“And you don’t play rational. Want to go to the mall with me and Holly?” Derek waved his daughter over.
“No. I have to pick up some things in town. Then I’m going to prepare a rebuttal to that girl’s speech tonight. No curse, my hiney,” Hank said, stomping toward his house.
Derek laughed and let him go. Hank was all bluster. Derek couldn’t imagine Hank showing up any place where the Corwin Curse was the subject of public discussion.
A discussion started by Gabrielle Donovan.
Damn. He couldn’t believe she’d returned after all these years.
He’d broken up with her after the prom. Post graduation, her parents had moved away, and she’d gone with them. At least he hadn’t had that summer to watch her, longing for something he could no longer have. But while they’d been together, his life had been spectacular. At eighteen she’d been the most beautiful, sensual woman on the planet. He could only imagine what the intervening years had done to her already lush body and china-doll-like face. With her mother’s French genes, she hadn’t been afraid of passion or sex, and they’d indulged in both often, until Derek realized it was no longer just physical attraction that kept him coming back for more.
She’d been smart, too, the only daughter of parents who were both professors. She had a sharp wit and had been insightful, understanding Derek’s love of high-stakes finances even before he had the money to indulge his passion. She probably wouldn’t be surprised to learn he’d gone to Columbia undergrad and directly on to Wall Street as a trader until he was hired by an investment-banking company and made himself rich from lucky, huge deals.
He’d made himself poor the same way, investing too much in a company that went south instead of north. These days Derek was a financial planner, getting his thrills by building other people’s incomes more slowly and sensibly, not toying with his own.
He shook off the memories and headed to where his daughter was trying to play fetch with Fred. The dog was lying on his fat stomach without moving, staring at the stick she’d tossed.
“Ready?” Derek asked her.
Holly wiped her dusty hands on her jeans shorts. “I’m ready.”
“Good.” He ruffled her long hair. “Let’s drop Fred off at the house before we go.”
Holly nodded and pulled the reluctant dog’s leash. Fred trotted along at her side.
“Daddy? What’s wrong?”
“Why would you think anything’s wrong?” Derek asked.
His daughter met his gaze, squinting as the glare of the sun hit her eyes. “Because you look sad.”
“Hey, how could I be sad when I’m spending time with my favorite girl?” he asked, determined not to let anything dampen the time he had with his daughter.
She giggled. “I’ll go give Fred to Grandpa.” She walked to the house, leaving Derek alone with his thoughts. The most tempting woman in his past had shown up to wreak havoc with his future.
Maybe she wasn’t here to stay.
Yeah, right. And maybe the Corwin Curse wasn’t responsible for the breakup of every male’s marriage down the family line.
GABRIELLE DONOVAN DROVE her black Lexus convertible down Main Street. She took in the stores and the colorful awnings and decided other than a few newer, more modern shops, nothing major had changed. She wondered if Derek Corwin had.
From her long-time friend, Sharon Merchant, Gabrielle knew that Derek had returned to their old hometown about six months ago. Gabrielle, herself, had moved from Florida to Boston about one month earlier, following her parents, who’d relocated from Florida six months before. She was used to being near her close-knit family. And as a writer, Gabrielle could work anywhere, so relocating wasn’t a hardship.
Was it a coincidence that Derek had returned around the same time?
Gabrielle shook her head. There were no coincidences. She might not believe in curses, but she definitely believed in Fate and true love. Derek Corwin had been hers.
From the day they’d met in the cafeteria in sixth grade, there had been
Derek and Gabby, Gabby and Derek. He’d been her other half from eighth grade through senior year. She knew about the curse. Everyone in town knew.
Derek feared the power of the curse, and though Gabrielle had never believed in such things, given his family history, she’d respected the threat it held over the Corwin men. Derek had never used the “
But she had a choice now. And she chose to believe that she and Derek were in such close proximity after all this time for a reason. For Gabrielle, the reason came down to second chances. She needed to know if the flame between them still burned.
The memories she had of him were strong. She’d idealized him and their relationship to the point where no other man could live up to the standard he’d set. No man since had understood her or given enough of himself. No man had been Derek.
So after years of moving from relationship to relationship, always being the one to break up, always looking for more than whatever the man of the moment had to offer, Gabrielle saw this as her chance to revisit the past-and find out, once and for all, whether her future could include Derek. If it didn’t, at least she’d
It helped that her best friend was also the librarian of the Perkins-Stewart Public Library. By asking Gabrielle to speak, Sharon had given her a reason to come to town. Gabrielle was ready for her talk at the library, but she didn’t expect to see Derek there tonight. She considered herself a pretty good judge of character, and given what she knew of Derek, he’d avoid her lecture on curses at all costs.
That was fine with her. Gabrielle preferred to set her own agenda where Derek was concerned.
Her first stop this morning was the Rhodes Inn, which consisted of a trio of rooms in an old boarding house. Though Boston was only an hour away, Gabrielle wanted to visit for a few days so she’d taken a room at the inn run by Adele Rhodes, Gabrielle’s fifth-grade teacher, a nice woman who’d indulged Gabrielle’s love of school and writing. When Gabrielle had called to rent a room, Mrs. Rhodes had been thrilled to hear from her now-famous student.
Gabrielle checked in and shared a warm reunion with her former teacher. She unpacked her suitcase and personal items, climbed back into her convertible and drove to Sharon’s house on the outskirts of town.
Sharon and her fiance, Richard Stern, had bought their own home in Perkins. But until they married after the election in the fall, Sharon still lived with her parents. Richard was running for mayor of Perkins against the previously uncontested Mary Perkins. He couldn’t afford the scandal living in sin would cause. Once upon a time, Sharon would have had no problem flouting convention, but a painful episode in her past had changed that. These days, Sharon was happy but more subdued.
Gabrielle parked out front and rang the doorbell of the old Cape-style home. Sharon opened the door and greeted Gabrielle with a huge hug.
“I’m so glad you’re back,” Sharon said, releasing her.
Although they’d kept in touch by phone and e-mail and Sharon had visited Gabrielle in Florida, this reunion was different. Gabrielle hadn’t been back in town for almost fourteen years. She’d avoided this place-and the memories of Derek-for way too long. But now that she was living within driving distance, she was finished staying away.
Gabrielle smiled. “I’m happy to be back, too. You look great,” she said, taking in her friend’s long blond hair and flowered sundress.
“Back at you!” Sharon gestured to Gabrielle’s hair, cut in the latest style. “I’m dying for a good haircut, but I can’t bring myself to trust anyone locally!”
“I found this great stylist in Boston. If you’re serious, we can go next week and you can get it done.”
Sharon nodded, her eyes filled with excitement. “I would love it. Maybe I’ll even cut it above my shoulders, like yours.”
“You’d look gorgeous with shorter hair.” Their conversation reminded Gabrielle of an adventure they’d shared in high school, when they’d both dyed their hair with hydrogen peroxide, hoping to become shining blondes. Instead,
