Speaking of bodies, Lauren was evidently enjoying a very nice eyeful of Sebastianâs
This time, he realized, she wasnât searching for something neutral to focus on when she spoke to him. âYou know, thereâs something I should do before I forget.â She scooted next to him and placed a hand on his thigh.
âYou need to check that police source for your story?â He observed her hand.
âYeah, I need to do that, but that wasnât what I had in mind at the moment.â She made a slow circle on his skin with her index finger.
âYou need to call room service for something to eat? I realize we missed dinner.â Sometimes his gallantry astounded him.
âNo, Iâm fine.â
Sebastian tweaked a smile. âYouâre absolutely right, darlinââin fact, youâre a lot more than fine,â he whispered as Lauren undid her terry-cloth robe and let it slip from her shoulders.
Dear Reader,
The life of a reporter is often filled with uninspiring daily assignments. But what if, under unusual circumstances, a reporter actually got to exercise a self-indulgent flight of fancy regarding one of the least-coveted of dutiesâwriting an obituary?
What if, indeed?
Lauren Jeffries finds out the repercussions when an obituary that she has liberally embellished inadvertently gets published. Not only is her journalistic integrity compromised, but she also finds herself enmeshed in an international art theft. And even more dangerously, she tangles with Sebastian Alberti, the investigator on the case.
Never has a case of âmisappliedâ identity led to so many twists and turns and sexy interludes. Yes, those sexy interludes.
And here I said a reporterâs life was dull!
All the best,
Tracy Kelleher
Harry Nord, 83, Manufacturer And Philanthropist, Dies
Harry Nord, a decorated World War II pilot, self-made millionaire and generous local philanthropist, died in his sleep yesterday at the Philadelphia Veteranâs Administration Hospital. He was 83 years old and had been ill for some time.
A true Horatio Alger story, Mr. Nord, born in Camden, New Jersey, came from a humble background, having been orphaned at the age of twelve when his parents died in the infamous B&O train crash of December 1934. An investigation of the incident revealed that the conductor had reported to work inebriated after celebrating at the company Christmas party. Charges were leveled, though later dropped, against the railroadâs management. Mr. Nord liked to tell employees of Nord Notions and Trimmings Company, of which he was founder and president, that it was his constant lack of proper winter clothing growing up in greater Philadelphia that led him to the garment industry.
Before making his mark in the industry, Mr. Nord had a distinguished military career in World War II, rising to the rank of captain. A pilot, his plane was shot down on a mission over northern Italy. Although dazed and injured, Mr. Nord dragged his wounded navigator from the burning plane. Local villagers of Sanâ
LAUREN JEFFRIES tapped on the space bar and rubbed her lips. âSan what?â she asked out loud to no one in particular. The rest of the Metro Desk at the Philadelphia Sentinel, eastern Pennsylvaniaâs second-largest newspaperâa claim that never failed to generate a snide âHah!â from Laurenâhad long since filed their stories for the nightâs deadline and were drinking cheap beer and complaining about their piddly salaries at Ginoâs, the bar around the corner from the office.
She glanced at her notes, knowing already that they wouldnât offer any assistance. A conspiratorial smile formed on her lips, and she hunched over her terminal and tapped furiously.
Local villagers from San Margherita discovered the two men and hid the crew until they were well enough to travel. Then, with the aid of a shepherd, they hiked to safety across the Alps to Switzerland. Mr. Nord was later awarded a Bronze Star for heroism.
Upon conclusion of the war, Mr. Nord returned to Philadelphia, where he secured various entry-level jobs in the garment industry. While working as a buttonholer at a shirt factory, he realized that the finishing process would proceed much more quickly if there were a single machine that could sew and slit the buttonholes at the same time. He developed an automatic buttonhole device, which he patented. The Nordomatic, as the device came to be known, revolutionized shirtmaking. Later inventions, including the zigzag zipper-foot, further established Mr. Nord as an innovative leader in the industry, and laid the groundwork for Nord Notions and Trimming Company, a manufacturing business whose headquarters were once located next to Thirtieth Street Station. In 1991, the Singer Corporation bought out Nord Notions; operations were subsequently moved to Mexico.