Page 68 of How to Get Even

All the girls replied with a strong and very definitive, ‘No.’

Astrid looked awful. Bella knew that the guilt over her part in instigating his downfall was eating at her, but how could she try to assuage it when her own guilt was an iceberg-sized wedge pressing on her chest?

God, Bella was unspeakably thankful for them. The girls’ support had been near constant since they’d discovered Chase’s ‘innocence’.

‘I mean, I’m not sure he’s entirely innocent, but certainly less so than we’d thought and planned for,’Sienna had conceded.

There was, the girls were beginning to discover, mitigating circumstances, degrees of guilt and therefore varying appropriateness of vengeance, all of which needed recalibration in Chase’s case.

But they were all in firm agreement that he needed rescuing from their overly successful serving ofjust desserts,and that a serious act of redemption in the public’s eye needed to happen sooner rather than later.

‘It has to be natural. It has to come from him, otherwise he’ll sulk and look even more like an ass,’ Bella had told the girls, completely missing the way they smiled when she unconsciously cursed.

‘What about money? Can’t Tej throw some money at something?’ Sienna suggested.

‘I’m not sure that’s going to help,’ Paige pointed out.

‘I mean, like, some good-will charity thing.’

Astrid scrunched her nose. ‘But that’s Tej, not Chase.’

‘We’re already on that. I have the PR team securing tickets to the Harrison’s charity gala.’

Appropriate whistles, wows and awe were produced by the girls.

‘It’s a start, but it’s not enough.’

‘It needs to be about him.’

‘But also not something he thinks is about him. He’s less tetchy when he’s doing things for other people.’

I want people to come in and have the same look on their faces as you did when you came in.

Chase, who was secretly working with Sascha. Mentoring.

‘Everyone loves kids,’ Bella said.

‘Yes, well. Most people,’ Astrid replied. ‘You’re not going to have him adopt a kid for sympathy?’ she asked sceptically.

‘What? No,’ Bella replied, half outraged.

‘Well, it’s just that since, you know, you went all Jane Bond on us?—’

‘More like Bellafeld,’ Sienna interrupted with a laugh.

‘Hey!’

‘Sorry,’ Sienna mumbled.

‘We’re just trying to pull you back from the dark side,’ Astrid insisted.

‘I wasn’t that bad!’ Bella cried out in defence.

‘No, you weren’t. You were thatgood,’ Paige insisted unhelpfully. ‘But you were talking about children.’

‘Children. New Yorkers love nothing more than a gruff man that’s good with kids.’

‘Who doesn’t?’ asked Sienna like anyone who didn’t would be utterly unreasonable.

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