Kate twisted her hands in her lap and stared straight ahead. No one spoke. As Harrison returned with a tray of eggnog, the doorbell rang.

Kate looked startled. “Who could that be?”

Simon shrugged. “Must be someone we know, if security let them past. I’ll go see.”

When he walked back into the room with Sabrina next to him, Blaire almost spit out the eggnog she’d just sipped. Sabrina looked stunning, in a body-hugging black dress that Blaire recognized as a Victoria Beckham, her lips painted a hot pink to emphasize their sexy plumpness. She held a large Neiman Marcus shopping bag.

“Merry Christmas, everyone. I don’t mean to interrupt your Christmas, I just wanted to drop some gifts by on my way to my friend’s house,” Sabrina announced.

Simon gave Kate a plaintive look, and Blaire gripped her glass more tightly. Wow. She had some gall. Interrupting Christmas. And dressed like that?

“Hello, Sabrina,” Kate said flatly. “Please come in.”

Simon, visibly tense, offered her a drink.

“I’d love one,” she said. “You know what I like.”

Kate shot Simon a dirty look, but he was clearly avoiding eye contact with her. Blaire watched as he mixed up a martini. He handed Sabrina the drink, and she took a tiny sip and then put it down on the coffee table, not taking care to make sure it didn’t splash onto the table, which it did.

Kate huffed and stood, blotting up the liquid and placing a napkin under the glass.

Sabrina looked at Kate. “Sorry, Kate. Didn’t mean to wet your table.” Without waiting for her to answer, she walked over to Annabelle.

“Hi, my sweetie, I have a gift for you.”

Her sweetie? Blaire couldn’t believe that Kate was just standing there, saying nothing.

“What is it?” Annabelle asked, smiling at her.

Sabrina handed her a box decorated in green foil, with a red velvet ribbon tied around it.

“Thank you,” Annabelle whispered.

She opened it to reveal a Truly Me American Girl Doll. She had blond curls and brown eyes, like Annabelle.

“She looks like me!” Annabelle said.

“Sabrina, you didn’t need to buy Annabelle a gift,” Kate said, her voice strained.

Sabrina didn’t bother looking up at Kate, but brazenly pushed back a curl from Annabelle’s eyes. “I wanted to. Isn’t she pretty, Annabelle?”

“What a nice gift,” Simon said. “How thoughtful, Sabrina.”

Blaire looked over at him. What a bastard. Parading his mistress right in front of his wife and his father-in-law. It was almost like he was getting a sick kick out of it. Blaire could imagine the two of them laughing about it later. She was going to unmask him, no matter what it took. How dare she play up to Annabelle like that! Blaire wanted to rip the doll out of her hands. The heat rose to her face as indignation and fury filled her.