Stiletto Sisterhood

Original Edition: BONUS* Priya & Hadrian - Xmas

And was struck breathless by the gorgeous scene. Dark spires of ancient pine trees circling a bright carpet of light beneath the brooding blue, white-capped mountains, all set against a darkening sky. The glow of awakening stars lent a final touch of majesty that only enhanced the stunning tableau.  

Her phone hummed on coffee table and she stooped to reach for it. Smiled at the recent message from Shayne. A photo of the tightly smushed faces of her sisters—Cait, Eshe, Shayne, Isobel and Six—in a laughter filled selfie captioned: Missing you, bitch. Merry Christmas.

Priya checked the time. Five pm. Singapore was seven hours ahead. Midnight.

The girls had reunited for the holidays and a surprise trip to celebrate Six's twenty-fourth birthday in Singapore. And was why, despite all efforts, she was trapped alone in the Alps minus the plus one she'd stupidly (and drunkenly) RSVP'd.

Blinking away tears, she typed a quick reply and set her phone aside.

Shayne: Missing you, Bitch! Merry Christmas

Priya: Merry X-mas

Priya: love you, bitches!

The ceremony was set to start in half an hour with the reception to immediately follow. Time to put on her lipstick and her game face, she'd avoided the unavoidable long enough.

She'd only just gathered her clutch and confirmed it contained all the essentials—room key, gum, Advil, invitation and, of course, the deepest shade of lipstick Estee Lauder had to offer—when a knock sounded at the door.

Thoughts a messy whirl of what to do before she left, Priya whisked open the door, stumbled. Blinked. And blinked again.

Nope. Not hallucinating. Not seeing things. And she was most definitely sober.

"Hello, Tiger." Braced against the door frame, and dressed in an impeccable suit—deepest azure with a cranberry tie and black shirt—was Hadrian Marek. Dark brown hair combed from a side fade.

"You," her voice eased out in a breathy whisper so she took a second and put a bit of backbone into the rest. "What are you doing here?"

His hands slid into his pockets with a casual, matter-of-fact shrug. "You invited me."

"I...what?"

"Forget, did you? Guess I shouldn't be surprised." Hadrian's smile brightened, his eyes full of wicked humour. "The drunken night we met, while at the bar hammering tequila, you told me all about your ex's wedding and declared that I was going to escort you, emailed me the invite and even made me pinky promise, for good measure." He lifted his hand and wiggled his pinky for good measure.

Priya squeezed her eyes shut, swallowed an embarrassed groan. Holy fuzzknuckles, kill me now. "You...didn't have to come," she supplied weakly.

"'Course I did. I'm a man of my word." Lifting away from the frame, Hadrian held out a hand, the deep golden green of his eyes sparkling against the warmth of his tanned skin. "C'mon, Tiger. It's not fashionable to be late to a wedding unless you're the bride."

Priya hooked her clutch under her arm. "Cute."

"I thought so."

Despite the size and grandeur of the Chalet Resort, the wedding wasn't hard to find with all the elegant ivory and gold signs reading Bhavin Shah and Courtney Liang Wedding to guide the way.

"Priya Seth, plus one," she said and handed over her monogramed invitation when a white-gloved attendant stopped her. Satisfied she wasn't a crasher, the doors parted and she sucked in an awed breath.