Lucky Charm (31 page)

“Wow, I can’t believe you’ve accomplished all of this on your own,” Annabel murmured
. S
he was too impressed by Etienne’s story to stay angry with him.

“So you’re not mad at me for not telling you right away?”

“Not in the least
.
I’ve never been this surprised in my life.”

“The reason I didn’t tell you
is
the
Hollywood
connection. It seems that whenever people find out that I work with set designers and producers, it becomes all they want to talk about
,
and I didn’t want this boring subject to obstruct our conversation. But then you’re not like most people, so I should have known better.”

“It’s all right
. Y
ou didn’t have to tell me about it at all. And thank you for bringing me here.”

“Oh, and there’s one more thing…” Etienne frowned. “I have a title.”

“A title?” she kept her voice light, determined not to be intimidated by his social standing.

“Yes.” He nodded, his face reddening. “I’m a count
.
I hope you don’t think it is too pretentious. In my mind, it’s really anachronisti
c.
I never even mention it…”

“I don’t,” she assured him, thinking that her life was becoming more and more like a fairytale by the minute
. S
he had met a real-life prince charming with a castle to boot.

“I promise that from now on there will be no more secrets.”

Annabel drew a quick breath
. D
id Etienne’s words mean that for him too their time together was more than just a casual fling? Well, she could not very well ask him flat out, so for now, all she could do was hope to
not
get her heart broken again.

It was Tuesday afternoon, and Lilly was about to showcase her collection in the fashion contest frequented by boutique buyers from all over the world
in
a competition that most young designers dreamed to be a part of. The contestants had flown in from all over the world, and the air rang with a cacophony of foreign languages and accents.

The backstage room looked more like a warehouse than a fashion venue
. T
he seemingly endless cement floor was divided into ten rectangular spaces of about ten feet long and six feet wide, with each space being demarcated with thick, white lines. Each designer had been assigned to a specific square of space that was marked with a number
. T
he number also determined the order in which the contestants were to showcase their collections. Lilly was all the way in the back of the room, which meant that she would be the last one to go, an unlucky outcome that made her lose her spirits. Both she and Annabel had expected that the order would be alphabetical, by last names, which would place Lilly Clayton within the first rows, but instead the order was determined by a draw
,
and Lilly drew number ten, which made her last.

“I am so nervous
,
I think I am going to puke.” Lilly moaned as she rubbed her forehead.

“Calm down, everything is going to be fine,” Annabel assured her friend, doing her best to ignore the overwhelming craziness around her. She had been to a good number of fashion shows with Lilly, but never had she seen the atmosphere as tense as it was now or seen Lilly as agitated as she was now. Of course
,
this was not a fashion show, but a fashion contest, which made it nerve-wracking and intimidating even for Lilly
,
who seemed to have lost her usual bravado and appeared to be on the verge of panic.

“The judges will be comatose by the time my turn comes
. T
hey won’t even look at anything I’ll be showing them. All this work has been for nothing.” Lilly shrugged her shoulders glumly.

“Or they just might come back to life once they see your awesome collection
,
and they will really appreciate you,” Annabel tried to sound as convincing as possible
. N
ot that she had any doubts about Lilly’s talent – her clothes were beautiful and original, but she too worried that Lilly’s talent might get lost in the shuffle.

“Hanging in there, girls?” A tall, skinny guy in his early twenties walked over to them. His blond
,
bleached hair was cut in a wispy pixie tha
t was now covered by a sequin
ed
cowboy hat. His name was Ronnie Maddox
. H
e was one of the first people Lilly and Annabel had met at the contes
t. A
ctually, he was the only person they met and the only one who did not stare them down with icy, superior glares.

“I’m trying.” Lilly smiled weakly as she feverishly rearranged her designs on the rack for the umpteenth time.

“Don’t worry, darling
. W
ith all the junk out there, your gorgeous creations are going to shine like fireflies in the night. I’m telling you, before long you will have the whole of
Paris
wearing your label.”

“Thanks
,
Ronnie
. T
hat’s real swee
t of you; especially, considering the fact that I don’t have a label.” A wan smile appeared on Lilly’s lips, but her eyes still looked agitated.

“And what would this be?” Ronnie held up the tag on the back of one of Lilly’s gowns.

“It’s a label.” Lilly smiled
,
and this time her eyes smiled with the rest of her face.

“Exactly. All right
,
girls, I’d love to stay and chat, but I’m up next, and I’ve got to check on my models
. S
ome of these girls don’t even know how to put on a dress!”

“Break a leg, Ronnie.”

“I intend to
.
I didn’t haul my butt out here all the way from
Texas
to leave empty-handed.” Ronnie cocked his head and tipped his hat.

“That’s the spirit. I’m keeping my fingers crossed for you.” Lilly patted his shoulder.

“All right
,
then
.
I’ll see you all later.”

“Isn’t he great?” Lilly asked, her spirits visibly brightened up.

“He’s definitely a character,” Annabel agreed.

“So
,
how are things going with Etienne?” Lilly inquired. “I need to keep talking
. O
therwise, I’ll go into a panic mode again.”

“Good.” Annabel touched the golden heart pendant on her neck. “Great, actually.” She smiled dreamily, thinking of the past week she had spent with Etienne
. I
t was not just the se
x that made her smile
,
although
that part was ce
rtainly fantastic
. T
here was so much more. While discovering
Paris
with Etienne, Annabel felt like she was discovering herself in the process
. S
he had no idea that she could be so witty and smart, and that she could be attractive, sexy, and even irresistible
. T
hat was what Etienne had told her last night – that she was irresistible. “You know,” Annabel paused, clasping the necklace around her neck, “I think that palm reader you dragged me to, Madam Aurora, really was on to something.”

Annabel waited for Lilly’s response, but Lilly grew suddenly quiet as she busied herself with sorting the gowns on the rack.

“Lilly, did you hear what I said?” Annabel nudged her friend.

“What?”

“That Madam Aurora’s love charm is working
.
I think Etienne just may be the true love she said the charm would bring me.”

“Oh, Ann, I don’t know
.
I wouldn’t take these things so literally
.
” Lilly halted, covering her mouth with her hand. “Don’t tell me you’ve fallen for him?”

“I thought that was supposed to be a good thing,” Annabel stammered, somewhat taken aback by Lilly’s reaction. “Aren’t you the one always telling me to get out there and take chances? Well, here I am, taking chances.”

“But I didn’t mean for you to fall in love with the first guy you dated after Jeremy!” Lilly stopped short. “I’m sorry; I didn’t mean to bring up his name. I just think you should take things slow, you know?”

“I am,” Annabel conceded, deciding that now was not a good time to bring up her growing infatuation with the dark-haired Frenchman Lilly had introduced her to.

“Don’t get me wrong
.
I’m thrilled that you’re having a good time
.
I just don’t want you to rush into anything,
okay
?”

Annabel nodded, thinking that it might be a bit too late for that.

“And thanks a lot for helping me out with the show.”

“Oh, you know it’s no problem
.
I wouldn’t miss your show for the world.”

“I know.” Lilly squeezed Annabel’s arm. “But you didn’t have to be up with me since six in the morning, helping me set up
. T
hanks for being a real friend, Ann.”

“Hey, that’s what friends are for, right?” Annabel could not help being surprised by Lilly’s emotional tone
. I
t was not like her to get that
mushy.

“Yeah.” Lilly took a deep breath. “It’s just that this contest really means a lot to me
. I
f it works out, then I could move to
Paris
to be with Simon.”

In a flash
,
Annabel understood the reason for Lilly’s agitation
. S
he had seen Lilly act like a cool cat at countless fashion shows, but now much more than Lilly’s career was on the line
. If
all went well, the outcome of
t
his contest would enable her to be with the man she had fallen in love with.

“I tell you, Ann, this long-distance relationship stuff is not easy.” Lilly sighed. “But what am I worrying about
? Y
ou are not about to jump into anything serious with Etienne, right? The two of you are just having fun
. I
t’s a great warm up for when you get back to
New York
. T
hen you c
an
really hit the ground running.”

“Yeah, sure.” Annabel had to admit that Lilly did have a point
. S
he was having fun seeing Etienne now, but what would happen when the time
came
for her to go back to
New York
? W
ould she too fall victim to long distance heartache?

“I’m up next,” Lilly murmured, her face growing noticeably paler.

“It’ll be fine
. T
hey’ll love you,” Annabel reassured her friend for the umpteenth time.

“That’s right, girlfriend
. Y
our stuff is awesome!” Ronnie joined in. “And the girls look beautiful.” Ronnie motioned at the row of models clad in Lillie’s gowns.

“Oh, I’m so nervous
.
I think I’m going to puke!” Lilly exclaimed for the umpteenth time.

“Here, breathe into this and try to relax.” Ronnie handed Lilly a paper bag
,
and she burrowed her face into it, taking several breaths.

“Lilly Clayton?” A gaunt, extremely tall woman
appeared behind Lilly out of nowhere. She had
gray hair tied in a bun so tight that it seemed to pull up her forehead, giving her a frozen look of surprise
. I
t was
either that, or too much Botox
.

“Yes.” Lilly jerked the bag away from her face, immediately growing even paler.

“Lilly Clayton?” the woman repeated sharply, adjusting her massive glasses as she made a quick notation in the notebook she was holding in her bony, twig-like hands, “
Y
ou’re up. The judges are waiting.” The woman turned around sharply and disappeared behind the stage curtain.

“Oh
,
my God! That was Emily Flynn!” Lilly gasped. “And she saw me freaking out like a total amateur! I can’t believe she actually went backstage herself
. S
he probably does it on purpose, to see how contestants are coping with pressure
.
I bet you it’s probably part of the score. Well, I sure failed that one
.
I think I am going to be sick now.”

Out of the corner of her eye, Annabel noticed the models exchanging confused looks, huddling together like a herd of frightened gazelles, and she knew that she had to step in now. She grabbed Lilly’s arm and pulled her limp body out of the models’ earshot.