A/N: For a full account of Prom Night II and Sleep Talk, Sweet Talk, please see Chapter 21: Tony & Angela.

Chapter 31: Very Well Lit

Angela felt the heat rise in her cheeks as she turned and gave Tony a quick look; just in time to see that his face mirrored the look of shock on her own. Had Sam really caught them the night Tony recreated her prom? If so, how much did she see?

How ironic that she and Tony had just discussed this on their drive back to Brooklyn Heights this morning; it was one of the greatest missed opportunities to move their relationship forward still holding space in both their minds. Tony had been right in what he said earlier; they had become extremely close by this point, and he was able to see a path forward for them because he finally had one for himself with his decision to go to college.

Angela remembered how proud she felt when he'd gotten over his fear of taking the entrance exam and then how she thought her heart might burst when they finally found out that he'd scored much higher than what was necessary to be accepted at Ridgemont. They were both floating on air as they celebrated with a drink at The Ratskeller. And it really hadn't surprised her when Tony pulled her in for a lusty kiss once they made their way back to the van. She would also never forget their exchange after the warm embrace that followed their kiss.

"I really think I can make something of myself Angela. I want to do this for me, but also for Sam, Jonathan, Mona and you," Tony said quietly as he cast his eyes towards the ground.

Angela lifted his chin up and responded, looking directly in his warm brown eyes, "I said it before, and I'll say it again and again. You can do anything you put your mind to. I am so proud of what you're doing for yourself, your daughter, and our family," she said emphasizing the word our. He had been the one to call them a family when her professional world was changing and now it was her turn to reciprocate and to make sure he understood how much this meant for their possible future together.

So, it was no wonder that by the time Sam and Jesse went to prom, she and Tony were pretty much acting like a couple. There had been the "couples" fishing trip with Mona and Max, the fundraising concert with the Dreamtones where Tony had fought tooth and nail so that she would have a chance to sing (so much so that the other members of the group thought they might actually be married!), supporting each other as co-parents when Jesse and Sam started to go steady and then when Sam kissed Mason and when Sam decided she wanted to model. They also navigated the difficult few days when Tony went on strike followed by him being her rock when she and her mother fought after Max proposed and finally him being there for her after she went too far trying to plan Sam's prom experience.

Now that her mind had returned to that eventful night, she looked over at Sam, and biting her lip, asked "Um, what exactly did you see, Sam?"

"Oh, just you and Dad dancing romantically in this living room which looked like it had been turned into some sort of Tahitian island," Sam said giggling.

"Ah-oh-oh-ay, were you spying on us, Samantha?" Tony asked; a hint of annoyance in his voice.

"No, Dad, I swear," Sam said quickly crossing her heart with her index finger. "Jesse and I had a fight, and I told him I wanted to go home, but when we got here, we caught sight of you two through the window. I definitely didn't want to interrupt whatever was going on, so we ended up talking and making up and went to the after party. What was going on?"

"Well," Tony said with a sheepish grin. "I knew that Angela did not have a great prom experience the first go around, so I decided, as her best friend, to try and fix that and did my best to turn the living room into Tahitian Twilight, since that had been the theme of her prom."

"Right, Dad," Katie said with a smirk. "Just as her best friend, huh?"

"Well, maybe there was a little more to it than that," Tony conceded. "But I was also trying to cheer her up after everything that happened with Sam even though it all worked out in the end," he said as giving Angela a quick kiss on the cheek.

"So, romantic," Katie said sighing. "Boy, you all had a lot of willpower back then to flirt like that yet stay apart!"

Tony and Angela exchanged a knowing smile, relieved that Sam and Jesse had not witnessed their make-out session on the couch, but also acknowledging that their willpower had not been all that great over the years even though they managed to continually stop themselves before they went too far too soon.

"Yeah," Jonathan chimed in. "Especially since it was pretty soon after that when Mom said that she loved Tony in her sleep."

"Dad, I know you insisted it was nothing and that we were all one loving household," Sam said rolling her eyes. "But what did you say to Angela when you found her in that Tiki bar after she didn't show up for her 'surprise' birthday party?"

Tony looked at Angela; his lips twitching into a slight smile. "Let's just say that we found a way to again agree that our friendship came first even though we did kind of sort of admit that we had feelings for each other."

Tony couldn't help but lean over and whisper into Angela's ear, "Ever been to Dubuque? Nice city. Very well lit."

"You two were so impossible!" Katie said, sounding just like Mona, as she shook her head.

"Oh, Katie, there's still so much more to come," Sam said with a smile.

"But not tonight," Tony said yawning. "It's getting late, and I have a surprise for Angela. We can finish this discussion tomorrow."

"A surprise?" Angela asked perplexed at what it could be. "At this time of night?"

"I think that's our cue to leave," Jonathan said rolling his eyes.

"Actually, you all don't have to because Angela and I are leaving. After last night, I think we both found out that one night on an air mattress is all we can take. We'll be spending the night at the Fairfield Inn."

"Oh Tony, how sweet!" Angela said moving to stand up while pulling Tony with her and into a quick embrace.

A few minutes later, after everyone made plans to continue their walk down memory lane over brunch and whatever else tomorrow, Tony and Angela pulled into the Fairfield Inn. It had been renovated several times over the years but still had the same romantic and cozy feel to it.

"Tony, I don't think we've stayed here since the night of our wedding; before we left on our honeymoon," Angela said giggling as they stood outside the door to their room.

"Right you are, and I even managed to book the same suite for tonight and tomorrow night as I have a feeling we might not be ready to head back to Brooklyn Heights before Monday," he said smiling.

"Very true," Angela said returning his smile as he opened the door, and they stepped inside. She was immediately transported back to their wedding night and to everything that had transpired to get them to that point; starting from right after she had told Tony she was pregnant, on the night he came home from Iowa, followed by him saying that he couldn't wait to have this baby with her before gathering her in his arms for a long slow kiss…