BEXLEY TURNER

THERE ARE ONLY T-MINUS TWO days until my little sister's wedding and I am completely stressed out. Everyone involved in wedding preparation has been running around like chickens with their head cut off and that doesn't help me with my nerves whatsoever. Nash hasn't been feeling well and I can't focus on the wedding for Chrissy if my son is throwing up every hour or so.

Hayden is coming over soon to look after him while I help Chrissy and Jared with last-minute preparations and plans. While I wait for him to get here, I'm finding the decorations and displaying the easy stuff. All the more complicated decorations will be displayed tomorrow and the day of the wedding.

"Bexley!" Chrissy yells from her bedroom and I quickly walk down the hall as fear tightens in my chest, holding a box of decorations that I forgot to set down. I knock on the door and push it open when she tells me to come in.

Looking down at the box I'm holding, I ask, "What's wrong?" And when I look up, I gasp. In front of me, Chrissy is wearing her wedding dress, a beautiful white dress that hugs her body in all the right places. The satin material hangs off her back in a modest, but sexy look. And her blonde hair cascades down her back in loose curls.

"It still fits." She smiles. "I would have thought I gained twenty pounds with all the stress eating I've been doing." A laugh escapes her and she grins at me.

"I knew it would. And fuck. You look gorgeous," I choke out, warm tears springing to my eyes. I place the box on the edge of her bed and walk towards her, holding her arms up and examining the silk dress. "Jared is going to lose his breath when he sees you, Chris."

"Do you think?" She fidgets with her hair as she looks in her full body mirror.

"Don't think, I know he will." I place my hand on her shaking one as she fiddles with the ends of her curls. "Don't be nervous. He loves you and if he doesn't compliment you, I'll kick his ass."

That gets another laugh out of her. "Remember Derek from high school? He said I looked like a whore at prom and you-"

"And I dumped my cup of fruit punch on his expensive ass suit, kicked him in the balls, and threatened to cut him. I remember." I laugh with her, remembering his terrified face when I pulled my pocket knife out of my bra and pointed it at him. He was a total douchebag, a player that broke Chrissy into a million little pieces that I was left to help her pick up.

When we sober up from laughing, Chrissy looks at me with a small smile. "I'm glad you're here. I've missed you, but I know you needed to get away and think about everything."

"I'm glad I'm back too." I smile with her. My thoughts drift to Hayden and my chest fills with a warmth that makes me want to hold him and never let go. Chrissy looks at me with a knowing look and nods at the door.

"Go find him," she says and I do.

I find him in my bedroom, holding Nash as he sleeps with a bucket near the edge of the bed in case he gets sick when he wakes up. A frown settles itself on my face as I look at Nash's pale, sweaty face. He's never been this sick.

"How is he?" I ask Hayden as I sit next to him, laying my head on his broad shoulder.

"He's doing better, still a little nauseous," he replies, lacing his fingers through mine as we watch our son sleep off his sickness. After a few minutes, I place my hand on Nash's forehead and sigh when he feels less warm than he did a few hours ago. "Do you think we need to take him to the hospital?"

I bite my lip as I stare at Nash, pushing his damp hair from his forehead. "No. If his fever doesn't go down in another hour, we will. His temperature was worse earlier, but it's gone down since then."

Hayden nods and kisses Nash on the forehead before he stands up. "Let's let him rest."

"Okay." I nod and kiss Nash's cheek. "I love you, darling," I whisper before I stand up and follow Hayden out of the room, closing the bedroom door behind us.

When we're standing in the hallway, Hayden grips my hips in his large hands and pulls me to him, pressing our lips together in a slow, warm kiss. My fingers find themselves flat against his chest and I release a low moan when Hayden backs me up against the wall, almost knocking down decor and framed photos. All of my worries drift away as Hayden kisses me slowly, his hands holding my waist as his body holds me against the wall, encasing me in his warmth and soft touch.

A buzz in my back pocket makes me groan with irritation and I pull back. Seriously? People have the worst timing.

"What? Did I do something wrong?" Hayden asks when he hears my groan.

"Fuck, no. Everything you did was fine," I say breathless, my cheeks tinting as I grab my phone from my back pocket. "Very fine," I mumble under my breath before I unlock my phone. A text from my mom meets my eyes and I slowly read it, my brain fearing the worst.

Bexley, sweetie, your father's old truck broke down on our way to Chrissy's. Can you pick us up? We're waiting on the tow truck, but in this weather, it will take ages. The text says and my fingers fly over my keyboard as I type out a reply.

Of course. I will come and get you ASAP. Where are you? I type back and send it, anticipating a reply. It's a blizzard out there and without a heated truck, they could freeze.

My phone hums with another text and I open it, reading the notification before looking at Hayden who looks at me with raised eyebrows.

"Is everything okay?" His eyes watch me closely and I shake my head, his eyes becoming a stormy shade of blue as I silently answer him. His eyes question me before he asks, "What is it?"

"My parents truck broke down and my truck is out of gas-"

Hayden cuts me off, his eyes holding no room for arguments. "Hey, don't worry. We'll take my truck to get them."

"Are you sure? You can stay with-"

"Deadly. Eliza is here helping with the wedding. I'll ask her to look after him," he says before he leaves the room. A few minutes later, he returns and has his keys in his hand as well as my coat. "Let's go."

Thanks for reading!