Strokes of Midnight

by Tarr, Hope

  HOPE TARR

  Strokes Of Midnight

  Contents

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Epilogue

  Prologue

  Train bound for New York City December 31st, 10:30 a.m. (give or take)

  “So, have you started celebrating your big book deal yet? I expected to hear champagne corks popping in the background.” Sharon’s voice, sounding as excited as Becky felt, faded in and out amidst the cell phone static.

  Holding the phone more snugly against her ear, Becky Stone, soon-to-be bestselling romance novelist Rebecca St. Claire, didn’t bother to strip the smile from her voice. “It might be New Year’s Eve, but I’d better hold off on the celebrating at least until we make Manhattan.”

  In another few hours, Becky expected she’d be kicking up her four-inch high heels and celebrating in earnest—and not because of the holiday. The day before, her editor, Pat, had called to say she had important news to share, news with far-reaching ramifications for Becky’s career, and could Becky make it up to Manhattan in the next few days so they could chat over lunch? The busy New York editor generally preferred communicating by e-mail. An actual phone call requesting an in-person meeting meant something big must have happened or was about to. Becky had immediately booked a first-class seat on an express train that would get her from Washington, D.C.’s Union Station to New York’s Penn Station in less than three hours. Thinking of her fellow New York-bound holiday travelers packed like sardines into the coach and business-class cars, the splurge struck her as money well spent.

  Pat’s impromptu call could only mean one thing. Becky’s latest Angelina Talbot novel must have sold out its print run, or close to it. The genre-bending mystery erotica series seemed to have struck a chord with her female readers that her previous historical romances had somehow missed. Who knew? But maybe the book had even made one of the bestseller lists—if not the New York Times then certainly USA Today. Why else would Pat make such a huge deal about meeting face-to-face right before the biggest party night of the year?

  Becky’s year-end horoscope for Libras predicting a fabulous new year chockfull of “fresh starts” and “dazzling opportunities” in her houses of career and love wasn’t only coming true—she had hit some sort of astrological jackpot.

  Sharon’s voice pulled Becky back into the present. “Don’t go too overboard on the shoe shopping, at least not until the ink dries on that megabucks multibook deal. Oh, and call me as soon as your victory lunch wraps. I want to hear all about it.”

  “I will.” The increasing static had Becky looking out the window to the tunnel they were coming up on. “We’re about to go under the Hudson River. I’d better sign off before I lose you. Thanks for calling to wish me luck. Love you, girlfriend.”

  “Love you, too, Becks, and Happy New Year.”

  Becky opened her mouth to return the holiday felicitation but the cell cut out. She clicked the phone closed and dropped it into her Kate Spade tote bag, exchanging it for her latest Angelina Talbot release. Smoothing a loving hand over the paperback’s glossy-finish cover, she had to admit the art department folks had pulled out all the stops on this one. The sleek, raven-haired cover model embodied her British bombshell heroine down to her chic, body-conscious black minidress, smoking pistol and shiny black do-me stilettos. The footwear was an attitude statement, not a necessity. Becky might only stand a piddling five foot one inches sans her beloved designer high heels, but her fictional creation towered at five foot ten, tall enough to look other women and most men in the eye with or without shoes on. Along with the height she’d always coveted, Becky had blessed Angelina with a Mensa member’s mind, a Playboy Bunny’s libido and a Victoria’s Secret model’s killer curves. Talk about a complete package.

  But the best part of the cover was the review from Publishers Weekly. Printed below the gold-embossed title, the coveted blurb proclaimed Becky “a fresh, innovative voice” and “an up-and-coming talent to watch.”

  An up-and-coming talent to watch… Becky slipped the book back into her bag and eased into her extrawide seat with a satisfied sigh. Stretching out her legs, she cast a fond downward glance to her Manolo Blahnik chocolate-brown Napa-leather knee boots. Growing up the middle child in a family of five in Dundalk, Maryland, designer shoes had seemed about as obtainable as Cinderella’s glass slippers. Even her Barbie dolls had gone barefoot. Now she was wearing Manolo Blahniks while traveling first class. Some dreams at least did come true.

  Things definitely looked brighter than they had at Christmas the week before. She’d celebrated the eve of the holiday home alone with her tiger-striped tabby cat, Daisy Bud, Thai takeout (for her) and a can of albacore tuna (for the cat). In honor of the so-called season of hope, she’d made a wish list of all the things she wanted to do—make that would do—in the coming year. Become bestselling author. Take trip to Ireland. Go on motorcycle ride. Go to animal shelter and find feline friend for cat. Save up down payment for house. Meet man of dreams and fall in love…

  Since her ex-boyfriend, Elliot, had dumped her for a twentysomething twit the year before, she’d been pretty cautious—okay, scared shitless—about getting involved again. Romantic intimacy played great on paper, but in real life it was damned hard to achieve. In her case, she’d been so sure the former federal agent turned media commentator was The One. After two decades of dating, starting with locking lips and orthodontics retainers with her ninth-grade boyfriend in the back of the Uptown Theater, she’d thought she was a pretty good judge of the male psyche, but her ex had played her as only an A-list player could. Looking back, the red flags popped like a neon-lit roadmap—his spurts of phone calls followed by sudden silences, his plans with her that never seemed to make it beyond the talking phase, the fact that the only address she had for him was an e-mail one. And yet she’d stayed with him, believed in him, even taken his advice to quit her day job. Talk about piss-poor judgment. Forget trusting a man again. When it came to love, how could she ever trust herself?

  “Next stop, New York Penn Station.”

  The conductor’s voice blaring over the intercom had her turning her head to look out the window just as the train emerged from the tunnel, bringing the Manhattan skyline into view like the Emerald City—distant but within reach, not unlike her dreams. Lying boyfriends and tepid book sales and money worries in general were all a part of her past. For once, this once, luck—and the Universe—seemed to be lining up squarely on her side.

  Still thirteen and a half hours to a new year, and already it was shaping up to be 365 days of “fresh starts and dazzling opportunities”—and Becky was more than ready to let the good times roll.

  Chapter 1

  “Turnabout is fair play, Falco, or hadn’t you heard? Now where are the bloody plans?”

  Dressed in dominatrix black leather down to her spiked heels, Angelina trained the subcompact Beretta on the silver-haired man lying in the center of the mussed bed. Red silk scarves lashed his wrists to the bedposts, and sweat from the long, rough ride she’d just given him rolled down his taut neck and leanly muscled torso.

  The year before, the double agent had seduced her and then stolen the missile plans from her flat while she lay wrapped in silken sheets and the afterglow of his expert lovemaking. To add insult to injury, he had then turned over the plans to a twenty-two-year-old blonde for a ridiculously small sum. Rumor had it the plans
were once again for sale on the black market—and that Falco knew exactly who the latest purchaser was.

  Falco’s deep-set dark eyes met hers from across the room. “Angelina, love, you wouldn’t shoot me, not after that incredible shag we just shared. Now be a good girl and let me loose.”

  His cocky self-assurance made her palms itch to slap his handsome lying face—again. “Don’t flatter yourself. I would have shot you when I first spotted you at the embassy ball earlier tonight, only my gown was vintage Valentino and I hated to ruin it with the splatter.”

  * * *

  “The book tanked, Becky. I’m sorry.”

  Pat punctuated her pronouncement by upending the bottle of ketchup over her burger. The bright red glob landing atop the plump, midrare patty might as well have been Becky’s career lifeblood.

  Eyes watering, Becky took a moment to recover from the sip of champagne she’d just aspirated. Hearing the word tanked in the context of her hoped-for bestseller was like watching the New Year’s ball drop over Times Square—and then detonate. “I’m uh…sorry, I must have misheard you. It sounded like you said—”

  “Tanked, bit the dust, bought the big one—take your pick.” Pat slapped the top of her bun back on, picked up the burger and sank her teeth in for a sloppy bite. “Publishing is a tough business and, as the saying goes, ‘them’s the breaks.’”

  Oh, God. Becky felt as though the Grinch had stolen her Christmas, not just the tree but all the trimmings, including her favorite Christmas carols and her goodwill toward men. “B-but…the sales on the launch book were solid and the reviews on this book were all—”

  “Raves,” Pat finished for her, ketchup dribbling down the side of her mouth. The senior editor slid her side plate of crispy thin fries toward Becky. “Try a pomme frite. They’re delish with this Dijon mayonnaise.”

  Becky resisted the urge to slap a hand over her forehead, which had begun pounding like a bad hip-hop beat. As if a strip of deep-fried potato with a fancy French name could possibly make her feel better. “Thanks, but I’ll pass.”

  Pat picked up a fry and stabbed it into the space between them. “Know what differentiates my star authors from midlist schmucks? It’s not talent, though sure, talent helps. It’s not looks, though those don’t hurt, either. It’s moxie, balls, perseverance—take your pick. Today’s bestsellers, Becky, are all writers who’ve persevered, who’ve done whatever it took to claw their way back to the top of the industry heap. You have to reinvent yourself. Who was that silent film actress who said ‘failure isn’t the falling down but the staying down.’ It’s time to make like the Nike ads and just do it.”

  The slogan-packed pep talk had Becky feeling more panicked than inspired. “Okay, I’ll reinvent myself, but how? I mean, I thought that’s what I was doing by blending romantic erotica with a mystery element.”

  Pat nodded, her sprayed-in-place platinum hair reminiscent of Meryl Streep’s in The Devil Wore Prada. “And it was high-concept, very high-concept—for its time.”

  For…its…time. The gale force of those three chilling words knocked Becky back against the booth seat. The point was, she was dated, she was done. Pat might as well pull a miniature bugle out of her Fendi shoulder bag, play some taps and make it official.

  “The problem is the mainstream market for genre fiction has been shrinking steadily. It’s only the established star authors who’ve managed to hold on to their spots. Midlist up-and-comers like you are getting squeezed out. You came on the scene a few years too late to break in. Under the circumstances, I can’t offer you another multibook contract. The fact is, I can’t offer you a contract at all.”

  So much for those forecasted fresh starts and dazzling opportunities. With no regular paycheck to fall back on, she’d been counting on her advance to pay the bills for the coming year. “But I thought you said—”

  “That was before the feedback from the reader poll we ran from our Web site rolled in. Readers are burned out on Angelina’s bed-hopping lifestyle.”

  Feeling queasy, Becky pushed her salad entrée away. “But I thought her willingness to put herself out there sexually was what they liked about her?”

  Pat passed a bright-pink thumbnail over her front teeth and shook her head. “Not anymore they don’t. They want to see her meet her match and settle down with a sexy male counterpart.”

  Becky couldn’t believe what she was hearing. “Are you saying readers want Angelina to be monogamous?”

  Pat frowned, the deep crease in her brow hinting it must be time for her next Botox treatment. Ordinarily the fiftysomething’s face was as tight as a twenty-year-old’s and as immobile as a mannequin’s. “Don’t say it like it’s a four-letter word. Monogamy is very hip right now. Even if it’s serial monogamy, readers like to see one guy and one girl at a time.”

  Becky laid a hand alongside her temple where the pounding had segued into thousands of tiny needles jabbing away. “But Angelina doesn’t stay in any one place long enough to form long-term relationships, romantic or otherwise. That’s the glamour of her job as a crime-solving secret agent. She’s always on the go.”

  “And she can still be on the go, only instead of just designer luggage she’ll travel with a sexy partner.” Pat dusted crumbs from her fingers and leaned in as though to share a confidence. “Angelina needs a man who’s not just another pretty face but who’s her match in every way. A man’s man but not a Neanderthal, an American version of James Bond sans the tuxedo and the shaken-not-stirred martini, a guy’s guy who’s also sexy, gutsy, smart and sophisticated—but not so sophisticated he comes off as a wimp.”

  Relief flooded Becky. Her editor hadn’t written her off. Pat was still on her side, still in there pitching for her. Her career wasn’t dead. She was just experiencing one of those annoying setbacks most writers cycled through at some point in their careers. Like a bad menstrual period or a zit that took extra-extra long to clear, eventually this, too, would pass.

  “Gotcha!” Buzzing on adrenaline, she nodded profusely and slipped to the edge of her seat. “I’ll get to work on writing him ASAP. You’ll have the revised proposal early next week.”

  Was it her admittedly overactive imagination at work or did Pat suddenly look the tiniest bit uncomfortable? “That’s the best part. You don’t have to create him. He’s, uh…already created.”

  Becky was feeling more confused by the minute. “Already created? But how…”

  Dropping her gaze, Pat played with the lone fry left on her plate. “Ever read any of Adam Maxwell’s ‘Drake’s Adventures’ books?”

  The sucker punch hit Becky dead-on, a direct shot to the solar plexus that again had her choking on her champagne. “Adam Maxwell. The Adam Maxwell! If you’re suggesting what I think you are, my answer is no, no way. Not on your life—or mine.”

  Of all the writers to propose teaming her with, Adam Maxwell was the very worst Pat could have come up with. The reclusive author rarely ventured forth from his home in New Hampshire’s White Mountains, but Becky couldn’t fault him for that. Introversion was a forgivable failing, particularly among writers. When you spent the majority of your waking hours creating splendid, larger-than-life fictional characters, finding real flesh-and-blood human beings to measure up was no small feat. Occupation aside, Maxwell was a native New Englander and New Englanders had a reputation for keeping to themselves. No, if Adam Maxwell had stuck with banging out his bestsellers from behind bolted cabin doors, Becky would have no beef with him.

  It was the outlandish things he said when he did venture out into the public eye that set her blood boiling. In the interview he’d given just after his second book hit the bestseller lists, he’d shown himself to be a chauvinistic jerk. A year later, his remark likening romance novels to “housewife porn” still stuck in Becky’s craw. Ever since reading that quote in the New Yorker, she and her fellow romance writer buddies had voted Maxwell the still-living white male novelist they could feel good about hating. Who was he to judge another writer
’s work, anyway? He penned action-adventure novels. It’s not like he was friggin’ Hemingway.

  Pat dropped the fry and looked up. “I love your writing, Becky, you know I do, but with these disappointing numbers, I can’t sell you upstairs. Teaming you with Adam Maxwell would be a way to keep you in the game, maybe even boost you into the bestseller league. What do you say?”

  Their pretty blond server sidled up, saving Becky from having to answer. “Can I bring you any coffee or dessert?”

  Becky opened her mouth to ask what decadent desserts they might have on the menu—in some cultures, chocolate was considered medicine, after all—but Pat cut her off, handing over her credit card. “Go ahead and run this, and please put a move on—or vite vite as they say in Paris.”

  “Whatever.” The girl rolled her eyes and sped away as only a tall girl wearing comfortably flat shoes could.

  Pat turned back to the table, gaze dropping to the Dolce & Gabbana lizard-embossed print bangle watch cuffing her right wrist. “Sorry, doll, but I really have to dash. I have a meeting across town with another author and catching a cab this time of day is going to be murder.”

  Fighting the sinking sense she’d just had the publishing equivalent of the Last Supper, or in this case, Last Lunch, Becky nodded. “That’s okay. I need to think things over anyway.”

  The waitress returned in record time. Pat signed, snapped the vinyl bill holder shut and dropped the receipt into her purse. “The office will be closed tomorrow for the holiday but call me on my cell before you head back to D.C.” Pulling on her hot-pink trench coat, she slid out of the booth. “Remember, there’s a jungle filled with hungry young writers salivating for the chance to snag your spot and be the next Rebecca St.

  Claire.”

  Elbows sinking onto the table, Becky watched the older woman head out the door, the warning words ringing in her ears like a blast of New Year’s noisemakers. She was a good writer, a damned good writer, but in a business as fickle as publishing no one was so good they couldn’t be replaced.