Finn yawned, stretching out his limbs on his King size bed. It had been a long night, and thankfully he had nowhere to be before noon, thanks to his wonderful assistant, who'd worked for him for years, who never agreed on an appointment for him before 11 AM.
It was then it hit him - the bed was emptier than it should've been. Had he hogged the blanket?
"Charlie?" he asked, the 'Ch' of that word rolling over his tongue in his delicious accent, having barely opened his eyes and started to make sense of his surroundings. The curtain was partially drawn, and indeed the morning light shone in.
"Here," Charlie replied quietly, having just stood there quietly looking out the window, where she'd removed part of the blinds with a now emplty glass in her hands. Having gotten there late last night, the view hadn't fully registered before. It wasn't that she wasn't used to a cityscape like this, Montreal was no village, but it still wasn't this. It did look exciting, but messier. She was filled with eagerness to find out what was to come, to figure out her new career, and a little scared - but who wouldn't be? It wasn't just a leap in a new relationship she was taking - it was her entire life.
"Good, I nearly thought I'd bumped you off the bed. Because if you tell me we need a bigger bed, you tell me, alright?" Finn said laughingly, scooting over, hoping she'd return to his side. The electronic watch in his headboard, which also worked as a bedside table - or more like a hidden shelf really - showed that it was still early, not even 9, but he was beyond his 'the sun is too bright' jokes. Quite in the contrary, he pushed a button on his phone and the curtains rolled to both sides, exposing an even more impressive cityscape. There were no windows looking into their's hence giving the place a certain 'king of the world' feel which Finn had enjoyed on numerous occasions.
Charlie was wearing a silk robe, her own, and slipped to lay next to him.
"What are you doing today?" she asked. This was her new reality for the time being - waiting around when he got back, that at least until she got settled a little more.
"I have a couple of meetings after noon, I need to go check out a venue in Brooklyn in the afternoon, catch up on some e-mail in between. We can go to Shuko - it's a sushi place - in the evening," he suggested.
Charlie realized she needed a lot of googling to know these places he seemed to mention as something common knowledge, so she wouldn't dress completely off.
"Any idea when I'll get to speak to HR at the Marriott," Charlie pondered practically, feeling already like a freeloader, even if she'd only been there one night.
"I can set it up for tomorrow. Today, before I leave we'll set you up with access to this place and then you are free to go explore the city. Or stay here, if the weather stays like this. There's a pool and a gym downstairs too," he said, gesturing outside, recalling his own pool upstairs, was empty for winter because despite it having heating he hadn't bothered with filling it since getting back. The weather was grey, very grey, and most likely drizzling something. Not the most welcoming New York City view.
"Okay," Charlie exhaled. It wasn't a bad feeling to have a whole day to rest after a long drive, but she was feeling a little useless.
"Oh and the maid usually comes on Monday afternoon, so don't be alarmed. She's fine working when someone's here, no need to make yourself scarce," Finn explained.
"Anything else I might need to do - I don't know - get groceries or something," Charlie asked with a shrug.
"Nah, the maid usually sorts that out, I have an Anylist account where I write what I feel like besides the basics - you can add whatever you want there. If you want to get something today, you should add it before 1 PM or call her before she gets here," Finn instructed.
"I think I'm fine for now," Charlie said humbly, not wanting to bother someone she'd never even met about craving Hershey's cookies n cream.
"You're adorable when you're like this, you know," Finn said, pulling her closed by the arm that was around her neck, and kissed her.
"Looks like someone's awake," Charlie mused, noticing Finn rise to half mast, already from the single kiss. Fine, the way her robe hung, having nearly slipped open had helped.
"What can I do - with a creature as gorgeous as you in my bed - it's like I brought home a mermaid or something," Finn joked, with a shrug, loving how Charlie's hair was again braided into a loose braid over one of her shoulders and at that moment her left breast was about to fall out of her robe.
Charlie kissed him again, at the same time letting her hands trace his upper body. Finn turned to his side and the kiss deepened. His upper hand travelled from the small of her back lower to her ass and thighs.
Propoing her upper leg over his hip, her stomach already fluttered as she felt him.
"I'm going to like these new morning routines," Finn murmured, as Charlie pushed him back to his back and straddled him.
She kissed him again, then pushing her back straight untied the robe she was wearing. Underneath, she was just as nude as she'd slept, her pebble hard nipples drawing Finn's hands like magnets.
"Gorgeous," Finn exhaled at the sight of her. He pondered if it was ever possible to get bored of this.
Hands, lips and gentle nudges formed the brief foreplay, and soon she rode him assertively to both of their orgasms, letting him do very little while the city watched. If even half the mornings began from now on like this Finn was a happy man.
Celeste had just left her class in Hartford and was walking over to her Mazda out front, when she checked over her phone. She'd had it on 'do not disturb' mode most of the day - it wasn't that a lot of people knew of her mother's passing, but Lorelai was being fussier than needed, worrying about whether she'd need days off starting from next week when she was back at the Inn. She'd already brought her flowers and candy and sent Luke to bring over dinner, which was really more than necessary. But this evening the text she had been most hoping for would've been one from Sherry. She knew her only through Rory really, but having found out the complex relationship that had been going on around G, she'd quickly caught up and was now seriously hoping Sherry would do what she'd set out to do and leave Remi. She knew these things could go badly, hence she hoped she'd make a clean break preferably via e-mail or letter, rather than face to face. She saw a hint of that story in her family too - it was different, but still - the dynamic had been the same of controlling men.
It was already late in Paris, but she had expected to hear from Sherry by now, hence she decided to call and make sure she was fine.
"Yeah?" Sherry picked up, sobbingly.
"Everything okay?" Celeste asked, and sat into her car. Somehow in this context her issues with the loss of a not too close mother, seemed minor, hearing her sob like that.
"Uh-uh," she replied, barely getting the words out.
"Physically you're fine? You're out of that house?" Celeste asked. She didn't even really know whether it was a house.
"I am," Sherry replied, as she sat on the floor of Celeste's Madeleine apartment, still in shock.
"How did he take it?" Celeste asked.
"I don't know. I said like the site told me - left a note, took a picture of it, blocked him…," Sherry said, continuing to explain that she'd even let a women's support organisation know that she'd left on her own free will in case Remi decided to make a missing person's announcement with the police without actually going to report him at this moment. She didn't have any real proof.
"It takes guts, you know. I may not know you very well but I'm proud you did it," Celeste replied, assuringly.
"Thanks," she whimpered. She felt like such a child - she wasn't supposed to break down like this at her age!
"You can also go to Nice, if you want, it's not much this time of year, but it'd be a change of scenery, maybe?" Celeste suggested, being a little curious herself about what state the place was in. It had been old already twenty years ago.
"I'll think about it," Sherry said. It was not like she had anything really keeping her in Paris, and she really preferred to limit her chances of running into Remi by accident, not that the man really hung out in the City center. But she had no job at this point, and if she did get one, it couldn't really be something work in the same field, not really - the chances of running into him were too great.
But Celeste could already sense that was what she was thinking about, she was always rather good with guessing things like this, putting herself in someone else's mind.
"If you need a reference or something, I can probably get you one. It'd be the art field, but it'd at least coincide with what you've been really doing more or less," Celeste added, hearing Sherry grow calmer on the other side as she'd said it. She figured Yvette could probably be the reference, surely she'd be willing to help her out that much. The two of them had never really had an issue, and now Yvette really didn't need to take sides as far as she knew.
"That'd be great," Sherry exhaled, wiping her tears away.
"You know, you should call G - she'd love to hear from you, she's the reason why we're doing this," Celeste added, assuringly. If she didn't know it yet, she needed to.
"I know.. I will," she replied. She would - but she just needed to pull herself together emotionally first. Leaving had been hard - it was a person that she'd shared a large chunk of her life with, the place had been her home. She was used to being treated like that, now being alone felt very alone, given all the decisive power while feeling handicapped by her lack of independence right now when it came to money, which was mostly Rory's.
The drive from Hartford to Stars Hollow took a little longer than Celeste had anticipated, but in a way the timing was perfect. It had snowed during the day, the winter having been a constant freeze thaw cycle. She noticed the unshoveled driveway, indicating that Jess hadn't gotten around to it that day, she simply pulled up in front of the Apparatus Bay, deciding to occupy one of the customer's parking spaces overnight. It was not like there'd be customers this late, and she was driving over to Westbrook for therapy first thing in the morning anyways.
She glanced upstairs seeing that Jess and Evie were upstairs assuming the lit living room lights. She'd switched off the ignition when her phone rang again.
"Logan, hi," she answered, having not really expected him to call.
"Hey," Logan exhaled. Neither really needed to mention why he was calling - they both knew. "How are you?" he asked.
"Okay..," Celeste replied.
"And your brother?" Logan asked, not quite recalling exactly what Rory had said about that part.
"Locked up, cut off… he'll probably be pretty mad once he gets out though," Celeste explained.
"I bet it must be a relief…," he added. Logan was the only person to suggest that she was actually allowed to feel something other than grief. It was inappropriate perhaps, but he knew her better than that. After all he'd been the one on whose shoulder she'd cried about their ways and cursed for not being strong enough to stand up for them. Their families had in no way been identical, but he knew probably a lot more specifics than Celeste had told Jess, because she didn't particularly like to talk about those times. Jess knew a lot but he knew mostly the highlights.
"Uh-uh..," Celeste exhaled, realizing that Logan got it. That fact alone felt like such a relief. She didn't need to pretend with him. Sure, she didn't with Jess either, but still Jess treated her as someone who was grieving. "I don't have to decide anymore. I can now choose what I take and what I leave," Celeste said, speaking of her heritage. She'd struggled since expecting Evie on how she was going to explain to her daughter where she was from, what that culture was like and what was the language in which she still sometimes thought in.
"That's good," Logan replied.
"I was thinking thought….that maybe I should fly over there for the funeral, I never went to my dad's grave either. But I don't know... you know... But I don't really feel like flying these days...," Celeste added.
"What's wrong with flying? Because if it's the money, all you have to do is ask..," Logan said.
"I thought Rory told you..," Celeste said, realizing he didn't know about the pregnancy.
"Told me what?" Logan asked, for a moment feeling hurt that Rory hadn't been all honest about everything to him. In his mind he was already thinking of more tragic scenarios - maybe she was sick?
"I'm pregnant - early days still…," Celeste replied. "Even driving in the passenger seat makes me nauseous these days," she added.
"Ah… well congratulations are in order in that case," Logan replied, exhaling with relief. It really hadn't been Rory's secret to tell, and definitely not something heavy she'd carried with her that she should've shared like things surrounding G. Logan really didn't knew the details of their birth control plan, hence he wasn't really very surprised.
"Oh.. well," Celeste replied, still feeling uncomfortable in accepting congratulations in any form.
"Yeah, I know-I know," Logan replied, understanding her hesitance better than most men, knowing the risks. "I tell you what - once you do feel up to it - let's all go together - you wrap up whatever you need to, we check out that place in Nice you've been telling me about for years," Logan added, trying to cheer her up.
"Yeah, maybe that's not such a bad idea," she replied with a weak smile. She knew Logan also had a yacht in Nice, so in theory - the plan had a lot of potential.
"And you can call me, you know, if you need to talk," he offered.
"Thanks," she replied.