Born to Be Wild by Catherine Coulter Read Free Book Online Page B

mother set that maniac on you, don’t you?”
    Sunday laughs, gives a little wave to a group of friends. “Let’s just say it’s time for a bit of heart burn for her. I would have made it all up, but the fact is, Bernard’s a crook. I hate crooks.”
    â€œBut you didn’t warn her until he’d moved the money.”
    â€œToby the Leach will find it, never fear.” Sunday looks bored. “Enough of her problems, Damian. I know you’re friends with Bernard. Could it be you had something more going on with him?”
    â€œNo!”
    â€œWho cares? I don’t. More power to you if you were working with Bernard trying to steal money from Mother’s coffers. Now, I think it’s best for you if you forget about this. Otherwise, Mother will be furious if she knows you’ve sniffed out her latest mistake.”
    â€œShe spoke of marrying Bernard.”
    â€œNow she won’t, will she?” She pauses a beat. “You look very fine in that tux.”
    He looks grim. “I’ve got to go, Sunday, I’ll be back, give me five minutes—”
    â€œTo call Bernard, to warn him? Now, now, Damian, I would cut my losses if I were you.”
    He looks uncertain, knows the jig is up, and that he’s been trapped. He pulls in a deep breath, manages a smile at the beautiful woman in his arms. “All right. Let Bernard roll around in his own swill. You know, Sunday, if Susan can’t get your mother’s sympathy, it means she’ll be moaning to me about you later, accusing you of betraying her.”
    â€œOf course she will.” Sunday shrugs her elegant shoulders, says flippantly, “So seduce her, then she’ll believe anything you say. I don’t suppose she’ll ever consider that you’re the one betraying her, not I.”
    His arms tighten around her, his voice lowers to a sexy whisper. “It doesn’t matter. You know it’s not her I want.”
    She looks at him, an arched eyebrow raised, a questioning look on her face that lasts and lasts until—
    â€œClear!”
    Mary Lisa’s hip throbbed. She slowly walked off the set and took a pain pill from Lou Lou’s outstretched hand.
    â€œBad?”
    â€œNo, not really. It’s just that Jeff was pushing hard on my hip there for a while.”
    â€œDetective Vasquez was back again this morning, talking to everyone in makeup and wardrobe. I think he’s considering a stalker-gone-violent deal. It’s happened before.”
    Mary Lisa sighed. “I guess I’d rather have a nutcase than someone I know who hates me and wants me gone, someone who’s so clever I don’t automatically suspect him or her. I’ll bet Detective Vasquez doesn’t find out anything if he hasn’t by now. He did scare Paulie though. I told him again I didn’t think Paulie has it in him to try to run someone down with a car. He hummed, you know the way he does, but wouldn’t say what he thought.”
    â€œHey, Mary Lisa, you hanging in there?”
    As producer of Born to Be Wild , Clyde Dillard was responsible for monitoring the acting quality, while the four directors were responsible for the camera quality and the “look” of each scene, which sounded a bit strange to people not in the soap business, but worked very well. He lightly touched his fingers to her forearm.
    She dredged up a smile and a nod.
    â€œYou really pulled off that scene with Damian. And the gown is perfect, not a bruise in sight. Good choice, Mavis.” He nodded to the pixie-faced girl, who was actually pushing forty even though she looked more like fifteen, her eyes bright under a mop of red-streaked black hair. “If you’re okay, Mary Lisa, we’ll finish this scene in five minutes. Oh, yeah, about Paulie. His uncle Tom told me this job is very important to him, it’s all he talks about, all he thinks about. He said to assure you that Paulie