"I think I might get used to Iowan life sooner than I expected."

Tony leaned back just enough to kiss Angela's forehead, smiling at the sight of her nestled against him. Reality set in as he wrapped his arms more tightly around her. She was really here and she was here to stay.

Today had been a lot better than the previous two. There was still talk about Angela's scene at her welcome party (and likely would be for a while), but at least no one else had asked her along to an AA meeting. Angela had been in much better spirits this morning, roosters aside. She came to breakfast dressed for the day, even hungry for something in addition to her juice and coffee after feeling too queasy to eat much the day before. Tony obliged, making her waffles. This brightened her smile, feeling a semblance of familiarity again. It'd been so long since they shared a quiet morning together. When Tony had visited Connecticut the family flocked to the table to see him (or rather his cooking). When Angela visited Iowa, they were almost always fighting. When they weren't, some other distraction got in the way.

Angela spent a good part of the day getting properly acquainted with the ladies and being presented with the cookbook Tony let slip the night before. She acted surprised, making plans for the next week to make her first dish. They took her around the school grounds and around town. There wasn't much to see, but Angela was stunned by how little attention she'd paid to her surroundings when visiting before. Of course, she never left Tony's side. If he wasn't around she saw no reason to acclimate. She was still calling it 'Idaho'.

Time passed quickly before classes were over for the day. Angela was sure to be back at the apartment to greet Tony when he came home. Her heart sank when Ned had come through the door with him, but thrilled when Tony insisted he wanted to spend an evening alone with her. She bore the suggestive hurrahs being thrown Tony's way, but with a roll of her eyes could shake off the twinge of embarrassment. After her drunken entrance to the party the other night, it would take a lot to feel truly humiliated again.

It had been the most romantic evening they shared since before graduation. Tony surprised her with homemade spaghetti and meatballs, simple yet delicious. For dessert, they made a cake together given she hadn't had a chance to have a slice at the party. Though they'd baked several things together since then, Angela couldn't help but reminisce, thinking about the first time they attempted to make a cake together for her birthday. She forwent throwing flour around, not wanting to waste any more time cleaning than was necessary, however, she caught him off guard when she spun him around and seared him with a kiss. The cake turned out all right despite the many distractions that followed, but as soon as it was out of the oven, it was left unfrosted and forgotten.

"You ever think we'd end up like this one day?" Tony asked as he leaned his head back against the pillows.

"I'd hoped," she hummed.

"I mean, living alone together someplace so different and away from our family."

"No," she chuckled. "That thought never crossed my mind. At least not the part away from Connecticut. I knew someday the kids would be off on their own, though, I think Mother is here to stay."

"I couldn't ask for a better Mother-in-Law."

Opening her eyes and sitting up a bit, Angela rested against her elbow. "Speaking of which, we still need to figure out the new wedding plans."

"I thought you wanted to wait until my contract is up?" Tony questioned.

"That was before I moved out here with you. It didn't make sense to get married then be separated for a year. Now that we're together and living like we're married maybe we should think about having it sooner."

"Without our friends and family?"

"We could fly back home for it. None of the arrangements need to be changed, just the date. Then we come back here for our honeymoon… though I am all for a second honeymoon once school's over. Just like we planned." She leaned down and pecked his lips.

"I dunno, Angela…"

She frowned. "You still want to get married, don't you?"

"Of course I do!" he quickly corrected, taking hold of the hand that had been resting on his chest. "I love you. We'll be married someday. Soon."

"But…?"

Tony sighed. "There's just so much goin' on, Angela. We've been running back and forth so much and now we finally have some time to breathe. I can't be thinking of classes and wedding plans at the same time."

"I can take over from here. I have time now. And like I said, the arrangements are pretty much settled. We just need the date and the church."

"It's not just the planning. Everything will be so rushed. That's still not how I want to start a life with you. We waited so long. You've only been here a couple of days — not that it hasn't been wonderful — but after eight years of one routine, we need to see how we adjust to a new one. Things have changed so much and so quickly this past year. I don't want to risk messing this up."

Angela moved to lay on her back, not able to find the words for an appropriate response just yet.

When several minutes had passed in silence, Tony turned his head. Seeing she hadn't fallen asleep, he said, "You're mad at me."

"I'm not mad at you."

"Upset, then."

She lightly shook her head. "I don't know."

Turning on his side, he draped his arm over her stomach, pulling her close to his side as she had been before. "I know all this has thrown you for a loop. It's been weird for me, too. I just think we need to get settled here together first. There's a lot of pressure on me to get the team into shape and win. What if I marry you and we lose. You'll be a widow while you're still a newlywed."

"I don't think they really killed the other guy." She hoped, anyway.

"I'm not taking any chances."

"So... we'll get married in the summer then?"

"I think it's best."

Stifling her disappointment as much as she could, she said, "I guess we've waited this long, a few more months won't hurt. At least we're together."

Tony kissed her cheek. "It will be beautiful. And that way neither of us will have to work through our honeymoon..."

"I do like that thought... but do we still want to go to the tropics? The heat will be unbearable that time of year."

"I didn't think of that."

Hand back on his chest, Angela said, "We'll find someplace else. Maybe Italy? It was so beautiful when we went but we didn't get to properly enjoy it."

"Hmm... not a bad idea..."

She smiled. "Yeah?"

Reciprocating, he said, "Two weeks minimum. We'll go to all the romantic spots and do it up right. Florence, Rome, Venice…"

"Assuming I let you out of our hotel room, that is."

As she started kissing his neck, Tony said already melting beneath her, "I think I'm gonna like married life."