I know I said the updates would be slower but I managed to write another chapter tonight! So here's chapter 12. It is a little shorter again but I was gonna include something in this one but you'll find it in the next chapter cause it would have been way to long if I'd have included it all together. Hope you like it
A week passed by in the blink of an eye and Luke and Lorelai found themselves stood in front of the Gilmore's front door for their second dinner. Lorelai had chosen to dress Rory in something a little more appropriate this week even though Emily never even commented on the fact that Rory was wearing her pyjamas. Luke reached to ring the bell but Lorelai caught his arm to stop him.
"Don't push it yet," she ordered.
"Why not? The sooner we get in there, the sooner we get out."
"I just wanna talk for a second."
"So we drive thirty minutes here in silence but now you wanna talk?"
"Well....yeah," she said lamely.
"Lorelai this is ridiculous, let's just ring the bell."
"No!" She grabbed his arm again. "Don't you think my mom was acting....weird last week?"
"Weird?"
"Yeah, I dress Rory in PJs and she doesn't say a thing, you say you don't eat red meat and she offers to get you some chicken, I fake an illness and she lets me go home straight away with no questioning!"
"What's up with that?"
"It's not my mother. I had the German measles and she still made me attend the Christmas party."
"Well she couldn't leave you at home by yourself."
"The party was at our house," she exclaimed hysterically. "All I wanted to do was rest but no! I had to go to the stupid Christmas party even though I had spots all over my body. I'm telling you, she's up to something."
"You're being paranoid."
"Believe me, I know my mother."
"Well let's go in and see if she's still acting 'weird'."
"You're not taking me seriously."
"Lorelai I don't see the problem."
"Just wait till she scolds you for getting fingerprints on the cutlery."
"What?"
"You'll see," she warned as she reached over and rang the doorbell. Luke rolled his eyes and plastered on a smile when the maid answered the door.
"Hello," she greeted shyly.
"Hi we're here for dinner."
"Oh come in." The maid opened the door fully and gestured for Luke and Lorelai to walk in.
"Come on Rory," said Lorelai to the toddler who was stood watching them as they stepped through the huge door. Rory turned around and walked the other way towards Luke's truck. "Ha she doesn't want to be here either," Lorelai joked.
"Rory," called Luke. He stepped out of the door and watched as Rory kept stumbling to the truck.
"What is going on?" asked Emily as she saw the maid and Lorelai stood at the open door with Luke stood just outside. "Where's Rory?"
"She's making an escape plan," said Lorelai, pointing to where Rory now stood next to the truck.
"You can tell she's your daughter," Emily remarked with a shake of her head. Lorelai scowled at her when Emily wasn't looking. "Don't look at me like that."
"How do you do that? You were looking over there!"
"Rory come here now," said Luke.
"Nuuuuuu," moaned Rory. Luke sighed and walked over to the truck. He managed to get a hold of her as she tried to escape. Rory pouted at him.
"I'm sorry," he whispered before he reached the front door again. They took off their coats and gave them to the maid before they were led into the living room by Emily.
"Richard, they're here," called Emily to Richard's study.
"Coming Emily," they heard a muffled reply. They took their usual seats and Luke set Rory on the floor. She used the coffee table to stand up and began to walk around the room.
"Lorelai sit her on your lap while we have drinks," ordered Emily.
"Mom she's just learnt to walk, she likes to be on her feet."
"Fine." Richard walked into the room and found Rory stood in front of him.
"Well hello Rory," he said, surprised to see her walking around. She looked up at the tall man in front of her and fell backwards onto her butt. Richard laughed and walked towards his chair.
"Hello Luke, Lorelai."
"Hi dad."
"Lorelai I was wondering if you were available tomorrow?" he asked.
"Err yeah why?"
"Well I assume you want a restraining order against Christopher?"
"Yeah I do," she replied with a nod of her head.
"And you want to fight for sole custody of Rory."
"What? I never mentioned that," she said, taken aback. "I just want him out of Rory's life."
"If he signs all his parental rights over to you, he'll be out of her life forever."
"But how do we get him to do that? Did you not hear him in the park that night? He said I can't keep him away from her, I doubt he's gonna just give up like that."
"That's why we fight. You're bound to win with his absence and then the incident last week."
"Dad I don't wanna get into a whole custody battle with him, I just want him out of our lives."
"Lorelai you need to think about this rationally..."
"No I don't wanna drag this out over months, maybe even years. If I get a restraining order he'll have to stay away or else he'll be breaking the law."
"You are so stubborn."
"Just listen to me on this, please." He looked at her and saw her desperation.
"Very well. So tomorrow we need to go to the courthouse and apply for the order."
"Can I bring Rory with me?"
"It would be best not to. The judge may ask you some questions and we could be there a while."
"Oh well..."
"I'll babysit," offered Luke. Lorelai turned her head to look at him.
"You will?"
"Yeah of course."
"What about the diner?"
"I hired a new guy remember? He's looking for some extra shifts so he can work tomorrow."
"Are you sure that's ok Luke?" interrupted Emily. She wasn't at all happy with the idea of Luke taking care of Rory by himself. "I don't mind babysitting," she added.
"It's ok mom, it'd be easier for Rory to stay in Stars Hollow anyway."
"Oh." Emily needed to think of a way to stop this. "Maybe I could go to your town tomorrow then."
"You don't have to go to all that trouble, Luke will look after her."
"Ok then." Emily slumped back in her chair. She not only felt annoyed that this boy was going to be taking care of her granddaughter all day but she also felt useless. She wanted to be a bigger part of the girl's lives but Lorelai was once again pushing her away. She'd hoped that having dinner would bring them closer together but she wanted more than once a week visits where Rory was tired after a long day, she wanted to play an active role in the upbringing of her granddaughter.
"So will I get the restraining order tomorrow?" asked Lorelai, trying to understand the process.
"Well you will sign the forms in front of a court clerk then the clerk will take them to the judge. The judge may sign them straight away or he/she may ask you a few questions to decide whether you need an ex parte."
"What's that?"
"Well if you believe you or Rory are in danger now, you can get an ex parte restraining order that will keep you protected until the hearing."
"The hearing?"
"Yes once the judge has granted you the order, you will be given a hearing date. Here you will need to present your case so it can be decided whether you wish to extend the order. Christopher will have to be present for the hearing and the two of you will have to come to an agreement."
"What if we don't agree?"
"Then the judge will make the decision for an extension. That's why you present your case, so the judge can fully understand your reasons for applying."
"Ok, so this ex parte, do you think I need one of those?"
"Do you think you are in danger of Christopher showing up and causing you or Rory any harm in the next couple of weeks?"
"Erm...probably not."
"Then the judge won't grant you an ex parte."
"Ok, let's get this over with."
"Right then, I will pick you up at eight tomorrow morning," said Richard. Lorelai's eyes widened.
"Eight?"
"Yes we need to get to the court early to avoid the crowds."
"I repeat, eight?"
"What's the problem?"
"Tomorrow's Saturday."
"Seeing as today is Friday, I gathered that."
"Saturday is the day of rest."
"Sunday is the day of rest," he pointed out.
"Saturday is the day of pre-rest."
"What are you talking about?"
"Richard as you may have noticed, Lorelai isn't a morning person," said Luke.
"Ah so that hasn't changed."
"Even Rory sleeps in on a Saturday!" said an exasperated Lorelai. Rory crawled over to Lorelai's legs, having gotten fed up of walking. "Don't you sweets?" Rory just laughed and crawled off again.
"Lorelai pick her up, she'll ruin her outfit," scolded Emily.
"She's fine."
"It's such a pretty dress; she shouldn't be crawling around the floor in it."
"It's ok I made the dress, I can always make another."
"You made that?"
"Yup."
"Well I didn't know you were so handy with a sewing machine."
"Oh yeah, I make most of her clothes actually. The price of fabric is a lot cheaper than the price of clothes. I don't actually have my own sewing machine but Mia lets me use hers when I need it."
"Isn't that nice?" Emily got up and picked Rory up, admiring her clothing closely. "It's such good quality, you could do this for a living, you'd make a fortune."
"Oh I don't know, I kinda like the inn business."
"Lorelai you're a maid, that's not a suitable career."
"But I'm hoping to work my way up the ladder. One day I wanna open my own inn."
"I don't see how working as a maid is going to get you there."
"Mom trust me on this." Emily rolled her eyes then admired Rory's dress again. "It's gorgeous." Lorelai beamed proudly. Her mother was complimenting her; she couldn't remember her ever praising her before but there's a first time for everything.
"Mrs Gilmore, dinner is ready," the maid announced, well more like whispered but Emily seemed to understand. She checked her watch.
"Carolyn it's seven fifteen."
"I...I know Mrs Gilmore."
"We must have gotten sidetracked with this whole Christopher thing. Carolyn dinner is at seven sharp, I thought I told you this."
"I'm sorry Mrs Gilmore."
"You will serve our dinner then pack your bags. You're fired."
"Ok Mrs Gilmore." The maid scurried out of the living room and Emily went into the living room. Luke held Lorelai back for a second.
"She fired the maid cause dinner was fifteen minutes late?"
"Oh yeah, you have a lot to learn." Carolyn set their soup starter in front of them and Lorelai watched as she left the room. "So mom, how long has Carolyn worked for you?" she asked casually.
"Oh two or three hours." Luke choked on his soup as he swallowed it and Lorelai stifled a laugh. "Are you ok Luke?" asked Emily.
"Err yeah I'm fine Mrs Gilmore," he said as he sipped his water. Lorelai smiled widely at him, still trying to hold in her laughter while Luke scowled at her. Ten minutes later, Carolyn brought the main course in.
"So Carolyn, it was nice to meet you," said Lorelai kindly.
"It was....nice to meet you too," she said, almost inaudibly.
"I hope you find another job soon."
"Thank you." Carolyn flashed her a genuine smile before leaving the family to dinner.
"Lorelai must you talk to the maid?"
"Why am I fraternising with the enemy?" Emily rolled her eyes.
"So has anything happened this week?"
"Like what mom?"
"Like anything interesting?"
"Erm...ooh I broke my record for how many cups of coffee I drank in a day."
"You're poisoning your body with that stuff," said Luke.
"Hey, you served me like half those cups."
"More fool me."
"Is that the most interesting thing you could think of?" asked Emily, obviously bored.
"Well...." Lorelai thought for a second. "Yeah."
"Boy you lead an exciting life," said Emily sarcastically. Lorelai checked to see that Emily wasn't looking before she passed a couple of carrots to Rory. "Do you have to pass all your unwanted food to your daughter Lorelai?"
"Seriously, do you have eyes all over your head?"
"Well I didn't mention anything last week when you practically emptied all the vegetables from your plate into Rory's mouth."
"I don't like vegetables."
"They're good for you," said Luke.
"I thought you were on my side!" she whined.
"Not on this I'm not."
"Fine I will eat my vegetables." She reluctantly put a spoonful of peas into her mouth, pulling a disgusted face as she chewed.
"Speaking of things I didn't mention last week..." began Emily.
"Here we go," muttered Lorelai.
"Can you not dress your daughter Lorelai? You brought her here in her pyjamas, that is not proper attire for dinner." Lorelai smirked at Luke as she had predicted this conversation; it was just a week late.
"It was convenient."
"Convenient how?"
"Well by the time we get home, Rory's asleep and it seemed unfair to wake her so I could change her for bed. I just thought it'd be easier then I don't have to try to get her back to sleep."
"But she's not wearing them this week."
"That's cause I made her this dress and I wanted her to wear it tonight. I brought her PJs; they're in the diaper bag for when I give her a bottle."
"Oh well I suppose that's logical."
"Yes it is." Lorelai couldn't believe how much her mother was agreeing with her tonight, it was strange behaviour and she wanted to get to the bottom of it. "It's past eight now actually, I should get her to sleep."
"Can I help?" asked Emily.
"Sure." Lorelai lifted Rory and the two women went upstairs to Lorelai's old bedroom leaving Luke and Richard alone. Everyone had finished their meal but had completely forgotten about dessert.
"So Luke, what do you say we retire to the living room for a scotch?"
"Err I'm only eighteen so I'll have water, thanks."
"Nonsense, a glass won't hurt."
"Are you sure? I've never had scotch before; it always seemed a little strong for me."
"It is an acquired taste." Luke situated himself on the couch as Richard poured his drink. "There you go." Luke looked at it in uncertainty. "It's ok Luke I won't tell Emily."
"Ok." Luke took a small sip and winced as it burned his throat. "Whoa."
"Not to your liking?"
"Not really."
"Don't worry about it, would you like anything else?"
"Err..."
"You can have a beer if you like. Don't try to tell me you've never had beer before."
"I have."
"Hmm Lorelai has too; more than I would have liked."
"Well if it makes you feel better, she told me she hasn't had a drop of alcohol since she found out she was pregnant."
"That does make me feel better." Richard handed Luke a bottle of beer. "So Luke, I know this is all a bit typical of me but I'd like to know what your intentions are with Lorelai."
"What do you mean?"
"Well what are your plans?"
"We've only been together for like two and a half weeks."
"As Lorelai's father I want to know. And seeing as my granddaughter is affected by this as well, I would like to know what's going on."
"Well we've been on seven dates, a couple of days out with Rory..."
"What about in the future? Do you plan to go steady?"
"Of course. I was gonna talk to Lorelai about that actually."
"Well I want you to know that if you ever hurt my girls, I will hunt you down."
"You missed the 'and kill you'."
"I may be protective Luke but I'm not psychotic." Luke chuckled as he sipped his beer. "So things are good?"
"They're great. You're so lucky to have such an amazing daughter and granddaughter."
"I know I am," Richard said with a smile. "Tell me Luke, how do you feel about Rory?"
"I erm..."
"I'm not trying to put you on the spot; I'm just curious why a young man like yourself would choose to be tied down by a baby that wasn't his." Luke felt an ache in his heart when Richard mentioned that Rory wasn't his.
"The way I see it is Rory's a great kid. I'm not particularly a kid person but Rory's different. I don't feel tied down when I'm with her; I feel fulfilled." Luke felt a little wary when he remembered who he was talking to but carried on anyway. "Before I met Lorelai and Rory, I was lonely I guess. My dad died last November and my sister left, I've lived alone since then. People in Stars Hollow call me the Hermit cause apparently I'm grumpy and never talk to anyone. Then when Lorelai came into the diner the first time, we talked for a while and I found out how great she was. Things just went on from there really."
"So you're happy with the girls."
"Definitely."
"I forgot to thank you for staying with Lorelai last week when Rory went missing. She really needed your support and you really helped her."
"It was no problem; I wanted to make sure Rory was ok."
"I'm glad you care for her."
"I really do. And for Lorelai too."
"This may sound odd coming from me but what are your...sexual intentions?"
"Uh..." Luke hated talking about sex to anyone never mind Lorelai's dad.
"There's no need to be embarrassed Luke," assured Richard, seeing Luke's cheeks turn a bright shade of red.
"We haven't...."
"Had sex?"
"Yeah that."
"Do you plan to?"
"It's up to Lorelai. As soon as she feels ready, I'll...you know...."
"Feel comfortable?"
"Yeah. I know Christopher is the only guy she's ever been with in that way and I don't wanna pressure her into anything so I'll wait till she's ready." Luke drank the rest of his beer and put the empty bottle on the coffee table.
"That's very good of you Luke. I know Christopher had no intentions of waiting until Lorelai was ready, he just couldn't wait to get my daughter pregnant."
"I know Lorelai getting pregnant wasn't something either you or Emily wanted or were happy about but if you ask me, it turned out pretty good." Luke breathed deeply. "I know she left but she told me she would have done that anyway, Rory was just an incentive to go ahead with it. I don't think you could have asked for the situation to turn out better."
"I know Luke. All the way through Lorelai's pregnancy we were disappointed in her and I think she knew that. But as soon as I met my granddaughter, all my anger and disappoint seemed to melt. Yes I will still hold a grudge to Christopher for preventing Lorelai from completing high school and going to college but Rory is a special girl and I'm proud of Lorelai for how she grew up when her daughter was born."
"I think she's really amazing for what she's doing with Rory. Raising a kid at seventeen by yourself can't be easy can it?"
"No it can't."
"But she's not alone anymore, I'm here," he admitted shyly.
"Are you really in it for the long haul?"
"I am if Lorelai wants me to be. I know I might sound like some clueless kid but I'm not. When my dad died, I had to take care of myself. I opened my own business and got it up and running while looking out for my sister who also had a kid young."
"You're sister has a child?"
"Yeah she's seventeen. I have an idea of how you felt when Lorelai told you she was pregnant believe me. Liz isn't half as mature as Lorelai is; I get dumped with my nephew most of the time cause Liz can't be bothered. It breaks my heart to know he won't have a mother that deeply cares for him the way Lorelai does for Rory."
"You're more mature than I thought you were Luke, I think you and Lorelai could work."
"You do?"
"Yes I do, I can see you as my son in law in the future."
"Whoa I think it's a little early for that."
"I know, I just like to think ahead." Luke smiled at Richard as he heard footsteps behind him. He turned around to see Lorelai walking round the couch to him, cradling a sleeping Rory.
"Did she get to sleep ok?" asked Luke.
"Yeah she was fine."
"You were up there for a while."
"We were talking."
"Oh some of that went on down here too." Luke couldn't help but realise that the atmosphere felt warmer.
"Are you ready to go?" she asked.
"Yeah." They stood up and walked to the front door. "Here, I'll take Rory while you put your coat on." Luke carefully lifted Rory so she was against his torso, her face snuggling into his neck. She stirred a little then quickly found comfort in his warmth and dozed off again. Emily and Richard watched as he handled Rory so lovingly, slowly rubbing her back to soothe her back to sleep.
"Shall I take her back so you can put yours on?" asked Lorelai.
"It's ok, she seems to be pretty comfortable here," he chuckled. Lorelai held his coat to her body as they said goodbye to her parents. "Thanks for dinner Mrs Gilmore," said Luke politely.
"You're welcome Luke. And call me Emily." Luke and Lorelai smiled in unison hoping that maybe he'd won her over.
"Right and thanks for the talk Richard."
"You're welcome."
"Bye mom, bye dad," said Lorelai.
"Goodbye you two," said Emily. They began to walk through the door.
"I'll pick you up at eight tomorrow Lorelai," called Richard.
"Don't remind me," she groaned, not turning to look at him. They got into the truck and Luke put Rory in the car seat. She moved around, unhappy with the change of location but soon settled when Lorelai rubbed her belly. "I used to do this when she was smaller," she said.
"Really?"
"Yeah, when I read to her she stirred sometimes and I found that this soothed her."
"I think she wants to be in the comfort of her crib."
"Yeah, we should get going."
When they reached the inn, Luke pulled up outside and shut the engine off. Lorelai turned and smiled at him.
"Tonight's dinner was actually tolerable," she said, surprised.
"I know."
"What did you and dad talk about?"
"You."
"Bad things?"
"Very very bad things."
"Like what?"
"Like how you have the best boyfriend in the world."
"Boyfriend?"
"Yeah I figured things were going well and we should make it official."
"That sounds good, I'm a girlfriend," she said, her smile growing wider.
"My girlfriend," he added, emphasising the 'my'. "Anyway we should put Rory to bed."
"Luke will you stay over tonight?"
"Do you want me to?"
"Well I wouldn't have asked."
"Right, of course I will. It makes sense actually; seeing as you have to leave early." She nodded in response. "I'll have to go get some stuff for tomorrow though."
"Oh yeah absolutely."
"Do you want me to walk you to the shed first?"
"No it's fine," she said dismissively.
"I am doing anyway. After everything that's happened I wanna know you both get there ok."
"Thanks Luke." He unfastened Rory and held her in the place she found so comfortable before. After he had made sure Lorelai and Rory were home, he drove to the diner to pick up some clothes and toiletries. He picked up his toothbrush, deodorant, soap and spare underwear then stuffed them in a bag, along with a fresh pair of clothes and some sweats to wear to bed. When he arrived at the potting shed, he lightly tapped on the door and waited for Lorelai to answer. She let him in and he admired her pyjamas.
"You have Bananarama PJs?"
"Good band," she commented.
"If you say so....I'm just gonna get ready for bed."
"Ok." She sat on the couch and waited for him to finish getting changed. When he reappeared, she stood up and rushed over to him, crushing her lips to his. He stumbled back a little to keep his balance as she ran into him. She ran her hands over his bare chest; he wasn't wearing a t shirt cause he left it at his apartment. He pulled her closer to him and felt her pushing him towards her bed. Luke stepped back until his legs came into contact with the bed and caused him to collapse onto it. Lorelai climbed on top of him, her hands still exploring his body as he tried not to get too carried away. Lorelai's lips never left his as she moved her hands over his taut stomach and stopped when they reached the waistband of his sweats. He broke the kiss when her hands began to creep slowly underneath.
"Lorelai," he said breathlessly.
"What?"
"We can't do this now."
"Why not?"
"Cause a lot's happened in the last week or so and you're still in a vulnerable place. I don't wanna take advantage of you."
"You're not taking advantage, I want this. Now."
"How about we wait a little longer? We've only been official for like a half hour.
"If you wanna wait, we can wait. But I'm ready Luke."
"Let's just go to sleep." She nodded and climbed under the duvet with him. He turned off the light and moved closer to her. She placed her hand on his smooth chest and he placed his on her exposed thigh; she was wearing shorts. Lorelai tried to ignore the arousal she felt from their episode minutes before as she closed her eyes. "Night Lorelai," he whispered as he kissed her temple.
"Night Luke."
So a lot of bonding going on in this.....PLEASE REVIEW :D I love my reviewers!
