Killer Cocktail Read Online Free Page B

eyes closed and said, “They weren’t nominated for Best Actress for nothing.”
    Christina gracefully made her way to the podium, stopping to hug a few friends on the way. The lights reflected off the silver beading of her gown, shimmering across every dip and curve. Making her way onto the stage, she humbly accepted the statue, and then turned to face the audience. In many ways there was little difference between the nineteen-year-old-girl who first rose to this podium twenty years earlier and the thirty-nine-year-old woman who stood here now. She was tall and lithe. Although it was pulled back tonight, her hair was as it had always been; a tawny mane of riotous curls. Her waiflike face was still youthful. Her enormous green eyes, famous for their ability to subtly convey a gamut of emotions, now sparkled joyfully.
    â€œThank you so much for this,” she said in a soft voice, tilting her head to indicate the golden statue. Appearing for a moment at a loss for words, she reached up to smooth her hair before continuing. “There are so many people who made this possible,” she said. “First, I want to thank my agent, Barbara Pooler, who convinced me to take this role. She is simply a force of nature. I suspect I will be hearing ‘I told you so,’ for a very long time.” The audience laughed. “And, of course,” Christina continued, “many thanks to the entire cast and crew of The Morning Came Early. You made the entire experience a wonderful one. To our director, Barry Meagher. Barry, where are you?” She sought him out in the crowd, her face softening when she found him. Barry Meagher was a tall, thin man with thick silver hair. His intense black eyes peered out at the world from under absurdly bushy eyebrows. A smile now split his craggy face, and he blew her an extravagant kiss. Christina grinned, pretended to catch it and blow it back. “Barry, it was truly a joy to work with you again,” she said. “You must be my good luck charm. I won my first Oscar working with you on A Winter’s Night . You always bring out the best in us. Without you, this never would have happened,” she added gesturing to the Oscar. “And I hope you are called up here in a little bit to get yours for Best Director.” She glanced around the room and, with a sly wink, quickly added, “No offense meant to the other nominees, of course.” The crowed laughed good-naturedly. Christina paused and took a deep breath. “Finally, I’d like to thank my co-star and old friend, John Cummings.”
    There was a faint gasp from the audience. Next to me, Nigel opened his eyes and sat up in his seat. “Well, this should be good,” he whispered.
    Fastening her eyes on John, Christina continued, her voice soft. “Lord knows we’ve had our ups and downs, John, but I want you to know that I think you are one of the best actors out there today. You make everyone around you look good. I feel truly blessed to have been able to work with you again.”
    Around us, people craned their necks to gage not only John’s reaction to this speech, but also that of the young woman’s sitting next to him.
    Neither disappointed.
    John’s eyes locked on Christina’s with an expression of pride tinged with sadness. He bowed his dark head in acknowledgement of Christina’s words before he, like their director, blew her a kiss. His gesture, however, had a far more intimate feel. As before, Christina pretended to catch the kiss. However, this time she did not return it. Instead, she balled her hand into a fist and held it close to her chest. “I think I’ll hang on to this one for old time’s sake,” she said with a small smile.
    The reaction of the woman next to John, Jules Dixon, was Hollywood drama at its finest. Her full, pink lips stretched into a tight smile across her round, kewpie doll face. Grabbing John’s hand, she gave it