The Rocky Road to Romance Read Free Page A

radio—atleast she had that going for her, she thought. She didn’t usually feel stage fright.
    At six minutes to twelve Steve handed Daisy an auxiliary earplug and the handset for the two-way. “I’ll keep driving. You do the talking this time.”
    She felt her throat constrict and her eyes glaze over. Her mind went blank. The sound of the anchor cuing in the traffic report came loud and clear through the earplug. The anchor repeated the cue and Steve tapped Daisy on the top of the head with a rolled-up newspaper that had been lying on the front seat.
    â€œThis is Daisy Adams,” she said. “WZZZ traffic at eleven-fifty-five.”
    There was a long pause while she bit her lip. Steve hit her on the head again and she snatched the newspaper from him while she frantically groped for something to say. “Traffic is…um, the same as before,” she finally said. “If you listened fifteen minutes ago, then you pretty much know what’s going on. Stay tuned for an update. We’ll let you know if the traffic changes. This is Daisy Adams signing off.”
    There was a pause about four heartbeatslong before the anchor resumed broadcasting. The man’s voice sounded strangled, and Steve had a horrifying image of the entire newsroom doubled over with laughter.
    â€œOh my Lord,” Daisy said. “I couldn’t think of anything to say!”
    Steve noticed his knuckles were white as he gripped the wheel. Relax, he told himself. It wasn’t the end of the world. It wasn’t nuclear war. It wasn’t famine in Ethiopia. It was just a one-minute traffic report. And this was an emergency situation. Besides, she’d probably be fine. She just needed more time. When they were done driving the loop he’d park her somewhere and let her listen to the scanners. The next time she could take notes and read from them when her airtime came up.

Chapter 2
    At twelve-thirty Steve pulled into the Belle Haven Marina parking lot. He faced the newscar toward the Potomac River, giving Daisy a view of grassy parkland, the river, and the Woodrow Wilson Bridge that joined Virginia and Maryland.
    â€œIt isn’t necessary for us to do any more driving,” he said to Daisy. “We’ve checked out all the trouble spots. You get good scanner reception here, and you’re free from interference on the two-way. You have a good view of bridge traffic. It’s the perfect place to wait out the afternoon.”
    It was the perfect place to roll around in the grass like cats in heat, he thought. That’s how he felt—like a battle-scarred tom that had finallyfound the love of his life. He wanted to crawl into the backseat and yowl. But he didn’t think Daisy was ready for his yowling and besides, he had meetings all afternoon, so he squashed his animal instincts and used his cell phone to call for a cab.
    While he waited, he leaned his back against the driver’s-side door, stretched his long legs as best he could in the compact, and draped an arm over the steering wheel. He didn’t want to leave yet. He wanted time to get to know her better. And he wanted to stay and help with the traffic report. It wasn’t fair to throw her into this job and abandon her after less than two hours of instruction.
    â€œAre you going to be able to handle this?”
    Their gazes locked, and she knew he needed an honest answer. “I’m not going to give up on it, if that’s what you’re asking.”
    â€œThat was part of it.”
    â€œAnd the other part? I suppose that has to do with ability. I’ll be able to do a decent traffic report after a few days. Just don’t expect me to sound like Menken.” Daisy thought the key word there was decent. She was going to give ither best shot, but she didn’t think traffic was ever going to be her forte.
    The cab arrived, and Steve turned to face Daisy.
    â€œYou’ll be fine,” he said.
    He got