Big Tex

by Alexis Lauren

  Every minute he spent there, he was either talking to Willow or he was silently praying for her, even in his fitful sleep. Maggie came in and out over those days, careful not to draw the attention of the doctors, since she wasn't supposed to be in the room. Sierra and Micah didn't spend much time at the hospital since there wasn't much they could do there but sit in the waiting room, but they were always available by phone in case there was a change in Willow's condition.

  Meanwhile, Willow was having wonderful dreams. She felt like she was floating down a hallway. She had on a beautiful while silk gown, with a halo of flowers on her head. She heard the melodic tune of harps all around her, playing such a peaceful song. At the end of the hall, she saw her mother standing there, with the same gown and halo of flowers.

  "Mom! I can't believe it's you! I miss you so much! What are you doing here, I thought you died." Willow yelled to her from down the hall.

  "I did die honey, and I've missed you too, but you need to go back. You need to go back to Brody and live the life that you were meant to live. I will be watching over you just like I have been since I died. You are doing wonderful with the business, and your wedding plans are coming along great. I absolutely loved your wedding dress…you and Maggie weren't the only ones crying. Now go back and marry that handsome man and start your family!" Lauren told her.

  "But I don't want to leave you again!" Willow cried.

  "I know honey, but you will see me again when it's your time. I love you!" Lauren said as she faded away.

  "Mom, wait! I never got to yell at you for the stuff in your bedroom!" Willow yelled. Lauren didn't come back, but the sound of her laugh echoed through the hall. Willow knew that even though she missed her mom, she needed to go back and live with the love of her life. She had so much more of her life to live, she couldn't let it end yet.

  Slowly, Willow's eyes fluttered open. The light was so bright in the room and it hurt her head. She turned her head to see what the weight on her left hand was. Willow saw the top of Brody's head laying on the bed. She moved her hand a little and watched Brody jump up off his chair.

  "Oh my god! You're awake!" Brody yelled as he fumbled with the call switch to get the nurse in there. "Don't talk, you have a tube down your throat. Oh Willow, I was so worried about you!" He said as he started crying. The tears started to fall down Willow's face too when she saw how concerned Brody was. He leaned over and placed kisses all over Willow's face, which made her smile even though she was in a lot of pain.

  The nurse rushed in and was surprised to see Willow awake. She had the doctor paged as she took the tube out of Willow's throat and got her a drink of water. "Welcome back!" She said to Willow.

  Willow turned to Brody as soon as she swallowed her water and whispered, "I love you."

  "Oh darling! I thought I lost you. I love you so much, don't ever leave me!" Brody said, breathing a sigh of relief.

  The doctor walked in and asked Brody to leave while he examined Willow. Brody kissed Willow and told her that he would be back as soon as the doctor finished. He walked out of her room feeling lighter than he had in a while. He raced to the payphones and called his mom and Sierra and Micah to let them know that Willow had woken up. They all told him they would be up to the hospital as soon as possible.

  Brody walked back to Willow's room and stood outside her door, waiting for the doctor to finish. When the doctor walked out, he had a smile on his face. "Well, she's making a great recovery. Her gunshot wound is healing nicely, and she woke from the coma on her own, which is a good sign. She'll need to stay here to rest for a little while, but as long as she promises to take it easy when she gets home, she can go home in two days."

  Brody smiled broadly, and hugged the doctor. "Thank you so much! Thank you for saving her doctor!" The doctor laughed and walked away. As Brody turned to go into Willow's room, he saw a big bunch of balloons coming around the corner, followed by his mom, sister, father, Micah, and Sierra. Everyone was holding either flowers or balloons, and they were practically running. Brody laughed at the sight as everyone made their way to Willow's room.

  Brody went into her room and said that there was someone who wanted to see her. She turned her head towards the door and watched as everyone piled into her room with balloons and flowers. Her face lit up when she saw everyone. They all took their turn hugging Willow and telling her how happy they were that she was ok.

  "You gave us quite a scare dear." Maggie told her once everyone had settled down. "Don't ever do that again!" She laughed.

  "I'll try to remember that the next time some psycho lures me to an abandoned warehouse and shoots me." Willow joked. "How did you find me anyways? When I was driving there, I wasn't even sure I'd be able to find my way back."

  "Your genius fiancé remembered the global positioning system on your car, and the cops were able to use that to track you down. Brody was the one who found you." Micah told her, smiling.

  "I always knew you were good for something. So, you pretty much saved my life?" Willow asked Brody.

  "Well, you saved my life by waking up, so we're even." Brody told her honestly.

  "How long have I been out for?" Willow asked.

  "You've been out for four days and Brody never left your side. He stayed here the whole time. I even had to bring him food and force him to eat. If you smell something bad, it's because Brody hasn't showered in 4 days." Maggie laughed.

  "Hey! I washed up every day though. I don't smell that bad, do I?" Brody asked, offended.

  "Actually…." Willow started. Brody shut her up by kissing her.

  "Fine, talk to these people here, and I'll go take a quick shower in your bathroom." Brody said as he grabbed his bag of clean clothes and walked into the bathroom of Willow's hospital room.

  When they heard the water turn on, Sierra turned to Willow. "Ok, now that he isn't in hearing distance, how are you really?"

  Willow took a painful deep breath and sighed. "Well, I'm a little shaken up, but I'm going to be ok. I get to go home in two days, so once that happens, I'll be a lot better…just as long as Lisa's in jail."

  "She is. Brody knocked her ass out when she came to the office after she shot you. She was bragging and told Brody that they could be together since you were out of the way, and he knocked her out cold." Micah said.

  "Wow, I can't believe Brody hit a girl! He must have been totally full of rage to do that, it's not like him at all." Brighton said. "I'm happy he hit her though. I hope he hurt her good."

  "He did." Brody said as he walked out of the bathroom and heard what they were talking about. "Sorry Mom, I know you taught me better than that, but at least I didn't kill her like I wanted to."

  Maggie laughed. "If I'd have been there, I would have told you to do the same!"

  Shortly after, everyone left the room to let Willow rest. Brody stayed with her, even though she told him to go home and get some sleep. He insisted on staying at the hospital with her until she was able to go home. "Well, you're not going to sleep in that chair again tonight. At least share my bed with me." Willow said.

  "No Willow, you need your rest. I'll be fine in this chair. Just got to sleep, ok?"

  "I won't sleep until you get in this bed with me, you hear me Country Boy?" Willow said sternly.

  "Yes ma'am!" Brody said as he walked around the other side of the bed. Willow moved over to make room for Brody to lay down. Brody tried to be gentle as he got into the bed and not hurt her. As he got close to her, he put his arms around her and held her. Tears welled up in his eyes as he remembered how good it felt to hold his fiancée. "Are you ok? Are you doing ok?" He asked her once they got settled.

  "A little freaked out, but I'll be ok. It feels worlds better to be in your arms though." Willow told him honestly. "I almost died, and that's a really scary thought, but I don't want to think about it right now, ok?"

  "Well, if you want to talk about it, you know you can always talk to me. But get some sleep ok? We need to get your strength back up so I can ta
ke you home with me." Brody said and kissed Willow's forehead as she closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep. He watched her a little while longer before falling into a peaceful sleep himself.

  Two days later, Willow was released from the hospital with orders to take it easy for the next week. She spent most of that time in bed, or down in the game room on the couch watching movies. Brody waited on her hand and foot, and the few hours that he went into work during that week, he had Stella at Willow's beck and call.

  After the week was up, Willow went back to the doctor and was given a clean bill of health. She and Brody celebrated by going out for a nice dinner, followed by a night of dancing. When they got home that night, they did a little dancing of their own, between the sheets.

  *****

  Two weeks later, Sierra told Willow that they needed a girl's night out. She kidnapped her after dinner one Saturday night as Micah kidnapped Brody. They took them both blindfolded in separate vehicles, and drove in opposite directions. Half an hour later, Sierra stopped her car and led Willow to the front of a building. She spun Willow around, just for the fun of it, then took off her blindfold. They were standing in front of Willow's favorite club in the city, surrounded by Brighton, Maggie, Willow's friends from work, and even some friends from New York.

  "Surprise!" They all yelled.

  Willow looked confused and Sierra said "Welcome to your bachelorette party girl!"

  "But the wedding is still a few months away. Aren't we supposed to do this closer to the wedding?" Willow asked, still a little confused.

  "Well, technically. But there is no set time to have the bachelor and bachelorette parties. Besides, you and Brody have been under too much stress lately, it's time for you to both let loose and enjoy the night!" Sierra told her.

  "Oh no! Brody's party is tonight too? I didn't even get a chance to tell him to behave!" Willow groaned.

  "Yes, but that also means that he didn't get a chance to tell you to behave either." Brighton laughed wickedly.

  "I'm in trouble already, aren't I?" Willow laughed. She made her way around hugging everyone and thanking them for coming. It was good to see her friends from New York, and she was excited that they all made it.

  Sierra put a white t-shirt over Willow's head that said "Naughty Bride-to-Be", telling Willow to put it on. Once she got the shirt on, Sierra put a veil on Willow's head. "Perfect! Now you're ready for the night to begin!" Sierra said.

  Willow walked toward the entrance of the bar, and Sierra grabbed her arm, wagging her finger at her. "Not so fast my friend. We were just meeting up here. The party is moving somewhere else!" Sierra dragged Willow down the street and everyone else followed behind.

  Meanwhile, Micah had driven Brody to the city too. He parked in the parking lot of a strip club and told Brody to take his blindfold off. "Happy Bachelor Party, man! Everyone else is inside waiting for you. Oh, but you have to put this on before you go in!" He tossed Brody a white t-shirt that said "Naughty Groom-to-Be". Brody looked at it and laughed, thinking how dumb it was, but put it on anyways. He followed Micah into the strip club, a little uncomfortable because he didn't normally go to places like this.

  Inside the club, he was greeted by all of his friends who were sitting at a table close to the stage, with a seat right up front saved for Brody. Brody shook his head and laughed, knowing his friends would be merciless all night. As soon as he sat down, a line of shots were put in front of him, along with a pitcher of beer. Micah handed him a stack of 25 $1.00 bills. "We're not leaving until all of that is gone." Micah said, pointing to the shots, the pitcher, and the stack of money. "I know how much you hate strip clubs, so the faster you go through all of that, the quicker we get you out of here and onto the next place."

  Brody slammed all 5 shots that were sitting in front of him, and poured some of the beer into a glass. The rest of the guys cheered for him as they watched him drink the shots. Brody drank the glass of beer, knowing that he'd have to have a pretty good buzz to be able to use any of the money.

  He finally started loosening up a little, and when the other guys would call a girl over to put some money in her costume, Brody would slip a dollar in too.

  Finally, all the beer, shots, and dollar bills were gone. Brody was feeling pretty good at that point, since he had so much to drink in such a short amount of time. Micah helped him up and they all left the strip club, heading to their next destination.

  Sierra finally stopped in front of a male strip club and pulled Willow in. "Oh no Sierra, tell me we aren't staying here." Willow whined.

  "Well, there's a few tasks that you have to complete before we leave. So, do them fast, we get out of here fast!" Sierra said. She dragged her to a table up front, where there were gift bags all over the table. They sat Willow closest to the stage, and handed her a pitcher of beer and 5 shots, just like Brody got. She only had to spend 10 $1.00 bills, but she had a list of missions to complete, and a table full of presents to open.

  Willow also took the opportunity to slam all 5 shots first. After that, she began opening the presents. Each present was something kinky, like fur-lined handcuffs, vibrators, and crotch less panties. Willow couldn't even look at Maggie's face as she opened her presents.

  Willow was halfway through her pitcher of beer when she finished opening the presents. She spent her $10, then started on her missions. Her first mission was to get backstage and get a G-string from one of the strippers, which she easily accomplished. The next one was to do a Blow Job body shot off a dancer's stomach, without any hands. This one was a little more difficult, but Willow accomplished it like a pro. The final mission was to learn how to give a lap dance from one of the dancers.

  Trigger, the stripper, took Willow into one of the private rooms to teach her the art of lap dances. She picked it up in no time, and left the private room to finish her beer. As she chugged the last part directly from the pitcher, everyone cheered her on. She slammed the empty pitcher down on the table and shouted "Next!"

  Everyone laughed and got the presents from off the table. Sierra kept Willow occupied while everyone put the presents in Micah's truck that was in the parking lot next to them. When the rest of the girls joined them, they walked a fairly buzzed Willow back in the direction they came from.

  Willow stopped in the middle of the sidewalk where they were all walking, and almost got run over by the girls walking behind her. "I just wanted to say thank you to all of you for coming and throwing me a kick ass bachelorette party. I am having such a good time and I love you all." Willow told them, her words only slightly slurred. She began walking again, but she was now walking back towards the strip club. Brighton grabbed her arm and turned her around.

  "We're going this way now, unless you want to go back and see the strippers." Brighton teased. Willow started to run away from the direction of the strippers, then stopped about 20 feet away, laughing at her own joke. Brighton caught up with her and linked her arm with Willows. "Good to see you're having fun!"

  "This is so great, it's just what I needed. Where to next?" Willow wondered.

  "You'll see soon. But we need to put your blindfold back on you." Sierra said as she got the blindfold out. She put it on Willow's eyes and asked, "Can you see anything?" Willow shook her head and lost her balance a little. Everyone laughed and Brighton and Sierra each took one of Willow's arms and led her to the back door of the club. Everyone else went to the front door.

  When the bouncer let them in the back door, Brighton saw Micah standing there with a blindfolded Brody. She had to fight the laughter from coming out her mouth. Brody was double fisted, with beer bottles in both hands, alternating which one he was drinking out of. Micah smiled and shook his head when he saw the girls.

  "There's only one more mission you have to complete, then you get a big prize, ok?" Sierra whispered into Willow's ear. Willow nodded her head. Sierra and Brighton led her to the stairs on one side of the stage of Willow's favorite club, while Micah led Brody to the stair at the other side of the stag
e. Both Brody and Willow were led to center stage as the crowd cheered. Micah and Sierra positioned Willow and Brody so that they were facing each other. Micah took both of Brody's beers, which were pretty much empty anyways, then at the same time Sierra and Micah took their blindfolds off, leaving Willow and Brody staring at each other. 'Sierra was right, I did get a big prize!' Willow thought as she looked at Brody.

  Brody smiled a drunk little smile, and Willow jumped up and wrapped her legs around his waist and her arms around his neck. They shared a passionate kiss as the crowd looked on and cheered. After their kiss ended, Sierra and Micah led Willow and Brody to the dance floor, where they drank, danced, and kissed for the rest of the night, along with the members of their parties.

  Chapter 18 A Family Secret

  The month following the bachelor and bachelorette parties flew by. The wedding was only a month and a half away, and Willow and Brody were busy trying to tie up the last minute plans. Sierra had been traveling a lot, drumming up new business for the firm, making the demand for their designs higher than ever. Willow had to hire four new architects to keep them from falling behind schedule.

  Between work and wedding planning, Willow never had a free moment to herself lately. She felt the stress of constantly being on one deadline or another, and to make it worse, she felt like she was getting sick.

  Brody kept trying to make her slow down a little, but Willow would comment that she didn't have time to slow down. When Brody woke up to the sounds of Willow getting sick one morning, he had enough of Willow pushing herself to the extreme. He went into the bathroom and rubbed her back while she got sick, making sure that her hair was pulled back and out of her face. He also took a wet cloth and ran it over her face, trying to cool her off a little.

  When she felt she had everything out of her system, Brody picked Willow up off the floor and carried her back to bed. "Now will you listen to me and slow down? You're obviously sick, and it's probably from all the stress. I understand that you need to stress about work, but you need to calm down a little when it comes to the wedding. You have been working yourself too hard, and I'll let you in on a little secret…I could care less if we got married in our bathroom and it was just me, you, and the preacher in there. Our wedding will be perfect no matter what happens, because when it comes down to it, all that matters to me is that I marry you that day. Everything else is just an added bonus. Now, if there is something that you absolutely need to do for the wedding, you let me or my mom know, and we'll get it done. As for work, we're going to need to get an assistant for you. I don't know why you don't have one yet, but I'm sure it's because you feel the need to control every single thing in your life. It's time to give up some of the control before you kill yourself. Got it?" Brody lectured her.