WEDDING BELLS AND ROSES

"Okay so we picked out the invitations." Angela said

"Yep, and what flavor the cake is going to be." Tony continued.

"Oh! And the music!" Angela exclaimed.

"And what everyone is going to have for their dinner. Chicken, fish, or steak."

"Oh, what about who is going to officiate?"

"We already did Angela. Here:" He pointed to where he had written down the name of the person they had chosen.

"Oh right. Gosh Tony this is going to be such a beautiful wedding." she sighed happily.

Mona, Isabelle, and Paul looked at each other and shook their heads. Tony and Angela were acting like it was their wedding they were planning and not Paul and Isabelle's. They were both so giddy sitting on the floor in front of the coffee table making all the decisions. They would smile and giggle at each other, their eyes conveying something they weren't quite ready to admit yet. But Mona, Isabelle, and Paul weren't fooled. At the dinner party Angela had thrown a few months earlier Paul and Isabelle had noticed how in sync they were with each other. It was like they had been doing this for years and could interpret each other's moves. Which was why when they decided to tell Tony and Angela they were getting married they had agreed to ask both of them to stand up for them. Isabelle knew of course that Wendy would be upset but she decided that this was more important. There was definitely something there between them and she hoped by standing up for Paul and her would ignite something.

"Oh wait! The flowers!" Angela exclaimed.

"Well what do you think Angela?" Tony asked.

"Hey you two bozos! Why not ask Paul and Isabelle what flowers they would like?" Mona smacked Tony on the shoulder.

Angela blushed. "Oh gosh Isabelle! I am so sorry!" She turned towards her. "So what flowers would you like?"

Isabelle laughed. "Well I have always liked lilies."

"Okay then. Lilies it is." Tony said and wrote it down.

Isabelle shot Paul a look and a wink.

"So Angela, if you were getting married what flowers would you like to have at your wedding?"

"Pink roses." Angela sighed dreamily.

"Pink roses? Why pink roses?" Tony asked, gazing at her.

"Because they are so warm and elegant."

'Just like you are.' Tony mused. He nervously cleared his throat. 'You shouldn't be thinking these things about her! She's your boss and your friend!' He scolded himself. But he couldn't help it. He was so fascinated with her. Every day he discovered more and more about her and he loved every minute of it. She was like a beautiful gift he got to unwrap everyday. And now he had unwrapped another gift.

Pink roses were her favorite flower.

He vowed to himself he would never forget.

YOU MENTIONED IT ONCE

Angela was sitting across from Geoffrey at Che Rene's. He was being more attentive than usual, obviously trying to make up for how he had acted when she had told him that his car had been totaled. But, all she could think about was Tony and what he had said about the roses Geoffrey had sent her.

'Man, these are gorgeous! Too bad they're not pink huh?'

'Tony? How did you know pink roses are my favorite?'

'You uh…you mentioned it once.'

He looked at her with a mixture of affection and sadness and then left the kitchen. She was overwhelmed. When had she mentioned that pink roses were her favorite? It obviously must have been a pivotal moment in their relationship if he remembered. And why was it that her housekeeper and friend knew her favorite flower but not her boyfriend? She was so confused. It was like she was being pulled in two different directions. On the one hand there was Geoffrey, a perfectly nice guy who she had been dating for a few months and when they had briefly broken up, she actually had missed him. She couldn't deny how hurt she had been when Geoffrey had seemed to care more about his Porsche than he had about her though. She had tried to pretend that everything was fine, but Tony had seen right through her. In a shaky voice she had lamented that it was just another failed relationship and that she couldn't even compete with a car!

'You're the top of the line! You're a Lamborghini!'

And on the other hand, there was Tony, a man she was becoming closer and closer to every day. Yes, technically he was her housekeeper but the line between employer and employee was becoming more and more blurry every day. At least on her part. She had thought for a while it was for him too but at Paul and Isabelle's wedding-after the insults Fred and Ginger had thrown at them- Tony had retreated into himself and when Geoffrey had asked her to dance Tony had practically shoved her into his arms by telling him that they were through. She had wanted to tell Geoffrey that they weren't but one look at Tony's face told her that there wasn't any more she could say or do. He had made up his mind.

Angela shook her head at the memories. She shouldn't be thinking about Tony while she was out with Geoffrey. This was supposed to be their celebratory night. But she couldn't help herself. Every time she looked across the table at Geoffrey all she could see was Tony taking the roses he had given her out of her hands and telling her too bad that they weren't pink and that she had mentioned once that pink roses were her favorite! She had only mentioned it once and he remembered!

What was Tony doing to her? Why did he keep sending her all these mixed signals?! He could have kept quiet about how he knew that pink roses were her favorite but instead he had let it be known that he knew her favorite flower. But then again Tony was her friend and maybe all he wanted to do was show her that there was someone who listened to her-who paid attention to her when she spoke because he did care about her. Suddenly it all came back to her:

Paul and Isabelle's wedding! They had been planning Paul and Isabelle's wedding going over the invitations, the food, the music and when they had gotten to the flowers Isabelle had asked her what flowers she would want if she were the one getting married. She had told them pink roses and he had remembered. It had been a brief moment-a brief moment while they were planning Paul and Isabelle's wedding and he had stored it away in his memory like he had when he had mentioned the terrific perfume, she had been wearing the night of kissing rock even though it had been Bug-Off. And here again Tony remembered something about her while Michael could never remember their wedding anniversary!

Michael could never remember their wedding anniversary. But Tony remembered that over twenty years ago she had worn bug-off.

Geoffrey didn't know what her favorite flower was. But Tony did because she had mentioned it once.

It wasn't lost on her that her housekeeper and friend knew more about her and remembered things she had said than her ex-husband and boyfriend had.

YOU DON'T THINK THESE THINGS YOU FEEL THEM

Ever since Angela had said she had made up her mind that she was going to marry Geoffrey, Tony had been on edge. Of course, he had been since he had witnessed Geoffrey proposing to her a few nights before, but it was intensified now. What was he going to do?! What could he do?! All he was, was her housekeeper. What in the world did he have to offer her? She was an elegant high-class woman who deserved nothing but the best. He would love to be able to give that to her, but he had to be realistic. She was way above him and always would be. But a man like Geoffrey would be able to give her the world. Sure, he was a little dorky, but he did love her and instead of the time he had blown up at her when his car had been totaled, he treated her like a queen. So then why shouldn't Angela marry him?

Because he reminded himself, she didn't leap into his arms and shout yes when he asked her. If she truly wanted to marry him there wouldn't have been any two of them would have already been planning their wedding and making list after list. But instead, she had told him that she had to think about it. And then she had made a pro and con list on whether or not she should marry him. She had asked for his advice, and he knew from her facial expression and voice that she had wanted him to tell her not to marry him, but he couldn't. Yes, he was her friend, but he was also her housekeeper. Her friend and housekeeper that was falling in love with her but knew it was futile because he had nothing to offer her but his friendship. So, he would have to be content with that.

But still the thought of her marrying Geoffrey and him moving in here was inconceivable to him. He didn't think that Geoffrey would demand that Sam and him move out like Michael had. Geoffrey genuinely seemed to like him, and he knew how much Angela loved Sam so he would never suggest it. So, could he handle seeing Geoffrey every day? He was okay in small doses, and he was certainly better than the other Jeffrey she had dated who was two timing her, but he still couldn't fathom the two of them getting married and him living here. He had to do something. He wished he could say something. He wanted to say something. He wanted to beg her not to marry Geoffrey, but he knew he couldn't.

Suddenly an idea came to him. It was an underhanded trick, and he wasn't proud of it, but he wanted to tell her without actually telling her how he felt. He grabbed his keys and jumped into his van and drove to the local flower shop. He purchased a dozen long stem pink roses and drove back home. He entered through the kitchen and went into the living room where the crystal vase he had given her for Christmas was sitting on the bookshelf. He picked it up and went back into the kitchen and filled it with water and put the roses into the vase. He left the kitchen and walked through the living and up the stairs to her room where she had been for the last few hours after she had started coughing and had nearly lost her voice. He knocked on her door.

"Angela? Can I come in?"

"Yeah!" he heard her say her voice raspy.

He opened the door and entered her room.

"So how are you feeling?"

"Still the same." she said and began coughing.

"How about I make you some honey, lemon, and garlic?" She shot him a look. "Yes, I know it doesn't taste all that great, but it does help."

"Okay."

"Okay."

"And here Angela, I bought you some pink roses to cheer you up." He walked over and put them on her nightstand where she could see them.

Angela was taken aback. Not only had he bought her a bouquet of her favorite flower he had put them in the crystal vase he had bought her for Christmas by selling his Tony Micelli baseball card. She wanted to cry. Both gestures had been so sweet and unexpected.

"Thank you, Tony." she said in a wobbly voice.

"You're welcome." he smiled at her. "Okay, I'll go and make you the honey, lemon, and garlic and I'll bring it up later."

She nodded to sick and overwhelmed to speak.

"In the meantime, you get some rest!" He ordered her with a smile. She nodded again and closed her eyes, and he went over to her doorway.

"Sleep dreams Angela." he whispered and shut the door softly behind him.

Angela opened her eyes and looked at the roses on her nightstand. She got up and walked over and breathed in their scent. She smiled softly and then crawled back into bed.

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A/N: As Always, the lines from the show the credit goes to the writers.

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