Escape Magic (4 page)

“Sure.” He flashed her a smile and squeezed
the hand that held his arm. “Just off in my own world. Sorry.”

“Well, it
has
been a long day.” She
glanced at her new husband with a youthful fondness that
contradicted her attempt at making it sound as if she were tired.
“You know, all that wearisome getting married and such.”

“Not to mention the picture-taking
production with all the press.” Andre smiled, reclaiming his bride
from Tony by snaking an arm around her waist and pulling her to
him. “
That
got old fast.”

Before Andre could pull her all the way to
him, however, Stacey gasped. “Oh! You were going to pick up that
girl, the magician, what’s her name?”

“Lydia.” Tony spoke the name grimly enough
to make his brother chortle.

He clapped Tony on the back. “Sorry, little
brother. Everything go okay with that?”

“Okay?” Tony blinked. Okay seemed almost
like a cheap shot. He swallowed. “Yeah. Of course. Picked her up,
she’s here. Having a great time last I saw.”

Stacey and Andre exchanged glances and
Stacey nodded a little. “Well, all right then. But I’d feel better
if you went and found her. You know, make sure she's really okay?
For me?”

Tony wondered if he’d ever be able to refuse
his sister-in-law anything. He certainly couldn’t now, when she was
glowing with bridal joy.
And asking me to do the very thing
I
want
to do.
He nodded. “Sure. But put that shit away,
okay? I love you guys and I’ll do anything for you. No need to pull
the whole wedding mojo on me.”

She laughed and the next moment, Andre had
twirled her into his arms and out onto the dance floor where they
molded together enough so it was obvious the dancing was just an
excuse to hold each other.

“Right.” Tony snagged another soda from one
of the passing waiters. He watched Andre and Stacey for another
minute, then went in search of Lydia.

****

Lydia was in seventh heaven. Eighth, if
there was one. She loved hanging out with other magicians,
exchanging trade secrets and challenging each other to figure out
others. She hadn’t had this much fun since the International Magic
Convention in Prague two years before. And making this event even
better were the mixed in “marks”. Fooling another magician was fun,
but what they’d all gotten into the business for was the look of
wonder on the audience’s face.

Good thing I was invited. If I’d known it
would be like this, I would’ve crashed the party.

She found a group of magicians she knew by
reputation displaying their favorite card tricks with dog-eared
decks and sipped wine as she watched. She finally excused herself
to go to the restroom, swaying a little as she stood and realizing
the wine wasn’t going to help her own dexterity at all.
Time to
slow down.

In the restroom, she passed a woman
sniffling and dabbing her eyes with a tissue. Lydia brushed past
her, a little irritated. She had little patience with women who
cried in public restrooms. In her experience, they seldom had much
to cry about. As she washed her hands and splashed a little water
on her cheeks another woman came into the little waiting area.

“Oh jeez, are you still at it?”

Lydia grinned a little, deciding the
conversation could be worth listening to, and turned off the water,
examining her reflection in the mirror.

The crying woman dabbed at her eyes. “Well,
yeah. You know, it’s the end. He’s married now.”

“Huh. Like you had a chance with him. You
guys went on, what? Two dates?”

“Three. And I always thought—”

“Well, maybe you’ll get lucky and he’ll get
divorced, though I wouldn’t count on it.” The speaker, a beautiful
Asian woman with long, shining dark hair, marched over to the sink
next to Lydia without seeming to notice her. “Besides, there’s
still Tony.”

“Oh, right. Tony.” The first woman sniffled
and joined them at the sink, sarcasm weighing down her voice and
turning her mouth into an unattractive slant. “
He’s
a real
catch, right?”

Did Andre really date
her
?
Lydia found it hard to imagine. When the other woman caught her
stare in the mirror, Lydia smiled, unabashed, and returned her
attention to her own reflection.
Your fault for making a scene,
chickadee.

Her companion hadn’t noticed the exchange.
“He would be—”

“But you can’t do it. Nobody can.”
Slant-mouth turned her fury on her friend. “Face it, Jana, You were
his flavor of Wednesday three months ago. And you haven’t heard one
word from him since.” She turned and flounced to the door, pausing
for one last parting shot. “And you won’t. Ever. Nobody ever
does!”

Jana glanced at Lydia, and Lydia couldn’t
help a little smile. Jana shrugged. “Well, she
is
right.
Tony’s a player, but I knew that.” She sighed a little, closing her
eyes. “I don’t actually even hold it against him. He wasn’t a jerk
about it or anything.”

“Well, hopefully he was worth it.” Lydia
adopted a detached tone and pulled out her lipstick.

Jana opened her eyes and the little private
smile playing on her lips spoke volumes. “Let’s just say, I
wouldn’t mind repeating it, and I wouldn’t give up that night,
either. Even knowing I never would.”

After the other woman disappeared into one
of the stalls, Lydia finished perfecting her makeup thoughtfully.
So Tony had sex for fun, and he was good enough at it the women he
played with didn’t even mind. Was that what she’d noticed about him
when she’d stood on the balcony overlooking the tableau below?
Maybe.

To be honest, she didn’t really know what
Tony was really like. She’d never known him sober. As far back as
she could remember—or at least as far back as her relationship with
the Hawkins brothers went—Tony had been dependent on one addiction
or another. Drugs, alcohol, gambling. Seeing him sober and strong
was a new sensation, and he was like a stranger to her.

And not altogether unpleasant,
either.
Lydia exchanged a glance with her own reflection,
thinking that she’d done worse things than spend a pleasant night
in the arms of a strong, skilled lover.
Yeah, but this
Tony.
She frowned at herself.
You’ve just barely got back into the
Hawkins’ brothers good graces.
But it wasn’t like she was
looking for a relationship, either. There was no chance she would
break his heart if he was used to playing the game with women.

I can’t afford anything else, either.
She glared at the woman in the mirror who glared back just as
sternly. She tossed her head and started for the exit. “I deserve a
little fun.”

****

Tony worked his way slowly around the dance
floor, ducking an acquaintance here, pausing to give a friend a
quick greeting there. Everyone seemed happy. Except one woman whose
red eyes were evidence of tears.
And Andre leaves another heart
broken.
He edged past the woman who was arguing with another
woman. As he did, the companion of Broken Heart turned and caught
his arm. “Tony Hawkins, I know you’re not going to just walk past
me.”

He hesitated, searching his memory, and
fortunately found the appropriate one. “Jana.”

His former conquest smirked triumphantly at
his memory. “I really need someone to dance with. Won’t you help me
out?”

“Actually, I was just—” Tony hesitated,
uncertain how to get away from the woman he’d had sex with and find
the woman who had so intrigued him, he wasn’t even certain what he
wanted from her. A one-night stand with Lydia seemed out of the
question, but sex would have to figure into it somehow or other. He
wasn’t even sure he could reconcile one thing with the other. So
what the hell was he doing out looking for her like this?

Jana pouted and tugged on his arm. “Oh come
on! One dance. What’s the harm?”

He scanned the crowd one last time, then
sighed when he didn’t spot her face. He returned his attention to
the woman at his side. “Okay, fine. One dance.”

She led him onto the dance floor where she
slipped her arms around his neck and swayed against him enough so
he had to tighten his grip on her waist more than he’d actually
intended. “So.” She peered up at him through almond-shaped, light
brown eyes.

He raised his eyebrows, guiding her further
onto the dance floor and trying not to look around for Lydia.
“So?”

“You look like a man on a mission. What’s
up?”

“Nothing.” He cleared his throat, surprised
he’d been so obvious. “Just, uh, looking for someone.”

“Really? A female someone? Cause, you know,
if you’re not too specific, I could fit the bill.” She gave him an
unabashed grin.

He snorted a little laugh. “If it wasn’t a
specific female someone I was looking for, I’d take you up on
it.”

“But it is.” She shook her head and whistled
softly. “And she’s staying out of sight? That’s different.”

“Yeah.” He drew in a breath. “It is.”

“Well, in the meantime, I’m going to enjoy
my dance.” She laid her head on his shoulder. “And if you spot her
before it’s over, don’t disturb me.”

“Sure.” He scanned the crowd. He couldn’t
explain the growing concern in his chest that he was going to be
too late if he didn’t hurry up. And because he couldn’t explain it,
he ignored it. Lydia wasn’t going anywhere, after all.

****

Lydia watched Tony twirl Jana across the
dance floor, her head lying on his chest as if it belonged there.
She tried to convince herself that it didn’t matter. So Jana got
there first. Didn’t mean, if she read the situation correctly, that
Tony would be unavailable later on.

“Hey, girl. Having fun?”

Lydia looked to her side and found Mariella.
Was it her imagination, fed by the knowledge that her friend was
pregnant, or was the other woman actually glowing? “Hey. How are
you?”

“I’m great, but I’m guessing by that
question that you figured out why I’m retiring from the public life
for a while.” Mariella’s smile teased her friend, but then she
sobered. “I can’t really blame you. I was a little surprised,
too.”

“Yeah, I guess so.” Lydia spoke absently,
her eyes trailing back to the dance floor. Was this really the same
dance? Was it going to go on all night? Maybe Jana and Tony were
enjoying it so much they’d let one dance lead to another. And that
one might lead right into Tony’s bed…

Mariella’s voice interrupted her thoughts.
“I don’t mean I was surprised by the pregnancy. I mean, we weren’t
trying
not
to conceive, you know? I was surprised by how I
felt when I found out.”

The words caught Lydia’s attention and she
turned. “Really? How did you feel?”

Mariella’s smile was very gentle. “Complete.
Like it was what I’d been waiting for.”

“Oh.” Lydia searched for something deeper to
say but couldn’t find it. She reached for her friend’s hand. “Well,
congratulations. Really. I’m very happy for you both.”

“Thanks.” Mariella gripped her hand for a
second, then let go with a yawn. “I better go find my husband. I
get tired early these days.”

Lydia watched her go and realized she wanted
very much to have what Mariella had. A sense of fullness and
completion. Like you didn’t have to keep chasing that perfect show
or trick or whatever. Or you could chase it all you wanted, but if
you never achieved it, it was okay. Because of the more important
things in your life.

She frowned at the intrusive thought. She’d
never let anything get in the way of her ambition before. Why was
she considering it now?

“Hey Lady Lydia, you gotta come show these
guys a few of your tricks. They don’t believe that you can get out
of any knot.”

Lydia turned, glad for the intrusion, and
gave the little man next to her a bemused look. At least six inches
shorter than she was with a dark and prematurely wizened face, Phil
wasn’t much to look at and she suspected his character matched his
appearance, but his prestige as an illusionist was uncontested.
“Who doesn’t believe it?”

Phil grinned, looking a little like an elf
with his head tilted to look up at her. “Coupla new fellows.
Illusionists, but they’ve done some escape work. They reckon they
can outdo you.”

“Right.” Lydia tossed back her glass of wine
and set it aside. She motioned for Phil to lead the way. “I guess
I’d best go defend my reputation, then.” As Phil started away,
Lydia glanced once more at the dance floor, then turned with more
resolution than she felt. She had the oddest feeling that she’d
lost something precious in just those few seconds, and it left an
empty, aching feeling in her chest.

A waitress happened past, and Lydia grabbed
another glass of bubbling champagne as she followed Phil.

Tony finally broke away from Jana after a
second dance. He brought her a glass of wine. “I have to go.”

“To look for this girl?” She raised her
eyebrows over the glass. “Why bother? Really?” She reached for his
tie.

He backed away. Why, indeed? He made up his
mind. “I need to be sure she’s okay. And because I want to.”

“You want to.” She frowned, then sighed a
little and kissed his cheek. “I hope she knows how lucky she
is.”

Lydia was not easy to find. He finally
located her in a knot of cheering male magicians. She was seated on
a table with her legs crossed and her arms bound behind her. A
handsome, dark complected man teased her with a wine glass. “C’mon,
Lady Lydia! Get loose and it’s all yours.”

Lydia pretended to have trouble with the
knot. “Oh, you might just have me with this one.”

The dark man smiled a little lasciviously
and leaned on the table so his body half covered hers. “Oh, I
really
hope so. But give it a try anyway.”