Page 19 of Deadly Secrets

My father didn’t sound particularly excited about his upcoming wedding. I kept wondering why the hell he proposed to her, especially considering how his marriage with my mom ended. By now, I would have thought he’d hate the idea of “till death do us part.” They managed to achieve a civilized co-parenting arrangement a year after my mom filed for divorce, but the moment I turned eighteen, she limited her interactions with my father as much as she could.

“I saw Sienna last night.” I didn’t know why the words came out of my mouth like vomit. The silence stretched for a few seconds, which seemed like an eternity.

“Sienna Moore?” he asked.

“Yes. She’s studying at Stanford, and I bumped into her at a party.”

“I don’t have time to hear about your little reunion. Don’t forget to send the info to Claudia.” And with that, he hung up. It wasn’t like I was going to tell him shit, but the way he ended our conversation left me seething, mainly because he was one of the reasons Sienna and I never saw each other again after that summer.

Chapter 9. A BIRTHDAY INVITATION

(Sienna)

My phone pinged with an incoming text from Noah.

Noah

I don’t usually apologize for other people’s behavior, but Ander was an asshole last night, and I’m sorry.

If you’re in the mood for me to do some groveling on his behalf, I have a few ideas in mind ;)

Do you have any plans for today?

“Is that Noah?” Maggie asked, widening her big blue eyes and taking a sip of her pumpkin spice latte. The Starbucks on campus was just a mere five-minute stroll from Aster Hall, and I prayed that my love for coffee, especially lattes, wouldn’t transform into a crippling addiction before I got my degree.

“Yes. He’s asking me if I have any plans today, but I’m not sure I should see him again, considering he’s friends with Ander. I don’t want things to get complicated.”

I didn’t know why Ander was such a dick to me last night.

He was clearly not happy to see me, and the more I tried to think about why, the less it made any sense. When I arrived at Rubin, I wrote to him a couple of times, excitedly sharing stories about my classes and telling him about Sarah. However, disappointingly, he never responded to any of my letters. If anyone had the right to feel angry, it was me. I’d believed him to be one of my closest friends, my best friend, yet the moment I left Port Chester, he chose to ignore me completely.

“Look, based on the little you’ve told me today, I can see you have a history with Ander, but Noah clearly likes you, and you like him, right? He’s the one who should worry about Ander, not you. You don’t owe Ander anything, and if Noah texts you, it’s because he doesn’t care or has his friend’s blessing. So please, text him back, and when you fuck him, call me, and tell me all the sordid details.”

I couldn’t hide my smile. Maggie had a point. I didn’t owe Ander a thing, and my undeniable chemistry with Noah was apparent. Last night when he whispered in my ear about wanting to rip my dress off, my pussy throbbed between my legs.

“Okay, I’ll text him, I promise. Just not today. Our classes start tomorrow, and I would rather have a drama-free Sunday.”

By the time I reached my dorm, it was already almost two o’clock. However, I wasn’t hungry, so I changed into something cozy and switched on my laptop. When I opened my email account, I saw an email from Peter. He’d sent me the first draft of the press release about becoming the major shareholder of Cos Pharmaceuticals.

RE: Press release – Miss Moore

Peter Lawrence

To

Cc

Dear Sienna,

Please find below the text the PR department drafted for the press release. I have attached a picture of you to accompany the statement. The press release will be published on the website on Friday, September 20th, so I would appreciate it if you could send back your suggested changes before the end of business on Tuesday.

Best wishes,

Peter

PS I hope you’re all settled and enjoying your time in college. I will call you once the announcement has been published.

Friday, September 20th – 10:00 a.m.

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