It was the morning of the invited preview and Karen was nervous. She knew a lot was riding on tonight because she was green. No one knew of her so Jerry and Eileen were staking their reputation, Tom and Julia their show and Derek, his faith. She had tried to remain focused but the last two days had been crazy with Tech and then with Ana.
Jimmy had confessed his indiscretion with Ivy and the red head had been a roller coaster of emotions. From initial anger to betrayal and then uncertainty Ana had cursed and cried for two days straight. Last night she had finally decided to give Jimmy a second chance; but a chance at a real relationship. Ana took Jimmy back with the understanding he would have to earn her trust again. They would take things slow go on dates, movies, dinner, the whole nine yards. Karen was happy for her friend and she was especially happy because she and Derek could get some normalcy back in their life; if there was such a thing in the Broadway industry.
Either way she was excited about tonight and couldn't wait to get to the theater for their final run through. Derek had left early for a meeting with the creative team. Tom had been even more distant and difficult because Ivy had gone to him the morning Karen slapped her. She had conveniently left out the part of sleeping with Jimmy at Derek's apartment and made it seem as though Karen was a jealous girlfriend. When Derek remained silent and allowed Tom to belittle him, Karen had had enough and had confronted the composer in front of everyone. Needless to say if she hadn't been on Tom's good side before; she definitely wasn't on it now. Thinking about that morning, she couldn't help but laugh when she remembered his expression. When she had accused him of wanting to sleep Ivy himself, she thought his eyes were going to come out of his face. She was chuckling when she heard her name "Karen."
Without turning around she knew that voice. It had been almost a year since she had heard it but there was no way she would forget it. "Dev?" she questioned while meeting his stare. "What are you doing here?" she looked around at the theaters.
"I wanted to see you; no I needed to see you," he replied.
Karen gave him a confused look "you need to see me? It's been almost a year and you pick now; I have to go Dev," she started walking again. The young British man kept pace walking stride for stride next to her.
"I've missed you and I wanted to call you so many times but I was afraid of what you might say," he told her.
"You've missed me?" she scoffed. "If I remember it right and I'm pretty sure I do, you are the one that left me. Let me see you told me 'Karen I don't think this is working. I need to be with someone with a little more stability.'"
"I was scared; I thought I was losing you to your dream. All you ever talked about was call backs and auditions. We couldn't spend time together because you were always working at the café. I mean you were twenty three years old and working in a coffee shop."
The brunette turned into the alley leading to the backdoor of the Gershwin wishing she had come earlier with Derek. She took out her phone to text Ana to answer the door and hoped her friend would come quickly.
"I've moved on Dev. I'm seeing someone and I'm happy."
"You mean that director. Do you honestly think that is going to last? From what I've read he isn't capable of a relationship. You are nothing more than a novelty to him," he commented.
"I don't care what you think Dev. I love Derek so I think you should leave." Karen could hear a voice coming from the other side of the door so she stepped to the side. She had her back to Dev and didn't expect his arms to wrap around her. Before she realized what was happening her back was pressed against the wall and Dev's lips were crashing against hers. She moved her arms around his back to hit him when the door suddenly opened.
"Hello Love," she heard Derek's deep husky voice. Startled Dev loosened his grip and moved back. "What the blood hell is going on?" the director asked.
"I'm Dev, Karen's ex-lover" he smirked.
"Derek it's not what it …."Karen tried to explain but was cut off. "Why don't you go inside and change the run through starts in ten minutes," his voice cold. Unsure of how to respond the young actress stopped next to her boyfriend, placed a kiss on his cheek and continued inside the theater. Once inside Derek closed the door and quickly closed the distance between he and the young man. "Stay away from Karen this is where she belongs," he motioned to the theater. "She is mine now."
"She didn't seem to sure a minute ago," Dev answered. Derek could see the smug sneer on the young Brit's face and enraged, he landed a hard blow to the other's temple. Dev stumbled backwards but once getting his footing lunged at Derek. He managed to land a blow to the director's lip instantly resulting in a stream of blood. Derek responded by hitting him again this time squarely on the nose. The flow of blood startling the other man "I think you broke my nose," he exclaimed.
"Stay away," Derek told him one last time as he turned and entered the theater leaving Dev alone in the alley.
"Oh my god, what happened to you?" Julia asked as she saw the blood drenched cloth the director had on his lip and the swollen right hand.
"Nothing, Linda let's get started," he replied with an edge to his voice. Within ten minutes the director was barking out orders and criticism. His demeanor was noticeably harder than over the past few months which left the cast questioning.
"What's going on Karen? Why has the Dark Lord returned?" With the lights dimmed and Derek away from the stage no one noticed his lip.
"Oh bloody hell what's with you all this morning. Get your heads together. Take 10," he ordered.
Karen left the stage before anyone could corner her for an answer. She knew the reason Derek was acting out and she hated herself for it. Her mind raced with all different ways she could have handled Dev.
"Hey," Julia approached her friend. "Want to talk about it?"
"There isn't anything to talk about," Derek spat.
Julia laughed "Okay, that's fine you don't have to talk to me; but don't build that wall up again. Don't shut Karen out."
"She deserves better than me" he looked at the writer. "What do I have to offer that she can't get on her own? She is beautiful and can have any man she wants. She is talented and will be a star without or without me. What happens when she realizes she doesn't need me?"
"I don't know what brought this on but you're wrong when you say you have nothing to offer her," she replied. "Unconditional support and love those are pretty important things" she smiled. "Those are two things I'm pretty sure she could use right now before her first Broadway preview."
Derek nodded in response and gave a weary smirk before he turned to walk back stage. He went to her dressing room and found it empty. He called into the changing room for the ensemble and was told she wasn't there. Finally Susan from costumes told him the young brunette was in the fitting room behind the change rack. He made his way down the hall and carefully opened the door to the room.
He walked up to the change rack and pulled back the clothes. There sitting against the wall was the beautiful brunette who stole his heart. Here big brown eyes a pool of tears and her expression full of innocence. "Hey" he whispered while sliding himself down the wall.
"I'm sorry."
"Hey, shh, shh; if anyone should be sorry it's me Love."
"It wasn't what you think," she looked at him for the first time. "Oh my god Derek!" she exclaimed as her fingers gently grazed over his swollen lip and her lips placed a kiss on his knuckles.
"I know" he told her. "I trust you Karen. It's just seeing you with him reminded me of everything I have to lose. Before I met you, it was easy to stay detached from the women I was with because I knew we were with each other for a purpose; and once that purpose was served it was over. But with you it all changed. You didn't need or want anything from me and it terrified me and still frightens me. I think maybe one day you are going to realize you can do better. When I see you on stage as Marilyn I realize you have so much of her already in you. You've already suffered heartbreak once; I don't want to be the cause of it again."
Karen's hands moved to cup Derek's face. She looked into his piercing green eyes and could see the wall he occasionally put up was completely down. He was giving every part of himself to her and it was the most wonderful gift. "I can't speak for the women in your past but every day I wake up grateful for the fact they let you get away. I only wish you could see yourself the way I do," she told him. "What makes me love you isn't your success as a director. It's the way you read me. Without saying a word you can make a shitty day better by holding me in your arms. You can take away the doubt that creeps into my head just by telling me I was born to do this. And when you tell me you love me, I wish there was a way to show you how free you make me feel. When I'm with you I know I can do or be anything because if I fail, you'll catch me," she quietly declared as she kissed his cheek. "You're right, I don't need Derek Wills, the director; I want and need, Derek Wills, my lover and best friend," she smiled into his lips. "There is no one else for me."
"Uhm, I'm sorry to interrupt" Susan spoke from the doorway; "but break is up."
"We're coming" Karen replied back.
"I love you Derek Wills."
"I love you Karen Cartwright," the director responded. "Let's go make you a star," he held his hand out to help her up.
"Derek?" she questioned. "Please tell me Dev looked worse than you," she laughed.
"I broke his nose" he smiled from ear to ear.
Six hours later and Bombshell's invited preview had proved to be an unforgettable evening. Not only had Karen solidified herself as Broadway's newest darling but a costume malfunction in the Kennedy scene had revealed to the audience what Derek already knew; in the nude the brunette was stunning. The scene was Marilyn and JFK's first intimate encounter and Karen was dressed in lacey lingerie. As the scene is about to end, Marilyn in an attempt to get JFK to stay with her, opens and drops the robe to the floor in order to showcase her body. The lingerie ended up being too big and when Karen went to remove the robe the straps caught and fell off her shoulders. The result was one very nude Marilyn standing in front of JFK. The green young actress from Iowa didn't flinch and instead improvised by grazing her hands over the curves of her body to accentuate what he would be missing if he left. In the end it was one of the most compelling scenes. That was until Karen took the stage alone in a gold sequence dress to sing Don't Forget Me. When the song ended there wasn't a single person left in their seat.
After two encores Karen made her way back to her dressing room. The adrenaline of her performance still coursing through her veins; she replayed Derek's words as she took the stage for the last song. His strong hands holding her waist as he zipped her gold dress, he whispered into her ear "remember no matter what happens; you are a star, and I do understand Love."
It was all the young actress needed to hear to set her free in the moment and to let her embrace the essence of the woman who so desperately wanted to find a man who would love her not as Marilyn Monroe but for the innocence she still hid from the world; she wanted a man who would love her as Norma Jean.
A knock on her door drew her from her thoughts. "Come in."
The door opened and a boquet of red roses peeked through the door. Karen smiled and walked over to the door to accept them. "Hello my star" his deep British voice greeted. "You were mesmerizing tonight. I'm so proud of you."
"I can't believe I got naked in my first Broadway show" her face beet red.
Derek gave a seductive laugh "there is nothing to be embarrassed by Love, now everyone knows what I do; you are stunning. And I am the envy of every man because you are all mine" he firmly kissed her lips.
"Only yours" she kissed back.