A/N - Here we go again. Another chapter to please my Smash loving soul that is writhing in disappointment that they keep refusing to put Derek and Karen together. I yelled at the tv some more last night while I was watching "The Surprise Party". They finally give us hope, only to have it dashed. So, I hope you guys enjoy this one. Feel free to leave comments and let me know what you all think. I appreciate everyone that has commented.

Needless to say, I don't own Smash. All mistakes are mine.

Chapter 8 – Good To Go

Derek and Julia walked into Scott's office before rehearsals. He had sent messages to Scott, Kyle and Jimmy to meet him there before they began for the day.

"Good morning. This is Julia Houston. She'll be joining us as dramaturg," Derek announced with no fanfare, and then waited for the objections to start coming. He wasn't disappointed.

"What the hell is a dramaturg and why the hell do we need one?" Jimmy ranted at Derek. Once again, Derek was making all these changes, and interfering. Jimmy glared at Derek. No matter how much he wanted his show to be seen, he wasn't about to let some ass ruin all his hard work.

"A dramaturg is a writer who works anonymously on another persons writing. They act as a fresh set of eyes, seeing the strong and weak spots and helping the writer make it better," Julia explained, keeping it as non-threatening as she could.

Derek watched the thoughts fly across Kyle's face. He knew Kyle would respond positively to Julia and what she was here to do. He was eager to learn and improve, not wanting to be a burden on the production. Jimmy was as usual the unknown quantity. Despite his choice to continue and the song he had produced to reinforce that, Derek still had doubts. He was going to have handle Jimmy with kid gloves.

"I think that sounds awesome. When do we start?" Kyle asked. He knew of Julia's reputation and had high hopes that he could learn a lot from her.

"I think that you have a good solution to a big problem we had, Derek. However, Julia, you are about to have a big show debut on Broadway. Why would you want to be involved with a small production at a non-profit theatre?" Scott asked Julia directly.

"Bombshell is done, and if any last minute changes need to be made, then I will do them, but I will fit any of that around this show. I have told everyone concerned that I am taking a break from Levitt and Houston and from Bombshell. I want to do something different, and Derek said he could use me on this show. I just want to help," Julia responded.

Seeing that the people all seemed to have finished voicing their opinions, Derek smiled. He knew Jimmy would have more to say on the matter, but he would wait until later to voice them, maybe even go straight to Karen.

"Well, if everyone is done, how about we get started," Derek said, turning and walking out of the room, Jimmy and Kyle close on his heels. Julia stayed behind to talk to Scott, not only about the arrangements for having her come on board, but also about their past history. They separated with a promise to be professional and to not make a big deal out of their past association.

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Karen made her way into the break room, looking forward to a well-deserved lunch break. Derek had been pushing them hard, as he was wont to do. She did notice he was trying to be nicer though.

She happily got lost in her thoughts of that morning. Kyle and Julia had hit it off immediately. They had been ensconced at the back of the theatre all morning, talking quietly but animatedly. Derek had left them alone all morning, letting them find a rhythm that would suit them.

Scott had watched the final version of "Rewrite" and was happy with what he saw, so he was convening another show for the board to watch. She had listened in quietly when he had told Derek that he had more faith in the production now that they had this new opening number, a dramaturg and Karen, and was going to start working on a preview for the patrons and potential investors for two weeks time. He also reminded Derek that it was time to get on top of formalizing the casting of the show. Derek simply waved him off.

She was so absorbed in her thoughts that she never noticed when Jimmy entered the room. He walked up behind her and put his lips to her exposed nape, enjoying the soft skin under his lips. Karen jumped a foot in the air in surprise, whirling around to find Jimmy.

"Hey," Jimmy said softly. He thought that now would be the time to start putting the moves on Karen; since she was going to be here everyday, he figured he could take advantage. He'd given her enough time since the incident at the club.

"Oh, hey. I didn't hear you come in," Karen said in a slightly shaky voice, her hand on her chest as she felt her heart slow after the surprise. She wasn't entirely comfortable with Jimmy now that she was with Derek.

"So, this Julia woman… Do you think she'll actually be good for Kyle and the book? Derek just dragged her into a meeting this morning and dropped her on us," Jimmy asked. He knew Derek and Karen were close, and he figured that if he wanted the show to go his way, having Karen on his side would be a good thing.

"Julia is great. She needed a break and wanted to work on something different. She knows Derek, and decided to see if he would give her a shot. Kyle wants to make Hitlist the best it can be, and Julia can help him do that," Karen replied.

"Yeah, I guess. I just don't know…Derek seems pretty determined to get his way with Hitlist, and I'm… concerned. I mean this is my work... and Kyle's, I just don't know that he gets it," Jimmy said, trying to work Karen over.

"I know that you are worried about Derek, but he gets it. He gets you. He wasn't always the great Derek Wills, he started from where you are now. As for getting his way, he is the director. He told me once that words and music on the page are needed, but until you have a director with the vision to bring that page to life, you don't have a show. Just trust him Jimmy, he knows what he is doing," Karen answered. She wasn't oblivious to what Jimmy was trying to do; it reminded her of Dev.

Jimmy was annoyed by her defense of Derek, and was about to push further when Kyle walked into the room.

"Oh my god, Julia Houston! I love her. She is brilliant and so nice. Karen, how do I thank you? Derek Wills and Julia Houston are on my show… I can't believe it!" Kyle said in a rush, grabbing Karen in another huge hug. She laughed in relief at having Jimmy's attention diverted, and hugged Kyle hard.

"I can't take all the credit. You guys did the hard work that got them. I got their attention and you did the rest. You don't mind working with Julia on Hitlist?" Karen asked gently.

"No… it needed it. Even I can admit that. She is being respectful of my work and feelings, but she has some great ideas. Speaking of which, Derek wanted to have a chat with all of us about Hitlist. They're waiting for us out there," Kyle said, heading back out the door.

Karen shrugged at Jimmy, and walked after Kyle. She breathed a sigh of relief at the timely interruption.

Jimmy scowled and followed. He would find another opportunity.

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Jimmy's opportunity didn't come for another two days, until the end of the second viewing for the board.

Derek introduced the new number, and told the board about the creative changes. They reacted positively. The new opening song and the general production changes got them the main stage and an opening date for two months time. Once the board had left, Derek told everybody that they had the next day off to allow the creative team to figure out more of the shows details. The whole cast decided to go out to celebrate.

Karen and Ana happily got dressed up and talked about Hitlist and the casting, Derek and other girly topics. Before Karen had returned, Ana had been the lead, and while she was happy to have Karen in the show, she was disappointed at being relegated to a minor character. Karen urged her to go after the other major female character, the Diva.

"You would be perfect for the Diva. Seriously, talk to Derek, or better yet, show him. You can be the Diva," Karen urged her friend, as they walked into the packed bar.

"I couldn't. I mean, you told me Derek has a long list of names, why would he bother with me. No, I'll just live with being the sister nobody will remember," Ana moaned.

Karen went to the bar and ordered them both drinks. The rest of the cast had gathered around Derek and Scott, and when Karen and Ana had joined them, Derek led them in a toast.

"Here's to good rehearsals, hard work and making a splash," Derek said, raising his whiskey glass. The crowd clinked glasses and downed their drinks, then moved off into groups.

Karen watched her friends take over the microphone and the band in the corner and saw a chance for Ana to shine. She made her way over to Derek, and got his attention away from Scott and Julia.

"What do you think of Ana for the Diva?" she asked him straight out.

"I think she is very talented, but I am not sure that she is right for the part. I was thinking getting a name could add some punch to the show," he responded.

"If she happened to perform, and blew your mind, would you give up the idea of a name?" Karen asked.

"Darling, anything is possible. If she can show me something special, then I may give up the name idea," he said.

Giving him a quick kiss, which in the crowded room went unnoticed, she strolled over to Ana, who was talking with Jimmy and Kyle.

"You get one shot with a guy like Derek, so you need to make it count," Karen told her, grabbing her arm and dragging her to the stage. Karen grabbed the microphone.

"Ok. My friend is amazing, and she is going to blow you all away with a song. Here's Ana!" Karen said into the microphone. Immediately, Derek looked at her with a smile on his face, realizing this was meant for him. He settled in to watch closely.

Ana grabbed a drink from a random bystander and downed it in one shot.

"I am gonna kill you," she hissed at Karen, taking the microphone and talking quietly to the guys in the band.

Derek watched as Ana started belting out "If I Were A Boy". She owned the song, strutting around the bar, flirting and working the crowd. She flirted outrageously with him, and he found himself convinced that Karen was right. Ana was definitely a diva in her own right, and he thought she had the presence to carry it off on stage.

As Ana finished the song, the crowd went nuts and Karen found herself pulled into a darkened corner by Jimmy.

Karen was pressed up against the brick wall by Jimmy's body. She could smell the alcohol on his breath. He reached a hand to her face, cradling it, and pulled her in for a kiss. Karen froze, not expecting this. She turned her head, and pulled away quickly.

"Jimmy, what was that?" she asked.

"I thought it was obvious. You left Bombshell for me, for my show. We flirt, we laugh. We kissed. Admittedly I was high at the time, but we have been hot for each other for weeks. What's the problem?" he asked, leaning into her for another kiss. He couldn't understand what her problem was. He was into her. She was into him.

Karen thought quickly, trying to figure out how to get out of this situation without hurting him too much. She knew he wouldn't take it well. She certainly didn't want to tell him she was seeing Derek now. She sighed and kept her head turned away, avoiding his lips.

"I know Jimmy. Yes, I think you are hot and we have great chemistry, but I don't think it would be a good idea to take it any further. We need to work together and I don't want to complicate things," she said to him quietly, and put her hand on his chest, pushing him away gently.

She watched the emotions play across his face, before he finally settled on anger, which seemed to be his main fall back emotion.

Before he could say or do anything. Derek came over. He saw the relief on Karen's face over Jimmy's shoulder.

"Jimmy, mate. What do you think of Ana playing the Diva? I think she could pull it off quite nicely," Derek said, distracting Jimmy from Karen. Jimmy stepped away from Karen, and she used the space to move further away from him and closer to Derek.

"Yeah, Ana would be… great," Jimmy answered, trying to focus on Derek through the haze of drink, anger and Karen.

"Excellent. Would you like to tell her with me Karen?" Derek asked, giving her a plausible escape option.

"Yes! I can't wait to tell her. I'll catch you in a while Jimmy," Karen said quickly. She grabbed Derek's hand and he pulled her through the crowd.

"Are you ok? I saw him kiss you," Derek asked quietly, leaning in close so she could hear him.

"I'm fine. You have great timing. I'll talk to you about it later," Karen replied. She wasn't looking forward to that conversation, but she knew she had to deal with the Jimmy issue some time soon.

Seeing Ana, Karen grabbed her and gave her a massive hug.

"Oh my god, you were fantastic! You're the Diva!" Karen told her laughingly.

"No! Really? Oh my god!" Ana said, in a state of shock at hearing the news.

"Yes, you are the Diva. You showed me what I was missing. Good job. Be prepared to work hard," Derek told her. He quickly found himself sandwiched between the two women as Ana hugged him first, followed by Karen. He had a grin on his face and felt confident that with these two talents, he had a shot at getting Hitlist noticed.

None of them noticed Jimmy glaring at the trio. He grabbed a bottle from the bar, and pushed his way out of the bar through a back door.