Sorry guys, this took longer than I intended. But work got kinda crazy, so I forgot to post last weekend. But here we go. I hope this chapter makes up for the wait. Have fun reading (and let me know if you liked it :-))

12. Heating up the ice

Apart from an awkward moment before lying down – shouldn't she rather sleep in the guest room? – Rory hadn't had such a good night's sleep in months. Whether it was last night's open confessions or Logan sleeping next to her, she felt content and well rested when she woke up.

On the nightstand, she found a note. Good morning Ace. I went for a run, will be back soon. Coffee is ready in the kitchen. Logan

Rory rolled her eyes. Early morning runs were a thing she would never understand. Coffee, in contrast, was just what she needed now, so she got up, took a quick bathroom break to brush her teeth and went down to the kitchen.

After her first cup of coffee she decided to continue reading. Logan had already started a fire, so she rolled up on the couch, enjoyed her coffee, the soft crackling of the fire, and lost herself in the familiar story of Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy.

Logan returned from his run, took a shower, but Rory didn't notice him until he came back down to the living room. There he was, looking at her with a warm smile on his face. She returned the smile but remained silent. Words weren't needed at this moment.

Logan's heart felt ready to burst at the sight of her all cozy on his couch, still in her pajamas, with a book and a cup of coffee. It was a sight he'd be happy to enjoy every day for the rest of his life. For the first time he was totally clear about his feelings: he was falling for her, again. Maybe even more than ever before.

"It was about time. Don't screw this up, Huntzberger!"

That's what Colin had said this morning when he had called him from his run. He had heard Logan ruminating about Rory for weeks, ever since their chance meeting at the Plaza, and had urged his best friend to finally do something about it. Colin had been the only one of his friends never to warm up to Rebecca. Maybe he had felt that Logan wasn't as in love as he pretended to be.

The more time he spent with Rory, the clearer it became that Colin was right. Logan loved Rebecca, but he was madly in love with Rory.

At the end of her chapter, Rory bookmarked her page and put the book back on the table. "Did you enjoy your run? Though I have no idea how anyone could enjoy running around, even getting up early for it."

Logan laughed. "I did. But don't worry, I won't force you to come with me tomorrow. But lucky for you, I did come by the local bakery. Ready for some croissants?"

"Chocolate?" Rory asked with sparkling eyes.

"Of course." Logan chuckled.

"Looks like there's a positive side to working out."

They enjoyed a wonderful breakfast together, talking for hours, it was almost noon when they finally got up. "So, I know you're opposed to exercising, but I have a suggestion for our afternoon."

"Do you consider reading an exercise?" Rory teased. "That's about as much moving as I feel ready to do after that many croissants."

Logan smirked. "But don't you want to work up an appetite for dinner?" He raised an eyebrow.

Rory shivered. Intended or not, Logan's words made her mind go to places she hadn't let them wander for a long time. She blushed and chastised herself. She shouldn't be thinking like this.

Logan loved to see her blush. He realized his choice of words may have been a little risky, but he had a hard time keeping his thoughts pure the longer he was close to her. Although he had no intend to allure her to any bedroom activities with his words.

"Take your mind out of the gutter, Gilmore." he said mockingly, making her blush even more. "I've checked the pond outside; the ice is thick enough to carry. Would you like to go ice skating?"

Her eyes lit up. "Oh, Logan, I'd love to. But where do I get skates?"

Logan grinned smugly. "See, I told you not to forget anything. That's too bad, really. I guess you can watch me skate then."

"You're such an idiot, Huntzberger." Rory grumbled.

"Relax, Ace. Steph has her skates here, and you're free to borrow them. I'm pretty sure they're brand new, the McCraes haven't been here this Winter so far."

Excitedly Rory jumped up and hugged him. "That's perfect. Let me just get dressed." She gestured towards her pajama and ran up the wooded stairs to the bedroom.

Half an hour later Rory and Logan glided over the frozen pond, hand in hand, blissfully smiling. At the beginning Rory had been a little insecure, but soon her movements became more natural, and by now she was almost relaxed. This had been a truly great idea, she hadn't ice skated since her first year in New York, when her mother had taken her to the rink at Rockefeller Center. Out here on a natural pond, surrounded by snowy hills and glistering trees, it was even more magical.

"I love to see you smile." Logan told her tenderly.

Rory looked up to him, her cheeks red from the cold and his compliment. "This is amazing, Logan. Thanks for bringing me here."

"I'm glad you're here, Ace." he whispered. And silently hoped this would only be the first weekend of many spent here with her.

They continued skating for a few more minutes in comfortable silence, until Rory became a little too confident on her skates. "I loved to watch these ice dancing competitions as a kid, you know. Come on, dance with me, Logan." She tried to swirl, swaying dangerously, but managed to stay upright.

"Sure this is a good idea, Ace?"

Rory gave him an eyeroll. "Since when do you only do stuff that's considered a good idea." She mocked.

"Well, then, challenge accepted I guess." With that, Logan pulled her close and they tried to move around gracefully together. But after only a few seconds, it was mostly a struggle to stay upright, both clinging to each other, with their skates more hindering than helping.

"You're bringing me out of balance, Logan." Rory shrieked suddenly.

"Me? You're the one who tried a pirouette!" Logan shot back, and after a few more seconds, their skates collided and they fell down. Now Logan was lying on his back on the ice, with Rory on top of him.

"Are you okay?" she giggled.

Logan knew he'd feel his backside tomorrow, but he couldn't care less. Seeing her look down on him with her angelic smile, her body pressed to his, he was in heaven. All he could do was look at her in awe. God, had he missed her.

Rory's giggles subsided slowly, and she returned his loving look. "Logan…" she whispered, just as he brought his hand up to her head and pulled her down for a slow, tender kiss.

In that moment, he couldn't feel the cold seeping through to his clothes, all he felt were her lips on his, her hands now cupping his face. He sighed into the kiss, and Rory took the opportunity to deepen the kiss. Her soft lips and hot tongue were enough to make his blood go south. He wanted to have her as close as possible, worshipping her body and show her how much he loved her.

"Let's go inside." He whispered when she broke the kiss, breathing heavily. She simply nodded.

Weak in the knees they got up and back to the lakeshore, getting rid of their skates. Instead of putting on their shoes, Logan lifted her up and carried her back to the house, not caring in the slightest about his socks getting wet and his feet being cold.

Rory giggled at his urgency but was glad about it at the same time. All of a sudden she wondered how they had made it this long without being all over each other. He carried her inside the house and put her down on the couch in front of the fireplace, kissing her once again, with a lot more force this time.

"You should take off these wet socks." Rory mumbled in between kisses.

"Oh, trust me, Ace, I plan on taking off a lot more than that." To emphasize his words, he unbuttoned her jacket and pulled it off, followed by her cozy knitted sweater, leaving her in jeans and a night blue lace bra. "That's what you wear to go exercise?" Teasingly, he ran a finger over the soft fabric, making Rory shiver despite the heat of the fire and their bodies pressed together.

"You're such a tease." Rory panted, nestling at his parka zipper. Not very successfully as Logan bent down, removed the cup of her bra and sucked on her painfully hard nipple. Logan ran his tongue over the sensitive spot, cupping her other breast with his left hand. Rory could feel the wetness pool at her center and intensified her effort of getting off his jacket.

"Need help there?" he teased, but got up and put of his parka, sweater and jeans. Rory bit her lip as he stood towering above her, in nothing but his black boxer briefs showing his desire for her. Slowly he got on his knees in front of her, his eyes never leaving hers, opened the zipper of her jeans and pulled them off her painfully slow. Her panties followed, as well as her bra, leaving her completely naked in front of him on the couch.

For a moment, Logan could only look at her, taking her in. Then he slowly caressed her thighs, pulling her to the edge of the couch and parted her folds with his index finger. She was so wet for him. Rory moaned his name, bucked her hips to make him move his finger, but Logan had other plans. Slowly, he kissed his way up her inner thigh until he finally reached her aching center.

"Logan, please!" She didn't care that she was begging, she needed to feel him now.

And Logan obeyed. Licking and entering her with his tongue, massaging her clit with his thumb, enjoying the soft moans and pants he made her elicit.

Rory lost all measure of place and time, her entire being was nothing but feelings of bliss and extasy. His tongue on her most sensitive spot made her cry out in pleasure. In the foggy bliss, she could feel him smile against her folds, intensifying the movements of his fingers. "Let go, Ace." He whispered, before sucking gently on her clit.

And Rory did. Her whole body exploded, she cried out his name, and silently prayed he'd never leave her again.