Chapter 7

Just before seven, Logan arrived at the agreed upon restaurant. He wanted to be early, but work had managed to keep him going until he was nearly late. He felt lucky he made it before their set time. He knew Rory would already be waiting for him. He checked himself in the reflection of the window one last time before he went inside. There, he found her sitting in a booth in the far corner of the restaurant. He was relieved because he'd been hounded one too many times while out to eat with Odette, and he definitely didn't want to be caught out with 'another woman'.

Rory gave him a soft smile when he joined her. There was a menu in front of him.

"Not much has changed on this menu, has it?" he said trying to make polite conversation.

"Same fighting owners, same crappy menu," she replied with a little chuckle. It suddenly stopped as she began to feel awkward when she remembered this was the same place she was going to take him on his graduation day.

"What's wrong?" he asked after noticing she seemed to have gotten sad.

"Oh, it's nothing," she sighed. Rory didn't mean for it to sound so forlorn, but the memory really seemed to bother her.

"Hey, you can still talk to me," he prodded.

"It's just..." she began not knowing how to put it into words without sounding like some sentimental sap. "This is the place I was going to take you after you graduated from Yale, but your dad made you meet up for drinks with his cronies, and we barely got to spend any time together the night before you left for London."

God, that sounded whiney, she thought chastising herself.

"It is? Why didn't you tell me that?"

"I had wanted it to be a surprise," she explained and felt the tears welling up. Oh, stop it, now! she ordered herself silently. Stupid hormones!

"What's really wrong?" he asked digging deeper.

"Sorry, it's these stupid hormones making me cry all of the time," she revealed as she wiped her tears and tried to regain her composure. "I cried the other day watching one of those Adam Sandler movies on Netflix."

"They made me want to cry, too," he said trying to lighten the mood.

"Why would you watch them in the first place?"

"I blame Finn," he answered. "What about you?"

"You know Lorelai. Once she gets an idea in her head, there's no getting it out, and I was the only one around," Rory replied. "I became her victim. At least there were good snacks!"

"Have you made up your minds?" the waitress asked in a polite but flat manner.

"We'll have spaghetti and meatballs," Logan ordered for both of them without a second thought. It had been their go-to meal every time they'd eaten there before. "And a bottle of the house red. Two glasses."

"ONE glass," Rory corrected.

"Sorry," Logan apologized. "Forget the wine."

Wow, I went on auto-pilot, he thought. Of course, she can't have wine. She's pregnant with your child!

"Why did you do that?" she asked pointedly.

"Do what?"

"Order for me, like we were a couple."

"Old habit," he said sheepishly. "Sorry."

"No, I'm sorry," she replied. "I shouldn't have suggested this place. I was just craving pasta and this was the first place that popped into my head."

"Do you get a lot of cravings?"

"It comes and goes," she answered and the pair sat in a tense silence. "For the record, I was going to order that anyway. It's the one thing that was edible here."

"So..." Logan began.

"So..."

They sat there looking at one another, trying to figure out what the other was thinking, and both knowing they shouldn't avoid the elephant in the room.

"Well, we can't avoid the obvious reason for our meeting," she started. "I have no idea what happened in Vegas. I wracked my brain over and over until it nearly gave me a headache, but I've got nothing."

"The night I found out, I had a really weird, almost too vivid, dream about the trip," Logan replied.

"Yeah?"

"I'm pretty sure I remembered a good chunk of it, and the guys filled in some details that seemed to make sense," he said.

"Care to share?" she asked.

Logan recalled what details he could, and, occasionally, Rory would chime in with bits and pieces as her memory was sparked. By the time he was done, he'd recounted what he determined to be a fairly accurate depiction of the events of the weekend.

"WOW! It's becoming clearer now, but how could none of us remember any of this?"

"You know, that's a great question," he chuckled. "And one we've all been trying to answer."

The couple smiled at one another, trying to figure where to go next with the conversation. At some point, they'd have to face the subject of the annulment papers. In the meantime, they hit on lighter subjects to help ease them into the hard truth of their situation. Before they could get around to it, their dinner showed up. Rory took a big whiff of the aromatic sauce and her pallor turned peaked. She slapped her hand over her mouth and shook her head.

"I'm sorry. Can you take these away?" Logan asked the waitress.

"Is there something wrong?"

"I'm afraid the smell has made her nauseous," he answered and saw Rory trying to violently wave the scent away.

"I don't understand," the waitress sounded confused.

Logan made the motion of a baby, and he could see the light click on in her head. She nodded and grabbed the plates.

"Can I bring something else perhaps?"

"Could you give us a few minutes?"

"Certainly. I'll get these out of the way and be right back," she replied with a sympathetic look.

"I'm so sorry, Logan," Rory apologized looking relieved that the scent had vanished.

"It's ok, Ace. Does anyone else sound good?"

"Maybe dessert? My body hasn't turned on them thus far. Most likely because it's part of my DNA," she suggested with a chuckle.

"Tiramisu?" Logan asked about one of her favorites.

"Yes!" she nearly shouted.

When the waitress returned, they ordered tiramisu and coffee.

"Decaf?" she asked.

"Bring the real thing, please," Rory answered firmly.

"Are you sure?" Logan wondered.

"Definitely! It's hard enough most days, but after feeling so sick, I need real coffee," Rory explained.

"Ok, coming right up!" the waitress said and left.

"So, did you have a chance to look over the papers?" Logan suddenly shifted into business mode. She'd seen the serious face before.

"I tried, but I'm going to need a translator," she joked.

"Would you like to talk to Colin? He was the architect of the papers, and I'm sure he'd be more than happy to help you out," he offered.

"I don't think that's such a good idea based on that fact," she declined.

"He won't bullshit you. I'm pretty sure he likes you a lot more than he likes me," he said.

Rory laughed. "You're probably right, but I've got an appointment tomorrow. I'll take care of it."

"Thank you," he said in a softer tone.

"For what?"

"Being you," he smiled and his hard business face had melted into a gentler, more caring one. She'd seen it thousands of times throughout the years. Or so she thought until he quickly shifted and felt the tension building once again.

Fortunately, they were saved by coffee and dessert. The plate held a single serving of tiramisu with two spoons and was topped with a cocoa heart. He realized that this must have looked like a date to the untrained eye, and the waitress had assumed as much. Is this another sign that the universe wants us to be together? he wondered. At the very least, they shared a laugh over her mistake, and from that point on, they were two friends catching up. It had broken the last of the tension and made them comfortable with one another.

After dinner, they decided to enjoy the unseasonably warm weather with a walk. The pair continued to chat about life, and for a moment, it felt as if nothing were wrong. Suddenly, Rory grabbed onto Logan to prevent a fall.

"Are you ok, Ace?" he asked worriedly.

"Sorry, I'm fine. Just a little dizzy spell," she explained.

"Do we need to go to the hospital?" his pulse had started to quicken and his mind began racing.

"No, it's ok. The doctor said it was normal because of the hormones and the blood flow going to the baby," she expounded.

"Are you feeling ok or should we go back?"

"I wouldn't mind the walk if you're still up for it," she said.

"Then, let's walk!" he announced.

He slid her arm through his to prevent any further stumbles. She felt sparks as he touched her. No, she warned herself, but it was too late. All of her feelings for him had begun rushing back and memories of them flooded her mind. Without thinking, she rested her other hand on his arm. Even in the crisp winter air, she could smell him. She'd become almost intoxicated by that scent whenever they'd see each other, and Rory had that drunk feeling now. She couldn't get enough and felt herself drawing a little closer to him as they walked.

Logan enjoyed the fact that he and Rory could simply be with each other without having to say a word.

He sensed she was drawing closer to him and excitement tingled throughout his body. He was torn about having these feelings, but they were too powerful for him to control. Once she leaned on his arm, he was done for. Wrapping an arm around her shoulders, he pulled her a little closer and she reciprocated with hers around his waist. When they stopped near a park, he could feel her begin to shiver a little as the cooler night air settled in. He pulled her even closer, and she wrapped her other arm around his waist while they sat on a bench.

Rory breathed him in, leaning against his chest, snuggling into him. His lips rested on her head as if he were doing the same. What am I doing? she wondered. I just can't help the way I feel. She resisted the urge to kiss him, and it was a struggle.

Is this how it's supposed to be? he asked himself. It certainly felt right to him. Having her in his arms had always seemed perfect to him, and here he was. He was startled out of his thoughts when she moved, looking into his eyes. Her piercing blue eyes bore holes into his soul.

I want to kiss him. Does he want that, too? she thought as she tried to read him, staring into his warm, brown eyes. Before she could find the answer there, his lips were pressed firmly to hers. Her eyes fluttered closed as she returned his affection. She felt the heat rising from within, and she wanted more from him. Their lips parted, and they sat with their foreheads pressed together. Rory put her hand on his cheek and slid it behind his head, pulling him toward her as she hungrily kissed him. She wanted him and didn't care about the rest of the world.

When they finally stopped, both were nearly out of breath.

"I've missed you, Ace," he confessed.

"Me, too," she agreed. "What are we doing out there? It's freezing!"

"Let's go back to my place so you can warm up before your drive back home," he suggested and she nodded in agreement.

They walked back to their cars hand-in-hand. Logan shot her the address for his apartment.

"See you in a few," he said before he kissed her passionately. He wanted her to remember it all the way to his place and not think about anything else.

Rory got into her car and set off for his place. As she drove, she began reassessing the situation. What in the world are you doing, Rory? He wants you to sign divorce papers...no...annulment papers. The thoughts swirled in her head mixed with her feelings and the sparks she felt. Before she could rationalize any more, she was at his place. Nothing is going to happen, she tried to convince herself but she knew better. She went up anyway.

What the hell has come over me? It's like I can't help myself, or is this what I really want? Maybe nothing will happen, he contemplated. Oh, who am I kidding? Even a blind man can see what's going on.

The light rapping on his door thrust him back into reality. Stay strong, Huntz, he pepped himself.

Without thinking or saying anything, he swept her into his arms and kissed her soundly. She wrapped her arms around his neck after dropping her purse to the side. She heard the door closing behind her as they kept kissing each other with a fiery passion. Without warning, he stopped because his conscious had finally kicked in.