Stiletto Sisterhood

Original Edition: BONUS* Priya & Hadrian - Xmas

BLURB: Attending her ex-boyfriend's wedding, after drunkenly RSVPing—damn tequila, is not how Priyanka Seth imagined spending her Christmas holidays. And things are about to get a lot more awkward when none other than Hadrian Marek, the guy she shafted to land her dream job—and the only one who knows how to make her knees weak, shows up on her threshold as her plus one for the evening.

TITLE: Kiss Me Under the Light of a Thousand Stars

HEAT LEVEL: Sweet

Priya Seth faced the full-length mirror in her chalet suite, wrapped in a metallic grey bandage dress half a size too small. And cursed her misfortune.

Who the hell gets married on Christmas Eve?

In the Swiss Alps?

It was all so sweet, so perfectly saccharine it made her teeth ache. She'd survived the trip, jaw clenched for the entire duration of the evening flight, layover and cab ride to the stunning mountain top resort. Seventeen miserable hours.

Barely six months ago she'd made the stupid mistake of accepting her ex-boyfriend's invitation the night he'd tagged her in a wedding invite over Facebook. A rash and reckless decision spurred by way too much tequila.

But there was no backing out once the deed had been done.

Hi, Bhavin, sorry—yeah, my RSVP was a slip of the finger. Didn't mean to type in my name, meal preference and the addition of a plus one. Total oversight. Please disregard.

HA! She'd chew glass first. Cancelling would make her look foolish. Stupid. Scared. Like she was a lovesick moron still crying over him when the truth was she'd moved on ages ago.

But that didn't make it any less...awkward.

The last time they'd seen one another it was three months after their messy breakup—with his arm was slung around his now soon-to-be wife, Courtney, and a gleam of something in his eyes. Either smug pride, or sympathy, she hadn't been able to tell. Not that either option was preferable.

She wanted neither to be slighted or pitied.

Not by the guy who'd given her an ultimatum and dumped her when she'd refused to consider sharing an apartment. He'd brought it up after dating for only six months, and pushed, prodded and pleaded for another year, but she'd held resolute.

Why move in and live together like they were married if they weren't? What was the rush? Why did it all have to be about the end-game? Marriage, babies and shared bank accounts.

All she wanted was to slow it down. Be together. But that wasn't enough for him. Christ, they'd barely been twenty.

She'd grown up a lot since then. And had accomplished even more.

Sitting through his wedding while he made vows of lasting love and fidelity didn't have to be painful. So why was she dreading it? Seeing all those faces. His family. Old mutual friends whom had parted ways, staying in his camp instead of hers. Like the division of assets in a complicated divorce.

One got the house and the air miles while the other kept the savings and vacation property in Spain...

Turning away from her reflection, Priya brushed her length of dark hair over her shoulder and it fell in a pin-straight drop, grazing the center of her back. She crossed the length of the luxurious suite, all charming, rustic wood offset with the best of modern décor, to stand before the high wall of windows overlooking the glowing quaint village of Villas-sur-Ollon as a light snow fell. Thick, lazy flakes that floated and drifted prettily on the still breeze.