Chapter 28

~3 hours later~

"I've never had so much fun!" Jessica exclaimed as Brian walked her to her hotel room.

"So my family's not so bad, huh?"

"No, you knew that I loved them, Bri." She tousled his dirty blond hair.

"Yeah, but after you met the whole dysfunctional bunch I thought you might feel differently." He gave her a million-dollar smile.

"No way. I love them and I can't wait until they're my family, too."

"Soon, baby, I promise." He held her close and kissed the top of her head. "I love you, Jess. Goodnight." He started to walk away and she grabbed his hand.

"Don't think you're getting off that easy, Littrell." She wrapped her arms around him and smiled.

"What'd I do?" he asked innocently.

"You're not going anywhere until you finish our song." He smiled at her as he tucked her hair behind her ear.

"Beautiful, you are. Compassionate is she. You have made me what I am. You're all I hope to be." She rested her head in his shoulder as he continued to sing and they danced. Brian leaned in and kissed her gently.

"Oh, c'mon. Get a room, you two," Nick whined as he walked past.

"Shuddup, Frack," Brian said without taking his eyes off of Jessica.

"Is this what he's going to be like until we get to Knoxville?" she asked as if Nick weren't even there.

"Yeah, he thinks because he's getting married that it gives him a license to be a pain in the butt." Brian smiled jokingly at Nick who was pouting.

"Aww, poor Nicky," Jessica said, giving him a hug. "We'll be home in no time and then you can see Nessa again."

"I hope it goes by fast," Nick said, suddenly feeling hopeful.

"Me, too," Brian added. "I don't know if I can take a whole week of you whining for Vanessa."

~3 weeks later~

"This is so much fun, you guys!" Vanessa squealed. "Thanks so much for doing this."

"C'mon, Nessa, you know you deserve at least one last night of fun," Jessica said and was met with agreement from the five other girls sitting around.

"Besides," Amanda, one of Vanessa's friends, began, "If Nick gets a bachelor party, then you obviously have to have a bachelorette party."

"I wonder what they're doing over there?" Sarah asked.

"Who knows? Brian wouldn't tell me a thing," Jessica said, pretending to be annoyed.

"Hey, guys," Vanessa began.

"What?" they chorused.

"I'm getting married tomorrow!" she screamed and Jessica and the other girls joined in with high-pitched squeals.

~Meanwhile at Vanessa's grandmother's house…

"Wasn't it cool of Nessa's grandmother to let us stay here while she stays with Nessa's parents?" Kevin asked.

"Yeah, she's really sweet," Nick answered.

"I can't believe you're getting married tomorrow, bro," Brian said as he shook his head.

"I can't believe you're not engaged yet," Nick countered. "What are you waiting on? Christmas?"

Brian smiled. "Yep. I'm gonna ask her tomorrow night at your reception."

"It's about time," AJ breathed a sigh of relief. "We're all getting sick of seeing you drool over her. Just have the honeymoon so things can get back to normal."

"Oh Lord, I just realized that pretty soon there's going to be little Frick's and Frack's running around," Howie said with a laugh.

"Little terrors," AJ added.

"Just like their fathers," Kevin concluded.

"Hey!" Brian and Nick exclaimed, pretending to be offended. Suddenly Brian glanced at his watch.

"We'd better head to bed. It's almost 2:00 and Nicky's gotta get married tomorrow," Brian said as he stood up.

"Wait," Nick said. "I've gotta surprise for Frick outside." Nick led him over to the door, then pushed him outside, slammed the door, and locked it. Brian stood outside feeling stupid and listening to the guys laugh.

"That's for throwing me out in the hall in my underwear to those girls so you could be alone with Jessica," Nick called through the door.

"That was forever ago!" Brian yelled. "Who taught you how to hold a grudge?"

"You did," Nick laughed.

"This isn't funny, guys!" Brian yelled." This is no way to treat the best man!" After finally giving up on getting back inside, he turned around and began walking to Jessica's house.

"Who in the world…" Jessica muttered as she heard the doorbell ring. She had just been drifting off to sleep when she heard it. "Brian! What are you doing here? And in your boxers?"

"Nick locked me out," he explained with chattering teeth.

"Poor thing," she said with a smile. "Come on in. You must be frozen." He came inside and she quickly made him a bed on the couch. He laid down, shivering and she laid down next to him to keep him warm.

"Where are the other girls?"

"Asleep. Don't wake them. I thought Nessa would never go to sleep." She paused for a moment. "I wish we were Nick and Vanessa," she whispered as she curled up close to him. It took Brian forever to make another comment and when he did, she was drifting off to sleep.

"Soon, angel, soon," he whispered as she stroked her hair and watched her fall asleep. 'Sooner than you think,' he added silently.

"Where are my gloves?" Jessica awoke to the sound of Vanessa's panic. She tried to move out from under Brian's arms without waking him, but suddenly the phone rang and he woke up.

"Hey, baby," he whispered sleepily as he kissed her. "How are you?"

"Nervous," she admitted.

"Why?" he asked curiously. "Vanessa is the one who should be nervous."

"I know, but I have this feeling that something big's gonna happen today." Brian looked at her in amazement as though she had guessed his surprise. He quickly tried to play it off.

"Of course something big's gonna happen. There's a wedding today, silly," he said as he kissed the tip of her nose.

"How could I forget," she said sarcastically. "That's not what I meant; I mean-"

"Jessica, don't tell me that Brian is in there with you," Vanessa yelled into the living room. You know he's not supposed to be here!" Brian and Jessica looked at each other and laughed.

"How did she know that you were here?" Jessica asked.

"My guess is that Nick in on the phone with her and he told on me," Brian said with a laugh. He reached over Jessica and picked up the phone. "Nick?"

"Bri, where'd you go, buddy? We opened the door to let you back in and you weren't there," Nick said.

"If I had waited in you to open the door I would have died of hypothermia so I opted for Jessica," Brian explained with a laugh.

"So how does Vanessa look?" Nick asked, changing the subject.

"She won't let me see the dress, Nick, so chill out."

"Well, can you come back now so we can start getting dressed?" Nick asked.

"Yeah, I'll be there in a few. Bye." Brian hung up the phone and turned to Jessica. "I've gotta go, babe. I'll see you when you walk down the aisle."

"Jess, I need your help!" Vanessa yelled. "Brian, I love you, but leave!"

"All right," he said. "Bye, honey." He kissed Jessica goodbye and then began walking back to Vanessa's grandmother's house just two doors over.