Holly returned to Bay City the next morning, which, Frankie reported that same afternoon, was also the day that Dinah and Hart jetted off to the Cayman Islands together on open tickets, with no specific return date, just round-trip tickets, meaning they would be coming back at some point, but obviously they hadn't decided exactly when that would be yet.
Ross and Vanessa were equally bewildered when Dinah left them both answering machine messages announcing that she was going away for a while to clear her head. ("Her head gets any clearer, it'll be completely empty," Matt Reardon mused to Blake after they had learned about Dinah's departure from their spouses.) But since Dinah was an adult, neither one of them could do anything about what Vanessa termed Dinah's "latest flight of fancy." The one thing Vanessa and Ross were both happy about, though, was that Dinah asked Ross to file for divorce for her, and said she would be in touch in a few days to go over the details with him. They didn't know half of what she was really up to, but they were at least grateful and happy that she was finally ending her marriage to Roger.
Dinah opted not to tell Ross that she (and Hart) had had Roger committed (well, they *thought* they had). She only gave Ross the address of the hospital in Bay City, and told him to send the papers there to Roger in care of John Hudson, omitting the fact that John was a doctor and that the address was that of Bay City General Hospital. As she told Hart once they were on the plane to the Caymans, "That'll just get Blake involved, spouting off about how dare I, the bitch, commit her father to a psych ward, and for all we know, she'll drag Holly into it, probably trying to push Holly and Roger back together again since Holly left Fletcher Reade. We certainly don't need Blake or Holly mixed up in this." Hart agreed with that, but privately wondered if they really would be able to keep Blake and Holly out of it; Roger was never going to get over Holly, and now that she was available again, Hart figured Roger would go back after her the first chance he had...if he hadn't already made some kind of overture to her. But he tried to push it out of his mind and focus on Dinah and the fact that they were going to the Cayman Islands, where they would be getting quite a windfall when they reclaimed the full amount of Dinah's trust fund from the bank account Roger had down there, and having some long-overdue and much-deserved fun after all the months of stress and strain in Springfield gaslighting Roger and carrying on their affair with each other behind Roger's back.
Blake, of course, knew that Dinah was having an affair with Hart, and, having heard the rumors around town all spring and summer that her father's sanity was supposedly slipping and having heard Roger tell Holly on the phone the night before that he had stayed at the hospital until he was sure Dinah and Hart had left, she correctly deduced that Dinah and Hart had teamed up to convince Roger that he needed a stay in a mental hospital, and Roger was letting them think that's what he was up to, but since he and Holly had talked about The Bayshore and seeing each other there, she knew that her father wasn't really a mental patient, he was only letting Dinah and Hart think that he was, and clearly her mother was in on this plan of his as well. But Blake kept all of this information to herself, not wanting to do anything to jeopardize her parents' fledgling fresh start with one another.
But Blake wondered who these other people were that her parents had discussed. The one full name she had was Cass Winthrop, her mother's divorce lawyer, who lived in Bay City, so she started there. Her research yielded the facts that Cass was a member in good standing of the Bar Association, and was married to Mary Frances Frame, a private investigator. Mary Frances...Frankie was a nickname for Mary Frances, right? And she was a private investigator. Roger had said that Frankie had played a tape for him. Of course! Roger had obviously hired Frankie to follow Dinah and Hart, probably to get proof of their affair. She wondered idly if Frankie had gotten the necessary proof, and if Roger would use it in the divorce that Dinah had now filed for, then decided that was secondary; he and Dinah were getting divorced, and he and Holly were getting closer, and that was what was most important.
Looking through back issues of The Bay City Herald at the Springfield Public Library put Blake on the trail of the mysterious Michael and Donna. When she came across a wedding announcement from the previous October for one Victoria Hudson, daughter of Donna Love and Michael Hudson, and Ryan Harrison, stepson of Rachel Cory, all of Bay City, she followed her hunch, and then hit the jackpot when she began looking for information on Michael Hudson, including a photograph of the man himself.
Michael Hudson looked to be around her father's age, and was the CEO and President of Hudson Enterprises. That sent Blake looking through the business sections of the Herald, and she learned, to her great surprise, that in the last two months, Michael Hudson had hired Roger to work at Hudson Enterprises and they had just closed a major deal having something to do with computers and something called the Internet with a company called Yahoo. Roger was listed as Executive Vice President of Internet Acquisitions of Hudson Enterprises. At least he's out of Spaulding. That can only be a good thing, Blake mused to herself.
She got an even bigger surprise when she saw an item in the Herald's business section dated a few weeks after the announcement about Yahoo and Hudson Enterprises mentioning Roger that declared that Holly Lindsey, the former co-owner of WSPR in Springfield, had bought Bay City TV station KBAY from Rachel Cory. No wonder Mom and Dad haven't been around much. Between getting closer and launching new careers in Bay City, they don't have time, she thought.
The final mystery was solved for Blake when she called The Bayshore Hotel and learned from a friendly concierge named Ned that Ms. Holly Lindsey and Mr. Roger Thorpe were registered as guests at the hotel...though he hastened to point out that they maintained separate rooms, albeit on the same floor. Well, the last time they were actually together, they started out in separate bedrooms across the hall from each other, she mused. But this time, it's going to have a better ending. It's got to have a better ending this time. Ideally, it will have no ending for at least the next 30 or 40 years.
With the other people her parents had mentioned identified to her satisfaction, Blake turned her thoughts completely to her parents. Roger and Holly were building new lives for themselves in Bay City, and at the same time conscientiously working together to find a way to build a new life as a couple. Holly's divorce from Fletcher would be final any day now, and Dinah had finally filed for divorce from Roger. And once their divorces were final...
It was no secret to anyone in Springfield that Blake was the one and only person (with the possible exception of Michelle Bauer, whose opinion wasn't given much weight because she was in her early teens and didn't know Roger and Holly's whole history, which she knew Ed strongly believed would change Michelle's mind once she did know it) who believed that her parents belonged together, who saw that they truly did love each other, who knew deep in her soul that they had the potential to get it right with each other.
But they weren't in Springfield now, surrounded by the whispers and stares and blatant disapproval and judgment of everyone but her. And they were really trying this time; Blake knew without having to be told that her parents were more serious about getting it right with each other now than they had ever been before. Roger had given up Spaulding. This job with Hudson Enterprises was a heavy-duty, major-league, permanent corporate position. She knew her father well enough to know that he wouldn't go into this kind of job half-heartedly. This wasn't some kind of distraction until he could figure out his next ploy to try and steal Spaulding from the Spauldings. Roger was working at Hudson Enterprises because that's what he wanted to be doing.
And then there was the matter of those wedding rings Holly had bought at the end of May...after she had decided to divorce Fletcher, if not after she had filed, and those rings were meant for her and Roger. And given Holly's own marital history, and the disaster (and that was putting it mildly) that had been Holly and Roger's first marriage to each other, buying them and having them engraved was not an impulsive move on her part. No, she bought those rings and had them engraved because she wanted to marry Roger, which was not a decision that Holly would have made lightly or without knowing as certainly as she possibly could that it was absolutely what she wanted above all else.
Her mother and father didn't want her to know about them until they had something definite to tell her, and this time, Blake would respect their wishes. She wouldn't push, she wouldn't get involved at all, she would root for them silently from the sidelines and not breathe a word of this to anyone in Springfield; she already knew how they would all react, anyway. Blake was a gambler, like her father, and this time, she was betting on her parents to get it right, to make it work, to make it last the rest of their lives. The lack of interference of every kind could only be a good thing for them. So Blake would stay out of it until her parents chose to include her, hoping and praying all the while that Bay City was a kinder place to them than Springfield had ever been.
With Dinah and Hart out of the country, and Frankie keeping a close eye on them, Roger and Holly were free to concentrate on other things. Holly began going into KBAY for a few hours each workday, learning all she could about the station, and going over things with both Rachel and Matthew Cory. Matthew was the polar opposite of his sister Amanda, a levelheaded young man, with a bit of a rebellious streak evidenced by his long blond ponytail, intelligent, well-mannered, and very down to earth. Holly knew by the slight shadow in his eyes and his smile that he was lonely, and she hoped that he would find a woman worthy of him someday soon.
While Holly was getting her feet wet at KBAY, Roger was working with Michael at Hudson Enterprises. He now had his own office, on the same floor as Michael's. It wasn't as big or fancy as Michael's, but Roger found that he didn't care about having a fancy, showy office this time. It was enough for him to be working in the milieu at which he had always excelled, but this time with the added bonus of working with an old friend of his, because Michael Hudson was one of the few people in Roger's life that he had ever trusted consistently and implicitly. He and Michael had always been a great team, and being able to put their unique chemistry, their combined brain power, and all of their skills into business was yielding successes the likes of which Roger had never known before. And without the Spaulding name or its taint on anything, Roger felt like his part in their work was exactly that: his part, and as on their CIA missions, he didn't mind at all sharing the glory with Michael. If anything, he got more credit for his work now than he had in the CIA, whose very nature was covert and secretive.
Most importantly, Roger and Holly were able to spend more time together, and also more time with their friends. Roger saw plenty of Michael outside of work as well as at work, and he and Holly had dinner with Michael and Donna a few times. Holly also spent time with Rachel unrelated to the sale of KBAY, and went on a few more shopping trips with Donna, plus had dinner at Rachel's house, which was actually a mansion, and saw Rachel's art studio and some of the pieces she was hard at work on for her upcoming showing in December. ("Iris's son Dennis owns the gallery. I figure just this once, since I've been away from it so long, nepotism is excusable," Rachel said. Rachel also shared the facts of what Donna had referred to as Rachel "valiantly throwing herself on Mitch Blake's penis" to find out where Janice Frame had taken Mac to finish him off when Janice was married to him and trying to kill him for his money. "I was so desperate to save Mac's life and that was my only option to get answers," Rachel said. "What happened afterward was my fault, my mistake, my throwing over the absolute right man for the absolute wrong man, as you put it." But Holly completely understood Rachel's desperation, and confided that if she were in a similar position and there was no other way for her to save Roger's life, then she would do exactly what Rachel had done to save Mac...and Rachel had saved Mac, which was what ultimately mattered.)
They had lots of lunches and dinners together just the two of them, saw a few old movies at the revival house that Rachel mentioned to Holly, and then there was the little blues club, The Pelican, that Holly found and took Roger to for a live performance one night.
It was on a Thursday afternoon three weeks after Dinah and Hart left for the Cayman Islands that Roger played hooky from work, convinced Holly to join him (not that he had to work too hard at that), and surprised her by taking her rowing in the park. The bay for which Bay City was named was large, and besides encompassing the whole waterfront area, Bay View Park rented rowboats, so Roger rented one for himself and Holly to go out on the water.
"Are you sure you know what you're doing?" she asked when she was seated safely in the boat, which was on the edge of the shore.
"Of course I know what I'm doing," Roger replied. "It's true that I've never taken you rowing before, but I think I can handle a rowboat."
"You fell in the water trying to catch a fish in Acapulco," she reminded him as he gingerly climbed into the slightly swaying boat.
"I didn't have a fishing pole," Roger said. "I have two oars right here," he gestured to the oars that were fitted into the oarlocks on either side of the small craft. "Nobody's getting wet today." Roger pushed the boat further into the bay and then jumped athletically into the boat himself, grabbing the oars and propelling the boat out into the middle of the bay. He grinned triumphantly at Holly as he rowed.
She just grinned back. "Showoff," she said affectionately.
"For you, absolutely," Roger replied. They passed by the dock now, and they both noticed the flurry of activity going on there, the preparations for a big party, which they both knew about, Roger having heard about it from Michael, and Holly having heard about it from Rachel.
They spoke at the same time.
"So-" Roger began.
"I wanted to-" Holly said.
They broke off laughing. "You wanted to what?" Roger asked.
"You first," Holly said.
"Are you sure?" Roger asked.
"Yes," Holly replied. "Go ahead."
"Okay," Roger said. He inclined his head toward the setup on the dock. "You see all those people over there, with the lanterns and the strings of lights and the decorations and tables and all?"
"Yes?"
"Well, there's going to be a dock party there tomorrow night," Roger continued. "It's a fundraiser for The Waterfront Clinic, and it's open to the public."
Holly smiled. "The couple that runs the clinic, Jamie and Marley Frame, hold this dock party fundraiser every year at the end of August," she said.
"You know about it?" Roger asked, surprised.
"Rachel told me. Jamie and Marley are her son and daughter-in-law. I was going to ask you if you wanted to go with me," she said.
"Marley is one of Michael and Donna's daughters. Michael told me about it. I was going to ask you if you wanted to go with me," he said. "So is that a yes?"
"Yes," Holly said with a smile. "I would love to go to the dock party with you, Roger."
"Great," Roger said with a pleased smile. "It starts tomorrow night at 8:00. You want to get dinner beforehand?"
"Sure," Holly agreed.
"Did you ever get that mess straightened out at the station?" Roger asked as they drifted past the activity on the dock.
"Yeah, finally," Holly replied. "Matthew was a big help, and I met his sister...stepsister? I don't know, they don't really consider themselves step-siblings or half-siblings in Rachel's family from what I've gathered. Anyway, his sister Paulina that's on maternity leave, she's coming back to work in a couple of weeks, and she had the answer, so she came in yesterday and we met and she had the answer we were looking for. Matthew's eager to get going at the newspaper, so the sooner we can get all of the 'i's dotted and 't's crossed, the sooner I can officially take over at KBAY and he can start at the Herald. I was kind of nervous about starting full-time at the station, but Paulina is really good at her job and I think we're going to work well together. She'll be a big help to me as I get used to working in television again."
"You're gonna be great," Roger assured Holly.
"You're doing great yourself at Hudson," Holly said.
"I think Yahoo's going to go public by the end of the year," Roger said.
"Really? That's amazing!" Holly said.
"The amazing part is that Michael and I pulled this off together," Roger said.
"The Black Fox and Rotorhead ride again?" Holly asked.
"Exactly," Roger said. "Only this time, neither of us is in mortal danger, and international security isn't at stake. And it's really different, working with somebody that I have such faith in, somebody that I know isn't going to screw me over at any point."
"You're different," Holly said.
"You noticed," Roger said happily.
"Oh yes," Holly replied.
Roger stopped rowing, resting the oars in the oarlocks and his hands on the oar handles, letting them drift again. "I am different," he agreed. "Trust can't be a one-way street. I'm learning to trust you again, but you have to be able to trust me again, too, if we're going to work this time." His face clouded now, but he held her gaze as he continued. "All the times I went after Spaulding, what was I really going after? Money...power...the ability to stick it to Alexandra and Alan the best way I knew how. And what did it ever really get me? Nothing but grief. Alex tried to send me to jail more than once...Alan tried to kill our daughter...and I was so blinded by the pursuit of Spaulding that I let it destroy us. I didn't show you that you come first with me, and I lost you, and I should have, because you deserved so much better."
Now he gave her a look of determination. "But I'm never going to let that happen again. I swear it on my life, Holly. Yes, I like working. I like big business, and I'm just arrogant enough to think I'm good at it. But I'm learning a lot from Michael about balancing work with the rest of your life. He has Donna, their daughters, their grandsons, his brother and his family, and his mom's still alive too. And he doesn't let any of them suffer to further his career. That doesn't mean he never works late, or that work doesn't occasionally have to have all of his attention and most of his time, but Donna and his family know that they come first with him always."
He let one of the oars rest in its oarlock and reached across the boat for Holly's hand. When he was holding her hand in both of his, he said, "I know this is going to sound like something out of some cheesy romance novel, but it's the God's honest truth. You make me want to be the best man I can, because I want to be what you deserve. I don't ever want you to think for one moment that you are not the most important thing in my life, Holly, because you are. And I want to keep getting closer to you, and I want us to keep building trust in each other, so that this time, we do make it, because that's what I want the most, what I've always wanted the most: to have a good life with you."
"Oh, Roger," Holly said softly. Unfortunately, as she shifted to move closer to him, her knee bumped the oarlock, and the oar wasn't securely in the oarlock, so it fell into the water with a splash. "Oops," she said.
Roger reluctantly let go of her hand. "Hold that thought," he said. "I'll be right back."
He then stood up in the boat and leaned out over the water, looking for the oar. The boat was pitching far too much to the right side. "Roger, wait-" Holly started to say. But before she could finish her thought, Roger lost his balance reaching for the oar, and with the boat pitching so far to the right, when he lost his balance, he fell out of the boat and landed in the water with a huge splash. "Oh no!" she said, trying not to laugh. Once Roger was out of the boat, since Holly had remained seated the whole time, the boat righted itself. Roger came up spluttering, soaked from head to toe.
Holly put a hand to her mouth to cover her amusement, but Roger could see the laughter dancing in her eyes. "'Roger, wait' what?" he asked.
Holly removed her hand from her mouth, cleared her throat, and said, "You're not supposed to stand up and lean over in a boat on the water. It's too easy to lose your balance and fall into the water." She pulled him back aboard the boat. "I'm so sorry I bumped the oar into the water."
"It was an accident," Roger said. He had made a large puddle in the bottom of the boat, his hair was plastered to his scalp, and he was soaked to the skin. "I'm the one who fell in the water. So much for romance," he added ruefully.
"It's still romantic," Holly said. She saw the oar floating next to the boat, reached out, and effortlessly plucked it from the water and back into the boat.
"Now who's showing off?" Roger asked, but Holly could see that he was amused too.
"What, I can't show off for my guy?" Holly asked as she fitted the oar back into the oarlock. "Equal opportunity wooing, remember?"
"Oh yeah, honey, the way you just pulled that oar out of the water and slotted it back in the oarlock is really attractive," Roger said.
Holly pulled a face and then said, "Let's get back to shore. You have to get into some dry clothes before you catch a cold."
"Well, if I do catch a cold, luckily I know someone who would make an excellent nurse," Roger replied as he began rowing them back to shore.
"Complete with uniform, no doubt," Holly bantered back.
Roger just smiled mischievously.
The next night, Roger, in a summer weight black jacket over a short-sleeved white button-down shirt, khakis, and loafers, was standing at the door of Holly's suite promptly at 7. She answered his knock with a radiant smile, her hair in an upsweep off her shoulders, wearing a white dress with a blue floral print and spaghetti straps and matching white strappy sandals. "Hi," she said happily.
"Hi," Roger replied. "Are you ready to go?"
"Actually, if you have a minute, could you come in? There's something I want to show you," Holly replied.
"I know it's not your etchings," Roger quipped as he entered her suite.
Holly walked over to the desk in the corner and picked up some papers, then returned to him, holding them up. "I got these a little while ago," she said, and her smile grew both wider and more radiant. "I am officially and legally divorced from Fletcher!"
Holly saw Roger's Adam's apple convulse when he swallowed hard in reaction to this news, and she saw the smile that twitched at the corners of his mouth before it burst fully formed onto his face. "That's excellent news," he said.
"Yes, it is," she replied as she returned the papers to the desk.
Roger's thoughts were in a whirlwind. Part of him wanted to grab Holly, pull her to him, and fuse his mouth to hers, preferably for the rest of their lives, separating just often enough to take the necessary quick breaths to sustain their beings. The news that she was officially free, no longer married to Fletcher, to anyone, and that she wanted to be with him-and his persistent hope that he might, eventually, someday be able to get her to agree to marry him (the morning after they made love at Cliff House, she said no; the afternoon two years ago he had told the door she had slammed in his face that he wanted to marry her, she had said not yet; the third time is the charm, isn't that what they say?)-affected him so deeply that no words in any language of the world could begin to express just how much these facts truly meant to him.
But he didn't trust himself to stop at kissing her, and as much as he loved her, as much as he wanted her, as much as he wanted to make love with her, he wanted absolutely nothing and no one standing in their way when they did come together again, including themselves. He trusted her more now than he had in almost two years, but, as strange as it might seem, as difficult as it might be to try to explain, he wasn't all the way there yet. He didn't doubt that she loved him and wanted to be with him, but he had to be completely certain that she didn't just mean it for the present, or for an indefinite period of time. He and Holly had had the tendency in the past to focus on the physical, which was always amazing and fulfilling on a physical level, but Roger wanted more than that from Holly now. He wanted it all-the physical, the emotional, a true commitment to one another in every way and on every level imaginable. He had told her the morning after Valentine's Day two years ago that he had promised himself after their night at Cliff House that if they ever made love again, the next time, he would settle for no less than all of her. And at the time, he had thought, they had both thought, that he had it, but he didn't, because if he had, they wouldn't have imploded less than a year later. This time, Roger was sticking to that promise he'd made himself after the night at Cliff House: this time, he would, under no circumstances, settle for less than all of Holly, for that was really what he was waiting to be able to trust. He wanted, needed, to be able to trust that she trusted him enough to give all of herself to him freely and willingly for the rest of their lives, because he was determined this time to give Holly all of himself freely and willingly for the rest of their lives, with no secrets, no lies, no questions.
Every time he had had any semblance of a chance with Holly in the past, he, they, had always somehow blown it. He refused to let that happen this time. This was too important. She, and this precious chance to finally, after all this time, make a life with her that would not collapse in on itself like a house of cards because he once again drove her away through his own recklessness, stupidity, lack of trust, lack of commitment, failure to let her know that she and their relationship were his top priority. That meant no rushing, no repeating past mistakes, and doing everything in his power to make sure that he and Holly really would be together for the rest of their lives this time, because the mere thought of falling asleep beside her every night and waking up with her every morning made his heart race every time it crossed his mind. What he wanted most of all was to belong to Holly, and know that she belonged to him, utterly, completely, and irrevocably.
"Then we have a lot to celebrate," Roger said. He held out his arm to Holly. "Shall we?"
"Yes," Holly replied, picking up her small white beaded clutch bag, and linking her arm through his.
Their conversation was light on the drive to the restaurant, through their quick bite of dinner, and then on the drive to the dock party. Holly had her own whirlwind of thoughts running through her mind.
A part of her wanted to kiss Roger senseless (which she knew she was capable of doing very successfully), to melt into his arms, into him. The chemistry between them had always burned hot and brightly, gaining in intensity as they got older. She loved him in a way that she could and would never love any other man, and while Roger was setting a world record for greatest number of cold showers, Holly was setting her own world record, for greatest number of erotic dreams featuring the same man. She wanted to make love with Roger, consciously, subconsciously, every waking hour and most of her sleeping ones.
But forgetting everything else and making love before they were truly ready to do so on every level was a mistake she and Roger had made too many times in the past, and Holly was bound and determined that that was one mistake they would never make again. It hurt too much when everything blew up once the afterglow had faded.
Trust was always such a dicey proposition for them, but in order for their relationship to work the way they both wanted it to this time, trust was an absolutely necessary component. Without it, they would only be marking time until the next disastrous end, and Holly had vowed to herself that that would never happen again. No, she and Roger would not implode again, they would not end this time. And she knew how deeply she had wounded Roger, turning to Fletcher the way she did, going as far as marrying him. That was her pattern: Roger made her angry, hurt her, betrayed her, she fell into the arms of the nearest available "good" man and then twisted herself up in knots trying to be the "good" man's ideal woman. No more.
Holly was doing everything she could to show Roger how serious and how honest she was this time about wanting only him for the rest of their lives. Yes, she wanted to make love with him outside of her increasingly fevered dreams. But this was about so much more than sex. Roger was the half that made her whole; it was true when she nineteen, and it was even more true now. She wasn't scared of the intensity of her love for him anymore. She was finally fully embracing the fact that Roger, above all others, was her soulmate, her home, where she belonged. They had lost and wasted enough time apart, they had hurt each other in the cruelest, most violent ways possible, but her life was hollow and spiritless without him.
She was no longer a starry-eyed nineteen-year-old. She knew Roger now-his faults, his failings, his fears, and his heart-and he knew hers. Love, relationships, marriage, they all took work and commitment. And Holly was no longer afraid or unwilling to work at her relationship with Roger, because she knew to the depths of her soul that they could have something amazing together this time if they did the work and made the commitment, if their love had a strong foundation of trust and openness.
She was ready to give all of herself to Roger. He had told her the last time they had been together that after their night at Cliff House, he had promised himself that if they ever made love again after that, he would settle for no less than all of her. At the time, she had believed she had given him that, but she knew now that she hadn't, just as he hadn't given her all of himself. But they had grown and changed after losing each other two years ago. They knew themselves and knew each other better now than they ever had before. What they felt for one another, what they could be together, was too strong, too intense, too profound to be denied or ignored. And they were getting closer every day to finally getting everything right. The fact that her divorce from Fletcher was final and legal was the latest step in that direction.
So there would be no rushing into bed with Roger, no ignoring or putting aside trust or any other issues to get lost in each other's arms. Holly had goals and plans for the rest of her life, and the biggest and most important one was her living that life by Roger's side, eventually as his wife. She saw the changes in him, and in herself. They were learning how to put each other first. They were realizing that sometimes life really was simple, especially when you left behind the scene of nearly all of the complications that had plagued you for years. They were finding out what they needed and what they didn't, and finally fully realizing how important each of them was to the other's life and happiness.
For all that they already were, for all that they had yet to become, and for every bit of hope in every corner of her heart and soul that she would spend the rest of her days, and nights, by Roger's side, making a life with him, Holly would take her time, she would not rush him or push him, she would give all of herself to him and accept all of him in return, and the day would come that she would at last belong to Roger, and he would belong to her, in every way and for the rest of their lives.
The sun was just setting when Roger and Holly arrived at the dock party, music, laughter, and the buzz of multiple conversations wafted on the slight evening breeze, which had the first hint of autumn in it. The temperature was balmy but comfortable, the full moon was just beginning to rise, and a handful of stars winked in the darkening sky, gradually becoming visible as the shadows lengthened.
No one was yet on the dance floor when they arrived, but music was already playing in the background. As they walked along the dock arm in arm, taking in the party's atmosphere, they suddenly heard Michael Hudson calling, "Roger! Holly! Over here!" They both looked in the direction of Michael's voice and found him holding court at a table with Donna, Ryan, a thirtyish blonde woman that must have been their daughter, Ryan's wife, Victoria, and a man that Roger recognized as John Hudson, who had his arm around a blonde woman his own age.
When Roger and Holly approached the table, the young blonde woman spoke first. "You must be Roger Thorpe," she said with a friendly, interested smile at Roger. "I've been dying to meet you. Victoria Harrison." She extended her hand.
"Michael and Donna's daughter," Roger said, shaking hands with her.
"One of them, yeah. My sister is around here somewhere, hostessing," she said. Then Vicky looked at Holly. "I can see why you rebuffed Amanda's advances," she said, glancing back at Roger with an approving nod before returning her gaze to Holly. "So you're the one who got arrested at my dad's office with my mother," she said.
"Vicky, I didn't actually arrest them," Ryan reminded her, shooting Holly an apologetic glance. "I just took them back to The Bayshore."
"Holly Lindsey," Holly said, shaking Vicky's hand, "and guilty on both counts, I'm afraid."
"Victoria, really," Donna said, exasperatedly. "How long are you going to torment me about this?"
Vicky's gleeful laughter was a rich, joyous sound. "Are you kidding?" she said. "I've been waiting years for something like this! The publicly prim and proper Donna Love staging a drunken midnight raid on her lover's office."
"I was trying to help Holly do something romantic for Roger," Donna replied.
"And yet you were the one goosing your man and suggesting that the two of you go home and play Double Oh Seven and Horny Bond Girl," Vicky continued.
"Ryan!" Donna exclaimed, embarrassed, as she glared at her son-in-law.
Ryan looked chagrined. "I didn't want to be the only one with that image in my head," he said in his own defense, "but Vicky didn't have the same reaction I did, obviously. I should have known that she wouldn't."
"I forgive you," Michael told Ryan in an aside. "I understand. Believe me, I understand what you were trying to do."
Holly looked at Roger and could tell that he was thinking the same thing she was: Vicky Hudson Harrison reminded both of them of Blake.
"John, good to see you again," Roger said, turning his attention then to John Hudson. Roger introduced John to Holly, and John, in turn, introduced both Roger and Holly to his wife Sharlene.
"I'm glad that we're able to help you fight against your son and your future ex-wife trying to gaslight you," Sharlene said. At Roger's surprised look, Sharlene said, "I'm very discreet, Mr. Thorpe. I'm also the head of administration at Bay City General, so I've known what was going on from the first time Michael mentioned it to John a few months ago." Sharlene looked at John then, and he took her hand in his. "Having someone you're supposed to be able to trust and depend on playing with your sanity is a horrendous experience for anyone to go through, so whatever we can do to help you fight this, we're happy to help."
"So am I," Roger said. He sensed that John and Sharlene Hudson had a story of their own about someone playing with the sanity of one of them, and he was struck, not for the first time, by the understanding, the willingness to help, the support of these people; with the exception of Michael, none of the rest of them knew him. This was all so new to him, not being reviled on sight by everyone whose path he crossed, having people there he could turn to for help instead of having to handle his current problems alone. He had never really thought it possible for him to have a clean slate in life, but somehow, perhaps because he wasn't actively looking for it or trying to force it, he had found one in Bay City. Not only had he found Michael Hudson, the one true friend he'd ever had in his life, here again, he had this clean slate, and most importantly of all, he had this precious chance to get it right with Holly at last. He could easily, happily see himself staying here in Bay City for the rest of his life, if Holly would stay too.
"Good evening, everyone," Rachel Cory piped up from behind them then.
Ryan smiled and rounded the table to greet his stepmother with a quick hug and a kiss on the cheek. "Rachel," he said happily. "Are you here alone?"
Rachel's motherly gesture of brushing her hand down the back of Ryan's head and then squeezing his shoulder showed the deep, easy affection between them, the son who chose her to be his mother and the mother who opened her heart to a son whose mother and two fathers left him a virtual orphan because of their own sociopathic and criminal behaviors. "No, Matthew is escorting me," she replied. "Jamie asked Matthew to help him with something. He'll be along in a minute. You look lovely, Vicky."
"Thanks, so do you," Vicky replied.
Rachel greeted John Hudson and his wife Sharlene, Michael, gave a terse but polite hello to Donna, which Donna returned, and then beamed at Holly and Roger. "Holly, Roger, I'm so glad you're here!" Rachel said warmly, patting Roger on the back and hugging Holly.
"We wouldn't have missed it," Holly said, looking at Roger. Everyone noticed the look they exchanged, a look that did nothing to disguise their true feelings for one another.
"Hello, everyone." Marley Hudson Frame, one hand linked through her husband Dr. Jamie Frame's arm, the other arm through the arm of her brother-in-law Matthew Cory spoke then, breaking the spell, wondering about the couple most of the rest of her family was watching gaze at each other with a palpable love and longing. Everyone's attention snapped to the trio, the couple lost in each other's eyes noticing them last. Greetings were exchanged, and Donna and Rachel comically, to the others anyway, talked over each other in their eager haste to introduce Jamie and Marley to Holly and Roger.
"You must be something special," Jamie said to Holly as he clasped her outstretched hand with a twinkle in his eye that was amusement but which Roger, realizing that young Dr. Frame was Amanda Cory's brother, wondered was a sign that Jamie was flirting with Holly. "I've never even seen Mom and Donna fight over our kids like this."
"She is," Roger said, putting his arm around Holly's shoulders and giving the young doctor a look that clearly said, She's with me. Holly knew that Jamie Frame wasn't flirting with her, but she didn't mind at all that Roger put his arm around her shoulders. Jamie figured that Roger was giving him that look partly because he was Amanda's brother, and he also knew, as did his wife Marley, that he wasn't flirting with Holly, either.
Marley, who was the spitting image of Vicky but for a small mole on her lower left jaw and her blonde hair being pulled back in a chic ponytail where Vicky's fell loosely to her shoulders, smiled kindly at Holly and Roger. "We've heard so much about you both from Donna and Michael," she said. "It's so nice to finally be able to put faces to the names."
"Thank God Amanda went back to Europe yesterday, or we might have a worse floor show this year than we did last year," Vicky said then.
"Victoria," Michael said, a warning note in his voice.
"Oh, there wouldn't have been a repeat of last year's floor show," Jamie said then. "The DJ has been given strict instructions not to play 'I Touch Myself' this year, or he'll never work in this state again."
Ryan changed the subject then by turning to Roger and saying, "So, Roger, you and Michael were in the CIA together."
"That's right," Roger said.
"Ever kill anyone?" Vicky wanted to know.
"You'll have to excuse my sister," Marley piped up then. "She is not known for her subtlety."
Vicky cocked her head then and listened to the music for a minute. "Oh, listen, they're playing yours and Jamie's song, Marley: 'Hip to Be Square.'"
"Girls, play nicely," Donna said.
"Oh, come on, Mom, Holly didn't ditch you as a friend after you nearly got her arrested, she's not going to bail on you because she's met me," Vicky retorted.
Holly couldn't help laughing then. "Vicky, you are a force of nature," she said.
Vicky looked at Holly, bemused. "Is that a compliment?" she asked.
"One of the highest I can pay," Holly replied.
Vicky fell silent, the look on her face a mixture of embarrassment and pleasure.
"Are you blushing?" Ryan asked his wife, surprised.
"No," Vicky murmured.
Ryan peered at Vicky intently then. "You are!" he realized.
"Ms. Lindsey, you've just done the impossible," Marley announced then. "You complimented Vicky into silence."
"And none of us brought our video cameras," Sharlene quipped.
The music started then and Ryan immediately took charge, knowing that Vicky would want to be away from everyone else while she recovered from the unexpected compliment she had just received from Holly, by taking her hand, saying, "Excuse us, everyone. I want to dance with my wife. We'll catch up with all of you later," and then leading Vicky to the dance floor.
Jamie spotted some members of the hospital board then, and he and Marley excused themselves to go and talk to them. John and Sharlene joined Ryan and Vicky on the dance floor, Rachel spotted her friend Felicia Gallant and excused herself to go and say hello, and Donna, realizing that Michael and Matthew were both there, suggested to Michael that they go and get a drink. "That sounds like a good idea," Michael agreed, and they excused themselves.
Matthew smiled ruefully after Michael and Donna excused themselves. "I'm not sure if it's ego or guilt that makes Donna think I'm not over her yet," he mused, "but I am, I swear. That's how I know she really wasn't the one for me. If she was, I never would have gotten over her." He gestured to himself and addressed Roger then. "Matthew Cory, though I'm sure you've heard about me, since you're such good friends with Michael."
"Roger Thorpe," Roger replied.
"Nice to meet you," Matthew said. "I had the opposite problem as Vicky and Marley: I've seen your face, but I didn't have a name to put with it until tonight."
"You've seen my face?" Roger asked, his heart skipping a beat. He works at the TV station, Roger thought grimly. I don't even want to think about everything he has access to, or where and in what context he could have seen my face.
"Every time I go to Holly's office," Matthew continued. "She has your picture on the corner of her desk, right next to the picture of your daughter and son-in-law and grandsons. At least, I'm guessing Blake is your daughter too?"
"She is," Roger said. He looked from Matthew to Holly and back to Matthew. "Holly has my picture on her desk?" he asked interestedly. He hadn't known this.
Before Matthew could answer Roger, Michael and Donna returned from their trip to get drinks. "Well, I should probably catch up with my family. Almost everyone is here tonight. Excuse me. Roger, nice meeting you. Holly, I'll see you at the station on Monday," Matthew said, beating a hasty retreat.
"It's too bad Amanda doesn't have Matthew's dedication to not making scenes," Donna remarked. "But at least you won't have to worry about her stalking you tonight."
The distinctive guitar, bass, hand claps, and tambourine intro of Van Morrison's "Brown-Eyed Girl" floated across the air then, and Michael, after taking a sip of his drink, exclaimed, "Now this is more like it!" In two smooth, swift moves, he had plucked Donna's glass from her hand, set both their drinks on the nearby table, and swept Donna onto the dance floor.
Alone together again, Roger looked at Holly with a cocky grin. "So I have your picture on my desk at work," Holly said. "You don't have to look so smug about it."
"Me, smug?" Roger asked, resting one hand over his heart and affecting a look of innocence that made Holly laugh out loud. Seeing her laugh, Roger's grin was no longer cocky, merely happy. "May I have this dance?" he asked.
"Yes," she agreed. He took his hand from his chest and held it out to Holly, she took it, and they headed to the dance floor. As Van Morrison went into his first chorus of "sha la la la la la la la la la la te dah"s, Roger pulled Holly into his arms, then spun her out from him before pulling her close to him again, and they danced, spun, and even, by silent agreement, went into the Twist together for a few seconds before Holly caught hold of Roger's hand and ducked under his arm, then circled around him before he caught hold of her hand again and pulled her back into his arms, both of them laughing as they got caught up in the happy, uptempo spirit of the song.
The end of "Brown-Eyed Girl" faded into the start of the next song, a slow number with a sultry guitar-and-saxophone intro. When the slow song began, one of Holly's hands was resting on Roger's shoulder, and his arm was loosely around her waist. He tightened his hold around her waist slightly, resting his hand at the small of her back. She tightened her hold on his shoulder, and her free hand found his free hand, their fingers intertwining of their own accord. Gazing into each other's eyes, they slowly began to sway as the song's words joined its music.
"The strands in your eyes that color them wonderful
Stop me and steal my breath
And emeralds from mountains thrust towards the sky
Never revealing their depth"
Roger and Holly subtly, almost imperceptibly, moved closer to each other as they danced. Though they were on a dance floor with several other couples, they only had eyes for each other.
"And tell me that we belong together
Dress it up with the trappings of love
I'll be captivated, I'll hang from your lips
Instead of the gallows of heartache that hang from above"
How many times had each of them consigned the other, and in so doing themselves as well, to the gallows of heartache? They were a lot happier now that they were both out of the gallows of heartache...specifically, now that they had released one another from the gallows of heartache and were, for the first time in their lives, taking the time and care to build the kind of relationship with one another that each of them had always wanted.
Holly's hand moved from Roger's shoulder to rest on the back of his neck, her fingers lightly brushing the hair at his nape. Roger rested their intertwined hands over his heart as they moved even closer together, drowning in the feel of her so close in his arms, and of her fingers lightly, just barely stroking the back of his neck, and the look in her eyes would have knocked Roger off his feet had he not been holding onto her, a look of such wistful and profound love, of a yearning both satisfied and multiplied, leaving no doubts at all that he was all she saw, and that in his arms was the only place she wanted to be.
Holly reveled in the fact that she was in Roger's arms, in her fingers laced through his, their joined hands resting over his heart, and in the way he was looking at her. She never had seen in anyone else's eyes what she saw in Roger's, and she had never before seen Roger look at her the way he was looking at her now, with such a depth of longing and a palpability of love that she had never seen in his eyes before.
"And I'll be your crying shoulder,
I'll be love's suicide,
And I'll be better when I'm older,
I'll be the greatest fan of your life"
They were older, and each of them was doing everything they could to be better than they had in the past. Each of them wanted to be the best version of themselves they had ever been. Neither Roger nor Holly had ever wanted to be together as much as they wanted to be together now, and if they could get it right this time, there would be no more love's suicide, no more gallows of heartache. Arguments, annoyances, little hurts, yes, of course; that's just human nature. But they both finally wanted to deal with all of the good and bad of life together, because they also had never wanted to get their relationship with each other right and make it last forever as much as they wanted to now.
For the first time, Roger and Holly both believed that they could make it last forever this time.
"And rain falls angry on the tin roof
As we lie awake in my bed
And you're my survival, you're my living proof
My love is alive and not dead"
Unconsciously, their clasped hands over Roger's heart separated, and Holly's hand went to Roger's cheek, gently touching his face, while he wrapped both of his arms around her waist and pulled her even closer so that their bodies were touching, her chest pressed against his, the closest they had been physically in twenty months. Holly put both her arms around Roger's neck and rested her cheek on his shoulder, closing her eyes and just letting the powerful love and contentment she felt surge through her. Roger lightly rested his chin on the crown of Holly's head, closing his own eyes, as he savored the way Holly felt in his arms, and let the love and joy he felt engulf him completely as they moved ever so slowly in time with the song.
The two of them were now in their own world, where nothing and no one existed but the two of them in each other's arms, slow dancing, and the song.
"And tell me that we belong together
Dress it up with the trappings of love
I'll be captivated, I'll hang from your lips
Instead of the gallows of heartache that hang from above"
"Everyone keeps looking over here," Marley said to Jamie as they danced. "Do we need to be doing something other than dancing right now?"
"They're not looking at us," Jamie replied. He gave his head a quick jerk upward, so Marley looked over her shoulder, behind where she and Jamie were dancing, and saw her parents' friends Roger Thorpe and Holly Lindsey wrapped in each other's arms a few feet away, so close together that no space could be seen between them now.
"Way to go, Black Fox," Michael murmured when he saw them from his and Donna's place on the dance floor. Donna was so moved by Roger and Holly, tears were welling in her eyes.
Cass and Frankie had just arrived and they noticed that everyone was moving off the dance floor. "Surely the dancing isn't over already," Cass said. When Frankie stopped suddenly, he bumped into her.
"Everyone is just yielding the floor for the moment, Counselor," Frankie replied. Cass followed her gaze to Roger and Holly, and gave a low whistle.
"Now that is a floor show," Vicky said. She and Ryan were standing near where Cass and Frankie had stopped on the edge of the dance floor.
"It's a lot more than that, Vicky," Frankie said exasperatedly.
"It sure is," Ryan agreed.
"Well, you have to agree that it's a big improvement over Amanda fondling herself during her hoochie dance last year," Vicky retorted. "No one's disgusted right now."
"That's true," Cass said, and then the four of them fell silent like everyone else and watched Roger and Holly.
Rachel, seated at a table with Felicia Gallant and Matthew, who were talking quietly as Felicia caught Matthew up on the latest news from his friends, her youngest daughter Jenna and son-in-law Dean Frame, saw them too, and raised her glass in silent salute to Roger and Holly, and remembered when she had danced with her own beloved Mac that way.
"And I'll be your crying shoulder,
I'll be love's suicide,
And I'll be better when I'm older,
I'll be the greatest fan of your life
"And I dropped out, I burned up, I fought my way back from the dead
I tuned in, I turned on, remembered the thing that you said"
Holly lifted her head and met Roger's eyes. Her eyes flicked to his mouth for a few seconds, and when she looked at his eyes again, she saw that he was leaning his face towards hers. She stretched her neck just enough and closed her eyes, and Roger pulled in a breath and closed his eyes in the split second before his mouth found hers.
The kiss was tentative on both their parts at first, but the emotions swirling through both of them were too strong and intense for them to remain tentative for more than a few seconds. When Holly traced the seam of Roger's lips with her tongue, his mouth opened instinctively, and she slipped her tongue inside, gently probing, unable to hold back a soft moan when his tongue slid against hers. Roger then pulled Holly flush against him, one arm wrapped around her waist, the other hand splayed across the middle of her back. Holly's arms were wrapped around Roger's neck, one hand resting between his shoulder blades, as they continued exploring one another's mouths, the kiss growing in intensity and passion as they remained oblivious to everything and everyone but one another and their kiss.
"And I'll be your crying shoulder,
I'll be love's suicide,
And I'll be better when I'm older,
I'll be the greatest fan of your
I'll be your crying shoulder,
I'll be love's suicide,
And I'll be better when I'm older,
I'll be the greatest fan of your life
The greatest fan of your life"
The cocoon of their own making in which Roger and Holly were wrapped abruptly burst when the slow song faded into a loud, raucous rock number with a jangling electric guitar riff intro and the lead singer literally screaming at the top of his lungs, which had the effect of an electric shock on Roger and Holly, causing them to pull apart as if they had been caught (which, in a sense, they had, given that most of the people at the dock party were standing around the edges of the dance floor, watching them), their chests heaving as they panted, trying to catch their breath, their arms still around each other since they still stood about a foot-and-a-half from each other, looking at each other in a daze.
"Talk?" Roger managed to get out.
Holly nodded. "Yes," she said in a stage whisper. People had returned to the dance floor when the fast song started, bobbing and weaving as the singer sang about everybody needing to touch now and then and everybody wanting a good, good friend, and wanting to be closer to free. Roger scrubbed at his face with one hand, grabbed Holly by the hand with the other, and the two of them walked briskly off the dance floor.
"Well, somebody's getting some action tonight," Vicky remarked, fanning herself as she, Ryan, and the Winthrops watched Roger and Holly depart. Frankie, long accustomed to her best friend's wife's irreverence, merely rolled her eyes. Ryan looked at Frankie as if to say he agreed with her, but since he was going home with Vicky that night, wisely did not voice the thought.
"No," Cass said quietly.
"No?" Vicky asked incredulously. "Come on, Cass! It looks like she's about to mount him right out there in the middle of the dance floor."
"I'm not saying they don't want to," Cass replied evenly. "I'm saying they won't."
"I agree," Frankie said.
"I don't get it," Vicky said.
"They have a hell of a lot more at stake here than a roll in the hay," Frankie said.
Michael, Donna, and Rachel all saw Roger and Holly leave as well. Donna and Michael exchanged a look, each hoping that Roger and Holly could stick to their individual resolves not to sleep together until they were actually a couple again. Michael knew that Roger's divorce wasn't final yet, and after having heard the tape Frankie got of Dinah and Hart, he didn't trust either one of them not to royally smear Holly and Roger both if they gave in to their obvious love for one another before Dinah and Roger's divorce decree was final, and he didn't want that for them any more than Roger wanted it for Holly.
Rachel recalled the times in between their marriages that she and Mac had gone to bed together and then returned to their separate lives, feeling emptier and sadder than they had before going to bed together, and she too hoped that Roger and Holly could resist the temptation until they were ready to be a real couple again.
They were halfway through Bay View Park now, where they had gone rowing the day before, and Roger spied a park bench beneath a streetlight. Holly saw it at the same time and by silent agreement, they headed to the bench and sat down side by side, still holding hands, now breathing normally again.
"I didn't realize until now just how much I've missed kissing you," Holly said softly.
"I've missed kissing you too," Roger replied. He took a deep breath then, inhaling through his nose and exhaling through his mouth, then gestured to his lap, the corner of his mouth lifting in a rueful half-grimace. "I know you felt how much I want you," he said. Holly nodded once; indeed she had. Roger let go of Holly's hand and raked both hands through his hair, bowing his head for a moment. Then he lifted his head and met Holly's gaze again. "I'm trying to figure out how to say this so that I don't sound like a chintzy romance novel."
"I don't read romance novels, chintzy or otherwise," Holly said helpfully.
Roger smiled at this, so she smiled too. He reached for her hand again now, and she threaded her fingers through his. A perfect fit, they both thought.
"What we have is so much bigger than just the physical," Roger began. "And in the past, we've had the bad habit of putting everything else aside to...satisfy the physical urge, and it just never ends up well when we do that."
"No, it doesn't," Holly agreed. "And I don't want to happen this time. The things not ending up well, I mean."
"Neither do I," Roger said. "So, when we do make love-"
"When?" Holly interrupted hopefully.
"When," Roger said firmly.
"Oh good," Holly murmured.
"I want it to be..." He fumbled for the right words. "...right," he settled on. "And special. I want it to be an expression of everything that's beyond words between us. I...I'm really bad at this."
"I think you're better than you think you are," Holly said. She cradled his hand in both of her hands now. "And I think the difference between us now and us before is that now we're finally smart enough to stop ourselves from going too far, and from using sex as some kind of a fix, or as a diversion to forget about everything else for awhile."
"Yes," Roger said. "It means more than that now, Hol. It means everything. You, we, mean everything."
"To me too," she agreed.
"And you're legally a free woman, but legally, I'm not a free man, and I don't want Dinah and Hart to get any ideas about using you as some kind of leverage in Dinah's and my divorce," Roger continued. "I'm not putting you in that position."
Holly understood that Roger's reasons for not dragging her into the middle of his divorce from Dinah were much deeper than not wanting to give Dinah leverage in the divorce, though she didn't doubt that Dinah would accuse Roger of adultery, conveniently neglecting the fact that she'd been cheating on him with Hart for months, if she got the slightest hint of the ever-strengthening, ever-growing relationship Roger was forming with her, and it made her love him even more than she already did. "So we wait," Holly said.
"We wait," Roger agreed. "I don't want anything or anyone in our way this time, including ourselves. I want to be able to give you all of me without anything unresolved from our pasts."
"Definitely," Holly said. "And when it does happen, it's not going to be just sex."
"No, it isn't," Roger agreed. "We feel too much for each other for it to ever be just sex."
They fell silent for a moment. Then Roger said, "Do you want to go back to the dock party?"
"Do you?" Holly asked.
Roger lifted one shoulder in a shrug. "We don't have to...although our friends saw us out on the dance floor and then saw us leave together."
"And none of them are thinking, 'She must be out of her mind,'" Holly said, unable to hide the wonder in her tone at that fact.
"None of them are sitting in judgment of us right now either," Roger mused. "If any of them think it's a mistake, it's only because they're afraid we're moving too fast. People are actually rooting for us to get together. Other than Chrissy, I mean."
"It's nice to have people in your corner instead of everyone thinking there's something wrong with you for wanting what you want...for loving who you love," Holly reflected.
"It sure is."
Holly rose to her feet, then pulled Roger to his feet. "Let's go home, to our separate suites on the same floor."
"And take separate long, cold showers," Roger suggested.
"Yeah," Holly said with a chuckle.
When they reached the car, Roger opened Holly's door for her and said, "I am, you know."
"You are what?" Holly asked, turning to look at him.
"The greatest fan of your life," he replied earnestly.
She smiled at him and rested her hand on his cheek for a few seconds. "And I'm the greatest fan of yours," she said. When she removed her hand from his cheek, he caught it in his own and kissed it quickly before they got in the car and went back to The Bayshore, where they shared another searing kiss before retreating to their separate suites, thinking about the step they didn't take that night...and the more important step they did take that night.
The song Roger and Holly slow dance to in this chapter is the original version of Edwin McCain's "I'll Be," off his album Misguided Roses.
The fast song that breaks the spell they're under is "Closer to Free" by the Bodeans.