Thrill Of Victory [Paperback]

Sandra Brown (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 1, 1998

Stevie Corbett is in jeopardy of losing everything she’s sacrificed and worked so hard for – her career, her future. Her life. She has just two weeks to make a monumental decision, but her fate rides on keeping the truth a secret. It’s Judd Mackie’s job to uncover secrets. And he’s spent the last few years dogging Stevie, exposing her for the spoiled glamour girl he believes her to be. Now he has the chance to scoop the story of the year and let the whole world know the truth about Stevie. All he has to do is betray her trust….

--This text refers to the Audio CD edition.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Sandra Brown is the author of numerous New York Times bestsellers - including most recently Smash Cut, Smoke Screen, Play Dirty, Ricochet, Chill Factor, White Hot, Hello, Darkness, The Crush, and Envy. She is the recipient of the 2008 Thriller Master Award from International Thriller Writers, Inc. She and her husband live in Arlington, Texas. --This text refers to the Audio CD edition.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Prologue

"Ramsey is out for your butt, Mackie."

The gopher, who had met the star sports-writer of the Dallas Tribune at the elevator, fell into step behind him as he walked toward the city room of Dallas' largest newspaper. Judd Mackie was unfazed by the threat of being out of favor with the Tribune's managing editor. He made a beeline for the coffee machine. Its brew was so vicious, so black, he'd often joked that they used the leftovers to fill in the cracks on North Central Expressway.   "Mackie, did you hear me?"

"I heard you, I heard you, Addison. Got a quarter?"

The pockets of his slacks -- expensive, but hopelessly wrinkled -- hadn't produced the correct amount of change for the vending machine. He was notorious for never carrying money. It was ludicrous that he was bumming from a guy whose age and income were a fraction of his. 

"Ramsey's fit to be tied," the gopher said in an ominous undertone as he passed his idol a handful of coins. 

"He usually is." Mackie watched a Styrofoam cup fill with coffee whom only virtue was that it was scalding and as darkly opaque as the sunglasses he still had on, though he'd been inside the building a full five minutes. 

As he sipped barely diluted caffeine from the disposable cup, the lenses of his glasses fogged over, reminding him they were there. He took them off and dropped them into the breast pocket of his jacket, which wasn't any more dapper than his slacks. His eyelids were puffy; the whites of his eyes were rivered with red. 

"He told me to catch you at the elevator and personally escort you to his office." 

"He must really be steamed. What'd I do this time?" Judd asked with disinterest. Michael Ramsey was perpetually steamed at him. From one day to the next the extent of his wrath was only a matter of degree. 

"I'll let him tell you. You coming peaceably?" the gopher asked worriedly. 

Judd took pity on him. "Lead on."

Addison Somethingorother was an intern who worked part-time between his journalism classes at Southern Methodist University. During the boy's first day on the job, Judd had passed him a rumpled handkerchief he'd fished from an even more rumpled pocket and jokingly suggested that the eager student use it to dry behind his ears. But when Addison had looked wounded, Judd had slapped him on the back, said he'd meant no offense, and offered the best advice he could give someone who aspired to a journalistic career, which was to reconsider.

"The hours are long, the pay lousy, the working conditions abysmal and the best you can hope for is that whatever you've written gets read before the dog chews it up or the bird craps on it or the housewife wraps chicken guts in it."

Addison was still around, so apparently he hadn't taken the jaded sports reporter's words to heart. Judd would have continued to rebuke Addison's idealism if he hadn't remembered a time when he himself had had stars in his eyes about a career. 

The stars had gone out long ago, but on occasion, usually when he was deep into his cups, he remembered what it felt like to have a burning ambition for greatness. So he let the cub go on dreaming his dreams. He'd find out for himself that life played dirty tricks. 

It was midmorning and the city room was a beehive of activity. Reporters at word-processing terminals clicked away on their keyboards. Some had telephone receivers tucked beneath their chins. Messengers hustled among the desks, which were already stacked with packages and mail as yet unopened. 

Then there were those individuals simply hanging out, smoking, sipping canned drinks or coffee, waiting for something newsworthy to happen or, short of that, divine inspiration. 

". . . the Arabs. But then Israel -- hi, Judd -- wouldn't do . . ." 

"So I said to her, 'Look I want my keys back.' Hi, Judd. To which she said . . ." 

". . . me a quote. Hi, Judd. Somebody's got to stick his neck out and go on the record about this thing." 

Popular with his cohorts, he nodded greetings as he followed Addison through the maze of desks, then down a carpeted hallway toward the managing editor's office. 

"There you are," his secretary said in exasperation. "Since we don't have a militia, he was about to send me in search of you. Thanks, Addison. You can get back to whatever you were doing before Mr. Ramsey summoned you." 

The gopher seemed reluctant to leave just when the fireworks were about to start. But Ramsey's secretary was almost as indomitable as the boss himself. He ambled away. 

"Hi, doll. What's up?" Judd tossed his empty cup into the nearest wastepaper basket. "Pour me a cup of the real stuff, will you?" 

Propping her fists on her hips, the secretary asked, "Do I look like a waitress?" 

Judd winked and gave her the leisurely, miss-nothing once-over that rarely failed to make points toward a big score. "You look like a million bucks." He sauntered through the connecting door before she could retaliate against either his blatant sexism or ingratiating compliment. 

Inside the door, Judd was greeted by the noxious fumes left by the first two of the four packs of cigarettes Michael Ramsey would smoke that day. He had one cigarette smoldering in an ashtray and another in his mouth when Judd strolled in. 

"It's about time." His face was florid with rage. 

Judd flopped into a leather chair and crossed his ankles in front of him. "For what?" 

"Don't get cute with me, Mackie. You've really blown it this time." 

Ramsey's secretary came in bearing the requested cup of coffee, brewed in her personal coffee, maker. Judd thanked her with a smile and another suggestive glance that she knew, and regretted, was meaningless. 

Copyright © 2003 Sandra Brown --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 250 pages
• Publisher: Mira (December 1, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1551664836
• ISBN-13: 978-1551664835
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 3.9 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 0.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,549,305 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Victory of Love, May 5, 2000

By 

Anna (Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Thrill Of Victory (Paperback)

The thrill of victory has thus far been the most romantic and witty book I have ever read! Brown captures her audience with a storyline that is quite humourous, addictive and truly captivating! The characters by far are true gems; Stevie with her indisputable wit and Mackie with his pompous and arrogant attitude which (ultimately) wins over the affection of Stevie and the reader. Stevie and Mackie are as opposite as opposites go, but their lust and admiration of one another are quite similiar right from the start. The Thrill of Victory is a very refreshing book; it not only deals with the romance and friendship of the two passionate characters that keep the readers on their toes, but as well, it tackles the more modern burdens of society today, for example, the increasing rate of cancer, etc. etc. This book with its charm and uniqueness will melt the hearts of any cynics of love out there, and for those that are true romantics, this book will provide a new and more powerful sense of the word love; and the lengths that one will go when a victim of it.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Another sweet romance, quick read, April 28, 2003

By 

janlouise (Ruston, LA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Thrill of Victory (Hardcover)

Stevie Corbett is a professional tennis player with an emergency health problem that could possibly keep her from playing in the tennis match of a life time- the Wimbledon! She must decide whether to risk her health for the opportunity to play, this being the thing that she has strived for all her life- the ultimate goal to reach. Judd Mackie, sports writer, is out to find out what Stevie is hiding from her fans- to write that article that his editor is hounding him for. Both Stevie and Judd have pasts of hurt that they have not healed from- not allowing themselves to have relationships with others. That's about to change. But they are about to find strong desire for love from each other. Sweet story that will take no longer than an afternoon.

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best from the best in romance, September 21, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Thrill Of Victory (Paperback)

It was a beautiful love story told masterfully by Brown. The heroine is wonderful and the hero made me fall in love. Sandra Brown never disappoints.