THE BIRTHDAY PARTY
April's birthday party brings an unexpected twist that changes Luke's and Lorelai's lives forever. Late sixth season.
Disclaimer: I own nothing. I just want to taste one of Sookie's sauces.
Chapter Thirty-eight: Never a Dull Moment
The night was even better than the previous Saturday had been, if that was possible. They didn't stay on the carousel for the full hour allotted—their hunger for each other grew too quickly and too strong to allow that. After a short time they headed back to the car, arms around each other, stopping to kiss every few steps. They drove home, tumbled into the house and up the stairs where they demonstrated their love for each other over and over, through the night and into the next morning.
Again, Luke awoke early and lay quietly in the approaching dawn, warm and contented in Lorelai's arms. He watched her sleep, as he loved to do, and his mind wandered to consideration of how much their relationship had changed since they had moved in together.
They had always enjoyed each other's company and confided in each other as friends. When they became a couple, the trust deepened and grew the longer they were together. And yet, Luke knew that he had always held back a part of himself and he sensed that Lorelai did, too. As close as they were, there always seemed to be another layer to unwrap in one another and sometimes it was a slow, painstaking and frightening process. The trust was not complete. It had been especially difficult throughout the previous spring, after Luke had begun to spend time with April. But it was definitely better now.
He wondered why that was and why it was changing now. Perhaps it was the simple fact of living together, of going home to each other each and every day. Perhaps it was the shared responsibility of caring for his daughter, especially when they were so caught up together in the difficulties she was having. Or perhaps, and he sensed this was the main reason, it was the fact that the night of April's party, he had made a knowing and conscious choice to commit himself to her and their relationship and to try his best to ignore his insecurities. It was due to that commitment and the increasing emotional intimacy that followed that he was now able to express his love more openly, such as the gesture he had planned for her last night. Subsequently, the higher level of emotional intimacy carried them to new heights of joy in their lovemaking.
He chuckled to himself as he realized that doing the very thing that had frightened him the most had brought him more joy and contentment than he had ever thought possible.
He slipped back into slumber as the birds outside began to cheep sleepily and was soon gently snoring.
Lorelai awoke a short time later and stretched as she turned to look at him. She propped her head up on one hand, smiling as she observed his unlined forehead and the rounded softness of his face. She loved watching him sleep. With the lines in his face cleared away and his soft hair freed from the confines of the baseball cap, she could easily see what he must have looked like as a boy and her heart expanded with tenderness as she thought about it.
She was still a little stunned at what he had done the night before. Although Luke had always had a romantic side that he shyly demonstrated from time to time, he had never been quite so openly giving and demonstrative as he had the night before, as they whirled in circles on the carousel happily staring into one another's eyes. She sensed that the walls she had always felt around him were thinning and disappearing faster than she ever could have imagined.
That thought led inevitably to consideration of the walls she still sensed in herself and she sighed with discomfort. She had always seen herself as the more open of the two but as Luke had moved closer, she became aware that that was not completely true. She was especially aware of it when he gave her the long looks that he often did, like the night before on the carousel. No matter how much she was determined not to, there was always a point where she just couldn't help dropping her eyes. At those moments she was aware of such a powerful rise of emotion that it frightened her and she was sometimes sure that she would burst into overwhelmed tears if she did not look away. She was uncertain that he would understand—or perhaps she didn't yet trust him to—and didn't want to ruin those moments by behaving in a way that might upset him. As much as she loved him, and was increasingly certain that he loved her, those tears represented a level of emotional connection that she simply didn't trust and couldn't seem to manage.
She sighed, wondering if she ever would. Then she snuggled against him again and fell back to sleep.
They stayed in bed late the following morning, lazily talking and touching. Then Luke made her a big, delicious breakfast that they enjoyed together. They continued reveling in their romantic haze until April returned from her sleepover at midday.
Another busy week began, full of work and appointments and rushing to get to one place or another. Luke and Lorelai spread the news of the house acquisition to the girls, who were thrilled, and to their friends around Stars Hollow. At the dinner table and in their evenings at home, they began to plan the actual move.
Luke went to the bank that Monday morning and arranged the financing for the house and as he was a long-time and valued customer, it was quickly settled. The closing was set for the following Friday.
"Do you want a Jacuzzi in the master bathroom?" Luke asked Lorelai.
"Sure, I think that would be great."
"I'll arrange for them to start work as soon as the closing is finished so it'll be ready for us when we move in."
They didn't hear much from Rory that week because she was starting to prepare for finals and trying to spend as much time as possible with her boyfriend Logan before he was banished by his father to London for the coming year to learn the family business. April continued to attend school, reported that there were no further problems with the boys who had bothered her and seemed a little more relaxed every day. She worked diligently at her homework every evening and practiced on the crutches until she was able to move about at a good clip. Paul Anka repeatedly voiced his disapproval but also continued to serve as her minesweeper. She felt less and less tired each day until, by that Thursday, Luke and Lorelai reluctantly gave her permission to stay the entire day at school and adjusted their schedules once again.
Mrs. Rivera came by early in the week and was very happy at April's improvement and pained at the difficulty she had had at school. "I'm very glad she agreed to go to counseling," she told Lorelai. "I absolutely think it was the right decision."
"So do we. And April likes the counselor and seems to be accepting the whole situation very well."
"Well, you can't do better than that."
But life often brings surprises and that week held a big one for Luke and Lorelai.
Tuesday evening, Luke was in the process of closing the diner. It had been a busy evening due to the visit of a successful softball team after their game and Luke was also hard put to chase Kirk out of the diner as he tried to close. Finally he issued enough of a threat to make the difficult man hurriedly scurry out of the building and away. Focused on getting the cleanup done so he could get home, Luke went into the kitchen, turned off the fryer and began to scrub the countertops while he waited for the oil to cool.
It couldn't have been five minutes later before he heard the jangle of the bells over the door and inwardly cursed, hoping it wasn't his weird and annoying fellow townsman coming back in. "We're closed," he shouted from the kitchen.
There was no response and after a moment he sighed and headed for the kitchen door, ready to read the riot act to whoever had entered the diner and was standing there so silently. But when he reached the door he stopped short, staring in shock at the last person he expected to see standing there.
"Hello, Luke," said Emily Gilmore.
He was momentarily stunned but quickly caught himself and nodded. "Emily."
She stared at him for a moment and moved towards him tentatively. "I'm sorry to interrupt your work." She indicated the street with her head. "I wanted to see you in private and I've been waiting until your customers left." She stopped in the middle of the room, watching him uncertainly. "I wondered if I could speak to you for a moment."
Luke studied her face. She certainly wasn't wearing the usual expression he had seen her wear during her past visits to the diner, which consisted of narrowed eyes, a tight line to her mouth and an upturned nose as if she was sniffing something unpleasant. This time her eyes were wide with uncertainty and her face open, even eager.
Luke finally shook himself internally and shifted his attention from his thoughts to the woman standing before him. "Of course, Emily," he said courteously. "Would you like to sit down?"
"Yes, please." She moved to the nearest table and lowered herself carefully into a seat.
"Would you like a cup of tea?"
Emily raised grateful eyes to his. "A cup of tea would be lovely. Thank you."
"I'll be right back."
Luke moved into the kitchen and quickly prepared two cups of tea, his mind racing. He could not imagine the Emily he knew coming here voluntarily except to cause trouble and was very struck by the difference in her voice and facial expression. He realized that perhaps Lorelai's confrontation a few weeks earlier had something to do with her change in behavior and decided to be as generous as possible in hearing her out. It could not have been easy for her come to him.
He carried the two cups of tea into the dining area, remembering that she liked lemon with hers and including a couple of slices. He set the saucer before her and she smiled as she thanked him. As she prepared her cup, Luke quickly went around closing the blinds to the diner, thinking that neither one of them needed an audience for the impending conversation. Then he sat opposite her, put a little honey into his tea, took a sip and raised his eyes to hers, quietly waiting.
She glanced up quickly to meet his eyes and immediately lowered them again. "I'm sure you heard about my—conversation with my daughter and granddaughter at dinner a few weeks ago," she began.
"Yes," Luke said simply.
She gave him another quick glance as she took a sip of her tea. "I've been—thinking a great deal about that evening and some of the things that were said," she began. "I've been struggling quite a bit with it all. I've also been talking a great deal with my sister, Hope. She lives in France," she added. To stall for a moment, perhaps, she asked him, "Has Lorelai ever talked to you about her aunt Hope?"
"Only a little," he shrugged. "It doesn't seem like she knows your sister very well."
"No, Hope hasn't been back in the states since Rory was a baby," Emily explained. "I've been able to visit with her on my trips to Europe but Lorelai was only there that one time and Hope was away then." She paused. "Actually, they were quite close when Lorelai was a child." She raised her eyes to his. "Lorelai reminds me a great deal of her. I love her dearly but I don't understand her any more than I've ever understood Lorelai."
Luke nodded, wondering where she was going with this.
Emily seemed to realize that she had veered off her intended subject and gave herself a little shake. "Anyway, I didn't come here to discuss Hope." She took another sip of tea and cleared her throat, giving Luke a clue as to how nervous she was under her contained exterior. "Lorelai said one particular thing to me that night at dinner which has made me realize something." She looked up at him. "I realized that I was very unfair and even cruel to you the night of Richard's and my vow renewal. What I did in inviting Christopher and urging him to go after Lorelai—well, she helped me realize that what I did to you that night was very similar to something my mother-in-law once did to me. It was worse, in fact. That fact has bothered me a great deal, Luke. As Lorelai pointed out, I should not have done something to you that I so disliked being done to me. I didn't give any thought or consideration as to how you might feel that night. I was very unfair to you and I would very much like to apologize for that."
She kept her eyes on his, staring at him appealingly.
Luke studied her for a moment while she continued to watch him. Then he nodded and said, "I accept your apology, Emily, and I appreciate that you came here to tell me this. I know that it could not have been easy for you."
He smiled encouragingly and saw the genuine relief light in her eyes. She smiled tremulously and softly said, "Thank you."
She fiddled with her spoon for a moment and hesitatingly added, "Lorelai also felt that I was very rude to you the first time you came to dinner—that I was condescending to you. I disagreed with her when she said that, but. . .I've since started to wonder."
She didn't continue and Luke waited for a few moments. "Are you asking me if I thought so?" he inquired.
Emily nodded, still looking down at her spoon. "Yes."
"Okay. Yes, I'm afraid that I thought you were quite rude and condescending to me."
She winced and he shook his head, smiling a little. "It was quite an experience, actually."
She glanced up. "What do you mean?"
"Well. . ." He tried to think of a tactful way to put it. "You are. . .quite skilled at that kind of put-down. If I felt I had actually deserved any of it, I would have been pretty—devastated." He smiled again. "I mean, it is a talent and can be very useful when people actually deserve it. I know a few times that I've practiced it myself—although not as well as you did it. It depends upon when and on whom you use it, I guess."
She smiled a little, appreciating his effort to lighten the discussion a little. "I think I understand what you mean. I used it once on Logan's mother in a situation where she was being very snobbish about Rory. When Lorelai heard about it, she called me 'the master.'" Her smile grew wider. "That was a nice moment between us."
"I understand that you have them from time to time."
She glanced up at him. "Not too often, I'm afraid. I'm not even sure Lorelai recognizes them when they happen."
"Of course she does," Luke said, surprised. "She enjoys them a great deal. I think maybe it's moments like that that keep her coming back and trying to have a better relationship with you."
She looked up in surprise. "Does she want a good relationship with me?"
"Of course she does," Luke said again. "She wants that very much. Do you doubt it?"
"Well, she doesn't seem like she does," Emily said moodily. "I try so hard to be a part of her life but she won't let me. She won't tell me anything about what's going on with her or share her thoughts and feelings with me. I don't understand why," she added with frustration. "I've never understood my daughter. It has just seemed like, from the day she was born, she has deliberately done everything possible to defy me and push me away."
"From the day she was born?" he questioned. "Pretty sophisticated behavior for a child."
"Well, I can't figure out why else she's done it," Emily argued. "For instance, so often during a discussion that I consider to be serious, she starts with her babbling. She just babbles away and says nonsensical things and I think it's just to upset and embarrass me."
Luke looked at her in amazement. "You mean you don't understand why she does that?" he asked, incredulous.
Emily raised her eyes to him, frowning. "No. You think there's a reason?"
"Of course there is." She stared at him, waiting, so he went on. "Part of it is just that Lorelai naturally sees the funny side of things and can't stand it when people are pompous or too serious. She uses it on me. I tend to be on the gloomy side. Almost from the day we met, when I get that way, she tries to tease me out of it, sometimes by saying ridiculous things." He smiled. "It used to annoy me—still does sometimes—but overall I'm grateful for it. She is very good at getting me out of my bad mood and relaxing enough to see that things aren't that tragic after all." He paused. "Besides, it can be pretty entertaining at times. Her quickness just astounds me."
Emily was listening carefully and frowned again. "Well, yes, I can see that she does it in response to—what I guess you'd call pomposity. And I can even agree that sometimes it's entertaining and I can see the funny side of what she says. But there are other times when I'm trying to speak to her seriously and give her my opinion on what she's doing and she goes off into the—babbling. That's quite annoying."
"Oh, well, that's easy to figure out."
Emily stared at him. "It is?"
"Of course," Luke added patiently. "She gets that way when she's nervous or insecure. I've seen it myself. She just can't shut up at those times. I think she's trying to avoid hearing whatever's being said because she's afraid of it."
Emily stared at him, astonished. "Lorelai—nervous? Insecure? Afraid?" She looked down at her teacup again. "I never thought that was possible."
"You mean you didn't know that?" Luke was astonished.
She shook her head. "Lorelai has always seemed—incredibly confident and sure of herself and her opinions. I don't understand why she would be afraid of anything I tell her."
"A lot of the time she is that confident," Luke tried to explain. "But you're her mother. Every child wants, to some degree, to please their parents. Every child wants to avoid their parents' disapproval." He waited. "She's very sensitive to your criticism."
She shook her head. "It never seems like she wants to please me," she said darkly.
"Well. . ." Luke hesitated. "Maybe it's more that she doesn't want to displease you." He paused. "I know it upsets her when she does. But she's also come to believe that pleasing you is impossible, unless she wants to completely give up who she is and how she wants to live her life. And she just can't do that. She wouldn't be Lorelai if she did that." He shook his head, thinking hard about how to put what he wanted to say. "I think everybody reaches a point in their life when they have to go their own way and decide for themselves what they want their life to be. I think it's. . .healthy and normal. Lorelai happened to do that at an early age, it seems." He watched her carefully. "To be what you want her to be and to live her life the way you choose, would mean losing her sense of herself. And I don't think anybody can be happy if they lose themselves."
"But why is my way so bad?" Emily burst out. "I've only wanted what's best for my daughter."
Luke watched her carefully. "I guess you two have very different ideas about what 'best' is."
"Oh, we certainly do," Emily said, a little angrily. "I told her that night at dinner that I wanted her to live comfortably, associate with good people, have a good marriage, a good education, good work to do and children to make her happy. What's so bad about that?" She looked him straight in the eye, defiantly.
Luke shrugged. "There's nothing wrong with that. I guess you and she just have different ideas about what 'good' consists of. And that's normal." He waited and when she didn't respond, he went on. "Lorelai may not be wealthy, but she does live comfortably. . ."
"She didn't always," Emily burst out. "I saw that shack she brought Rory up in. It was disgraceful."
"But it was hers," Luke reminded her. "It was the best she could do at the time. She accomplished it, all by herself—not because of what family she was born into or how many advantages or how much money she had. She was very proud of that. And she always wanted better. The same with her house and her business. She's proud of those things. Her pride in the fact that she did them on her own is very much a part of who she is."
"She could have done better," Emily muttered.
"Better meaning what? 'Better' by your standards?"
"Yes!"
Luke watched her again. "Do you know for a fact that she'd be happier if she had met your standards instead of hers?"
"I like to think so."
He shook his head. "I don't think we'll ever know. But the point is, she's made her choices, according to what has seemed right to her and she knows what she thinks about her life. She's very happy right now and has been for some time. No matter what's going on in her life and what problems she has." He waited for a moment, took a breath and added, "In fact, over the years, the only times I've seen her consistently unhappy is in situations involving you."
Emily raised her head, looking mildly stricken. "What do you mean?"
He shrugged. "She would often come into the diner for coffee after having dinner at your house. She was so often unhappy and frustrated at those times. She didn't always tell me what the situation was—but I could see the difference in her. And it was really only at those times that I saw it. Even if there were problems at work or with her house or with Rory or someone else, she always seemed to be basically happy. But not when she came back from dinner at your house."
Emily shut her eyes as if in pain.
"Emily, I'm going to tell you something. You may hate me for this and that's okay, but you started this conversation and I think it needs to be said. Lorelai has suffered a lot at your hands over the years. Your disapproval, your constant criticism, your disrespect of her choices in life, and especially your manipulations have caused her a great deal of pain. I believe she told you that, that night at dinner."
Emily nodded unhappily.
"Despite that, Lorelai has always been willing to go back and try again with you, no matter how hurt she was. That's how badly she wants a relationship with you. That's how much it's always meant to her. She's wanted to give up on it but she just can't seem to."
"But she seems to be giving up now. She threatened to walk out of my life." Emily was having difficulty speaking. "What's different now? I thought things were getting better between us."
"I think they were, too, and so did Lorelai," Luke agreed. "What's different now is this thing with April. Lorelai may tolerate being hurt herself and go back for more. But she won't tolerate someone around her getting hurt. Especially a child." He was thoughtful for a moment. "I believe that's why she kept Rory away from you for so long."
"She only allowed us to see Rory regularly because I demanded it. Because Lorelai needed the money to pay for Chilton," Emily said stiffly.
Luke nodded. "It was important for her to get that education for Rory. She'd do anything for Rory—you must know that. And Rory was older by then so Lorelai felt she could handle it. But you have to know, if Lorelai felt that associating with you would do Rory any serious harm, she would have ended it in the blink of an eye. She would have taken on a second job to pay for Chilton if she felt she needed to rather than have Rory hurt." He watched her reaction before he continued. "And I think Rory would have given up Chilton if associating with you was too hard for her or for Lorelai. But Rory really wanted a relationship with you and Richard."
"According to Rory, we did a lot of things to hurt her, too," Emily said tightly.
"Yes, I heard about some of those. But it was always Rory's choice to continue with you. Lorelai made sure of that. And I guess that, despite the things you did, it was still worth it to Rory to do that." He shrugged. "Rory is very forgiving and very positive about people." He grinned. "Look at how she keeps putting up with Paris."
Emily actually smiled at that. Then she grew serious again. "I just don't quite understand why it was so awful that I wanted to meet your daughter."
"It wasn't meeting her that was the problem. We've always intended for you to meet her. It was just the timing that particular week. She had basically seen her mother die, she had just met Lorelai, she had been in the hospital and was still in pain, her entire life was in a tailspin. She was still struggling with being comfortable in her new home and her reactions to her mother's death. It just wasn't the right time. We didn't mind that you wanted to meet her. We minded that you wouldn't respect our wishes when we told you no. And we very much minded how you went about getting your own way."
Emily's lips tightened and looked directly at him. "I want you to know—I'm not someone who enjoys hurting a child. That wasn't my intention at all." She sighed. "I really don't even know why I was so insistent on her coming to dinner that night. I see now that it really wasn't important." She looked at him anxiously, as if he might have the answer.
He thought about it for a minute. "Well, I've wondered if maybe you felt you were losing Lorelai."
She frowned. "What do you mean?"
He leaned forward, putting his hands on the table. "After the accident, Lorelai and I made some definite decisions about our immediate future," he explained. "She told you about them at dinner right after it happened—the night you told her about buying the house. I think maybe you saw her—moving away from you, in a sense. Becoming far more focused and definite about her life with me. I wondered if maybe you just felt a little—oh, fearful maybe—about remaining a part of her life. One way to stay in her life would be to have us all over to your house, including April, so you could continue to be a part of things." He leaned back, wondering if he had explained himself well and what her reaction would be.
She stared at him for several minutes, her mouth open. "I think. . .I think you might be absolutely right," she murmured. "I remember that I felt a little jealous that night." She paused in thought and when she raised her eyes there was a glint of tears in them. "I've missed a great deal of my daughter's and granddaughter's lives," she said tightly. "I've worked very hard to get them back over the past few years. I think I was afraid that I was going to lose them again." She looked down. "I don't think I could bear that."
"Emily," Luke said urgently, "Lorelai and Rory want you to be a part of their lives. They really do. I just think. . ." he paused. "I just think you need to find a different way to go about it."
"That's what Lorelai kept saying. Perhaps you're right," she murmured. Then she smiled ironically. "It's—quite hard for me to admit that I'm wrong," she confessed. "I was taught to be that way. Admitting you're wrong was a mortal sin in my mother's eyes," she added softly.
Luke's senses pricked up. "Lorelai and I have wondered what your mother was like and what part she had in—making you who you are, I guess," he said carefully.
"That's interesting," Emily said thoughtfully, "because I've been talking a great deal with Hope about that very thing." She looked up at him. "I've come to realize that my mother's influence was—formidable. And that perhaps that wasn't as good a thing as I always thought it was."
She didn't offer anything further and Luke didn't feel comfortable asking. After a moment of silence, he offered, "I think maybe that's something you ought to talk to Lorelai about."
She looked at him hopefully. "Do you think—she'd want to?"
"Emily, I know she would," he said instantly, touching her hand. "She's been concerned that she hasn't heard from you since that night. I think she hoped that that—confrontation would be the beginning of something new for the two of you. Where you could really talk and be honest with each other and listen to each other for a change." He sat back, removing his hand from hers. "I think she'd be delighted to hear from you and have that conversation."
Emily's face was a combination of anxiety and hope at the same time. "I've wanted that, too. I've been afraid to call her, afraid of how she'd react," she admitted.
Luke shook his head. "Don't be. I'm sure she'd be happy to hear from you. Of course," he felt compelled to add, "it depends a great deal on how you approach her."
"Oh, I think I've realized that," Emily sighed.
He waited again. "I know she's home right now. Would you like to call her from here? Maybe set up a time to talk?"
She raised troubled eyes to him. "Do you think that would be all right with her? Is that the best way to go about it?"
"I think so," he assured her.
Emily didn't respond right away and continued to sip her tea. He nodded at the cup. "That must be cold by now," he said. "Would you like a fresh cup?"
"Oh, no. No thank you," she responded quickly. "I think—would you call first? So she knows I'm here with you and you approve of my calling?"
"Of course, if that's what you want."
She gave a small nod.
Luke pulled out his cell phone. "The diner phone isn't portable," he explained, a little apologetically. He dialed the home number and listened it ring while Emily watched nervously. "Hi, honey," he said when Lorelai picked up. "I'm still at the diner. Listen, there's someone here who wants to talk to you—someone I think you'll be glad to hear from. Okay." He handed over the phone to Emily with an encouraging smile.
She took it slowly and cleared her throat. "Hello, Lorelai." She waited a moment, probably listening to Lorelai's response. "Yes, I'm at Luke's. We've been talking for some time. I came. . ." she paused and Luke thought he saw her swallow. "I came to apologize for what I did to him at the vow renewal and—other times. Yes, I'm happy to do it." She listened for a moment and took a deep breath. "Lorelai, I'd very much like to meet with you to talk about—what's been going on and what was discussed at dinner that night. Would you be willing to. . .you would? Oh—thank you very much. I appreciate it." Another pause. "I'll meet you whenever and wherever is convenient for you. At your inn, perhaps?" Another pause. "Yes, I understand—I'd rather not be interrupted either. Your house? Or my house perhaps? We can be sure of quiet there. No, your father will be at work tomorrow. Ten o'clock? That would be fine. Yes. Yes, all right." And she finished the call with a soft, "Thank you, Lorelai," and clicked the phone off, handing it back to Luke and looking at him tremulously.
He smiled, trying to put her at ease. "Nicely done, Emily."
"Thank you," she said softly, looking a little dazed. "Thank you for everything, Luke."
"You're very welcome," he said gently.
He insisted upon walking her to her car, and while they were doing so, she asked tentatively, "How is April doing?"
He recognized that that was probably the first time she called his daughter by name. "She's—I guess she's doing as well as can be expected," he said thoughtfully. "It's been a rough road so far, but she's improving. We've still got a long way to go."
"I'm glad that she's better," Emily told him softly. "And the wedding plans?"
"Moving right along," he smiled. "Lorelai should probably be the one to tell you about those."
"All right. I'm very glad that you decided to take the house."
He smiled fully at that. "So are we. Did Richard tell you that we got the final approval from the town? At a lower price than they wanted from you?"
"Yes, he did." She actually looked happy for a moment. "It sounds like you handled that very cleverly."
"The closing is later this week, and we hope to be in around the first of July."
"That's very nice. Well, if there's anything we can do to help. . ." her voice trailed off.
"I'm sure there'll be something."
They reached her car, which was parked across the square. As she got in, he said, "See you soon."
She gazed up at him. "I hope so," she said softly and shut the door.
Luke waited until she drove away and blew out his cheeks. "Wow!" he thought. He stood in contemplation for a minute, shook his head and returned to the diner to complete his shut-down.