the story that would run in their Monday edition detailing her performance at the Starlight. "And I'm pretty sure the other stations are covering the story on their broadcasts tonight. So we can't let them scoop us on this."

Lisa thought just a moment and responded, "I completely agree with you, chief." She then added, "Do you need me to come in to help edit the footage?"

"No need, Lisa," Bill replied. "I'm here with Sue Thomson, who's going to be anchoring tonight, and Clayton's been pitching in as well. We have the first part already set up. It'll be presented as a straight news item, so we can't use any of the backstage footage and interviews with the other strippers. Too bad, there was a lot of good stuff there."

"I know," she replied. "It would have made a great piece for our series."

"Look," he continued, "I want to run this by you, just to make sure you're okay with the video we're using. That's always been our agreement; you have control of the final edit."

"Thanks, Bill. I appreciate you sticking to your word."

"So, let me walk you through it. We're starting with the shot of you going out on stage in the schoolgirl outfit. Sue will read the narration rather than Art. It's best to have another woman do it. She can give most of the details of the story as a voiceover during edited shots of you removing your shirt and stockings. I assume you're okay with using that footage. But here's the thing -- we need to make sure the audience knows just how far you went with the performance. We can't let the other channels be the ones to carry that."

"I understand, Bill," Lisa agreed. "That's exactly how I'd want to present it if I were Sue. So, tell me what you're thinking."

"Well, we're editing a scene right now that shows you diving into the audience in just your skirt. It's shot from behind so there's no boobage." He paused as he heard Lisa chuckle a bit. "Sorry about that. I forgot for a minute that they're your breasts."

"That's okay. But you know I've left in some revealing footage in my other reports. And this is a situation where you absolutely need to use something that the other stations don't have or won't be willing to include. Got anything that will work?"

"Well, we can't really see you during the crowd surfing, just a lot of hands and arms in the air. So, that's okay. But we've got a sequence once you're back on stage. Shot almost straight on and with your arms raised. It's almost like you're posing and one leg is forward so you can't see...well, you know, you can't see the last couple inches down there. But you can see everything else."

"You mean you can't quite see my pussy," Lisa said. She gulped silently to herself, took a deep breath and told Bill, "Then that's the shot to go with. And no censor bars or pixilation." She started to feverishly scribble down some lines on a piece of paper in front of her, then asked, "Look, is Sue there now?"

"She's right here," he replied.

"Then can you put us on speakerphone?" Lisa heard the click as Bill switched over and the somewhat distant sound of the other woman's voice joined the conversation. "Hey, Lisa."

"Hi Sue. Feel free to ignore this, but I think I have an idea that might work for the end of your report. When you're showing me in, um, all my glory, you can add something like this. 'As our loyal viewers know, in the "dare to bare" reports, Lisa has insisted on putting herself in the same situations as the people she interviews. Last night at the Starlight was no different. She was there to report on women who strip completely naked and she was determined to do the same. I guess you can say she threw everything she had into this story.' You can wrap it up anyway you want, but you might want to include that thought."

"Sure thing, Lisa," Sue replied. "And if you don't mind the compliment, you're one helluva a reporter. And not a bad stripper either."

"Thanks, Sue. You should try it sometime." They both chuckled, and Lisa ended the conversation by saying, "So, Bill, you got what you wanted, right? My permission to use the footage. But there's just one more thing. I'd like to meet with you first thing tomorrow. I have a favor to ask of you."

"Anything you want, Lisa," he concluded. "You're the best."

"Be careful what you say, Bill. Sue and Clayton are my witnesses." They all laughed, and the phone call ended.

*****

Early the next morning, Lisa arrived before the rest of the news crew and poked her head into Bill's office. "I saw Sue's report last night," Lisa began. "I thought she did a great job. I hope all of the publicity isn't hurting the station."

"Are you kidding?" he responded. "There's no such thing as bad publicity, and I'm not even sure there's anything bad about this." He paused, then continued. "You know we make a great team and you've done so much for the station. And I don't mean just in the last couple of months either."

"Thanks, Bill. But I think we both know things can't continue this way. I can't keep up with the pace of doing these reports and anchoring the news. So, I have a proposition for you." And with that, Lisa launched into the details of the plan that she and Natalie had worked out the day before -- she'd give up the nightly news, take some time off to pull together some new ideas, and then come back as a special reporter. In that role, she would continue producing segments on daring behavior that featured little or no clothing.

"I'm not walking away, Bill," she concluded. "I'm just saying that you and I have to make a choice -- do I continue to anchor the news or do you want me in a new role? And if it's going to be that new role, then I'm asking for some time off. I need to sort some things out, and I think we both need to work through exactly what my role will be going forward."

"We can't **** you to do both things, Lisa. Hell, I agree with you that it's impossible to continue doing it all. And I have no doubt in which role you'll be of most value to the station," the news producer responded. "Although I hate the thought of seeing you leave the nightly broadcasts. You've been terrific. I just need to make sure I can sell management on the whole idea."

"I think I can help with that," Lisa replied. "Let me ask you something. You don't have anything you can use for this week's Friday Night Special, do you?"

"No, you're right," Bill offered. "With everyone covering the Starlight story today, by Friday, it will be old news."

"So, here's what I propose. First, I'll do the broadcasts this week. People who haven't watched before are now going to be tuning in out of curiosity. If we want them to keep watching and help our ratings, I need to be on camera. Then on Friday, I announce my leave and the change in my role up front, right at the start of the 11:00 show. I mean, after all, it is news. And then I'd like to do something to make up for all the viewers who didn't have a chance to see me on Saturday."

Bill shook his head and chuckled, "I wonder what that will be."

"I'll tell you. But only if you promise to keep this all secret until I break the news on Friday. Deal?"

"It's a deal, Lisa," he said, standing up to shake her hand. "Now tell me just what you have in mind."

*****

Lisa had been nervous about seeing her co-workers again, almost all of whom had witnessed her performance on Saturday night. But she quickly realized that she was in control of the situation; they were a little bit in awe of her and by acting confidently and professionally, she found that her colleagues immediately treated her in the same manner. The week flew by, and things quickly settled back into their usual routine. Well, almost everything seemed back to the way it was except for Natalie. Lisa had always made it a rule not to get involved with a co-worker. And this time, for better or for worse, she had violated that rule. "Then again," she thought to herself as the two women passed in the hall pretending not to notice one another, "you bent or broke an awful lot of your rules in the last couple of months. And maybe things haven't turned out too badly."

On Friday between broadcasts, Bill pulled the entire team together and announced Lisa's decision to leave the nightly news, telling them that the 11:00 show would be the last time she'd serve as anchor at Channel 4. He mentioned that he had agreed to allow her to announce the change herself at the start of the broadcast, and he asked the floor manager and camera man to step into his office so they could work out a few details. Over the next hour, a steady stream of visitors pulled Lisa aside to wish her well in her new job. The move to the new role as special segments reporter, and a rumor that the network was looking to syndicate her reports, struck them all as a great step up in the business, even if it might involve some naughty talk and revealing outfits. "And besides," as Tim added when he came to say goodbye, "you'll be coming back to the station after your leave, right?"

At 10:30 Lisa's assistant, Kelly Roberts, tracked her down to say it was time for wardrobe and make-up. "Thanks, Kelly," the reporter replied. "You're a doll. But I don't think I'll need any help tonight. I only have a few small things to deal with," she said. With that, Lisa retreated into her dressing room and locked the door.

Once inside the room, she reached up under her skirt, took off her pantyhose, and slipped out of her panties. Removing an item from her bag and hoisting up her skirt, she positioned the new undergarment over her most intimate area, standing in front of a mirror to make sure everything was in place. Just as she was pulling her panties back up, she heard a light tapping outside.

She walked over and opened the door to allow Natalie to enter. "I thought I saw you coming in here, and I was hoping you might need some help with your wardrobe," the weather girl said with a wicked gleam in her eye.

"Well, I'm almost finished. But I suppose I could use some help making sure I get my nipples covered with these pasties. I should never have trusted you to pick them out. They're so tiny!" With that, Lisa pulled the two small circles from her bag.

"Oh, stop the whining," Natalie laughed. "You'll be fine. Bill checked with standards and practice, and they confirmed exactly what I told you. After 11:00, nudity means showing a woman's nipples and pussy. As long as they're covered, there's no problem."

"I know, I know," said Lisa, unbuttoning her top and unsnapping her bra to reveal her breasts. "Now let's get these on and make sure they're stuck solid."

A few minutes later, the two women stepped out into the hall. Lisa's outfit, an off-white top and blue skirt, was perhaps a little tight but not at all revealing. It certainly drew no comments or second looks from the crew as they passed by. "Well, here goes nothing," she whispered to Natalie and walked to the center of the set, ready for her final broadcast. The floor manager counted down the seconds, the opening graphics appeared in the monitor and the red light came on. Lisa looked up into the camera, smiled, and began the evening report.

"Good evening, I'm Lisa Marvell and this is the 11:00 O'clock News. We begin with some late breaking news, and something that has a personal connection. I'm going to be taking a little time off and then returning in a new role as special reporter focusing on topics of a revealing and, perhaps I should say, naughty nature. I and my guests will be doing some daring things, and I hope you'll be able to join us."

"But before stepping down as news anchor, I want to say that I've enjoyed every minute of my time here, and I hope you have too. And I also would like to add that I'm sorry that only a few of my loyal fans were able to see me at the Starlight Theater last Saturday. I can't repeat that show here, but I do want to do something special tonight for all our viewers." Slowly, she started to unbutton the sleeves of her top, then moved her hands upward and began undoing the front of the garment. "Perhaps I've been inspired by the recent series of reports on women who dare to bare, or maybe I've just been thinking too much about some of the exciting things we have in store for you when I return."

By now, her top was completely unbuttoned. She continued talking as she removed the shirt and tossed it aside. "So I hope you won't object if I practice for my new job right now. You can just regard it as the next installment in my series on women who dare to bare. Or maybe you can think of it as my going-away present to you all."

With that, she made an exaggerated gesture of grabbing the zipper on the side of her skirt and pulling it slowly down. She glanced down briefly as she undid the snap at the side and allowed the blue garment to slip down, deftly stepping out of it and leaving it on the floor out of camera range. She looked back up and smiled warmly at the camera. "Now, here's our lead story. Cynthia Jones is at City Hall, where she has the latest update on the allegations of financial wrongdoing coming from the Board of Planning. Cynthia, over to you."

During the City Hall report, Lisa stood nonchalantly in her bra and panties off to the side of the set. For her final appearance, she had opted for a set of French cut lace briefs and push-up bra, along with a pair of three inch heels that showed off her legs to full advantage and accentuated the curves of her firm ass. She waited patiently for Cynthia to conclude, savoring every moment standing there in her underwear surrounded by her fully clothed colleagues.

"Interesting developments," Lisa responded at the end of the report. "We'll count on Cynthia to keep us updated on any suspected wrongdoing. Turning to the national front," she continued as she reached behind her back to unsnap her bra, "it looks like Congress is still stalling on budget negotiations." She proceeded to outline the details of the latest impasse over taxes while allowing her bra to hang loosely on her shoulders. As Lisa continued to discuss the activities in Washington, one shoulder strap slipped down her arm and the right cup of her bra moved lower. She appeared not to notice, continuing with the report, while the other strap started to slip. With her right hand, she reached across her breasts and grabbed the strap, casually pulling it off and allowing the garment to drop. "So, it looks like there will be little progress in the near future," she concluded as she let her arm fall to her side.

Her nipples were covered by the sparkling silver colored pasties, close enough to her natural skin color that at first it appeared that she was standing topless in full view of the camera. But as the camera pulled in tighter, the pasties could clearly be seen, along with every other detail of her breasts. Lisa checked the monitor, admiring the way she looked on camera, as she continued reading off the teleprompter. "Next up, here's Jim Simpson who is at the downtown mall with an update on the special "no sales tax" weekend that has local stores staying open to midnight to give shoppers plenty of time to take advantage of the savings."

With Jim on screen, Lisa once again stepped off the set to pick up her bra and fold it neatly on a table, all the while making no effort to cover her charms. She saw Bill behind the control panel and motioned to him to come over. "You sure I have to keep these silly little things covering my boobage?" she teasingly asked.

"Hey, you're not in your new role yet. But hold onto that thought until you return and we figure out how to get around the censors," he said with a big smile.

"Still, there might be some way to have some fun tonight," she said as Bill hurried off the set.

"Thanks, Jim," Lisa began as he finished his report about the sales tax holiday. "One follow-up question before I let you go: you've got a monitor set up there, don't you?"

"Yes, we do."

"And you can see me in the studio?"

"We can definitely see you, Lisa. In fact, you've got quite a number of fans watching the broadcast." With that, the camera panned back to show a couple of dozen people crowded around trying to get a clear view of the monitor." There was some cheering and waving, some whistles, and a shout of "you go girl!"

"Well, say hello for me and tell them to stay tuned. We'll be back in just a minute, and I promise there's more to come."

The director signaled a cut to commercials, and Bill came up to Lisa again. "Great ad-libbing with Jim. I've got the control room talking to him now and we're going to keep the remote up and running for the rest of the broadcast. We'll signal you to cut back to him from time to time to get an update on the crowd reaction." He turned to walk away, then looked back over his shoulder. "You know you really are amazing."

"I've been telling you that ever since I got here," Lisa teased. And with that the floor manager counted down the end of the commercial.

"It's so nice to hear from our viewers out at the mall, so we're going to be checking in with them again later in the broadcast." Lisa slyly moved her left hand to her hip and pushed slowly on the band of her panties. "So, this is for all of you, our loyal viewers. "She bent over, pulling her panties down and off in one swift move, dropped them to the side, and then extended her arms towards the camera, revealing her final undergarment. "For those of you who haven't seen this before, I'm wearing something called a c-string. Kind of like a g-string," she explained, " but without the strings." With that Lisa slowly pirouetted for the camera, giving an unhindered view of her ass, with just the slightest hint of the top of the c-string peeking out from the top of her butt crack.

"Next up, highlights of news from across the nation." Once again, they cut to a prerecorded series of short reports of various headlines from other parts of the country. While it was running, Bill came over and said, "The phones are going crazy. We're getting dozens, maybe hundreds, of complaints. And you'll never guess what they're complaining about -- that we keep cutting away from you to the news. So, as soon as we come back from this segment, the camera stays on you. For sports, walk over and stand next to Tim. Help Natalie read the weather. Or just read the teleprompter. Other than commercials, the only thing we're cutting to for the next fifteen minutes is Jim at the mall. Got it?"

Lisa was shaking her head. "Wouldn't you know it? My last day and I'm a star. But you got it, chief."

And Lisa did exactly what Bill had told her to do. For the second half of the broadcast, she stayed on camera. The short walk over to Tim provided the viewers with a three-quarters view of her backside, her ass cheeks swinging slowly as she moved across the studio space. Tim remained the true professional as they jointly read off the sports report.

After Tim's segment, Lisa announced, "Now let's go back to Jim Spencer at the mall." The camera switched to Jim, and in the monitor Lisa could see that a much larger crowd was now gathered. "What's going on there, Jim?" she asked.

"Lisa, the crowd continues to grow and I estimate that we now have over 100 viewers joining us to watch your final broadcast. Our friends at Paul's TV and Electronics here in the mall have been kind enough to set up a 72-inch screen and I'm told that they have all their display models in the store tuned to Chapter 4. You look great in HD, Lisa," he added as the group behind him roared their approval.

"You're all very sweet. Thanks so much," she said as she blew a kiss to the camera and cut to commercial.

Returning from the break, Lisa took the opportunity to walk over to Natalie, the camera pulled back to provide a full length view of the anchorwoman as she put a little extra bounce in her step and swing in her hips. Natalie greeted her by looking up in mock surprise and said, "Why Lisa, you seem to have forgotten something," as she very obviously inspected Lisa from head to toe.

"Have I?" Lisa responded, without missing a beat. "Why I guess I have. I've forgotten to say how much I'm going to miss you and Tim," and she leaned over and gave Natalie a big hug, pressing her near naked breasts against the weather girl.

"That wasn't what I was thinking of, but thank you anyway," Natalie replied with a smile. "And you'll be happy to know that we're expecting a warming trend in the days ahead," and she proceeded with the weekend forecast, while Lisa stood by allowing viewers to continue to enjoy the unimpeded view of her fantastic figure. The camera had zoomed in close on the two women, and as Natalie wrapped up her portion of the broadcast, she turned to Lisa and said, "You know, we're going to miss you here at the nightly news. So I wanted to ask you to provide us with a little souvenir of our last broadcast together."

"Of course. And I have to say that I'm really touched by your request."

"After the broadcast, I thought maybe you could leave me with your final outfit, that cute little c-string you're wearing."

Lisa's eyes opened wide, seemingly startled by the request, then shrugged her shoulder and said, "Why not? In fact you can have it now."

Below the range of the camera, she reached down and pulled off the tiny garment and handed it to Natalie. "I'll keep this on display in the news room," Natalie beamed. "It's the perfect souvenir. Thank you."

Lisa now lowered her hands to cover her pussy, turned to look at the camera and started walking back to the center of the set. The camera pulled back, allowing the audience to get a full-length view of the bottomless anchorwoman, hands strategically held in place. "Jim," Lisa asked, "any final words from the mall?"

The cameras cut to a wildly screaming group of viewers as Jim tried to be heard over the noise. "Well Lisa, you can see that the crowd here definitely approves of Natalie's request. This has been a memorable night for us all."

"Thanks, Jim, it's been memorable for me as well." Tim and Natalie now joined Lisa at center stage as she continued, "I'd like to say you'll be seeing more of me in the future, but," she added deliberately glancing down at her nearly naked body, "I don't see how I could possibly show you any more."

As a final tease, Lisa raised one hand and blew a kiss to the camera, leaving just her palm and a few fingers covering her slit. "Good night, and see you again real soon." And with that the broadcast, as well as Lisa's career as the Channel 4 anchorwoman, came to an end.

Bill broke out a bottle of champagne as Lisa slipped back into her panties and skirt, eventually putting her top on as well. There were toasts and tearful farewells, and by 12:30 she was on her way home. As she pulled into the parking lot of her apartment building and was getting out of her car, she noticed Natalie's car pulling up next to her.

"What are you doing here, you little troublemaker? "

"Is that anyway to greet a friend," she pouted. I'm just here to do a favor."

"Oh, really?" Lisa asked suspiciously.

"I thought I could help you get those pasties off. That glue can really stick to you."

"So how are you going to do that," Lisa asked.

"With my teeth, silly," Natalie said, sticking out her tongue.

"Hmm, then you better come up," Lisa said, a smile spreading across her face.

"And I brought along an extra bottle of champagne so we can celebrate," Natalie continued.

"Celebrate my leave?" Lisa asked.

"And my new promotion," the weather girl added. "Bill just told me that I'm going to be the new anchorwoman for the 11:00 news."

"That's wonderful, Nat," Lisa replied, almost without thinking. She paused, and looked off into the distance. Suddenly, her eyes narrowed and she glared at her friend. "Why, you little bitch...."

"Shush, now," she said, putting her hand across Lisa's mouth. "Tonight's been so perfect. Don't spoil it. Come on, let's go upstairs and celebrate," she said, taking her by the hand and leading her into the apartment building.

*****

EPILOGUE

Four weeks later during the 11:00 Friday night news broadcast, Sue Thomson included a brief segment in her entertainment report. "Channel 4 revealed today that Lisa Marvell will be returning later this month for a series of special featured reports. Lisa and her guests will explore daring ideas and challenges, many of them provided by the show's viewers. Channel 4 invites our audience to email their suggestions to [email protected]. I'm sure that all of you out there are looking forward to Lisa's return as much as we are. We can't wait to see what you have in mind for her and just what Lisa decides to do," Sue added with just the slightest blush.

The camera switched back to news anchor Natalie Johnson. "And I for one am counting on our viewers to come up with some very naughty dares for Lisa," she concluded with a devilish look in her eye.