Page 79 of Mr. Scandalous

“How do you know?”

“For one thing, he’s married to hisSex and the SingleGuyimage.”

“Did he tell you he didn’t want to see you again?”

“He didn’t have to.”

Remembering how Alec had sped away, leaving her on the curb outside Wickedly Wonderful brought fresh pain to tighten her chest.

“So it really is over.”

“Ka-put. Finished. Done.”

“Not the slightest chance you could work it out?” Jayne furrowed her brow.

“None.”

“Dammit,” Jayne swore and plunked down in a chair beside the worktable. “Now I’m going to have to get a tattoo.”

Eden stopped what she was doing and glanced at Jayne. “What on earth are you talking about?”

“I lost a wager to Ashley.”

“A wager?”

“I bet her that Sarah Armstrong and I could make a match between you and Alec.”

“Excuse me?” Eden sank her hands on her hips. “What did you just say?”

“Sarah sent Alec into the boutique with the hopes you two would spark and, boy, did you.”

“This whole thing was a setup?” Her voice came out high and reedy.

“And then I got Ashley to call in sick the day of Jill and Randy’s wedding shower so you would have to go out to Connecticut to deliver the basket.”

“You were behind that?” Eden clenched her hands into fists. Jayne was supposed to be her friend. How could she have been so manipulative?

“Now don’t get upset, please. You have to know we both had your best interests at heart. Sarah realized Alec wasn’t really as dedicated to bachelorhood as he claimed and all he needed was to meet the right woman. While I hated seeing you so cloistered because of those scars. I knew if anyone could see past your physical imperfections, it was Alec.”

“Well, that’s where you were wrong,” Eden said, surprised to hear such bitterness in her voice. “He did turn away from me because of the scars.”

“No!” Jayne looked appalled.

“Yes. In fact, he couldn’t get away from me fast enough after I finally let him see me completely naked.”

Jayne sucked in a deep breath. “Oh, Eden, I’m so sorry. I never planned for you to get hurt. All Sarah and I wanted was for you guys to be happy.”

“Your heart might have been in the right place, Jayne, but Ididget hurt.”

And then the tears she’d been denying for two weeks burst forth in a torrent and she found herself enveloped in Jayne’s comforting arms.

“Shh. There, there. It’ll be all right.”

The severity of the sobs racking her body told her she hadn’t fully dealt with what had happened. She’d stayed busy and swept her emotions under the rug. She would survive this. She would forget about Alec. But in the meantime, she needed to get as far away from Manhattan and the painful memories as she could get.

* * *

Alec returnedfrom Norway the following Monday. He trudged into the office, still trying to get his mind around the notion that Uncle Mac was getting married.

---