Heidi Rice - Maid of Dishonour

Bitterness and something that felt uncomfortably like envy scoured Gina’s throat, making her want to hurt Reese too.

Reese the hopeless romantic, who actually believed in love at first sight. Thank goodness she’d never be daft enough to believe such an idiotic concept. Any more than she’d be dumb enough to fall for Marnie’s dictates on the ‘proper way to conduct a committed relationship’.

‘Actually, Reese, the only thing to have gotten into me is Carter Price’s stallion-like—’

‘Stop, don’t say any more,’ Marnie shouted, covering her ears like a child that didn’t want to hear the truth. ‘It’s not true. It can’t be.’ But Gina could tell the truth had sunk in as tears leaked out of Marnie’s eyes. ‘You’re lying. Carter wouldn’t do something like that. He has integrity. And he loves Missy.’

‘He may love Missy, but he made love to me.’

‘Gina, you didn’t,’ Reese whispered, hugging Marnie now, her confusion replaced with sadness and concern. ‘How could you do something like that? You knew he was engaged.’

Because I talked and he listened. And he talked and I listened. And we touched and kissed and held hands and it meant something. Because he was smart and funny and tender and when he looked at me I felt sexy and special, instead of sexy and shallow.

But she didn’t say any of those things, because they weren’t really true. It had just been an illusion conjured up by the sultry summer night and the heady pheromones that had intoxicated them both—and it had all disappeared by morning. So she said the thing that had been true all along—before she’d gotten tripped up by feelings that she now knew she should never have trusted.

‘I did it because he was hot and he was begging for it. Why do you think?’

Reese swore softly. While Marnie jumped to her feet, her face contorted with anger and disgust. ‘But he’s engaged to be married. Don’t you have any honour at all? How could you be such a...such a tramp?’

Gina forced herself not to flinch. She’d been called a tramp before; in fact, she’d been called a great deal worse than that by her own father. But it was the first time it had been said by someone who meant something to her.

‘She’s not the tramp,’ Cassie announced as they all turned to see her with the newly opened bottle of champagne frothing over her fingers. ‘She’s not the one who was engaged to be married. He is. Blaming Gina for his infidelity is just another example of the double standard that—’

‘You knew?’ Marnie interrupted Cassie before she could get into full feminist lecture mode.

‘Yes. She told me the morning after it happened.’

‘Why didn’t you tell me?’ Marnie cried, the emotional outburst in sharp contrast to Cassie’s calm, unblinking stare.

‘Why would I tell you? It was between Carter and Gina.’

‘Because Carter’s my brother and his fiancée is my best friend? Because I’m going to be her maid of honour. Because this is a disaster.’ Marnie collapsed back into her seat. ‘I can’t tell Missy. She’ll be devastated. The wedding’s in a week’s time. And Missy’s devoted herself to planning it for over a year.’

‘Don’t worry, he’s not cancelling anything,’ Gina supplied. ‘He went back to her, didn’t he?’ She inspected her nails, battling the clutching pain in her chest as she maintained the charade that it didn’t matter, that she didn’t care. ‘I don’t know why you’re getting so worked up, Marnie. It was nice while it lasted but I didn’t want to keep him.’

‘I can’t believe I respected you. I liked you. I thought you were cool. When all you really are is a lying tramp who has no heart and no scruples.’

‘You got it in one, Scarlett.’ Gina stood up, taking the opened bottle from Cassie. ‘I’m the tart with no heart.’ A phrase she’d heard so many times from her father—and had always believed until a week ago, when her heart had put in a surprise appearance.

She inclined her head towards the now dark athletic track, the buff male bodies they’d had so much fun admiring together over the months now gone for good. ‘Looks like the show’s over for tonight, so that’s my cue to leave.’ She sloshed a final slug of Reese’s priceless champagne into her glass and toasted them all. ‘It’s been a ball, but I’m off. I’ve got an early start in the morning for the flight back to London.’

‘Wait a minute, what about our road trip?’ Cassie asked, her eyes as round with concern as Reese’s now. ‘We’re booking it tomorrow, remember?’

‘I’ll take a rain check on that.’ She nodded towards Marnie, who was staring at her as if she had snakes instead of hair sprouting out of her head. ‘Right at the minute, I’m thinking I’d rather not spend three weeks in a car with Scarlett staring daggers at me.’

She strode back through the house, Marnie’s harsh words and Reese’s concerned buzzing fading as she concentrated on keeping her back ramrod straight and the self-pitying urge to cry on lockdown.

Cassie caught up with her on the stairs. ‘Gina, I don’t get it. You can still come on the road trip. Marnie will get over it. What her brother did with you really isn’t any of her concern.’

But just as she finished saying it the high, angry shout of ‘whore’ echoed through the house, making them both stiffen.

Gina pressed her hand to Cassie’s cheek. And wondered how her friend could be so scary smart and yet so clueless about the most basic of relationship dynamics?

‘We’ll see. I’ll speak to you tomorrow. See how me and Marnie feel then.’

But she already knew, Marnie wasn’t going to forget it. Gina had made absolutely sure of that. Once again, she’d burned her bridges. Pushed the people away who mattered so she wouldn’t have to let them mean that much. She already regretted her outburst. The cruel, outrageous, provocative things she’d said. But it was too late to take them back now. And it was probably better that way.

She wasn’t any good at friendships. And the three of them needed to know that.

Cassie nodded. ‘All right. I’m really going to miss you, you know.’

I’ll miss you too. And Reese and even Marnie.

But instead of admitting that much, Gina simply nodded and walked away.

* * *

She called a cab the next morning before anyone was up. Happy with the deliberately flippant parting note she’d spent several hours before dawn composing.

Sorry for screwing up our last night together so royally, Awesomes. But I think we all knew, me and my insatiable appetite for man candy were bound to mess things up at some point. I hope you can forgive me.

G x

ONE

New York City, August, the present.

Something’s come up. U & M will have to pick fabulous venue for Cassie’s do without me. C u tomorrow at Amber’s Bridal. 11 a.m. Don’t B late. R xxxx

‘Reese Michael, I am going to murder you.’ Gina Carrington glared at the text that had popped up on her smartphone.

This was a set-up, pure and simple.

Now her old college roomie was in the throes of second-chance nirvana with her sexy ex- and soon-to-be-new-husband Mason, Reese was so full of the joys of spring—and Gina suspected really spectacular sex—that she was starting to make Pollyanna look like a killjoy.

The something that had come up was Reese’s cock-eyed optimism, and leaving her and Marnie to have this meeting without her was her unsubtle way of getting them to kiss and make up properly after that fun-filled night a decade ago when they’d hurled words such as ‘Tramp’ and ‘Whore’ and ‘Virgin’ at each other before busting up the Awesome Foursome.

Gina’s fingers hovered over the keypad of her phone as she cursed her own stupidity.