you to stick by me as much as possible tonight so I know if you need to go home.”
She opened her mouth to argue, but he stopped her before she got a chance. It helped that another coughing fit overtook her.
Before she got a chance to catch her breath, he continued, “This is the way it’s going to be. Either you stay home the rest of the day and try to get better, or you have me by your side monitoring your health for you.”
“Chris…” she croaked.
“Come on, Julie. Give in. You’re sick. You need help and I’m willing to do it. Haven’t I proven to be a good helper this week? Let me stay by your side and I promise no one will figure out just how sick you are.”
She gave a hefty sigh, which was followed by another round of coughing that made Chris cringe. That had to hurt. No wonder her voice sounded so awful.
Finally, she relented and began to nod. Chris went over to her counter where her various medicines were piled. Glancing at his watch, he calculated. They had five hours to go until the wedding began. He needed to be at Colton’s to help Jake get ready in three hours and assumed Julie needed to be at Cassie’s a little bit before that. He started reading warning labels on the medicine to see what they could mix to get her functioning again.
Chapter 17
Finally, it was time for the wedding to begin. Chris stepped through the wooden arch decorated with twinkle lights and gauze with Penelope in a spring green dress on one side of him and Julie dressed in emerald green on the other. The guitarist played a soft melody as they walked down the aisle under the watchful misty eyes of Jake and Cassie’s friends. Chris still marveled at the transformation of the wedding venue to something truly magical with the soft lighting and romantic music.
He smiled down at Julie as they walked. Her bridesmaid dress was a soft, floaty material that whispered against her bare legs with each step. Even sick, the emerald green color turned her normally hazel eyes a vivid green. If he hadn’t known her so well, he never would have guessed she was sick. The tissue thin fabric was gathered on the bodice and he worried about the spaghetti straps because she’d been so cold with her fever, but so far, so good. She seemed to be holding her own and was breathtaking.
The wedding was small, less than one hundred guests and even Chris could feel the outflowing of love from their friends. Jake stood at the end waiting for Cassie and the guy was literally beaming. Chris couldn’t be happier with who Cassie had fallen in love with and chosen to be her husband.
His twin connection with Cassie was buzzing tonight with her high emotions in anticipation of the wedding. It kept infusing him with a feeling of warmth and peace. He loved that she was so happy with Jake.
When they got to the end of the aisle, he escorted Penelope to the right side where she’d wait for Colton, who was escorting Cassie down the aisle. He gave her a light kiss on the cheek, before turning to give a hug to Jake. Chris was surprised when the tears welled up in his eyes. He didn’t expect to become this emotional tonight, but Jake had always been just like another brother in his life. To know that tonight he truly would become one was a bit overwhelming.
He gave a simple instruction while he slapped Jake on the back, “Take care of her.”
Jake pulled back and Chris was surprised to see that Jake seemed to be just as overwhelmed by the emotion as him. He looked Chris in the eye. “I love her.” And really, that was all they needed, right? Chris knew that Jake would lay down his life in a heartbeat to keep Cassie happy.
Chris smiled, nodded, took a deep breath and turned back toward Julie. She was already dabbing her eyes with tissue. She gave him a watery smile and took hold of his hand as he joined her on that side of the aisle.
They turned to wait for Colton and Cassie as the guitarist changed his musical score to the wedding waltz. Chris had gone to talk to her right before the wedding, but that didn’t keep his breath from catching when he saw Cassie in the entryway. She looked amazing in her