Page 115 of Broken Beyond Repair

Beatrice’s amusement at her obsessed girlfriend washed from her face a moment later as a woman approached her with a Ken doll on her arm.

“Beatrice.”

“Sarah, how are you?”

Sarah leaned forward to air-kiss her cheek. Was there anything more fake? Friends hugged; mortal enemies air kissed in Beatrice’s book.

“Well. And you?” Not waiting for an answer Sarah continued, “Congratulations on the award.”

“Thank you. Nancy was more deserving of it, though, don’t you think?”

Sarah responded with an awkward facial twitch.

“I hope there are no hard feelings about Peter, now that…” Sarah made a light gesture towards Sydney.

“Oh, you’re suggesting that now I’m in a relationship with a woman, it was okay for you to sleep with my husband?” Beatrice said. “Like your actions couldn’t have possibly caused me any pain.”

“Well, erm…”

“As you can see, I’m much better off without him,” Beatrice said, slipping her arm around Sydney’s waist and guiding her away from Sarah. Stopping beside her, she added, “You would have been too. I shudder to think of the nightmares it must give you.”

As they walked away, Beatrice called back over her shoulder, “Especially given recent events.”

“Nicely done,” Sydney said, after they’d walked a little further away.

“Thank you. I can’t believe I ever had a crush on that woman.”

“Did you see that necklace she was wearing? Do you think it was real diamonds?”

“Yes. Sarah always was about themoney, money, money.”

Sydney stopped a waiter as they re-entered the afterparty, relieving him of two glasses of champagne.

“Does your mother know…we’re here?” Beatrice said. “We should visit her when we return to the UK.”

Sydney frowned and passed her a glass. “Are you humouring me with ABBA song titles?”

“Damn, I was hoping to workMamma Miain there somewhere before you noticed.”

Sydney feigned disgust as she teased her award-winning girlfriend. “You wait until I get you back to our hotel suite.”

“Oh yeah, and what could you possibly do to me that I won’t enjoy?” Beatrice asked, slipping her arm inside Sydney’s jacket and pulling her closer.

“I could make you wait. I know how you hate to be kept waiting. I could tie your hands up and make you watch as I touch myself and only myself.”

“Ha! You think you could resist me? Look at me in this red dress. You can’t resist that; we both know it.”

Sydney twisted her lips in defeat.

“I think most of the people in this room couldn’t resist you in that red dress,” she observed. “They can’t take their eyes off you. I feel like the luckiest woman in the room.”

“You are the luckiest woman in the room.”

“Modest, Bea.”

Realising she needed to clarify as Sydney couldn’t recognise a compliment if it slapped her in the face, she added, “You’re the luckiest woman in the room because you get to be you.”

“Ah, I see your meaning now. So, are we going to discuss your speech at all?”