"Those whom God has joined together, let no one and nothing put asunder," Reverend Watson said. "I now introduce to you, for the first time, Mr. and Mrs. Roger and Holly Thorpe."
The joyous reverie in which Roger and Holly found themselves, standing there forehead to forehead and heart to heart, his hands still cradling her face and her hands still resting over his heart and on his cheek, respectively, following their first married kiss after Reverend Watson pronounced them husband and wife, faded gradually, but not completely, as an odd sound reached their ears: the sound of applause.
They lifted their heads in unison and looked around them, having forgotten where they were, or at the very least that they were not alone, and found themselves surrounded by friends and loved ones, all applauding and smiling, and were those tears in the eyes of Blake, Donna, and Rachel? Blake's tears made sense to Roger and Holly, but the fact that Rachel and Donna had teary eyes because the women were happy for them was quite the mind-blower. In the past, if anyone had cried over Roger and Holly, including themselves, they were always tears of remorse and regret, heartbreak, or anger, but never tears of joy...until tonight.
Roger and Holly looked at each other then and found their expressions completely mirrored one another: joyful, loving, triumphant, dazed, and "We actually did it! We got married!"
"If you'd like to take care of signing the marriage license now..." Reverend Watson said then.
"Yes."
"Right away."
Holly and Roger spoke in unison, which made them both laugh. Roger produced the marriage license from his inside jacket pocket, and Reverend Watson led the way to a nearby empty table, where he, Roger, Holly, and Blake and Michael as witnesses, signed the license with great ceremony.
And that was the last thing that Roger and Holly were in charge of for the evening. The knowledge that they were, at last, married to one another was everything to them, and so they focused on that and on each other as much as they could as they let themselves be swept along by their daughter and their friends into a wedding reception that had already been planned for them.
First Donna went into action, announcing that it was time for the pictures and surprising everyone, especially Rachel, when she deferred to Rachel instead of immediately beginning to order the photographer around herself.
Roger and Holly posed for about a million pictures. Well, not really, but that's what it felt like, although they didn't mind in the least. They posed for pictures with Michael and Blake as their best man and matron of honor; they posed for pictures with just Blake, then with Blake, Kevin, and Jason, Roger and Holly each holding a grandson and then switching, so there were pictures of Kevin being held by Grandpa and then Grandma, and of Jason being held by Grandma and then Grandpa; they posed for pictures with Michael and Donna; with Rachel; and after they had taken pictures with Cass and Frankie, Rachel and Donna, who had put their heads together while the new Thorpes were posing with the established Winthrops, after which Donna did finally pull rank and begin arranging people, and the next couple of pictures were of Roger and Holly seated, surrounded by the Bay City contingent on both sides and standing behind their chairs, including John and Sharlene after Donna insisted, and Frankie, being Sharlene's niece as well as her best friend, sided with Donna and also insisted they be in the picture, and finally Roger and Holly asked them to join the photo, so they did.
Blake was feeding Jason from a bottle when Donna apologetically exclaimed, "Oh, no, I didn't leave room in the shot for you and the boys, Blake!"
But Blake just smiled and said, "It's okay, Donna. I think this is one picture that can do without me." Blake watched with great interest all the smiling and laughing, hands on the shoulders, claps on the back, and clasped hands that the Bay City contingent shared with her parents. She had never seen her parents the center of so much positive attention before, and yet the attention from their friends wasn't what accounted for that glaze in both her mother's and father's eyes. It hadn't completely sunk in with them yet that they were married to each other, and Blake figured it wouldn't completely sink in until the end of the night, when they were alone together. Blake felt a foreign feeling deep inside at seeing her parents married and happy and surrounded by friends who truly cared about them, and it took several minutes for her to realize that what she felt was a sense that all of this was so right, after a lifetime of so much that was so wrong.
Blake recalled then what Holly had said earlier, that marrying Roger was the most right thing Holly had ever done. Seeing her parents together now, married, surrounded by friends who truly cared about them and their happiness, Blake was certain that it was both Roger and Holly's commitment to both one another and their relationship as well as their new but nevertheless real friendships that accounted for this rightness. She turned this over in her mind as she watched the pictures that did not include her being taken, gradually making sense of her family's new reality.
After all of the pictures with Blake and the boys and their friends had been taken, Roger and Holly then posed for several pictures just the two of them. About five flashes of the camera in, everyone else once again disappeared, and Roger and Holly only had eyes for each other. Jake kept his video camera going the whole time Rachel's photographer took pictures of the bride and groom, their daughter and grandsons, their friends, and then just the two of them together.
When all the pictures had been taken, Donna announced that dinner would be served. Two large tables had been pulled together and Roger and Holly sat in the middle, with Blake next to Holly, Kevin and Jason still in their stroller, and Michael next to Roger, with Donna next to Michael, John next to Donna, and Sharlene next to John. On the other side of the table sat Cass and Frankie, Rachel, and Reverend Watson, and the photographer and Paulina and Jake were also invited to sit down and have something to eat, since everyone agreed that no one wanted pictures of video of everyone eating.
Once everyone had finished the sumptuous dinner, Donna nodded to Rachel, then flagged down one of her waiters, who left the dining room only to return a few minutes later with three stewards bearing bottles of champagne and trays of empty champagne glasses.
Roger and Holly's gazes and hands never left one another for very long, and when they did, they always found each other again in short order. They took a bit of teasing from Cass and John about the fact that they kept reaching for each other's hands while they were eating, until Rachel reminded both men that she had been present at their weddings and then she singled Cass out, recalling how everyone else had been superfluous once he and Frankie had been pronounced husband and wife. Frankie agreed with Rachel, and so did John, who then pointed out that everyone had "trekked all the way to Italy for your wedding."
"Because you ganged up on Frankie and me and kidnapped us!" Cass retorted.
"Well, how else were we ever going to get the two of you married?" Rachel asked then. "It was all Felicia's idea. She did most of the planning. Really, all we had to do was have the women get Frankie to Venice, and the men get you to Venice."
"And even then, you weren't going to go through with it until you saw Frankie," John chided.
"As many times as we had tried to get married before and the ceremony never came off, you can't blame us for being that skittish, John," Frankie pointed out. "But we do thank you and Felicia and Ryan and Dean and Jenna and everybody who got us to that courtyard in Venice on time."
Blake looked concerned for a moment, wondering if maybe their friends had sprung this wedding on her parents. Michael, seeing her look, motioned to her. She leaned back in her chair in the same way Michael was leaning back in his chair and met his gaze. Roger and Holly were again lost in rapt contemplation of one another since they had finished eating as Rachel, Cass and Frankie, and John and Sharlene conversed and kidded around them while Donna directed the distribution of drinks for the toasts, and Reverend Watson talked with Jake and Paulina and the photographer.
"This wasn't like Cass and Frankie's wedding," Michael assured Blake. "I wasn't there for that one, but I did hear about it afterwards from Ryan. They'd been trying for over a year to get married, and like Frankie said, something or someone kept blowing all their ceremonies. The decision to get married tonight was all Roger and Holly's. I admit, putting on the dog to this degree was Donna's idea. Your mom was fine with going to the courthouse, but your dad wanted to give her something more special than that, and I had told him about the Parade of Lights in the bay a few weeks ago, so that, more than anything else, was the reason they got married here."
Blake looked at her parents again now, and Michael followed her gaze. Their joined hands were resting on the table, their eyes were locked, and when Roger reached out with his free hand to brush an errant strand of hair from Holly's cheek, she leaned into his touch for several seconds. If the building fell down around them right now, Blake thought, they wouldn't even notice.
"Your parents are good people," Michael said then. Blake wrenched her eyes from Roger and Holly to look at Michael. Seeing her stunned look he asked, "What's the matter?"
"I'm not used to hearing that," Blake replied.
"Well, you'd better get used to it," Michael said, "because everyone in this room tonight feels that way about them."
Donna appeared at Michael's elbow then. "Toast time," she sang, nodding first to the glass of champagne in front of Michael and then turning to look at Blake. "Best man goes first, at least usually, if that's all right with you, Blake."
"Sure," Blake said. She hadn't expected to be called upon to toast her parents, but she found that she wanted to say something, though she was still gathering her thoughts so she was perfectly content to let Michael go first.
Donna discreetly whispered in Blake's ear that since she was a nursing mother, Donna had arranged for her to have sparking white grape juice. Blake, surprised at Donna's thoughtfulness, barely managed a thank you before Donna waved her off, insisting that of course she would take care of her best friend's daughter at that best friend's wedding reception. Donna then caught Rachel's eye, and Rachel nodded to Jake, Paulina, and the photographer. When Jake's video camera was rolling again, and the photographer was standing at the ready with his camera at his eye, Paulina signaled to Rachel, who signaled to Donna, who nodded at Michael.
Michael tapped his fork against his champagne glass, then stood up. "If the bride and groom can shift their attention for a couple of minutes," he said with a teasing tone in his voice, "I'd like to make a toast to you, and then I know Blake is going to say something as well."
Michael picked up his glass of champagne. Roger and Holly were still holding hands, but did manage to pry their eyes from each other to pay attention to Michael. "I'd better make this short and sweet, so you two can get back to mooning over each other."
"It's our wedding day. We're allowed to moon over each other," Roger retorted.
"Yes, you are," Michael agreed. "And I'm glad I'm here to see it. When I walked in here six months ago and saw you sitting at a table, and then I saw the woman sitting across from you, I knew right away it was Holly. You know, Holly, the first year this guy and I worked together, he barely said a word that didn't have to do with whatever the current mission was. But then...well, national security being what it is, I can't go into detail-"
"Yeah, yeah, yeah, you'd tell us, but then you'd have to kill us," Cass quipped.
"No comments from the peanut gallery!" Michael exclaimed, cutting a quick glance at Cass before returning his attention to Roger and Holly. "Anyway, nothing went the way it was supposed to on that particular mission, and we ended up stranded in the middle of nowhere, just the two of us. That was a long night...but it got shorter when we started talking. Up to that point, I hadn't really gotten to know Roger the man, any more than he had really gotten to know me the man. That was remedied that night. For the first time, I opened up to Roger about Donna, and Roger opened up to me about you, Holly. It was you, and you too, Blake," here he looked at Blake before returning his gaze to the couple of the hour, "that kept Roger alive during his Agency years, just like it was Donna that kept me alive during my Agency years, because what Roger and I both wanted, more than anything in the world, was the chance to return to the women we loved, and the daughters we adored, though I didn't know I had daughters yet at that point, and get it right this time, make it better than it had been before, and not make the same mistakes again.
"Of course, being young bucks back then, we thought we had the world by the tail. And maybe there were times that we did. We also thought we had something to prove to the world in general and the women we loved in particular. We knew so little about love and forgiveness back then, and even less about ourselves. It took time for us to learn all that we needed to learn, but we learned it...proving that you can, in fact, teach old dogs new tricks.
"In the past six months, I...all of us here, really...have been privileged to witness the rekindling and growth of Roger and Holly's relationship, and tonight, here we all are, celebrating their marriage. Fox Head, you have finally accomplished what, by your own admission, is what you wanted more than anything else in the world: you got your girl. I always hoped that you would, but I never dreamed that I'd get to see it happen with my own eyes, or that I'd get to stand up with you when you married her, but I'm glad it worked out that way.
"And Holly... There's not a doubt in my mind that you're everything Roger has always said you are, and more, because in getting to know you in person these past several months, I've seen for myself that you're as much in love with Roger as he is with you, and I know that he is in the best possible hands now: yours."
"So, I ask all of you to join me now in raising a glass to the bride and groom," Michael concluded, holding his glass aloft. "To Roger and Holly: may your lives overflow with love, health, and good fortune, and may you have the time and the wisdom to enjoy them all."
"To Roger and Holly," everyone echoed, and much clinking of glasses ensued before everyone took a sip of their drinks.
After Michael sat down, Blake stood up and looked at her parents with a mixture of happiness and pride. "To those of you who may not know, I'm Blake Thorpe Marler, also known as Chrissy. I'm the daughter of the bride and groom, and the matron of honor," she began. "I always wanted to believe that this day would come, but I didn't always have enough faith in my mother and father that it would. I've learned my lesson, though: never underestimate you two, especially you, Mom. This is happening because you wouldn't give up on Dad, even when it seemed to him and to me...to the whole world, really...that you had. And I have to say, in thinking it over, that doesn't surprise me, because you never gave up on me, either, and God knows Dad and I have both given you a lot of reasons to give up on both of us over the years. I know that Dad is as grateful as I am that you didn't do that."
"I couldn't," Holly said. "My heart wouldn't let me."
"And I am so grateful for that," Blake said.
"So am I," Roger added.
Holly leaned in and kissed him then. Everyone looked on with big smiles. Blake said, "I guess this is the norm now, huh? Okay, I'll wait until I have your attention again to proceed."
"You might have a long wait, Blake," Rachel piped up.
"It couldn't be a longer wait than the wait it took to get to this night," Blake replied. Holly and Roger ended their kiss then.
"Sorry, Chrissy," Roger said somewhat sheepishly as Holly ran her thumb under his bottom lip, wiping off her lip gloss.
"Don't apologize," Blake said. "Like I said, I've waited...well, actually, I've waited my whole life to see the two of you like this. If you can restrain yourselves for just a few more minutes, though, I'd like to say, and know that you hear me, that I am so incredibly happy for the two of you and so very proud of you, and more than a little bit in awe that you actually got married, and to each other this time."
"So are we," Roger said, and Holly murmured her agreement.
Blake looked at the Bay City contingent. "And I would also like to say what neither of my parents has gotten around to saying to me in so many words but is very clear to me: that they have found true friends in all of you...truer friends than I have ever known either of them to have...and that they're going to be moving here to Bay City permanently. And I think it's terrific."
"You do?" Roger asked, somewhat surprised.
"Yeah," Blake said. "I think a fresh start, surrounded by people who genuinely care about you and like you and accept you for who you are, is the best thing in the world for the two of you, especially now that you're married. You have..." She trailed off, carefully considering her words. "...a history in Springfield. And I know not everything that happened there was bad, but a lot of it was. And I would rather know that you're happy here in Bay City than have you come back to Springfield and have the town and all of its baggage and your history there tear you apart."
"We wouldn't let that happen this time," Holly said determinedly. She threaded her fingers through Roger's again and looked into his eyes. "I'm not losing you again."
"And I'm not losing you again," Roger vowed, looking back at her intently. Then they both turned to look at Blake. "But you're right: we are going to move here permanently."
"We weren't looking for it," Holly added, "but we found a place where we could just..." She trailed off, uncertain exactly how to explain it.
"Where we could just be," Roger said. "Where we didn't have to justify loving each other or being together or being married to each other to every person whose path we crossed."
"Yes," Holly said emphatically, her heart thrilling that Roger thought exactly as she did and was able to find the words to express this particular thought when she was not.
"I think this is the first time you've ever had anything like that," Blake said with a nod. "And I think it's terrific." Blake looked at her parents' friends then, her gaze slowly moving around the table until she had looked upon all of them. "Thank you for being supportive of my parents and their relationship, and for giving them a place where they belong as individuals and as a couple. You couldn't have given them any greater gift." Blake raised her glass then, her eyes shining with pride, happiness, and love, all of it for her parents. "To the bride and groom," she said, looking at them once more, "my mother and father, Holly and Roger Thorpe. To the day the three of us have waited all our lives for. To fighting for each other always, loving each other forever, and to the two of you married to each other, the way it's meant to be."
"To Holly and Roger," Rachel piped up, and the others echoed her before everyone once again took a sip of their drink. Blake hugged first her father and then her mother and then both of them at the same time.
When Blake let go of her parents and stood up again, she looked at them with a watery smile, which was pre-empted by Donna announcing that it was time for Roger and Holly's first dance. Sure enough, during Michael's and Blake's toasts, Donna's staff had been quietly, unobtrusively creating a dance floor behind where Jake and the photographer were recording.
Roger and Holly stood up in one fluid motion, since they were still holding hands. "Wait, what song are we dancing to?" Holly asked.
Blake held up her hands. "They wouldn't tell me. All Michael said was that it couldn't possibly be any other song but this one," she said.
Roger and Holly exchanged a knowing look before heading to the dance floor that Donna had had her staff create. Sure enough, the song was the same one they had danced to the night of the dock party. As Holly wound her arms around Roger's neck, and he wrapped his arms around her waist, he said softly, "I wanted this to be our wedding song, but I don't know the title of it or who sings it."
"I tried to find out, but with everything else that needed to be done today, I just didn't have enough time," Holly replied. "Donna and Michael must have done this, since Marley and Jamie were the hosts of the dock party. We'll just ask them later the title and artist of the song." She closed her eyes, resting her forehead against his, and he gathered her even closer to him. "Is it odd that it doesn't feel like there's a roomful of people watching us right now?" she asked.
"What people?" Roger asked. "All I see, all I hear, all I feel is you."
She kissed him then, gently, the barest brush of her lips across his, but when he responded, the kiss lingered.
Everyone was standing around the edges of the dance floor area now, watching Roger and Holly's first dance, and since it just so happened that Rachel was standing nearest the entrance to the dining room from the restaurant's vestibule, when she saw someone walk through the entrance in her peripheral vision, she turned to look and found a man about her own age in a tan overcoat and glasses who looked tired and harassed. His overcoat was open, revealing a wrinkled shirt, open collar, loosened tie, and unbuttoned suit jacket. He was walking like a man on a mission, but when he caught sight of Roger and Holly wrapped in one another's embrace on the dance floor, he stopped short, so suddenly he stumbled a bit, but he didn't fall. He just stared at Roger and Holly in silence, and Rachel saw the brief flash of surprise on his face at the sight of the happy couple give way to acceptance. Not wanting to disrupt the reception, Rachel quietly approached Ross and said, "I'm sorry, but The Harbor Club is closed tonight for a private party."
"So I see," the man replied distractedly, still watching Roger and Holly. Then he started, turning to look at Rachel. "I'm sorry," he said. "But I'm not a gate crasher. Not exactly." He rubbed at the back of his neck. "My name is Ross Marler, and-"
"Blake's husband?" Rachel interrupted.
"Yes," Ross replied.
"She's right over there," Rachel replied. Ross followed her gaze to where Blake was standing, watching Roger and Holly dancing as she cuddled the whimpering Jason close and swayed with him, glancing every few seconds at the stroller where Kevin slept.
With all of her attention taken up by her parents and her sons, Blake didn't realize Ross was there until she heard him say softly from behind her, "Roger and Holly got married tonight."
Blake slowly, carefully turned around. "Yes," she said, taking in his ragged appearance.
"The concierge at The Bayshore said they were," Ross replied. "Why didn't you tell me that's why you were bringing the boys here...for your parents' wedding?"
"My dad is never one of your favorite people, and right now I'm not too sure Mom is very high on your list either," Blake replied. "You have enough on your plate with Dinah, and I didn't want to make you any more angry than you already are."
"Roger has always wanted Holly. That certainly didn't change when he married Dinah," Ross said. "And Holly finally admitted to herself that she wants Roger, and she's obviously not letting anything come between them ever again because she married him tonight."
"You're not surprised," Blake realized.
"I've been waiting for this for six years, ever since Alexandra dragged me down to Acapulco, thinking we had to save Holly from Roger," Ross reflected. Blake followed his gaze to Holly and Roger once more. The song had ended but another slow song had begun. "They were dancing then too."
This was news to Blake, who never had gotten the full story on what, exactly, had happened between her parents in Acapulco. She only knew that something significant and monumental must have, but then after the significant, monumental event, something had happened to derail them yet again, because while Holly and Ross had broken up immediately after Acapulco, Roger had stayed with Alexandra for awhile afterwards. "They were dancing together in Acapulco?" she asked eagerly.
Ross looked at Blake again now. "Not like that," he said, nodding at Roger and Holly. "There was a very loud mariachi band outside the window, and they were dancing to that. In that instant, I knew that despite all of the ugliness of their past, the love they had was no more dead than Roger was. I've been waiting for this day ever since that morning in Mexico. I have to admit, I never pictured it like this, though."
"You know what? Neither did I. But this is right, Ross. My parents being together, being married to each other... It's never been like this."
"You've always believed that," Ross said. "But I think I might be starting to believe it myself." Kevin woke up fussing then, and Ross scooped him up out of the stroller and began to sway with him as Blake was doing with Jason.
"The last thing I want to do is argue with you, especially right now," Blake said.
"I'm not here to argue," Ross said tiredly. "I'm here because I love you, and I need you to help me get through all this, Blake." He swallowed hard, then looked into her eyes. "You were right about Dinah. You were right about her all along. I just couldn't see it, I didn't want to see it-"
"My father never wanted to see it about me either," Blake replied. "I'm not about to say 'I told you so.' I never wanted to say that. I would have given almost anything not to be right about Dinah, Ross, but I knew I was because I used to be her. Loving you is what changed me."
Ross looked stricken now. "Dinah is determined to stand by Hart. Vanessa and I, and even Henry, spent half the day trying to talk her out of it, but she won't change her mind. And Hart... He has serious anger issues. God only knows what will happen when this gets into court. He took a shot at Holly. You and I both know that Roger won't forgive that."
"I'm sure he won't. But Hart didn't take a shot at Mom. He took a shot at Dad. Mom shoved Dad out of the way." Blake shuddered then. "I'm not through thanking God that there were only blanks in that gun."
"Holly was going to take a bullet for Roger?" Ross asked. Now he was shocked.
"Yeah," Blake said, and more than a little wonder infused that single word. Not wanting to dwell on the tragedy that could have occurred, Blake said, "I can't believe I'm saying this, but maybe Dinah standing by Hart isn't a bad thing."
"How do you figure that?" Ross asked.
"She's not walking away from Hart," Blake pointed out. "He needs help, and she can see that, but it's not scaring her. It's not turning her off. She's putting his needs ahead of herself. And take it from a reformed bad girl and former selfish bitch, Ross: putting someone else ahead of yourself when you've never done it before... It's huge. It's life-changing. Dinah's putting Hart ahead of herself. Maybe she really does love him that much. Maybe he really does love her that much."
"They started out having an affair with each other behind your father's back," Ross reminded her. Then, hearing himself, he said, "What is the world coming to? I'm practically defending Roger now."
"And you and I started out having an affair behind my mother's back," Blake pointed out. "Was it an ideal beginning? No. Did my parents have an ideal beginning? No. They were having an affair on Ed and what's her name that my father was married to for, what, five minutes, when they made me. But look at where you and I have ended up. And look at where my parents have ended up. Whether or not Dinah and Hart are in this for the long haul-"
"Oh, they're in it for the long haul. Thorpes and Marlers have a tendency to get all tangled up with each other and ultimately make it last a lifetime."
"Is it Hart not being stable right now that's bothering you, or the fact that your daughter is in love with Roger Thorpe's son?" Blake asked.
"Both," Ross admitted. "I guess this really isn't the place to talk about everything, though."
"Ideally, no," Blake replied. "But I was thinking that maybe we could stay over tonight. My parents have had adjacent suites at The Bayshore for quite a while, apparently, but Dad has already moved in with Mom, so I brought the Pack 'n' Play, and the boys could sleep in that tonight, and we can just stay in what used to be my father's suite, and we can go home tomorrow after we're both rested...or as rested as we get these days. And after the boys are asleep, we can really talk."
"Okay," Ross agreed. He was too tired to drive back to Springfield tonight, and he really just wanted to be with Blake and Kevin and Jason now.
Cass and Frankie, and John and Sharlene, had drifted onto the dance floor with Roger and Holly at the start of the third slow song while Donna directed the moving of the three-tiered wedding cake from the kitchen to the dining room. When the third song ended, and Roger and Holly made no moves to leave the dance floor, Donna, who never bothered with subtlety, strode across the dance floor to Roger and Holly, who were standing still now but were still wrapped in each other's arms kissing, and said, "Okay, lovebirds, it's cake time. And remember, the sooner you cut the cake and feed each other the first bite, the sooner you can get out of here and get on with the honeymoon."
Roger and Holly stopped kissing and, dazed, looked at Donna. Holly recovered first. "Lead the way, Donna," she said, and she and Roger followed Donna to the cake.
"Donna, you stumbled on the magic word that makes Roger and Holly concentrate on something besides each other," Cass said then. "'Honeymoon.'"
The photographer and Jake both moved in to get closeup pictures and film of Roger and Holly cutting the cake and feeding each other the traditional first bite. Donna's waiters took over after that, cutting the cake into slices, and it was at that point that Roger spotted Ross sitting with Blake. "Oh," he said.
"What?" Holly asked as she wiped a smidgen of frosting from the corner of Roger's mouth with her thumb.
"Ross is here," Roger replied.
Holly looked over her shoulder then and saw him sitting with Blake. "Oh," she said. Seeing the anxiety Roger was fighting not to let surface, she cupped his chin in her hand and he looked into her eyes, finding strength, courage, and comfort there. "Whatever happens, we face it together," she said firmly.
Ross had seen Roger and Holly noticing him, and he told Blake, "Your parents have seen us...or rather, seen me."
Sure enough, when Blake looked, her parents were approaching. Before she or Ross could say anything, Roger asked, "What's happening with the case? Do you know yet?"
"Not yet," Ross replied. "That's not why I'm here. I came here because Blake and our sons are here, and my place is with them." Holly and Roger were both glad to hear that. They had never wanted Ross to be angry at Blake because of them, and maybe this time they had actually succeeded at keeping their daughter from getting hurt. Ross shifted Kevin in his arms, then regarded Holly and Roger solemnly before saying, "Congratulations. The two of you look happier than I've ever seen either one of you."
"Really?" Holly asked skeptically. She hadn't expected that response from Ross.
"You and Roger ending up together was inevitable, Holly," Ross replied. "I've known that since Acapulco. And you do look happier than I've ever seen you. I think...I think maybe this is what you wanted all along. You just weren't ready to admit it to yourself until recently. As for exactly how recently, don't tell me. It will help with plausible deniability when word of your marriage gets around Springfield."
Roger looked at Blake then. "You didn't tell him," he realized.
"I didn't have the chance yet," Blake replied. "Although I did want to ask if it's okay with you if we stay in your old suite tonight since you won't be using it. We're too tired to drive back tonight."
"Of course you can stay in my old suite tonight," Roger said. "Michael has the key. Just get it from him."
"What didn't you tell me?" Ross asked Blake then.
But it was Holly who spoke up. "Roger and I...We're not coming back to Springfield. Not permanently, at least."
Now Ross truly was shocked. "What?" he asked, bewildered.
"It's true," Blake said. "Mom and Dad are moving to Bay City permanently."
Ross gave Roger a hard look. "You are?" he asked.
"We are," he said, wrapping an arm around Holly's waist.
"It wasn't something we planned on doing, but while we were finding our way back to each other, we found a place to belong, a place where we can just be, without a lot of judgment and gossip and without having to explain or justify being together to everyone," Holly said. She looked at Roger now, resting her hand on top of his at her waist. "So we're staying."
"You're serious," Ross said. "You're really leaving Springfield for good."
"Well, we'll still come back and visit. You're not going to be completely rid of us," Roger said.
Ross laughed, surprising Holly, Roger, and Blake all three. "Roger, loving Blake as I do guarantees that I'll never be rid of you."
"But a little physical distance goes a long way," Roger said.
"Okay, this is a happy occasion," Blake interjected then. "We're walking a fine line here."
"I agree with Blake," Holly said.
"And I agree with my wife," Roger said.
Holly beamed at him. "Finally," she said. "I've been waiting to hear you call me your wife all night."
Roger beamed back at her. "I'm still waiting to hear you call me-"
"My husband," Holly said happily.
As Roger and Holly kissed, Ross looked at Blake. "Inevitable," he said.
"Forever," Blake said, sounding awed.
The honking of a car horn got the attention of everyone but Roger and Holly. "Calling the bride and groom!" Donna announced.
"I don't think they can hear you, Donna," Sharlene said.
"Not when they're in the middle of mating season, they can't," Cass said. "Ouch, Mary Frances!" he exclaimed when Frankie elbowed him in the ribs.
"They're newlyweds. Give them a break," Rachel said.
"Break out the magic word again, Donna," John suggested.
"Honeymoon!" Donna shouted.
Roger and Holly stopped kissing, making everyone laugh, even Ross. "What do you know, it worked," Michael said.
"Did you need us for something else?" Roger asked, wondering what could possibly be left for him and Holly to do.
"Yes," Donna said. "Your chariot awaits. I arranged for a limo take you back to The Bayshore."
A flurry of goodbyes and thank yous ensued, with Roger and Holly hugging and/or shaking hands with everyone, profusely thanking Donna and Michael and Rachel for everything they did to put together such a beautiful wedding.
Ross got his second big shock of the night when he saw Roger hugging Michael Hudson, after which the two men exchanged hearty claps on the back. "Who is that man Roger's hugging?" he asked Blake.
Blake just grinned. "Oh, that's Michael Hudson, my dad's best friend," she replied nonchalantly.
"Since when?" Ross demanded.
"Since they were in the CIA together," Blake said. Roger and Holly came over then to kiss their sleeping grandsons goodbye and then to say good night to their daughter. "Be happy," she told her parents. "But remember that happy doesn't mean blue skies every day. Sometimes it's going to be difficult and stressful, and sometimes it's going to really suck, but never forget that it's always worth it because you don't have to go through anything alone ever again."
"We will," Roger promised Blake.
"He's stuck with me now," Holly said. She looked at Roger. "You couldn't get rid of me if you tried."
"I'm older and wiser now," Roger said, glancing at Michael with a look that said those words had some meaning between the two old friends. "I belong by your side, and that's where I'm staying from now on."
Everyone but Blake and Ross started throwing rose petals and confetti at Roger and Holly then. Donna had two of her waiters holding the doors open, and the chill November night air blew in, but had no bite. Roger and Holly exchanged hugs, kisses, good nights and "I love you"s with Blake, and Ross gave them a sincere smile.
Then Holly and Roger rushed for the door hand in hand. At the door, Holly stopped short, causing Roger to stop short as well. Holly had picked up her bouquet because she had plans for the small bunch of flowers. Roger looked at Holly, clearly wondering why she had stopped, and then Holly called over the din of their friends and family (Blake was now gleefully, eagerly throwing confetti and rose petals at her parents with all the enthusiasm of an elementary schooler trying to dunk their teacher in the school carnival dunking booth), "Donna! DONNA!"
When Donna stepped forward to see what her best friend wanted, Holly tossed her bouquet right at Donna. Donna's arms came up reflexively when she saw that the flowers were aimed at her face, and she caught the bouquet in the air. She was so shocked at having the bouquet thrown right at her, and at catching it, that she missed the significant looks and smiles that Michael exchanged with John and Sharlene. Holly paused for a few seconds more, meeting Donna's eyes. The shock in Donna's eyes gave way to a look accusing Holly of having thrown the bouquet at Donna on purpose, and the look on Holly's face left no doubt in Donna's mind that this had been a calculated move on Holly's part.
Then the crowd, led by Rachel, Frankie and Cass, with Jake's video camera and the photographer's still camera still whirring and clicking away, surged after Roger and Holly, seeing them out to the parking lot in a blizzard of rose petals and confetti, where everyone except Ross, who stayed inside The Harbor Club with Kevin and Jason so as not to expose them to the cold night air any more than was absolutely necessary, watched as the uniformed chauffeur held the car door for them, then saw Holly get into the limo, followed by Roger, after which the chauffeur shut the car door, took his place behind the wheel, and then the limo slowly drove out of The Harbor Club parking lot headed for The Bayshore.
And in the limo's backseat, with the privacy partition already raised, Roger and Holly laughed breathlessly, brushing rose petals and confetti from one another's hair and clothes, before Roger said, "Would you like to kiss the groom, Mrs. Thorpe?"
Holly was already moving closer. "Very much so, Mr. Thorpe," she said just before her lips met his as they were whisked to The Bayshore by Donna's hired driver.