It Doesn't Have to Be a Honeymoon to Be Sweet
"Why can't we go?" Josh asked for the forty thousandth time.
"Baby, Mommy and Daddy just need some time to not be Mommy and Daddy?" Lorelai answered in a whisper.
"Who are you going to be?" Jake asked, sitting up in his bed with a puzzled frown.
"Mam?" Josh asked hopefully.
"Bite your tongue," Lorelai hissed, and then turned her head to look at him. "Not literally. Do not actually bite your tongue," she corrected quickly. "We just want a few days off for good behavior. We've been pretty good, haven't we?" she asked them.
"But if you aren't going to be Mommy and Daddy, who are you going to be?" Jake persisted.
Lorelai turned toward her younger son's bed and asked, "You want me to tell you a story?" When the twins nodded enthusiastically, Lorelai smiled and looked up at the ceiling. "Once upon a time in a teeny tiny town in Connecticut, there was a girl who had a little girl, and a boy who had the coffee that they loved…" she began, knowing that the boys would catch on quickly, and as always, be instantly enraptured.
****
"They're changing guard at Buckingham Palace. Christopher Robin went down with Alice," Luke read without looking at the well worn book in his hand. "'Do you think the King knows all about me?' 'Sure to, dear, but it's time for tea,'" he continued, brushing his lips over Carly's wild tangle of curls.
"Sez Alice," Carly finished for him with an emphatic nod.
"Time for bed, Alice," he said in a low voice.
"A'gin," she said as she tapped the book.
"Bed," he growled, giving the tiny girl a squeeze.
"Hafway," she prompted, and her father sighed his defeat.
Luke thumbed through the well loved book until he found the requested poem. "Halfway down the stairs is a stair where I sit. There isn't any other stair quite like it. I'm not at the bottom; I'm not at the top, so, this is the stair where I always stop. Halfway up the stairs isn't up, and it isn't down. It isn't in the nursery, it isn't in town. And all sorts of funny thoughts run round my head. It isn't really anywhere, it's somewhere else instead!" He closed the book and looked sternly down at his little girl. "And now, Twinkle Toes, it's time for bed."
"I's not Twingle Toes," Carly giggled as she leaned away from his chest.
"Pinklepurr?" Luke asked, naming the cat in one of the oft-read poems.
"Pea!" Carly cried with a radiant smile.
Luke bent his head and rubbed his nose against her tiny excuse for a nose. "My Sweetpea," he asserted. "Who loves you like crazy?"
"You," Carly whispered. "You crazy."
"Mommy's crazy," he corrected her, pecking a quick kiss to the tip of that almost too tiny nose. "Are you crazy about me?"
"Yeah," Carly said with a happy smile.
"Good," Luke grunted as he hoisted them both out of the faded plaid recliner. He carried her to the bed and then dropped her onto the mattress, acting like he was going to fall on top of her. Carly laughed as he caught his weight on his arms and then rolled over next to her in the narrow little bed. "Lots of crazy in this house," he said with a contented sigh.
"Jos and Juke craaaazy," Carly said with a solemn nod.
"Oh yeah, they're probably the craziest," Luke agreed. He turned to look at her and patted the pillow, indicating that it was time for her to lay her head down. "You're gonna be good for Grandma and Grandpa, right? Don't bug your brothers too much, or stir up trouble."
"I's good," she said softly.
Luke's lips curved as he stared into those bright blue eyes. "You're good at stirring up trouble and then looking cute when the sentences are handed down," he said gruffly. Carly snuggled into his side and then set Carory on his chest. Luke scowled at the blonde doll, just as he did every night, but left her in her usual spot. "I'm gonna miss you guys like crazy," he whispered.
"I go."
Luke shook his head and said, "Nope. Not this time, Pea." He turned to look up at the ceiling as he drummed his fingers on his flannel clad stomach. "Besides, you'll have a great time with Mam and Mpaw. Probably come home with a strand of pearls and a part ownership in a racehorse," he told her.
"I like hosses," Carly said, her voice drowsy and soft.
"I know you do," he whispered. "Go to sleep, little girl." Luke watched, as always amazed at their ability to throttle back almost instantly, and let go of the boundless energy that fuels them through the day. "You are amazing," he whispered to her.
"Uh huh," Carly agreed sleepily as she pressed her cheek to his arm.
"I'm so in love with you," he whispered, smiling as she nodded slightly, accepting her due.
Luke stayed with her, listening to the quiet hum of Lorelai's voice, and occasionally picking out a word here and there, but mainly just listening for the sound of the house settling around them. He cleared his mind, pointedly ignoring the suitcases packed and ready to go in each room, and not daring to think of the red bikini that waited for him on the other end of the journey. He lay there simply staring at the ceiling, secure in the knowledge that everything was right in their world, and closed his eyes, just for a minute.
****
"And so, even though the girl and the boy loved their babies more than anything in the world, even coffee and Mega Man protein shakes, they just wanted to be Lorelai and Luke again, just for a few days," Lorelai said quietly. "The End," she added with a nod. The conclusion of her story was greeted with a soft snore from her left and wide blue eyes to her right.
"You aren't Lorelai and Luke now?" Jake whispered in an awed tone.
"Nope," a deep voice answered from behind them. Both Lorelai and Jake craned their necks to find Luke standing in the doorway, leaning heavily against the frame. "We are really Superman and Wonder Woman, but shh, don't tell anyone," he said to Jake as he held one finger to his lips.
"Nuh uh," Jake answered as he flopped back onto his pillow.
"I do have the boots," Lorelai said as she watched Luke step into the room and lower himself to the edge of Jake's bed with a groan.
"I know, I've seen them, and your magic lasso," he said, his tone grave. He turned to Jake and said, "I also see that one of the Wonder Twins is still awake."
"Form of an owl," Lorelai said with a nod.
"I'm gonna have to knock him out with a judo chop," Luke told her. "Look away."
Lorelai smiled as she rolled over and kissed Josh's soft cheek. "Night, my Ooh-Ah," she whispered softly, and then rolled out of the low bed and onto all fours. She crawled over to Jake's bed, just as she did every night, stalking him like a lion. "Jaluke?" she whispered in a growl as she peered over the edge of the mattress, smiling as he giggled. "Kiss the Mommy," she ordered as she tapped her cheek. Jake did as he was told and then flopped back onto his pillow once more. Lorelai brushed his thick, wavy curls from his forehead and then said, "Don't judo chop him too hard, I like him an awful lot."
"Only hard enough to knock him out for about eight or nine hours," Luke promised.
"See you in the morning, Hootie," Lorelai said as she pushed to her feet. "See you in a little while," she told Luke.
"Five minutes," Luke answered.
Lorelai snorted and said, "Uh huh, sure," as she left the room.
"Do I have to judo chop you?" Luke asked. When Jake shook his head and scooted toward the wall, Luke stretched out on the bed next to him. "Good, 'cause I like you, even if you are awfully short and a little ugly."
"You're uglier," Jake whispered.
"That's the truth," Luke said with a long sigh. He turned to look at Jake and whispered, "I'm gonna miss you, buddy."
"Will you bring presents?" Jake asked hopefully.
"Oh, I'm pretty sure we will," Luke chuckled.
"Will Mpaw let us see his car?"
"I bet he will."
"Will Mommy not be sad anymore?"
Luke looked into his son's worried eyes and said, "Mommy won't be sad, I promise." He gathered Jake close to him and kissed the top of his head. "Little man, your eyes are too big, they see too much."
"She wasn't sad today, or yesterday," Jake observed; his voice muffled against his father's shirt.
"No, she's not so sad anymore," Luke said soothingly. "It went away."
"Will it come back?"
Luke loosened his hold on the boy, pulling back to look at him. "Everybody gets sad sometimes, it's okay to be sad."
"Turkeys make you sad," Jake whispered.
Luke blinked in surprise, trying to puzzle out the connection. "Oh," he said, sucking the word back in as he realized that Jake was referring to the malaise of sadness that overtook him each November. He frowned, trying to figure out a way to explain to his son that these past eight Novembers hadn't been nearly as sad for him as the ones that came before them, but finding himself unable to go there with his little boy. At least, not yet. He licked his lips and murmured, "I feel bad for them, that's all. All stuffed up with dressing," he said with a shrug.
"Maybe we should have cheeseburgers" Jake suggested.
Luke smiled and said, "Nah, Thanksgiving is for turkey. It's only once a year." He stroked Jake's hair as he pressed the boy's head back down to his chest, wishing that he could still hold all of him in his hands.
"Daddy?"
"Yeah?"
"Your name is Luke," Jake told him firmly.
"Yes, it is. Your name is Luke too, kind of. Sorry about that, your mom insisted."
"How can you not be Luke?" Jake asked, looking up at his father for the answers he needed in order to shut his eyes.
Luke sighed and pulled his arm out from around Jake, propping his head up on his hand as he rolled onto his side. "You and Josh were born at the same time, well, not really, but you were in Mommy's belly at the same time, right?" When Jake nodded, Luke confirmed it with his own nod. "You and Josh have always had the same room, shared all of your toys and books and stuff, right?" He took a deep breath and said, "Remember last week when you got mad at Josh and wanted to move into the guest room?"
"He tore my book," Jake said adamantly.
"He may have accidentally ripped a book that you both share," Luke said with a pointed stare. "But anyway, you wanted your own room with your own stuff, right?" When Jake nodded again, Luke smiled and said, "Sometimes we need our own room too."
"You have your own room."
Luke blew out an exasperated breath and said, "It's not really about the room, okay? It's about wanting a little space, someplace that's all yours. You stayed in that room for exactly thirty-seven minutes. I timed you. Mommy and I just need a little space, and then we are coming right back here with you guys. Right back," he repeated. "I'm going to take Mommy someplace special, a place that's special for just the two of us, and then we're going to come right back here, okay?"
"Okay."
Luke smiled at Jake's too easy acceptance, knowing that wasn't the end of the boy's questions, but that he was simply too tired to continue the interrogation. "We love you, Jacob Lucas Danes. We also love Joshua Gilmore Danes and Caroline Emily Danes. There is absolutely no doubt about that."
"Lorelai Leigh," Jake whispered, garbling the names a bit, but getting them out.
"Her too. And the bozo she married," Luke confirmed.
"What's Jess' middle name?" Jake asked.
"I can't tell you that, it's a secret."
"Jess Dress?"
Luke grinned and said, "No, but it's almost as funny as that."
"What is it?"
"If I tell you, will you go to sleep?" Luke asked.
"Yeah."
"Promise?"
"Yeah."
"James. His middle name is James, like his daddy," Luke said as he kissed his son's forehead and then rolled off of the bed, just as Lorelai had rolled out of Josh's.
"But that's not funny," Jake whispered as his father knee-walked to his brother's bed.
"It will be when you're older," Luke said as he pulled the covers up around Josh's shoulders. He kissed his elder son goodnight and then whispered, "We're making waffles in the morning." He watched as Josh smiled in his sleep and then rolled onto his side.
"Jess James," Jake murmured as Luke pushed to his feet.
"His full name is Jesse," Luke told him as he ran his fingers over Jake's curly head. "Now, go to sleep."
"Jesse?"
"Jesse James Mariano," Luke said with a smirk as he strolled from the room, his work there done.
****
Car seats were transferred, instructions given, and reassurances were accepted with a grain of salt. There were fierce hugs endured, begrudging kisses given and then a last minute rush of heartfelt and tearful goodbyes. The kids even cried a little too. There was a long plane ride in a long plane packed to the bulkheads with passengers and their precious possessions. There was a shorter plane ride in a much shorter plane, and a large hand held tightly in a far more delicate one when she feared that the armrest would be ripped from the seat. There were bags to deal with, and cabs to find, and a long stream of traffic seemingly all headed to the same marina that they were. And then, there were big smiles, hearty handshakes and hugs as they found Bob and Jean waiting on the dock for them.
The trip to the smaller island was short and mercifully smooth. The women lounged in the late afternoon pouring over pictures as the men secured the boat and off-loaded the luggage. A fishing expedition was planned in the front seats while a near constant stream of chatter about kids and inns and weddings filled every available space from the backseat. The villa seemed comfortingly unchanged. The landscaping was lush, showing off its mid-summer glory in a way that it couldn't in December. The pool shimmered, sparkling deep blue in the setting sun as the solar powered lights built into the landscaping sprang to life. Another flurry of hugs and handshakes followed as the older couple took their leave, calling out various reminders about the house and its environs.
And then they were alone.
Lorelai turned to Luke and gestured to the wide sand colored sofa. "New couch."
"Yeah," Luke said as he reached for her and pulled her to him.
"We're all alone," Lorelai said in a low voice.
"We are," Luke said with a grin as he walked her back toward the sofa.
"What do you want to do first?" she asked flirtatiously.
"Start the honeymoon," he said as he propelled her back, catching his weight on his hands as she lie sprawled beneath him.
"I was hoping you would say that," she said as she reached up and stroked his cheek tenderly. She watched as he turned his lips to her palm and kissed it softly. "You don't want to sleep for three days?" she asked quietly.
"I've slept the past few nights," he said with a shrug.
"No learning to play shuffleboard?"
"Only if you're playing naked," he said with a naughty leer.
"Are we re-launching Operation Nekkid on the Beach?" she asked, widening her eyes innocently.
Luke shook his head slowly and said low soft voice, "Sweetheart, that was just a practice run. We know what we're doing now."
"We do?"
"This is the most clothing I want to see you in for the rest of our stay," he said as he began unbuttoning her top.
"Yes sir," she answered in the same sassy tone she had used so long ago. "Lose the clothes," she ordered as she tugged at his shirt.
****
"This is heaven," Lorelai said as she reached for the side of the pool to catch her breath.
"It is," Luke answered as he ducked his head under the water, and wrapped his arms around her tightly, lifting her up as he stood up.
"What are you doing?" she laughed as the water streamed over her, sluicing from her bare body.
"Nothing," he answered, his gaze dropping to her breasts.
Lorelai laughed and pushed hard on his shoulder as she said, "Pervert."
Luke simply shook his head and looked up at her. The nearly full moon hung bright in the sky, her brilliant blue eyes capturing each moonbeam and bouncing them back at him. "Man who loves his wife. More now than I could have possibly imagined then."
Lorelai sighed happily, wrapping her arms around his neck as her body slid slowly down his. "Damn, I forgot how good you are at this," she whispered as she tipped her head back and let his lips warm wet skin cooled by the night air.
****
They lay wrapped in towels, cuddled together on the same lounge chair, watching the moon make its trek across the sky. "Josh could be an astronaut. Jake is too cautious by nature, and too likely to blow himself up, I think," Lorelai murmured as she drew random patterns through the hair on his chest.
"Carly, is going to be the astronaut, she's the only one crazy enough to sit on top of a rocket," Luke answered as he wound a damp curl around his finger.
"True," she conceded. "And Luke? What does Luke want to be when he grows up?" she asked as she looked up at him.
"Just a guy with a diner and a mortgage and a family. Lorelai's husband, their dad," he said quietly.
"You already have all that."
"Does that mean I'm all growed up?" he asked, mimicking Carly as he grinned at her.
"There's nothing else you want to be? Ever?" she asked.
Luke shrugged and said, "What else is there? Grandpa, I guess, but I'm not nearly ready for that yet. I hope that Rory and Jess wait until we have managed to eradicate the need for Pull-Ups in our house before making us grandparents to boot."
"Gah! Me too," Lorelai said as she hid her face against his chest.
"How about you? What do you want to be?" he asked.
She turned, pressing her cheek to his chest as she inhaled the heady fragrance of the flower filled garden. "I guess not. A good mom, a good wife, a fine little innkeeper," she said with a smile. "President of the D.A.R. and served the first cup of tea at every meeting. You know, the usual."
"So, we're doing pretty good, right? Things are on track," he said as he trailed his fingers over her arm.
"I guess we're pretty boring," she sighed as she rubbed her arch over his shin.
"I like boring. I'm okay with that."
Lorelai laughed. "Oh, I know you are." She kissed his chest and asked, "Wanna go parasailing, Butch?"
"Are you kidding? It took six years to get the hearing back in that ear," he grumbled.
"Wanna take me shopping and then to dinner and then back here to ravage me?"
"Dear God, yes," he answered.
"Did you hear the shopping part in there?"
"I did. I expected it."
"You did?"
"Yes. I have managed to pick up a few skills in six and a half years of marriage," he said gravely.
"Shopping skills?"
"Survival skills. I know that the ravaging comes after the shopping. I've learned to endure it for the greater good."
"What other skills have you honed?" she asked with a soft laugh.
"Aw, your memory is going already?" he groaned.
"It must be hunger," Lorelai said as her stomach growled on cue.
"What about grilled cheese? Do you remember if you like grilled cheese?" he asked with an affectionate smile.
****
Luke awoke early, blinking as the weak sunlight peeked around the edges of the curtain. He kissed Lorelai's untamed halo of hair and then rolled her gently off of his arm before slipping from the bed. After a stop at the bathroom, he walked naked to the living room where their luggage had been abandoned and forgotten the night before. He opened his suitcase and pulled out some underwear, shorts, socks and a t-shirt. He dressed quickly, and then unearthed his running shoes from the bottom of the bag.
After lacing them tightly, he slipped out of the sliding glass door and skirted the pool on his way to the steps. As he made his way down to the beach, he noted the new solar lights that had been placed at regular intervals along the hillside, the foliage neatly trimmed away to allow them to charge so that they could shine later. He paused at the bottom and lifted his leg to a step to stretch, and bent forward, marveling at how there was nothing like some good lovin' to work what amounted to years of tension from his muscles and joints. He raised his other leg and repeated the stretches, reveling in the loose liquid feel of his body, and reminding himself to thank Lorelai later, the best way that he knew how.
Luke stretched his arms over his head, pulling on his fingers as he turned to survey the surf rolling gently to the shore. He walked slowly through the sand to the water's edge, picking up the pace as he hit the hard packed sand. He lengthened his strides, breaking into a loping jog as he spotted a blip in the distance, and focused on it intently. As he drew closer to the blip, he realized that it was someone standing in the shallow waves fishing. Luke picked up the speed a bit, curious to see if the man standing in the early morning surf could possibly be the same man he had seen years ago. By the time he was within 50 yards, he realized that it was a different man, a much younger man than the one who had advised him to get his exercise by waking his pretty young bride up rather than jogging along the beach.
Luke slowed; his brow puckering as he raised his hand in silent greeting and then turned back toward the villa. He slowed to a fast walk, clutching his aching side as he wondered idly if he could convince Josh to add a morning run to their already packed routine. He walked slowly along the edge of the water, almost daring the surf to lap at his shoes. Along the way, he mentally ticked off the local landmarks. There was the spot where he suggested that they think about moving to a bigger house. Just over there, he had dangled a squirming squealing Lorelai out over the water. He stopped and turned to look out at the aquamarine water.
"Beautiful morning," a voice called down from the bluff above the beach.
Luke shielded his eyes and squinted up at the bluff. "Yeah, perfect," he answered as he recognized the old man that he had feared was gone sitting on a bench near the edge of the steep drop off. "No fishing?"
"Had to have the bum knees replaced," he man called back, as he waved impatiently at his legs. "Can't do the steps too well yet."
"That sucks," Luke answered before he could catch himself.
The old man chuckled and said, "Yes, it does. Bob takes me out on the boat sometimes, though."
"That's good," Luke answered with a nod. "We're going out tomorrow. Do you, uh, do you want to come along?"
The old man smiled and then asked, "Still have that pretty wife?"
Luke walked slowly toward the steps as he called, "You remember me?"
"I remembered her. You it took me a minute to place," the man answered with a chuckle.
"I do still have that pretty wife, and after that last crack, I think I need to take the invitation back."
"Ah, you don't have to worry about me; I've got a pretty wife of my own. Had her for nearly fifty years, I figure I'll keep her," he said with a shrug. "I do enjoy a pretty view, though," he added as he waved his hand toward the water. He turned back toward his house and cocked his head. Luke saw him nod and then he called, "I have to go, my bride is calling me in for breakfast."
Luke smiled as he backed away from the steps. "I've gotta go wake mine up."
"If the invitation still stands, I'd love to toss a line in," he said as rose unsteadily to his feet.
"I'll let Bob know," Luke called as he backed away.
"Good man. It sucks to be landlocked," the fisherman called back.
Luke raised one hand in farewell, and then turned back toward the villa.
****
Lorelai rolled over as soon as Luke left the bedroom. She smiled as she shifted into the warm imprint left by his body, pressed her cheek into his pillow, and closed her eyes again knowing he would wake her when he returned. A few minutes later, she was still awake when she heard the sliding glass door close behind him. She slid from the bed and walked over to the bedroom doors, pulling the curtains aside and watching as he walked toward the stairs. He disappeared from view, and Lorelai bit back a sigh as she opened the curtains.
She crawled back into bed, snuggling his pillow as she stared drowsily at the pool seemingly spilling over the bluff and into the ocean below. Just a guy with a diner and a mortgage and a family. Lorelai's husband, their dad. Luke's softly spoken words from the night before warmed her from the inside out. He was right; everything that they had dreamed of on their honeymoon had come true. It may not have been easy, it had taken a lot of adjustment, a lot of give and take, and more than a few tears. Tears of joy, tears of pain, tears of sorrow, and tears of fear. Everybody wants to rule the world, she thought as she rolled onto her back. But the good; the good was so sweet. And, there was so much more good than bad.
The last time they were here, they didn't have the Dragonfly, or even dreamed that they would ever have Weston's. The last time they were here, Josh and Jake and Carly were nothing but a wish. Lorelai turned her head and looked into the bathroom that had once made her mouth water. Now she had one of her own. I need to take more time to slip into that tub, she told herself. So much had happened in such a short time. No wonder we're exhausted. Lorelai curled onto her side once more, wrapping her arms around his pillow as she waited, watching for his return. She blinked slowly, watching the bright, heavy blooms bob in the early morning breeze. Her thoughts bobbed along with them. A place that I could be me. A home, a family, a man who loves me and believes in me, no matter what. Dan Quayle is off on the lecture circuit somewhere, a golden retriever may be forthcoming, we already have the matching jogging suits, so all we have to do is grow old together. Grow old together. If you love me, you'll let yourself go to pot. Lorelai smiled as she recalled his desperate plea.
She blinked as she saw Luke appear at the top of the stairs. She swung her legs from the bed, and padded over to the doors, unabashedly naked, openly staring at him as he stripped his shirt over his head and then reached for the button on his shorts. He stripped down and then walked to the edge of the pool, pausing for just a moment before he dove, slicing cleanly through the water. Lorelai stood motionless, her eyes fixed on him as his body moved beneath the surface, easily reaching the edge closest to her before he surfaced. He ran his hand over his face, and then slicked his hair back before he looked directly at her and crooked his finger.
Lorelai flipped the latch on the door and opened it quietly, stepping from the cool shadows of the house into the warm, brilliant sunshine. Luke pushed away from the edge, floating away from her sunny side up and adding a couple of powerful kicks to propel him across the pool. Lorelai grinned at his cocky smile, and glanced down at her naked body self-consciously before wrapping one arm under her breasts and then running across the deck, straight for the pool. With a high pitched squeal of joy, she leapt, pulling her knees to her chest and plunging into the pool, making the biggest splash she could.