Page 117 of I Shouldn't Feel This Way

“I thought this was supposed to be a casual shindig sort of thing,” I said.

“Well, I just thought it would be fun if we dressed up a little! Don’t you love getting all dolled up? I’m sure you want to impress Ryan.”

Nope, not Ryan.

“Besides,” she continued, “you only get to celebrate your eighteenth birthday one time, so you might as well look fabulous while you’re doing it!” My stepmom winked at me while I just stood there with no expression.

“I’m going to my room now.” I started down the hall.

“Make sure that your friend knows about the dress code!” Vanessa hollered.

Ugh, how embarrassing.This was supposed to be a simple dinner, not line up in front of the Hunter residence and wait for Barbie bouncer Vanessa to enforce a dress code.

Feeling defeated, I sighed and sent Ryan a text.

****

After several dress changes, my stepmom finally approved of my evening attire. I wore a short black cocktail dress that dipped low at the back in a V. My hair was styled in bouncing, wavy curls around my shoulders, and I matched my ensemble with a pair of black peep-toe pumps. Vanessa looked ridiculously slutty in her leopard-print mini dress. It was so damn tight I was convinced her boobs would pop out at any second. That would have been a mortifying wardrobe malfunction (not that I cared).

Ryan was the first to arrive. Everyone else sort of rushed in shortly afterwards. A total of eight guests were over for dinner that evening (Vienna included). Anna and Teddy Deveraux were Vanessa’s friends, and I had met Lewis Crawford before, but I hadn’t met his wife, Chelsea. They had a son and daughter who were my age, Max and Melanie. My stepmom had also invited her trainer, Tyrese Kelley. She probably wanted to play matchmaker for Vienna, since he was single and a definite hot-bod.

Ryan looked great that night, I must admit. I’m pretty sure Melanie was crushing on him, judging by the way she kept flirting with him all through the evening. I didn’t mind, though. It wasn’t Ryan I felt territorial over—it was Noah.

Dinner conversation wasn’t all that interesting. Whoever that chef was, he really knew his gourmet cooking. He served up these amazing Greek lamb skewers with parmesan-roasted potatoes and olives as the main course. Everything was going smoothly, except that Noah kept giving Ryan the third degree, putting him on the spot more than once. I was thankful when Vanessa intervened and turned the focus onto the other guests. Anna and Teddy had their firstborn on the way, and this sparked my stepmom’s maternal instincts. She wouldn’t shut up about how many times she and Noah had tried to get pregnant. The sheer thought of him impregnating her terrified me. I didn’t want another brother or sister. Noah and I kept exchanging glances at one another all through dinner. I wasn’t sure what he was thinking, but he didn’t look like he was enjoying himself.

After dessert, we all split off into groups. Ryan, Max, Melanie, and I hung out by the pool and listened to some tunes, while everyone else sat on patio furniture in the glass solarium across from us. Drinking wine and eating fancy finger foods seemed to be the highlight of their evening.

Vanessa had placed paper lanterns all around the edge of the pool, and a string of lights coiled around the columns and ceiling of the solarium. The lighting added a beautiful romantic glow to the atmosphere.

“So, are you two, like, dating?” Melanie asked. She was a cute redhead with freckles and dark green eyes.

Ryan looked at me as I sat on his lap and fed him a strawberry off my plate.

“We’re still trying to figure that out,” he replied, smiling softly. “I just wish she would say yes and be my girlfriend already.”

Melanie blushed. I think she was hoping he would take an interest in her.

Max didn’t look related to his sister. He had this borderline punk/goth style going on. His bottom lip and ears were pierced, and he had dyed his hair black and blue. It was kind of cool.

“Do you guys want to get out of here?” he asked. “I’ve got some weed on me. We could roll a J.” He discreetly pulled out a freezer bag full of marijuana from his pocket.

“Tempting,” said Ryan. “But I don’t think we can sneak away while Aria’s under her dad’s radar.”

So I guess hehadnoticed Noah stealing glances at me.

“Put that stuff away.” Melanie glared at her brother. “You’re going to get us in trouble. The last thing I need is to get grounded again because of your stupid fuck-ups.”

“Chill out, Mel.”

“Sorry the dinner party’s so lame, guys,” I said.

“It’s okay,” Melanie replied. “We’re always forced to go to dinner parties with our parents. At least you two aren’t obnoxious six-year-olds. Normally I end up babysitting annoying little toddlers for the whole evening while our parents ‘party it up.’ They should at least pay me!”

We all laughed with Mel and the convo moved on to music, movies, and our plans after graduation.

Ryan and I were getting pretty cozy with each other, and I was enjoying his company. I couldn’t stop giggling. He was constantly whispering sweet stuff in my ear and charming me. Eventually, I stopped looking over at Noah and focused more on Ryan. But whenever I did look at Noah, his eyes were glued expectantly on me.

“So … will you go out with me next Friday?” Ryan kissed my shoulder.

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