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Chapter Thirty Two

“I should go check on him,” Leigh said, checking her watch. Howie placed his hand on her arm.

“No, he’s fine,” he said gently.

The Prime Steakhouse was an adult only restaurant. With a recommendation from the hotel staff, Howie hired a nanny to watch James for the night. Leigh was a nervous wreck.

I, on the other hand, felt like a princess sitting at the table. My legs were smooth, my hair was cooperating, and I couldn’t help but feel like a million bucks in the dress.

And then there was Nick. As I got ready in the bathroom, primping every strand of hair, Nick had gotten dressed in the bedroom. When he stepped into the bathroom I about had a heart attack. He had changed into a cream colored suit, the dark blue tie bringing out the color in his eyes. It was a startling contrast from his sweats, t-shirts, and blue jeans. Even during their performances, the guys only wore “half-suits,” dressing them down to make them casual. But this, this was the real thing.

I kept glancing over at him as we ate dinner. The filet mignon melted in my mouth like butter. Finally, Nick caught my gaze before I could turn away. I just wasn’t fast enough.

“Ketchup?” he asked, smiling. His eyes focused on my cleavage.

“No, I don’t need ketchup,” I said, laughing.

“Aren’t they cute?” AJ teased.

“Bom chicka wah wah,” Brian sang out.

Nick looked around for what I could only assume was something to throw. I placed my hand on his arm.

“Not tonight,” I said softly. He looked at me sheepishly. “Don’t want to get kicked out?”

“No,” I said with a smile. Nick returned the smile, then checked his watch. We had sat at the table waiting for Aaron for 45 minutes before we finally ordered. Now we were halfway through dinner.

“This is ridiculous,” Nick complained. “Aaron should be here by now.”

“Did someone say my name?”

I looked up to see Aaron hovering to Nick’s right. A girl who I assumed was his girlfriend, stood behind him. Nick leapt out of his seat, crushing his brother in a bear hug.

“About time!” he complained.

“Sorry about that,” Aaron said, returning the embrace. He didn’t really look sorry. “Maile and I were doing some last minute things.”

Nick introduced me to both Aaron and Maile. I shook their hands. I had loved Aaron Carter; he had been such a cute little kid. Now, he seemed so skinny and gaunt. Aside from that, he looked so young. Maile looked even younger. Aaron held out a chair for her, then sat in the seat unoccupied to Nick’s right. He pointed to each guy in turn, making introductions for Maile’s sake.

“And this,” he said proudly. “Is my bride-to-be.”

Congratulations came from the entire table, except for Nick. I saw a change in his face. Adopting his big brother stance, he studied his brother thoughtfully.

“What were you guys doing at the last minute?” he asked casually, sawing a huge chunk off his steak. Aaron swooped in and stole a fry.

“Well,” Aaron said, sharing a secret smile with Maile. “We didn’t just come to Vegas to see you,” he explained. “We’re getting married. Tonight.”

Nick choked hard. My eyes widened. I handed him a glass of water and began patting his back. After a few minutes of hacking and several sips of water, Nick sat back. He didn’t look happy. Obviously his suspicions were confirmed. Bride-to-be didn’t just mean fiancée; it meant ready to sprint down the aisle.

“Can we talk?” Nick said, pushing back his chair. It was more of a command rather than a question. Aaron stood up reluctantly. I watched Nick grab his sleeve, pulling him into a secluded corner. Trying not to seem too nosey, I stole quick glances in their direction. They seemed to be arguing. Nick’s hands were flying a mile a minute; I guess when he got angry he talked with his hands too. Aaron was glaring at him, puffing out his chest and making similar hand motions.

After five minutes, they sat back at the table. I could see the muscles tense in Nick’s jaw. He took another stab at his steak, chewing viciously.

"So, Olivia,” Aaron said, smoothing a napkin across his lap. He glanced at the menu. “How do you like living with these guys?”

“They’re great,” I said, smiling. “You have a wonderful brother.”

I saw a similar tension set in his jaw. “Yeah.”

“So Maile, how old are you?” I said kindly. She was sitting there in silence; she looked extremely nervous.

“Nineteen,” she said quietly. I saw a large engagement ring on her finger.

“How did Aaron propose?”

At this, she brightened. “He took me to see Alice in Wonderland. He proposed during the movie.”

Nick snorted, Aaron glared in his direction. Nick raised his glass of water to his mouth; I saw him roll his eyes.

“How cute,” I said. "That was a really great movie, too." She smiled at me gratefully.

The rest of the dinner fell into semi-awkwardness. Leigh kept looking at her watch; Howie kept assuring her everything was fine. A lot of groping was going on at AJ’s end of the table. Brian sat text messaging on his phone.

“Alright,” Nick finally said, wiping his mouth. Aaron had just gotten his food; he was eating as if he had not another care in the world.

“Shall we go clubbing? I’m switching this suit coat for a leather jacket and I’m ready to go,” he said.

“We’re going to bow out,” Howie said apologetically, standing. “I think we’re going to check on James and maybe just stay in. But, we’re doing golf tomorrow, right Nick?”

“Yup,” Nick said. Leigh stood, looking relieved. I couldn’t blame her; if James was mine, I wouldn’t want to leave him out of sight either.

“We’re game,” AJ said, indicating himself and Rochelle.

“Me too,” Brian said, tucking his phone in his pants pocket.

Nick looked at Aaron. Aaron slowly looked up at him.

“I’ll meet you there,” he said quietly.

We headed out of the restaurant. Everyone made a quick stop back to their room to “dress down” a little before heading out. Considering how low my dress was, I figured I couldn’t really get “down” any more. I sat on the bed as Nick shrugged into his leather jacket.

“Is everything okay?” I asked. He sighed.

“I’m not going to let it ruin our night,” he said. I raised an eyebrow.

“That’s not what I asked,” I said gently. He glanced at his reflection in the mirror, then he turned back to me.

“Are you going to Aaron’s wedding tonight?” I asked. I assumed that was the reason for the tension; I was right.

“I’ve talked him out of it,” Nick said. He sat beside me. “That damn kid hasn’t got his head on straight. I don’t know what he’s thinking. He proposed to her just months ago. They haven’t even known each other that long. Plus, I don’t know how he can get married and not want the whole family here,” Nick explained. “Even with a family as crazy and dysfunctional as ours, it doesn’t seem right.”

“I agree,” I said. Nick’s shoulders relaxed. He placed a hand on my knee, caressing gently with his thumb. I leaned forward and kissed him gently. The action seemed to melt some of his bitterness away.

“Let’s go,” he said taking my hand. “The sooner we go, the sooner we’ll get back here.”

We both looked at the bed. I felt a delicious warmth spread through my body.

We meet AJ, Rochelle, and Brian in the VIP lobby and walked down the strip to a nightclub not far from the Bellagio. The sun had set; Vegas was looking exactly as I had pictured it. The dark sky didn’t seem so dark with trillions of flashing lights coming from all directions.

“Aaron said they’d be here as soon as they finished dinner and changed,” Nick said as we walked into the club. The drum of bass poured from every nook and cranny. “Wanna dance?”

“Sure,” I said. He looked surprised. I giggled flirtatiously, tugging him out on the dance floor. I had already decided that tonight I wasn’t going to hesitate. I was going for broke.

After his initial surprise, he took the lead, directing me out to the floor amongst the grinding bodies. I felt totally at ease as we fell into the song; perhaps the long hours on the Masquerade set had broken through my can’t and won’t barrier.

Time seemed a blur. I caught a glimpse of AJ and Rochelle on the dance floor. Brian was in the lounge, happily chatting away. Aaron and Maile were nowhere to be found.

“C’mon,” Nick finally said, pulling me in the direction of the VIP lounge. I was grateful; my feet were beginning to hurt in my strappy sandals. We wove through the crowd and slid into the booth Brian occupied.

“Hey guys, what’s up?” Brian said. Nick seemed to recognize the guy Brian had been chatting with. Nick gave me a quick introduction. I smiled and nodded my head in acknowledgement.

“Have you seen Aaron?” Nick asked Brian. Brian shook his head.

“Naw, I figured he would be hanging around you,” Brian explained.

The minutes passed. I could tell Nick was slipping deeper into protective older brother mode.

“I’m going to go look around again,” Nick said. “You want me to bring you back anything?”

“I’ll take a Diet Coke,” I said. He gave my hand a squeeze as he stood up.

“Bring me back one too,” Brian called. Nick gave him the thumbs up.

“He’s really worried about Aaron,” I said, propping my chin on my hand.

“Well, Aaron doesn’t have such a good track record lately,” Brian said. “It kind of reminds me of Nick a few years back. He jumped from relationship to relationship, he became unreliable, and then there was the drugs and alcohol. I think Nick sees it repeating in Aaron and it’s killing him.”

I sighed sadly. It was hard for me to picture Nick that way. Sure, I knew about his past. I had seen the pictures of him with Paris Hilton; I had even seen video from TMZ of him walking out of night clubs trashed. Even so, I couldn’t wrap my head around it.

“Don’t worry,” Brian said, misinterpreting my facial expression for one of worry. “The day Nick got diagnosed with cardiomyopathy, he became the Nick that I grew up with. He’s loving life too much now to fall back. You just sweeten the deal.”

I looked at Brian and smiled. “You really think so?”

Brian nodded. “I know so. You are always on his mind. Kind of annoying really.”

I smacked Brian’s arm.

“Ouch! Between you and Carter I’m gonna have a bruise.”

Just then I saw Nick hurrying back to the table, juggling two drinks in his good hand. I stood up, taking the cups from him. I handed one to Brian.

“Livvy, I’m going to have to go,” Nick explained in a rush.

“Go where?” I asked.

“Aaron. I bumped into him and he reminded me that Maile can’t come in here; she’s only nineteen. Aaron said they were just going to go back to their hotel and watch movies, but I don’t believe it. He was wearing way too nice of shirt.”

“Do you want me to come with you?” I said. Nick shook his head.

“I’d rather you get to know my family when we’re not tearing each other’s heads off,” he explained. “I have a feeling this might get ugly. But, I won’t be long.” He pulled me towards him, kissing me hard.

“I’ll meet you back in the room,” he assured me, handing me the key. “I’ll get another key from the concierge desk. I expect you waiting up for me.”

“Absolutely,” I said. “I couldn’t sleep if I tried. But, don’t be long,” I added, tugging on his tie. He got the innuendo.

“I won’t,” he said, already walking backwards. “By the time you finish your drink and head back to the hotel I should be on my way. I want to get the sundae started.”

His eyes sparkled; I watched him jog off and sank back down next to Brian.

“Here’s to life around the Carter’s,” Brian said raising his glass in a mock toast. I shook my head but mimicked the action, clinking my glass to his.

“I’ll tell you one thing,” Brian added. “It’s never boring.”

I took a big sip of my drink. Half of my mind was on Nick’s dedication to his brother and the other half of my mind was already up in the bedroom.

As I took another sip, I prayed that time would hurry up.

Little did I know that I would wake up the next morning in the hospital with no recollection of time or of the events after Nick’s goodbye kiss. Cruel fate had worked its hand one more time.