A/N: I know that I have been horrible about notes and review responses. I just wanted to let you all know how much I appreciate your comments and support. I am glad that you are enjoying this story as much as I am. Sorry about the scene breaks in the last chapter. I will fix them. Thanks for reading!

Where My Love Lies Waiting Silently for Me

Luke walked through the front door of the Crap Shack and shoved his suitcase into a corner as he stood, his hand on his hips surveying the empty house, lost in thought. He shook his head to clear it and walked over to pluck the phone from its cradle. "Hey, I'm home," he said simply when Jess answered the phone.

"Good. Shuttle ride okay?" he asked.

"Long, but fine," Luke said. "Listen, I'm beat. I'm gonna throw some laundry in the washer and crash," he told his nephew.

"Okay," Jess answered. "You staying at the apartment?"

Luke looked around and then shook his head saying, "Nah, I think I'm gonna stay here. Thanks though."

"See you tomorrow," Jess said briefly.

"See you tomorrow," Luke agreed as he hung up the phone.

The truth was, he didn't want to see anyone. Not because he was sad or lonely, but because he was afraid that he wouldn't be able to keep his mouth shut. The three of them agreed that it would be best to keep Lorelai's condition quiet until she got home and they were able to see the doctor. He ran his hand through his hair and then went to retrieve his suitcase. He lifted it onto the kitchen table and opened it. He removed the stack of books that Rory had sent back and placed them on the desk in her room, not wanting to even attempt to figure out where they belonged on the shelves. He retrieved a bag of souvenirs and set it on one of the chairs as he began to paw through the jumble of clothing, pushing aside shoes and other abandoned items they had sent home with him. He gave up trying to sort what was clean and what was dirty, tossing it all into a pile on the kitchen floor. He bent down and quickly sorted it by color and picked up a load of whites to toss into the machine.

Luke had just walked back into the kitchen when he heard someone climbing the back steps. The door flew open and Babette screeched, "You're home! Morey! Luke's home!" she screamed over her shoulder.

Luke smiled tiredly and said, "Hey, Babette."

"Hey doll, how was it? Tell me everything. Are the girls okay? Did you have a wonderful time? You're getting to be quite the world traveler now, you know," she said with a nod.

"We had a great time. Italy was beautiful. The girls are great," he answered, not trusting himself to say much more.

Babette filled the kettle with water and placed it on the burner to heat. "Cocoa or tea?" she asked as she bustled around pulling out mugs.

"Tea, please," Luke said with a defeated sigh as he sunk into a chair, smothering a yawn with the back of his hand.

Babette dropped a tea bag into the waiting mug and dumped a packet of cocoa into another for her. "Hey, Jess took me and Patty in to see the work you've done on the house. It's gonna be great!" she said loudly. "Of course, we'll miss having you guys right next door," she said sadly.

Luke nodded and said, "We're not that far away though."

Babette poured hot water into the mugs and said, "I gotta tell you, doll, I never thought you would be the guy to buy that big old house." She set his tea in front of him and slid into a chair saying, "Of course, you can fill it up," with a broad wink. "Oh, I can't wait. You are gonna have babies, aren't you? Oh! The babies you two will make!" she screeched.

"Babette," Luke said softly, desperate to change the topic. "What's been going on around here?" he asked.

"Oh, you haven't missed a thing. Oh! Except Kirk's mom has developed an allergy to Lulu. Poor girl, she's changed her perfume, her soap, her shampoo, even her deodorant," Babette told him gesturing wildly with her hands. "No good though," she said shaking her head sadly.

Luke nodded and asked, "Everything okay with the diner and stuff?" knowing if anyone would tell him straight, Babette would.

"Fine, doll. We missed your fluffy pancakes though," she said. "Caesar's are okay, but they tend to be flatter, denser, you know?" she said with a nod.

"I'll be back in there tomorrow," Luke said with a nod as he sipped his tea. "They get the dumpster hauled off from the other house?" he asked. When Babette nodded, Luke smirked and said, "I guess I'll have to think of something else to torment Taylor with."

At the mention of Taylor's name, Babette got a little nervous and said, "You must be exhausted. Jet lag and all," she said waving her hand. "I'll get out of here and let you get settled in," she said as she rose and went to rinse her mug.

"I'll get that," he told her.

"Okay doll," she answered with a smile. "Good to have you home," she told him.

"Good to be home," Luke said returning her smile.

"Just a couple more weeks," Babette assured him. "Morey! I'm coming home!" she yelled in the general direction of her house, causing Luke to wince. She waved and bustled out of the house as quickly as she appeared.

L&L

The following morning, Luke was back. With a vengeance. The minute he saw the lights in the ice cream shop turn on, he was out of the door like a shot. He stormed into the store and straight up to Taylor, who was wearing his stupid Dick Van Dyke wannabe coat and straw hat. "I am gonna kill you," Luke yelled.

Taylor backed away nervously as he tried to keep a calm façade. "Oh, please, you are not," he said dismissively.

"I am, too!" Luke yelled back as he glared down at the shorter man. "I'm gonna kill you. I should've killed you before," he said almost to himself. He sneered at Taylor and said, "I should've killed you the minute you put up those unicorn topiaries in the park, but, hey, hindsight, right?"

Striving for calm Taylor tried to placate him. "You don't have to yell, Luke," he said.

Luke's eyes bugged out as he stared at Taylor incredulously, "You put a giant window in my wall."

"So what?" Taylor answered with a nonchalant shrug.

Luke shook his head in disbelief and screamed, "A giant window! Right here! You can see my entire diner. And when I'm in my diner, I can see your whole stupid store!"

Miffed, Taylor said, "I don't understand why yours is a diner and mine is a stupid store."

Luke had reached a full boil. "Look at this place! Look at you," he said with a sneer. "All you need is six dancing penguins and Mary Poppins floating in the corner to bring back two of the worst hours of my childhood!" he ranted.

Taylor sneered back and said, "I don't think you had a childhood. I think you came out a bitter surly killjoy."

Luke pointed at Taylor and said, "You can't change the basic structure of this place without my okay!" He saw Taylor staring at his hand, not hearing a word Luke was saying, and asked, "What?"

"Your hand is near the wax lips," Taylor said as he stared, transfixed.

"So?" Luke asked scornfully.

Taylor said calmly, "If you could just move it so you don't accidentally touch the candy." His eyes bulged as Luke lifted his hand showing Taylor his claw-like appendage as he moved it down toward the candy. "Lucas," Taylor said in a warning tone. Luke plunged his hand into the barrel of candy on display and wiggled it around for good measure. "What are you doing? You stop that right now!" Taylor cried in distress.

Luke moved from bin to bin in a frenzy, tossing brightly wrapped candy into the air and yelling, "Look at all the pretty candy!"

Taylor rushed after him calling, "Agh, stop it right now!"

The patrons in the diner were all pressed up against the new window, excited to have a ringside seat. Jess was coming down the stairs as he saw the crowd. He heard the computer's alert chime and saw a message from Lorelai pop up.

Coffeegirl68: Where's my Burger Boy?

BurgerboySH: He's next door, throttling Taylor. It's Jess.

Coffeegirl68: Hey Jess! What did Taylor do now?

BurgerboySH: I'll leave that for Luke to tell you. All I can say is that your husband has finally snapped.

Coffeegirl68: And I'm missing it???

BurgerboySH: Here he comes. Good luck. See you guys soon. Hey, it's me.

Coffeegirl68: Me who?

BurgerboySH: Me, me.

Coffeegirl68: I can't see you so you have to use your words, Luke.

BurgerboySH: Too angry to type. Where are you?

Coffeegirl68: Monte Carlo. Hitting the casino, Mr. Bond. Would you like me to place a wager for you?

BurgerboySH: Will they give you odds on Taylor being alive when you get back?

Coffeegirl68: Sounds like a sucker bet, so probably not. I'm gonna call you later. I want the whole story.

BurgerboySH: Okay. Fine. ILY – all.

Coffegirl68: Take a chill pill and don't do anything that will end up with me requesting conjugal visits.

BurgerboySH: Everything okay?

Coffeegirl68: Everything is fine. TTYL

A minute later the message read Coffeegirl68 had signed out. Luke looked up and glared at Taylor through the window. He whirled on Jess and asked, "How did that happen?"

"He told me you knew about it," Jess said with a shrug.

"And you believed him?" Luke asked incredulously.

"Hey, he said it was in the blueprints that you approved," Jess shot back at his Uncle.

Luke deflated as he asked, "Was it?"

Jess shrugged and said, "I never saw them, you did."

Luke put his hands on his hips and drew a deep breath as he stared at his feet. "I didn't pay attention. He was bothering me," he grumbled.

Jess smirked and said, "So it probably all went according to his master plan."

"Stupid window," Luke groused as he tossed a towel up onto the counter and began to wipe it down.

Jess watched his uncle with a small smile and asked, "Missed your baby, didn't you?"

Luke's eyes widened and his head jerked up as he asked, "What? Why? How do you know?"

Jess looked at him strangely and gestured to the counter saying, "You're constantly cleaning the thing."

"Oh, yeah, well, I like things to be clean. It's a diner, it should be clean," he said trying to play his panic off with a shrug. "You off to the bakery?"

"Yeah, I've gotta kick Lane out. I'm sending her back over here. She's making me look bad," Jess said as he walked to the door.

L&L

The first week passed quickly as Luke melted back into the fabric of Stars Hollow. The townies were glad to see him looking much better than when the girls had first left. They attributed the smile on his face to the fact that he had a good time with them in Venice, completely unaware that the biggest news in Stars Hollow had yet to break. He was relieved that Richard and Emily had already left for Martha's Vineyard by the time he had come home. He knew he would have broken under Emily's intense interrogation.

The night after he got home, he had started making Lorelai a rocking chair for their baby.

The kitchen at the new house was coming along. The tile floor was finished, the walls were painted a soft old gold. The base cabinets were in and Luke was glad he had gone with the warm cherry finish. He could envision copper pots hanging from a rack over the island cooktop, and the bowl of fruit he would keep on the table for easy access. He had put Mrs. Kim on the look out for the type of table he was picturing, and had purchased a beautifully crafted pie safe for the far wall from her. The master bedroom was primed and ready for paint. The master bath was nearing completion as he hung towel bars and installed new light fixtures. It was his goal to have everything but the painting done by the time Lorelai and Rory got home. As he walked to the front door that night, he smiled at the beautifully refinished wood floors and tried to envision the place filled with furniture and their stuff.

L&L

One evening, just four days before the girls were due home, Luke heard a car door slam in the driveway while he was putting another coat of varnish on the rocking chair in the garage. He quickly set the brush aside and stepped out of the garage. "Hey," he called as he saw Jess heading for the front door. He glanced back at the chair nervously, knowing that if he didn't keep going, the varnish would dry unevenly.

"Hey, what are you doing?" Jess asked as he switched directions and crossed the yard.

Luke shrugged and tried to look casual as he said, "Just a project."

Jess approached and asked, "You building something?" as he craned his neck trying to see what Luke was working on.

Luke shifted slightly to block his view and said, "Oh, no, just, uh, touching something up."

"You okay?" Jess asked suspiciously.

"I'm fine," Luke said quickly.

"You've been really jumpy lately," Jess observed.

Luke cocked his head and asked, "Is that why you're here? Is this an intervention?"

Jess held his hands up in surrender and said, "Hey, just asking." He glanced around uncomfortably and said, "I was just seeing what you were up to tonight. I noticed that you weren't at the house."

"Nope, just doing some stuff here," Luke said with a nod.

"Okay, well," Jess said slowly as he turned to leave. He glanced back at Luke and said, "If I didn't know you so well, I'd say you have a guilty conscience. You try to pick up a flight attendant on the way back?" he teased.

"No!" Luke said indignantly.

Jess turned and raised one eyebrow asking, "On the way there?"

"Get out of here," Luke grumbled as he turned back to the garage. He stopped and called, "Jess?"

Jess was just reaching for the door handle when he heard Luke call to him. "Yeah?" he answered. Luke waved him back over to the garage door. Jess sighed and walked back across the lawn. "What?" he asked as he shoved his hands into his pockets.

Luke glanced around as if he was being followed and rubbed his hands together nervously. "I can't tell you," he said, even though it was apparent that he was dying to.

"Tell me what?" Jess asked.

Luke rolled his eyes and said, "I promised them that I wouldn't say anything to anyone, but you're not just anyone, you're family, right?" Nodding at his justification Luke said, "I have to tell someone. It's killing me."

"Tell someone what?" Jess asked in an exasperated tone.

"I can't," Luke said wringing his hands. His eyes widened and he pointed to Jess saying, "But, you can guess, right? I mean, you can take a wild guess, you're a smart kid, and I can't help what conclusions you draw, can I?" he asked excitedly.

"My wild guess would be that you need medication," Jess said shaking his head at his uncle's antics.

Luke nodded confidently and held his arm out to signal Jess to enter the garage. "See? Here's what I'm working on," he said with a grand gesture.

Jess looked at the chair and asked, "Your big secret is that you're refinishing a chair?"

"I didn't refinish this chair. I built it," Luke said proudly.

"Congratulations," Jess said shaking his head in confusion.

"It's a rocking chair," Luke said slowly, trying to get Jess to catch his meaning.

"I can see that," Jess answered in the same condescending tone.

"Does the woodwork look familiar?" Luke asked walking over to the chair and poiting out the detail work he had done. When Jess shook his head, Luke blew out a breath and said, "Does it look like it would match any certain piece of furniture," gesturing with his hand for Jess to catch up.

"What the hell are you talking about?" Jess asked, having had enough of this game.

"A piece of furniture that you helped me get out of storage and set up in a bright yellow room in the new house," Luke prodded.

"What? That crib?" Jess asked, his voice laced with annoyance.

Luke heaved a sigh of relief and said, "Yes, the crib," convinced that Jess would finally get it.

"What about it?" Jess asked blankly.

"Oh for God's sake, Jess! What do people use those things for?" Luke exploded.

Jess jerked back as he shook his head and said, "What cribs? Babies." Luke looked at Jess pointedly and tapped a finger to the tip of his nose. Jess frowned in confusion, and then blinked as the fog cleared. "You're having a baby?" he asked, his brow knit in confusion.

"Well, I'm not, 'cause I'm not built that way," Luke said with a pleased smile.

Jess narrowed his eyes and said, "You're telling me that Lorelai is pregnant."

Luke opened his hands and said, "I can neither confirm nor deny that statement."

"You said she wasn't," Jess murmured.

"Well she wasn't when she left, I mean she was, or might have been if this were, you know, not hypothetical, I mean, she wouldn't have known, yet, when they left," Luke stumbled trying to get the thought out.

Jess nodded slowly and said, "Gotcha. Um, Luke? If, hypothetically, Lorelai were pregnant, you would be excited about this?" he asked, testing the waters.

"Very," Luke said with a grin.

"Okay," Jess said with a nod and a pleased smile in return. Suddenly, the smile faded and was replaced with a frown. "Uh, Luke? If it turned out to be that Lorelai was, you know, why would she still be in Europe, and not here at home?" he asked.

"Well, I would imagine that if that were the case, there probably would have been some discussion, and a decision made to finish their trip as planned," Luke said with a nod as he bent to continue varnishing the chair.

"I see. And do you think, if this were to happen, that you would have been a participant in this discussion? I mean, because if you were, I really can't see you going along with that hair brained scheme," Jess said, his voice rising with irritation.

Luke looked at his nephew with surprise and said, "Actually, I probably would have been the one to suggest it."

"You're okay with this?" Jess demanded, dropping all pretenses. "You wife is pregnant and backpacking through Europe?" he asked incredulously. "You're not freaking out?"

Luke held up his hand and grumbled, "I didn't say that. I just said there was a discussion and a decision." He peered intently at a spot on one of the arms of the chair and said, "They aren't backpacking anymore. Suitcases, taxis, hotels," he explained.

"And you're okay with that decision?" Jess asked with a puzzled expression.

"I am, mostly," he said gruffly.

"Mostly?" Jess asked.

"I'm trying not to think about it too much. I'm trying not to worry about it. I'm trying," he finished lamely. "I just needed to tell someone," he said softly, staring at the rocking chair. "It was beginning to not feel real," he mumbled.

"Okay, well, it's a big secret, I take it?" Jess asked.

Luke nodded and said, "Just until they get back and we can get to the doctor to check everything out."

Jess smirked an asked, "Set up the appointment?"

"Day after they get back," Luke said with a small smile.

Jess nodded and said softly, "Congratulations, man."

"Thanks," Luke answered with a smile of gratitude.

"I can't believe you're not freaking out," Jess said shaking his head.

Luke smirked and said, "Oh, I am. On the inside. Every time I talk to them or get a message, it roars through my head. I'm just being extra careful not to let it out," he said with a laugh.

"Impressive self restraint," Jess said leaning against the garage door.

"I can manage it at times," Luke said with a rueful smile. He stood up and looked at the chair. "What do you think?" he asked his nephew.

"About the chair or your hypothetical child?" Jess asked with a smirk.

"Both," Luke said as he put the lid back on the varnish.

"The chair looks great," Jess said with a nod. "And, hypothetically, I'm very happy for you," he added.

"Thanks," Luke said as he brushed his hands together. "Wanna come in and watch the game?" he asked.

"Is there beer?" Jess asked.

"Are you twenty one?" Luke shot back.

Jess grinned and said, "According to my ID I am."

Luke shook his head as he put away his tools and cleaned up the garage. He closed the garage doors behind him and said, "Come on."

L&L

"I'm sorry, Hon," Lorelai said for the four hundredth time, turning her head against the headrest to gaze at Rory.

"I'm not," Rory said with a smile. She looked up as a flight attendant was passing by and asked, "Can we have a couple of blankets, please?"

They pushed their seats back as far as they would go, and spread the thin blankets over them. Rory looked over at Lorelai and said, "I meant what I said. I'm ready to be home in my own bed."

"Me too," Lorelai said softly. "I just can't believe how this is taking it out of me," she complained. "I was fine at first," she said with a pout.

Rory shrugged and said, "And now you're the queen of the vomitorium. It's fine. We'll hit Portugal next time," Rory said with a grin.

"I really liked Spain," Lorelai said feebly.

Rory snorted and said, "What you saw of it."

"They had some nice toilets," Lorelai said with a grin.

Rory sighed as she stared straight ahead and said, "I'm just glad we were able to change our tickets. Paris is great, but when you get it into your head that you're going home, all you want to do is go home," she said with a nod. She turned back to Lorelai and said, "I have a confession to make."

"Oh my God, you've converted!" Lorelai gasped. "I should have known, all those churches," she said shaking her head.

"No," Rory said with a laugh. "I just, well, I probably would have been happy going home when Luke left," she said softly.

"Really?" Lorelai asked, surprised.

Rory shrugged and said, "We'd been gone over a month. Seeing Luke here just made me homesick. I can't wait to see Lane and Jess. I want to get moved into the new house. I want to help with the inn. I'll be glad to have a few extra days this summer, you know, before Yale," she admitted.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Lorelai whined. "You mean I could have been puking my guts up at home instead of in some disgusting toilet in the Museo del Prado? Disgusting! How could such a big time museum have such an incompetent janitorial staff?" she ranted.

"I thought you wanted to stay," Rory said with a shrug.

Lorelai shook her head and said with a smile, "Well, we're going home now."

"We're going home now," Rory confirmed. She looked at her watch and said, "We should land at about five our time."

"Five our time, in America, right?" Lorelai asked.

"Right," Rory confirmed. "Did you get through to Luke?"

Lorelai shook her head and said, "I'll try again when we land. We can take the shuttle home."

Rory nodded and said, "I can't wait to sleep in my bed," as she snuggled under the blanket.

"Me either," Lorelai said with a soft smile. "Me either, kid."

L&L

As they walked to the house Jess asked, "So, where are they now?"

"They should be in Portugal by now," Luke said with a frown. "I haven't heard from them since the day before yesterday. They should be calling," he said patting the pocket of his jeans for his phone. When he came up empty he gasped and said, "Where is it?" panic seeping into his voice.

"Your phone? Did you have it earlier?" Jess asked as Luke raced up the steps to the porch.

"I don't know. I think so. Oh shit," he said as he sprinted up the stairs. He found the phone on his dresser where he had dropped it the night before. He quickly pressed the display buttons and saw four missed calls from earlier that day. "Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!" he yelled. He walked downstairs in a daze and said, "I missed them."

"They'll call back," Jess assured him.

Luke glanced at his watch and said, "Yeah, but not tonight, It's almost two in the morning there."

"She'll call first thing tomorrow," Jess said sympathetically.

"Yeah," Luke said rubbing the back of his neck with a sigh. He stood staring into space for a moment before running his hand over his face tiredly and saying, "I'll grab a couple of beers."

As Luke walked into the kitchen, Jess saw a van turn into the driveway. He stood, mouth agape as he saw the side door open and Lorelai and Rory climb out. "Uh, Luke? You might want to come here," he called to the kitchen.

"Keep your pants on," Luke grumbled as he walked back in holding two bottles of beer.

Jess walked to the front door and opened it in time to hear Lorelai complain, "How long does a freakin' van ride take?"

Rory shook her head adamantly and said, "Not that long!"

Lorelai turned to Rory and said, "Everybody in the world's life flashed before my eyes. That's how much time I had. I thought we were gonna die on that van."

"It seemed a good possibility," Rory answered as they turned toward the house to see Luke and Jess standing on the porch, dumbfounded.

"What are you doing here?" Luke asked in a daze.

"We live here," Lorelai answered with a cheeky grin. She waved and said, "Hi honey, we're home!" Just then, her stomach lurched and she clamped her hand over her mouth as she dashed for the open front door, barreling between Luke and Jess as they stood staring at the spot where she had just been. They turned slowly to look into the house as they heard her wretching into the sink.

Jess turned to Luke with a smirk and said, "I think she was happy to see you."

Luke ran into the house and hurried to the sink where he gathered her hair in his hand, holding it away from her face as he rubbed her back and whispered, "You're home. You came home."

"Yeah," she whispered weakly. "We're home."