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Chapter Six

Even with all the black orchids, purple hair, and unmentionable tattoos, AJ and Rochelle's wedding ended up being one of the prettiest weddings I had ever seen. There was something extremely special in seeing so many friends and family gathered all in one place. It was nice to know that even though the guys had seen AJ at his very worst, they were also there to see him at his very best.

Another very surreal moment for me was walking with Nick down the aisle of a church. For being together only five months, it seemed like we had accomplished a lot of milestones in that short time. The thought that we would be making a similar trip down the aisle in less than a year (as parents of a four month old child, no less) almost made me break out in a sweat.

Luckily, I didn't have too much time to dwell on such matters. After the ceremony, the wedding party was taken to the reception in a huge stretch Hummer (black, of course). AJ and Rochelle had rented out Leu Gardens for the reception. Hundreds of black chairs hugged white tables, each adorned with a centerpiece of red roses and black orchids. The reception hall was adjacent to a huge veranda that was set up for dancing. As the sun sank lower, the shadows coming through the foliage made everything look mystical.

"Damn AJ, if you ever get tired of being a Backstreet Boy I guess you can be a wedding planner," Nick teased. AJ leaned over and slapped him on the back. Nick sucked in a breath. I was holding onto his arm; I felt every muscle tighten as the pain shot through his body. AJ snickered.

"Why thank you Nick," he said sweetly.

"If I could hit him where it mattered, I would," Nick whispered to me. I laughed.

"Don't ruin the groom's day," I said.

A long white table on a dais stretched along an entire wall for the wedding party. Nick kissed my cheek as we separated; the boys sat on AJ's right, the girls sat on Rochelle's left.

The maximum capacity for the reception hall was set at 200; the guest list was pushing 300. Even so, everyone managed to find a seat. Another delicious meal was served, more toasts were given, more pictures taken, and the party got off to a great start.

After the dishes were cleared, AJ invited the guests to move the party out to the veranda. Everyone gathered in a circle as AJ and Rochelle were called out to the center of the floor for their first dance as husband and wife. I Swear by All 4 One began to play. I felt tears spring to my eyes. I loved that song.

Once again Leighanne handed me a Kleenex. I smiled at her gratefully; she was already dabbing her eyes.

“You should have seen me on my wedding day,” she said, laughing softly. “I’m surprised all our pictures didn’t show big black streaks. God bless waterproof mascara.”

I laughed. I had seen pictures of her on her wedding day. If I could look even half that good I would be a happy girl.

We watched as AJ and Rochelle whispered in each other’s ears as they danced in slow circles around the veranda. Several times they laughed, their heads touching, their lips meeting.

As the last notes of the song died away, a large round of applause erupted. AJ took a bow before scooping Rochelle off her feet. After a kiss that would have made most people blush, AJ left the dance floor so that Rochelle and her dad could have their father/daughter dance to Butterfly Kisses. I managed to get through the song with only a few wipes of my eyes until AJ and his mom headed out on the floor and Perfect Fan started playing.

That’s when I lost it.

“Is that mine crying again?” Brian asked, leaning back in a chair that he had brought out from the hall. I saw Nick lean back at the same time. He raised his hand.

“Nope, it’s mine.”

Through my tears, I glared over at them. With identical grins they tipped forward again. Leighanne handed me another tissue.

“I wish men could be pregnant,” she whispered. “They just don’t understand.”

I gave her a watery smile.

After AJ’s dance with his mom, the DJ called the entire wedding party out to the dance floor. I quickly fixed my makeup as much as I possibly could (I seconded Leighanne’s blessing for waterproof mascara) and took Nick’s hand.

“Do you know what they picked?” I whispered. Nick shook his head.

I prayed for a slow song. My prayers weren’t answered.

Super Freak by Rick James started playing.

Every single member of the wedding party looked at AJ; everyone that is except Nick. He broke into ‘ride the pony’ dance moves. Not to miss a beat, Brian began to mimic. By the end of the song, everyone had adopted a ‘if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em attitude.’ I must admit that Nick grinding up on me was never a bad thing. By the end of the song, everyone was laughing or hanging off their significant other. It was a great lead in to open the dance floor up to everyone.

During the course of the night, I saw Kevin avoid the dance floor; he hung mostly around the bar sipping what appeared to be rum and Coke. He only paused to join the guys in serenading Rochelle with I Promise You (With Everything I Am). It was the first time all evening I saw Rochelle cry. After the applause had died down, AJ went up to the DJ for a request. Play that Funky Music White Boy began blaring through the speakers; that dried Rochelle’s tears up quickly.

Brian ended up dancing around with Mason during the song. He laughed hysterically as Brian hung him upside down like a monkey.

“He’s so good with the little ones,” I said to Leighanne. She smiled.

“Yeah, he’s a natural dad. It’s so cute it almost gives me cavities.”

As we laughed, Nick danced by with Baylee who was standing on Nick’s shoes. The two of them were like a human carousel. Baylee was laughing so hard, Nick was basically the only thing keeping him upright.

“Speaking of natural daddies…”

I nodded. “It’s because Brian and Nick still act like kids.”

“I know,” Leighanne said, laughing again. “But it’s kind of refreshing…except when Brian’s sick. Then it’s annoying. He whines worse than Baylee.”

I had yet to experience Nick under the weather. It was something I wasn’t looking forward to. I had a feeling that stuffy nosed whining was probably a trait Frick and Frack shared.

As the evening progressed, the crowd began to thin. Nick managed to talk me out on the dance floor for several slow songs. I couldn’t help but enjoy the moment as stars twinkled overhead. After dancing to Back at One, the DJ announced the bouquet toss. I headed back towards the circle of chairs our group had assembled. As we walked up, Leigh nudged my shoulder.

“Go up there!”

Nick wrapped his arms around me. “She’s already taken.”

“Until she’s a Mrs., she can go for it.”

I laughed and leaned into Nick. “No, I think I’ll have to agree with Nick.” I closed my eyes. “I’m taken.”

I stayed in Nick’s embrace as the bouquet toss got underway. Our group cheered and applauded when Precious caught it. She waved the flowers around triumphantly. I looked around for Kevin. I spotted him just as he downed the rest of his drink. Obviously, he was well on his way to obliterating the events of the past few days with as much alcohol as possible.

As another sexy beat started, my attention turned back to AJ and Rochelle. Denise brought up a chair for Rochelle. She sat down, wiggling her leg in AJ’s direction. He dropped down on both knees in front of her. As the music slowed, AJ took her leg in his hands. He slid his hands up and down a few times, a grin lighting up his face. Then with the experience of someone who had done it several times before, he ducked under her dress. Cheers erupted from the crowd, especially from the single guys.

Baylee and Mason were front and center in the group of singletons. After a few more seconds AJ reemerged, garter in mouth. He stood up, kept his back to the crowd, and threw. With a little karate yell, Baylee jumped up and grabbed it. Smiling proudly, he turned and waved at Brian.

“That’s my boy!” Brian whistled. He gave Baylee a thumbs up.

“Our boy isn’t getting married until he’s 40,” Leighanne said. Brian rolled his eyes.

By the time Baylee ran over to her, Mason was wearing the garter on his head. Leighanne scooped Baylee up in a huge bear hug. Mason ran right into my leg. He looked up confused, the black lace dripping down into his eyes. Unable to resist such cuteness, I scooped him up. He grinned and handed the garter to me.

“Hey,” Nick said. He reached out and playfully squeezed Mason’s arms. “Stop movin’ in on my woman, little man.”

Mason giggled. “Moo-vin,” he repeated. He put his head down on my shoulder.

A half hour later I had a totally exhausted three year old asleep on my shoulder. Baylee was stretched between two chairs, snoring loudly. Nick was looking at me like a puppy dog.

“What?” I whispered.

“I wanted one last dance,” he whispered back.

I looked around and caught Leigh’s eye. She came over and carefully took Mason from me. Howie was rocking James back and forth.

“He’s drooling on me,” Howie whispered. He shifted James slightly; a huge wet spot glistened of his tux jacket.
“You’re gonna get charged extra,” Nick teased as he took my hand. We walked over to the newlyweds.

AJ smiled over at us. Rochelle was locked in his arms.

“You picked a good song to dance to. This is the last one before we take off.”

“Oh, don’t you want to dance it solo? It’s your last song,” I said. AJ shook his head.

“Family’s always welcome to join.”

The first few bars of I Could Not Ask for More by Edwin McCain drifted through the night. Nick’s hands slid down the back of my dress. I melted into his embrace.

“You know I wasn’t lying earlier; you do look absolutely beautiful,” Nick whispered. I smiled.

“You clean up pretty well yourself, Carter.”

His head bowed; he brought his lips gently to mine. I kissed back, tugging playfully at his tie. With a little growl, his tongue slipped between my teeth. For a moment I forgot we were in the middle of AJ and Rochelle’s last song until I heard AJ begin to beat box what sounded like porn music. Nick pulled away slowly.

“Shut up, AJ,” Nick laughed. AJ snickered.

We rejoined the crowd as AJ and Rochelle made one last short speech and thanked everyone for coming. With a shower of birdseed and bubbles, they took off in a limo. As it pulled away, I saw strings of cans, balloons, and condoms attached to the bumper while a “Just Married” sign in whipped cream was displayed on the back window.

I looked up at Nick. He grinned.

“I’m innocent, I swear.”

“Innocent my ass,” I said.

We all headed back to the stretch Hummer which took us back to our cars parked at the church. Brian and Kevin were the last ones in; Kevin didn’t say much, but I could tell by his eyes that he had hit the limit on rum and Cokes.

“We’re watching Mason tonight,” Leighanne whispered to me. The little guy was asleep on her lap; Baylee was sprawled out right beside her.

When we arrived back at the church, Nick helped Brian get the little ones in the car. Kevin shook off Brian’s help as he struggled to climb in their van. Finally he managed to get himself sloppily in the car and buckled in.

I gave Leighanne and Brian a hug, then tapped on the window to wave at Kevin. His head was already lowered to his chest. Nick kissed Leigh on the cheek then turned to Brian. Brian grabbed him in a bear hug and smacked his back not once, not twice, but three times. By the time he pulled away, Nick’s face was contorted with pain. Brian grinned.

“How’s that tattoo feeling?”

“How’d you---“

“The bandage dip-wad. It was a dead giveaway.” Brian looked at me.

“Watch the nails tonight, Liv. Nick’s pain tolerance is low.”

Leighanne smacked his shoulder. Brian laughed. “Sorry! Geesh.”

With one last round of goodbyes, Nick and I headed towards our cars. As I got behind the wheel, I took a deep breath.

My first Backstreet wedding was officially over.

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Before reading Chapter Seven, please enjoy a small vignette entitled Sweetest Day Sniffles (for the Playing Doctor challenge) to get a glimpse of a day in the life of Leighanne Littrell as she deals with a sick Brian. Click Here