Chapter Three

I planned Nathan's birthday party carefully, exactly like in the original.

The venue was the ballroom of a hotel on Central Park South. All the pomp and ceremony, nothing left out.

On the day of the party, I did my makeup perfectly, put on four-inch heels, and stood at the door to greet the guests.

I turned around specially to double-check.

The six-tier birthday cake and the wine table were exactly where they were supposed to be. The distance between them was just right.

Perfect.

Before long, I heard a sweet, sugary little voice.

"Nathan! Do you like my dress? It's the same color as your tie!"

Sienna was wearing a short navy strapless cocktail dress. She trotted over and threw herself into Nathan's arms, drawing every eye in the room.

"How old are you? Still acting like a baby." Nathan laughed and tapped her nose, letting her hang affectionately on his arm.

The way she carried herself, you'd think she was the hostess tonight.

"Oh! I forgot to say hi to my sister-in-law. Hi there!" She turned to me with a sweet smile. "Thank you for throwing Nathan such a big party. It must have been so much work. You poor thing."

I didn't get angry. I just folded my arms with a smile and looked her up and down a couple of times.

"Why are you looking at me like that? Did I say something wrong?" Sienna's mouth turned down. She looked the picture of innocence.

Nathan was about to speak up for her, but I cut him off. "Of course not. I just think your dress is really pretty. It suits you."

Too bad you're planning to throw it into the cake.

A soft voice spoke behind me. "Blair."

I turned. It was Lucas.

Nathan's face froze. "You invited him?"

"Yeah. Is that a problem?"

I gave him a brilliant smile and, right in front of Nathan and Sienna, threw my arms wide and gave Lucas a big hug. Then I went up on my toes and touched my cheek to each side of his face.

A hand clamped around my wrist instantly.

Someone yanked me back several steps, hard.

All of Nathan's ease from a moment ago was gone. His brows were knotted tight. "Blair, what are you doing?"

I was baffled. "What do you mean, what am I doing?"

"Hugging and hanging all over another man right in front of me, and you still say there's nothing between you? You—"

"That's enough, Nathan." I lowered my voice and snapped at him. "Can you not have such a dirty mind? That's just how Lucas greets people—he's used to it from Europe. And this is your birthday party. Do you really want to make a scene here, of all places?"

The jab stopped Nathan cold.

His lips trembled, and his voice dropped. "I have a dirty mind? Show me one man who could stand watching his wife be all over somebody else. You don't care how I feel at all?"

"What's the big deal?" I let out a little laugh and glanced at Sienna's hand on his arm. "If that's how you're going to be, aren't you and her hanging all over each other right in front of me? Did I say anything?"

Nathan stopped.

After a long moment, he awkwardly peeled Sienna's hand off. "That's different. Sienna sees me as a brother."

"And I see Lucas as a brother. So isn't it the same thing?"

Nathan had nothing to say to that.

Sienna saw her chance and sidled back up, swinging Nathan's arm and putting on a baby voice. "Don't be mad, Nathan. She was only saying hi. I'm sure she wouldn't do anything with another man."

There was a barb in it, but I just went along. "See? Even Sienna's more mature than you. I really don't know what your problem is."

She clearly hadn't expected me to run with it. Sienna stalled out.

Nathan looked even more unhappy.

He gave me a heavy look, shook Sienna's hand off, and walked away without a word.

Gotcha.

The moment Nathan was gone, Sienna dropped the act.

She leaned in close to my ear and said, so softly only the two of us could hear:

"I thought you must have some special trick to keep Nathan's heart. Turns out you're nothing special. So tell me—who do you think Nathan cares about more? You, or me?"

I laughed lightly. "Do I even have to guess? He cares about me a lot. Look—I say hi to someone and he gets that jealous. What can you do?"

Sienna's smile twisted with rage. She gritted her teeth. "Is that right? Then we'll see in a little while."

With that, she lifted her skirt and went after Nathan.

Lucas stepped up beside me and lowered his voice. "You okay?"

"Fine." I picked up a glass of red wine and swirled it gently. "The five feet between the cake and the wine table—you've got it memorized?"

Lucas looked down at his hands and smiled. "Don't worry. A pianist knows better than anyone what he can't afford to hurt."

I clinked my glass against his.

"Good. The show's about to start."