My Brother's Girl

16| The Birthday Dinner

"One second!" I grabbed my cell phone before I sprayed a little perfume on and walked over to answer it. I was expecting Logan to be there. "Wyatt?"

His lips parted slightly as his eyes took in my appearance. He looked over my body from head to toe and back again. Once his eyes met mine, I saw a flicker of that same heated look. "Wow. You look amazing." He flashed me an arrogant smile. "Glad I made you get the dress?"

I laughed lightly and looked down at the new garment. "Yes. I like it a lot."

When I looked back up at him, his expression was affectionate. He reached his hand out and stroked the back of his knuckles against my cheek. "Happy birthday, Lia."

I felt my cheeks heat under his touch. "Thank you."

All too soon, his hand fell. I felt the absence of his touch deep inside me, and I hated it.

"Ready?" he asked as he held out his arm for me.

I smiled and linked my arm in his. "Yes. Let's go." As we started down the long hallway, I couldn't help but ask what's been on my mind since the night before. "Why didn't you come home last night?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I just...didn't hear you come home. I was curious why you didn't."

He was quiet for a moment. Too quiet. Oh, God. He slept with her. He had to have. What other reason was there for him to not answer me? When we finally got to the ground floor, we stopped just shy of the dining room. He turned towards me and seemed to have trouble meeting my gaze.

"Lia, I--"

"SURPRISE!"

Wyatt and I both jumped at the loud exclamation. People came pouring out from hiding. They were clapping and wishing me a happy birthday. Most of them I didn't even know. I reached for Wyatt's hand and squeezed it as I felt my anxiety rising.

"There's the birthday girl!" Logan said with a giant smile. He walked over to me and pulled me in for a hug; forcing me to let go of Wyatt's hand. "So, what do you think?"

My eyes darted from one stranger's face to another. "Logan, who the hell are these people?"

He looked away sheepishly. "Most of them are my family members. Since we got engaged, I thought it would be a good idea to have a surprise birthday/engagement party. Pretty clever, huh?" He frowned as he looked at my dress. "That's different. Is it new?"

Different? I have never felt so self-conscious in my life. I felt my heart starting to race. I felt the dizziness starting to creep up on me. Oh, God... "You're right," I managed to say with a calm voice. "I'm going to go change real quick. Tell my guests I'll be right down. Okay?"

I didn't wait for an answer. I turned and ran as fast as my high heels would let me. I faintly heard someone calling me as I walked down the long hallway to my room. I reached for the zipper at the back of my dress. I needed to get this damn thing off.

"Lia?"

I barely heard Wyatt's voice through my door. But I needed him. "Wyatt! Help me!"

He came in immediately and frowned when he saw me struggling with the zipper. "What are you--"

"Get it off of me, Wyatt. Take the dress off. Now!"

He tried to work the zipper and didn't have any luck. I had my hands covering my face the whole time as I tried to control my breathing.

"Fucking zipper," I heard him mumble before I heard the sound of fabric tearing. "Okay, lower your hands."

I did as he said and the dress fell to the floor. I stepped out of it and started pacing around the room. I didn't care that I was in my panties and bra. I felt like I was going to hyperventilate.