Nick was still watching TV, although not really paying attention to it, when Sara returned from her massage. She smiled softly at him as she walked through the door. "I'm not sure that massage was such a good idea." Nick raised a curious eyebrow. "How come?" He hoped it hadn't been a bad experience for her. The last thing he wanted was for her to compound the unpleasantness of her day with a painful massage, especially after this morning.

She chuckled softly. "Because all I want to do now is sleep."

Nick grinned. "You still have time. The wedding isn't for a couple more hours still."

Sara crawled up onto the bed, thankful that housekeeping had come and changed all the bedding after she had christened it this morning unceremoniously. The wrapped wedding gift lay on the bedside table. She lay down on her stomach and glanced over at Nick who looked at her with amusement. "What?"

He chuckled and shook his head. "Nothing. You just remind me of what a boneless turkey might look like."

With mock indignation she swatted at his leg. "Are you telling me that you think I look like a turkey, Stokes?"

He dodged her hand. "I value my life too highly to ever make that comparison, Sara. All I'm saying is that you seem very relaxed."

"Umhum." Sara was already drifting off to sleep and Nick couldn't resist reaching over and tucking a stray lock of hair behind her ear.

The TV no longer even remotely interested him and he found himself content to just watch Sara sleep. As he watched her he wondered what it would be like to wake up next to her everyday. He wondered what the rest of the lab would think if they knew he was even thinking like this. He'd had a reputation as a ladies man, and quite frankly, it wasn't true. With the help of Greg Sanders, it had taken on a life of its own. While it was true he had dated a lot of women, he had never dated more than one at a time. The thing is the women he'd meet in bars and clubs just weren't the kind of woman he could imagine spending the rest of his life with; maybe the rest of the night with, but definitely not the rest of his life. Sara was different. He could see himself spending the rest of his life with her, if only she felt the same way what bliss that would be. He needed to tell her how he felt and he wanted the moment to be perfect. If he had to, he'd create the perfect moment. But he had to tell her, he couldn't wait much longer.

Nick wasn't sure how long he watched Sara sleep, but glancing up at the clock as she began to stir, he realized it had only been about an hour.

Her eyes fluttered opened and she noticed that he was watching her. A faint smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. "How long have I been sleeping?"

"About an hour." Nick replied trying not to stare at her.

She pushed herself up onto her elbows and turned her head sideways to face him. "I'm going to go take a shower and get beautiful."

Nick smiled at her. "You are already are beautiful."

Sara wasn't sure how to respond to his comment, but a smile spread across her face. "Thanks, but I don't feel beautiful right now. I've got stuff all over me from that massage." She let out a yawn and pushed herself up to a sitting position.

Nick raised a curious eyebrow. "Stuff."

Sara rolled her eyes. "You know, lotion, oil, whatever they use, it's sort of slimy."

He chuckled. "I'll trust you on that."

Sara slid off the bed and went over to her suitcase to pull out some undergarments and then to the closet to pull out her dress. She glanced over her shoulder at Nick who was watching her. "I take it whatever your watching on TV isn't too interesting."

He looked at her quizzically. "Huh?"

Sara laughed. "Uh, you're staring at me, Stokes."

Nick tried to restrain his grin. "Uh, sorry, the view was nice."

Sara just shook her head and tried not to blush. "I'll be in here getting beautiful."

"I suppose I should try and get handsome then." He grinned at her as she stepped into the bathroom.

Before she shut the door behind her she grinned. "You already are."

Nick chuckled as he stared at the closed door of the bathroom. He got up from where he was leaning against the headboard of the bed and went to go change his clothes. He had brought a charcoal gray suit to wear. He paired it with a white button down shirt and a French blue tie. Conservative, but appropriate for a wedding.

Nick was in the middle of adjusting his tie when Sara emerged from the bathroom. He glanced over and felt his heart stop for a moment. She looked amazing. Her dress was a simple affair. A basic sleeveless sheath dress that skimmed the top of her knee. It was almost the same color as his tie and she topped it off with a single strand of pearls.

Sara grinned at Nick and spun around. "How do I look?"

He finally felt his heart start beating again. "You look gorgeous, Sara."

She raised an eyebrow at him and smiled playfully. "You say that like it's a surprise."

Nick shook his head. "Uh, no, but you just look especially beautiful."

Sara walked over to Nick and adjusted his tie. "Looks like we're ready for a catalog shoot or something. Your tie matches my dress." She chuckled softly.

Nick just grinned at her. "Well, apparently we both have exceptional taste in clothes."

Sara rolled her eyes. "Ok, we should go then." She wasn't sure she could handle Nick staring at her like that or telling her she looked beautiful one more time. Not that she didn't appreciate it. She did. It just made her want to throw herself at him and tell him that she was in love with him and she was just too afraid to do it.

Nick donned his suit jacket and offered Sara his arm as they headed out the door.

Sara stopped abruptly. "The gift." She pulled away and went back into the room and grabbed the wedding gift.

"Here let me." Nick took the gift from her and offered her his arm again.

She chuckled at him teasingly. "Do all the men in Texas go to charm school, Nick?"

He flashed her a grin and his drawl was purposely more pronounced. "Yes, but not all of them were lucky enough to have the Stokes' women giving them instruction on how to treat a lady 24 hours a day."

Sara giggled and leaned over to kiss his cheek. "You're really sweet for being here with me."

He glanced over at her and very seriously replied. "I wouldn't want to be anywhere else."

Sara felt her heart flip and changed the subject as they neared the beach where the wedding would be held. They made their way to where the guest were beginning to be seated and she leaned over and whispered to Nick. "Isn't this beautiful?"

"Yeah." He smiled at her as he gave the gift to an attendant at a table that had been set up.

They were seated midway back next to a couple that looked like they were in their fifties. As the seats began to fill up, Nick couldn't help but take Sara's hand. She glanced at him with a surprised expression, but he just smiled at her and squeezed her hand. She smiled back and just let him hold her hand, enjoying the sensation.

The wedding began in typical fashion and just went downhill from there. Just about everything that could go wrong did. The candle lighters knocked over one of the candelabras. The bridesmaids' stiletto heels kept sinking in the sand and one of them sprained her ankle, having to lean on the groomsman who escorted her down the aisle. The flower girl went into a fit of hysteria at having to walk down the aisle and when she finally did, she pelted the crowd with flower petals instead of just dropping them gently on the sand. The guests were having a hard time stilling their laughter until Chloe appeared. She looked beautiful, the way any bride should on her wedding day, and she took all of the hilarity of the situation in stride.

As the vows were exchanged, Sara found herself leaning against Nick's shoulder. Nick found he couldn't help but steal glances at Sara. As Ben and Chloe were pronounced husband and wife, Sara let out a happy sigh. Nick squeezed her hand and she glanced up at him, smiling. She was so in love with Nick and she just wished she had the courage to tell him.

Nick continued to hold Sara's hand as they made their way to the reception. On the way in, they ran into Kelly.

As usual, she was gushing as she clung to the arm of one of the groomsmen. "Oh, don't you two look cute. Your clothes match."

Nick and Sara managed to get away from Kelly in the buffet line and settled themselves at a table on the beach side of the dance floor. After the tradition first dances, Nick glanced over at Sara. "Do you want to dance?" He looked at her expectantly.

She grinned. "Of course. I didn't drag you all the way from Vegas just to sit here."

They made their way out to the dance floor where a slow sentimental song played. Nick smiled and whispered to Sara. "You didn't drag me here you know. I came willingly."

Sara smiled. "I appreciate it."

"Any time." Nick's hand rested in the small of her back and her hand rested on his shoulder. His other hand held hers as they danced slowly and talked softly. Nick was completely mesmerized by her and he wanted desperately to tell her how he was feeling, but the time just didn't seem right.

Just as they sat down to take a break the DJ announced that it was time for the bouquet toss.

Sara groaned and glanced at Nick. "I hate this part. This is where all of the single women get paraded out on display like cattle to announce how desperate they are to the rest of the world."

Nick just chuckled and leaned toward her, kissing her cheek. "But no one here thinks you're desperate, and I sure as hell don't."

Sara grinned and stood up to gather with the other ladies on the dance floor for the bouquet toss. As Chloe glanced over her shoulder at the ladies, she winked. And as the bouquet sailed through the air, the crowd seemed to part. It sailed right into Sara's hands. Squeals of delight echoed as Chloe hugged Sara and posed for a picture with her. Sara went back to join Nick, setting the bouquet on the table.

The DJ then announced that it was time to toss the garter. Sara glanced over at Nick and smirked. "If I had to catch the dumb bouquet, you have to go out there and try and catch the damn garter."

Nick chuckled and grinned. "Yes, ma'am."

"I'm too young to be a ma'am." She teased back as Nick stood up and went out to join the other men.

Ben made a huge production of taking Chloe's garter off with his teeth. Once it was off, he held it over his head, glanced over and sling shot it into the crowd of guys. It hit Nick squarely in the chest.

As Nick looked over at Sara with a grin he waved her over so they could have a picture together. Sara glanced at Chloe and Ben and wondered if this wasn't a set up.

Nick and Sara posed with Chloe and Ben for a picture and then as they were about to depart the dance floor. Chloe stopped them. "Where are you going? You two have to kiss and then dance. It's tradition." Chloe had a conspiratorial grin on her face.

A faint pink color was beginning to infuse Sara's cheeks. As far as she knew there was no such tradition, but then who was she to argue with the bride? She felt Nick's arms go around her waist and she wrapped her arms around his neck as their faces leaned toward one another and their lips touched in a gentle kiss. After all, everyone there thought they were dating. And who were they to disappoint everyone? Ok, if truth be told, they were both enjoying the kiss immensely. In fact they got rather lost in it for a few moments, forgot where they were and why they had started kissing in the first place. They finally broke apart when someone good naturedly yelled out. "Get a room!"

Sara felt mortified. Suddenly the whole situation overwhelmed her and all she wanted to do was disappear. She didn't want to continue the charade any more. She couldn't handle it. She was in love with Nick Stokes and wanted the whole world to know. Only she was too afraid to tell him, so she stepped away from him and whispered softly. "I've got to go."

Nick could tell that he'd pushed too far. He should have stopped the kiss at a sweet chaste kiss. Not that Sara didn't fully participate in the kiss. Damn could that woman kiss. He could tell it was too much for her in front of all these people. The charade had gotten a little out of hand and now was the time to end it.

As Sara disappeared out onto the beach, Nick followed her. He caught up to her a short distance down the beach. The sun was setting and he could tell as he looked at her profile that there were tears streaming down her face.

He walked toward her and reached out for her, pulling her into a hug. "Shhh, its ok, Sara."

She pushed herself away from him and looked him in the eye. "I can't do this, Nick."

He let out a deep breath. "I can't either, Sara." He knew it was now or never.