The Switch Read Online Free PDF Page B

indicated the Lexus parked nearby. The motor was already running, and Chief was grateful that the air conditioner had been turned on. Officially it was autumn, but the calendar was out of sync with his body's thermostat. He was sweltering inside his tuxedo jacket.
    It had been a long banquet. Every scheduled speaker had taken more than his allocated time at the microphone. By the time it was Chief's turn to make his acceptance speech, even he was bored. He was glad to be escaping and grateful to the valet for enabling him and Melina to avoid further contact with the crowd that was pouring through the exit doors.
    As they walked toward her car, the starstruck valet asked, "What's it like in space, Colonel Hart?"
    He gave the young man his standard, glib reply: "Out of this world."
    "Must've been something."
    "It was."
    Chief added a five-dollar bill to the one Melina had given him. "Thanks, sir. Y'all take care."
    As they buckled their seat belts, Melina complimented him on his speech. "You were excellent. Once you leave the space program, you could have another career in public speaking."
    "Lots of former astronauts do."
    "Any aspirations in that direction?"
    "I'm weighing several options."
    "Such as?"
    He unfastened the button on his jacket. "Can we talk about something else?"
    Looking mortified, she exclaimed, "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to pry."
    "It's not that, it's just—"
    "We don't have to talk at all. Feel free to lay your head back, close your eyes, and rest. I should have realized you'd be talked out by now. Probably the last thing you want is conversation."
    "Melina." Chief reached across the seat and touched her arm to stop the flow of apologies. "I'm not talked out. In fact, I would enjoy a conversation. Just not about me, okay? I'm tired of talking about me. Can we switch subjects?"
    "Of course. To what?"
    "Sex?"
    "Okay," she replied unflappably. "You want my opinion on the topic?"
    "Please."
    "Well, for starters, I think everybody should have one." He grinned. "You're quick."
    "So I'm told. Sometimes to my detriment."
    "Do you mind if I take off my jacket?"
    "Not at all."
    He shrugged off the tuxedo coat and tossed it into the back seat, then undid his bow tie and unbuttoned the collar of his shirt. "Ah! Much better."
    "Would you like something to drink?" she offered.
    "A stiff bourbon?"
    "I was thinking more along the lines of a Diet Coke or springwater."
    "I wouldn't mind a splash of either."
    "In the bourbon," they said in unison. Then they laughed together.
    When the laughter waned, he looked at her with a direct and serious gaze.
    "Is there someone waiting at home for you?"
    She didn't immediately acknowledge the question. Not until she came to a stop sign did she turn her head. He locked gazes with a pair of gray eyes that turned out to be her best feature of all—and they were all damn near spectacular.
    "Why?"
    "Because I'd like to invite you to join me for a drink. Any reason I shouldn't?"
    She shook her head, then returned her eyes to the road and put the car in motion again.
    "Okay, then, would you care to join me for a drink?" "Chief, you do understand the difference between a media escort and the other, more prurient type, don't you?"
    He would have feared that he'd overstepped his bounds and offended her, except that her question was accompanied by a teasing smile. He laid his hand on his heart.
    "I didn't mean to imply that you are anything o ther than a professional."
    Winc ing, he said, "Oh, jeez, that didn't come out right, either, did it?"
    "No, it didn't," she said, laughing.
    Relaxing, he said, "Explain your job to me."
    She gave him the condensed version, then expanded. "Most of the time is spent in the car traversing the metropolitan sprawl, seeing to it that the client gets to all his appointments and media engagements on time, relaxed, and in a positive frame of mind. I try and protect the client from any inherent chaos that might arise at any point along the way."
    "Like