Page 9 of Settling the Score (The Karma Club #4)

While Chase and Olly had turned out not to be so bad, in the end, Horrible Harvey – Paige’s ex – and Aiden ‘So Perfect It Hurts’ Carter were truly deserving of some kind of comeuppance and Sienna was determined to serve it to both of them.

One by one. Starting with Aiden, because he was here, and she had her wing-women making sure she didn’t lose her nerve.

The closer she got, the happier she became that it had worked out like this.

While the idea of Astrid messing with him was fun, this seemed so much more appropriate.

They said revenge was a dish best served cold, but Sienna thought it was actually a dish best served face to face.

She was going to relish putting this arrogant, ice-hearted piece of work in his place and seeing him suffer.

Through seduction. Hardly torture, but in the right hands…

‘Oh, hi.’ She smiled as she got close enough, as if to get his attention. But that wasn’t necessary, because he’d been tracking her progress across the room. ‘I thought I’d come catch up with you before the official proceedings get underway.’

His thick, dark brows drew together a little. ‘I was going to offer you a drink but you seem to have come prepared.’

‘I sure have,’ she said.

If only you knew, buster.

‘How about I join you for one,’ she said, nodding towards his half-full beer.

He took a sip. ‘So, you and Astrid are pretty close, huh?’

She glanced towards the other girls, who were doing an average-at-best job of pretending to be absorbed in conversation with each other, and not like they were obsessively watching Sienna and Aiden.

‘Uh huh. Kind of weird, right?’

‘Yeah. But I mean’ – he lifted one shoulder in a gesture of carelessness – ‘that’s life.’

Not only was he not bothered by their friendship, he wasn’t even curious about it. She knew she should be grateful but it got under her skin. She dug her nails into her palms from the sheer effort of keeping her own expression neutral.

‘So…’ She hunted around for a conversation change.

‘You’ve done well for yourself.’ She could have kicked herself for not being able to completely keep the irritation from her tone.

Had she wanted him to crash and burn? Sure, at first she had.

Partly because he’d deserved it – and she wasn’t too proud to admit she had a vengeful streak every bit as developed as the next spurned woman – and partly because it might have brought him back home.

‘I guess.’ He shrugged dismissively. ‘It’s just hockey.’

‘Just hockey? Careful, don’t let any of your gazillion sponsors hear you say that.’

His grin was all perfect teeth, reminding her so much of the poster she’d seen in the airport – and her urge to wallop him with a piece of chewed up gum – that she had to swallow back a laugh.

‘I’m pretty sure they wouldn’t care, as long as I kept turning up to get my photo taken.’

‘Are you trying to make me think you hate it?’

‘No,’ he answered, quickly.

‘I mean, this was always your dream, right?’ she asked, careful to keep the accusation from her voice, even when it was raging through her.

Because at one time, she’d thought his dream was different.

At one time, she’d thought his dream was her.

And not because she was a na?ve fantasist, but because he’d said it.

About a week before their first time, when they were on the dirt track behind the Meyers’ house, and he’d stopped walking to take her hand in his and lifted it to point at the big, old house.

It wasn’t the fanciest, but they both loved it because it was so full of history.

‘Ever think maybe one day that could be us?’

Sienna had looked up to notice the elderly couple on the porch, Mr Meyer kneeling beside a pot of Azaleas, small spade in hand, while Mrs Meyer poured two drinks from a crystal jug.

‘I guess so.’ Aiden brought her back to the present with his answer. ‘I wanted to do this almost my whole life.’

It took a monumental effort to blot her anger. ‘Yeah.’ Her voice was a little uneven. She sipped her drink. ‘I remember.’ She remembered everything. That was the problem. She remembered everything.

‘What about you?’ He changed the subject. ‘When I left, you were looking at applying to pre-med.’

God, that felt like a lifetime ago. She couldn’t even get into the headspace of the young woman she’d been.

She shrugged. ‘I changed my mind.’

‘Yeah?’ He was looking at her so intently now, and she hated it. Her pulse was raging in a way that made all her skin feel hot and sticky, despite the pleasant ocean breeze rustling through the open doors of the high-ceilinged room. ‘Why?’

She had to look away then. She couldn’t bear to have him ask why. As if it had really been a goddamned choice. The weight of pressures that had landed on her in that senior year was like a bag of cement.

‘People change, Aiden. I’m not the girl you used to know. I’m pretty sure you’re not the guy I used to know. We’re different now.’

She turned back to look at him, surprised to see his jaw was held taut. ‘In what way?’

She forced an overbright smile, then scrambled for how to reply. ‘I mean, apart from the fact we’re more than a decade older? Hopefully wiser?’

His smile caught her off guard. If he’d looked tense a minute ago, now he was all sexy and dishevelled, relaxed and charming with those stupid dimples she used to love grooved into his cheeks. ‘I’m not so sure about the latter, but I’m trying.’

She opened her mouth to reply but at that moment, Astrid walked up to them, followed closely by a sex god in human form. ‘Oh, hi, you two,’ Astrid cooed, angling her face to flash a surreptitious wink at Sienna. ‘I wasn’t sure if you’d had a chance to meet Chuck, Sissi?’

Sienna couldn’t look at Aiden. She wouldn’t.

He probably wouldn’t care – at all – that Astrid was intentionally throwing Sienna in the path of one of the hottest men who’d ever lived, but Sienna cared, because she knew why Astrid was doing it, and she didn’t think she could look at Aiden without bursting into laughter.

So she focused on her friend and her drink, while Astrid put an arm around Chuck and brought him closer to Sienna. Their eyes met and he smiled.

‘Chuck, this is one of my favourite people in the whole wide world, Sienna Mastrangelo. Sissi, this is Chuck. He’s a lot of fun,’ Astrid added exaggeratedly. ‘You’re going to love each other.’

Sienna bit back a roll of her eyes. When Astrid committed to gilding the lily, she clearly committed with her whole heart.

‘Jesus, Astrid, how many hot friends do you have?’

Astrid laughed. ‘You behave,’ she said, slapping Chuck on the shoulder then turning to Aiden.

‘He’s terrible. You have to watch him. But of course, you know that – you two have met before.

’ She gestured from her future brother-in-law to Chuck, who’d moved to stand almost close enough to Sienna to touch.

‘Yes.’ Aiden’s response was a little curt, but Sienna didn’t read into it. Astrid had laid it on with a trowel, after all. ‘We’ve played against each other.’

‘That’s right, we have.’ Chuck grinned. ‘A couple of times.’

Sienna didn’t have to be a mind reader to guess how those games had gone. Despite his own prowess, there was a look on Aiden’s face that spoke of crushing defeat. Chuck shot up in her estimation.

She took another sip of her drink then realised it was empty.

‘Another champagne?’ Aiden asked immediately.

Sienna was about to demur on the basis that she needed to be able to think straight and two quickly consumed glasses on an empty stomach was not the most well-regarded formula for logic and reasoning.

But Chuck was there, too. ‘Let me,’ he said smoothly, nodding towards the bar.

‘If we’re going to be partnered together for the wedding, we should get to know each other.

Do you mind?’ He glanced at Aiden and Astrid.

Before either could reply, he was putting a hand lightly on Sienna’s back to guide her away – and she let him.

But before they’d gone two steps, she heard Astrid exclaim, ‘Gawd, wouldn’t that be something? Can you imagine how gorgeous their babies would be?’

Sienna didn’t hear Aiden’s response over her own soft laugh.