BEXLEY TURNER

WITH A PLEASURABLE GROAN, I stick my feet in the warm tub of water, bubbles formed on top of it. I glance at Chrissy, who has her head against the back of the spa chair while the manicurist paints her fingernails.

"What color would you like, ma'am?" The lady that's going to do my nails asks as she looks at me in question.

"I'd like matte black, please," I respond, my head snapping towards Chrissy when she releases a laugh. "What?"

"Nothing, it's just that it's such a Bexley color," she shrugs and grabs a magazine off of the table next to her with her free, unoccupied hand.

"There is no such thing and it goes with my dress for the wedding," I argue and place my hand on the nail tech's so she can paint my bare nails. "That's like saying a notebook is a Chrissy thing."

"Notebooks are pretty nice," she shrugs, a grin on her painted, bright red lips.

"Shut up," I laugh, smacking her lightly with a magazine.

For the wedding that's coming up in the near week, Chrissy decided on light blue and gray for the colors and that we needed manicures and pedicures. So, here we are, in a nail salon, getting pampered and prepped. It's nice, relaxing to an extent. Jared is babysitting Nash and I would be lying if I said that I wasn't nervous to leave Nash.

"So..." Chrissy starts, peeking at me from behind her magazine. "How was the talk with Hayden?"

There it is. It's been about three days since Hayden and I's talk and morning moment. Hayden and I have been talking back and forth over text about Nash and when we'll tell him. I haven't told Chrissy about it yet, but she's been patient and hasn't pried until now.

"It went... well," I respond as memories flash into my head from the morning I woke up to Hayden in my bed, the laugh and moment we shared dancing excitedly in my head and stomach. "We talked for hours, mainly about Nash and when I woke up the next day, he was in bed with me."

She looks at me with wide eyes, the magazine she was holding now in her lap. "You two didn't, did you?"

I shake my head. "I wish, but no. Everything was PG."

Kind of.

"Wait- how did it even get to that point?" She asks, her blue eyes still wide and her mouth parted slightly.

"Well, throw in a snowstorm, two exes, beer and you have yourself two exes waking up in bed together," I respond and the lady's doing our nails shake their heads.

"Even after years apart, you two cant go without being near each other for five seconds," she laughs.

"Sounds like you're kept busy," the nail tech doing my nails says and I laugh.

"You have no idea."

❄︎

Wedding venues are expensive. That's one thing I've learned about weddings so far. Chrissy and Jared are currently scouring through the internet, searching for a venue for their close wedding.

"Shouldn't you two have done this weeks ago?" I ask them, watching from behind them as they click through websites on Jared's computer. When Chrissy clicks on a venue that says fifteen thousand dollars, my eyes go wide. A bit much isn't it?

"We're realizing that now, but luckily we have you to keep us on track," Chrissy mumbles and turns to wink teasingly at me. "Babe, how about this one?" She asks Jared, who nods.

"Add it to the favorites list," he answers, gazing at her adoringly. "I can't wait to marry you."

"Aww," I coo and Chrissy flips me off. My lips form into a smile and I walk to the fridge before grabbing a bottle of iced coffee. The cap comes off with a pop and I take a sip, walking to the living room and taking a seat on the couch where Nash is taking a nap. I pick his head up from the pillow and place it on my thigh, running my fingers through his soft, dark brown hair.

"Your father loves you and he doesn't even know you yet," I whisper and close my eyes before leaning against the back of the couch. A buzz in my pocket alerts me to a phone call and I grab my phone out of my pocket before answering.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Bex. It's Hayden. There is a Christmas light festival downtown tomorrow and I was wondering if you and Nash would like to go with me."

"Um, sure. Are we telling him tomorrow then?" I ask, my fingers still raking through Nash's hair.

"I think that'd be best, don't you?" He responds and I nod even though he can't see me.

"Alright, yeah, sounds good," I tell him, a smile starting to form on my lips. "Are we meeting you there?"

"I can pick you two up. It'll make things easier. Is that okay?"

"That's fine. We'll see you then," I answer, my heart skipping a beat when his deep voice meets my ears.

"Perfect. I'll see you two tomorrow then. Bye, gorgeous," he says and my stomach lurches. Damn him.

"Bye, you flirt," I laugh and hang up the call, my cheeks warm and if I looked in a mirror, I bet they would be a vibrant shade of red. Hayden Wilson really knows how to get a lady's gears going.

Thanks for reading!