Superstar (42 page)

"What's
wrong?"

"Nothing, it's
a good write up." He closed the paper and pulled another from under
his arm, scanning through it. "Here we go. 'An original story'...
hmmmm. 'Janice Sharner excelled herself in the bedroom scene, but
her performance opposite Mark Lord's Oscar-winning abilities only
proved that she should have stuck to 'B' movies." He chuckled.
"Poor Janice."

"Stop trying
to distract me. What does it say about the film?"

"Well, not a
lot, but nothing bad."

"They didn't
like it."

"They always
find fault, even with the best movies."

"Let me see."
Carrin snatched the paper from him and swung away, scanning the
page.

"Carrin...."

Her
heart sank as she read the review. 'A mediocre script at best.
Although original, it lacked a strong plot. It relied instead on
cheap sentiment and some unoriginal car chases and fight scenes.
The highlight was when Janice Sharner excelled herself...' she
skipped over the part that Mark had read. 'The movie's fate now
rests on the strength of Mark Lord's performance, which cannot be
faulted. He may even win another Oscar for delivering the poor
dialogue with such finesse that he made it sound believable. The
reason for an 'A' list actor accepting this role in what should
have been a 'B' movie is clear, since Mark married the young South
African screenwriter, Carrin York, in a private ceremony today.
This comes after months of speculation about her relationship with
Mark's best friend, Simon Grey, and stories of the pair fighting on
location during the making of the movie.'

Carrin looked
up at Mark, who sat behind his desk, watching her, his hands
steepled. "You knew it wasn't a good screenplay."

"If I hadn't
made it, today wouldn't have happened."

"How much will
you lose? How much did you spend?"

"It doesn't
matter."

"It does, to
me."

"I would have
spent twice as much."

She dropped
the paper on a table. "How much?"

He shrugged,
shaking his head. "I don't really know."

"Mark...."

He sighed.
"About thirty million."

Her mouth
dropped open. "So much...."

"It was worth
it."

"My god, no
wonder you were so pissed off when I wouldn't go out with you."

He chuckled,
then rose and walked over to her. "Yeah, go figure. Simon's lucky
he only got a black eye. He knew why I was doing it, but I was
still damned jealous of him."

"The standing
ovation at the theatre was for your performance."

"I guess
so." He took her hands. "Don't look so worried. It will probably
break-even; I have a lot of fans."

"That's why
you couldn't cut the bedroom scene."

"I hated that
it upset you so much, but Harold insisted that without that, it
would lose money."

She gazed up
at him. "This is one hell of a guilt trip."

"That's why I
didn't want you to read that rubbish. Hey, some movies do well in
spite of bad reviews; the public don't always take much notice of
them."

"Especially
when the star is Mark Lord."

"Well, yeah.
That's why I get the big bucks." He smiled. "At worst, I might have
to make another movie a bit sooner than usual."

"You took one
hell of a risk, and I thought you didn't gamble."

He chuckled.
"I was pretty sure that I could win you over, but you gave me a
good run for my money."

"Right. Who
could resist the great Mark Lord?"

"For a while
there, I thought you could. But I refused to give up. When I want
something, I go after it until I get it."

She sighed,
shaking her head. "Have you ever failed?"

"Only once. I
never got my mother back."

"If she wasn't
dead, I'm sure you would have."

He pulled her
into his arms. "You know, for a bad actress, you did a really good
job of hiding your feelings."

"I thought my
happiness depended on it."

"Silly girl."
He chuckled. "But the drawings really gave you away."

"You noticed
that, huh?"

"Pretty hard
to miss. I wish I'd found them sooner."

"I was so
embarrassed. You must have thought I was a silly, infatuated
fan."

"Hey, if I'd
seen a picture of you before I met you, I'd have fallen in love
with you too." His arms tightened. "Becoming famous couldn't bring
my mother back, but it brought you to me, and for that I'm glad,
even if it made things so difficult."

The sound of
laughter and voices came through the door, and Mark kissed the top
of her head, then released her. "You'd better go and change, our
guests are arriving."

She looked up
at him, raising a hand to stroke his cheek as she gazed into his
deep blue eyes. "I'm glad you didn't give up."

He smiled.
"Me too."

******

About the author

T. C. Southwell was born in Sri Lanka and
moved to the Seychelles when she was a baby. She spent her
formative years exploring the islands – mostly alone. Naturally,
her imagination flourished and she developed a keen love of other
worlds. The family travelled through Europe and Africa and, after
the death of her father, settled in South Africa.

T. C. Southwell has written over forty
novels, ranging from fantasy and science fiction to romance and
adventure, as well as five screenplays. Her hobbies include
motorcycling, horse riding and art, and she earns a living in the
IT industry.

All illustrations and cover designs by the
author.

Contact the author at
[email protected]

Acknowledgements

Mike Baum and Janet Longman, former
employers, for their support, encouragement, and help. My mother,
without whose financial support I could not have dedicated myself
to writing for ten years. Isabel Cooke, former agent, whose
encouragement and enthusiasm led to many more books being written,
including this one. Suzanne Stephan, former agent, who has helped
me so much over the past six years, and Vanessa Finaughty, good
friend and business partner, for her support, encouragement and
editing skills.