Escape Magic

Many, many thanks to my
magician friends who have not only encouraged me in my ambition to
write romances starring magicians, but have even gone so far as to
read
Close Up Magic
.

It looked real. The bride and groom posed in
front of the waterfall, palm trees and beautiful tropical flowers
framing them. Her smile was radiant, and her groom couldn’t take
his eyes off her. The wedding photographer—the only photographer
allowed past the yellow tape barrier that held back the
paparazzi—directed them to face each other, and when she tilted her
head to look at her husband, it was obvious to anyone within sight
that these two
wer
e for real. What they had would last.

Of course, not all of it was real. Bride and
groom, paparazzi determined to capture something of their happiness
in their cameras…those were real. The waterfall and palm trees and
lavish surroundings were part of a garden in a climate-controlled,
high-end mall outside a Las Vegas casino. But in that moment, it
was an oasis of perfection. Maybe it was the solid reality of the
love between the two that made it easier to accept the practiced
falsity of Vegas.

Tony looked on at the happy couple, and his
heart swelled with satisfaction for his brother. Three years and
lots of trust-building and soul-searching had passed since Andre
met Stacey. If they didn’t have a solid foundation to base a
relationship on, Tony felt certain no one did.

“Say, man, you know who’s getting
married?”

Tony glanced to his side. A heavyset man in
a gold suit with pompadour-style hair and dark gold-rimmed
sunglasses stood next to him. He must have ducked under the
barrier. Tony shrugged. Didn’t really matter. Andre and Stacey were
so happy they wouldn’t mind sharing a little of it… even with an
Elvis impersonator. That actually
was
why they’d chosen
Vegas for the wedding. They both loved its unpredictability and
unique aura.

Not to mention the fact that they’d met
there.

At least something good came out of my
failure.
Shaking off the feeling of uneasy guilt those memories
always brought with them, Tony smiled and gave the beautiful couple
by the waterfall a last look. Then he took Elvis by the arm and led
him back behind the barrier. “My brother. Andre Hawke. If you don’t
mind, though, we’d prefer you watch from back here.”

“Sure, man. No problem.” Elvis watched in
silence for a few minutes. “Hawke? Isn’t he that magician fellow?
Saw his show once. The one where he pulled her on the stage, I
think. Did an amazing card trick with her. And everybody was in
tears by the time he was done. Really cute. So he’s marrying her?
Finally?” At Tony’s nod, Elvis shook his head, dark hair flopping
over his eye, rhinestones catching the glimmer of the mall lights
and reflecting back rainbows. “Vegas, man. You never know what’ll
happen.”

Tony couldn’t help but grin as the other man
melted into the crowd. As he turned back to his brother and
sister-in-law, his eyes were caught by a flame-haired, leather-clad
figure standing on the upper level of the mall. He paused, frowned,
and the truth of Elvis’s words hit him. “Nope. You just never
know.”

****

Lydia wasn’t watching the happy couple. Her
gray-green eyes were fixed on Tony. She knew it was Andre Hawke
getting married, of course. She’d heard about it before she’d even
gotten back to Vegas. Andre was the darling of the media anyway,
and his nuptials had gotten almost as much attention in the
entertainment world as any British royal’s.

Yeah, Andre was getting married, and as a
former friend and current colleague, she’d been curious enough to
stop by. She’d planned to catch a glimpse of him and move on. Andre
wouldn’t want to see her, considering they’d parted on less than
amicable terms, and she didn’t want to disturb anything.

But it wasn’t Andre or his lovely bride she
couldn’t take her eyes off of. Holy hell, was that really Tony?

She hadn’t seen him in ages. Years. And when
she’d last been anywhere near him, he’d been in the throes of his
addictions. Darkly handsome, but weak and skinny and nervous.
Twitchy. She saw none of that in the well-built, confident young
man giving instructions to photographers, pausing to speak politely
to reporters.

He’s better.
She tried to be happy
for him, but she sensed something underlying his overt healthiness.
Not weakness. Something else. She leaned a little further over the
guardrail to catch a better glimpse of him. As she did so, he
glanced her way and paused. Their eyes locked and she felt a little
thrill of discovery. Just as she did, though, a very large man
dressed in Bermuda shorts (
in Vegas, really
?) bumped into
her and she lost her balance, tipping over the rail.

She caught the guardrail as she flipped over
it, hearing shrieks of terror all around her. Her own heart rate
never even sped up. She tightened her one-handed grip on the rail
and looked around, enjoying the scenery and the momentary breather
away from the press of bodies. A crazy urge to let go passed
through her. It was only thirty feet up, after all. She’d probably
break something if she fell, but it wouldn’t be the first time. But
no, she had no intention of falling.

Of course, if she didn’t intend to fall,
she’d better get busy before some well-meaning schlub tried to
rescue her. With a little internal sigh, Lydia swung her legs back
and then forward, gathered enough momentum as she engaged her
well-trained abdominals and executed a neat little flip over the
guardrail and onto the landing.

She straightened, making a big show of
pulling on her jacket sleeves to get them straight and looking
around when she realized she’d lost an earring. A young man who
still had acne on his chin handed it to her with a shaking hand.
She smiled and kissed him on the cheek. “Thanks, sweetie.”

The kid looked like he’d won the lottery,
and the little crowd on the balcony burst into belated applause,
which was unfortunately cut short by Tony’s arrival. The crowd
parted for him as naturally as if his sheer presence were a force
field. He folded his arms over his chest and glared at her. “I
thought that was you. You trying to ruin my brother’s wedding?”

“That was an accident.” She fastened the
earring and turned away.

“Oh no, take a bow, Lydia. You earned it.”
He caught her arm. “Ladies and gentlemen, you’ve just enjoyed your
own private performance by Lady Lydia. Trust me when I say her show
is full of even more thrills and chills.“

“Hey, you’re that escape artist, aren’t
you?” A particularly good-looking young man grinned at her. “Kinda
sexy.”

Before Lydia could reply, Tony caught her
arm and pulled her away. “Sorry, you’ll have to catch her show. Ask
your concierge. Andre wants to see you.’” His last words were
directed toward her ear.

The warmth of his breath made her tense a
little. She swallowed hard, resenting the feeling that she was
being managed by a man who had no business managing her. She shook
him off as they approached the escalator. “Why the hell would I
want to see Andre?”

“Doesn’t everybody want to see Andre today?”
Tony motioned around at the packed mall. “Doesn’t everybody want a
piece of his happiness? Why would you be any different? Why else
would you be here?”

“I was just passing by.” She tried not to
sound defensive. “In fact, I would’ve been gone before I could’ve
been shoved over the balcony if—”
If I hadn’t seen you. If I
hadn’t wanted to see more of you…
She broke off and
blushed.

He gave her a curious look and shrugged.
“Look, I’m sure Andre just wants to make sure you’re okay. And
Stacey, too. You sort of shocked everybody.” He paused, turning
completely toward her and putting his hands on her arms. “That was
an accident, really?” At her mute nod, he tightened his grip on her
arms for a second, just a slight pressure that nonetheless warmed
her. “Jesus, Lydia. I sort of thought maybe you just did it for
publicity. You know, that is your kind of thing.”

“Escape. Right.” She nodded and turned away,
remembering that wild moment of freedom and the frightening impulse
to just let go. “Well, I wouldn’t want to steal Andre’s spotlight
on purpose.”

“No. Of course.” His voice sounded colder
and she regretted the necessity of holding him at a distance at the
same time that she sensed that underlying
something
that
she’d noticed from a distance. What was it?

Still pondering, she stepped onto the
escalator and he ushered her past the waterfall and through a door
she’d never paid much attention to. She paused inside the little
room. Andre and his bride stood on the other side of the door,
obviously discussing something, but when the door opened they both
turned.

“What the hell, Lydia?” Andre’s voice
carried an edge she was fairly certain was not a carryover from his
conversation with the beautiful woman whose hand he still held.

Although his irritation wasn’t totally
unexpected, she couldn’t help flinching a little at his tone.
“Look, I’m sorry. I didn’t intend—”

“Didn’t intend?” Andre rolled his eyes. “If
you’d wanted a little publicity for your show, you could’ve just
asked.”

“Right. I’ll keep that in mind next time I
almost fall over a balcony.”

“She says it was an accident.”

Everyone looked at Tony. He shrugged. “Well,
it’s possible. They’re pretty packed in up there trying to catch a
glimpse of you two.”

“We probably should’ve gone somewhere a
little more private.” The bride stepped forward, holding out her
hand. “Lydia? I’m Stacey. I’m so sorry for what happened. Are you
sure you’re all right?”

“She’s fine. If you’re gonna knock somebody
over a balcony, she’s the perfect choice.” Andre’s voice had lost
its sour edge in weariness.

The silence that fell was almost palpable.
Lydia noticed Stacey widening her eyes impressively at her new
husband as she put a protective arm around Lydia’s shoulders. Andre
opened his mouth to prevaricate, but Lydia snickered and Tony
clapped his brother on the shoulder. “Well stated, man. I can tell
marriage is gonna soften you right up.”

“I only meant she’s used to it.” Andre
grinned a little sheepishly. “I mean, who
hasn’t
wanted to
shove Lydia over a balcony or two?”

“Don’t be ridiculous, please, Andre.” Stacey
turned to Lydia. “Are you sure you’re all right? That
was
an
impressive feat of gymnastics. You should really join us for the
reception this afternoon.”

“I wouldn’t want to—”

“Intrude?” Andre raised an eyebrow and
Stacey hit him. “Ouch!” He frowned at his bride, but with an
underlying affection.

“Exactly.” Lydia felt uncomfortable. She
slipped out of Stacey’s grip as easily as she had ever slipped out
of ropes, chains and “trunks of doom”. She turned to Stacey. “Thank
you…really. For the invitation and hospitality and…” She cast about
for another word.

“Forgiveness?” Tony grinned at her
discomfiture and she would have hit him if he’d been standing in
range.

She couldn’t let it go. “I didn’t know I had
anything to be forgiven for. Not by anyone in this room.”

Andre had walked over to the far corner. He
swung around. “You may be right.”

“She’s what?” Tony looked incredulous.

“It was a long time ago, Tony.” Andre
glanced at Stacey and smiled. “I just can’t seem to hold grudges
today.”

Stacey took a step toward him and he closed
the gap, taking her hands in his and bending to kiss her lightly.
When he looked around at them, his expression was as unreal and
foreign to Lydia as real magic. He looked… peaceful. And she
actually believed he had forgiven her.

“Whatever you say, Bro.” Tony took Lydia’s
arm. “C’mon, Lady Lydia, let’s give the happy couple some time
alone.”