Read Online Lucky Charm by Carly Phillips - Free Book Online

been set out in rows and the crowd overflowed into the back hall. She was pleased with the turnout, especially since her latest book had been published last October. Normally, Gabrielle spoke only when she had a new book to promote, doing readings at local libraries, signings and chats at bookstores.
    Tonight’s talk was different. She wasn’t here to sell books. She was here to use her expertise to sway people’s thinking. She’d stop short of endorsing Richard Stern’s mayoral campaign, and she definitely wouldn’t mention the much visible Mary Perkins.
    Gabrielle started on time. She’d watched the flow of people walk in, keeping an eye out for Derek or his gun-toting father. Thanks to that searing kiss earlier today, she’d been too distracted to ask Derek if Holly had been serious about her grandfather. But so far, neither man had showed.
    Though she was disappointed, she reminded herself she hadn’t expected him to be here tonight. Still, she’d be a liar if she didn’t admit that she’d hoped the kiss had stayed with him long enough to lure him out, anyway.
    Shaking off her disappointment, she began an animated talk. She started off stating the amount of study she’d done in the area of the paranormal and followed by discussing how it related to her books. In Future Stars, she’d debunked fortune-tellers and in Her Mind’s Eye, she questioned the validity of psychics.
    She continued her speech by addressing curses, which she’d dealt with peripherally in Disenchanted, last year. She referred to theories such as the Theory of Suggestibility, which detailed how people experiencing intense emotions regarding certain subjects, like a curse, were more receptive to ideas surrounding them. Referring to the towns of Perkins and Stewart, she explained that the emotions surrounding the curse were so high, any event that seemed to meet the criteria of the curse was automatically pegged as a result. She also explained the notion of crowd psychology and how group mentality often came to overrule an individual’s personal thought and belief system.
    Though careful not to mention the Corwins or the Perkins families by name, and even more cautious not to meet Mary’s and Elizabeth Perkins’s stares, Gabrielle finished by pulling together the towns’ collective experience with the curse. She tried to impart the notion that just because every male within a cursed family line that had fallen in love had suffered financial loss and emotional devastation didn’t mean the curse existed. Individual circumstances coincidentally met the same criteria as the curse, and it was possible that even the power of suggestion played a role in the choices key players made.
    Gabrielle received a standing ovation for her talk, then she took questions. Finally, she glanced at the clock and realized an hour had passed.
    â€œLast question?” A quick glance at the back row told her Mary Perkins had left unnoticed. However, when she turned her gaze to the back door, she was surprised to see Derek and his father had arrived at some point, as well.
    Pleasure wrapped over her at the sight of him. In nothing more than dark jeans and a basic T-shirt, he still stood out in a crowd.
    His gaze met hers and heat stirred in her belly, distracting her from anything except him. Her lips curved into a smile.
    Suddenly he raised his hand, which reminded her she’d been about to take her last question. She swallowed hard. “Yes?” she asked, pointing to him. “Derek?”
    â€œI was wondering what your next book was going to be about.”
    Wow. She’d expected the question at some point. Just not from him.
    â€œThank you for asking.” His interest warmed her as much as the fact that he’d shown his face at a public discussion on curses. But she didn’t know how he’d take the answer to his question. “Growing up here, I’m well