Since Jess had shown up a day early, he accompanied Rory to Boston. She was happy to have him by her side. It wasn't that she couldn't travel on her own, she had done it plenty of times, but she wasn't entirely sure what she had gotten herself into, so it was a relief to have him take the lead.
During the drive, Jess described "The Plan" to her in greater detail. Rory had expected something a bit more over the top, but she could see the wisdom in playing things the way Jess and his team had decided.
Logan had made her seem like a money grubbing, good for nothing cheater. Instead of addressing anything Logan had said directly or indirectly, they were going to go about their life. They would get coffee, go shopping, and to Jess's events, all the while holding hands, smiling and being together. They figured the best way to deal with Logan was to ignore his nonsense and let people see that they were happy and that he was just the jilted ex fiancee.
Rory was still worried about it. She had heard back from the Times and the position had gone to someone else. She didn't know what she was going to do. She was telling Jess how worried she was about what she was going to do, "I mean, I can't live with my mom forever!"
He reached over and patted her knee. He smirked at her, "Don't worry, I make enough that I can be your sugar daddy."
She pushed his hand away and glowered at him. "Jess, first ewww. Second, even if this works, I'm not going to be a "kept" woman. I want to be able to take care of myself."
Jess frowned at her statement. He was already sure they were perfect for each other. He really didn't like hearing that she thought this might not work. Jess wanted Rory to be as sure of him as he was of her.
He shook his head and told her, "it will work out. I have a feeling you will find something better than working at one of the Huntzburger's stupid papers." He was also thinking that this next week was his opportunity to show her how good they could be together.
When they got to Boston, Rory had imagined they would head straight to the hotel and settle in. She knew Jess had to work while they were here. Instead he parked on a side street.
He started to get out, but she continued to sit, wondering what they were doing. "Aren't you coming?"
"What are we doing? I thought you had to get to the hotel so you could work." She looked at him, confused.
"I can work whenever I want. The only thing set in stone are my 'appearances'. Right now I want to have a cup of coffee in my favorite coffee shop in this city. Are you coming?"
Rory marveled at the difference between Jess and Logan again. Logan was usually under pressure and held hostage by deadlines. It was nice to have time to do things they wanted. She hopped out of the car to follow Jess.
"What makes this place so special?" she asked as laced her fingers through his.
Jess smiled as he squeezed her hand. He pulled the door open and lead her into the shop. Rory was speechless as she took in the floor to ceiling book shelves. The cafe was cluttered, but in a good way. There were books everywhere. Scattered in between the shelves were small tables, love seats, and deep arm chairs.
She turned toward Jess with a dazzling smile, "Let's stay here forever!"
He chuckled in response. "You should probably make sure the coffee is up to your standards before you move in."
He guided her to the counter so they could order. After they had gotten their drinks and a snack for Rory he gestured around the space. "Where do you want to sit? We can go for the table, if you are feeling a little more serious, or we can sit in the chairs around the fire place, where maybe we can discuss the classics, or…" He was about to continue his assessment of the different seating options when Rory began to walk away. Jess wasn't sure what her plan was, so he shut up and followed her.
Rory chose a love seat that was tucked a back a bit behind some shelves, but still had a view of the front of the cafe. "I want to sit here. We can talk without being in the middle of the action."
Jess followed her to the chosen spot and settled in. He loved being close to her. She was a ball of energy, always ready with a quip or observation, but she could also be quiet and contemplative. And she was so smart. He was amazed that she didn't have people lining up, begging her to come work for them, just so they could bask in her glow.
The love seat was pretty small for the both of them. It was more like a seat and a half. Not that Jess minded. He threw his arm around Rory's shoulders and settled back. They were content to sit and sip their coffees. The whole drive to Boston they had talked. There was something nice about being able to be quiet together.
Rory didn't last terribly long, the pull of the books was too much for her. After a few minutes of debating the merits of certain books, she pulled one out of the shelf and came back over. She snuggled a little closer to him and opened it up. Jess leaned in trying to see what the title was, but Rory shooed him away and began to read. It didn't take long for her to start reading bits out loud to him. Once she started to read to him, he knew exactly the book she had chosen. Scattered Poems by Jack Kerouac was a favorite. He loved the way the familiar words sounded tripping off her tongue.
Jess sighed contentedly and grabbed Rory's left hand with his own. He turned her wrist up and gazed down at their tattoos. He wasn't sure how he could feel like this after such a short time. Jess leaned in closer and rested his chin on her head. He had never been content like this before. There had always been a sense of not quite fitting, with Rory there wasn't any of that. They seemed to go together. He peeked at the page she was reading. It held one of his favorite lines. He leaned toward her and whispered the words into her ear.
The words, combined with the intimacy, sent a shiver through Rory. Without even thinking she turned her face up to Jess and kissed him. She could feel his hesitancy, she was sure she had surprised him as much as she had surprised herself, but he relaxed into her. Everything about him felt right. Rory decided to stop overthinking everything and to just see what happened. She pulled away, leaned her head on his chest and continued to read.
They stayed for an hour or so, before reluctantly deciding they needed to get to their hotel. Rory went to put the book back on the shelf, but Jess grabbed it from her hand. He went to the counter to pay for it. When he returned she looked at him, slightly puzzled.
"Since this was our first official date, I figured I would get this for you, as a reminder." He smiled down at her and presented her with the book.
"Thank you," she replied. Then she looked up at him. "Are you sure this is our first date? I mean there were the bars in Vegas, and the walk around Stars Hollow yesterday. What makes this the first date?"
Jess laughed, "This is the first time we've been together, sober and alone. It counts as our first official date."
By the time they got to the hotel Rory was exhausted. She knew that they were going to have adjoining rooms, but she assumed that meant there would be a door in between, or that they would have to go out into the hall to get to each other. She was pleasantly surprised when they got to the room and it had a shared kitchen and sitting area, and separate bedrooms.
Once again she was blown away by Jess' thoughtfulness. It was almost like it was second nature for him to make sure she was comfortable and happy. "Thank you, Jess. This room is perfect. I'm really tired. Do we have anything we need to do for the next couple of hours?"
"No, we're free until dinner. Why don't you rest? I'll be out here working if you need me." Jess smiled and gave her a kiss on her forehead. "Get some sleep. Maybe we can go clubbing tonight." He winked at her.
"Jess, I don't go clubbing. You know that. It was a one time deal." Rory replied, exasperated.
He smirked, "Hey, from my point of view good things happen when you let loose."
Rory wandered toward one of the rooms, grumbling, "A girl gets drunk and gets married ONE TIME and she can never live it down." She shut the door to the sound of Jess chuckling behind her.