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‘Then how in the hell did she get in? Why would security even let her past the doors!’ Isabelle hissed, trying not to alert any of the other party guests drifting around to her utter fury. It was loud in here, but Isabelle’s body language was pretty loud, too.

‘She wasn’t on the invite list; that’s all I know,’ Alex said.

‘Get her ejected. Do it quietly. Do it now,’ she hissed.

Alex clicked her heels together and saluted. ‘You got it, boss.’

Isabelle didn’t look like she appreciated the joke, but Alex was clean out of fucks to give about offending that woman.

She went to look for Erin. Intuition told her to check the bar first. Lo and behold, there she was.

‘Hey, Erin!’ she greeted her cheerfully.

Erin turned and frowned. ‘Who are you?’

‘I’m your ex’s dogsbody. Come to ask you to leave quietly.’

Erin laughed in her face. ‘Oh? She around? I need a quick chat about something.’

‘She doesn’t want to see you. And you know you shouldn’t be here. Let’s just get you into a cab, shall we?’

Erin turned back to the bar as a cocktail was placed in front of her. She took a leisurely sip. ‘Get me Isabelle. I’ll leave after I’ve talked to her.’

‘I’m afraid that’s not happening. Whatwillhappen will be me fetching the big guys who pretend they’re not taking steroids to get that massive. But they are, Erin. They are.’

Erin was drunk enough not to care. ‘Get your musclemen. I don’t give a shit.’

Alex sighed and stepped up to the bar, asking the bartender for a neat scotch. As he complied, Alex turned to Erin. ‘I don’t get why you’re doing this. You won, you know?’

‘I didn’t win. She’s fine,’ Erin said, gesturing at the party.

‘You wonenough. You took a serious chunk out of her that she’s never getting back. You only stand to lose by making a scene.’

‘You wanna know what that woman’s nickname was for me?’ Erin asked, turning to look at Alex.

‘No,’ Alex replied instantly.

‘Billy.’ Erin said, clearly not listening.

Alex frowned. ‘Right…’

‘Short for Third Billy, always billed third. She used to make it ajokethat I wasn’t as successful as her, that I’dnevermove up, just spin my wheels until I lost my looks, and then that would be that. Hilarious, right? And nothing’s changed.’

‘I heard you just got cast in a lead role,’ Alex said. ‘Take the victory and leave.’

‘I just came to see the smile knocked off her face for once.’

‘You knocked it off plenty this week,’ Alex told her.

‘But I never got to see it. I need toseeit.’

Alex gave Erin a hard look. ‘You don’t deserve that.’

‘You don’t know what she put me through.’

‘I don’t care.’

‘Yeah, I bet. I heard about you. “The shark.” That’s what Leigh called you.’