Don't say yes!" He clutched the edge of the pew, his chest burning, his heart beating so loud that he'd swear the whole church could hear it. "Don't," he managed before a sheer lack of oxygen forced him to stop.

There were no gasps, no cries of alarm, and no whispered bits of gossip being bandied around. 'This wasn't at all how it happened in the movies,' Kelly thought as she stared at Joey's hunched over form. She felt Adam's gentle hand on her shoulder as she turned back towards him, her eyes still wide in from shock.

He said nothing and yet his eyes said it all. Adam was, by all accounts, the perfect man. He was a successful doctor. He loved her family. He loved her. At a time in her life where she'd felt totally and completely alone, Adam had come and reminded her what it was like to be loved…needed…wanted. The looks, the success, the heart…it was all there.

As she looked at him now, staring back at her with his generous, giving eyes, she wondered, Even as wonderful as he was, would it ever be enough?

"Joey…" Jessica rushed up beside him, reaching out to support him as he gasped for air. "Are you ok? Are you hurt? I thought you were in London. I thought you'd gone to see Kevin."

Standing up straight, he took a few steps back, suddenly very aware of every eye focused in his direction. "I'm fine…I just…I need to catch my breath. I couldn't get a cab, so I kind of…I kind of ran over here from the house."

She shook her head, the insanity of the statement clouding her brain. "Wait…you ran all the way over here from the house? To do what? To stop Kelly from getting married?"

He looked up at her, shrugging slightly. She wouldn't understand. He wasn't even sure he completely understood. The truth was, he'd known that Kelly was getting married for weeks now. In fact, he'd seen the engagement announcement in the paper months ago. Did he hate the thought of it? Yes. Had he planned to run in here like some sort of town crier and stop the whole thing right in the middle of the vows? Hell no.

"Joey," Jessica whispered, jabbing him slightly in the ribs and nudging him backwards out the door. "What are you thinking? What are you doing here?"

"I have to Jess," he whispered. "I have to tell her how I feel. She has to know."

"Joey." Jessica sighed, her eyes softening as she looked up at him. "Now is really not the time. I mean come on…do you really want to do this? Do you really want to ruin her wedding?"

"Let him go, Jess."

Joey turned, the relief evident in his face as he saw his brother walk into the room.

"Kev," Jessica smiled, rushing towards him and throwing her arms around her brother. "I didn't think you were gonna make it. I thought you said you had meetings and…"

"Forget about that…Forget about that right now. Joe." He glanced over towards Joey, who had moved back towards the door, the room now bustling with uncomfortable guests and hushed whispers. "I think you have something you need to say."

Joey took a deep breath and nodded. Kevin was right. His brother had been the one to convince him to come here in the first place. He'd gone to London to avoid this wedding…to try and avoid the thought of Kelly walking down the aisle with another man. It made sense to tell his family he was going to visit his brother, and with Kelly getting married, no one dared try to convince him to stay.

Talking with Kevin about Kelly hadn't been something he'd ever pictured himself doing, especially with their history, but somehow the other night it just happened. Joey had admitted how he felt….how much he loved her, how much he always had, how much he still did.

Kevin had never pulled any punches with him, and he'd expected no different this time. He'd been fully prepared for Kevin to grab him by the shoulders, look him in the eye, and tell him to get over her, but he hadn't. Instead, he'd told him the truth…the truth no one else knew. The truth about the meetings. The truth about the reason he hadn't been home for a visit in months. The real reason for all of it. Then he'd told him something that he could still hear echoing in his head.

"If you love her, Joe you fight for her. You don't lose her. You don't give up on her…because life…it's just too damn short."

Chapter 2

"Hey." Adam's soft voice was calm, but even he couldn't pretend not to be shaken by this. "What do you want to do here?" He stepped closer to her, grasping for any shred of privacy they could get…hoping that both of them could leave her with a little dignity.

Kelly forced air back into her lungs. Since the moment his voice had echoed through the church, the air in the room had seemed heavier. Each breath seemed like such an effort and her hands shook despite how tightly she grasped the bouquet in her hands. She turned her head back towards Adam's face. The room seemed to take a moment to catch up. The whooshing noise in her head got louder and louder and even though she saw his mouth moving, she couldn't make out his words.

"Kelly!" Adam reached out to her, his arms breaking her fall as she crumpled to the ground. He looked back towards the minister. "I think we all need a minute here," he whispered.

"You're not telling me that you're on his side?" Jessica sighed, shaking her head in exasperation. "Kevin…it is her wedding day. You don't mess with a woman on her wedding day. This is hardly the time to…"

The sounds of whispered conversations and footsteps came closer.

"What's going on?" Joey said, stepping back towards the doors, and craning his neck inside. Everyone seemed to be making their way out of the church through the side exits and Kelly and Adam were nowhere to be seen.

He looked back at Kevin and Jessica. "Kelly's gone. She's gone."

"Well, you kind of killed the moment there, Joey…what did you think they were going to do? Just pick up where they left off?" Jessica stared at him in disbelief as she watched him scan the halls of the church.

"I have to find her," he said, taking off before either of them had a chance to stop him.

"Joey…Joey, wait," Jessica cried out. Her hands met her sides with a thud as she slumped back into one of the chairs in the foyer. "This is a disaster," she whispered, looking up at Kevin. "I still can't believe you're behind him on this one."

Kevin shook his head. "I wouldn't expect you to understand, Jess."

"Why? Because I'm so young and inexperienced? I swear…you and Joey can't seem to get past the fact that I'm not a little girl anymore. I'm a grown woman and I've…"

"I didn't mean it like that," Kevin interrupted. "I just meant…that life….sometimes things happen in your life that make you realize how important it is to say everything you want to say…"

The room grew still, the last of the guests now standing around outside the church, waiting for word. Jessica looked up at Kevin, the serious expression on his face more somber than usual. "Kevin…what's going on? What are you talking about?"

Forcing a smile, he shrugged, allowing a puff of air to escape his lungs. "Nothing…it's nothing. It's just that when you get old like your brother here…you'll realize that life is short. You start thinking about stuff differently. You start realizing that you've been around longer than you probably have left."

"Kevin!" She stood, walking over to him. "Don't talk like that. You're gonna be around for a long, long time. Where's all this coming from?"

"Don't be like me, Jess. Don't wake up one morning and realize that you've got money and success and nobody to share it with. Don't wait for something to happen to make you wake up and realize how much you've missed."

"Ok, you're scaring me now." Jessica reached up tentatively, touching his arm. "Everything you're saying here…it's like some sort of warning."

"No…No…I'm sorry." He stood up, straightening his coat and forcing another, more believable smile. "It's just weddings…they make some people cry…they depress the hell out of others."

"I'm just going to go let the minister know that we've decided to postpone it." Adam held out the glass of water, his eyes sad but still reflecting the gentle warmth she'd come to rely on.

"I'm so sorry, Adam." Kelly shook her head. "I just…."

"It's ok. I understand. There's no way you could have known that your ex-husband would pick today of all days to decide to make some grand declaration. We have plenty of time to get married. There will be plenty of perfect days." He leaned over, gently kissing her on the lips. "I just want you to be ok." He pulled back, looking into her eyes, happy to see the color returning to her face. "You are ok aren't you?"

"I'm fine," she smiled.

"Good," he breathed, "Because I'd hate for us to miss our flight tonight."

"Our flight?" She still felt a bit fuzzy, but she was fairly clear on the fact that their flight tonight was intended to take them to Spain for their honeymoon…surely he wasn't intending…

"Sure," he smiled. "There's no reason the honeymoon can't happen before the actual wedding." With a final quick kiss, he left the room in a flash, disappearing before she could even process the words enough to contemplate a response.

Raising the cool glass to her face, she stared into the mirror in front of her and then closed her eyes. "Listen, Adam," she whispered, hearing the door open again.

"It's not Adam," Joey whispered, looking into the mirror at her.

"Joey," Kelly breathed, standing quickly and turning to face him. Too quickly.

In an instant, his arms were around her, the warmth of his embrace so familiar that it almost took her breath.

"You ok?" he whispered, easing her back down on the bench seat.

"Yeah," she whispered, certain that she was lying. She had no idea about anything at the moment. She didn't know how she felt about this wedding. She didn't know how she felt about Adam. She didn't know how she felt about Joey. She didn't know what she wanted, but if there was one thing she did know—it was that she was most certainly not ok.

"Too much going on today," she whispered, then looking up at him again, she asked, "Joey, what are you doing here?"

Chapter 3

"Kel," he whispered, sitting down beside her on the bench seat.

She closed her eyes. God, it was everything…even the most simplistic things. She remembered when Adam had called her 'Kel'. It was a natural nickname, but hearing it leave his lips just seemed wrong and she'd told him she hated being called that. He'd apologized and smiled, telling her a story about a childhood nickname that still plagued him. He was always so wonderfully understanding…even about things that, to anyone else, would seem ridiculously petty.

The truth was that hearing that name made her think of Joey…as did so many other things. She'd quickly said no when he'd suggested they honeymoon in Paris, so quickly in fact that she had to come up with a lie to explain her extreme aversion to the idea. It wasn't so much a lie, she reasoned. Her childhood certainly wasn't a picnic….growing up in a convent school in Paris wasn't exactly the stuff fairy tales were made of, but it had nothing to do with the real reason she didn't want to go there.

Now, as she sat there, her body mere inches from his, she realized that so much of her relationship with Adam had been compromised…She'd been changing and lying and trying new things in an effort to forget the past—but maybe she couldn't. Maybe she didn't want to.

"Are you angry with me?" he asked, his voice hushed. "I know my timing is lousy and I never wanted to hurt you, Kel. If you believe anything…you've got to believe that."

Her eyes met his. "I do believe that."

"I was leaving," he began again. "I was in London. I was visiting Kevin. I was trying to stay away. I had convinced myself that if I just didn't see it…if I didn't think about it that it wouldn't hurt as much, but it didn't work. All I could do was think about it. I would look down at my watch and wonder what you were doing at that exact moment. I'd imagine you getting dressed, reading over your vows, straightening your bouquet. It was too much. I just couldn't stand it."

He forced a shaky breath, grateful that she hadn't stopped him. "Kevin knew something was wrong and when he finally called me on it, I just broke and I told him how I felt….how much I love you…how much I always have."

He watched as her big, green eyes began to shine with tears.

"He told me that I had to tell you the truth…that I couldn't wait…that I couldn't waste time. Life is too short. We never know…we never know what's going to happen and we can't wait for the perfect time because there might not be one or it might be right now." He shook his head. It sounded like a garbled mess, but he had to make her understand.

He reached out, taking her hand in his. "I know that this is a really, really bad time. I know that you care about Adam and I know that he obviously cares about you, but what I'm asking you….what I need you to tell me is….if you still…." He fought for composure, swallowing hard past the tongue in his mouth that now felt like sandpaper, "I need to know if you still love me."

"I'd like to hear the answer to that question myself," Adam responded, stepping into the doorway.

Chapter 4

"Adam," Kelly stood quickly, taking quick steps towards him. "I didn't hear you come in."

"Obviously," he softly responded, glancing over at Joey who still remained seated on the bench. "I…I talked to the minister. He said to let him know when we reschedule…." He took a deep breath, looking deep into her eyes. "If we reschedule," he whispered.

"Joey," Kelly turned, facing him. "Could you give us a minute, please?"

"Sure, Kel," he nodded, standing up and stepping outside the door, pulling it closed softly behind him. He stared at the door, his hand still on the brass doorknob. It was up to her now, he realized, closing his eyes tightly. Adam had everything it seemed, but judging by the look in Kelly's eyes, the one thing he didn't have was her heart.

"I thought you hated that." His words were calm, but icy cold, so different from the warmth she'd come to depend on.

"Hated what?" She looked away, unable to handle his eyes on her. It was as if he could see directly into her soul. As if everything she'd been feeling was written all over her face.

"Kel…the nickname. You told me you hated that…but you don't, do you? You just hate me calling you that….You hate it because it reminds you of him."

Kelly opened her mouth to speak, but Adam interrupted.

"No, that's not right either is it? It's not that it reminds you *of* him. It's that it reminds you that I'm *not* him." The look in her eyes was the only answer he needed. "Right," he whispered quietly. "So, is this it? Are we over?"

"Adam….I….I never wanted to…" Never before had she felt so completely at odds with herself. Her heart broke for him….for what she'd done to him…what she'd put him through. He was a wonderful man and she'd never wanted to hurt him. At the same time, the mere idea that Joey was outside the door…waiting for her made her pulse quicken. The guilt was almost overwhelming. How could she be so incredibly happy when she was making someone else so miserable.

"Please just don't. I know…I know what you're going to say." He shook his head, running his hand over his face in an effort to push back the tears that threatened to fall. "And for whatever reason, I believe you. I believe you didn't do this on purpose. I believe you didn't want to hurt me."

She took a breath. Even now, he was taking care of her. He was sparing her feelings. "Adam, you are such a wonderful man," she whispered. "Any woman would be lucky to be with you."

"Just not you, right?" He forced a smile.

"It wouldn't be fair to you. I never should have let it go this far. It wasn't right….I care about you, but you deserve more than that. You deserve someone that can love you with their whole heart."

"Judging by the way you were looking at him," he gestured towards the closed door, "I don't even think I had a shot at a portion of your heart."

Kelly felt the tear slide down her cheek. She didn't know what to say. No words seemed good enough.

"It's ok," Adam whispered, reaching out to wipe away the tear. "You take care of yourself."

He opened the door slowly, stepping out into the hallway. Joey stood on the opposite side of the hall. Adam stood still, then took a step towards him. "You take care of her," he said quietly before walking away.

Joey wasted no time before entering the room, his eyes finding Kelly's immediately.

"Yes." Her voice shook a little as she made her way towards him. "The answer to your question is yes."

"Adam," Jessica called, reaching out to him as he quickly brushed past her. "Where's Kelly? Is everything ok?"

He stopped, taking a deep breath as a last ditch effort to regain his composure. Looking over towards the door, he saw Kevin standing there. "I think things are the way they're supposed to be." He started to walk away again.

"But," Jessica moved to follow him.

"Let him go, Jess," Kevin said quickly, reaching out to grab her arm gently. "I think he's probably had all he can handle for one day."

"But I don't understand it. He's leaving and Kelly is nowhere to be seen."

"And neither is Joey," Kevin whispered, smiling knowingly at Jessica.

"Wait a minute," she whispered, "You think? I mean, you really think they're getting back together? After all this time? After everything that's happened?"

Kevin shook his head. "You know Jess. I haven't been completely honest with you about everything that's gone on in my life recently. Part of the reason that Joey is here today is because of me."

"Right," Jessica said cautiously. "He said you talked him into coming here."

"Yeah, but he didn't tell you why. About six months ago they found some irregularities…some suspicious areas and they had me come in for some tests. They diagnosed me with colon cancer."

"Kevin…" She felt her breath catch in her throat. "Why didn't you tell us?"

"Listen…Listen," he reached out to take her hand. "They caught it really early and they were able to do the treatments and everything looks good. I didn't want anybody to worry about it when there really wasn't anything to worry about."

"But Kev…we could have been there…we could've…"

"That's not why I'm telling you this, Jess. I'm telling you this to explain why I was so hard on Joe. I wanted him to come here and make things right with Kelly. If this cancer scare taught me anything it's how quickly things can change. Our lives are so fragile and we can't wait around for things to happen to us. We have to make things happen. Joey and Kelly both love each other, but both of them were too scared and too stubborn to do anything about it. Hopefully," he smiled, "now they have."

Joey smiled as he took her hands in his. It felt so good to touch her again. Having her near him was better than anything he could have ever imagined. "I'm not sure I remember the question," he smiled.

"If I still love you," she whispered, stepping in closer towards him. "And the answer is yes. Joey Buchanan…there has not ever been nor will there ever be a moment when I stop loving you."

Total silence overtook the room. The sheer magnitude of her words seemed to hit him in stages, each stage sweeter than the last. His hand reached out slowly, touching her face. "I love you so much," he whispered. "I don't ever want to lose you again. I don't want to waste a single second."

She nodded, a smile stretching across her face. "You know," she whispered, leaning in so that her lips were nearly touching his. "I happen to have a minister on standby."

"Well, I hope he doesn't mind," he smiled, "but I've waited far too long to do this to save it for the ceremony."

Jessica and Kevin peeked in the door, smiling as the two kissed passionately. They pulled the door closed quietly. "I think it's safe to say that those two are no longer wasting time," Kevin smiled.

The end