Chapter 3: Indecent Proposal
.goodness! I cannot believe how awesome you guys are. Thank you so much for your reviews, comments, faves and follows. I am sorry this took so long, but I hope you like it! This chapter was originally even LONGER, but I decided to move the rest into chapter 4, so that's already partly written. Expect it soon! -Allie
"Go take this the wrong way
You knew who I was with every step that I ran to you
Only blue or black days
Electing strange perfections in any stranger I choose
Would things be easier if there was a right way
Honey there is no right way"
The pair walked silently through the city park, clutching their respective takeout containers. Even now, their steps couldn't help but fall in sync with one another. The air was still chilly, but the sun was high in the sky, casting a warming glow on the usually overcast city. They had decided to skip the crowded restaurant and go somewhere where they could talk in private. Logan pointed to a bench and they sat, side by side, and began to eat. After a few mouthfuls, Rory finally spoke.
"Okay, now that you've plied me with delicious Asian food, start 'splainin, Lucy." She twirled her fork in the noodles. Funnily enough, Thai food was exactly what she had been craving lately.
"Ahhh," he sighed, setting down his own container. Pop culture references were an inseparable part of Rory Gilmore's dictionary. "I'm not sure where to start," He admitted.
"You may start at the beginning and finish at the end," she quipped, taking another bite.
"In that case, I guess the beginning would be that Odette left me."
Rory coughed, nearly choking on a chunk of vegetable. She hadn't expected those to be the first words out of his mouth.
"You all right, Ace?" He smirked.
"Oh my God, Logan, I'm so sorry. What happened?" She said, barely hiding her interest.
"She eloped with some artist guy she met in Prague. I don't even know his name, just that his shtick is painting really tiny pictures. It's been, oh...almost a month now?" He said entirely too nonchalantly.
"Tiny pictures? Like on itty bitty canvases? That's a thing?" Rory made a face.
"Apparently, yes, that is a thing." He half-smiled.
"How are you holding up?" She involuntarily put a hand on his knee.
"I'm great. You know, embracing my newfound freedom and everything. Living the bachelor life." He tossed his empty container in the nearby trash bin.
Rory swallowed. "Right, of course." Rory flashed back to when she and Logan had first met at Yale. Back then, he had never been one to spend more than one night with the same girl. Before she came along, that is.
"How about you?" He changed topics.
"Oh, you know, living the fast life in Stars Hollow," She deflected. "But we can talk about me later. It's almost time for me to head back to Arbor, and you haven't actually told me what the hell is going on over there. Why did Mitchum bum rush me in the lobby this morning?" She pointed her fork at him accusingly.
"Congrats on the book deal, by the way."
"Logan." She huffed.
He took a deep breath and explained that HPG was doing exceedingly well in the newspaper business, but that his father had been looking to diversify for a while, and finally settled on book publishing. Arbor was a strong choice; they were doing well enough, but lately their sales had been a little flat, a sign that they would entertain the idea of an acquisition. Mitchum himself had done the actual negotiating (a rare occurrence these days, to be sure), and Logan was being brought in, at his father's behest, to analyze their current business model and dealings and incorporate any necessary changes. Effective tomorrow, Arbor Publishing was his new home office.
"Did you know?" She asked pointedly once he had finished.
"Know what?" He feigned innocence.
"That this was my publisher." She accused.
"Not until recently, no. I didn't even know you were going to be in town." He said, truthfully.
"Did you read it?" She asked, gingerly.
"Your manuscript? No, no way! I had the chance, but I didn't want to spoil myself for the finished product. Or get too self-conscious." He winked. "Tell me one thing though, I'm dying to know – what did you change my name to?"
"Brogan Shmuntzherder," She replied, matter-of-factly. They both erupted in laughter.
"Ah, how clever! No one will ever suspect." He joked.
"I take journalistic anonymity very seriously." Rory stood, adjusting her bag over her shoulder. "I should be getting back. I have a lot to talk about with Ivan."
"Don't be too hard on him. When Mitchum wants something, there's not a whole lot you can do about it. Trust me, I know." There was a wisp of sadness in his voice. Rory chose to ignore it.
Rory pursed her lips and nodded. "Yeah, I know. I'll be gentle." She lingered for a moment, unsure of what to say. Goodbye? See you later? See you tomorrow? I'm carrying your illegitimate child? There were just so many options. He interrupted her thoughts before she could decide.
"Hey, what are you doing tonight?" he asked, running a hand through his hair.
"No specific plans," she shrugged. Her heart picked up a few beats per minute.
"What do you say we get together, then? My place? You know all about what I've been up to, but we haven't talked about the life and times of Rory Gilmore in a while." He shoved his hands in his pockets. Suddenly Logan seemed very tense.
"Sure, why not." She said without even thinking.
"Great. I'll send a car for you around...six?"
"Ok."
"Ok."
"See you tonight."
"See you tonight, Ace." Logan's posture relaxed a small amount.
They separated, each going in different directions. Rory couldn't help but stop and look over her shoulder after Logan. He was walking briskly down the stone pathway, head up and with what she swore was a grin plastered across his face.
Rory sat quietly, sifting through her notes and setting up a comfortable work space at the large conference room table. The door latch clicked behind her.
"On a scale of one to murder, how are we feeling about this?" Ivan sat down a few chairs away from Rory. His bald head was shiny with sweat and his complexion was a little green. "Because if you're tending towards the latter, I should really tell David where I stashed my will."
Rory sighed. "I get why you did it, especially after talking with Logan. I just wish that you would have told me sooner. Maybe before I was ambushed in the lobby this morning?" She added, a bit hurt, "I thought we were friends. You invited me to your wedding, for god's sake."
"I know, I know. I feel absolutely terrible. If I could have told you I would have. But the non-disclosure agreement on the whole thing was air-tight. I was honestly surprised Mitchum even told you before everything was completely finalized." He raised an eyebrow.
"We go way back." Rory muttered, resting her hand on her fist. "He told me you let him read it," she said sourly.
"It was apparently a 'deal breaker', although I can't imagine why – no offense intended. I just mean that your book is still in the early stages of publishing," he added quickly. "Rory, I'm sorry. I know I violated your trust, not just as your publisher but as your friend. Can you forgive me? Can you still work with me?" Ivan pleaded, cleaning his glasses.
"Like I said, I get it. What's done is done. Water under the bridge. Candle in the wind. So, let's just move forward." She said sincerely.
"Thank you," he replied, letting loose a deep breath.
"So, Logan's your boss now, huh?" She added conversationally.
Ivan raised an eyebrow. "Technically speaking, yes. He seems like a good guy, if I'm being honest. Although only time will tell, I suppose. I've heard he can be a real hard ass."
Rory swiveled her chair to face Ivan. Her expression suddenly turned deadly.
"Ivan, did you tell anyone at HPG about me being pregnant?"
Ivan shook his head repeatedly. "No, no, absolutely not."
Rory breathed a sigh of relief. Her hand rubbed her small baby bump, a habit she had developed lately whenever she was worked up about something.
"If you're worried about any kind of discrimination with the new leadership, I can assure you that..." Ivan stopped short, something very important and suddenly very obvious dawning on him.
"That's a Huntzberger baby in there, isn't it?" He said pointedly, sitting forward on his elbows.
Rory closed her eyes, still rubbing her belly. "Yes," she admitted.
"Logan's, I hope." Ivan said, only half-joking.
"Oh, God, Ivan! Gross! Yes, it's Logan's." She made a disgusted face.
"Hey, you can't blame me," he pointed at her. "Those Huntzberger boys are known to get around."
Ivan instantly regretted the words and backpedaled. "I did not mean that like it sounded!"
"He doesn't know." Rory admitted.
"I figured as much. When are you going to tell him? Are you going to tell him?" Ivan questioned.
"I kept meaning to, but I got really good at inventing reasons to keep putting it off. So I didn't." Rory slumped back in her seat. "I'm seeing him tonight."
"Seeing him or seeing him?" Ivan raised an eyebrow, always the gossip. Rory rolled her eyes.
Truthfully, she wasn't sure what was going to happen when they met up tonight. If she'd have the guts to announce her pregnancy to him in person. She always assumed she would break the news over the phone, or, on particularly bad days, through an email. Face to face was something entirely different. She dreaded having to watch all the tiny changes in his expression and body language as he absorbed the life-changing news.
"We've been over for a while." Rory said simply.
"If you say so, Gilmore. But it seems to me like the universe just keeps bringing you two back together. Maybe you should listen."
Rory chewed the end of her pencil. Cutting all contact with Logan had been her grand plan, and it seemed to work, at first. Until she found out that she was pregnant; until he glided back into her life again today. With the news that Odette was out of the picture, a small part of her couldn't help but wonder why he hadn't told her. Had he done exactly what she asked him to and forgotten about her entirely? Rory accepted that she would never truly be over Logan, baby or no baby. He had claimed a piece of her heart over a decade ago, and although their relationship had become unbearably complicated, she knew that she would never be able give that piece away to anybody else. Even so, she forced herself through each day. Now, looking back on the past few months, she couldn't decide if she did this just to follow through with her words out of stubbornness or if this was something she really wanted. These kinds of thoughts made her uncomfortable.
Rory tried on every piece of clothing she brought with her for the trip (which, admittedly, was not very much), but nothing felt right. She cursed her decision to pack light. She wanted to strike a balance between looking attractive, but also concealing any trace of her baby bump. The two requirements seemed to be sternly at odds with one another tonight. Rory checked the clock – it was almost five thirty. Her meeting with Ivan, after they had gotten through all the awkwardness, had been incredibly productive, but had run until past well past four o'clock. Now she found herself with her hair and makeup finished, but nothing to wear and not enough time to go buy something new. She settled on an over sized camel-color sweater dress with a deep V-neck. One perk of being pregnant was that her breasts inflated from a small B to a full C cup, and the cut of the neck highlighted her newfound cleavage. She checked herself in the mirror. The empire waist and A-line fit of the dress hid her bump well enough. Paired with black leggings and riding boots, she looked casual yet sexy. Sexier than she had looked in months, she admitted to herself.
Despite the outfit, Rory wasn't sure what she wanted from Logan, or what he was prepared to give to her. She wasn't sure if the desire to look good tonight was more for her or him, either. It was all very frustrating. The phone rang, letting her know that a car had arrived for her. She put on her favorite red trench coat and flannel scarf, and headed downstairs.
Rory stepped out onto the sidewalk and the icy air immediately bit into her lungs. The sun had long since gone down, giving way to short winter days, and with it all the warmth of earlier. The driver opened the backseat door for her and she climbed in, thankful for the wave of warmth that hit enveloped her.
"Hello, again, Rory." A voice came from the seat across from her. Startled, she let out a small shriek and felt the blood rush to her head. Her instinct was to get out of the car and run, but by then it had already begun to move.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you," Mitchum said, somewhat apologetically.
"You have a very funny way of showing it," she replied, heart rate decelerating slightly. "Logan didn't mention that you'd be chaperoning tonight."
"Logan doesn't know I'm speaking with you, and it should stay that way," He began, cryptically.
"I'm not sure what this is all about, but-" she began, irritated. He held out a piece of paper to her before she could finish. She took it carefully. It was a tabloid newspaper.
"Read it," he urged, waiting.
Rory studied the front page. The headline immediately caught her eye: "Newspaper Heir Turns Playboy Post-Breakup". She swallowed, turning to the specified page. She was met with a full spread article about Logan and his recent serial dating all over London. There were pictures of at least five different women, all purported to be models or actresses or just a pretty face that caught his eye at a nightclub. She turned it back to the front and checked the date; this was from today.
"So, what?" She said, trying not to think about what she had just read.
"I'm going to be frank with you, Rory, because I appreciate that you're not the kind of girl to beat around the bush," Mitchum began. "Logan is...spiraling out. That paper was from today, but I could show you two or three others from the past few weeks that say pretty much the same thing. He's burning through women faster than he did when he was twenty years old, and nothing I do or say seems to impress upon him that it is unacceptable."
"Logan is a grown man. What he does with his personal life is up to him." Rory said blankly.
"To an extent, yes. He's grown a lot since college, I'll give him that. I would just disown him if I think that would be the best solution. But I don't think it is."
The car turned a corner. Rory recognized some of the street names. Only a few more blocks until they reached Logan's townhouse. She didn't respond.
"You were always a good influence on him, Rory. When he started getting serious with you was when he also started getting serious about his obligations and his career. Now he's floundering, and I think its because he needs you back in his life," Mitchum paused. "Preferably in a romantic capacity, although I'll take what I can get."
Rory was stunned. She knew Mitchum didn't always play by the rules, but asking her to shack up with his son so to keep him out of the papers was way below the belt. She felt the fire creep up her cheeks.
"You're nuts," she blurted. "Logan and I are finished. We have been for a long time," she said, trying to sound convincing. She wasn't sure if Mitchum had ever deduced that they were still seeing each other when they met at lunch that day, months ago.
"Rory, come now. You know and I know that that's not the truth. I see how you two look at each other, interact." His tone was patronizing, which infuriated her even more. "Plus the fact that you're even in this car right now means that there's something there. All I'm asking is that you explore that possibility."
The car pulled to a stop in front of Logan's place.
"I'm going to tell him all of this," were the only words she could come up with.
Mitchum shrugged. "I don't think you will. I think we both want the same things for Logan."
Before she could respond, the driver had opened the door for her. She looked back and forth between Mitchum and the curb, deciding whether to argue or run.
"Goodnight, Rory. See you soon!" He called as she stepped out of the car.
I am so sorry this took me so long! This week was NUTS at work. I have a friend staying this weekend, but I'm hoping to get some more writing done. Stay tuned! -Allie
