AN: Ok this is a big chapter. This story is very much mapped out and I have an idea of what is coming to move the plot forward, this also means that the chapters are longer and will sometimes take more time to write because I know what I need to get into the chapter to accomplish moving the plot. There isn't as much R/L, but we do see more about their home life and the cracks in different foundations. I will admit, writing a story about cheating is hard...I am happily married, I have not (to my knowledge) been cheated on, nor have I cheated...so it's all foreign to me. But to be clear...we are moving towards R/L, and we are very much past the initial "lust" in the affair, these are two people who rightly or wrongly fell in love with each other while married to other people who don't deserve to be hurt. Ok, read, review, enjoy.
Disclaimer: I own nothing
Chapter Three
Rory was the planner.
Rory had always been the planner. She could put a plan together in no time flat, she could make a plan for a group project in the blink of an eye. Rory Gilmore had mastered knowing what to do and when to do it and a funeral was no exception. They had arrived in Chicago in the early hours of the afternoon after calling Lorelai to tell her they had to leave and they would sort out a plan for Emma in the next couple of days. Rory wasn't sure what the particular urgency was to get to Chicago. But she couldn't say that to Dean. His grandfather was in his eighties, and while it was sad for Dean and his family, Rory didn't know why they couldn't have booked a flight out for the morning, why they had instead decided on driving fourteen hours with most of their camping gear still in the car, but she hadn't questioned it. She had told Dean she would sleep for the first chunk of the drive and they could rotate at the halfway point and she could drive, he could sleep. They would be arriving in the early afternoon and Rory was hoping she could convince her husband that they should stay at a hotel instead of cramming themselves into her in-laws home which would mean she and Dean would share an air mattress in the basement while Emma slept on a couch that Rory remembered being at his parents house when they were first dating. It hadn't been comfortable then and it wasn't comfortable nearly two decades later. Dean had protested, of course, because he wanted them to be together even if Rory wasn't sure why they couldn't be together at a hotel.
"Mom, it's fine," Rory overheard Dean talking to his mother in the kitchen of the family home after she had woken up from a brief nap after their arrival, her mother in law had told her that the family was all coming together that evening for dinner so Rory wanted to be slightly rested for the occasion. "Rory and I can help, you and dad don't have to worry about it."
Rory didn't hear the rest of the conversation but instead she walked to the door at the side of the house and went into the backyard and pulled her phone out, "hey kid," Rory smiled when Emma answered at the house, "how are you doing?"
"I'm ok," Emma shrugged. She wasn't particularly destroyed by the death of her great grandfather. Sure, she was sad because her dad was sad, but she wasn't going to be losing sleep over it. "Are you coming to get me?"
"Well, I talked to dad, and Parker is going to deal with it for me," she referred to her assistant, "and if you're comfortable you can fly by yourself. Grandma will drive you to the airport and walk with you to security and then you'll follow the signs to the gate and wait until your group is called to board…you have your phone and I'm just a call away and I will be waiting for you at Midway."
"I've been on a plane mom," Emma told her simply, in truth, the twelve year old was excited about the prospect of flying alone for the first time.
"I know honey, but as your mom, it is my job to worry about this stuff no matter how old you get, so humour me."
"Fine. Where are we staying?"
"With your grandparents."
"But there isn't any space and it smells funky," Emma groaned. "Can't we stay at a hotel?"
Rory inhaled deeply and closed her eyes. Dean would never admit it because Emma had him wrapped around her little finger, but Emma was a lot like her mother. "Dad and I think," she told her, knowing that it was important to present a united front when it came to their pre-teen daughter, even if Rory also wanted to stay at a hotel, "that we should all be together as a family. It would be important for Nana and Papa too."
"I've gotta go," Emma mumbled, "Grandpa is taking me to the diner to work for a couple of hours so I can have some money for shopping, and then we're going to have dinner at the diner."
"I'm jealous, I would kill for a burger right now," Rory admitted. "Pack your things, but just your normal stuff, nothing camping related, we can get that later," Rory told her, or never she thought to herself because she was certain that their camping days were behind them. "And can you ask Grandpa to send some coffee beans for me?" Rory left out the rest of the sentence she wanted to say, because your grandparents have shit taste in coffee.
"Dad says you're a coffee snob…"
"Tell that to dad when he won't drink a Pepsi instead of a Coke," Rory countered with a laugh, "I'm going to go inside and see what I can do to help. But I will call later, and confirm all the plans for the flight and then tomorrow once you're here, we will go shopping for some appropriate outfits for a funeral."
"Do I have to hug the old people?" Emma thought back to the Forrester family reunion that had taken place earlier in the summer where she saw more great aunts and uncles than she cared to know about.
"Probably. Sorry kid." Rory and Emma said their goodbye's and Rory took a moment to herself outside before opening up her messages.
Logan Huntzberger [2:18pm]: Parker told Jenna you're going to be working remotely and off a few more days? Everything alright?
Rory hadn't responded to the message because she had been asleep and now, a couple of hours later she wasn't even sure how to respond to the message, and she was also acutely aware of the fact that she was never truly alone. Her sister in law was inside, as were her mother and father in law and her husband, and she knew that pretty soon the place would be overflowing with people, long lost relatives and family friends, people who she probably should know at this point but she still struggled to remember their names.
Rory Gilmore [4:23pm]: Everything is good. I will be online part of the day Tuesday and then Wednesday, I'll be on my way back on Thursday and in the office on Friday. Dean's grandfather passed away so we are just in Chicago until then.
Logan Huntzerger [4:24pm]: Give my best to Dean. I'm sorry for your loss. Let me know if there is anything we can do.
Rory shoved her phone into the pocket of her pants and went inside where her husband was now sitting on the couch with his father and mother. She sat down beside Dean and leaned into his body, he draped an arm around her shoulder and kissed her cheek, "everything good with Em?" he asked quietly.
"Yep, she's going to fly out tomorrow and I'll pick her up at the airport. I think I'll rent a car. I don't really like driving your truck?" she told him, her tone slightly hushed because she knew that someone would suggest she just borrow Clara's car and she didn't want to. Rory liked being able to come and go as she pleased. "We'll need to go grab her some clothes and I need to get an outfit for the funeral and visitation, and I need shoes… I don't even think she has anything really appropriate at home. Did you call about a suit?"
Dean nodded, "dad and I are going to get them tomorrow. I uh…" he shifted in the chair, "can we go talk in the kitchen? Or downstairs?" he referred to where the air mattress they were sleeping on was.
"Sure," Rory stood up and smiled at her in laws "do you need anything from the kitchen? Can I get you a drink or…?"
"Thank you dear, but we're alright," May Forrester smiled. "Aunt Patty is bringing food."
"Sure," Rory smiled as they went down to the basement, Dean a few steps behind her. "Everything good?"
"Yeah, I just…I needed to ask…I mean…not really ask because I've already done it, but I don't want you to think that I just made a decision for us, but…" Dean rambled on, "my grandpa, he didn't have much and you know…my parents…it would be a big hit to them if they have to pay for all of this."
"O….k…." Rory understood the conversation she had heard part of earlier between Dean and his mother, "so you told your mom we would help?"
"I told her we would help but I…," Dean looked to the ground, "I wanted to pay for all of it. We can afford it," he dug his hands in his pockets, "I just don't want them to have this burden…"
"I guess it's done then," Rory shrugged, "I mean, of course I want to help, and as you said, we have the money and I wouldn't want your parents to be struggling with this or going into debt."
"You're the best," Dean leaned forward and kissed her cheek. "I'm going to write my aunt a cheque for the food tonight."
"Sure," Rory smiled as Dean went back upstairs. She looked around the basement and part of her felt nostalgic for the memories the space held. There had been good times in Chicago. Cramped of course, but good. They had family reunions every other year in Chicago and all of the Forrester family would come together and laugh, eat and drink. Two years earlier, Rory and Dean had rented a big house to spend the week at and had the party there which was much better than some of the other years they had participated in the event. There were pictures on the wall from Rory and Dean's wedding, baby pictures of Emma, pictures from Clara going to prom and other family moments. There were quilts that Rory knew from memory Dean's grandmother had made, or in some cases that his great grandmother had made. She felt stifled down there though, cramped, as if maybe she had outgrown those memories. Although it was going to get more cramped with Emma arriving the next day. She went back upstairs and joined her husband and his family, soon the house was full of other family members. Aunts and uncles, cousins, family friends, there was food and more food, booze and more booze. Rory was at least thankful that the wine seemed unlimited and by the end of the night she was simply exhausted and frankly, drunk.
"You good?" Dean asked, as Rory took a gulp from the glass of water he had brought for her, everyone was still buzzing around upstairs, but Rory was tapped out. Rory nodded and smiled at him as she looked through her suitcase for a pair of pyjamas. "Here," Dean handed her a red Nike sweatshirt, "you always get cold down here."
Rory took it and clutched the fabric to her chest, "thank you," she smiled at his thoughtfulness, and there it was again. The guilt, the moments where Dean was Dean and she was Rory and they felt just like they had when they were kids getting married. "You go back up," Rory told him, slurring a bit as she spoke, "I'll go to bed, and then go get Em from Midway. Her flight lands at nine," Rory was regretting her decision to indulge this much knowing Emma would be arriving in the middle of the morning, "then I'll take her shopping and we'll come back home."
"Can you bring her home first?" Dean asked, "mom would love to see her."
"Dean," Rory exhaled, "it will take half an hour to get to the store from Midway, and then to come back this way first…if we just go straight there and come back it will be simpler and she can spend the afternoon with your mom. I have some work stuff to catch up on, so I'm going to need some peace and quiet at some point."
"On Sunday?"
"We'll talk about it tomorrow?" Rory gave him a smile. Parker had arranged for a rental car to be dropped off at the house and she would take that in the morning. "Night babe."
"Night Ror, thank you for everything today."
xxx
Rory had parked her rental car in the parkade and clutched the Starbucks she had managed to get on her way to the airport in her hand as she waited for her daughter who was thankfully travelling with only a carryon suitcase. The flight had arrived on time and Rory felt a sense of relief as she saw her daughter walking towards her with her big headphones on her ears and a smile on her face. They had embraced and Rory, as any true Gilmore would, offered her to stop and get her daughter a coffee or breakfast, Emma declined both, explaining that Lorelai had fed her on her way to the airport and she was full.
As they drove to the store, Rory filled Emma in on the situation at her grandparents house and the plan for the next few days. This was the first death she had fully understood, she was five when Rory's grandfather, Richard had died so she didn't really remember all of the details of that, and Rory and Dean had made the decision to keep Emma from the visitation and only have her attend the funeral and the reception after. They shopped for a few hours and Rory enjoyed being able to spoil Emma a little bit, to buy her some nice clothes and shoes without any commentary on cost or how long the trip was taking, they settled on a simple black sleeveless dress for Emma to wear at the funeral and a pair of black pants with a black top for the visitation and Rory had bought her some freshwater pearls which were timeless and Rory couldn't help but feel as though her little girl was somehow becoming a young lady right under her nose. Rory chose a long sleeve jersey faux-wrap dress for the funeral and a v-neck Emporio Armani dress for the visitation from Neiman Marcus and chose to really splurge on a new pair of Christian Louboutin heels. She had worn her diamond studs on the trip and those as well as her small engagement and wedding band would be sufficient for her. By the time they were done and returning to the Forrester house, Rory had thoroughly enjoyed some quality time with her daughter and she was dreading spending more time with her in-laws.
"So just…be ready for everything, it's going to be a…weird couple of days."
"Why?" Emma asked.
"Well, Nana and Papa are sad, of course, and so are Dad and I, and I know you probably are too…there are a lot of people here, and I know that it can get overwhelming." Rory parked the car on the street and the pair went inside the house, unsurprisingly it was full of people again, although Rory couldn't be sure if they had ever left because she had simply showered in the basement and then left through the side door.
"Daddy," Emma lit up when she saw her father in the family room, she ran over and hugged him tightly.
"Hey baby girl," Dean hugged her, he was relieved to see his daughter, she was a constant reminder of all of the good things in his life. "Did you and Mom get clothes?"
"And Mom got me pearls," Emma lit up as Rory appeared beside them.
"Did she now?"
Rory kissed him gently on the lips, "it felt like the right time and I promise I stayed under budget."
"If you say so," Dean smiled. He knew he wasn't in a position to question what she had bought when he had agreed to write a cheque to cover the funeral costs and then some.
"I'm going to go put this stuff away," she held up the bags in her hands, "Emmie, go say hi to your aunt," she nodded to her sister in law. Rory walked down the stairs to the basement with her Neiman Marcus bags and the garment bag that held her dresses for the occasion. Rory couldn't have been less prepared for a funeral when she left Farmingdale. "Hi," Rory smiled as she walked into the open space and saw her mother in law leaving the basement laundry room. "Em is upstairs."
"You're home," May smiled at her daughter in law as Rory hung up the bag on the back of the door and the garment bag on a hook. "You got everything you needed?"
Rory nodded as she looked through the bags for her shoes and pulled the box out, "we did. Em got an outfit, and we got to spend some time together. It will be a busy few days for her, you know? Other than when Grandpa died, she hasn't really experienced death."
"Well it's important that we are all together at a time like this," May smiled. "And I want to say thank you. Dean gave me the cheque, and I cannot tell you how much we appreciate the help with this. It just makes things so much easier to not have to worry about the money."
Rory nodded her head, of course he had already written the cheque and her mother in law had probably cashed it too. It wasn't lost on her that they probably didn't even have the totals from the funeral home yet, but somehow her husband had managed to write a cheque to cover the expense. "Of course, I don't want you and Randy to have to worry about that at a time like this," Rory honestly wished that her mother in law didn't feel the need to bring this up at all, she would much prefer that May simply cashed the cheque and moved on and they never spoke of it again.
"Well I just want you to know how much we appreciate you, and what a wonderful bonus daughter you are. It's so nice how you and Dean have made your modern situation work. You work so hard, and Dean does so much around the house and with Emma, and his job of course."
"Dean is a wonderful father and husband," Rory told her, it as almost mechanical at this point. She heard it often from people, how selfless Dean was for being so involved with Emma and then the not so subtle comment about Rory being a career woman. Rory was hoping the woman in front of her would leave quickly, but she knew her mother in law well enough to know she wouldn't, she would linger and want to sing Deans praises. It still felt like a gut punch though. Her mother in law praising their arrangement, and of course was completely unaware of what was going on behind closed doors. "I'm just going to use the washroom and I'll meet you upstairs?" Rory smiled in an effort to end the encounter.
"Of course, just don't use the hot water right now. You know how it gets here when there are too many people in the house."
Of course she knew after many years of going to that house, she knew all of the quirks of the red two storey that she was visiting. The day went on, another day filled with visitors and more hugs than Rory ever needed. Emma did well, she seemed comfortable so long as she was with her father and Rory appreciated that she had that security. Rory provided the same security when they were with her family, but she understood that around that side of the family, Emma was more comfortable with her father.
"Thank you for everything today," Dean smiled at his wife as they were on the blowup mattress. Emma was long since asleep and Rory had stayed up trying to get some work done.
"Of course," Rory smiled as she adjusted her glasses on her face. "I was thinking though," Rory turned on her side to face him, "maybe tomorrow night we could move to a hotel? It would be nice to have a bit more space…"
"You want to leave?" Dean was taken aback by the suggestion.
"I don't want to leave," Rory told him, that was a partial truth. She did want to leave, but she wasn't suggesting they leave, she was merely suggesting that they go somewhere they could have a better nights sleep. "I just was thinking that we could get a room somewhere and just be able to have some space of our own, sleep on a bed…"
"We can't leave."
"Dean, I just want to have a proper sleep and sit at a desk to do some work and have some calls in private…"
"We're here because my grandpa died! We need to be with family."
"I know why we're here," Rory countered, using all of her willpower not to mention that she hadn't complained when he demanded they start a fourteen hour drive late at night instead of just waiting until a reasonable hour to take a flight because he wanted to, "but we're here even if we're at a hotel…it would just give us all more space…"
"I don't want more space, I want to be with my family," Dean told her defensively, "I want to be with my sister, I want to share those memories, I want Emma to hear these stories."
"Ok, and I get that…but we can still do that and come here in the morning and spend the day here, I just think all of us having some space…"
"Well if you want to leave that badly, why don't you just go back to Farmingdale?"
"Dean we have the visitation tomorrow," Rory exhaled. She didn't want to fight with him, in fact she never would have brought this up if she thought it was going to cause a fight, but somehow this is where they ended up. "I don't want to leave. I just want to sleep in a proper bed…"
"Whatever Rory," Dean rolled over, "do what you want."
xxx
The tension was palpable all day long. Dean flinched when Rory went for his hand while they were greeting people at the visitation. Rory miraculously had managed to hold her tongue earlier in the day when four black Cadillac Escalade's came to pick them up and drive them to the visitation. Rory knew she was the one paying for this, and although she had no problem with helping, she had seen the cheque cashed from their joint account was higher than she had initially thought. Dean was trying to help them, his saviour complex was peaked around people that he felt needed him. She did however think that a fleet of Escalade's driving them to the funeral home for a visitation was unnecessary and over the top. She had done as she always did though, she played the dutiful wife, greeting distant family members and old friends, smiling and agreeing with them about what a great father Dean was and how wonderful it was that she could take time away from her busy job considering the circumstances. Her mother and grandmother weren't attending, they had each sent floral arrangements and made generous donations to the American Cancer Society, and Rory felt that guilt rear it's head again when she saw a beautiful white arrangement from Logan. Well, it didn't say it was from Logan. But it was from Logan, alongside a generous donation.
Dean, Rory and Emma, we are so sorry for your loss. Wishing you all the best, Logan, Abigail, Noah and Lily Huntzberger.
Rory knew it was Logan because she recognized his writing, it wasn't just a generically written card from some local florist. She had seen it scrawled on everything from Huntzberger contracts to dinner receipts to love notes on gifts he would have delivered to her discretely and those notes remained locked in her desk drawer at work.
They had made it through the day when Rory finally excused herself to step outside of the house. She was exhausted. The house was full of people, far too many people. Rory got on the phone and quickly made a reservation at The Peninsula hotel in Chicago, she had stayed there before on business, although she had never admitted that she did business in Chicago, because even before the affair, Rory didn't want to get stuck staying with her in-laws while she was in town. She booked herself a Premiere Deluxe Suite and knew that she would enjoy the soaker tub after standing in heels all day and Rory would drive to her in-laws house to drive with them to the funeral and then to the cemetery.
"I'm going to go," Rory told Dean once the house had cleared out.
"Go where?" Dean looked at her with shock, his eyes practically bulging out of his head. "Where are you going?"
Rory groaned, this was so like him. They had discussed it again in the morning but seemingly he had either ignored that conversation or he had forgotten. "I told you," Rory sighed, "I need a proper night sleep, and I booked a room at The Peninsula…"
"The Peninsula? There's a Best Western around the corner, it's like five minutes away. How much does The Peninsula cost?"
"Don't worry about how much it costs," Rory told him sharply, "I need to be somewhere comfortable Dean. I don't want to stay at a Best Western. I'm not fighting with you about this and I'm certainly not fighting with you about this in your parents basement!"
"Of course," Dean dramatically threw his hands in the air. Emma was upstairs with Clara so he didn't have to worry about her hearing them, "yes, it's your money, so you can do whatever you want!"
"You have got to be kidding me?" Rory glared, obviously he didn't know that Rory already knew about the amount of money he gave his parents. "Dean I know you are mourning and sad and this is hard, but I just need a good nights sleep, I haven't slept well in over a week between the camping and this air mattress and sleeping in the truck. If you want to stay with me, come, please, I would love that, but I told you this morning that I was doing this and you were fine with it so I don't understand why you are getting upset about this now."
"Well I didn't think you would actually leave me here after my grandpa died?"
Rory leaned forward and kissed him, it was one of the few ways she always had to shut him up in a pinch, "I love you. I'm tired. I will see you in the morning." She took her duffel bag, her laptop bag and her purse and made her way up the stairs. She was still wearing her dress from earlier and she even put her heels back on because she wasn't about to be seen walking the lobby of The Peninsula in a pair of flip flops. She made her way to the hotel and got herself checked in and then made her way to the elevator, a bellhop took care of her bags and the valet parking the rental car. She got up to the room and immediately kicked off her shoes and pulled some cash out of her wallet to tip the bellhop who arrived a few minutes later. The first thing she wanted to do was have a bath, although part of her also wanted to call Logan, and another part of her just wanted to get in bed. They hadn't spoken, in fact she had only responded to one text since she had told him about the situation two days earlier.
Rory Gilmore [8:26pm]: Just got to the hotel, are you free to talk?
Normally she would have tried to add something about work that they needed to talk about, but she was too tired for the charade in that moment. She went into the washroom and started running the bath, she knew Logan wouldn't respond right away unless he was at work. If he was at home there was a chance they were still eating dinner as they typically ate late which is something she actually first learned when she, Dean and Emma had spent time with them socially.
Rory Gilmore [8:28pm]: This is exhausting. Thank you for the flowers, Grandma too. May loved bragging about them so that was good because otherwise she is driving me nuts. I'll call you in the morning before we head to the funeral.
Rory also hadn't spoken to her mother much in all of the chaos and frankly in some ways, her mother was who she did want to talk to, even if she couldn't exactly tell her everything that was going on. She sometimes wondered if things would've been different if she had listened to her mother. Lorelai hadn't told Rory not to marry Dean, but she had expressed concerns about her daughter getting married so young, but Rory was in love, or maybe she just thought she was in love. It was the only kind of love she knew at the time and back then it was pure, and it was reliable; it was what she thought she needed. Her relationship with Dean had never been perfect, but it was a sense of stability that she didn't always have at home. Dean came from a home with two parents who were still happily married. He had a little sister, he enjoyed seeing his family…and when he proposed, Rory was certain those were things she wanted for herself too and that she could have all of those things alongside her career. She had been right at first. But eventually, and she certainly knew now as she slipped into the scalding hot water and waited for a call from her lover that Dean did not in fact give her everything she needed.
Logan Huntzberger [8:43pm]: You good for a call?
Rory Gilmore [8:44pm]: Sure.
Rory waited with her legs stretched out in the tub and bubbles skimming against the skin on her shoulders. She had propped towels behind her head for some support and tied her hair messily on the top of her head after removing her makeup to get in the tub. She smiled as the FaceTime notification popped up and she quickly hit the green button to accept the call.
"Hey," she smiled broadly as Logan popped up on her screen, she ain't smiled like that since she picked Emma up from the airport. She could tell that he was standing outside, it was dimly lit and he must've been somewhere on his property where no one else would see him or hear him.
"Hey yourself," Logan smiled, his five o'clock shadow had clearly come in, "how're you doing? You must be exhausted?"
"Do I look exhausted?" Rory countered playfully as she sunk a bit further into the water.
"No, you look beautiful, but anything else aside…death is tiring and it tends to bring out the worst in people."
"Ahh, yes, the worst in people," Rory rolled her eyes and in an uncharacteristic moment of weakness she felt the need to complain to her boyfriend about her husband. "My husband is upset with me because he agreed that it was fine if I stayed at a hotel instead of sleeping on a stupid air mattress in that musty basement. So I booked the hotel, but apparently I shouldn't have booked the hotel, or maybe I shouldn't have booked this hotel. I should have booked the Best Western down the street…" Rory finally let out a breath, "because you know, it's 'too much', whatever the hell that means, but he can write his mother a fucking cheque for twenty thousand dollars and I'm just supposed to grin and bear it!"
"Wow," Logan gave her a sympathetic smile, "is there anything…is there anything I can do to help?" He knew of course there was nothing he could do to help, other than offer an ear to listen. They didn't talk about their spouses much. It was an unwritten rule of their arrangement, at first it was the guilt, knowing what they were both doing to good people, but as their feelings developed it was more about the fact that when they were together, everything else managed to float away. They talked about work, they talked about the news, they talked about current events and pop culture, they talked about their children, but Abigail and Dean were mostly off limits.
Rory shook her head, "no, thank you though. It's good to see your face though."
"Well that is quite the compliment."
"How is work?"
"Work is work. I sign things, I put out fires…I've got to make some sort of speech at the barbecue this weekend which…"
"You hate those things," Rory laughed.
"I do, I do hate those things," Logan smiled at her, "you're going to be back?"
"I will be," Rory assured him, "we're leaving here on Thursday, driving home and I will be back in the office on Friday."
"You can take Friday," Logan told her, "bereavement or whatever."
"I don't need Friday off," Rory told him, "I've done enough grieving."
"Are you alright Rory?" Logan asked her calmly.
"I'm fine," she told him, she could now hear a voice in the background of the call, she knew it was Abigail, and her voice sounded distance which led her to believe that Logan as actually somewhere at the side of his property near the garage where he would get enough light to be on a video call. "You should go."
"I can talk," Logan assured her, he seemed to be walking farther from the house.
"We'll talk tomorrow, or maybe Wednesday. Tomorrow is the funeral. And thank you for the flowers…it meant a lot to me."
"Of course," Logan lowered his voice. "Talk soon?"
Rory nodded and hung up the call. Abigail must have gotten closer. Logan was normally the first of the two to say I love you and it was something that Rory loved, which was interesting if she thought about it, she remembered how scared and stifled she had been when Dean was the first to tell her he loved her in their relationship. It had never scared her of felt like a tether when it was Logan saying those words. When he rushed off the phone it was normally because someone was within ear shot. She looked around her and then put the phone down on the floor beside her. She didn't want to talk to anyone else. She was exhausted. If she closed her eyes she could still remember the first time she had stayed at The Peninsula, although the first time she had stayed there was at in Beverly Hills and not Chicago.
Beverly Hills might've been the only time Rory and Logan had acted like an actual couple while they were in the States. Rory had flown in for an acquisition and Logan had flown in to take some meetings at their West Coast offices. He had surprised her. They had been seeing each other for about six months at that point and this was Rory's first real trip that she wasn't going with Ralph. Logan had started by upgrading her room to the Grand Deluxe Suite and he had sent flowers and champagne to be waiting for her. She remembered the maid commenting about how her husband must've been a catch to have sent such a beautiful arrangement, and after that comment Rory had consciously made the decision to take her rings off for the rest of the trip. The surprises kept coming on the week long business trip when Logan showed up at her door. He apologized to her at first, realizing that he was steamrolling her by simply showing up but he had assured her that he had his own room, he just saw the opportunity for them both to be there at the same time, and he took it.
Rory remembered the feeling of the plush bathrobe on her skin as she took Logan by the hand with his carryon suitcase in his other hand and pulled him into the room. He had arrived before dinner but they didn't leave the bedroom that night. Logan had called down in the morning for breakfast to be brought up via room service and the two had spent much of the morning just relaxing and talking before they went to their respective meanings. In many ways Rory viewed that as when things changed for them. Their relationship had never just been about lust. She knew that Logan offered her a level of companionship that Dean didn't offer her, but his attentiveness, the way he opened doors and pulled out chairs for her, the way he tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ears, the way he wanted to hear about her day, even if she knew that he had a vested interest in her success at work. They went to lunch and dinner and ate in the open at restaurants, Logan would put his hand on the small of her back as they went into stores and restaurants, quick and playful kisses walking down Rodeo Drive where Rory was more or less window shopping because although it had been a few months that she had her her VP job now, she still hadn't wrapped her head around the money she was making. Logan had bought her a beautiful pair of diamond earrings from Tiffany & Co and Rory was certain she hadn't taken them off since. She had told Dean that she had treated herself to them to celebrate the deal and while he wasn't happy about it, he certainly took the explanation at face value. Some of the other pieces of jewelry Logan had given her over the years she had lied and said were gifts from her grandmother, she knew Dean would never question it.
By the time the water was cool, Rory was sufficiently exhausted. She made sure everything was ready for the morning and set the alarm on her phone and also requested a wakeup call and breakfast to be brought up first thing in the morning. As she got under the covers and took a final look at her work e-mails she looked to the left, it seemed odd to see the space beside her empty. She had a husband, she had a boyfriend, yet here she was in a beautiful hotel, alone.
xxx
The funeral had been, as Rory anticipated, exhausting.
Emma had been more upset than Rory had expected, and while sitting between her parents, she had quietly sobbed as she listened to the reverend and the people eulogizing her great grandfather. Rory held her hand and Dean had an arm around Emma's shoulder as they sat through the service. The reception had been lovely, but again, emotionally draining, as these things typically were. What had truly surprised Rory though was her husband.
Once it was all said and done, Dean had told her he agreed that they should be staying together at the hotel. Rory had to assume that their daughter had something to do with that because when Rory had been with them the day before, Emma had expressed that she in fact wanted to stay at the hotel because she didn't have any privacy at her grandparents house, and Emma, much like her mother always appreciated a certain amount of alone time, a need to decompress and absorb things at her own pace. Rory had felt uncomfortable of course, they returned the rental car early and her return to The Peninsula was now in their Dodge Ram which decidedly felt as thought it didn't fit in at that hotel. She had called to upgrade their room to one with a second bed for Emma and she was thankful that they would move her belongings for her, it wasn't lost on her that when the change was for him, he made no mention of how much more expensive this new rom was going to be.
"Wow," Dean looked around as they walked in. He had never stayed in a hotel like this with her for more than one reason. The first was that typically her luxury hotel stays happened while she as away on business and if she was away on business she was often with Logan, but also because Dean never felt comfortable in places like this. "This is…"
"My room was smaller…but for triple occupancy we needed to upgrade," Rory told him as she dropped her purse on the table in the entryway and kicked off her shoes almost immediately after. "Em," she nodded, "your room is over there," she had stayed in this particular suite before but she would have to play dumb for the occasion, "I looked at the floor plan online," Rory knew the lie was believable. "Are we going to see your parents tomorrow?" she asked.
"I thought we could spend the day as a family, and then tomorrow we could have dinner with them and then leave on Thursday?"
"Why don't you and Em go and do touristy things? I have so much work to do it's ridiculous," she went looking for her laptop which had been brought up. "I have some work to do, so…bedroom or…?"
"You take the bedroom," Dean nodded, "I'm just going to get changed."
Emma had already run off to change out of her dress from the funeral, and Rory and Dean followed suit, both of them changing into pyjamas before Rory settled on the bed and opened her laptop, once again wearing the red Nike sweater Dean had given her a couple of days earlier and a pair of black sweatpants. She put her Bose headphones on her ears and turned on an episode of Pod Save America as she reviewed all of the e-mails that had come in that she hadn't been able to respond to from her phone or delegate to someone else.
There were papers that they were considering acquiring, papers that they had chosen not to acquire and had to deal with, papers they were liquidating and Rory had to review to see if anything from the publication was salvageable. There were reports she needed to review for papers they were in the process of acquiring, online publications, other forms of media…everything and anything. She probably managed to get through two thirds of her e-mails by the time Dean returned to the bedroom and brought her out of her trance. She had been working for three hours and Dean quickly told her Emma had gone to bed about an hour earlier.
"I guess I will call it a night…"
"I was thinking…Em doesn't normally get to be a tourist here, and this place is pretty nice," Dean told her as Rory turned off the computer and put it on her bedside table. "We should spend the weekend. Go home Sunday instead? I mean…we kind of lost the last little bit of our vacation…"
Rory couldn't disagree with that, they certainly hadn't enjoyed the last official days of her vacation time. "I would have to work on Thursday and Friday," Rory countered, "but…I mean, we could have a fun day Saturday?"
"You're sure?"
Rory nodded and turned off the light on the bedside table as she moved the pillows around until she found a more comfortable way to lay. "If you want, sure." It was the least she could do given the tension that had existed between the two of them for much of their time in Chicago, not to mention even when things weren't great with them, they always agreed on Emma.
"This bed is comfy. We should get a new bed…" Dean bounced around a bit on the mattress.
"Why don't we talk about it at home?" Rory smiled, he looked like a kid in a candy store as he snuggled himself under the covers.
"Night Rory. Thank you…for all of this. I know it's been a hard few days…but I really appreciate you stepping up and helping out and just…you've been amazing. I know work will have been piling up and you'll have a lot to do. I'm sure Logan is going crazy without you being in the office," he added casually, "so I just…I appreciate it, and I appreciate you being willing to stay."
Rory was glad the light was off. She hated when Dean mentioned Logan. It compounded the guilt. Her husband was talking about her boyfriend with absolutely no awareness of the fact that Rory was sleeping with him, but she wasn't just sleeping with him. She was in love with him. "He's got plenty of very qualified people to step in with me being gone, and I can take meetings and answer e-mails…what is it that they always talk about? Work life balance?"
xxx
It was Saturday at noon and Logan was certain that Rory should've arrived by now. She had told him on Tuesday she would be there and now, here he was walking around in linen pants and a beige polo shirt looking for her. But he couldn't make it too obvious that he was looking for her, because if he found her, surely she would be with her husband and daughter, and his own wife and children were also milling about. The party had started at eleven and would run until around three. There was food, there were drinks, all of the corporate employees had gotten an Uber credit as a reminder not to drink and drive, there was a bounce house for the kids and there was golf and raffles for the adults. Logan wasn't even sure what golf course thy were at this year, after all his HR appointed event committee was responsible for most of the details of this party, he had just approved the budget with the help of his finance team.
"Parker," Logan smiled as he saw Rory's assistant at one of the food trucks, "having a good time? Feels like I haven't seen you in forever."
"Mr. Huntzberger," Parker smiled. He was in his early thirties, an average looking man with a fiancé who was in the washroom at that particular moment, he enjoyed his work, but he had also been working with Rory for long enough to know that Logan Huntzberger wasn't just her boss. "Yeah I've been working from home mostly with Rory out of the office."
"Is she still out?" Logan inquired, of course, he knew she hadn't been there yesterday as he had stopped by her office to see no Parker, and no Rory. "And come on, I've told you…it's Logan."
"I thought Jenna told you?" Parker was certain he had relayed the message to Jenna, "Rory and Dean," he added the Dean part pointedly, "stayed in Chicago a couple extra days. They should be on their way home tomorrow, but they won't be here today."
"Oh, right," Logan nodded, Jenna hadn't told him, but he wasn't about to let on that it mattered. "I forgot, yeah, play tourist or whatever?"
"Well, Rory worked, but yeah…Dean and Emma did the touristy stuff. But she'll be back on work on Monday. I think I scheduled a lunch at L'Artusi for you…"
"Sure, of course, uh…thanks."
"I've gotta go," Parker nodded to his fiancé, "you know how it is."
Logan waited a minute and watched Parker leave with his food and walked into the arms of a woman who looked excited to see him. He watched as Parker handed her a container and the two walked hand in hand towards a picnic table and a group of other executive assistants who seemed to have found each other that day.
"There you are," Logan was brought out of his thoughts by the beautiful blonde haired, green eyed woman walking towards him. Abigail Huntzberger was from Georgia, she had moved to New York after college and that is where she had met the man she would marry. They had been married just over fourteen years, long enough over fourteen years that if you didn't spend too much time doing the math, and if you hadn't studied the way the bubbles formed in the champagne flute that Abigail had toasted with at their wedding, you might not have realized that she was very newly pregnant with their son at the wedding. They didn't get married because she was pregnant though, Logan had proposed to her because he loved her. She could light up a room, she had a magnetic personality and a warmth about her that he was drawn to. It obviously didn't hurt that she was stunning. Abigail looked good in jeans or sweatpants or a ballgown. She was effortless and the years of marriage hadn't changed that. "I've been looking all over for you."
"I was just mingling," Logan told her, she handed him an Aperol Spritz which was certainly not his drink but he wouldn't complain. He needed a buzz to calm his nerves. Something about the way that Parker had spoken to him was a reminder that as careful as they thought they were being, they could always be found out. "How are you? You look amazing," he commented on the silk Dolce and Gabbana floral printed dress, he didn't even want to think about the price tag, although, the way his wife spent money was probably the least of his worries given his own precarious situation.
"Have you seen the kids?" Abigail asked as she sipped her own drink, "Lily seems to have made a little group of friends and I believe I saw your son talking to a girl…"
"Well he is a Huntzbeger after all," Logan gave the mostly unconsumed drink to a water who was passing by and put his hand on Abigail's back, smiling as they walked together. "Do you think you'll stay until it's over or are you and the kids going to head out early?" Logan asked, it really didn't matter how long they stayed for, they had two cars waiting to take them home if necessary.
"Oh I'm sure we'll stay till the end. Until you want to leave," Abigail assured him sweetly. "Did you see your father?"
"No and I'm hoping to keep it that way," Logan laughed, "have you?"
"Yes I said hello. He said he was looking for you, wanted to talk about something he read…"
"The man is supposed to be retired," Logan laughed as they stopped at a standing table and Abigail set her drink down. "He needs to let go."
"You and I know that, but he is still your father, and he was looking for you. What kind of wife would I be if I didn't pass along the message?" Abigail countered with a cocked eyebrow.
Logan leaned across the table and kissed her gently on the lips, "definitely not the woman I married."
"I was thinking I might come to the city on Monday," Abigail told him, "I need to do some back to school shopping for the kids, and I thought maybe we could grab lunch?"
"I'll check my schedule and let you know," Logan obviously knew he wasn't free but his wife knew him well enough to know that he wouldn't remember all of the details of his day. So he would pretend to check his schedule, or casually ask Jenna in front of her and Jenna, god bless her discretion would tell him she was pretty sure he had a lunch meeting, maybe it could be moved but it had been hard to schedule, and then Abigail would tell him it was fine they could do another day, and they would. They would schedule lunch on Wednesday or Thursday and all would be well in his world, all of the balls he was juggling would remain in the air for another week.
"Of course."
"Mom! Dad!" a blonde haired girl ran over and interrupted her parents, swinging her arms around Logan's waist as she barrelled into him.
"Easy Lil," Logan laughed as he hugged the little girl. She looked just like him, so did Noah, they always had. It drove Abigail crazy to hear people tell her time and time again how her kids were all Huntzberger, but she took it in stride.
"You should see what Noah is doing!"
"What is Noah doing?" Abigail asked as Lily stood leaning into her father.
"Grandpa just caught him kissing a girl behind a food truck," Abigail laughed.
Logan had to do his best not to react as Abigail rolled her eyes. "Your son," she told him pointedly, "will be the death of me."
"He's a kid," Logan countered, "I can assure you I was…" he began.
Abigail cut him off with her megawatt smile, "not doing this at company parties at fourteen!"
"I'll take care of it," Logan gave Abigail a squeeze and then kissed his wife before heading back in the direction of the food trucks where he was certain he would find his father based on the baritone of his voice alone. Logan found Mitchum and Noah sitting at a table, a group of kids about forty feet away watching the interaction. "Dad, Noah," Logan nodded to his father as he pulled his pant leg up slightly and took a seat. "All good?"
"I was just explaining to our boy here," Mitchum winked, "the importance of discretion."
"Well dad, I appreciate that, but I've got it from here," Logan nodded to Mitchum to head back to the party and miraculously the older gentleman took the hint. The last thing Logan wanted was his father giving his son a lesson in discretion. Logan had spent his entire life acutely aware of all of the women his father was sleeping with on the side. In fact, when he had met Abigail, he had sworn up and down he wouldn't be like his father, and in many ways he wasn't. Logan hadn't cheated on his wife until Rory, and he hadn't cheated other than Rory, not that it made it better that he had simply fallen in love with someone else as opposed to being a philanderer. He was sure that wouldn't help the situation if his wife found out. He loved Abigail, he had been in love with her when they got married, when their children were born, he had loved her through everything, but at some point, before things had changed with Rory, things had changed between Abigail and Logan. There was still love, there was still respect, they were still very much a team, but in some ways she had become someone he didn't recognize, she was a mother first which she had expected, but she lost some of the spirit she had. She had become the house manager, the vacation planner, the organizer of their family, all very important tasks but they didn't do much for the romance. Abigail had always enjoyed nice things, but she had gone from being fun loving and free spirited to more stifling, she didn't like his friends, the people he had known his entire life, the men and women she had been friends with for years. He wasn't sure what had changed, and for a long time he had fought it. He had fought to figure out why his wife had changed, but he couldn't quite put a finger on it. They were still happy enough, they enjoyed each other, but things had changed and now, Rory was the woman he wanted to talk to, Rory was the woman who lit a fire in his belly and made him want to do more and be better. "How ya doing?" Logan asked his son.
"Grandpa got mad at me."
"You were making out behind a food truck?"
"I wasn't making out," Noah kicked his sneaker in the grass below him, "we kissed. It wasn't a big deal."
"Look buddy, I know you don't want to hear about this, but your grandpa probably had flashbacks to me as a kid and I can't say I blame him. This isn't the place for this and you know that, so when your mom, sister and I are around…just keep it clean…and remember always that if a girl says no, or some dickhead like Uncle Finn is telling you to do something that just doesn't feel right, you don't do it. You stop if she says stop. You walk away…"
"Dad," Noah could practically feel his eyes bugging out of his head, "I didn't make her kiss me."
"I know you didn't Noah," Logan laughed, "but I'm just asking you to be smart. To be a kid good, be kind."
"Can I go now?"
"Just fly under the radar with your grandfather for a bit. Go find Mom and Lil. I'll be there soon." Logan watched as Noah walked away with a bit of a skip in his step and Logan was acutely aware of how much like him his son was. Logan pulled his phone out and punched in the numbers he knew by heart. He waited for it to ring and it did. It rang, and it rang, and it rang…he had to assume that meant Parker was right, that she was out doing touristy things with her family and that was why she wouldn't answer. They both made an effort not to answer their phones outside of business hours in front of their spouses unless there was a good reason, and he was pretty sure simply wanting to see her didn't qualify as a good enough reason. It went to voicemail and Logan hit the red button to end the call and shoved the phone back in his pockets and rubbed his forehead with his fingers, certain that his frustration was showing as he stood up.
"Now dear," Abigail's voice came from in front of him, freshly applied peach lipstick on her lips as she put her hands on his shoulders and smoothed out his shirt, "I know she's not here and I am sure that is bothersome for you, but maybe you can just manage one work event without your precious Rory here with you."