AnnaBeth did not know what had possessed her to take the Belle's to Vegas for Elodie's bachelorette party. Between breaking up with Lavon after finding out he had been stringing her a long for a year and being asked to be a bridesmaid for Elodie who was engaged after knowing Jackson for just four short months things had been a blur. Putting on a front that you are fine was plain exhausting.
"AnnaBeth I can't believe you pulled this together so quickly" Elodie told her as they checked into the hotel "I love having a heart broken bridesmaid"
AnnaBeth took a deep breath biting her tongue. She honestly had no idea why she was doing anything for Elodie. She was clearly having a mental breakdown.
"Excuse me ladies" She said "I'll send y'all an itinerary and see you later"
AnnaBeth thanked the concierge who offered to take her bag up to her room. She searched her purse for her phone to call Lemon and see what time she was arriving. She had booked a private booth area, set up time in the casino but she still needed to secure some strippers.
"Talk about Brideszilla"
AnnaBeth laughed and nodded finding her phone. She smiled at the man who had spoken to her. He was tall with blue eyes and dark hair speckled with flicks of grey.
"She got engaged Monday and set the wedding for in a months' time, so I had days to arrange the bachelorette party, two nights in Vegas" She confided in the stranger.
"You should have arranged my trip, I tried last minute but no one else could make it" He said with a smile.
"Well I'm sure you'll manage to have a good time" She replied "And you'll have a drunken bachelorette party providing entertainment no doubt"
Her phone started to ring with a Vegas area code. She waved to the stranger as she walked towards the door answering the phone.
"Hello?" She said.
Kelly Severide checked his own phone as he stood in the lobby. He had really though Brett was going to come with him, but she backed out at the last minute. He was just excited for a wild weekend to stop thinking about Shay's death and having everyone at firehouse 51 constantly checking to see if he was ok.
He looked up as he heard the woman, he was just talking to getting more and more irate.
"Miguel" She said "I expect more from somewhere called the Booty Review, so help me I will come over there and shove one of those banana…you know what forget it"
He tried to hold in a laugh. Whoever she was she was cute when she was all fired up. He decided to go up to his own room and unpack so he could head down to the bar and then hit the casino.
AnnaBeth finally got through to Lemon on her third try at calling as she sat outside the hotel.
"Lemon Breeland where are you?" She asked.
"Something came up with Grandma and I can't make it" Lemon replied "I'm sorry AnnaBeth"
"But I need you" She told her "This whole thing is falling apart, I've hired some truly shoddy entertainment and my only hope of them not realizing I ruined the whole night is to get them well and truly drunk"
"Well those ladies are more tolerable when you're sloshed" Lemon said "Sorry AB, I'll be back Monday for the dress fitting, if anyone can pull this off other than me, it's you"
AnnaBeth rolled her eyes as she hung up the phone. She had arranged dinner for six, drinks at their table in the bar right after. Then it was the casino and then the VIP room with whatever strippers she was going to get from somewhere called Hal's Hunks.
She knew she didn't have much time to get ready, so she had to hurry. She was supposed to be sharing a room with Lemon, so the only real bright side was at least she had the room to herself. She left her chestnut hair in soft curls that fell to just below her collarbone. She picked out a teal sheath dress that brought out the green in her eyes.
The food in the restaurant was amazing. The perfect distraction from listening to Elodie go on and on about how Jackson had proposed. She felt bad because she knew it was an exciting time for her and she really did want to be excited for her friend. But Elodie was not much of a friend and the subtle digs about her single status she had been getting all week were starting to grate on her.
"Are you ok?" Crickett asked
"Of course," She replied "I am just so excited, we should go to the bar"
"I hope you arranged plenty of cocktails and champagne AnnaBeth" Elodie told her as she walked ahead with Sadie.
"And Tequila" AnnaBeth added "Lots and lots of tequila"
AnnaBeth knocked back the first glass of champagne and a shot of tequila before sipping her second glass.
"You know I think we should go straight to the casino" Crickett suggested.
AnnaBeth raised an eyebrow. They had not long sat down.
"Why would we do that?" She asked.
"Well it's Vegas" Crickett replied her voice going just a little too high "And we can take the drinks with us"
AnnaBeth waited behind with Crickett and turned around to face her.
"Crickett Watts I worked hard on this plan, what's going on?" She asked.
"I bankrupted the Belle's" Crickett whispered "I'm hoping I can win enough money to pay for our charter next month"
"Is that why you held so many bake sales?" She asked.
"Yes" Crickett cried "Please don't tell anyone, they'll kill me"
"You" She hissed "What about me, you can't ruin Elodie's party with that"
"So, you'll keep the secret?" Crickett asked.
"Yes" she agreed "Now go"
Kelly was at the craps table when he saw a group of women in short pink dresses and sashes walk through the room. Then he saw the woman from the lobby in a green dress.
"Hey" he called out.
She looked around confused but smiled when she recognized him. She turned to look back at her friends, but they were set up at the blackjack table and slot machines, so she walked over.
"Hello again" She said
"Will you roll the dice for luck?" He asked.
"I'm not sure I'm all that lucky" She replied "And I've never played before"
"New girl luck, it's a thing" He told her handing her the dice "Just aim for the back wall"
She looked down at the dice and then bent over to throw them.
"Is that good?" She asked as they called out what she had rolled, and people started cheering.
He wasn't sure what came over him, but he grabbed her face and kissed her in the excitement.
She looked a little shocked as she looked up at him but then she stood on her tip toes to kiss him back.
"I'm Kelly" He told her with a smile as she pulled back and stood up straight smoothing down her dress.
"I'm…" She started.
"AnnaBeth Nass what are you doing?" A woman in a puffy pink dress and tiara demanded.
"Bridezilla?" He asked with a knowing smirk.
"I should go" She nodded "She might be dressed up like a marshmallow but she's meaner than she looks"
Kelly laughed out loud still holding onto her hand. That woman was funny as well as beautiful.
"When do you leave?" He asked
"We fly out Sunday night" She replied.
"I hope I bump into you again" He told her.
"Well we are staying in the same hotel" She said with a smile pulling away "I'll see you around Kelly"
Annabeth walked over to Elodie with a smile on her face as she touched her lips. Elodie however looked less than impressed.
"I don't think that's behavior very becoming of a Belle" Elodie told her.
"Well then it's a good thing I'm not a Belle anymore" She retorted.
They stayed in the casino a while longer. Once they were in the VIP room AnnaBeth pounded back the tequilas. She had been right to worry about the strippers but Elodie didn't seem to mind. She was having the time of her life. AnnaBeth on the other hand felt the need to kill braincells to try and unsee what she had just seen. After an hour, the Belle's had let loose and gone wild. She had arranged to spend time with them at the pool the next day and spa treatments. She decided to head back to the hotel bar.
She ordered a margarita and sat at the bar. Sam the bartender had seen her earlier and asked her about her night.
"So, if you aren't a Belle and you didn't want to throw the party why did you?" Sam asked as he polished glasses.
"I have no idea" She replied "Clearly I'm crazy"
She looked around the bar and saw Kelly sat at the other end of the bar.
"You again" She said, "Did you win much more?"
"I did" He replied flashing her a smile "Where's the marshmallow?"
"With some stripper called Randy" She told him.
"So, it was a good night?" He asked.
"Oh, it was something, this guy was so stuck in his leather pants you'd need all the talc in Nevada to try and get them off, it was a mess" She replied
"Can I buy you a drink?" He asked.
"Another tequila?" The Bartender suggested
"Tequila's is Satan's drink" She replied shaking her head.
"Two tequila's" He said ordering the round.
AnnaBeth raised an eyebrow as he came and sat down next to her. She had been so hung up on Lavon and sad and angry, but she realized since Kelly had kissed her, she hadn't even thought about him. There was an instant spark there.
"So, Kelly" She said resting her elbow on the bar "tell me about you"
Kelly was still sat at the bar with AnnaBeth at two in the morning. He had told her all about his life in Chicago. He'd laughed hearing all about some crazy small town she was from in Alabama and her best friend Lemon. She had completely gotten his mind off everything he had been trying to forget.
They were a good few drinks in when he walked AnnaBeth up to her room. He leant down to kiss her as she opened the door behind them pulling him inside.
AnnaBeth peeked one eye open as she felt an arm over the top of her that was too heavy to belong to a Belle. She lifted the cover to confirm she was in fact very naked underneath.
"Good morning" Kelly said pulling her closer and kissing her cheek.
And then it all came flooding back to her. She had brought back the attractive firefighter from the bar.
"Good morning" She replied turning around to face him.
"How are you feeling?" He asked stroking her side.
"I'm not sure I've been that drunk since the Delta Sig redneck ball my sophomore year" She replied
"Redneck ball?" He asked with a smirk "Do you regret asking me back?"
"No" she told him with a smile "I'm really glad I met you, I just regret so many shots, I've got the whole day to get through"
"We could order some room service" He suggested "Coffee will make you feel better"
AnnaBeth found herself pleasantly distracted as he started to kiss her neck and work his hand up her thigh.
She jumped as there was a knock at the door.
"AnnaBeth we've been waiting at the pool for twenty minutes" Crickett called through the door "Are you coming?"
"Do you have to go?" Kelly asked her.
"I'll be there soon" She called back through the door.
Kelly had spent the next thirty minutes in bed with AnnaBeth when she insisted, she'd have to go, or a group of Belle's would break down the door as her phone rang for the fifth time.
"Why don't you come with me?" She suggested getting up to jump into the shower "They'll give you some good stories to go back to work with"
Kelly didn't have anything else to do and he was enjoying spending time with AnnaBeth. Drinks at the pool with a bachelorette party wasn't the worst idea in the world.
"And no, you can't come in the shower" She warned him "I won't get ready"
Kelly smirked and told her he would meet her down by the pool.
AnnaBeth had picked out a green bikini and put on a skirt and a t-shirt to walk down to the pool. The girls were all sprawled out on loungers drinking cocktails and gossiping. She lay her towel out on the sun lounger and slipped off her skirt and pulled the t-shirt back over her head.
"Did you take that guy back to your room?" Crickett asked
"What guy?" She asked innocently
"That guy coming over who's looking at you like a piece of meat" Crickett replied.
"It's not Belle like" Elodie said "But he is something, I don't blame you for wanting to butter his biscuit"
She jumped as Kelly put his hands on her waist and kissed her cheek.
"Girls this is Kelly Severide" She said introducing them "Kelly this is the bride to be Elodie, Crickett, Tara Lynn and Sadie"
"It's nice to meet you ladies" He said politely sitting down on Annabeth's sun lounger and pulling her onto his lap.
They spent the rest of the day drinking and playing around by the pool. She had told the girls she would meet them for dinner, but Kelly had convinced her to go for dinner with him, so she had text them lying about being sick.
"I'm kind of sad I'm leaving tomorrow and we're so far apart" She admitted after a few margaritas.
"So, come with me" He told her cupping her face and bending down to kiss her.
"Just up and move to Chicago?" She laughed
"I mean it, let's get married" He told her seriously "These two days with you have been the happiest I've had in a long time, there's something here"
AnnaBeth didn't know what to say. She had broken up with her last boyfriend because he had no intention of marrying her. She had known within a month of dating Lavon that she could spend the rest of her life with him. Meeting Kelly she had forgotten about being sad. They had a connection that couldn't be argued with. She wasn't sure if she was thinking clearly but it felt right.
"Ok" She agreed.
"Ok?" He asked smiling.
"Yes" She nodded giggling as he picked her up spinning her around.