"Don't you look lovely," Oliver breathed when Grace walked into his office.

She chuckled, running her fingers along the skirt of her sundress. Unseasonable, but she didn't want to dress in a business suit for the remainder of the evening.

"It's nice to not be wearing soda," she said as she walked over to the desk and leaned against the edge of it.

Oliver laughed at the memory. Poor Molly thought she'd ruined the entire night, let alone her adoption. "Remind me to thank the child for that spill."

She raised an eyebrow. "Why is that?"

Taking one of her hands, he held it out, admiring the outfit. "I don't think I've seen you wear this."

Loving the attention though also unaccustomed to it, her cheeks flushed. "It's been years. I bought it for my last vacation."

"That was a while ago."

"I'll have to go shopping soon. I think my wardrobe could do with some change. I don't think I want to dress for work every day anymore."

He smiled, but it quickly turned into an expression of rumination.

Noticing this, Grace questioned, "Is something wrong?"

"No… but this does raise a question."

"What is it?"

Letting go of her hand, he took a moment before he answered. "I know we haven't had much time the past few days, and so much of me wants to stay in this ambiguous relationship we've begun, but I feel we both need to be clear on our positions going forward."

Her breath caught in a sudden panic, a dozen questions swirling through her mind, wondering if she'd somehow been misreading things all along.

"You're not… having second thoughts, are you? About us?"

"Good heavens, no!" he corrected, rising to his feet and grasping her arms. "That's not what I mean at all."

"Oh." She let out a breath, though the worry didn't entirely dissipate.

He bent down to give her a reassuring kiss. "I mean with work. I don't necessarily want to hire a new secretary, but I don't want you to feel you have to continue with your job if you'd rather be around for Annie and Molly."

"I still want to work for you," she said. "At least for now. We'll see what happens. Going forward we'll keep in mind that one or both of the girls might need one of both of us. I'm sure they'll be a bit clingy for a few weeks, but then we'll all forge a new routine. They'll be in school eventually, so I'll at least be working when they're not home."

"Sounds like a good plan to me," he said, slipping his hands down to her waist.

"Is there anything else? We might as well sort it all out now."

"I think work was the biggest thing, and it's something I've been avoiding bringing up."

Fiddling with his tie, she replied, "You don't have to be afraid to talk with me about anything."

"I know… or at least, I should know that."

She smiled understandingly.

"For tonight," he started to say as he backed away from her and moved to the top drawer of the desk, "there's only one other question I want to ask you."

Before she'd even seen the velvet box he was now holding in his hand, Grace's eyes filled with tears.

Taking her hand, Oliver led her over to the sofa, sitting her down while he knelt on one knee in front of her. "I was planning on saying all of this tomorrow evening, but tonight was terrific and then you came downstairs looking so beautiful… I don't want to wait any longer. These past couple of weeks have been dizzying – in good ways and bad. Now I'm confident the good is here to stay. At least for our family. So much has changed and is continuing to change. You've stayed by my side professionally, and I can admit to you – as well as myself – that I want you to stay with me no matter where we are. I need you, especially now that we are going to be starting off with two daughters. I want your name on their adoption certificates."

"Oh, Oliver…" she cried.

Choking back his own emotions, he finished, "I love you, Grace. I hope you will do me the honor of becoming my wife."

He opened the little box, presenting a diamond ring adorned with rubies placed on both its sides. Grace brought her hands to her mouth, trying desperately not to sob. She wanted to scream, "Yes!" but knew better than to try to form any words until her pulse slowed and emotions receded. Instead, she gave her answer by pulling him close to her, nodding her head vigorously as she nestled it into the crook of his neck.

When she pulled back, they both had tears streaming down their cheeks. Finally, Grace was able to mutter her answer, prompting Oliver to slide the ring on her finger.

"It's beautiful, Oliver."

"Fits okay?"

"Perfectly."

"Good," he said as he moved onto the couch next to her as they both took a moment to dry their eyes. "I had Annie swipe one of your rings for size. I was afraid you'd notice something missing."

"Annie knows?" she questioned with surprise. "When was this?"

"A few days ago. Around the time I asked you to pick out the locket for her. I'd hoped it would come in time for Christmas, but it only showed up this morning."

Trying her best not to cry again, she replied, "You've had this in mind all along? How did you get her to keep the secret?"

Brushing his thumb over the ring, he said, "I didn't tell her the exact reason why, though I think she suspected as much. I envisioned adopting her and proposing to you. I was hopeful. But then she told us about her parents and everything else took over. I wished I'd had it on Christmas Eve, or really, early on Christmas Morning. Accepting that you return my feelings… I knew I was making the right decision."

"I love you so much, Oliver," Grace whispered.

He kissed her forehead as she snuggled against his side. "I love you, too."