"Right about there," Brett said as he and Leigh lowered a large round table to the floor after rolling it in through the barn doors. The barn was beginning to come together nicely and would be ready for the fifty people attending the wedding the following day and that was all thanks to the work and hours they had put in to transform the barn. The table they had rolled in was the last and when they were moved into position Leigh began work on the decorations. She spread white table clothes over the tables and tied silver bows to the backs of the chairs giving the feeling that they were not standing in the centre of a barn on a farm but a high class venue.
"Can you foot the ladder?" Brett asked as he approached from the back of the barn carrying coils of lights that needed to be hung from the ceiling.
Leigh watched as he expertly extended the ladder and rested it against a beam running from one side of the barn to the other. He climbed up two rungs before turning and instructing Leigh to place her feet at the foot of the ladder to keep it steady. Brett climbed to the top and wrapped the lights over the beam and spread them out equally before stepping down and moving the ladder over. When all of the lights were hung they took a step back and glanced up. Since their talk back at Leigh's apartment they found a new sense of understanding for each other and just like that their team working skills had improved by a thousand times.
"Would you like to do the honours?" He asked handing her the control. Leigh slowly twisted the small button and watched as each light lit and illuminated each and every corner of the darkened barn.
"Wow," Annalise's voice came from behind them after a small gasp. "This looks incredible."
"It sure does," Harry said from beside her and tilted his head to look up at the ceiling lights.
"And the tables, Harry look it's exactly what we pictured! I can't believe you pulled this off," she said as she turned to her brother.
"It wasn't just me. I couldn't have done it without Leigh," Brett told her and threw a small smile to the woman who had helped bring the barn together in time for the wedding.
"Well thank you, both of you. This really is a dream come true," Annalise said and cuddled up to her future husband. "I can't wait for tomorrow."
"You're definitely coming?" Harry said turning to Leigh.
"I wouldn't miss it for the world," she said with a genuine smile which radiated happiness for the couple. From across the room Brett turned in her direction and a small smile setter on his lips.
As Leigh and Harry made small conversation about the time spent in the barn and chaotic panic that it wouldn't be ready in time Annalise walked over to her brother who was standing by the ladder watching the encounter.
"Mom will be back tonight are you stayin' for dinner?" She asked.
"I do most nights, why are you askin'?" He drew his attention from the woman he was fixated by and spoke to his sister.
"I thought you may have other plans," she said with a shrug.
"Yeah like what?"
Annalise stole a quick glance in the direction of her fiance and his conversation partner before turning back to her brother and shaking her head. "Nothin'."
"What?" He said when a small chuckle escaped her lips.
"Nothin'," she said again.
"That look doesn't exactly mean nothin'."
"I just thought you might be takin' her out."
"What Leigh?" Annalise nodded. "No."
"Hm."
"Come on, now what's that supposed to mean?"
"I didn't say anythin'," she said with a smirk.
"I preferred it when you were in London," Brett said as he raked his hands through his hair and shot his sister a frustrated look. "How about you go back and leave Becca here with us."
"Yeah, not a chance," she said and swatted at him.
He turned to face the ladder and climbed up a couple of rungs before glancing back down.
"All jokes aside, it's good to have you home, sis." He disappeared to the smaller second level of the farm which was slowly being transformed into an office especially for Maggie but in that moment it was where Brett checked over the plans for the barn renovation.
"You have a keen eye for this sort of thing," Annalise said as she approached Harry and Leigh once again.
"I've always loved architecture and interior design. It was what I wanted to study in college before, well you know..." She confessed.
"Not music?" Harry questioned.
"When I was eighteen I only really saw music as a hobby, I didn't think I could ever make a career out of it but then I got the opportunity to write the theme song for 'At The Top' and that led to acting so I guess this kind of stuff just got pushed to the back of my mind."
"You could always go back to college," Annalise said. "There are loads of people in their late twenties who are going back."
"Maybe but let's just see how the barn turns out first, when it's finished," she said.
"Harry, would you mind checkin' on Becca?" Annalise said suddenly and as soon as Harry was out of ear shot she turned her attention to Leigh. "Can I talk to you for a second? I uh...I was wonderin' if you would sing a song tomorrow. You have a beautiful voice and I would really love for you to sing the song for our first dance?" She asked clearly feeling a little embarrassed by the request.
"Oh gosh. Um I don't know. Have you spoken to Harry about it? I don't want to ruin the day for him?"
"You couldn't ever ruin the day and I'm sure he will be. Ever since he got here all he's talked about is the good time you two had in London. He thinks really highly of you and I know he'd love it if you sang at our weddin'."
"Then it'd be my pleasure."
Harry entered the barn a couple of moments later with his daughter and Annalise told Leigh to keep their little talk a secret.
"Hi Leigh," Becca said in a quiet voice and fiddled with the hem of her dress.
"Hey sweetie. That's a pretty dress," Leigh said.
"Mommy made it."
"You did?" Leigh glanced up at Annalise who nodded.
"My mother made dresses for me when I was little so I wanted to keep the tradition goin'...although it's not very good," Annalise said shyly.
"I think it's amazing. I could never do something like that, I haven't got the patience-"
"Annie, Becca come and look at this," Harry called from the opposite side of the barn and they excused themselves to meet him.
Leigh glanced up at the second level of the barn and saw Brett pacing around. The sound of his heavy boots on the thin wooden flooring echoed throughout the barn which sounded as if it was rain pounding against the metal roof. She looked back over at where the small family of three stood gazing out upon the rolling fields behind the barn before setting her right foot onto the ladder and climbing her way to the top with a significant amount of ease than the previous time.
Brett stood with his forearms resting on the railing as he leaned over and watched his sister's family chatting amongst themselves happily. A warm feeling was present within him as he felt so proud of his sister for finding honest and genuine love in her life. She had managed to escape the small town where they had grown up and made a life for herself but the same couldn't be said for him. He was stuck in the same place he'd grown up and that was no one's fault but his own. He had the opportunity to race for a living and achieve the dreams he'd had since childhood but Brett didn't chose that path. Now, as he stood watching his sister's dream life come true he realised that he would be stuck in the same cycle for the rest of his life.
"Hey," he mumbled as he caught sight of Leigh emerging from the ladder.
"What are you doing up here?" She asked as she stood beside him and matched his stance.
"Just thinkin'."
"What about?"
"My sister. She asked me to walk her down the aisle." He turned to face Leigh and the sad expression in his eyes was clear.
"And you don't want to?" Leigh observed.
"It's not that I don't want to...it's just...it should be my Dad," he said with a shrug. "Or even my Mom."
"Annie chose you for a reason. Maybe it's because you remind her so much of your father? Maggie told me you look exactly like he did when he was thirty."
"Maybe you're right..." He took in her appearance and smiled at the thought that with each passing day she was becoming more and more country. She wore faded blue jeans which were paired with a pair of brown boots. Over her shoulders was a white and pink plaid shirt and underneath that was a white tank top. Her appearance was far different from what it had been during the first month she began working at Donne Farm and it was a change Brett greatly approved of. It wasn't that he didn't like the way she dressed before because he thought she looked stunning either way. In fact, he was sure the outfits she dressed in back in Los Angeles made her fit right in but there in Oak View it only brought more attention to the fact that she didn't belong. But now standing before him she fit right in. It was strange that he somehow accepted that a woman born in the city could become part of a small town community and seemingly fit right in without even trying. But she was an actress after all so adapting to new environments and playing a role was what she did best. Despite playing a part being in Leigh's blood, Brett knew that with him she hadn't been acting at all.
"Annie asked me to sing for their first dance," she told Brett.
"Are you gonna do it?" Leigh nodded. "I'm lookin' forward to it.You only singin' the one song?"
"I think so."
"That's good..."
"Why?" She had a feeling she knew the direction in which the conversation was heading.
"Because I might ask you to dance with me tomorrow night and I can't ask if you're the one singing all of the songs."
Heat rose to her cheeks and she glanced up at Brett with an innocent look in her eye. "Good because I might say yes..." She whispered and pulled her bottom lip between her teeth gently.
Brett sucked in a breath and licked his own lips. He shuffled closer to her feeling the need to express his appreciation at the thought of holding her against him the following evening. He wanted to take her by the hand right there and spin her around and sway to the music that only played in his mind. Leigh took a step back but kept her eyes trained to his and then took another. She reached out her hand and brushed her fingers against his before holding onto them and pulling him towards her.
"I want to show you something," she said in another quiet whisper making sure the family of three below them wouldn't hear her. In truth Brett barely heard her voice over the sound of his own heart thumping against his ribcage. He glanced over his shoulder still being pulled in a forward direction to the back of the small office. Annalise was still in deep conversation with her fiance and not a single thought of worry entered his mind that they may be caught.
"What-" He was cut off by Leigh's soft lips pressing against his when he turned around. Her back was pressed to the wall and she snaked her arms around his neck to keep him close to her- not that Brett would have objected to the close proximity they were in. His rough hands found their way to her soft cheeks and he cupped her face as he deepened their kiss wondering why it had been so long since the last time.
Leigh pulled back after only a second and felt Brett persist forward ever so slightly before opening his eyes. He dropped his hands from her cheeks and attempted to take a step back but was stopped when Leigh gripped his shirt in her hands.
"I never thanked you for last week..."
"You don't need to thank me," he said and guided his lips back to hers but Leigh pulled back again before he could make contact.
"But I do because I'm not sure I'd be standing here right now if you didn't come to my apartment that night. I really appreciate everything you've done for me over the past couple of months...even though we didn't get off to the best start."
"We didn't but I love the direction we're headed in," Brett said with a playful smile on his lips.
"We're headed in a direction?" She said jokingly.
"I think we are." His reassurance erupted butterflies in her stomach and she couldn't help but agree with him. Their relationship had the potential to blossom into something special and she just couldn't wait.