Change (Finding Anna Book 5)

by Sherri Hayes

  I waited until the others had vacated the room before gathering Brianna in my arms. She stirred briefly, saw it was me, smiled, and then laid her head on my shoulder with a sigh. As I was heading out the door, Logan came down the stairs. “I’ll call you tomorrow once I talk to Lily and find out what happened.”

  “We’re going to Richard and Diane’s around noon.”

  He nodded and locked up behind me.

  Brianna didn’t stir again until I took her out of the car. Her eyes fluttered open. “Sir?”

  “Shh. We’re at the condo. It’s late. We’ll talk tomorrow.”

  She yawned. “Okay.”

  I removed her clothing and helped her into bed. When she hadn’t woken on the ride home or on the elevator ride, I’d thought maybe she’d indulged in some alcohol, but I didn’t smell any on her breath.

  “Sir?” she mumbled as I laid down beside her.

  “Yes?”

  “I don’t like loud music.” Then she rolled over to her side and fell back to sleep within seconds.

  I chuckled, turned off the light, and closed my eyes. Whatever had happened, we’d deal with it tomorrow. Right now, we both needed sleep.

  For the first time in a week, Brianna slept through the entire night. “Good morning,” I said when I noticed she was awake.

  “Good morning.” She yawned. “What time is it?”

  “A little after nine. I let you sleep in since I didn’t know what time you, Lily, and Tess fell asleep.”

  “I don’t know either. We were talking, and then I started getting tired, so I closed my eyes.”

  I nodded. “Logan and I found all three of you passed out on the couch with two empty bottles of wine nearby.”

  She knew what I was asking. “Lily and Tess drank them. And some shots.”

  I raised an eyebrow at that. “Lily drank shots?”

  Brianna nodded. “She was really upset.”

  Lily was not one to drink shots. She preferred cocktails and wine. “What happened?”

  As soon as I asked the question, Brianna averted her eyes and began twisting her hands in her lap. I knew I wasn’t going to like whatever it was she was about to tell me.

  “Can I go to the bathroom first?” she asked.

  I was tempted to say no, but I nodded. “Go, and then join me in the living room. I want to know what happened last night before we sit down to breakfast.”

  “Yes, Sir.”

  Turning on my heel, I left her to take care of business and freshen up before having our talk. I was tempted to call Logan and see if he’d spoken with Lily yet, but I’d rather get the story from Brianna first.

  I was sitting in my chair waiting for her when she walked out of our bedroom. She’d thrown on a pair of yoga pants and a T-shirt. I could tell by the way she was carrying herself that she was dreading what was to come, but I had no idea if that was because she’d done something she knew I’d be upset about or that something else had happened. Given Brianna was a good girl, my bet was on the latter.

  That, and the fact that Bridget wasn’t passed out in the living room last night with the rest of them.

  Brianna climbed into my lap, but she didn’t rest her head on my shoulder like she did when we were chatting about our day or life in general. She sat up, hands in her lap. I decided to cut to the chase. “What happened last night?”

  “Lily had arranged for us to be in the VIP area so we could get away from the crowds. I was sitting there by myself, but then Tess came and asked me if I wanted to dance with her in the VIP area, so I didn’t have to be with everyone else.” She glanced up at me, and then back down. “I tried to dance with Lily on the dance floor with everyone else, but it was too much. A man tried to get me to dance with me. He held onto my hips and . . . and I froze.”

  As much as I didn’t like the thought of another man’s hands on her, I also understood how those types of clubs worked. “What happened?”

  “Lily saw and stepped in. I went back to the VIP area after that.”

  While I was glad she’d shared that with me, it didn’t explain Lily’s reaction. “What else?”

  “Tess came back, and she convinced me to dance with her. We stayed in the roped off area and danced by ourselves.”

  The muscles in her shoulders tensed and I knew something was coming, but I didn’t know what.

  “When we went back to our table to sit down, I reached for my water. Tess stopped me.”

  I turned her chin, so she was looking at me. “Go on.”

  “There was something in my water.”

  “Define ‘something’.”

  “I don’t know,” she whispered. “It gave the water a yellow tint. Tess had the server get me another water.”

  It didn’t take me long to conclude Lily must have realized. I knew how VIP sections at clubs worked. If you were on the list of VIPs, then you didn’t get into the area. There were only four members of their party, so no one else would have been let in besides employees. “Did you all confront Bridget?”

  Brianna tried to avert her eyes again, but I tightened my hold on her chin and she refocused on me. “Lily did. She never told us what she said to her, but we left the club shortly after that. Lily drank two shots as soon as we got to her house. She said Bridget was no longer in the wedding.”

  Well, that was good news. “You didn’t drink any of the tainted water?”

  She shook her head. “No. It wasn’t yellow before we started dancing.”

  Most drugs people slipped in drinks were colorless. That’s why they were so hard to detect and often went unnoticed by the victim until they started feeling the effects.

  I released her chin and reached for the phone and dialed Logan. He answered on the first ring. I got right to the point. “Did Lily tell you what happened.”

  “Yes. Is Brianna okay?” he asked.

  “Yes. Thanks to Tess.” I paused. “I wish we knew what was in the water and that she put it there.”

  “Well, the what might be doable,” Logan said. “I called my friend who owns the club, and he said the server brought the tainted glass to him last night and he took a sample. He said they do that anytime something like that is brought to their attention, in case police end up getting involved.”

  “Does he have a way to find out what it is?” If he didn’t, I could find someone.

  “Yeah. He has a friend that can test it for the common street drugs. I told him to go ahead. Even if we can’t nail Bridget, I want to know what it was.”

  “Agreed.” Then I thought of something. “Does your friend have cameras in the club?” Who knows, they might get lucky and have caught her on tape.

  “He does, but not from every angle. I can have him check, but I doubt it’s going to prove anything. At least, not legally.”

  “Let me know once he finds out what it was.”

  I disconnected the call and immediately dialed my lawyer, Oscar.

  He answered on the third ring. “It’s Sunday, you know. Some of us like to take a day off now and then.”

  “Someone spiked Brianna’s drink last night at a club,” I said, getting right to the point.

  His tone changed immediately. “What do you need me to do?”

  “We think Bridget, a friend of Lily’s, is responsible. We haven’t found any evidence to prove it yet, but we’re working on it.” I let that sink in before I continued. “I want to find out everything I can about this woman and if she has any history of doing this kind of thing. Lily’s kicked her out of her wedding, but something tells me she isn’t just going to go away quietly.”

  “I’ll call my guy as soon as we hang up and let you know as soon as he has something.”

  “Thanks, Oscar.”

  Once I ended the called, I turned my attention back to Brianna who was still sitting in my lap. She looked guilty for some reason.

  “Talk to me, sweetheart. What’s wrong?”

  She looked up at me through her lashes. “I keep thinking this never would have happ
ened if Lily hadn’t asked me to be in her wedding. If she’d asked someone normal, then Bridget wouldn’t have reacted the way she did, and Lily wouldn’t have lost a bridesmaid a week before her wedding.”

  “You didn’t do anything wrong. This is all on Bridget. She’s been trouble since we met her the first time you went dress shopping. None of this is your fault.”

  “Tess and Lily said the same thing.”

  I tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “They’re both very smart ladies.”

  Brianna’s lips began to pull up with a hint of a smile.

  Cupping the back of her head, I pulled her in for a kiss. “How about some breakfast. I’m starving.”

  This time I got a genuine smile out of her. “Yes, Sir.”

  Chapter 30

  Brianna

  It was the day of the wedding and I was doing my best not to panic. Again.

  This happened every time I experienced something new. Both Stephan and Dr. Katlin said it was normal, but that didn’t make it any easier. Or make me feel less out of place.

  Last night, we’d all met at the barn where the wedding would take place. Using the term barn was misleading. Sure, on the outside it had the shape of a barn and the inside was big and open with high ceilings, but that was where the similarities to a shelter normally meant for animals stopped.

  There were crystal chandeliers hanging from the ceiling and the entire floor was covered in a wood planking that had been polished to a high shine. Tables were set up in the center with a raised platform along the back wall. It was beautiful and I could see why Lily picked it.

  The wedding wasn’t until three-thirty in the afternoon, but we had to be there early to start getting ready. Stephan, as the best man, had to make sure everything and everyone was where they were supposed to be . . . including the two security guys Stephan hired to cover the entrance.

  Lily was already there when we arrived. “Good. You’re here,” she said as soon as she saw me. “You can help distract me.”

  “What’s wrong?” I asked as she dragged me into a side room. I looked over my shoulder at Stephan as she pulled me away.

  “Go easy on her, Lily,” he called before Lily shut the door, separating us.

  She led me over to a huge mirror that was surrounded by lights. “Nothing’s wrong,” she said, encouraging me to sit in the chair. “Not yet anyway.”

  I glanced up at her, confused.

  “I just want everything to be perfect, that’s all.”

  “And you’re afraid something will go wrong?” I asked.

  She blew out a breath. “I don’t know. But I can’t be out there coordinating things like I usually do at big events, and it’s driving me crazy.”

  That made sense. Lily wasn’t used to giving up control . . . unless it was to Logan. She was always making sure everything was just right. And she was great at it.

  “Stephan and Logan will take care of anything that comes up.” Although Stephan wasn’t as good at organizing events as Lily, he was good at fixing things. If something came up, he’d figure it out.

  She sighed. “I know. And I’m trying not to freak out, but I’ve waited so long for this day and I don’t want anything to go wrong.”

  I smiled at her in the mirror and placed a hand over hers. “It won’t.”

  She grinned back at me. “You ready for me to start on your hair and make-up?”

  For the next hour, she pinned my hair back, put several creams on my face, then buffed and polished it. At noon, Tess joined us and a woman that worked there brought us some lunch. The three of us sat around talking. I was a lot more relaxed with Bridget gone.

  During the rehearsal the night before, they’d had to do some rearranging since there were now only two people in the bride's party and three in the groom’s. It was decided that Caleb and Michael would both walk me down the aisle after the ceremony was over.

  I couldn't help but chuckle as I remembered Stephan telling Caleb that if he laid one inappropriate hand on me that he’d told me to kick him in the balls. Caleb had gone pale. He looked at me as if assessing whether Stephan was telling the truth.

  He was. We’d had a long conversation Thursday night, going over everything having to do with the wedding. He’d ended the conversation by saying if Caleb, or anyone else, touched me inappropriately or cornered me that I was to use my self-defense training.

  Caleb had been on his best behavior after that. Not that he was doing anything before that, really, but he was a lot more cautious afterward.

  Once lunch was over, Lily finished my makeup and went to work on Tess. “You know, we’re supposed to be doing this to you. Not the other way around,” Tess said.

  Lily pinned Tess’s hair back away from her face and reached for her supplies. “Some traditions are meant to be broken.”

  Everyone, including Lily, was ready to go, except for our dresses by two-thirty. We all took turns in the adjoining bathroom before getting into our dresses. While going to the bathroom wouldn’t be all that difficult in our bridesmaid dresses, Lily’s was another story.

  At three fifteen, there was a knock on the door. “Who is it?” Tess asked.

  “Stephan.”

  My heart skipped a beat at the sound of his voice.

  Tess opened the door and let him in the room.

  His gaze fell on me and I went to him. I couldn’t help it.

  He skimmed his thumb down the side of my face, careful not to undo the work Lily had done on my face or hair. “You look beautiful, sweetheart.”

  “Is there a problem?” Lily asked, coming to stand beside me.

  “No. Everything’s ready to go and the last guests are being seated as we speak.”

  Lily took a deep breath. I’d never seen her so nervous, although I guess it made sense. This was her big day, after all.

  “You ladies all set?” he asked.

  “Yes,” Tess said from my other side. “Let’s get this show on the road and put Lily out of her misery.”

  Stephan chuckled. “All right. I’ll let the minster know we’re good to go.” Then he looked at me. “I’ll see you in a few minutes.”

  “Wow.” Tess gathered up our bouquets and handed them to each of us. “I’m not sure how you two got so lucky, but I need some of it. All the guys I date are duds.”

  Lily looked over at me but didn’t say anything.

  We did a last check of our make-up, and then it was time to go.

  The walk from the room we’d been getting ready in and the main room where the ceremony would take place wasn’t far. As soon as we stepped out of the dressing room, I could hear the music playing. It got louder the closer we came.

  As the volume increased, so did my nerves. I held tight to the bouquet in my hands even as sweat coated my palms.

  I can do this, I told myself over and over again. Stephan was standing beside Logan at the far end of the room. I was safe and I was with our friends. Everything was fine.

  A hand touched my arm before I became visible to the guests. I jumped a little and turned to see Lily looking at me with concern. “Are you doing okay?” she asked.

  I decided to be honest. “Yes. Just nervous. Once I see Stephan, I’ll be okay.”

  She nodded.

  Taking a deep breath, I took the final steps that would lead me into the main room. Everyone turned to stare at me, but I tuned them out and found Stephan standing at the back next to Logan.

  He never took his eyes off me as I walked down the makeshift aisle. And when I finally reached the front to take my place on Lily’s side of the stage, he held my gaze for a long moment and I could see the pride in his eyes.

  Tess came to stand next to me, and then the music changed, and everyone turned to watch Lily walk down the aisle. Like me, she didn’t take her eyes off her man as she walked. And when she put her hand in his and he led her to stand in front of the minister, a warmth spread through my chest all the way down to my toes.

  My nerves fell away as I listened to
the words of the ceremony. Logan turned to Stephan and Stephan handed him the rings. Lily beamed as Logan slid the ring on her finger.

  When it was finally time for the groom to kiss the bride, Logan didn’t hold back. He pulled Lily into his arms, cupping the back of her head, and gave her a kiss that not only sealed their union, but staked his claim as well.

  Several people in the audience were chuckling by the time they separated, including the minister. “And now, it is my joy to present to you for the first time, Mr. and Mrs. Logan Mattson.”

  Logan led Lily down the aisle. Then, Stephan offered his arm to Tess. Once they were on their way, Michael and Caleb got on either side of me and each held out an arm for me to take.

  We reached the back of the room and I released Michael and Caleb’s arms. It was over. I’d made it through without having a panic attack.

  Stephan

  By the time I’d gotten to the back with Tess, Logan already had Lily gathered up in another kiss. “You know you’ll have plenty of time for that later, right?” I teased him.

  He laughed and set her feet back down on the floor. “Yes, but why wait?”

  I smiled and shook my head, turning to watch Brianna make her way toward me. She was smiling, but I could tell by the way her eyes were darting around that she was nervous. It was unavoidable given how anxious she was around crowds. She’d done great today and for the remainder of the evening she’d be by my side. The hard part was over.

  Caleb kept his hands where they were supposed to be, and when the three reached us, Brianna released them and came straight to me. I pulled her into my arms. “You did great, sweetheart.”

  She smiled—this one not tainted by fear or uncertainty.

  With the ceremony over, people began to move around in the background. Logan and Lily made their way back to the main room to greet their guests and allow the attendees to congratulate them.

  “What do we do now?” Brianna asked.

  “I’m gonna go check on the food,” Tess said, then looked at Stephan. “Can you make sure the band is good to go?”