The Night She Got Lucky
Praise for the Novels of Susan Donovan
AIN’T TOO PROUD TO BEG
“Donovan whips up a fine frappé of romantic comedy and suspense.”
—Publishers Weekly
“A delightful new series.”
—RT BOOKreviews
“This is a terrific book and one that fans of Ms. Donovan, and new readers of first-class romantic comedies, don’t want to miss.”
—RTR Reviews
THE GIRL MOST LIKELY TO…
“An exceptional novel with humor and pathos and rich in detail, and the finely put-together characters make this a story worthy of our Perfect 10 award and a must-read. You’ll laugh, cry, and your heart will break over this brilliant story of a man and woman—what most wondrous stories end up being about.”
—Romance Reviews Today
“A wonderfully convoluted tale of love lost and found, secret pregnancies and spousal abuse, Donovan’s latest shows us the healing power of forgiveness and the strength found in the love of family. It’s peopled with complex characters who learn much about themselves and those they love through the course of this compelling story.”
—RT BOOKreviews
THE KEPT WOMAN
A RITA Award finalist
“Sexy and funny. Donovan takes the marriage-of-convenience plot and gives it a fun update that will leave readers grinning….these characters are filled with genuine warmth and charm.”
—RT BOOKreviews
HE LOVES LUCY
“A great book… terrific.”
—Fresh Fiction
“A fun and sexy ‘feel good’ story and a ‘must’ title to add to your current romance reading list.”
—BookLoons
“A story of rioting emotions, wacky weight challenges, and lots of love. This is one story you will be sad to see end. Kudos to Donovan for creating such a believable and realistic story.”
—Fallen Angel Reviews
“He Loves Lucy has everything: humor, sweetness, warmth, romance, passion, and sexual tension; an uplifting message; a heroine every woman… can empathize with; and a hero to die for.”
—Romance Reviews Today
“An extraordinary read with intriguing characters and a wonderful plot… fantastic.”
—Romance Junkies
“Lucy is a humorous delight… fans will enjoy this fine look at one year of hard work to find love.”
—Midwest Book Review
“A great romance… a top-rate novel… with its unforgettable characters, wonderful plot, and excellent message, He Loves Lucy will go on my keeper shelf to be read and re-read a thousand times… Donovan has proven that she will have serious star power in the years to come.”
—Romance Reader at Heart
TAKE A CHANCE ON ME
“Comic sharpness… the humorous interactions among Thomas, Emma, and Emma’s quirky family give the book a golden warmth as earthy as its rural Maryland setting. But there are also enough explicit erotic interludes to please readers who like their romances spicy.”
—Publishers Weekly
“Donovan blends humor and compassion in this opposites-attract story. Sexy and masculine, Thomas fills the bill for the man of your dreams. Emma and Thomas deserve a chance at true love. Delightfully entertaining, Take a Chance on Me is a guaranteed good time.”
—Old Book Barn Gazette
“Full of humor, sensuality, and emotion with excellent protagonists and supporting characters… a wonderful tale. Don’t be afraid to take a chance on this one. You’ll love it.”
—Affaire de Coeur
“Impossible to put down… Susan Donovan is an absolute riot. You’re reading a paragraph that is so sexually charged you can literally feel the air snapping with electricity and the next second one of the characters has a thought that is so absurd… that you are laughing out loud. Susan Donovan has a very unique, off-the-wall style that should keep her around for many books to come. Do NOT pass this one up.”
—Romance Junkie Review
“Susan Donovan has created a vastly entertaining romance in her latest book Take a Chance on Me. The book has an ideal cast of characters… a very amusing, pleasurable read… all the right ingredients are there, and Ms. Donovan has charmingly dished up an absolutely fast, fun, and sexy read!”
—Road to Romance
“Contemporary romances don’t get much better than Take a Chance on Me … Such wonderful characters! You want sexual tension? This book drips with it. How about a love scene that is everything that a love scene should be? There’s humor, a touch of angst, and delightful dialogue… Take a Chance on Me is going to end up very, very high on my list of best romances for 2003.”
—All About Romance
KNOCK ME OFF MY FEET
“Spicy debut… [A] surprise ending and lots of playfully erotic love scenes will keep readers entertained.”
—Publishers Weekly
“Knock Me Off My Feet will knock you off your feet… Ms. Donovan crafts an excellent mixture to intrigue you and delight you. You’ll sigh as you experience the growing love between Autumn and Quinn and giggle over their dialogue. And you’ll be surprised as the story unfolds. I highly recommend this wonderfully entertaining story.”
—Old Book Barn Gazette
ST. MARTIN’S PAPERBACKS TITLES
BY SUSAN DONOVAN
Ain’t Too Proud to Beg
The Girl Most Likely To…
The Kept Woman
He Loves Lucy
Public Displays of Affection
Take A Chance On Me
Knock Me Off My Feet
THE NIGHT SHE
GOT LUCKY
SUSAN DONOVAN
St. Martin’s Paperbacks
NOTE: If you purchased this book without a cover you should be aware that this book is stolen property. It was reported as “unsold and destroyed” to the publisher, and neither the author nor the publisher has received any payment for this “stripped book.”
This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
THE NIGHT SHE GOT LUCKY
Copyright © 2010 by Susan Donovan.
Excerpt from Not That Kind of Girl copyright © 2010 by Susan Donovan.
Cover photograph © Jupiterimages / Getty Images
All rights reserved.
For information address St. Martin’s Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010.
ISBN: 978-0-312-36605-6
Printed in the United States of America
St. Martin’s Paperbacks edition / June 2010
St. Martin’s Paperbacks are published by St. Martin’s Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010.
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
This book is dedicated to my hardworking personal assistants, past and present: Marley, Murphy, Guinness, and Finnegan. True, you couldn’t answer the phone, file, or fax worth a damn, but you kept my feet warm and protected me from the evils of the world, namely the UPS man, the FedEx man, and the mailman. Thank you, boys.
Acknowledgments
The author would like to thank Dr. Richard Kramer, DDS, for information on oral surgery; Gail Barrett for assistance with Spanish translation; Arleen Shuster for help with German insults; and Teresa Barr for placing the winning bid at the 2008 Washington County, Maryland, Habitat for Humanity auction, allowing me to use her name for a fictional character.
This is a work of fiction. All characters and events are a product of the author’s imagination.
The difference between dogs and men is you know where dogs sleep at night.
—Greg Louganis
CHAPTER 1
&nb
sp; Ginger perched on the edge of Mrs. Needleman’s guest-room bed, wondering what the old woman wanted to discuss. Whatever it was, Ginger prayed it would be quick, because she was dying to get out of her bridesmaid’s dress. Josie and Rick had long ago departed in a shower of flower petals and good wishes, but Ginger’s boobs remained squished in their pastel prison.
She tugged at the tight satin and tried to smile through her discomfort.
“You look simply lovely in that moss-green color,” Mrs. Needleman said with a matter-of-fact nod, taking a seat in the antique boudoir chair across from the bed. She went on, “Contrary to popular opinion, not all redheads are flattered by green, especially women in their forties. But you have a rosy complexion, and I have to say your skin has held up quite nicely.”
Ginger automatically raised a hand to her jawline and gave it a soft pat. “Thank you,” she said, just before she realized she was offended. What does this woman think I am, a 4-H farm animal? And why did she pull me into her room after the reception?
The old lady looked Ginger up and down, smiling. “I wanted to prepare you for something, Genevieve. Do you mind if I call you Genevieve? It’s a mystery why you use a nickname in place of something so feminine and sensual.”
Ginger squinted at the small, neatly dressed lady who’d officiated at her friend’s wedding. According to Josie, Mrs. Gloria Needleman—a widow who fancied herself a matchmaker—had gotten Josie and Rick over their rough patch and to the altar.
“Prepare me for what?” Ginger crossed her legs and leaned her hands behind her on the mattress.
“A man, dear.” Mrs. Needleman’s eyes were warm and kind. “I thought you should know that there is a man waiting for you, as we speak.”
Ginger looked around. Like all the guest suites at Rick’s wine country estate, Mrs. Needleman’s room was tasteful, comfortable, and fitted with valuable Victorian pieces, and Ginger hoped she would have time to feature the Sonoma Valley retreat in the Herald’ s house and garden section before the newspaper went under for good. But a man? Waiting for her? Not unless he was hiding behind the shower curtain.
Ginger swung her foot back and forth, watching her silver-toned sandal dangle from her toes, trying not to sigh with impatience. “That’s a sweet thing to say, Mrs. Needleman. Thank you.”
“You think I’m a silly old lady.”
Ginger laughed. “No, it’s just that I’m not a teenager anymore. I stopped waiting for my knight in shining armor a long time ago.”
“But look at Josie!”
Ginger smiled sweetly, happy that her thirty-five-year-old friend had found such a loving and devoted man to spend her life with. “I’m thrilled for Josie, of course, but that kind of thing is…” She paused. “It’s so rare it’s freakish!”
“Indeed,” the old lady said, smiling. “And I insist you call me Gloria.”
Ginger nodded, but was growing uncomfortable trying to keep eye contact with Mrs. Needleman, whose stare had intensified. What in the world did this lady want from her?
Mrs. Needleman sighed deeply. “You’ve given up on love, I take it.”
“You could say that.”
“Why?”
Ginger laughed, wondering how she could possibly sum up this tragedy for Mrs. Needleman, especially since it was a topic she and her friends had spent entire evenings—no, years—dissecting.
Mrs. Needleman stared, waiting.
“Okay, well, I recently turned forty, Gloria. I have two teenage boys and an ex-husband who behaves like one. The newspaper where I’ve spent my entire career is on the edge of insolvency. By this point—and I admit it’s taken me long enough—I’ve learned a few lessons.”
“I see.”
“And I can assure you that if some man came up to me and told me he’s been waiting for me, I’d dial 911.”
Mrs. Needleman’s eyes narrowed. “Tell me about those lessons you’ve learned.”
Ginger looked up at the ceiling, silently pleading for patience. “Oh, you know—lessons about life. About men, ” she said, returning her gaze to her swinging sandal—anything to avoid the lady’s laserlike eyeballs. “The difference between reality and fantasy, basically.”
“Go on, dear.”
Ginger shook her head, adjusting her bridesmaid dress to give her a little more room to breathe. She didn’t want to be rude to Mrs. Needleman, because she’d been raised to respect her elders, but she certainly wasn’t in the mood to be analyzed. All she wanted was to get back to her room in the guesthouse, ditch the increasingly tight dress, and chill out before they went to dinner. She was thinking shrimp linguine and a big, crisp salad.
“Here’s what I’m sure of,” Ginger said, finally returning the woman’s gaze. “Ninety-nine-point-nine percent of the men in the world aren’t worth my time, and I am done wasting my time; therefore, I am alone and prepared to remain so.”
“That sounds awfully lonely.”
“Thank God I have HeatherLynn.”
Mrs. Needleman frowned. “Your daughter?”
“My bichon frise.”
“Of course.”
Ginger uncrossed her legs, slipped back into her sandal, and stood to go, aware that not everyone appreciated the deep love a woman can have for her dog. For many folks, the idea that a little white ball of fluff had saved Ginger from the depths of despair was laughable. Luckily, her friends Josie, Bea, and Roxanne understood perfectly. The three women in her dog-walking group had become Ginger’s closest confidantes, and the group had walked and talked Ginger through the two roughest years of her life, dogs in tow.
“I should let you rest before dinner, Mrs. Needleman,” she said. “I enjoyed our chat.” Ginger had reached the door when the voice rang out behind her, clear and firm.
“He is out there.”
Ginger spun, shocked that Mrs. Needleman had sneaked up on her. Looking into the woman’s fierce expression, Ginger thought that Josie had been too kind in her description of her. “Odd” didn’t do her justice. “Disconcerting” was better.
“Will seafood be all right?” Ginger was unsure how to wrap up this little get-together, but knew it was time.
“It’s nothing to sneeze at, you know.”
“Seafood?”
“No.” Mrs. Needleman clutched Ginger’s forearm. “I’m talking about that one-tenth of one percent of the male species you haven’t yet written off. You could still get lucky, but if you spend all your time worrying that you’re over the hill, then you’ll miss your chance to be over the moon.”
Ginger’s eyes went wide.
“You must listen to your heart, Genevieve, not your fear. Do this, and you will find happiness.”
“Super! Bye-bye now!” Ginger slipped out, closed the guest-room door, and stepped on to the patio. She raised her chin, shut her eyes, and breathed, damn glad to be out of that stifling room and into the fresh evening air!
A breeze brushed over Ginger’s bare skin, followed by a strange electrical shiver that raced through her limbs. Ginger opened her eyes. She peered up the stone walkway leading from the main house to the guesthouse, squinting into the shadows. Her shivering intensified. She knew she wasn’t alone.
“Is someone there?” she whispered. “Hello?”
There was a stirring behind the rose trellis. The wedding photographer stepped from the shadows. Ginger gasped.
His dark eyes smoldered. One of his hands fell comfortably at his side, and the other rested casually in the pocket of his impeccable suit. His lips parted ever so slightly as he smiled. In a heavily accented whisper, he said, “I have been waiting for you.”
Ginger gasped again, but she couldn’t seem to get any air.
“Me has robado el corazón.”
Blackness flooded her vision. She knew she was about to faint. And as her knees buckled beneath her, Ginger had two simultaneous thoughts: I really should have ordered this dress in a bigger size, and I sure wish I’d paid more attention in Spanish class.
Technically, Ginger G
arrison wasn’t the first bridesmaid to faint into the arms of Lucio Montevez. That had occurred nearly twenty years earlier in Las Alpujarras, at Lucio’s own wedding, when his young bride’s best friend went into an apoplectic fit of jealousy. The girl had managed to call Lucio a hairy wild boar and pound her fists on his chest before she collapsed, which added some levity to the ill-fated event. Sadly, the last time Lucio returned to Spain, he’d encountered the onetime bridesmaid on the main street of his village. He said hello. She spat in the dirt near his feet and continued walking.
Ah, romance.
Lucio propped the most recent fainting bridesmaid against his chest, then reached up under a resplendent amount of green chiffon fabric until he found the back of her knees. He lifted her, pulled her close, and turned toward the guesthouse, where he’d learned she was staying. Lucio knew he should concentrate solely on the placement of his feet on the stone walk, but the allure of Señora Garrison’s exposed bosom and satiny throat were impossible to resist. So he alternated. He looked at his feet on the stones, then at the glorious swells and slopes of the woman in his arms. He carefully placed his feet on the doorstep, then appreciated the graceful lines of her cheek. The stairs, her cute little nose. Kicking open the door, he admired her trim waist.
It was too much for him. The instant Lucio entered the upstairs guest room—even before he could place her on the bed—he lowered his lips to the satiny warm skin below her jawline. He kissed her there, gently flicking his tongue against her pulse. She would be fine, he knew. She simply needed to loosen her dress. So Lucio placed her on top of the coverlet, rolling her away enough for him to reach the zipper. Slowly, he pulled it down, and with the release of each stainless steel tooth, more of the woman’s taut skin was revealed to his appreciative gaze. Lucio’s breath quickened as the inches of flawless pink revealed themselves between her shoulder blades, around her ribs, along the straight, delicate spine, and lower, lower, to the top of what was proving to be perfectly rounded buttocks.