Doughnuts, Deliveries and Discussions

Lorelai snuck into the living room still in her pajamas, a mug of steaming coffee cradled in both hands. Rory was asleep on the couch. Using her hip, she scooched Rory's legs over and sat down next to her.

"Hey!" Rory mumbled, sleepily cracking her eyes open.

"Good morning, Sunshine," Lorelai chirped.

"Ugh," Rory groaned.

"Did Mommy's little journalist sleep well last night?" she asked cheerily.

Rolling over onto her back, Rory grumbled. "Why are you so perky this morning?"

Lorelai sipped the coffee and grinned at her daughter. "What?" she shrugged, "I'm just glad to have you home is all."

Scooting up against the end of the couch, Rory reached out, making a pitiful attempt to grab the coffee mug. "Gimme."

Lorelai handed it to her. "Boy, we're grouchy this morning."

Rory took a quick swallow. "We're tired this morning," she complained, pushing her hair out of her face. "You would not go to bed last night."

"Well, I haven't seen you in months," Lorelai countered. "I've got a lot to talk about."

"We talk almost everyday," Rory protested. After drinking more of the coffee, she asked, "What time is it anyway?"

Lorelai shrugged. "About eight, I think."

Rory thrust the mug back at her mother and snuggled down under her blanket again. "What are you even doing up? We don't have to be at Grandma and Grandpa's until eleven."

"And you have to leave right after brunch, so get up." Lorelai gave Rory's shoulder a shove. "We're going to spend the morning together."

"Can't we spend the morning together later?"

"You do remember it's November, don't you? I got your favorite… pumpkin spice doughnuts from Westin's."

Rory opened one eye. "Pumpkin doughnuts?"

"Yep," Lorelai stood up, taking the coffee mug with her and took a half step toward the kitchen, "and you have to get up if you want any before your Aunt Hope and I eat them all."

"Leave the coffee," Rory mumbled sitting up again.

Lorelai held the coffee mug out to her and as Rory reached for it she snatched it away and hurried out of the room. "Come and get it!"

Rory groaned and rubbed her eyes then got up and shuffled into the kitchen. She almost bumped right into Hope, who had slept in her room the night before. Murmuring an apology, she turned for the coffee maker and poured a mug then flopped down in a chair. As she sipped her coffee, she sat in a daze staring at the plate in the center of the table piled high with doughnuts for several long moments before her brain kicked into gear and convinced her hand to reach out and take one.

Hope was the only one dressed. She had on a pair of khaki slacks and a fitted white oxford shirt. Her hair was pulled back into a low ponytail and tied with a blue and white scarf. She watched Rory with a smile and sat down next to her at the table. "I can sympathize. When did you and your mother finally go to sleep? You were both still going strong at two a.m. when I went to bed."

"You were the smart one, you went to bed. I couldn't get away from her and she would not shut up. I think it was like three thirty, maybe four." Rory took a bite of the doughnut.

"I'm sorry I took your room and your escape path," Hope teased.

"No reason to be sorry, she would have just followed me in there anyway," Rory replied.

"I miss my kid, so sue me," Lorelai defended herself as she took the seat opposite Hope.

"I think it's cute," Hope said reaching for a doughnut. "Now I understand these are special doughnuts?" she asked Rory.

Her coffee and the taste of the pumpkin doughnut kicking in, Rory was beginning to perk up. "Oh yeah. You can only get them between Halloween and Thanksgiving and they are the best doughnuts in the world!"

"You can't even tell they're pumpkin," Lorelai added with a grin just before taking a big bite.

"Well pass me one of these best doughnuts in the world and I'll tell you if I agree, though I am rather partial to beignets, so this better be a darn good doughnut."

Rory held the plate out to her. "Oh, they are."

Hope picked one up and took a bite, smiling as she chewed.

The doorbell rang and Lorelai rushed to see who was there. From the window in the door she could see the big brown UPS van parked in front of the house and the brown-clad deliveryman at the door. She opened the door with a bright smile. "Hi, Kent, what have you got for me today?" she asked, not seeing a package in his hand.

He nodded to a spot next to the door. "That."

Lorelai's eyes widened excitedly as she saw the large box propped against the house. He handed her the electronic clipboard and she signed quickly. Checking the return address sticker, Lorelai did a jump of joy calling out, "They're here!"

Kent chuckled at her antics. "I can bring it in, if you want?"

"Oh Kent, you're the best. Thanks," Lorelai gushed, opening the door wider and motioning him inside. "Hope you like pumpkin doughnuts."

"From Westin's?" he asked, heading into the living room.

"Where else? I'll get you one." Lorelai hurried into the kitchen.

Hope and Rory exchanged puzzled looks while Kent placed the big box on the coffee table. Rory smiled at him. "Hi, Kent."

"Hi, Rory. How's goes it on the campaign trail?"

"Oh, it's great," Rory answered.

"Here you go," Lorelai announced walking back into the living room with two pumpkin doughnuts on a paper towel.

"Mmmm, thanks," Kent said. "Well, better get going. I've got a bunch more deliveries to make."

Lorelai walked him to the door then turned around a huge grin on her face. "They're here!" She hurried over to the coffee table "They're here! They're here! They're here!"

"What's here?" Rory asked.

"The bridesmaid dresses!" Lorelai answered trying to poke her fingernail into the tape on the seam of the box. She tried several times in several different places. "Damn! What is this? Industrial tape?"

Rory stepped over to the desk and picked up a pair of scissors.

"Ooh! Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!" Lorelai squealed, lunging for the scissors.

Rory held the scissors behind her back. "No! You're too hyper. You'll cut right through the box and into my dress."

Lorelai stuck out her bottom lip and pouted. "Hmf."

"You've seen them," Rory protested. "I don't know what they even look like."

"So!" Lorelai argued. "My wedding. I want to open it."

Rory sighed. "Compromise. We'll let Aunt Hope open it."

"Fine," Lorelai agreed in defeat.

Hope laughed quietly at her niece and grandniece's antics as she took the scissors Rory handed her and carefully opened the box. As soon as she could, Lorelai attacked it, tissue paper flying in all directions. Once her hands touched fabric, she pulled out a dress, holding it upside down.

"Ooh, I like the color," Rory cooed as Lorelai righted the pewter, scooped-neck sleeveless dress and laid it across the couch.

"This one is for April," Lorelai explained.

Hope reached in and drew out the next dress from the box, turning it right side up. It was also pewter, had capped sleeves, a V-shaped neckline, and a full skirt. It was a beautiful dress, but clearly much too large a size to be Rory's.

Rory picked up the last dress in the box and looked at it. "Ohh, Mom. It's beautiful." The dress was floor length with spaghetti straps and a crisscross bodice.

"Oh, Rory, put it on. I have to see it on you," Hope urged her excitedly.

"Yeah! Go! Go! Go!" Lorelai chanted, bouncing up and down.

"Going, going," Rory agreed taking the dress and heading to her room.

Hope picked up April's dress. "These really are lovely dresses. Luke's daughter is what … fourteen? This is perfect."

"Yeah," Lorelai answered, still looking over the dresses, "everyone really needed their own style, but the fabric ties it all together."

"Uh, guys…" Rory called from the doorway. The dress seemed to fit perfectly.

"You're gorgeous!" Hope proclaimed.

"Am I good or what?" Lorelai asked teasingly.

"It does look pretty good, doesn't it?" Rory asked.

"It looks great!" Lorelai answered.

"Come here." Hope motioned her over. "Let me take a closer look. Rory walked over to her and turned around as Hope inspected the fit of the bodice. As Rory relaxed, one thin strap slid down her arm. She lifted it back into place and the other one slipped off.

"Well the straps may need to be shortened," Lorelai noted.

Rory laughed. "Ya think?"

Hope nodded, still giving the fit a critical eye. "The straps are easy enough to fix. Do you have the shoes yet?"

Rory stood up on her tiptoes to approximate heels.

"In your closet on the top shelf," Lorelai answered.

"Really?" Rory asked.

Lorelai shrugged, slightly embarrassed. Rory hurried off to get the shoes and Lorelai followed her. "I know you said you'd find shoes, but these were so cute and they were just the right color and I thought if you like them they'd be perfect for the wedding. If you don't like them, back they go."

Rory had taken down the shoebox and was balancing herself against her mother's shoulder, putting on the strappy heels. Nodding, she held up the skirt of the dress and walked to the door experimentally. "Comfortable so far."

Hope appeared in the doorway to the bedroom. "Adorable. They're just adorable." She walked over to Rory and tugged the dress from her hands so it hung down to the floor.

"I think it needs to be shortened a bit, but that's easy enough." Hope commented, then took the straps and tucked them down into the back of the dress to measure how much to shorten them.

Lorelai waved her hand. "I can do all that, no problem."

"No, you can't," Hope protested.

"Oh, she can," Rory explained. "She's great. She even made my prom dress."

"I'm sure that you're capable, Lorelai," Hope clarified, "but you are not doing alterations on your own bridesmaids' dresses yourself. I won't hear of it. You already have enough to do."

"It's all good." Lorelai walked over to Rory and looked at the stitching on the dress. "This fabric is pretty delicate so there's no redos, but it won't be too much of a problem."

"Lorelai, you are going to be a very busy woman between now and the wedding. I wouldn't feel right standing by and letting you take care of all of this yourself. I won't hear of it."

"It's just that it seems silly to pay someone to do what I can do myself," Lorelai reasoned.

"Who's talking about paying someone?" Hope asked with a grin. "I'll do it for nothing."

"Wow! You sew too?" Rory questioned.

"Well, I haven't made any formal gowns in a while, but I do still sew. Certainly well enough to take care of anything that might need to be altered for you."

"Cool!" Rory declared.

Lorelai smiled at her Aunt, her look a mixture of surprise and awe. "Yeah, cool."

Emily rolled her head to the side, her eyes still closed as she snuggled closer to her husband. He was lying on his back, his arms wrapped around her. She sighed as she felt Richard's hand running up and down her back, causing her skin to tingle. They remained quiet for a few minutes more until Emily finally broke the silence.

"You're staring at me," she declared, her eyes still closed and her head against Richard's shoulder.

"How do you know that I'm staring at you?" he asked.

"I can feel it," she mumbled.

"Feel it?" he asked. Emily nodded in reply. "How can feel you it?"

"I just can," she insisted. Finally, she opened her eyes and pulled back a bit to look up at her husband. "See, I was correct."

"Well," Richard shrugged, "how can I not stare when such a beautiful woman is lying naked in my arms?"

Emily laughed and rolled her eyes. "Well, stop it. You know it makes me uncomfortable."

"Yes, I do," Richard grinned. "Yet that doesn't provide me with any reason to stop. You're simply too beautiful."

"Oh please," she groaned. "Now I know you are full of it."

"Full of what?" he teased. "Full of love for you?"

"Will you stop it?" she laughed, propping her left arm against his chest and resting her chin on it.

"I'm sorry, Dear. I suppose I'm just giddy that our little …snafu the other night was simply a one time performance glitch."

Emily pulled her arm back and moved to once again lie against his body, resting her head on his shoulder. "I would really prefer not to talk about that," she stated flatly.

"All couples have difficult times," Richard reassured her.

"But we don't," she countered.

"We have once before. I'd say that two times in forty-three years is pretty remarkable."

"We've only been married for forty-two years," Emily corrected him.

"I know precisely how long we've been married, my Dear, as do you," he reminded her trailing his hands down her back and pulling her closer. "I have been thinking about what you've said lately, about the fact that you've spent so many years waiting for me to come home and doing what I want to do. And I'm going to try very hard to be as supportive as I can of what you are doing. I know how much working with Lorelai means to you."

Emily lifted her head up to look at him. "Thank you for that," she smiled. "And I do intend to keep my promise. I am going to resign from some of my obligations."

"That isn't necessary," Richard insisted. "I know they are important to you."

"Some of them are, yes," she agreed. "And some of them are wildly ridiculous. I like to garden as much as anyone else. Yet I do not need to be on the board of the Horticultural Society. They choose different plants to highlight and spend useless hours trying to decide which local celebrity we should get to endorse our annual campaign to save whatever tree or plant from extinction this year."

"And here I thought you loved pointless campaigns," Richard teased.

"There's also the Zoological Institute," she added. "I'm honestly not even that big a fan of dogs. So why should I be on a committee that is aimed at teaching young children about African wildlife?"

Richard chuckled, an image of a fluffy white dog that had once sat outside their sun room flashing through his mind. Emily's frantic phone call had made him out to be a rabid beast. Yet in actuality it was a long-haired Jack Russell terrier. A long-haired Jack Russell terrier named Princess.

"What about the Marina?" Richard asked. "Aren't you on the Board there too?"

Emily rolled her eyes. "That's another one I won't mind resigning. I haven't sailed in years. Why should I be there to help decide what colors we should use to redecorate the clubhouse when we spent no more than a few weeks a year at the Cape?" she asked rhetorically.

"You have been appointed to some rather bizarre boards," Richard agreed. "My personal favorite was the Executive Fundraising Board at the Hartford Humane Society," he chuckled. "The Annual Barking Ball."

Emily couldn't help but laugh at that, too. "They wanted us to dress up as our favorite breed of canine and hold a contest for who had the best costume. I obviously did not remain on that board for long," she noted.

"You have quite a wide range of interests, that's for sure," he agreed.

"Well, my main interest is my husband and from now on I am going to be sure to spend more time with him," she smiled.

"I couldn't be a luckier man," Richard smiled back, squeezing her gently before she pushed herself up slightly to kiss him.

"We are very sentimental today," she commented, sliding her leg between Richard's as she lay next to him.

"Well, you know what a night of passionate love making does to me," he grinned, his hand brushing down her arm sensually.

Emily grinned, blushing as she lowered her head down, averting her eyes for a moment. "What does a morning of passionate love making do to you?" she asked, looking back up at him with a mischievous grin.

"Wouldn't you like to find out?" he teased, sliding his arm around her back and rolling on top of her.

"I have a feeling this means you are going to show me," she moaned as he began to kiss her neck, his hands pinning her wrists to the mattress.

"I believe in the full sensory experience," Richard smirked, winking at her before continuing his assault upon her ivory skin.