“Nia, you look beautiful. I’m so happy for you.” I gushed at my soon to be sister-in-law.

“Thank you. I’m so nervous.”

“Don’t be. You and Kevin are meant to be together.” I handed her a small box.

“What’s this?”

“Just open it.”

Carefully Nia opened the box. Inside was a silver bracelet.

“Ashton, it’s beautiful. Thank you.”

“It’s a matching set. You’re like a sister to me. Welcome to the family.”

Nia pulled me into a hug.

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The wedding party assembled outside the church. It was almost time for the wedding to start. My knee length black dress was flowing in the warm spring breeze. I felt prettier than I had in a long time. My hair was curly with the sides pulled up. Normally I didn’t get all dolled up.

“It’s time. Let’s go!” Nia’s mom rushed about.

I slowly made my way to the front of the line. Nick was standing there looking handsome in his suit.  He ignored me as I walked up beside him.

The flower girl and ring bearer slowly made their way into the church.

“Are you ready?” Nick whispered. I nodded my head.

He slowly took my arm and linked it with his. We slowly walked down the aisle. My stomach was doing somersaults from his touch. It felt good to have him touch me. I missed feeling his hands on me.

We got to the end of the aisle. We unhooked arms and went to our separate sides of the church. I stood there watching everyone walk down the aisle. Finally Nia walked toward Kevin. She looked like a princess. Kevin had the biggest smile on his face.

My eyes glanced at Nick, but he looked away when our eyes met. He had a sparkle in his eyes, even though he was mad at me. I tried to keep my eyes on Kevin and Nia, but they were drawn to Nick. I pictured our wedding in my mind, even though it was likely it would never happen. I was a hopeless romantic at heart. Lately, I wanted nothing to do with romance. The breakup was hard on me. Deep down I was afraid to give Nick another try. I didn’t want to be wounded again by the man I cared so much about.

“Nia, you are my life, you are my everything. Love isn’t easy. It’s how you deal with the hard times. There will be many, but our love is strong enough to get through them. I promise to be there for you no matter what. We will always work out our problems and never go to bed mad. I love you more than any word. Our love is strong and gets stronger with time. Thank you for becoming my wife. I promise to do whatever it takes to be the best husband I can be. You will never go a day without my love. I love you Nia.” Kevin said as tears streamed down his face.

There wasn’t a dry eye in the church. Kevin’s words hit home with me. As I wiped my eyes, I glanced at Nick. His face was down and he was wiping away tears. Maybe he finally understood what I everyone was trying to tell him. I wouldn’t count on it, but I prayed to God that he would.

Kevin slowly put the ring on Nia’s finger. She has just as many tears running down her cheeks as Kevin did.

“I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride.” The minister smiled.

Kevin pulled Nia close to him and kissed her like they were never going to kiss again. They broke apart and walked up the aisle.

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“I need a few more pictures of the wedding party. I would like for each bridesmaid and groomsman to get a picture together.” The photographer said quickly as he snapped photos.

Nick and I hung back as everyone else got their pictures taken.

“You two let’s go.”

I slowly moved by Nick. He did not look very happy about the photo.

“Move closer.” We both scooted together.

“A little bit more. Don’t be afraid of her. She won’t bite.” He told Nick.

Nick rolled his eyes and shifted closer to me.

“That’s it. Now, Nickolas put your arm around her waist.” He waited for Nick to follow his directions. “That’s it. You two look beautiful.”

He began snapping pictures of us. The photographer didn’t seem to want to stop.

“Are we finished yet?” I asked politely.

“Oh, yes. You two make the perfect pair. I would love to do some shots of the both of you for my studio. There’s chemistry between the two of you. It’s absolutely beautiful.”

“Umm…thanks.” Nick said. He grabbed my and pulled us out of the room.

“What took you so long?” Brian asked.

“The photographer was having fun taking our pictures.”

“He thinks we should model for him.” I giggled.

“Why is that?” Alex asked looking at us over his sunglasses.

“Said we have chemistry.” I whispered while looking at the ground.

“Ooh lala.” Brian joked.

“Anyway. Where are Kevy and Nia?” I looked around for them.

“They are still getting their picture taken. Kev said to head to the reception. The limo is waiting out front.”

We all followed Brian to the limo. I ended up sitting next to Nick and Alex. Alex made eyes at me and Nick. I tried to ignore it, but I just kept laughing. Nick glared at AJ.

“What’s wrong Nick?” I spoke softly.

“J is getting on my nerves. I wished he would leave our relationship alone.”

“Nick, we don’t have a relationship. For tonight let’s forget anything that has happened. Let’s just enjoy ourselves. I want to have fun.”

“Sure Ashton. I want to talk about us. It can wait until after the wedding. Let’s have a good time.”

I smiled at him. My two older brothers stared at me. They knew something was up.

“So Nick, how’s life treating you?” Jerald asked.

“Okay.”

“That’s good Nick. Tim and I will be here for the next few days. I think we need to have a talk with you.”  Jerald whispered in his ear. “We’ll meet with you tomorrow at noon.”

Nick nodded his head.