‘It’s just a bit of harmless fun,’ Paige assured her.
‘Nothing sinister,’ Bella chimed in.
‘Blake thinks it’s a good idea,’ Astrid promised, almost sealing the deal.
Sienna sat up a little straighter as a litany of ideas floated through her mind. Bleaching his wedding tux right before the ceremony, or putting laxatives in his slice of cake, or smearing his shoes with doggie poop, or… ‘But it’s yourwedding.’ She stopped her thought train hard in its tracks to address the effervescent Astrid. ‘I can’t do anything that will mess it up. I would never do that to you, or Blake.’
‘That’s not exactly what we’re suggesting,’ Bella insisted, leaning a little closer to her screen, coffee cup in hand. ‘Let’s cut to the chase,’ she began, and Sienna couldn’t help holding her breath as Bella began to outline their well-developed plan.
* * *
Which was how, almost two weeks later, Sienna found herself in one of Manhattan’s premier spas, surrounded by the Karma Club Mayhem Makers, the women she’d randomly met at an airport the December prior, and somehow become ride or die besties with over the space of a few hours (and several bottles of bubbles).
Their bond had only got stronger since that one fateful meeting, despite the fact this was only one of a few times they’d actually been face to face since that night. Travelling wasn’t easy for Sienna. She scrimped and saved everything she earned to cover her living expenses and pay off her degree. Without a little help from her friends and their airmiles, she would have struggled to make any of the previous trips. This, though, wasn’t just an ordinary trip. It was Astrid’s wedding, and there was nothing she wouldn’t do for her – or any of these girls.
Even submitting to a total glam up.
So, her hair had been foiled and trimmed, given some kind of weird treatment that smelled like buttercream frosting, so even though she knew she shouldn’t and couldn’t eat her own hair, it was making her ravenous for all the sweet things anyway. Her face and body hadbothbeen slathered in mud-like mixtures, her slender limbs had been wrapped in kelp, then exfoliated by an army of women who kept exclaiming over how ‘wonderful’ everything was making her look. Who needed a fairy godmother when there was the make-over mafia?
It was, Sienna decided, if not precisely torture, pretty damned close to it. For a woman who’d always been more comfortable knocking around in a pair of faded jeans and a tee, this level of beauty preparation made her head spin. Not to mention being glued to a seat for well over an hour while several technicians did her fingers and toes. Even her eyebrows had been whipped into submission. Thank God she was naturally tanned and therefore escaped the ‘little bit of bronze’ one of the beauticians was determined to administer. Astrid had evidently taken pity on her at that point, and suggested they have a drink by the pool instead, even if her own drink would be a mocktail owing to her pregnancy.
‘Much more my speed,’ Sienna confided, admiring the luscious green palms that grew from big white pots, sprinkled around the swimming area.
‘I know, it’s gruelling,’ Bella admitted. ‘But totally worth it. You look a million bucks.’
Sienna’s lips pulled to the side. She had felt like one of her pseudo step-daughter Melanie’s old Barbie dolls for most of the day, but the effects had, she grudgingly admitted, been worth it. Having spent several years pretending – even to herself – not to notice howglossyAiden’s girlfriends all looked, she had to admit, she’d sort of morphed into one of them.
‘I’m still me.’ She shrugged, looking down at the oversized robe that engulfed her petite frame.
‘Yes, love, but also kind of new and improved.’ Astrid winked, before reaching down beside her seat and pulling out several large bags. Sienna didn’t have to be aVoguereader to recognise the couture brands.
‘What are those?’ She couldn’t keep the wariness from her voice.
‘Think of them as your costumes.’ Astrid encouraged.
Sienna stared at her friends blankly.
‘For the wedding.’
‘I… don’t need a costume.’ She glanced from Astrid to Bella to Paige. Three faces looked back at her with ‘butter wouldn’t melt’ expressions. ‘It’s not themed, right? Tell me it’s not themed.’
Bella’s laugh was good natured. ‘Did we, or did we not, agree that you are going to spend the whole weekend making Aiden absolutely drool at the sight of you?’
‘And wish he could go back in time and never walk out on you?’ Astrid added.
‘And just generally regret every single life decision of his since then?’ Paige chimed in.
‘And then get him right where you want him, eating out of the palm of your hand, soyoucan be the one to walk away?’ Bella finished with a wide-eyed innocence that was all assumed.
‘But, you guys, I mean, come on.’
‘What?’ Paige demanded, indignation on her face. ‘I thought you liked the plan?’
‘I do. I really do. I love you guys for thinking this could ever work. But I’m nothing to Aiden any more. Just some girl he walked out on about a million years ago.’
Paige snorted. ‘More fool him.’
‘I’m serious. And haven’t we learned that we’re not exactly the master revenge getters we thought? I mean, it’s taking me forever to get what I need on Horrible Harvey.’
