Chapter 45

Two weeks passed in a blink. Wes’s family joined us the previous week, and to everyone’s surprise, even Wes and Knox were getting along.

It was a late Wednesday morning, and everyone had just finished breakfast. All the girls, along with Sam and Tyson, were huddled around the large dining table, immersed in wedding planning.

Miranda, Sam’s wedding planner, was working tirelessly, adjusting the plans to Sam’s ever-changing whims. She was as unpredictable as the weather.

“Okay, so we have two wedding cakes—” Sam shuffled through the thin sheets of paper scattered across the table.

She stood up, examining them for what must have been the hundredth time.

“Two cakes? Sam, sweetheart, is that really necessary?” My mom’s shocked expression suggested she was surprised Tyson had agreed to this. But then again, he’s a guy, so two wedding cakes probably didn’t seem like such a bad idea.

“Mom, I want two different flavored cakes. One red velvet with a few tiers of vanilla cake and the other is pure chocolate with white chocolate buttercream icing,” Sam rattled off, as if she’d said this a million times. But this was the first we’d heard of it. Her light blonde hair—yes, she’s a blonde now—was sticking up in places, a testament to her stress and lack of sleep.

I glanced over at Tyson, who seemed completely mesmerized by his fiancé’s choice of, well, everything. He didn’t get much of a say in the wedding, but then again, most guys don’t.

His eyes met mine, and he smiled, a look of pure exhaustion on his face.

“Good luck marrying bridezilla over here with her two wedding cakes, Ty!” I joked, pointing to Sam, who didn’t hear a word I said. He let out a small chuckle, leaning back in his chair.

Knox and Kyle patted him on the back, wishing him luck. They’d booked a fancy hotel here in Savannah for the reception, with a grand church hosting the wedding.

The wedding was only a month away, and Sam was so stressed she was losing weight. Every bride’s dream, right? Every day she prayed the dress would fit her, so alterations were made frequently to ensure it did.

A slew of football players and celebrities would be attending the wedding. All that was left for us to do was try on the bridesmaids’ dresses to make sure they fit perfectly and decide on hair and makeup for the day.

The boys’ tuxedos were sorted, the fittings done, so they had no worries—except for Kyle, whose chest measurements were off. He’d been hitting the gym a lot more lately, so he’d bulked up a bit.

“So, I just need all the bridesmaids to meet here at ten tomorrow morning—” Miranda announced.

“That is what A.M. means, right?” I asked sarcastically, not looking up from the sheet I was pretending to read. A pen hit my head, and I looked up to see Sam glaring at me. I just smiled.

“What?” I asked innocently, as if I’d done nothing wrong. I was bored, alright? We’d been at this all morning.

I had my feet up on the table, leaning back on my chair, swinging back and forth, with the occasional heart attack when I leaned back too far.

People started to laugh quietly, careful not to draw Sam’s wrath. I, on the other hand, had had enough and needed to entertain myself.

I tossed the sheet down on the table, where it slid slightly before being stopped by a larger pile of sheets. I looked up to see Andy sitting across the table, her wide eyes silently asking when this was going to end.

I made a gun shape with my fingers and put it to my head, pretending to pull the trigger and die.

We laughed at each other, and I got scolded by Sam, yet again. “Alex! Stop and focus for one second!”

“What? It’s not my wedding! And I’ve memorized all of these damn sheets for you! I could tell you who’s coming, who’s not, where they’re sitting, etcetera. Relax, Sam, it’s all going to be fine.”

I tried to calm my stressed-out sister, but it didn’t really help. She was making everyone lose their minds along with her.

The doorbell rang, and Sam ran to see who it was. She’d been on edge all week, and I was about ready to strangle her.

After greeting the person at the door, she shouted, “Alex! There’s someone... cute to see you!”

My ears perked up at that, and I set all four legs of my chair on the ground. I exchanged a look with my brother. Kyle and Knox sat up straight, their brows furrowed.

I was just as confused as they were. I didn’t know anyone who was coming here.

“Thompson! Get that sexy butt of yours in here and give me a hug!” Ben? I looked at Andy, who was smirking.

“Ben?!” I exclaimed, dropping my legs to the cold tile floor. I ran over to the kitchen door and flung it open.

There he was, standing with a sports bag slung over his shoulder, wearing a lime green t-shirt, navy shorts, and sunglasses—just like when I first met him.

His blonde hair was tousled from his secret trip here. I ran at him, and he dropped his bag, readying himself for the hug I was about to give him.

He squatted down slightly, rubbing his hands together with a smile playing on his lips. I screamed “Ben!” one more time and launched myself at him, with Andy running behind me doing the same.

He caught both of us with ease, one in each arm, and I wrapped my legs around his waist for support.

“There’s my two beautiful bitches!” he chuckled, causing us all to laugh.

“What are you doing here? Why didn’t you message me!” I pulled back, my legs still wrapped around his waist. I kissed him on the cheek, and he returned the favor.

“I wanted to surprise you, sweet cheeks. Surprise!”

“But how did you know where I lived?”

“Andy gave me your address. I was praying it was the right one the whole way here! It would’ve been embarrassing if it wasn’t,” he hoists us up a little.

“Andy! Alex! Get down! Now!” Kyle strides down the hallway, chest puffed out, fists balled up. Glancing behind him, I see Knox and the others emerging too. Knox looks pissed.

“Kyle, relax! He’s a good friend of ours, no need to go all macho on us. So glad you came, Ben! We missed you,” Andy hugs him tighter. He’s always been like a big brother to both of us.

“Aww, I miss you both too.” We start to climb down off him, but I stay tight to his side. I did miss him. I missed our talks and I missed having someone to surf with. I’m so happy he’s here.

“Who are you?” Knox clenches his jaw so tight it might lock into place.

“Oh, let me introduce you to everyone! Everyone, this is Ben. That’s my sister Sam, the one who’s marrying Tyson over there—”

“Yeah, so hands off, bro—” Tyson jokes, trying to give Ben a serious look but ruins it with a smile when he looks at Sam.

“That’s my brother Kyle a.k.a Andy’s ’Man’—”

“Damn right, also hands off!” Kyle’s once stern expression softens when Ben shoots his hands up in surrender in a playful manner.

“That’s Brett and Tyler, Kyle’s friends, you know Wes—” They all give him a head bob to greet him.

“That’s Knox, you already know him from TV too—” Knox just stares hard at him, but I ignore it and move on.

“They’re my other brothers Max and Cole, who is the oldest. That’s Austin and Mason Carter, Knox’s older brothers. And these little guys, these are Adam Carter, Eden, and Noah Thompson. Where’s Lena? LENA!”

“What?” A disgruntled hormonal teenager walks in, glued to her phone, “Come meet my friend Ben.”

She finally decides to take her eyes off the brightly lit screen and focuses them up on the person standing in the doorway. Her eyes widen, shifting them between me and him, her mouth hanging open—it’s catching flies at this point.

“Hi,” Ben says finally when we know nothing is going to come out of her mouth. She tries hard to say something but she just stands there gawking at him.

I lean into Ben and whisper, “I think she likes you,” making him nod his head in agreement. Looking back at Knox, he’s glaring even harder at Ben. Someone’s friendly.

“You must be Ben! I’ve heard so much about you! It’s good to finally put a face to the name, come in child, come in!” My mom makes her way into sight with Eric behind her.

She comes closer to hug him and kisses his cheek, “You must be Alex’s other sister?” He charms her, making her blush and wave her arm in the air. I snort and roll my eyes.

He places his arm over my shoulder, pulling me closer to him, and I hug his side again.

“Oh sweetie, aren’t you a sweet boy! No, sugar, I’m her mother, but you can call me Annie, and this is my husband Eric.” She fixes her hair and points to Eric who takes his hand and shakes it with a smile.

Eric looks down at me and winks.

“You must be hungry! There’s breakfast still out if you want any? I’m about to make lunch either if you want to wait?” She asks, pulling him towards her and linking arms with her, escorting him into the kitchen.

“I think your mom has a new boy toy!” Eric jokes, hugging me and Andy on each side of him.

“You think?” I say sarcastically. Sam makes her way over to me and Lena does the same.

“Alex! He is super cute! Oh my god, like he has this surfer look that I’m totally digging right now!” Sam stares at the back of Ben’s frame.

Lena nods her head, still not being able to say anything while Eric disappears into the kitchen.

“I know right? I keep telling her she should totally go there with—”

“Nobody is going anywhere with anyone!” Knox cuts Andy off before she says anymore. I can tell he’s annoyed.

“Is someone jealous?” Andy teases as she walks by him, following Ben and my mom into the kitchen.

Kyle walks in behind her, not before checking her out and grabbing her ass, causing her to squeal and turn to face him with a smile on her lips. “Mine,” is all he said, making her roll her eyes.

“No!” Knox replies simply. I drag Ben’s bag out of the way of the door and close it. Everyone makes their way into the kitchen.

Feeling Knox put his hand on the small of my back, sliding down lower and lower until it rests on my left cheek. He gives it a light tap with his hand and rests it there.

I snap my head over to him to see him staring ahead with a smirk on his face and I grab his hand to take it off, but he intertwines our fingers once again and I glare up at him.

He’s still not looking at me but over to Ben who is watching him, trying not to smile.

“Knox, what are you doing! Let go of my hand,” I hiss in a low tone so only he could hear me. But he ignores me and continues to stare at Ben who is staring right back at him, both with smirks on their faces.

Focusing his attention back on my mom and Delilah who are trying to fatten him up already. I huff and pull Knox back out to the hallway, still holding onto my hand.

“Knox! What are you doing?”

“I don’t like him!”

“That’s not what I ask—”

“Keep your distance from him, sweetheart! I don’t trust him,” Knox warned.

“Knox, enough! He’s my friend, and I like him. I’m not going to avoid him just because you don’t approve! Quit being so immature,” I retorted.

“Stay away from him, Alex! I don’t like the way he looks at you,” he insisted, his grip tightening around my hand to the point where it was cutting off my circulation. I squirmed, trying to free myself from his grasp, but to no avail.

“Knox, you’re hurting me. Please, let—”

“Shit! I’m sorry, sweetheart. Are you okay? I didn’t mean to—” He released my hand immediately after I cried out in pain. I backed away from him, a little frightened, shaking my hand to restore the blood flow.

“I’m sorry, Alex. I didn’t realize my own strength. I shouldn’t have done that. I’m sorry,” he apologized, guilt washing over his face. He took a tentative step towards me, but I retreated a step further.

I nodded, avoiding his gaze, and maneuvered around him to return to the kitchen. There, I found Ben sitting at the dining table, surrounded by women. Eden was already perched on his lap, and there was an empty seat next to him.

When he spotted me, he patted the vacant seat, inviting me to join him.

After enduring a barrage of questions from my family, I decided to rescue Ben from the kitchen. As I glanced around the room, I found Knox’s gaze fixed on me.

I offered him a tight smile before turning away, only to meet Ben’s ocean blue-green eyes. He was smirking at me.

“What?” I asked him. Leaning in closer so only I could hear, he replied, “Carter is about to rip my head off, that’s what. Jesus, I knew he liked you, but I didn’t realize it was this intense.” I punched him in the arm.

“Shut up, Hendrix! He doesn’t like me.”

“He clearly has jealousy written all over his face, sweetheart,” he countered, glancing over at Knox, whose jaw clenched in response to our conversation.

“He’s just protective. Like the others.”

“Alex, none of the others are glaring at me like he is,” Ben pointed out. I looked around at the boys, who, in fact, weren’t even paying attention to us.

I had no response to that, and Ben knew it.

“You know I’m right, sweetheart,” he added after a moment, watching me come to the realization that he was, in fact, correct.

“You’re wrong about him... liking me. He doesn’t, he—” I was interrupted by the sliding open of the back door, revealing Miss USA herself in all her blonde glory. Why hadn’t she left yet?

I rolled my eyes as she strutted in, commanding attention in her hot pink bikini and wedges, her blonde hair perfectly curled and makeup flawlessly applied.

Ben glanced at her, then back at me. “So... he’s back with her?” he questioned, his voice rising slightly with each word.

I shook my head. “I don’t know? I don’t think so!”

Delilah chimed in, “He’s not, he was never with her. That girl is so spoiled,” she commented, cleaning the plates on the table with a look of distaste.

“Good morning, everyone!” Lauren greeted, her smile sweeping the room. She set her bag down and approached Ben, extending her hand for him to shake. Being Ben, he was polite, but I knew he wouldn’t be charmed by her.

“Well, hello there, handsome! I’m Lauren, and you are?”

“Ben,” he replied, standing to shake her hand and offering a tight smile.

She leaned in closer to whisper in his ear, “You’re cute. Have we met before, Ben?” He stepped back and reclaimed his seat.

She gave him a puzzled look, clearly not used to being ignored.

He shook his head. “No, I don’t think so. Maybe we did, but I can’t remember.” I struggled to hide my surprise and the smile threatening to spread across my face.

“Maybe not. You definitely would’ve remembered me,” she recovered from his subtle dig. Ben wasn’t usually so blunt with people.

“Knox, darling, could you set up a bed for me down at the beach? I hate sitting in the sand.”

He sighed audibly, locking eyes with me. “No, do it yourself or ask Ben to do it.” Ben’s head snapped towards Knox, and they locked gazes.

“Nah, I’m good, man. She’s your girlfriend. You should help her.”

“She’s not my girlfriend... man. She’s single, knock yourself out.” Ben frowned, but broke eye contact.

Lauren stood there, grinning widely, clearly enjoying the tension she was causing.

“Good to know, but I’m not interested,” Ben stated plainly. Her smile vanished as quickly as it had appeared.

“You’re not interested?” The surprise in her voice was evident, but Ben simply shook his head, his gaze fixed on the ocean.

He patted my leg and asked, “Ready to go surfing?” making me smile.

“Ready when you are, darling,” I replied in the most teasing tone I could muster.