Okay this is completely unlikely and it would never happen on the show, but roll with me here. Lumi needs to be finacially secure and this way Kate isn't involed in the wedding stuff. Lets just pretend that Victor really did die in that tidal wave, that way it's permanent. You'll see what I mean. Oh, and I have no idea if Doug and Julie ever went to Japan.

Alice smiled fondly at the group of women who had gathered in her home. It did her heart good to see Sami being accepted by the Horton's. She had always had a soft spot for the girl.

"Maggie, darling, you sit tight. I'll go get you a cup and another plate of donuts for Will to take upstairs with him."

"Oh, let me help you," Sami stood up to follow her, and Alice smiled, that was exactly what she had in mind. Alice set to fixing another cup of tea while Sami arranged the food plate.

"Thank you for helping me, dear. I'm afraid I'm not as independent as I used to be."

"You're one of the toughest women I know, Mrs. Horton. Not many people your age could survive being trapped on an island for months. You can definitely hold your own."

"Thank you, you're a sweet girl. But what is this 'Mrs. Horton' nonsense. You are marrying my Lucas, which makes you family. Please call me Gran, I wouldn't have it any other way."

"Gran it is, then," Sami valiantly tried to fight the battle with her tears and in the end came out on top, as only a few had actually escaped.

………………………………...

Lucas finally finished looking through all the paper work, signing here and initialing there. He couldn't actually believe this was happening. With pushing back the wedding and the speed with which this process was happening, it was the perfect solution. Now he could pay for his own wedding, minimizing any power his mother would have to interfere, at least a little. He handed the signed work over to Mickey so he could look at it quickly.

"Everything seems to be in order, my boy. I've made sure this deal is fair, even if the lawyer part is really more of a formality. We just need to have the paperwork filed, then everything will be in place."

"Thank you, Uncle Mickey. Without you this would've taken months."

"Everyone involved wanted a smooth, fast transition. The board made it very easy for me."

"I just can't wait to tell Sami. This means all good things for us. Getting out from under Basic Black will be the first step to smooth sailing."

"I think you're right, son, I think you're right."

………………………………...

Sami wiped the tears from her eyes, she was laughing so hard her sides were going to start hurting soon. Julie was telling one of Doug and her travel stories. Apparently there was a misunderstanding between the police, who only spoke Japanese, and Doug, who only knew the word for thank you from that old 80's song. Somehow he ended up acting out a part of Godzilla while singing the song. A big debacle about a banana and a pineapple had followed which landed them in jail.

"Finally, we found a man who spoke English, after spending the night in jail. We explained the situation and once he had a good laugh at our expense we got out," Julie gave a devilish smile, "That was one of our more exciting days."

"That's one way to put it," Maggie laughed. She knew Julie was telling the story for her benefit, and she had found what she needed in this group today. She had gone from being in a homicidal rage to having fun with the girls. Getting to spend more time with Sami had confirmed her faith in her and Lucas's relationship, the faith she had had in them ever since Lucas confided in her about his fantasies last July.

"Oh my, look at the time. I'm sorry girls, but I think I took up all of our planning time."

"That's okay, Julie, I doubt we could've gotten much done today anyway. Will and I should get going, Lucas will be getting home soon," she moved up the stairs a bit, "Will, honey, it's time to go."

Will came down the stairs eagerly, not many pre-teens would enjoy hanging out with his parents so much, but he had never had a lot of them both at once before. He felt the need to absorb as much as possible, that and the fact that he wanted to spend the night at Josh's. It was technically a school night, but tomorrow was only a half-day. If he buttered them up a little they might be willing to see it from his perspective. He was his parents' son after all.

…………………………….

Lucas was just about to leave the office building when his cell rang, "Hello?"

"Hey, hun, do you think you could pick up a pizza on the way home? I already ordered it, you just have to pick it up from Vinnie's."

"No problem, see you in a bit"

"Love you, bye,"

He switched off the cell and slid into his car smiling. This was turning out to be a great day. Vinnie's was right next to a florist, maybe he would buy Sami some flowers to celebrate.

………………………………...

"Honey, I'm home," Lucas called out playfully as he walked into Sami's apartment, a colorful assortment of wildflowers behind his back. Sami and Will looked up from the kitchen table where they were working on his homework. Will came and immediately took the pizza, while Sami being the more welcoming of the two actually said "Hello". After she had pulled back from a quick kiss she smiled at his attempt to hide something behind his back. She tried, unsuccessfully to look at the object, but he blocked her every move. She pulled on his arm to stop his dodging, "Lucas, let me see!"

"Now, now, ask nicely and maybe you'll get your surprise."

If that was how he was going to be, then two could play at that game. She glanced quickly at Will, who was munching on a slice of pizza and bobbing along to his headphones. Grinning mischievously she moved closer until her front was pressed completely against his, barely a centimeter between them. Slowly she moved her lips up to his ear, breathing out warm breath on his neck. She felt him fight back a shiver as she began to gently nibble on the lobe, her hands spread on his shoulders, "Are you sure I have to ask?"

Lucas steeled himself against the urge to drop the flowers and pull her into his arms, mindful of the fact that Will was in the room, even if he wasn't paying attention.Stubborn as it was,he couldn't let her win, "Of course you have to ask. Now be a good girl and don't forget the magic word."

"What magic word might that be, General?" she had practically forgotten why she was playing in the first place, so focused was she on his neck and ears, but the rustle of paper, or was it plastic, behind him caught her attention again.

"You know exactly what I want to hear."

Sami smiled against his neck and moved back up to his ear, "Might it be this?" she whispered a word in his ear that resulted in a deep groan-slash-chuckle.

"Actually, I meant please, but that will work, too," he pulled the bouquet out from behind him. Her eyes lit up and she placed a gentle kiss on his cheek, moving on to put the flowers in water and tapping on Will's head in a signal to take off the headphones at the dinner table. The three sat down for a comfortable family dinner.

After spending most of the evening with his parents, entertaining them with stories of 7th grade, Will figured that now would be a good time to mention the sleepover. "Mom, Dad, can I sleepover Josh's? Before you say no, his parents said okay and tomorrow's only a half-day. Please," he added the puppy eyes, just in case.

"I don't know, little man," Sami answered. Lucas smirked, this was perfect. Not that he didn't love spending time with their son, but now he could tell Sami and they could have their own private celebration. He slipped an arm around his son's thin shoulders and added his own pleading look, "Yeah, please mom?"

Sami sighed, knowing she couldn't beat the double puppy eyes, and let Will leave on his merry way downstairs to Josh's apartment. Lucas moved up behind her and hugged her from behind, "I have another surprise for you, and now we can honor the occasion properly," he kissed the back of her neck suggestively.

"And what might this surprise be?" he moved a hand to grab hers and spun her around to face him and led her to the couch.

"You are looking at the new CEO of Titan Publishing."

"What?" she asked in shock. Nicole would never give up her position; it just wasn't possible, "How?"

"Nicole and Brady have decided to leave Salem together, she seemed like she was in a hurry to get him out of here. Phil has no interest in the company and neither does Bo. When they had gone to the island and were presumed dead, the board at Titan had approached me about taking over; that was the big job interview I kept talking about. They wanted me back, but then it turned out Nicole was alive so they had to scrap the plans. Now those two are going off to live together somewhere in Europe, the board wants me and they want to leave fast. As of next Friday, I am officially in charge."

She looked at him warily, "Are you sure this a good idea?"

He took her hand, knowing she would be cautious, "I saved the best part for last. Think about it Sami, we'll be financially set for the rest of our lives. Meaning we could pay for our own wedding, and you could quit Basic Black. Without my mother involved, the ceremony will go so much smoother."

Letting this sink in she turned to him with a smile and impulsively hugged him, finally allowing herself to be excited, "This is amazing, Lucas," her smile turned sly and she let her fingers slowly walk up his chest, "You always did look great in a suit. Just imagine, now I've got my very own sexy CEO," she leaned in and brushed his lips in a light kiss, "What kind of a celebration did you have in mind?"

"Come with me and I'll show you exactly what I had in mind."

He took her hand in his and pulled her off the couch. Together they retreated happily to the bedroom.