Free Once in a Blue Moon by Kristin James Page A

would substitute for San Pedro. When they returned to L.A., they would do the interior shots and add them for the month-long story that would dominate the May sweeps. By that time, Jim Ehrlich, the actor who played Mark, would have returned, and they would add scenes of his captivity by, and ultimate escape from, the new villain whom they were bringing onto the show.
    There would be a great deal more action scenes, not only with Mark fighting off his captors and escaping—though pursued back to the U.S. by the villain—but also of Curtis and Jessica eluding guerrilla fighters and the army, as well as henchmen of the new, as yet only hinted-at, villain. At first, Curtis and Jessica would engage in their customary bickering, and there would be some funny scenes about Jessica’s exasperating concern with her luggage and her attire. Then, during a harrowing ride in a Jeep, they were to have a wreck and Curtis would strike his head hard on the windshield.
    Jessica would then have to take charge of their escape from their pursuers. Normally, Isabelle, too, would have been excited about this story, which presented new challenges for her. For one thing, Jessica would have an opportunity to use her considerable skills for a good purpose. It would also lift her out of her usual shallow concerns over her looks, dress and money. That would give Isabelle an opportunity to explore new facets of her character.
    But Isabelle could not enjoy the creative opportunities the story offered because of the romantic relationship that it created between Jessica and Curtis Townsend. When Curtis would come to from his injury, not only would he be in pain, he would also be suffering from amnesia. He would not know who he was, who Jessica was, where they were or what they were doing there. Jessica, of course, would have a dazzling opportunity to take advantage of his lack of memory. Curtis would assume, since they were together, that they are friends, perhaps even lovers, and Jessica wickedly would go along with this assumption. One of the location shots would be a love scene by a lagoon in the jungle. It was a titillating scene, much longer than Jessica’s previous attempt at seduction, and involving a good deal of simulated kissing and caressing.
    The problem for Isabelle, of course, was how little of the scene would need to be simulated. Thinking about it now, she gritted her teeth. She could not afford to let herself get carried away this time. She had to remain cool, calm and professional, unaffected by any base desires.
    Now below her she could see land, the dense growth of the Yucatán Peninsula. The plane was dropping ever lower, obviously coming in for a landing. Isabelle’s ears popped, and she thought about Jenny, as she usually did when she was taking off or landing in an airplane. In general, she was not afraid of flying, but she had read somewhere that the majority of airplane accidents happened right after takeoff or right before landing, and over the years she had come to dread those moments a little and to think of her daughter.
    She thought of Jenny’s little face, the dark slash of eyebrows and the vivid blue color of her eyes, so similar to her father’s. She remembered Jenny’s grave expression and the way she had hugged her when Isabelle left for the airport this morning. Irma Pena would take good care of her for a week and be very patient with Jenny’s repeated questions of where her mother was and what she was doing and when she would be back. And, of course, Isabelle would phone her every night.
    Isabelle closed her eyes. There was the bump that signified that they were on the ground, and she was able to relax. She glanced over at Lyle, a trifle embarrassed that he might have seen her moment of apprehension. To her relief, Lyle was busily packing up his things in his briefcase. Her eyes slid across the aisle, and she found herself gazing into Michael’s face. He was watching her, and she realized with annoyance that he