Chapter 25

Surprise?

Jess arrived back from Philly 2 days later to find the apartment looking much more like a home. They still needed to pick out a lounge and a few other bits and pieces but Rory was adamant they choose the rest together and so they spent half the weekend browsing and buying and the other half lazing around alternating between reading their books and reading each other. It was a blissful first weekend, effortless and utterly relaxing after the stress of the last 6 months.

The following week while Jess busied himself downstairs getting the shop set up, Rory began to compose 2 invitations to their party. She'd picked out the card at a specialty shop in the city centre. They were crisp white with an inset periwinkle border. She quite liked the look of them for wedding invites too and bought an extra to tuck away into the wedding binder she had started and then hidden under the bed while Jess was away. In her best handwriting, copying from the draft she'd finally decided upon after discarding the first 6 versions, she began to fill the blank card with the details of the time and date and lastly, her name and Jess's name, side by side at the bottom of the sheet. She made an identical copy, only this one bore her father's name, then sealed them both in periwinkle envelopes, placed stamps in the corners and took them straight out to the post box before she could change her mind.

2 days later she answered her phone to her Grandmother's abrupt tone.

"We don't hear from you for months and then we get this invitation in the mail and you've moved cities and are cohabiting with someone. You've got a lot of explaining to do young lady!"

"That's what the invitation is for Grandma." Rory tried to remain calm, "I promise you, if you can just be patient, you will find out everything next Friday night. That is if you're able to come? I realise it was short notice but as soon as I decided on this idea I wanted to make it happen as soon as I could. You will come won't you?"

Emily couldn't resist her beloved granddaughter's pleading tone. She was right of course, it had been extremely short notice but luckily she and Richard had no plans and even if they had plans, her intrigue upon opening her personalised invitation would have made her cancel them anyway. It would be lovely to see her daughter too before her baby arrived, she presumed she'd be there too.

"Yes, Friday night would suit us perfectly." she assured her granddaughter. "You didn't mention a dress code or how large a function you intend this to be."

"It will just be a casual dinner grandma," Rory assured her. "Mum and Luke, Dad, you and grandpa and Jess." She waited for some kind of reaction to the sound of that name but it seemed for now her grandmother had not connected the pieces and was yet to realise her granddaughter was in fact 'cohabiting' with the black eyed hoodlum who had once showed up late then left during dinner and broken Rory's teenage heart.

"Okay," Emily replied, "we shall see you next Friday night. Goodbye Rory."

Emily hung up the phone, more questions rapidly rising in her mind. Hopefully those too would be answered at this dinner party. She rang Richard to update him on the details, pausing over Jess's name as she relayed the guest list - surely not, she told herself, surely I must be wrong, although... Shaking her head in an attempt to banish the thought from her mind she turned her attention back to the remainder of the post, sorting it into neat little piles as she went. Christopher's name registered with her, almost as an afterthought. Suddenly she felt chilled to the bone despite their central heating. It seemed Rory was assembling the entire family. A new boyfriend, a new home in a new city. Could it be, could her only granddaughter be getting married? The neat piles of mail were quickly forgotten as Emily went to retrieve a thick, heavy file folder from a drawer in the study. Flicking through the pages she sat back to revel in a taffeta tinted daydream.

Christopher waited until the following week to phone his daughter. Their contact had always been sporadic and he was used to being out of the loop in the goings on of the Gilmore Girl's lives, especially now that Lorelai was married to Luke. He was intrigued by the invitation, especially when he noted her new address and a man's name, presumably her new boyfriend, next to hers, co hosting this party. There was a time he would've phoned Lorelai to get her to spill the details but that was a thing of the past. He still loved her, he always would, but he respected her more and that meant he stayed away and gave her the space she had begged him for. It would be good to see her. She must be due soon he thought, remembering Rory mentioning her mum's pregnancy when they last spoke around the time of the wedding. He decided to call Rory and see if he could get her to crack instead. He didn't like his chances but figured it was worth a shot and even if he left the conversation none the wiser it would be good to hear her voice and catch up. They'd left it so long between calls this time and he missed her.

Picking up the phone to hear her dad's voice sent a flurry of nervous butterflies to her core. He had a way of making her spill secrets. She suspected he'd honed this skill on her mum when they were teenagers and it translated to her because, well, like mother like daughter! They shared more similarities than differences, that was for sure.

"Hi dad!" She greeted him warmly. She hadn't spoken to him in 6 months and she had missed him. "How are you? How's GiGi? How's Boston?"

"Okay, great and currently very cold." he answered, a smile lighting up his face that she could hear in his voice. "So," he began. Here we go, Rory thought to herself, bracing her mind for his interrogation. "I got a really pretty little invite in the post and the handwriting is definitely yours but the address is in Hartford and then there's the mention of one Jess Mariano? The thing is, last I knew you were living in New Haven with Dean. Things move fast in the world of Rory Gilmore apparently and I can't keep up!"

"Dean and I broke up and I moved," she explained with the simplest version of the truth she could assemble in that moment. "Jess and I are living together now and wanted to invite a few people around for a housewarming party. We hear that's the kind of thing grown ups do so we thought we'd try it out." Christopher knew his daughter well enough to know she was leaving out some details in both parts of her story but decided not to push her any further.

"I guess you'll fill me in on the rest next Friday then?" he asked her.

"I absolutely will!" she promised. "I'm so pleased you can come," she admitted. "In the interest of full disclosure I feel I should let you know that it will be a family party - mum and Luke, Grandma and Grandpa, Jess and I. You're welcome to bring GiGi, I just wasn't sure what your arrangement is these days but I'd love to see her."

"She's with her mum next weekend," Christopher admitted. "I'm sure she'd have loved to have seen you too Ror. Maybe we will come down another time, just the 2 of us."

"I'd like that," Rory assured him.

"I'd better let you go," he began, "I'm sure you must have lots to do if you're hosting the Gilmore's in just a few days time!"

"That I do!" Rory agreed. "Thanks for calling Dad, it's good to hear your voice. I look forward to seeing you Friday night."

"Me too Ror, me too."

They disconnected, each sitting back in their chairs wondering what kind of surprises Friday night would bring.