Page 19 of Something New

"I'll pay you a thousand dollars to throw that piece of shit away," Anna grumbled.

"I think it would look lovely in your house, Anna," Delaney replied.

Anna glared at her. "Maybe you should display it for your next Fine Home magazine spread. Oh wait, they don't do apartments."

Delaney’s face burned with anger, and Anna smirked, waiting for the explosion. God, where was her spirit? She missed her old friend, even if she was still pissed about being tossed aside.

Wyatt, as usual, was the peacemaker, smoothing Anna’s rough edges and making everything nice. "Anna, it would be perfect on the set of your show, don't you think?"

The conversation went downhill from there as voices rose and tempers flared. Matthew slammed his hand on the table, cutting everyone off mid-sentence. They all looked at him.

"You all agreed to be in the wedding. This is part of your duties." Matthew scanned the table, resting a firm gaze on each person. Satisfied that everyone agreed, he nodded to Caroline.

"Yes, Dad," Ethan grinned. Mathew shot him the one-finger salute.

Caroline smiled with a forced expression. "Thank you. The grand prize is a thousand dollars and the decision of who gets the lamp. Now, in the past, the rule was you had to display the lamp in your house for the entire year. Back then, it was a source of pride. Now, well, we can all admit it's a bit overdone. As this will be the last year for the Whitby fall challenge, you may dispose of the lamp as you see fit."

She walked around the table, laying a piece of paper and an envelope at each woman's place. "This event is a scavenger hunt. Each team has a list of items you need to get, along with an allotted budget. You must produce a receipt for everything on your list, except one thing, and you cannot go over your budget. Oh, and no cars. You have until ten tonight. Grady, I assigned you with Brigid. Any questions?"

"Why am I stuck with Grady?" Brigid asked.

"Because you're in the wedding together, and you need a partner." Matthew spoke up. "Consider this event a way to get to know each other."

"I think I know him well enough already," she grumbled.

Anna’s brow rose. Well, that was interesting. She hadn’t seen much of Brigid or Grady, both seeming to have something better to do the whole time they were here, Brigid on a legal case and Grady on a renovation project. But it seemed Brigid and Grady had a little history, like everyone else. It seemed rumors of matchmaking were true and a strong part of this reunion.

"Gee thanks, darlin'. I feel all warm and fuzzy inside." Grady drawled, but he looked hurt by her words. Trouble in paradise.

"Shut up, Grady," Matthew said mildly.

Delaney held up her list and raised her hand. "Do we all have the same items?"

"No. I selected your items carefully—items or tasks that mean something to you or said something about you. You cannot use anything you brought with you, and you must prove the provenance of every item. You are allowed one item that’s not paid for but must prove that you got it here on the island tonight. A picture or video will suffice as proof."

For the first time in a long time, excitement burned in Anna. She had always been ultra-competitive to where her family refused to play any sports or games with her. But this was a way to win a little money and get some payback, and she almost bounced in her seat, eager to be off. It was almost worth it to work with Wyatt for the night. She caught Wyatt’s eyes and saw the same gleam of rivalry in them. This was why they were such excellent partners. They accepted each other’s drive to win and reveled in it. Nothing like a challenge to kick some ass and forget her troubles for a while.

"Wait. How are we going to figure out who wins? A point per item, right? But who was in the lead before?" Ethan asked.

She frowned and consulted her paper. "Um, I think it was Ethan and Delaney. But Anna and Wyatt were close behind, by a couple of points."

Anna scowled. She had forgotten that Ethan and Delaney had been almost as good a team as her and Wyatt. "You're going down, Winters."

Delaney narrowed her eyes. "You've never beaten me yet, Costado."

"We'll see."

"Save the trash talk for the competition. Time's ticking." Ethan held up his wrist with his watch displayed.

"Exactly. Are you all ready?" Caroline asked.

Delaney glanced at the other girls, who nodded. "Not quite. We assumed your plans when we saw this thing. So, we have our own challenge for you." She pulled a folded sheet out of her pocket. "Here is your list, for you and Matthew."

Matthew was already shaking his head, a frown clear. "I have work to do. I don't have time for this."

Brigid slid the legal pad across the table. "If I can’t work, you can’t either. It's your wedding week too, Matt. No excuses."

Caroline scowled as she scanned the list. Anna grinned. Delaney had come up with this idea, sensing that Caroline and Matthew were holding them out of the group activities and needed this as much as they did. Besides, it wasn’t as much fun if only some of them were taking part. "We're not letting you off the hook."

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