December 25, 1994, 9:00 AM-Holly and Roger's house

Roger slowly came awake on Christmas morning, the warm, solid weight of Holly using his chest for a pillow, her arm across his waist, the first thing he was aware of. Her moving of the ring the night before, and her simple declaration of "I'm ready. Let's get married," came back to him, and his lips curved into a grin. Holly stirred then, opened her eyes, lifted her head and looked up at him. Seeing his grin, she returned it with a sleepy smile of her own. "Good morning. Merry Christmas," she said softly.

"Merry Christmas," he replied before kissing her forehead. "How did you sleep?"

Holly scooted up slightly to peck a kiss on his lips, then rested her head in the crook of Roger's neck, closed her eyes, and snuggled closer to him beneath the comforter. "Mmmm, wonderfully," she replied, "because I was sleeping in the arms of my fiancé." They were both silent for a moment, then Holly asked, eyes still closed, "What time is it?"

Roger looked at the alarm clock. "A little after nine," he replied.

"Blake and Ross won't be here 'til eleven," Holly said. She was perfectly content to spend most of the next two hours lying in bed in Roger's arms.

But Roger had something on his mind. "Could we talk?" he asked.

Holly, sensing the seriousness of Roger's mood, opened her eyes and sat up, her back against the headboard. "Is it about the wedding?" she asked.

"In a way," Roger said. He looked down at the comforter, where he was idly tracing a finger over the pattern. Holly reached out and stilled his movement by resting her hand over his.

"What is it?" she asked.

Roger looked up at Holly and said, "I'm happier than I've ever been in my life. I need you to know that."

"I am too," she replied. "But?"

"I just..." He trailed off, seemingly uncertain of how to continue.

"Just what?" Holly prodded gently.

"Why now?" Roger asked. "Please don't be angry that I'm asking," he added hurriedly. "I want to get married, and I want the wedding you described last night, and I want it in four days. But what made you decide to say yes now?"

"I was wondering when you'd ask that," Holly admitted with a smile. Roger looked surprised for the briefest of seconds, then smiled and shook his head. Holly nodded. "I knew you would. I do know how that mind of yours works after all these years."

Roger, his mind eased now that he knew Holly wasn't upset or angry with him for asking, said, "Touché."

Holly, still holding his hand, threaded her fingers through his, then turned their intertwined hands over, looked down at her engagement ring, then looked back up at Roger. "I've been working toward this since you gave me this ring last summer," she began. She paused for a moment, gathering her thoughts before continuing, holding Roger's earnest gaze all the while. "We are in a better place now than we have ever been. Before this year, it was always one step forward and two, or three, or ten steps backward for us. I would get scared and retreat behind my brick walls and shut you out. You would get angry or impatient or full of yourself and shut out everyone and everything with behavior that was destructive to both yourself and everyone around you.

"But it's different now. We're different now. We've learned how to make each other and our relationship the top priority in our lives, and we're learning how to break the destructive old patterns of behavior that always destroyed us in the past, with some excellent guidance.

"You include me in everything now; whatever you're thinking, whatever you're planning, you tell me-usually right away. You don't keep things from me anymore. I have an all-access pass to your life. And I'm not scared anymore. I'm not hiding behind my brick walls anymore. I'm letting you in as much as you're letting me in. At first, I had to consciously remind myself to tell you how I was feeling, or what I was thinking. But I've noticed in the past couple of months that I don't have to remind myself anymore. I just do it. I just tell you. Because I want to tell you.

"We're a team, in every sense of the word. I'm just...I'm ready. I'm ready to let you all the way in, to share my life with you completely, on every level. You said last night that you realized insanity was doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result. I agree. And you have been so patient with me since you gave me this ring last summer."

"I've learned a lot in the past year, with your help, and the help of the good doctor," Roger replied. "I've learned that pushing you and pressuring you only hurts us both, because you get hurt and shut down when I push you or pressure you. Then you pull away from me, and that hurts me."

"Exactly!" Holly exclaimed. "And I've made mistakes with you and hurt you, too. I would hold back or run away when I thought that you were getting too close, or that you wanted too much from me. But I know now that you want to be close to me and you want all of me because you love me. That's all. And I'm finally ready for that. I love you, and I am ready to give you, to give us, all of me."

Roger lifted Holly's hand to his lips and kissed it. "You won't regret marrying me," he vowed fervently. "I swear you will never, ever regret giving me, giving us, this chance."

Holly touched Roger's face. "For all that we've learned, and all that we're still learning, I know that I'm not the easiest person in the world to live with. But I promise, I'll be the best wife to you that I possibly can."

"I know you will," Roger said. "And I'm not easy to live with either. But I will do everything in my power to be the husband you deserve, and we'll figure marriage out together, like we do with everything else."

"Yes, we will," Holly replied, resting her forehead against Roger's. "We definitely will."

December 25, 1994, 11:01 AM—Holly and Roger's House

"Christmas Day with the outlaw in-laws," Ross Marler remarked as he followed his wife Blake up to her parents' front porch, carrying the pecan pie he had picked up at the bakery the day before.

"When they came over last night, it was fine," Blake reminded him. "Besides, it's only for a few hours." She gave him a saucy grin then. "If you're good, I'll let you unwrap me under the Christmas tree again when we get home."

"I just hope Roger doesn't talk about getting me out to the Jessup farm to chop wood again, like he did at Thanksgiving," Ross said as Blake rang the doorbell.

"But you'd look so sexy in jeans and a plaid flannel shirt!" Blake exclaimed.

Holly opened the door then, Roger right behind her, looking over her shoulder. "Merry Christmas!" Holly and Roger said almost in unison.

Blake entered the house, Ross right behind her, and hugged first her mother, then her father. "Merry Christmas!" Blake exclaimed. Then she really noticed her parents: the gleam in her father's eyes, the smile that had taken hold of her mother's entire face, the way Roger was now standing behind Holly with his arms wrapped around her waist. "Okay, what's going on?" she asked. "Was Santa really good to you guys or what?"

Holly looked over her shoulder at Roger, then looked back at Blake. "We have a very special Christmas present for you," she said.

"Ooh, is it a pony?" Blake asked in a smart-aleck voice. "A Jaguar convertible? Or did you get Ross and me half a time share in Palm Springs with you?"

Holly looked at Roger again. "She gets that from you," she said. Roger just laughed. "Your three guesses are all wrong," Holly said, turning back to look at Blake.

"Then what-" Blake's words abruptly died when Holly stepped forward, out of Roger's embrace, and held up her left hand. As soon as the ring registered with Blake, she screamed and launched herself at her mother, nearly knocking Holly off her feet. Roger managed to steady both women before they could hit the ground. Ross stood there still holding the pie, his jaw dropping as it sunk in that Holly and Roger were getting married.

"You're getting married? Really? To each other this time?" Blake asked when she finally stopped screaming.

"Your mother decided last night it's time, and I agreed," Roger confirmed. "And we're getting married in four days."

"Four days?" Blake asked.

"We don't see any reason to wait," Holly replied.

"But there's so much to do!" Blake exclaimed.

"Not that much," Holly replied. "We already know exactly what we want."

"Well, what can I do to help?" Blake asked. "Whatever you want, whatever you need, just name it."

"Would you be my matron of honor?" Holly asked.

Tears sprang to Blake's eyes then. The years of animosity between her and Holly had finally been laid to rest, but knowing that her mother wanted her to stand up with her when she finally remarried Roger made Blake's heart feel fuller regarding her mother than it had since her own wedding day. "Absolutely!" Blake exclaimed. "And Ross can be your best man, Dad!"

Roger and Ross both looked stunned that Blake would suggest this. "Ah..." Roger said.

Blake looked at Ross then, and as soon as he saw the look in her eyes, he was helpless to say no. Heaven help him if they ever had a daughter who inherited Blake's eyes. "I take it I'm invited, being the matron of honor's husband?" Ross asked.

"We're only having you and Blake," Holly replied.

Ross looked at Roger. "If you want me to do it, I will," he said. "But if you'd rather I didn't, I won't."

Now Blake turned those eyes on her father, and he was just as helpless to say no to them as Ross was. After catching Holly's "it's okay with me" look, Roger looked at Ross. With Hart who knew where and not wanting to have anything to do with Roger anyway, and Maureen being both female and not on the guest list, Roger said, "Why not?" He was as used to having Ross for a son-in-law as he was going to get. Ross was going to be there anyway, and at least this way, he'd know where to stand during the wedding.

"Dinner will be ready soon," Holly said then. "We can go over what we need to do for the wedding while we eat."

"Great!" Blake exclaimed. She took off her coat, handed it and her purse to Ross, then took the pie from him and followed Holly to the kitchen, where she set the pie on the counter and got the water pitcher out of the refrigerator to start filling the glasses.

Ross went and put his and Blake's coats and Blake's purse in Holly and Roger's guest room, then returned to the living room. He looked at Roger and said, "This should prove to you once and for all that there's nothing I won't do to make Blake happy. Just don't expect a bachelor party."

Roger smirked, but his retort went unspoken as Blake said, "Come on, Ross, Dad! We have a wedding to plan!"

Musing to himself that Christmas truly was the season for miracles, Ross joined his wife and his outlaw in-laws at the table for Christmas dinner with a side order of wedding planning for those same outlaw in-laws.