A/N: What does a fan fiction writer do when snowed in? Write chapters for a story she thought was complete.

My imagination ran away from me and I created some backstory for some of the characters, just for fun. I hope you don't mind.

"Come on, Lucy...we're going to be late!" Standing in front of her friend's desk, Sue impatiently signed 'hurry up' at her best friend. "My pastor said he could squeeze us in for a lunch appointment today, so we need to get going!"

"Okay! I'm coming! I'm coming!" Grinning at Sue, Lucy raised an eyebrow as she picked up her jacket and her purse. "I'd say someone is very anxious to get married…"

"Well, that's true, but right now I'm more concerned about making sure we can use my church's smaller chapel for the wedding. It's a much better size for the amount of people we're expecting." Sue giggled softly as she stood tapping her foot impatiently. "You know, Jack says we're getting married April 30 even if the wedding has to be in an empty parking lot. Now...imagine trying to decorate a parking lot for a wedding...and then imagine explaining that situation to my mom…"

"No way!" Lucy laughed as she shook her head. "You're right...we've got to hurry! I definitely don't want to make your mother upset! Let's go!"

They took the elevator downstairs and walked over to their favorite cafe'. After she checked her blackberry, Sue looked up at Lucy. "Pastor Broussard said he'll be here in a few minutes, and that we should go ahead and order. I'm going to have a club sandwich."

"Pastor Broussard?," Lucy asked as she looked over the cafe's menu. "I thought your pastor's name was Robinson…"

"Pastor Robinson took a position with a church in Pennsylvania a couple of months ago, so the congregation hired someone to take his place." Sipping her tea, Sue shrugged. "I think you'll like Henry. He's such a caring person...and he has a lot of creative ideas for expanding the deaf ministry at my church. Oh...there he is." Seeing a man standing in the doorway, she waved at him, and he smiled in return as he walked over to join them.

"Hey, Sue." The stocky blonde man signed as he spoke with a soft drawl. "Sorry I'm late…"

"No problem. We just got here ourselves. Lucy, this is Pastor Henry Broussard." She pointed at her companion and signed to the pastor. "This is Lucy Dotson...my best friend, my maid of honor, and my wedding planner…"

"Oh, my goodness! You're going to be a busy lady over the next couple of months, aren't you?," the pastor joked as he shook Lucy's hand. Sitting down at the table with them, he smiled before asking the server to bring him a cup of coffee and a piece of pie. "However, Sue said you were up to the challenge…"

"Nice to meet you." Hesitating slightly, Lucy couldn't decide if she should speak or sign her response to the man's comments, so she decided to try both. "As far as the challenges go, I suppose I have a knack for organizing things. After all, I keep our office at the FBI up and running...and I do love weddings, so I think it'll be fun to see what we come up with over the next few months. Sue and Jack didn't give me much time to plan things, but I think we'll have everything pulled together by April 30.," she said happily. "And since I haven't been able to plan my own wedding yet, I guess planning Sue's will be the next best thing…"

Henry arched an eyebrow at her in surprise. "Oh, I see. Well, being a single man, I haven't ever planned a wedding for myself, either, but I realize there must be hundreds of tiny details to take care of before the happy day arrives, and I know Sue will appreciate your help. Maybe someday you can use this experience to make your own wedding special when that blessed day arrives." He smiled as he pulled a leather bound notebook and pencil from his briefcase. "Oh...just a minute…gotta make some adjustments."

Winking at Sue, he reached up to tap his ears. "I'm still getting used to my new hearing aids...all the background noise here in the restaurant is creating some havoc for me…"

"I'm sorry.," Sue said with a grimace. "I suppose we should've chosen somewhere quieter to meet…"

Henry waved off her apology. "It's not your fault. I've got to be able to handle all types of noise, right? It comes with a minister's territory. There's just a learning curve in getting used to them, that's all."

Seeing Lucy's confusion, he smiled as he signed and spoke an explanation. "My parents are both profoundly deaf and not oral, so as a small child I learned ASL as my first language, and then I went to speech therapy at school to learn how to speak correctly, since I had no example at home. I myself have some hearing loss in both ears, and so far I've been able to use assistive technology to correct it, but I guess there may come to a point someday where I have a complete hearing loss. We'll see...all I can do is leave that in the Lord's hands, right?" He reached down to scratch Levi's ears. "My hearing aids aren't as cute as Sue's furry buddy, but they work pretty well. Anyway, enough about me. We're here to discuss a wedding!" Opening his notebook, he quickly found his calendar. "So...you said you wanted to use the Henderson Chapel on April 30, right?" Seeing Sue's hopeful nod, he chuckled. "You're in luck! It's available all day! What time do you have in mind?"

"Well…" Fidgeting with her napkin, Sue giggled nervously. "Maybe eleven that morning? Even though Jack and I want a simple, informal wedding, my mom wants to have a big reception, so we decided to compromise on that for her sake. She thought maybe we could set up some sort of lunch buffet in the family life center...you know, maybe sandwiches and salads...fresh fruits and vegetables...finger foods and munchies instead of a formal sit down meal...with cake and punch, of course, but nothing too fancy. Eleven wouldn't be too early in the day, and maybe people could do other things afterwards, if they wanted..."

Lucy took a folded piece of paper from her purse. "Here's the information Sue's mom sent me...as Sue said, she'd like to serve lunch, and she also wondered if your church would allow dancing in the family center...she was thinking of having some music recorded…"

"It's not like it would be a wild party or anything.," Sue interjected, sighing as she looked over her mother's extensive list. "Maybe a father/daughter dance…a first dance for me and Jack...maybe a little bit of dancing for the guests...but nothing crazy. Maybe we can set up a few tables where people can sit and visit…"

"The church has tables and chairs that members can use for functions, so that's not a problem." Henry glanced shyly at Lucy. "And as far as dancing goes, I'm not opposed to taking a turn around the dance floor myself if I have a beautiful partner joining me."

Sue laughed to herself as she saw Lucy's pleased expression. Good...she's glad he's interested in her…and she's interested, too...

Clearing her throat softly, Lucy ran her fingers around the rim of her coffee cup. "So if the wedding is at eleven, and then we have a casual lunch reception...maybe we should book the Family Life Center until three or so. I know Sue and Jack will be in a hurry to leave for their honeymoon, but Mrs. Thomas and I will need some time to clean up afterwards…"

"I think some of the Ruth Circle ladies would be glad to pitch in, too…" The pastor chuckled. "Some of them have sort of adopted Sue, and I think they'll want to help with her wedding reception."

"That would be nice. I sort of hate to leave you with the cleaning afterwards...but not really." Sue giggled at Lucy's eyeroll. "Jack and I will probably leave after we have cake and I throw the bouquet...say around one o'clock. Our flight leaves at five that evening...so we'll need to change our clothes...pick up our suitcases...and we'll have a few other details to take care of before we leave for the airport..."

Lucy couldn't help but laugh. "Trust me...as newlyweds, you and Jack will definitely have a few details to take care of…right away...and I'll make sure to be away from the apartment so you can do just that..."

"Lucy! Not in front of the Pastor!" Pretending to be shocked, Sue laughed before she shrugged at Henry. "So you see, we don't really need a big fancy reception, no matter what my mom has in mind. Jack and I want our wedding to be casual but still meaningful, and we really don't want to spend a lot of money on it, so it's not going to be some grandiose affair. At the most we'll have around 75 people there...probably fewer than that, and it'll be mostly our families and a few close friends. Most of our friends from work will be participating in the ceremony, and some of the guests might bring a date, but it'll still be a small enough group to fit into the chapel easily. What do you think?"

"I think it's not the amount of money you spend on the wedding that makes it special...it's the commitment you make to each other." Closing his notebook with a click, Henry sat back in his chair. "I think you and Jack have come up with a great plan for a wedding that will be perfect for you. Now, you two will still need to come in for some pre-marital counseling with me, but we can work out a schedule for that, and when we do meet, you two can pick out the Scriptures you want to have read and the other details for the order of the service...like the music you want…"

As she considered her pastor's words, Sue smiled. "Since I won't hear the music, I don't have much of a preference about it, but I think Jack will. I'll ask him, and we'll let you know. Also...I want to memorize my vows so I can say them without signing, since I'll be holding Jack's hands."

"Excellent." Henry checked his watch with a groan. "Oh, look at the time! I've got another appointment, so I need to run, but first…um…" Smiling shyly, Pastor Broussard turned to Lucy. "...maybe you could give me your phone number, Ms. Dotson? You know, just in case I have any questions about the wedding details…"

"Well...of course." She quickly jotted down her personal number on the back of one of her FBI business cards. "And please...call me Lucy…"

Henry laughed happily. "You bet...I'll be sure to call you, Lucy. Bye now…"

As he hurried away, Sue turned to her best friend with a wide grin. "See? I told you weddings were a great way to meet attractive single men…"

Arching an eyebrow, Lucy smiled as she watched the handsome man stride through the cafe'. "You're right. That's definitely one of the perks of being a wedding planner. Now come on...grab your coffee. We need to get back to work."

Oooooooooo

"I suppose I didn't realize what was involved, did I?" It was a few days later, and Bobby sat at his desk in the bullpen, grumbling as he looked over all of the pages on the many forms he had to fill out on his computer by the end of the week. "How in the world did Jack manage to get all of this stuff done on time every single week?"

Jack had left things in good shape when he changed divisions, and Bobby had been glad to hear about the additional pay he'd receive when he was asked to take over Jack's spot as lead agent in the unit. However, he'd been shocked by the amount of extra paperwork that went into the job. Muttering softly, Bobby shook his head in frustration. "How did my mate Jack keep on top of all of this paperwork and conduct outside investigations as well? He always made it look so easy, but then again, I guess he'd had lots of practice with it over the years." Glancing around the empty office, he nodded to himself. "Maybe I can get some of this stuff done while everyone's out working on their investigations…"

Soon Bobby was so engrossed in his tasks that he didn't notice his visitor until she coughed softly. "Excuse me?"

"Yeah? What?" Looking up from his desk, he was surprised to see an attractive brunette studying him intently with her big brown eyes. "Oh...Sorry." He quickly rose from his chair. "Please forgive my lack of manners, ma'am. May I help you?"

She flashed a dimpled smile as she studied him. "You must be Bobby." Seeing his surprise, she laughed. "The Australian accent gave you away. Jack's told me all about you…"

"Jack? As in Jack Hudson?" Uncomfortable thoughts raced through Bobby's head as he sat on the corner of his desk. I wonder if this is one of his old girlfriends...an old girlfriend who doesn't know he's off the market...this could get awkward real fast…

"Yes...Jack Hudson. He asked me to meet him here...he's taking me out to lunch." Hearing Bobby's slight gasp of surprise, the woman snickered softly. "I'm sorry...you don't know who I am, do you? I'm Denise Hudson...Jack's sister. I'm having lunch with him today so I can meet his fiancee'. I guess if I'm going to be a bridesmaid, I should meet the bride before the wedding day..."

"Oh...yeah, that makes sense." Relaxing a bit, Bobby fidgeted with a paperclip. "So...um...visiting from out of town, are we?"

"Yes...I'm an auditor at the IRS field office in Minneapolis, and we're having some training on the new tax laws here in DC this week, so I thought I'd see what my big brother is up to while I'm in town. He says he's been working hard, but you know...I wanna make sure. Jack does tend to exaggerate his abilities from time to time. Besides, as I'm sure you know, he might look like he's working, but he could be pulling a fast one instead..."

Laughing, Bobby gestured towards his computer. "Well, I took over his spot in this unit, and there's mountains of forms to complete in addition to investigations, so he might've worked hard while he was here, but since he's transferred out of this division and into a different office altogether, we'll only have his word on how hard he's working, right? So you probably do need to check on him, just to keep him honest. After all, that's kind of what an auditor does, correct? Make sure guys like him are telling the truth? And who knows what he actually does now as a recruiter for the Bureau, right? Could be that he's not doing much of anything constructive..." Smiling at the beautiful woman standing in front of him, Bobby made a mental note to set his best friend straight about a few things. Jack's been holding out on me...his sister is definitely a looker…I wonder what else he's been hiding from his best mate...

"Anyway…," he continued with a bright smile. "...Sue's a real sweetheart. You're gonna love her…" He shifted slightly on the desk's corner and casually checked his nails. "So...I'm in the wedding party, too…"

Denise grinned at the tall, handsome man. "So I've heard...the best man, as I recall…"

"That is correct, Ms Hudson...and as such, I hope to have the honor of dancing with you at the reception…"

"I'm sure we can work out something, Agent Manning…"

"Neecee!" Accompanied by Sue, Jack laughed as he walked into his former office and gave his sister an affectionate hug. "I wondered where you were…"

""Hey, Bubba. I guess I didn't remember that you'd moved to a different office until your friend reminded me…" Denise smiled at the man sitting behind the desk. "Thanks, Bobby."

He winked back at her. "At your service, Ms. Hudson…"

Smiling at Jack, Denise giggled softly. "As I said, I didn't realize I was in the wrong office until your friend Bobby reminded me that you've changed divisions." She turned to Sue and offered a handshake. "And you must be Jack's fiancee', Sue! It's so nice to finally meet you after all this time. You know, Bubba has been gushing about you for at least two years now…he's been crazy about you for a long time..."

"C'mon, Denise…" Feeling himself blush, Jack put his arm around his fiancee'. "It wasn't exactly 'gushing'...it was more like...explaining...things about...how things...were going...you know..."

"Right." Bobby laughed out loud at his friend's embarrassment. "The truth is that it was actually more like he was singing Sue's praises from the mountaintops…"

Pretending to glare at his friend, Jack cleared his throat. "Anyway...are we ready to go to lunch, Neecee?"

Noticing the sly glances between Bobby and Denise, Sue suddenly had an idea. "Would you like to join us, Bobby? We don't mind…the more, the merrier, right, Jack?"

"Yeah, of course! It's not like we're gonna discuss deep dark family secrets. Come have lunch with us, Bobby."

Hesitating as he pretended to shuffle some papers, Bobby finally nodded in agreement. "A nice lunch with good friends? Sure, why not? After all, this work will still be here when I return…" Chuckling, he took his jacket from the nearby wall hook. "Let's go…"

Oooooooooo

After giving their lunch orders to the server, the quartet laughed and joked with each other for a few minutes before Denise tapped her finger on the table to get everyone's attention. "Okay, big brother...I have some important questions for you…"

Jack sighed loudly, rolling his eyes as he turned to Sue. "Here we go...interrogation time." He nodded at his sister. "Denise is an auditor for the IRS, so she's as good at questioning troublemakers as any FBI agent might be…and, in fact, we could probably learn a thing or two from her."

"Seeing another Hudson at work, taking down another bad guy? This should be interesting, then." Crossing his arms over his chest, Bobby laughed. "Best be on your toes, mate…"

"Oh, no!" Sue pretended to be horrified. "I hope you haven't cheated on your taxes, Jack. That would be a horrible way for our marriage to start..."

Denise gave them an airy wave. "I'm not here as a professional...exactly." Seeing her brother's annoyance, she quickly explained. "I'm on a sort of reconnaissance mission for Mom, okay? She's been practically dying of curiosity, wanting to find out stuff about Sue! I mean, she's glad you two are getting married, but she doesn't have much to tell Allie's mom about the plans and all, and she needs something to brag about to keep up with the rest of the ladies in her church circle, especially since Allie's getting married soon, too. If you can't make it home to see Mom and Dad before the wedding so they can meet Sue, maybe you can give me something I can tell her...something she can share with all of her friends..."

Seeing Jack's irritation, Sue offered a soft smile as she rubbed his shoulder. "She's right, you know. My parents got to meet you, but your parents don't know me, and we don't want your mom to feel left out, do we?"

Knowing he was beaten fair and square, Jack sighed. "Fine. I guess that's the least we can do for my mom." Shrugging, Jack wore a silly grin. "What do you want to know? Nothing too personal, though..."

"Well...Mom says you and Sue have never actually 'dated', right?" Denise smirked as she made some sarcastic air quotes. "So how did you, my goofy big brother, manage to convince a lovely, normal woman like Sue to marry you? Did you sweep her off her feet by exhibiting your prowess in taking down wanted criminals? Did you con her into believing that you're smart? What sort of black magic did you use to pull off that little trick? Surely it wasn't just your supposed good looks or your natural 'Hudson charm'..."

Wearing a smug grin, Jack sat back in his chair. "C'mon, Denise...you know FBI agents in the same unit can't date each other…and we didn't want to break those work regulations. I wanted to keep my job, so...you know..."

Sue quickly interrupted him. "...but agents can spend lots of time together without calling it dating...and he did flirt with me on a fairly regular basis. He even tried to impress me by attempting to bench press 300 pounds." Noticing Jack's aggravated scoff and Bobby's guffaw over the bench press comment, she giggled as she patted her fiance's hand. "But...he didn't have to do anything extra special or try to convince me about anything. It was my idea for us to get married…I proposed to him..."

"And I may be your 'goofy big brother', Neecee, but I'm not stupid, okay? No way was I gonna turn down a great offer like that." Clasping Sue's hand, Jack shrugged as he smiled at his sister. "I don't know what to tell you...dating or not, somehow along the way we figured out that we love each other...we have for a long time..."

Denise, however, wasn't that easily deterred. "So...what? You two worked closely together for a couple of years, and then one day...surprise?! You discovered that you were in love with each other?"

"Nah...it wasn't a surprise for anyone, really." Sipping his water, Bobby shook his head. "Jack was head over heels in love with Sue as soon as she barged into his office by mistake one morning, when she was looking for the personnel department…and having lunch with her later that day sealed the deal..."

"Oh, that's not true, Bobby…and you know it." Sue narrowed her eyes at the laughing man sitting across from her. "Jack was dating Rhonda at the time...he didn't give me a second thought that day...other than how I could help him in his unit…"

"Actually, what Bobby said is pretty close to accurate, Sugar…," Jack began quietly. "...but it wasn't exactly on the first day we met. I think it was a couple of days later that I fell in love with you...it was that evening in New York City, when we went out for sushi and then we went for a walk, remember? I just didn't realize that's what was happening, I guess." Averting his gaze, he shrugged slightly as he fidgeted with his coffee cup. "By that time, I'd already figured out that Rhonda wasn't going to be a permanent part of my life, but I wasn't sure why. I mean, she's gorgeous…" He chuckled at Sue's exasperated groan. "...but Rhonda is so shallow...so fake...so concerned with making it to the top of her field, even at the expense of others...she isn't generous or kind or open hearted...not like you are, Sue. I mean, I know she kissed me when she showed up at Bobby's birthday party, but it didn't mean anything to me, even though she and I went out a few times after that. I soon found that whenever I was with her, I was thinking of you the whole time. I know it sounds sappy, but something about you touched my heart...my soul...right from the very beginning...and it didn't hurt that you're gorgeous, too..."

"Nice save, Honey." Blushing slightly, Sue smiled at Denise. "On the other hand, I think I've had a crush on Jack from the first day I met him...he's so handsome...so pleasant…so smart...so good at his job...so willing to help me be successful at my job..."

"Yeah? You really had a crush on me from the beginning?" He grinned, obviously pleased with himself. "Why didn't you say something?"

"Because we couldn't date within the same unit, silly, so it wouldn't have done any good...and you were seeing someone else..."

Bobby laughed at his friends. "Except all of us in the office knew it was just a matter of time until you two would get together, even if you didn't call it 'dating'. How many meals did the two of you share after finishing a case? How much time did you spend together on the weekends?"

"But that's different!," Sue protested. "We were colleagues...just friends..."

"Not really…I don't think we were ever just friends, Sue…" Sighing softly, Jack paused as the server brought their meal. Studying his plate for a minute or two, he continued in a thoughtful tone. "So you see, Neecee, I knew I was in love with Sue pretty soon after I met her, and I'd finally decided I was gonna say something...I really was. I'd finally gotten up the nerve, and I figured we'd work out the whole 'not supposed to date thing' later...but then, guess what? I had a heart attack…" He glanced at his sister, who cringed at the memory. "And then Allie showed up to help me recuperate, you know? She stayed a couple of weeks, and then...I don't know...maybe I second guessed myself about what I felt for Sue. I wasn't sure what it was I felt for Allie, either...you know, was it the real deal that time or was I just remembering the good old days? And then in the meantime Sue started seeing a new guy…"

"Proving once again that you really are my goofy big brother, almost losing Sue like that." Denise nodded as she stirred some sugar into her tea. "Although Mom was so sure you and Allie were gonna work things out…she kept expecting a call saying you and Allie were engaged..."

"And we might have done that...except I couldn't stop thinking about how much I loved Sue, even though she was dating Dog Boy, and it seemed like they were getting serious…"

"His name is David, not Dog Boy, and he's very nice…" Making a funny face at Jack's annoyed grunt, Sue shrugged slightly. "...but he wasn't the right fit for me. He wasn't Jack, and I didn't want to settle for second best." She giggled as she raised an eyebrow at her fiance'. "I knew that even after being married to you for a week…"

"You're never gonna let that go, are you?" Jack laughed as he recounted the story. "Sue and I were doing an undercover assignment as a married couple, Denise…we spent a week together pretending to be man and wife..."

"And I'm going to marry him anyway…"

"Wow." Denise pretended to be awestruck. "Are you sure you're feeling okay, Sue?"

"Well, it might be a challenge putting up with him on a full time basis, but…" Seeing Jack pretend to pout, she chuckled. "I think he's worth it. I feel like we know each other really well...well enough to know that we belong together…that we love each other..."

"Here! Here!" Bobby raised his water glass in a mock toast. "Here's to Sue...the bravest woman I know…"

Denise laughed, shaking her head at Bobby. "I dare you to give that toast at the wedding…"

"You're on, Darlin'..."

Feeling a little disconcerted by the very friendly interaction between Bobby and Denise, Jack cleared his throat. "So…anyway, when Sue was offered a job in New York, I panicked a little bit. I even made plans to transfer to the field office there, so I could be near her, but then, thank God...she decided to stay…"

"Because I didn't want to move away from Jack…," Sue added. "...and I didn't know he was considering following me to New York…"

Jack grinned at his best friend. "And then Bobby made me see what an idiot I'd been…how lucky I'd been that Sue had stayed in DC…for me..."

"Well, you know, mate...what are friends for?"

"Right, mate." Jack gave Bobby a thumbs up. "Anyway, when Sue and I really talked to each other about everything, we finally realized that we were in love with each other, and we decided there was no reason to wait any longer to begin a life together. So I changed divisions, and now there's nothing standing in our way, and we can get married. So that's the true story of how Sue and I got together, Neecee. What else does Mom want to know?"

"Let's see." Denise took her blackberry from her purse. "Okay...here's the text she sent me. She wants to know where you're going on your honeymoon?"

"Well, Mom ought to be glad to hear this." Jack smiled gently. "We're going to Quebec to see Grand-mere et Grand-pere Mercier. When I called them about us getting married, they were kind of disappointed that I was getting married here, since at their age they don't feel comfortable traveling to DC for the wedding. So Sue and I talked it over and decided to go there instead. Sue's never been to Canada, and they want to meet their new petite fille." He gave Sue an affectionate wink. "I've already started teaching her some French…so I know Grand-mere will be pleased with that..."

"Definitely. As Grand-mere would say..." Denise pretended to speak with a cartoonish French accent. "None of that awful English language in my house…"

Looking at Jack in confusion, Sue shook her head. "I don't understand…"

"The Quebecois...people who live in Quebec...can be very sensitive about English speakers showing up in their hometown.," he explained. "My mother is bilingual...she speaks both French and English fluently, but Grand-mere prefers to speak French."

"I'm trying to learn it…" Sue scrunched up her nose and shook her head. "but I'm not very good at it since I can't hear what you're saying, Jack…and reading lips in French is very confusing...so will she be upset with me?"

"Of course not. They're gonna love you." Jack waved off her worries. "They won't care if you're not good at speaking French. It's the effort that counts, right?"

Denise nodded in agreement. "That's true...our grandparents speak some English, but they'll appreciate that you're trying to speak French, so you'll get along just fine. Now...next question from Mom. Where are you going to live after you're married?"

Sue and Jack looked at each other and laughed. "We bought a darling little house in Pooleville, Maryland…," Sue began. "It's so cute…"

"Except it's more like a cute little 'shack' or maybe like a darling little grass hut from Gilligan's Island." Jack rolled his eyes at Sue's aggravated expression. "But she likes it…for some reason...so you know, we just went with it..."

"The man who sold it to us had inherited it from relatives, and he was anxious to sell, so it was a steal! That's why we could afford it, since your credit rating took that hit after that incident with the crook buying stuff with your credit cards."

"I know, Sue, but…" Jack exhaled slowly. "You have to admit, the house is tiny…I think it's even smaller than your current apartment...and it's kind of shabby, right?"

"It's 900 square feet, which is enough for us for awhile…" Waving off Jack's concern, Sue described their new house to Denise. "The property has 3 acres with a cute little white frame house that we can live in until we decide to build a larger one. The house has two bedrooms and one bath...a detached garage...an eat in kitchen..." Seeing Jack's silly smile, Sue pretended to be annoyed. "My brother said he could design a really nice house for us when we're ready to build…"

Jack winked at his sister. "I'm sure he can...and in the meantime what you're calling a cute little white house, Sue, actually amounts to a glorified tool shed…in fact, it's so small we may have to remove the bedroom wall to get our mattress inside..."

"You're the one who wanted an acreage, and it has a great location and a wonderful view…and running water and electricity...and it was the cheapest acreage within 30 miles of work..."

"That's all true, but I was hoping we could have a place with heat in the winter…," Jack groaned.

Sue gave him an ornery smirk "We can keep each other warm during the winter…"

Grinning at Bobby, Denise sat back in her chair as she watched the couple bicker playfully about their new place. "They're perfect for each other, aren't they?"

"Yeah, they are." Bobby leaned towards Denise. "Your brother is a great guy, and he deserves someone who loves him as much as Sue does…"

"I agree." Clearing her throat, the auditor held up her hand to interrupt the discussion about the happy couple's new house. "I've got to get back to work soon, but I have one more question. If I'm going to be a bridesmaid, what am I supposed to wear to this shindig in April? Has Jack picked out a really hideous bridesmaid dress for his baby sister?"

"Not really." Glancing at Jack, Sue shrugged. "It's a hot pink satin ball gown with big puffy sleeves and lots of lace…" Seeing that Denise was trying to hide her horror at that description, the bride to be laughed happily. "I'm joking!"

"Oh, thank God.." Denise was obviously relieved. "Although I wouldn't put it past Bubba…"

"The wedding's not going to be really fancy...so you can wear what you want." Seeing Denise's slight frown, Sue continued. "Okay...how about this idea? Maybe something dark blue? My maid of honor's dress is short...and it's pale gray with a navy floral design, if that helps. I think we decided the men are going to wear gray suits instead of tuxedos, and I think dark blue would look good with them, but don't feel like you have to go buy something new if you have something you really like. We don't want anyone to spend a lot of money just because we're getting married…"

"That's right, Neecee…we're getting married on a shoestring budget so we can afford our new palatial home, thanks to my very practical fiancee'." Jack smiled proudly as he squeezed Sue's hand. "Good, solid Midwestern values win again." He took a sip of his water before raising an eyebrow at his sister. "So...are you free for dinner tonight?"

Denise glanced at Bobby quickly before shaking her head. "I'm not sure what my plans are yet. How about I call you later? If I can't have dinner with you tonight, we'll definitely plan on tomorrow night." Calling the server over, she took the lunch tab and stood up. "Lunch is on me today, okay? I'll talk to you later…"

Finishing his coffee, Bobby stood up as well. "Yeah, I've got to get back to the salt mines as well. As I'm sure you know, Jack, I've got lots of paperwork to catch up on…"

"Yeah. You know...I don't miss that one bit…"

"I can see why. Later…"

Sue smiled as she watched Bobby and Denise leave together. "Your sister is very nice…"

"Yeah, she is...and smart, too…"

Giggling, Sue sipped her tea. "Too bad that doesn't run in the family…"

"Okay…" Jack pretended to be annoyed as they rose from their seats and left the restaurant. "...enough of that foolishness. I was smart enough to say yes to you, so that counts for something, right?"

Sue laughed before giving him a kiss. "Yes...you're right...you're very smart, and you make me very happy...and I love you very much..."

"And you make me very happy, and I love you, too. I can't wait until we get married and move into our own little white hut…"

She smiled as they got into the car. "Me neither. Just a couple more months…"

He grinned as he leaned over to kiss her. "That's good, because I can't wait much longer. April 30 better get here quick."

She studied him intently for a few seconds. "Do you want to go see your parents before the wedding? I can get some time off..."

"If we can work it out, then yeah, I'd like that...but I don't really think my mom sent Neecee on a mission to ask us all those questions. I think my little sister was just curious about you and me, that's all. She's an excellent investigator…"

"Something else that runs in the family…"

"Yeah, maybe. My dad's an arson investigator for the state of Wisconsin and mom's a science teacher, and they raised Denise and me to question everything, which was a good thing, I suppose, until it made me question my feelings for you." Starting the car, Jack reached over and patted Sue's knee. "But they also taught us to seek the truth and to speak the truth, so that's how I try to live, even though Bobby had to rattle my cage a bit to get me to see that I was being extremely stupid when it came to how I felt about you. So...the truth is this, okay? I will always love you, Sue...don't ever doubt that."

She giggled softly as she put her hand over his. "I'll remember that when we try to arrange the furniture in the postage stamp sized front room of our new house…"

"Okay, so I'll almost always love you…" He laughed as he dodged her playful slap at his arm.

"It's not too late to back out, you know.," she teased. "Maybe I'll move into that little white house by myself and raise a pack of golden retriever service dogs…"

"No way." He gave her a sideways glance. "No matter what...no matter what our house looks like or how we have to arrange the furniture in that tiny living room...no matter what happens over the years, you and I are gonna be together for good…because I love you...so very much" He shook a teasing finger at her. "...and don't you ever forget that."

"And I'll always love you, too." Feeling a flood of tender emotions filling her heart, she sighed softly. "Do you think there could be anybody happier than we are at this moment?"

As he checked his rear view mirror, Jack smiled. "Nope. We pretty much won the happiness lottery, didn't we?"

"We did. I just hope our friends get to be as happy as we are right now."

"That may be a tall order, but it's a nice thought." He smirked as he glanced at her. "Okay...tell me you're not going to play matchmaker…"

"As it turns out...I think I already did." Seeing his surprise, she laughed. "Now we just have to wait and see what happens next…"