Carly Phillips - Lucky Charm

The thought turned her insides soft, and despite the crowd and the intense scene playing around them, desire thrummed low in her belly. With Derek behind her, his body heat surrounding her, the yearning only grew.

“I can’t keep my hands off you now,” he said, his voice low in her ear.

Meanwhile, obviously feeling impotent, Mary glared first at Kayla, then unmistakably at the source of all the media attention-Gabrielle-before storming out of the Wave, extremely unhappy at being ignored.

Gabrielle shivered. “I think she left frost in her wake,” she murmured.

Derek’s hand moved from the chair to Gabrielle’s back in a warm, protective gesture. “I’m more worried about what she’s going to do to get even.”

DONALD WATSON, EDITOR-IN-chief of the Journal, the leading newspaper in both Perkins and Stewart, stared at the photograph in front of him in disbelief. Even if he hadn’t been forewarned and asked not to run this picture, there was no way he could print it, anyway. He was in charge of a newspaper, not a porn magazine.

When Richard Stern had approached him off the record and asked to be notified if any photographs of his future wife passed Donald’s desk, he’d agreed. Hell, he’d have endorsed Stern if he wasn’t afraid of Mary Perkins’s wrath.

The favor might be off the record, but Donald was a newspaperman and unable to contain his curiosity. He’d done his research. Donald glanced at the photo and shook his head. Poor woman. To be so violated at such a young age. At least she’d had the guts to send the guy who’d drugged and photographed her to jail.

But, then, who’d sent the photograph in an unmarked envelope to the newspaper? And how had they gotten their hands on police evidence?

Donald had earned the editor-in-chief position the old-fashioned way. He’d started sweeping floors during high school and worked his way up, earning the trust of the editor-in-chief before him. Along the way, he’d built up some good friends in important places. Even small-town papers had to get their scoops.

Another glance at the photograph, and he decided to call his “friend” who worked the evidence room at the police station. “Hey, Rob, I’m calling in that favor.” Two months ago, he’d covered for Rob with his wife, claiming Rob had been at their weekly poker game when, in fact, he’d been with his mistress.

He asked Rob if anything was missing from the Evidence Room and Rob began to stutter before saying no. Since that was his poker tell, Donald knew the man was lying.

“What kind of trouble are you in, buddy?” Rob wasn’t just a cheater, he was a gambler, and he often owed more than he had on hand.

Five minutes later, Donald had his answer. He also had, thanks to Rob, the evidence Richard Stern needed to take down his mayoral opponent.

AFTER JULIETTE’S INTERVIEW, Hank Corwin was granted his turn. Kayla sat across from him at the Wave and waited as they did a sound check on Derek’s father.

Derek couldn’t help but laugh. Hank’s tune about discussing the curse in public had certainly changed. Not his views on the curse, those he expressed in detail, reminding the world-and Derek-how tragedy had befallen every Corwin man who fell in love.

How tragedy always would follow.

Derek couldn’t shake the foreboding that settled over him. Without Holly and her cheerful voice bouncing around him, Derek felt the loss keenly. He could live with the temporary custody arrangement because he could look forward to the next time he could be with his daughter.

But what if there wasn’t a next time?

What if Marlene’s threat became reality?

He shivered and forced his attention back to his father’s interview, trying without success not to internalize the older man’s words.

As he listened to Hank, his gaze was drawn over and over to Gabrielle. His beautiful Gabrielle, perched on a bar stool in her emerald sundress that offset her hair, watching the crew work. He couldn’t let himself think about his feelings or anything else about her, for fear his father’s prophetic words would kick in at any time.

Kayla wrapped up Hank’s interview and Hank headed outside, preening and proud of himself and his time in front of the camera.

“Derek, do you have a minute?”

Derek turned to see Richard Stern. “Hey, Richard.” Derek shook the other man’s hand. “What’s up?”

“I think I have the information we’ve been waiting for,” he said quietly.

“Hello, boys.” Gabrielle joined them. “Why are your two heads together?” she asked, clearly not intending to be left out.

“Richard was just saying he had information for us.”

Richard leaned in closer. “The photograph of Sharon was stolen from the Evidence Room at the police precinct. The guy who works the day shift has skeletons in his closet, which left him vulnerable to blackmail. But he wasn’t stupid. He refused to deal with a middleman. He wanted to know who he was stealing for.”

Derek had no doubt what was coming next. “Mary Perkins?”

Richard nodded.

“Why in the world would she have told him? She could have just used whatever leverage she had against the cop to make him cooperate,” Derek said. “It doesn’t make sense that she’d leave herself open and vulnerable after years of being so careful.”

“Richard is the first viable candidate running against her in years. She got scared,” Gabrielle mused.

“And scared people get sloppy,” Richard confirmed. “According to my source who spoke directly with the cop in question, she wanted that photograph desperately.”

“Enough to show up herself to get the information?” Derek asked.

“Apparently, she was beyond reason,” Richard said. “She wanted insurance and that photograph was it.”

Gabrielle let out a low whistle. “Wow. What do you plan to do with the information?” she asked Richard.

Suddenly, people came screaming toward the front of the bar.

“Fire!” someone yelled, barreling past them and rushing out the front door.

Chaos ensued.

Derek thought only to grab Gabrielle’s hand as he jerked his head toward the back of the restaurant and saw flames licking around the curtains and traveling toward them.

“Oh, my God!” Gabrielle screamed.

“Let’s go,” Derek said.

“Follow me.” Richard headed out first.

Derek pulled Gabrielle, and along with the rest of the crowd, they bolted outside. The Wave had been more crowded than Derek had realized and someone pushed between him and Gabrielle, breaking their hands apart. He turned to call her, but the people behind him shoved him forward in their rush to escape.

Once they were outside, the firemen had already arrived and began directing people far from the burning building. Derek turned to look for Gabrielle, but he didn’t see her in the crush of the crowd directly behind him.

He was forced onto the far grass by a fireman. Others began cordoning off the area and prohibiting people getting anywhere near the Wave.

“Derek!”

He heard his name being called and he whipped around at the sound of his father’s voice. “Dad! Over here!” Derek waved so his father could see him.

“Thank God!” Hank said, hugging him until he couldn’t breathe.

“You weren’t inside, were you?” Derek asked. He’d thought his father had left once his interview ended.

Hank shook his head. “I was outside when I heard someone screaming about the fire. I looked up and saw the flames. I just wanted to find you.” Hank wiped the sweat from his brow. “I couldn’t bear to lose my son,” he said, his voice cracking.

“I’m fine,” Derek assured him, emotion and so much more clogging his throat. “Have you seen Gabrielle? We got separated trying to get out of the building.”

Hank shook his head.

Derek glanced back again, but there were too many people crowding around to see everyone.

It had been too long since he’d made it out and he still hadn’t seen her. Panic nearly suffocated him. “I’ve got to find her.”

He started for the building, only to be stopped by his one-hundred-ninety-pound father jumping onto his back.

“You aren’t going near that fire,” Hank said in Derek’s ear.

“At least let me tell the fireman she’s missing.”

Hank released himself and rushed with Derek toward the nearest firefighter. His father never released his grip on Derek’s collar. Derek was choking on the material pulling against his neck but figured it was his father’s way of keeping him safe.

“I’m looking for a woman. Reddish hair, about five foot five. Last time I saw her was inside the building,” Derek said to the fireman.

“I’ll relay the information,” the man in uniform promised.

As he waited, Derek clenched his hands into fists, his nails digging into his skin.

“She’ll be fine,” Hank said, placing an arm around Derek’s shoulders.

“Because our good luck says so?” Derek asked his father.

The older man looked at him with wise eyes but said nothing. How could he, Derek thought, when he’d lived through his share of pain and tragedy, too?

“Don’t hold it against me for not letting you run back into that building, son. You wouldn’t want Holly to be fatherless, now, would you?”

Derek shook his head, unable to speak as he waited for news on Gabrielle.

DEREK COULD BARELY BREATHE as he watched the burning building. Finally, he caught sight of Gabrielle along with Kayla being helped out of the bar by a fireman.

Coughing, she made her way toward him, throwing her arms around his neck. “Oh, my God! You’re okay, too.”

He shut his eyes and squeezed her to him, all the while, thanking God that she was safe. Everyone he loved was safe. Now he just had to keep them that way.

“What happened?” he asked.