I adored the movie To the Altar and think Martha Williamson is brilliant. I couldn't wrap my mind around taking this story into wedding week because why mess with perfection. Then I started thinking in a tv movie format details or scenes always need to be cut because of time and commercials. There's been several SSD international editions that had scenes many Postables wished had not been cut in the American versions. I finally decided to finish the story by filling in moments there weren't time for in the movie. The next chapters came from random thoughts I had watching the movie for the hundredth time. Moments that I imagined the characters might have experienced during the week.

To the Altar Wedding Week - Monday

Chapter 17 Parking Spots

Oliver was sitting in the department caucus meeting only half listening to coworkers drone on about parking spaces. He replayed the recent exchange he'd had with Shane in the corridor. Pondering what might be in the box Shane had been so protectively holding, he seriously doubted with the style in which she dressed that it was a bit of old used clothing. Between marveling at her carefree nature running through the corridor without her shoes as well as the distraction of her blatant flirting, he had struggled to focus on figuring out what she was hiding from him. The longer they dated the more difficult it was for him to stay professional at work. By the way she was expertly flirting in the hallway, he thought the beautiful minx was completely aware. After she'd leaned in batting her eyelashes whispering that she loved it when he got all Ms. McInerney on her, he could still feel her breath on his face. The scent of her perfume lingered. All he'd wanted to do was take her in his arms and kiss her until she couldn't think straight to continue flirting. Except they'd been surrounded by coworkers in a hallway at work. He sighed heavily with frustration.

Otis was sitting next to him and leaned over, "I know I get frustrated with these meetings. I mean pick one and let's move on. How long can you keep debating about the direction of a parking spot?"

"Right." Oliver agreed absently thankful Otis had no idea what he was really contemplating. His thoughts returned to Shane. He wondered if she'd thought about their future. She'd never been married before and he wasn't sure if she'd ever lived with anyone because he'd never asked. After she had told him on their first trip to D.C. that her old flames were none of his business, he had tread lightly when asking about her past. He cared about her, couldn't imagine his life without her but didn't know if they were ready to take their relationship to the next level. When she'd left, he'd been devastated. Shane came back to him leaving Steve in D.C. he thought with satisfaction. He knew she cared about him, but did she love him?

"I don't really know."

Oliver didn't realize he'd spoken out loud until Otis leaned back in horror, "Oh no, they haven't gotten to you too. I mean diagonal, straight, does it really matter?"

Thinking fast Oliver tried to cover, "I was..er…thinking about Norman's surprise bachelor night I'm supposed to be organizing. It slipped my mind as the best man that I'm in charge of the planning. I've never had one before and never been to one. What do you think about a dinner at my place?"

"You mean as a decoy for the real shindig?" Otis asked confused. Oliver could tell by Otis' response his original idea might not have passed muster.

"Possibly." Oliver said uncertainly belatedly rethinking things.

"I guess if you sold it right." Otis shrugged obviously not thinking much of the idea from the look on his face.

Maybe Shane's right and I do need help planning this Oliver thought. "Oh, come on it can't be that hard." He belatedly realized he'd spoken out loud again when Otis responded.

Otis whole heartedly agreed, "The man is right. It's time to put it to a vote."

Put what to a vote Oliver thought suddenly recalling they were sitting through a parking meeting. Before he knew it the committee in charge asked for a second motion to bring it to a vote, and Otis was nudging him to second the motion. Oliver complied wanting to get back to the DLO.

On the way out of the meeting Otis mentioned, "Bachelor parties are all about food and music. Get that right man and it will be legend."

"Thanks Otis." Oliver said uncertainly as they parted ways not at all sure if he wanted to reach legend status in that manner. Food and music. That can't be too hard Oliver thought with renewed confidence. He was pleased he'd be able to tell Shane the group had overwhelmingly went diagonal on the parking issue. She after all said she was a diagonal kind of girl herself.

With a renewed bounce to his step Oliver made his way back to the DLO. Pushing the door open hearing the silence told him Rita and Norman must not have returned. He looked around for Shane. Immediately thinking…What the Sam Hill? His eyes darted from Shane to the box on the counter realizing suddenly that what was in the torn-up box Shane had hugged to herself so protectively was a vision into his possible future. She was beautiful standing there uncertainly looking at herself in the mirror. The dress hugged her curves flowing to the floor with an open back that made his fingers want to drift across her skin. He could see her struggling to fasten the buttons and before he could think he was there to assist wanting to see how it looked as much as she did. She gasped opening her mouth to explain absolutely mortified he'd walked in on her.

"Shhhh." Oliver encouraged her to stop for a moment.

Leaning against the back of the door to the smaller DLO office, Shane still couldn't believe what had just happened. Oliver walking in on her wearing the lost wedding dress had been... No, no, no, no. There really were no words for the experience. She thought she had plenty of time given the normal debates about parking lasted forever. Suddenly seeing him behind her she couldn't look him in the eye closing hers for a moment. When she stuttered trying to explain, hearing him softly 'shh' her, she felt goosebumps along her arms as she almost came undone.

As he buttoned up the wedding dress, she knew he was encouraging her to finish contemplating what it would be like to wear one for him. She could see in the mirror the look of approval on his face as he took in every inch of her in the wedding dress before he gently started teasing her. After they got through reading the letter she found in the dress, she painfully made the decision to let it go tearing up the check she was going to give him. When she was walking away to change back into her work clothes, he stopped her asking softly, "Aren't you forgetting something?"

Looking back over her shoulder at him inquiringly, she watched him approach her before he gently brushed her hair over her other shoulder. His hand giving into temptation dusting against her skin along her back before starting to unbutton the buttons that he only a short time ago had done up. Closing her eyes, she blushed, barely able to breath, focused on the feeling of his hands at the small of her back slowly tugging on the buttons as they came undone. She felt him lean closer before he said softly, "It's always my pleasure to assist when you need me…Shane." Gathering her thoughts took a moment. Once her heart started beating again, she continued walking to the smaller office to change. It took her more than a few moments to feel like she could breathe normally.

Returning to the DLO after sorting out the flower fiasco of losing their florist last minute, Norman and Rita found Oliver examining the damaged wedding dress box and letter with Shane nowhere to be seen. "Where's Shane?" Rita asked as they took off their coats.

Rita watched a slow satisfied smile spread across Oliver's face before he responded, "Ms. McInerney? Ms. McInerney is in the other office…changing. She may appreciate your help Rita."

Norman leaned closer to whisper to Rita, "Do you get the feeling we missed something?"

"Oh, yeah." Rita scurried off to find Shane.

Knocking on the door she heard a muffled "Who is it?"

"Rita."

"Come in." Rita entered to find Shane dressed but shoeless. She was leaning over a table with the wedding dress laying across it. Her hand absently running over the material.

"Shane what are you doing?"

"Slowly dieing of mortification."

"Shane what are you talking about?"

"Oh Rita." Shane looked at her obviously distressed.

"Shane what happened?"

"I put it on." Shane said sighing, "Oliver walked in on me wearing it."

"Put what on?" Rita asked.

Shane looked at Rita pointedly before gesturing to the dress on the table. "This dress. It's just so beautiful and I fell in love."

Rita leaned over the dress with Shane knowing this was as much about Oliver as the dress. "With Oliver or the dress?" Rita asked gently but deliberately.

Shane ran a hand over her face before admitting. "Both."

"How did Oliver react?"

"He buttoned it up and stood there gazing at me in the mirror. I have no idea what he was thinking."

Rita blinked utterly shocked. She grinned thinking that's an excellent sign. "Shane he wouldn't have reacted in that manner if he hadn't liked the way you looked in the dress."

"I told him I liked the material and was going to make it into a cocktail dress." Shane said rolling her eyes. "He saw right through me and started teasing me about making it into a shawl or a tablecloth. But then I found a letter from a mother to a daughter in the pocket of the dress and we started reading it together."

"Shane Oliver's always been enigmatic. Kept his thoughts close to his vest." Rita said thoughtfully before grinning. "You know how much he likes a nice vest." Shane rolled her eyes at Rita's attempt to add some levity to the situation. "He's opened up more since you arrived then we've ever seen him before." She looked sideways at Shane before dropping the next bit of information, "He looked pretty pleased with himself when we got back from the florist."

Shane looked at her thoughtfully. "Really."

"Yes. Give him time. You won't solve anything by hiding out in here. Let's get the dress up on the mannequin so we can look at it better."

Shane tried to move past the experience knowing Rita was right. She leaned over to put on her shoes and picked up the dress determined to return to work after Rita's pep talk.

On her way to bed Shane stopped to look at the picture of Oliver and herself at his birthday party. She ran a finger along the frame thinking back to that afternoon when Joe and Oliver told her the family tradition of the ugly green tie. She'd felt sorry for Oliver that he hadn't been able to continue a family tradition that was so obviously meaningful. There was a small part of her that was grateful that he'd not shared that experience with Holly given what she'd put him through and how their relationship ended. She sighed as she turned out the lights hoping that he could move past seeing her in the wedding dress. Shane didn't want things awkward between them the entire week leading up to Rita and Norman's wedding.

As Shane was turning out her lights, Oliver was sitting in his home office having not gotten past a page or two reading in his book. Contemplating the next step in their relationship and seeing Shane in a wedding dress were two entirely different experiences. She'd taken his breath away. He could tell she was embarrassed, but he couldn't pass up the opportunity for some teasing given what she'd put him through at work with her flirting the last few weeks. He recalled her asking later at the Brown Palace if he could just forget what he saw. That he wasn't supposed to see her in the dress. The problem was he couldn't change what he'd seen, how much he overwhelmingly desired what he'd seen. Their lives were so entangled personally…professionally. He'd already been contemplating what their life would look like together if they took their relationship further. There were still so many things they hadn't discussed regarding children, long term professional goals, even staying in Denver. Her family were all out east. Would her carefree ways drive him nuts? Would his need for control and structure drive her nuts? Or would it be more like what Dale described when he first told her Shane and Oliver had become a thing. Could they be something beautiful? Two halves making a whole. He sighed finally giving up on the book before turning his own lights out as he headed to bed.