"It's a girl," gushed Lorelai as she walked through the hospital corridor. She arrived an hour ago, but she was so consumed by the new little Belleville bundle of joy that she forgot to call Rory.

"A girl! Oh, good, we need a girl," said Rory sharing her mother's cheeriness.

"Why do we need a girl?"

"I don't know. Aren't there enough guys walking around out there?"

"Well, it's a beautiful girl, name to come and Sookie's fine, Jackson's fine, everyone's fine." Lorelai stopped to lean against the wall.

"Good."

"Fourteen hours of labor was the downside, but Sookie has the rest of her little girl's life to get back at her for that," Lorelai joked.

"I love the circle of life."

"And there's more good news."

"What?" asked Rory

"It was a false alarm. I'm not pregnant. The crisis has passed," said Lorelai in a low voice. She looked around to make sure no one was within earshot of her conversation.

"Oh, Mom, good." Rory sounded even more relieved than her mother. "I'm glad."

"You're glad?" Lorelai exhaled sharply. "As the sight of babies isn't freaking me out anymore, I can enjoy the maternity ward again."

"So, what was with the apple?"

"I don't know. But I had a Moonpie and a Ding-Dong and washed it down with an Orange Crush in the cafeteria, so no desire for anything nutritional."

"Hey, um…" Rory hesitated a second before asking, "Did you ever mention this pregnancy scare to Luke?"

"My God, no. Could you imagine? 'Uh, Luke, you're going to be a daddy.' Suddenly there's nothing left but a puff of smoke and a baseball cap spinning on the floor." A small part of her felt guilty, but there was no reason to mention the scare now that she knew it was a false alarm.

"Yeah. He never seemed much like a family guy. This is for the best. Listen, um, I've got to get back. We have a big staff meeting in a few minutes and I want to get back and make sure everything's set up and ready."

"I'll see you tonight, my one and only offspring." Lorelai hung up with her daughter and continued walking down the hall. She stopped in front of the big glass window that looked into the nursery and smiled at all the tiny babies. She made her way back to Sookie's room as a giant male nurse was escorting Jackson into the hall.

"What was that about? Jackson did not look happy," said Lorelai as she sat down at the foot of Sookie's hospital bed.

"He's getting a vasectomy, so no, he's not too happy," said Sookie. She smiled down at her baby girl swaddled in pink.

"He's…? Uh…wow. What happened to four in four?" asked Lorelai, unable to hide her amusement.

"I told him two kids were a nice compromise. And we have one of each now, so why not get snipped and then I don't have to worry about taking the pill anymore."

"Well that's why I avoid the pill. There's no way I could remember to take that thing everyday. Can I hold her?" Lorelai sanitized her hands and gently took the baby from Sookie.

"Wait. You're not on the pill? Why did I always think you were on the pill?" asked Sookie.

"Nope. After I had Rory, I didn't plan on having sex for a really long time. I couldn't afford to pay for something I had no immediate use for. Once I started working the front desk I found a permanent gynecologist. I decided the diaphragm made more sense for me since I wasn't in a relationship and I had no medical reason to be on the pill. It's worked fine so far. When I remember to put it in…" She trailed off and shot Sookie a look.

"Uh oh," chuckled Sookie. "What happened?"

"Luke and I were smashed the other night after the party in New York. All roadblocks down. No diaphragm. No condom. I woke up the next morning and started freaking out. And then the thing with the apple-"

"Oh, the apple!" shouted Sookie with her finger pointed at Lorelai. "I knew there was a reason you were asking me all those questions." She put her hand over her mouth when the baby started to cry. "I can take her if you want."

"I've got her," said Lorelai lifting the baby to her shoulder. She lightly bounced her up and down while gently patting her back. After a minute she quieted down. "Aw, sweet girl. You're okay. Auntie Lorelai's got you," she said quietly.

"So, did you take a pregnancy test?" asked Sookie.

"A doctor told me I had to wait two weeks and, besides, I won't have to take one. The craving for the apples went away and I got my period this morning." Lorelai gave her a one-shoulder shrug.

"What does Luke think about all this? I bet he was going crazy." She reached over to grab her container of ice water and took a quick sip. When Lorelai didn't respond, Sookie tilted her head to the side. "He doesn't know."

"Because there's nothing to know. Besides, I still haven't told him about the fact that Mike Armstrong has called me twice since our meeting. And…I'm thinking…of taking him up on his offer."

"To sell the inn?!" blurted Sookie loudly. She cringed when the baby started to cry again. "Oh, crap. I've got to get used to volume control again. She might be hungry." She gestured for Lorelai to hand her over.

Lorelai waited until the baby was nursing before she continued. "Not about selling the inn. I'm thinking about doing the traveling thing. I don't want it to be an opportunity that I didn't take when I had the chance and the time. I'm 38 years old. I may not get this chance again. And, who knows, maybe I can do it over the summer. It'll be like a little vacation."

"You think you can survive a summer away from Rory and Luke?"

"I've done it before. Remember? Three years ago Rory went to D.C. and Luke and I weren't speaking." Her chest tightened at the memory. It was one of the longest summers of her life. It was the summer Christopher had chosen Sherry and the baby over her. Rory was in D.C. and Luke wasn't speaking to her on account of the horrible things she said to him regarding Jess. But this time was different. This solo trip would be on her terms and things were great with all parties involved. At least she thought things were great. She and Luke hadn't discussed life plans or even something as simple as them living together. Were they even on the same page as far as their relationship was concerned?

"Yeah, but you two weren't a couple then. It'd be a little different this time."

After Friday night dinner, the girls drove straight to Sookie's house to set up for her belated baby shower. Since Sookie was coming home the next morning, they wanted to have it all ready.

"I can't believe they ended up using all those baby names. Poor kid." Rory was replacing the word 'Year' with the word 'Baby' on the balloons she bought the day before.

"Yeah. And people thought I was crazy for naming you after myself. Boy, were they wrong."

"Hey, do you think your grandmother is okay with the magazine article? I don't know why I've been feeling so bad about it." Lorelai was twisting two different colored streamers together like a rope.

"I don't know. She's your mother. Queen of the whole passive-aggressive thing. I'm sure she's proud of you and the inn and that helped to soften the blow of being compared to Pol Pot." Rory gave her mother a sympathetic smile and stood up from the table. "We're about done here. We should wait to get these balloons blown up tomorrow morning. What time do they get discharged?"

"Um, if everything's good they should be out of there by 10:00." They put on their coats and locked the door behind them. "What would you think about me being gone for the summer?"

Rory hesitated. "I don't know. Gone where?"

"Gone Wild," she deadpanned. "I don't know, Europe? South of France?"

"Wow. That sounds great, but I can't imagine Luke closing the diner-"

"No. Not with Luke. Only me." She stopped walking and turned to face her daughter.

"Is everything okay with you guys?" asked Rory.

"Everything's fine. I…" Lorelai looked around and then pulled Rory over to her Jeep. They both climbed in and she started it up before continuing. "That whole pregnancy scare made me realize that there are some things I still want to do. And I've been in touch with Mike Armstrong since our meeting last week. He's completely open to pretty much anything I want. It's kind of a great opportunity to pass up, you know?" She pulled into their driveway and cut off the engine.

"No, I completely agree. I just hope you're doing it for the right reasons and not because you're scared of where you and Luke might be headed." Rory gave her mother a pointed look. They entered the house and removed their coats.

"Luke is the one who told me to meet with Mike. He knows some of things that the Durham Group provide. I promise. I'm not bolting on Luke." She walked over to the fridge and grabbed a bottle of water.

"Well, how does he feel about you leaving for the summer?" asked Rory knowing her mother hasn't discussed any of this with Luke.

Lorelai swallowed her gulp of water. Her daughter knew her all too well. It's not like she was making plans to leave tonight. Also, she hadn't seen Luke all day, so all she could say was, "I'm still mulling."

The next morning Lorelai awoke to clanging noises coming from downstairs. She grabbed her robe off the hook on her closet door and made her way to the kitchen. She smiled at the sight in front of her.

"Hey. Sorry if I woke you up. I saw Rory in town earlier. She was getting balloons filled at Taylor's and she told me that you two were throwing a baby shower for Sookie. I wanted to contribute, but I left my muffin pan here the other day-"

Lorelai cut Luke off with a kiss. She leaned her forehead against his. "Hey," she said softly with a smile.

"Hey back." His arms encircled her waist pulling her flush against his chest. He dipped his head to nuzzle her neck sending chills down her back. "I haven't seen you in days," he said in that low, gravelly voice.

"Mmm, I know. Things have been a little crazy around here." She closed her eyes enjoying the feel of his lips pressed to her neck. The Luke and Lorelai bubble-of-lust burst once the house phone started to ring.

"Ugh, sorry," she said with a chuckle and ran to the living room to answer the phone. "Hello?"

"Mom. Good you're up. I got the balloons all set up. I went to Weston's to get the cake. I talked to Jackson to make sure they were still leaving on time. Oh, and I told Luke if he wanted to make something brunch-y that he could."

"Man, you've had an entire day before I even woke up." Lorelai walked back into the kitchen to pour herself a cup of coffee.

"Well one of us has to be the responsible one. I figured today it was my turn. I'll see you in a few."

Lorelai hung up with Rory and took a quick sip of coffee. She watched Luke for a minute or so moving around her kitchen with such ease. He always fit so comfortably in her world. Like he was always meant to be there. "Are you coming to the shower or are you only providing the grub?"

"I can stop by. I have to meet with Taylor on something first, but afterward…" He gave her a nonchalant shrug. He wasn't ready to spill the beans about the past 24 hours and all the hoops he had to jump through to secure the Twickham house.

"You and Taylor seem to be real chummy lately," said Lorelai with a smirk. She downed the rest of her coffee and rinsed out the mug. "I have to go get ready. See you in a little bit. Kiss." She gave Luke a quick kiss and grabbed a muffin before quickly walking up the stairs.

Two hours later everyone was gathered at Sookie and Jackson's. They didn't want to overwhelm baby Martha by inviting the whole town, so a select few townies were in attendance.

Everyone took their turn holding the newest member of the Belleville family. Lorelai passed around slices of cake and refilled coffee cups. She was refilling the coffee maker when a strong pair of arms wrapped around her waist from behind. She turned to face him and couldn't help but smile at the goofy grin on Luke's face.

"That's an awfully happy face for a guy who just had a meeting with Taylor Doose," said Lorelai eyeing Luke suspiciously.

Luke scoffed. "Oh, please. You want me to finish making the coffee?" Earlier that morning he had met with Taylor to sign the paperwork for the Twickham house. Taylor told him about the three-day right of rescission, but he hoped it wouldn't be necessary. Luke planned on filling Lorelai in on everything when they had a moment alone together only it seemed easier said than done lately.

"Nope. I want you to come meet baby girl Belleville. She's been waiting to meet her Uncle Lukey." Lorelai grabbed Luke's hand and pulled him towards the living room.

"Ugh, don't call me that," groaned Luke. Before he knew it, Lorelai had placed the tiny baby in his arms. He couldn't help but smile down at her. She was sleeping peacefully despite the loud chatter going on around them. Luke looked up and locked eyes with Lorelai. They gave each other a smile that was interrupted by a loud gasp from Miss Patty.

"Oh my, God! Luke, you look like a natural holding that baby! Babette, doesn't he look like a natural? Lorelai, you're in trouble when the two of you start having babies. They'll have Luke wrapped around their little fingers." Miss Patty put her hand to her chest and gave them a dramatic sigh.

"No, no. We're not quite there yet, Patty." Lorelai laughed nervously and looked at Luke. She couldn't quite read his expression, but from the looks of it he wasn't sharing the same opinion. She shot him a confused look, but he looked back down at Martha instead. "Anyone want more coffee?"

Lorelai ducked out of the living room and into the kitchen and grabbed the carafe of coffee. She turned around and watched Luke carefully. He had found an empty spot on the couch and was cradling the baby close to his chest. The smile on his face melted her heart.

Babette and Miss Patty offered to clean up after the baby shower so that Lorelai could head over to the inn. On the drive, she couldn't get the image of Luke's almost hurt expression out of her mind. We've never talked about babies or even marriage. Why did he look so surprised that I said we weren't quite there yet? Not to mention, with this town, you can't give them a whole lot of personal information, she thought as she pulled up to the inn. There were about a half dozen bikers hanging out on the porch when she walked inside.

"Hey, Michel." She walked into her office and set her purse down on the credenza behind her desk. "Wow! We're busy today, huh?"

"Did Lance Armstrong's fan club outside tip you off?" muttered Michel in his ever popular French drawl. "Everywhere I look, there's a man in shiny, tight shorts walking around asking another man to feel how tight his rear end is. Oh, and I called Parker about the loose banister. He's yet to return my call."

"Okay. I'm gonna go check on the kitchen staff and make sure everything's running smoothly. Be nice to the bikers, please."

"If you say so," said Michel without looking up from the supply catalog he was looking over.

An hour later, Lorelai was on the phone behind the front desk when Michel walked over carrying a large gift basket.

"We are booked, booked, booked! I now love bike riders so much that from now on when driving I will no longer consider how many points I'd get if I took them out. What's this?" she asked gesturing to the basket.

"This is for you, apparently."

Lorelai gasped. "A present? I love presents!" she said in a sing-song voice. She grabbed the card that was sitting inside and opened it up. "Wonder who it could be from. 'Lorelai, a little something to make the trip over to the Durham Group a bit more fun. Mike Armstrong.' Thank you, Mike Armstrong!" She set the card down and started perusing the basket of goodies.

Michel walked around the desk to take a closer look. "That is the man who wants to buy the inn, no?"

"Oh, my God! Look at all this stuff! Travel soap, travel candles, a travel blanket, cashmere travel pillow, cashmere socks. Oh my God! I've been wanting to try this. This is the La Mer youth serum. Apparently, you put this on before you get on a plane, and by the time you get off, you're Dakota Fanning." She gestured once again to the basket. "Michel, take something! What do you want?"

He gave her a knowing smirk. "You're going to do it, aren't you?"

Lorelai grabbed the candle and gave it a sniff. She wasn't about to tell her possible plans to yet another person before she got the chance to talk to Luke. She had no choice but to fib a little. "This is my inn. I love it here. It's just fun being wooed, you know? Having someone want you enough to send you Prescriptives misting lotion."

Michel eyed her suspiciously and walked back around the desk. "Fine, if you say so."

Lorelai decided to change the subject. "Oh, hey, did the handyman get here yet? That loose banister's making me nervous."

"He has not come. Should I call him again?"

"No. Forget it. I'll call Luke. He'll come fix it and all it'll cost me is my honor," said with a grin.

Michel reached into the basket and grabbed a small jar of eye cream. "Hm. What a lovely arrangement you two have," he said sarcastically before walking away.

Lorelai grabbed the cordless phone and dialed the diner. Luke said he would come by and help out. She was straightening out some magazines in the sitting room when he walked up behind her carrying Bert, his trusty toolbox.

"I've only got ten minutes. What do you need?"

She was surprised by how quickly he got there. "Oh! The bannister's loose upstairs."

"Okay." He nodded thinking that was easy enough and he could get back to the diner. Suddenly she started rattling off a list of other things she needed done. "Did you hear the part about I've only got ten minutes?"

"Window in room three is stuck," she said in a defeated tone. They walked over to the front desk to grab the key to the room. She remembered the giant gift basket still sitting there and cringed slightly when Luke asked about it. She tried to play it cool until she could talk to him in private.

"That is my big, fancy present." She handed over the room key.

"From who?" asked Luke surprised that someone would be sending his girlfriend such a fancy gift.

"Mike Armstrong." She went into slight panic mode as she watched Luke grab the card from inside the basket and start to read it.

"Who the hell is Mike Armstrong?" he asked as he started to read the card.

"He's my other lover. He owns a diner in Woodbury. I didn't want you to find out this way, but–"

"The Durham Group," he read out loud ignoring her joke about Mike being her other lover. "What are they sending you gifts for?"

"Well, either they're disproportionately worried about my cuticles or they can't live without me and they are begging me to accept their offer." She tried to gauge his reaction. "They've been after me since that meeting last week."

"What meeting?" asked Luke trying to get caught up to speed.

"The meeting with Mike Armstrong."

Luke gave her a confused look. "I didn't know you had a meeting with Mike Armstrong."

"Yes you did. You told me to have a meeting with Mike Armstrong. Remember? Networking?"

"I know, but you never said anything, so I figured it went away." He couldn't believe that she didn't fill him in on her meeting. But then again, he never exactly asked about it.

Lorelai didn't want to get into it in the middle of her lobby. She started walking up the stairs with Luke following close behind.

"Are you going to take this job?" asked Luke as he stood planted at the bottom of the stairs looking up at her. She stopped and turned around.

"I don't know. I'm still mulling." She hoped that would be the end of the conversation for now, but her answer only seemed to make him more upset.

"Mulling! You're still mulling? She's still mulling?" he asked loudly to no one in particular.

Embarrassed by his outburst, Lorelai walked back down the stairs. "Why are you so upset?"

"I'm not upset!" Him gesturing wildly would say otherwise. "I just can't believe you're still mulling!"

"Luke!" She crossed her arms over her chest and tried to temper down her annoyance at his reaction. If this was how he felt about her thinking about taking that offer, she didn't want to know what he would do if she actually went through with it. His next outburst brought her thoughts to a screeching halt.

"What about the kids?!"

She was taken aback. For a moment, she thought he had found out about the pregnancy scare. There were only two people in the world who knew and they would never betray her trust. "What kids?" she asked trying to follow his train of thought.

Luke was mortified. Here he was running around trying to plan for their future and she wasn't even on the same page. She was thinking about uprooting her life and leaving him, as if to her the past year meant nothing. He had to get back to the diner, so he quickly went up the stairs to room three hoping that fixing a measly loose window would distract him from his thoughts.

Well, so much for not needing three days. I didn't even need three hours before I changed my mind, thought Luke with a shake of his head. He had the window fixed in record time. He thought for sure Lorelai was going to follow him upstairs, but to his relief she didn't. He knew he shouldn't have gotten so worked up over the fact that she wanted to possibly make a change in her life. He would always support her, but it felt like she was making all these life-changing decisions without him. But I guess I'm kind of doing the same thing with buying a house of which she has no clue. He decided to find her and apologize for getting so upset. He opened the door to the room and found her leaning up against the wall on the side of the doorframe.

"Hey," he said as he scratched the back of his neck nervously. "Look, I'm sorry for getting so upset. A lot has been going on lately and I felt kinda out of the loop for a minute there."

"I know. And I promise I was going to talk to you about everything once we had some time alone. I wasn't trying to leave you in the dark."

"I need to get back to the diner. Will I see you tonight?"

Lorelai nodded. "Yeah, we need to talk. I'll be out of here by 6:00."

Luke leaned in and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. "I'll see you later."

Lorelai walked downstairs and picked up the giant gift basket and carried it into her office. She sat down at her desk for a moment before reaching for her phone. After dialing the number printed on the business card she kept by her computer, she waited for someone to answer. "Yes. Mike Armstrong, please?"

AUTHOR'S NOTES: A few things. Rory stealing the yacht and dropping out of Yale does NOT happen in my story. I need things to focus on L&L, so Rory's drama has been taken out. This also means no Paul Anka. Sorry :(

Another thing is Lorelai's choice in birth control. I know it's easier to write that she's on the pill, but it's the only way I could explain her freak out over not using protection (what I assume is the primordial sex that took place). Diaphragms are not ideal in my opinion, but after the research I did it would make sense for her.

I have 9 chapters of this story written so far. It will definitely be a longer story than I've done before. I know some people were wanting a sequel to With or Without You. I did the research on custody battles and got about 1,000 words in before I realized I wasn't really enjoying it. This story, however, I'm really enjoying and I hope everyone does too.