Planting Hope
Chapter 10 – Getting Dirtier
Dear Readers, if you're still there, I'm so sorry this took so long. I'll try to finish and post the next, and probably the last chapter of this story, much quicker than I did for this chapter. Somewhere along the way, I lost my mojo. Thank you for your patience.
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Jewels12, my dear friend and my dear Spooly! Thank you so much for betaing this chapter for me. Without you, I'd have more redundancies. Without you, I'd have more redundancies. Thanks so much for the hard work and for the praise that you so generously heap onto my stories. Once again, you are the best!
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By the time they made it back to Lorelai's house, the sun hung low in the sky and a gentle breeze cooled the summer air, whipping her gauzy shirt around her legs, and sending loose strands of hair to tickle Luke's face. Waiting patiently for Lorelai to dig through her tote and to retrieve her house keys, Luke clutched the grocery bags that he held, lifting first one knee, then the other to keep each bag from slipping.
"Hiya, kids!" a shrill, raspy voice called from the side of the porch. They bristled with dread, knowing instantly that it was Babette. Lorelai's height-challenged neighbor was striding over to them in her garden clogs and a floral apron, with pockets full of spades and mini rakes.
Lorelai only looked up from her beach bag long enough to say, "Hi, Babette." Then she rummaged through it with more zeal.
As Babette scaled the stairs with some difficulty, Luke nodded to the woman that he knew was a serious contender for the title of Town's Biggest Gossip.
"So," Babette said, looking expectantly from one guilty face to the other.
"So," Luke breathed, then caught Lorelai's eye. She shrugged before she overturned her entire bag onto the porch floor, intent on quickening their escape from Babette's suspicious ogling.
"Did you have a nice time at the beach?" Babette asked with a twinkle in her eye. It was no use asking her how she knew; their clothes, gear, and pink-tinged skin gave it away. "You've been gone an awful long time."
Lorelai muscled an insincere smile over her grimace as she snagged the keys from the top of the pile, causing her damp, sandy towel to unfurl across the porch and stop at Babette's feet. "Yes, we had a wonderful time at the beach."
"Well, that's good, because you have to watch out for seagulls. You know, one time, when Morey and me were dating, much like you two." She cast her bait and waited for a nibble of a reaction. When she got none, she continued, "We went to the beach, and one of those damn birds pecked at his sunglasses."
"Sounds like the marine version of a Hitchcock film," Lorelai said, fumbling hastily to find the right key.
"Coulda been, only he wasn't wearin' the glasses," Babette reminisced. "Actually, he wasn't wearing anything. He got pretty bad sunburn that day. So did I, as a matter of fact. Especially on my…"
"Aw, jeez," Luke grumbled, and turned his uncomfortable gaze to Lorelai.
"Oh, wow. Look at the time," Lorelai said, glancing at her bare wrist. "I mean, if I had a watch on, it'd probably be… I don't know. What time?" She looked at Luke, appealing for backup.
"Uh, dinner time." He gestured to the crumbling 'Joe's Atlantic Fish Market' sacks that filled his arms. Lorelai cringed at the new ammunition he had just handed Babette.
"Oh, so you too are having dinner? What'cha cookin', Luke?" She stood on her tiptoes to peek into the bag. He instinctively turned away from her, but not before she caught a glimpse of the wine and crusty baguette that were near the top of the bag.
As if on cue, Lorelai's phone rang. She hastily shoved a good portion of the towel back into her bag, with one hand, while trying to master the lock and keys with her other. "Oh, well, hate to rush you, Babette, but the phone." She gestured with a nod toward the door.
"Yeah, you'd better get that. It might be Rory callin' all the way from Europe. I tell ya, some folks get all the luck. I hope that doll face of yours has a great time with her grandmother, and whatever argument you two have is fixed right away." Babette's knowledge of her fallout with Rory caused a small gasp of surprise to surge from Lorelai's chest.
"Here, let me help," Luke offered, transferring both bags to one arm and taking the keys from a slightly shaken Lorelai. The phone rang insistently as he found the correct key and slid it into the lock. He kicked the door open ahead of him, and Lorelai vaulted over the pile of beach paraphernalia at the threshold. The answering machine beeped and Lorelai snatched the receiver from its cradle, just as she heard her own voice begin the greeting. "Hello?"
Luke put his bags down in the foyer and returned to the porch to gather what had been dumped. "Well, Babette, thanks for visiting," he said, not too subtly.
"Yeah," she called from the top of the steps, waving over her shoulder as she hobbled down. "You two have a nice dinner, now."
"Thanks," he said, shutting the door firmly, resigning to the thought that she was probably in a hurry to call the rest of the staff at Hello Magazine and give them the scoop on his day with Lorelai.
Luke looked over to Lorelai, who was frowning into the receiver.
"Oh, hello," she said briskly, turning away from him. She stood behind the couch, poking absentmindedly at the frayed fabric near the seams, and responded, "No, just walked in the door. How are you doing?"
Luke wanted to give her some privacy, so he took the bags to the kitchen to get things ready for dinner. He emptied and folded them neatly, trying not to eavesdrop on their conversation, but he found it difficult to refrain from focusing on Lorelai's every inflection.
"I'm good." She nodded, hoping that her actions would make her words sound more convincing.
After a long pause, Lorelai smiled and her voice softened. "Bark and Cheese, really?" She rounded the couch and sat with her feet tucked under her skirt. "Exactly the same? Was there a tiny, little Italian dog in a basket barking the whole time you were there?"
Luke recognized by her intonation that they had reached a turning point in their conversation. The tensions had thawed between Lorelai and her daughter. He let out a long sigh of relief and proceeded to prepare dinner. He opened the wine, feeling comfort in hearing Lorelai's silly giggles and the familiarity that she reserved only for Rory. He wondered how he fit into the exclusive Gilmore Girl Club, and what his role might be as their relationship flourished.
Luke searched her cupboards and found a cast iron skillet that was suitable to sizzle the wafer-thin Atlantic Sea Bass fillets. A small, affectionate smile played over his lips as he realized that her spice rack held flavors that had expired years ago, and the only one with a broken seal was the salt. He'd have to do something about that, he thought, as he listened to her cheerful voice quip into the phone. "Did you have a nice piece of cheese with your coffee?"
Lorelai's laughter from the other room set his heart at ease as he listened to her reminisce and tease her daughter about the perils of ordering in Italian. He knew nothing could progress between them as a couple, if things weren't right with the mother/daughter team first. He rolled a lemon on the countertop to release its juices, before he squeezed it into his bowl of marinade.
While Luke was pouring the sauvignon blanc he heard her exclaim, "But cheese you were brought… That you proceeded to eat… Aha! You admit it was a mistake. You did say cheese." He shook his head at their silliness, but smiled as he brought her the goblet. She turned up her face and thanked him with a soft kiss and an easy smile.
Luke went back to making dinner, feeling relieved that Lorelai and Rory had patched up their differences. Setting his mind on the food preparation that always brought him to a place of serenity; he fell into a rhythm of chopping and whisking. Who says men can't multitask, he thought, as he simultaneously worked on the fish, two side dishes, and a salad.
Suddenly, her voice dropped to a near whisper, "Yeah?... It's okay… Oh, honey." Her voice cracked, followed by another drawn-out silence. "You will… okay… okay."
The noises from the kitchen ceased. He perceived the change in her tone and tuned into it with sonar-like precision.
Lorelai emitted a stunned, "Oh," and Luke put his knife down, attentive to her emotions, sending up a silent prayer that the reconciliation would endure.
"Honey, I don't know," she contemplated worriedly into the phone. "A letter, huh?" Silence ensued while Lorelai considered Rory's words. "Well, get it to me, and I will get it to him."
In the silent kitchen, Luke speculated as to whom 'he' was. He thought it might be a professor, or another person at Yale. But, he figured it was probably Rory's father, which would explain Lorelai's hesitancy in telling Luke the whole story.
After several long moments, he heard Lorelai's voice lilt as she closed the conversation with her daughter, making a concerted effort to lighten the mood.
"Have some espresso and limburger for me. I love you, too. Bye."
Luke's heart jumped when he heard Lorelai say those three words. He hoped that she would soon tear down the remaining barriers that were left standing between them so he could hear the same phrase whispered in his ear.
Lorelai stood with a contemplative expression, turning the phone over in her hand while Luke went to her. "So, that was Rory, I take it," he said, wrapping an arm around her waist.
"That was Rory." Lorelai exhaled. "She's good."
"Are you both good?" he asked, pulling her closer, her soft curves melding into his strong frame.
"We're both good."
"I knew you two would work it out."
"I guess going to Europe was the right thing for her. She realized that she messed things up, and that her behavior could potentially hurt a lot of people. But she wants to fix it now." Lorelai's relief was apparent in her words and her demeanor.
"I'm glad," he whispered sincerely, brushing his lips across her forehead. Lorelai lifted her face to touch her lips against his. They met softly, just a simple caress, but it caused his body to react to hers. A small gasp escaped her lips, and just like that, the embrace changed from supportive and understanding, to deep and desirable.
He felt the heat rising, but knew he'd need to stifle his desires for just a while longer so that they could have dinner. Luke knew Lorelai, and realized that she must be famished by now. The meal was part of his first date plan; the rest could wait. "I need to finish dinner," he said, tearing himself away from her.
She whined momentarily at their separation, but quickly realized that she was starving for more than just Luke. "Oh, it smells amazing," she said, poking around at the stove, lifting lids and allowing the aroma to waft toward her.
He turned her around gently by the shoulders and led her to the table. Pulling out a chair, he said, "Allow me."
Never one to argue with a chivalrous man, let alone a sexy-as-hell chivalrous man, she sat while he finished cooking, then allowed him to serve her.
They drank the wine and ate heartily through their relaxed, yet flirty dinner. Luke and Lorelai enjoyed each other's company, talking about anything from the weather, to where they'd both like to be ten years from now, getting to know each other on a more intimate level than ever before.
As dinner wound down, their conversation lulled into a comfortably quiet evening. "Is this weird for you, at all?" she asked him intently, swirling her wine, watching the pale liquid catch the light and throw it back in flashes of color reflected from around the room.
"You mean dinner?" he asked, figuring that she probably meant more.
"I mean us. All of it."
He set his fork down and lifted his chin. "It's not weird at all. I've been thinking about it, and everything feels right. What about you? Is it weird for you?" He held his breath, awaiting her reply.
"The only thing weird is that it isn't weird at all," she answered. He exhaled audibly and his smile encouraged her to elaborate. "Nothing's really changed; we're still the same monosyllabic Luke and mile-a-minute Lorelai."
"Nothing's changed?" He raised his eyebrows in a teasing question.
"I mean, aside from the physical aspect changing, we're still the same people."
Luke nodded. "The same, but magnified."
"Yeah, magnified to the degree of an electron microscope."
"Is that bad?" he asked, immediately beginning to worry again about having come on too strong in their newly intimate relationship.
"No," she reassured, "it's just more intense than I ever thought it could be."
"Is it too intense? We could tone it down. I could tone it down."
She immediately replied, "No, I don't want to tone it down. Unless you want to tone it down. Then I'm all for the toning down, down toning, detoning, untoning." After a few moments of quiet contemplation on both their parts, she asked, "So, are you for reverse toning
"Me? Want to tone it down? No. No way." He emphasized his words with a determined shake of his head.
"Good, because I'm not really for any of the anti-toning. I'm a pro-toner at heart," Lorelai admitted.
Luke reached across the table and took her hand. Holding it gently, he brushed his thumb over her knuckles and said, "I like this, though. Us talking about it."
"Beats the pants off of yelling about it."
"Pants off, huh? There's an idea." He raised her hand and kissed it. "I am sorry about the fighting, though. We got off to a pretty… extreme start."
"Extreme, but amazing," she agreed. "And today was wonderful. It was the perfect first date."
He smiled proudly. "It was?"
"Yes. Everything was great. The beach - you ordered the perfect weather, by the way - and the bike, although that was a little scary at first. Dinner. Everything was perfect. Thank you."
He stood holding her hand. "You're welcome, but it's not over yet."
"No?" A crooked smile played on her lips as she looked up at him.
"Well, the planned activities for the day are over," Luke said, tugging her to her feet.
She stood before him and ran her fingertips across his chiseled jaw, taking in the rough stubble that covered his cheek. "So that leaves us with just some spontaneous indoor sports."
"Let's see if anything interesting comes to mind," he said, pulling her into his arms, and kissing her softly.
"We'll see what pops up," she said, as her smile met his.
Lorelai ran the tip of her tongue, soft and tickling, across the seam of his mouth. He accepted it eagerly, and sucked hers in, caressing and tasting her with each twirl. They tilted their heads and kissed again. This time, their lips were searching and wanting. Hungry desire that had been kept under wraps all day was finally allowed to ignite and engulf them, making them breathless, with their heads spinning, and their hearts pounding.
Enrapt in the sensuous soul-satisfying kisses, they remained in the kitchen, allowing their senses to become heightened as they explored each other. Lorelai kissed the delicate area below his ear, and felt his body react, hot and hard against her belly. She inhaled a lungful of air with a deep hiss, as she pressed her soft body into his strong frame.
Luke trailed kisses to her jaw and down her neck. Instinctively, his hand brushed against the bottom of her breast, his thumb sliding softly over her swimsuit, lightly brushing over her responsive nipple. He kissed her throat, insistently nudging her chin up so more of her soft, vulnerable flesh was available to him. She relished the feel of his stubble, rasping against her sensitized skin and felt her knees give way as she began losing all control. Luke tightened his grip around her waist and held her. She no longer had grasp for self-control as she gave her all to him, a little more with each kiss - kisses that affected her in ways that she had never imagined.
"I want you," he breathed against her throat, causing her to shudder with desire.
Still embracing, she stepped backwards into the entry and pulled him with her. "Let's go upstairs," she whispered into their kiss. He lifted her flimsy t-shirt over her head, minimally interrupting their kiss, and tossed it away carelessly over his shoulder.
She shook her head, still moving backwards. He kept his lips on her and followed. "Shower," she suggested.
His lips turned up to a mischievous smile. "No. Girl soap," he protested playfully, in spite of the surge of desire that flared at the thought of lathering up with Lorelai. She laughed into another kiss, and took a few more steps until her heels reached the bottom stair.
He took advantage of her laugh, and pressed his mouth to hers in a crushing kiss. He furrowed his fingers deep into her curls and pulled her to him. Hot and hungry, they consumed each other in passion. He pulled at the straps that were tangled in his fingers under her cascading hair. One of the small triangles fell away, revealing her small, pert breast which he quickly covered with the palm of his insistent hand.
He pushed the other triangle away and lowered his mouth to kiss and caress her pebbling breasts. "Not yet," she protested through a wicked smile, crossing her arms teasingly in front of her chest. She stepped up to the next stair. "We're dirty."
His eyes lit up, focusing on where she hid her delectable breasts. "Let's get dirtier," he growled through a lusty smile as he wound the bottom tie of her bikini top twice around his fingers.
She giggled and took another step. Luke's eyes widened as he stood watching her bow slowly, being released as she moved away. He was left holding the limp, stringy suit. Mesmerized by the sensuous stripping game that was evolving; he thoughtlessly discarded the colorful scrap and followed her up another step.
He smiled knowingly and they held each other's gaze while he grasped a fist full of fabric from each side of her skirt. Her own movements stripped off the skirt along with her inhibitions. She felt the elastic give as she moved away, her desire growing while the fabric remained stationary, and her hips slipped out of it, leaving her slim thighs bare.
Once it slid past her knees, she turned to face him and sat back on the stairs, her curled fingers clutching the banister post to keep her balance. Acutely aware that she had all of his attention, Lorelai crawled away in her skimpy bathing suit bottoms. Her eyes never strayed from his as she untangled the filmy skirt from her feet and kicked it aside.
When Luke's eyes left hers, they rested on her heaving breasts that she no longer hid, then they travelled down to her taut belly. There, they lingered around the soft flair of her hips causing a heated flush to warm her skin under the stare that took in every inch of her long, slender legs. Her eyes followed his as they travelled back up to the strings on each side of her bikini bottoms. He hooked a finger under each side and held his breath, anticipating her next move.
Lorelai emitted a soft, luxuriant moan as soon as his warm, strong fingers touched the pliant flesh of her hipbones. She hesitated for a moment, while taking in the blue velvet of his eyes. A surge of feminine desire flooded her core. Enticingly slow, he peeled the last slip of fabric from her body. She lifted her hips in consent. Luke let out a low, throaty growl when he revealed her new tan lines that framed her pelvis, drawing a deeper contrast between her trimmed black curls and the triangle of her palest skin. He still found it hard to believe that he was with Lorelai at last. She wanted him and he couldn't stay away if he tried.
His momentum carried him up to where she stopped. Inches from her face, he hovered above her. His breath tickled her ear and the side of her face. She allowed him to catch her, pull her into his arms, and claim her mouth again. The kiss was as much a destination as it was a stepping stone to get to where they both knew they were going. They pressed their bodies against each other, savoring the contrast of hard against soft, smooth against rough, needing to be connected to each other by more than just a kiss.
Lorelai tore at his shirt, and lifted it over his shoulders as she plastered kisses against his chorded chest. He helped her remove it, then wrapped her in his arms again. In a controlled descent, he lowered her to recline on the landing behind her before dipping his face to smother her breasts in famished kisses, nibbles, and decadent swipes of his tongue. Lorelai responded to each caress with increased enthusiasm, her nerves sending shards of sensations out to her nipples, beaconing him to feast upon them even more.
All of Lorelai's thoughts of the shower, or of waiting, had been taken over by thoughts of feeling his weight on her with her legs enveloping him. She had no thoughts except for those of his warming touch. The hunger of needing him hit her with an urgency that she had never experienced.
He cradled her head in his hand and claimed her; she opened up to him, inviting him into her warm depths. She was more than ready for him, as she tore at his trunks until she heard the satisfying rasp of the Velcro separating each hook from each loop.
Luke circled his hips, rubbing his desire across her mound. Lorelai attempted to stifle her impatience, but it was too much to take. She whimpered with need, not able to wait another moment. She relished the taste of summer on his sun-baked skin. He was salty, and tropical, and oily, sliding over her moist and eager body. She relished the smell of the coconut-scented lotion clinging to his skin, mingling with his unbridled masculinity and invading her senses. He was right; they would be getting a lot dirtier, but that was fine with her.
She pushed his shorts down impatiently, eager to eliminate the last barrier between them. He aided the process by toeing off his shoes. Kneeling on the stair below her, Luke nudged her legs apart to make room for himself. He positioned her so that she rested forward on the landing. Seeing her with her body open and inviting made his heart swell. He wanted this woman. He needed her. Right now.
He lowered himself and paused at her entrance, swirling himself on her pleasure-swollen nub. Lorelai cried out in urgency and impatience. "Luke," she whispered in a husky, strangled plea. "Please…"
He looked into her eyes and held her gaze as he complied, his hot skin finally breaching the entrance of her very core. She was wet and willing and he had waited long enough. Succumbing to the fact that he was only a man, he took her right there on the stairs, in one smooth, filling stroke. She cried out in surprised ecstasy, which echoed off the cool walls of the stairwell. A satisfying look of serenity settled on her face. He watched her mercurial expressions before she closed her eyes. Then, he slid into her with long, unrelenting strokes.
Luke had never known such pure bliss. The feeling of being inside Lorelai Gilmore was more than merely physical and much more than love. He didn't know how to describe it, but it felt like home. He belonged there, inside of her. He felt as if he lived to feel her heart beating next to his, to feel her breath on his neck, and to hear her cry out in pleasure. Insisting on more, she encircled him with her legs and pulled him closer. They didn't attempt to hide that this session would be fast and furious, a need to be satisfied immediately. And immediate it was. An all consuming flame rushed over both of them.
Their juncture heated, igniting the passion with such ferocity that they forgot their surroundings. Each was aware only of the other and their bodies pressed against each other, rocking as one. Lorelai's hands skimmed down his back. She caressed the deep channel of his spine, and relished the muscles in his shoulders as he flexed and relaxed above her, trapping her under him with his delicious weight. Her feet met and hooked around his hips, her ankles pulling him in deeper and deeper with each thrust.
Her insistence at being filled brought him directly to the edge, where he sat overlooking the scenery and dangled his legs, allowing her to catch up. She wasn't far behind. Once she began calling out his name and arching into him, with her breasts thrust forward, he knew she was sitting on the ledge right next to him.
"You're so beautiful, Lorelai," he husked.
Lorelai tried to keep her eyes open to see the breathtaking man who was filling her with ecstasy. But she lost the battle when she finally succumbed to the pleasure. Her eyelids dropped heavily to lock out all light, except for the fireworks that burst behind her eyes. Her feminine center coiled its grip tightly around him as she built to a climax. Suddenly, tremors coursed through her, causing her to shatter like a china dish being dropped on a ceramic tile floor.
Her gasps and shudders told him all he needed to know about the pleasure she felt. And he let go to follow her down the same path. His ragged breath hitched with each emptying thrust, until finally they were spent, and lay in each other's arms for several minutes. Luke's face was buried in the crook of her neck, resting wearily until they caught their breath.
Luke moved a wayward lock of her hair away from her eyes before kissing her softly and tenderly, in complete contrast to the fiery passion that had consumed them moments ago.
Lorelai was caught off guard by the influx of emotions that settled around her heart. In an effort to stifle those feeling from springing to her eyes, she said, "We really need that shower now." She and loosened the passionate grip she had on him.
"Let me hold you for a minute first," he said, breathing in the warm, sensuous summer oils that mingled with the scent of her skin. She hugged him to her breast, cradling his head in her hands, knowing that a minute would never be long enough. And she wondered which minute it was exactly, when she had fallen hopelessly in love with Luke Danes.
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TBC