AN: This is a bit later than I promised, but I hope it is worth the wait. Please note the rating has now been changed to M for sexual situations. The next chapter will involve more Logan/Abigail/Noah/Lily but still a bit of Rory/Logan, so just be forewarned. I hope to have it up by the end of the week. Please read, review, enjoy
Disclaimer: I do not own Gilmore Girls or Good As Hell by Lizzo
Chapter Nine
Rory hadn't bothered to let Logan know she was back in Manhattan earlier than anticipated. She knew that his plan was to get ready for the dinner in Great Neck, she couldn't bring herself to think of it as his house anymore, it wasn't his. She had thought she would be with Emma longer and her plan was to quickly get ready and take a cab. She knew if she asked him to stop and pick her up, he would immediately agree and ask her why she was home so early, or how things went with Emma…and she wasn't ready to think about that herself, much less talk about it with someone else. She and Emma had ridden back to the house in almost complete silence, Emma had begrudgingly muttered a goodbye and had run into the house, leaving Rory standing there watching as Dean took a quick glance out the front window when he heard the commotion. Rory knew it wasn't fair to expect Emma to understand this. Matters of the heart were complicated enough as an adult, much less as a kid. Not to mention that Rory had always gone out of her way to make it seem like things between her and Dean were always good. Not just for Emma but for everyone. There were very few people who knew how Rory felt within her marriage. Some would speculate, of course, but she could count on two fingers who really knew…that was Logan and Lane. Her mother knew some, and certainly she speculated, but she didn't understand the true extent of Rory's struggle in her marriage, and Rory wasn't completely sure she would ever be able to tell her, Paris knew some but she had always hated Dean and Rory had never wanted to add more fuel to that fire, although Paris knew about the current state of her marriage so she knew more than most people.
Rory walked through the apartment and to the master bedroom where she had been living out of a suitcase despite Logan insisting that she was welcome to unpack a few things. The only things that she had unpacked were the items she planned on wearing that evening that she had picked up earlier in the week when Logan had suggested that she take a morning off work. Rory grabbed the garment bag and other articles of clothing from the closet and placed them carefully on the freshly made bed. She walked to the washroom and looked at herself in the mirror, her eyes were puffy from the tears she had cried on her return to Manhattan, she was relieved for sunglasses and the willingness of the driver to leave her be in the back seat. She carefully applied her makeup, not too much but enough to keep the exhaustion from showing on her face and then she went about fixing her hair which thankfully had cooperated for the day and Rory was able to style it relatively quickly into loose curls. Rory returned to the bedroom and began undressing. She knew she wouldn't be able to wear a bra with her dress, that was simply out of the question. She must've been in somewhat of a blind rage, or maybe it was that she was blinded by lust when she chose the dress. She stepped into the green lace thong, another item from La Perla which thankfully her husband hadn't stumbled upon, not only because she typically saved those garments for her encounters with Logan, but also because she knew his head would explode over the price and she couldn't very well have told him that her lover had paid for it. Next she unzipped the draped long sleeve mini dress she had gotten at Neiman Marcus, the Balmain piece was stunning and short, much shorter than anything she would normally wear. She struggled for a moment to get the zipper up but managed to get herself adjusted into the garment and then slipped on her black ankle-tie Christian Louboutin pumps which Paris had lovingly referred to as fuck me pumps when Rory had showed them to her on Tuesday. Paris however was fully on board with Rory moving on from Dean, although she didn't know of all of the problems in the relationship, she had always believed that Rory could do better and thought that Dean had some controlling tendencies. Rory quickly looked herself over in the mirror, the last thing she needed was a piece that she had made sure to take with her when she left the house in Farmingdale. It was a cocktail ring that her grandmother had given her a few years earlier when Rory had gotten her promotion, it was a family heirloom that Emily had received from Richard, and he had received it from his paternal grandmother, a large emerald cut emerald ring set in two tapered baguette diamonds and a platinum band with some yellow gold detailing. Rory didn't wear it often, it greatly overshadowed her 1/4 karat diamond engagement ring and simple band that accompanied it, and in their quiet life in Farmingdale there hadn't been many opportunities to wear it. She had taken it on business trips with Logan before, wearing the large piece while they wined and dined around town, but tonight, tonight the ring felt like a symbol of the new Rory. She wasn't sure exactly who the new Rory was, or what the difference was for the people she worked with, certainly it wouldn't matter to Rob, but as she looked in the mirror, she felt reborn. She was shedding herself of the past and the guilt that came along with it, and instead she was choosing to be happy. She wrapped herself in a long black coat and grabbed the simple black Kate Spade clutch, tossing her phone, ID and credit cards in the bag along with a key to the front door and a spare lipstick, she almost forgot the card that she had signed the night before for Rob. After a great deal of consideration, she and Parker had settled on a wine club that would have a half case of wine sent to him every month for a year, another item that Dean would've caused a scene about, Logan simply shrugged and reminded her that Rob hated drinking Malbec. She made her way to the lobby and managed to grab a taxi, somehow even though she had been home earlier than expected, she would still be late and she was relieved that she hadn't asked Logan to wait for her. He was in essence hosting this event after all.
Arriving at Il Buco she was quickly led down a set of stairs to the wine cellar and by the time she got there it was already bustling with people. There were less than twenty people in attendance but in the intimate, dimly lit room it still felt crowded. Rory felt relief wash over her when she saw Logan, not that he could see her because he was off talking to his vice president of operations and her husband, but at the very least she felt the comfort of his presence. She handed her coat to the server who had brought her downstairs and slowly made her way to see the man of the hour.
"If this is the kind of send off everyone gets," Rory waited until the right moment to break into the conversation with Rob, his wife Emily and a couple of other colleagues. Rory had never struggled to remember Emilys name because of the family connection and she was thankful for that. She knew who were coworkers were, but anyone who didn't have an HPG name tag at some point, she couldn't be guaranteed to recall their names. "I might have to retire sooner than I expected."
Rob and Emily laughed and embraced Rory warmly, "he'd lose his mind without you," Rob smirked and nodded to Logan.
"But this restaurant is like heaven, except if it were for me it would need more books…maybe in a library with snacks," Rory grinned. "This is for you," she smiled and handed him the card. "Just a little token of my appreciation. You've always been so good to me and getting to work with you," Rory smiled. He had been her boss for a short period of time and he was a good boss. He was always kind to her, he was considerate if she had to leave work for some reason or another, sure he had expected her to do her job, but he was more concerned with the job being done than exactly when she clocked in and out or where the work was completed.
"You look stunning," Emily smiled, "and this ring?"
Rory blushed as Emily took her right hand an inspected the large stone. "It was a gift from my grandmother years ago," she explained, "a family heirloom."
"Am I missing the party over here?" Logan interrupted the conversation with his trademark smile, "Rob we're just going to take a seat if you want to find your chair. The seating is assigned," he added pointedly and Rory was sure he was telling her that as his hand carefully went to her back, "Rory I think you're beside me."
"You don't say," Rory gave him a quick hug, no different than one she would give any of the other men in the room that night. "The place looks great," Rory smiled as they made their way to the long wooden table, she felt a sense of relief when she realized that he had made sure that she was on an end seat. He was at the head beside her and on her left was one of her closets friends from the executive team. Another woman who had managed to rise up the ranks of the company. Rory had questioned more than once if she had suspected that Rory and Logan were an item, but at the very least if she did suspect it, she had never said it out loud to Rory. They sat through dinner and as they had done many other times they conducted themselves in purely a business like manner, for a brief moment their fingers had touched when Logan was topping up her wine glass and Rory was sure anyone in the room would feel the heat from the two fo them, the chemistry and the pull that she felt for this man was undeniable.
"So Logan," Rory's thoughts were interrupted by Julie, her friend and colleague, "where is Abigail today? How is she doing? I would've expected her. She always liked Rob."
Logan swallowed, his Adam's apple bobbed in his throat, "Abigail and I are actually separated," he told her with an uncomfortable smile. "I saw her today though, with the kids…she's doing well."
Julie's face flushed and she took a sip of her wine to buy herself an extra moment, "I'm so sorry to hear that, I had no idea."
Logan flashed her a smile, again, that signature calming smile, "we're friends, everything is good…this is for the best for everyone involved."
Rory sat awkwardly for a moment listening to the conversation around her, she wished so desperately that if she were to tell someone about the situation with Dean she could say everything is good but that was so far from the truth. How messed up was that? That she was jealous of how Logan and Abigail were handling their divorce, that she felt resentment towards her soon to be ex husband for struggling with the fact that she wanted to leave. "If you'll excuse me," Rory smiled to her neighbours at the table, "I'm just going to make a quick call. Check on Em." She didn't wait for any sort of response or acknowledgment of her statement, she just stood up and walked upstairs. She stepped outside, not even noticing the cold on her legs and cheeks and she took a deep breath. Of course she had no one to call. If she called Emma she would not receive a warm reception, and she didn't want to be standing outside pouring out her heart to her mother or Lane when at any moment a person she knew and worked with could come and interrupt her. She stood outside for another moment, maybe two, she couldn't be sure and then returned back downstairs where Logan was in the middle of toasting. Rory snuck back into her chair and smiled as she listened to Logan speak…he was quite the public speaker and glasses clinked along with a round of applause for the man of the hour. She was relieved that the night was coming to an end, after the toasts people milled around the room saying goodbye and Rory found herself in conversation with Emily once again.
By the time the crowd had thinned out enough that she could leave, Rory made a point of saying goodbye to Rob first and wishing him the best. Of course they did the polite thing and said they would stay in touch but Rory knew that was unlikely. "I'm just going to say goodnight to Logan, but have a safe drive home," Rory smiled at the couple and returned to find Logan who was waiting for his black American Express card after paying the bill. "I'm going to head out," she smiled at him, "thank you for a wonderful night. I will know to keep my expectations high for when I retire," she joked.
Logan leaned forward and kissed her on the cheek, "I'll meet you in the car," he told her quietly and Rory tried to ignore the fact that she could feel herself blushing.
"Goodnight," Rory smiled at him and went to retrieve her jacket. She walked up the stairs and found the waiting SUV and hopped in. He told her that Logan had told him to take a trip around the block and sure enough when they returned Logan was outside waiting to step in. "That was quick," Rory smiled as he put his seatbelt on.
"I was motivated," Logan leaned over and kissed her, "you ok? You seemed a bit frazzled?"
Rory shrugged her shoulders, "must be the wine." Logan gave her a look, making it clear that he didn't believe a word she was saying, "today didn't really go as planned," she admitted softly, "Em is…having a tough time."
"Do you want to talk about it?" Logan asked cautiously. He reached for her hand and laced their fingers together, "this was all a pretty big surprise for her, it might just take some time."
Rory squeezed his hand and smiled as he brought their hands to his lips and he placed a kiss on her knuckles. "Maybe tomorrow," Rory sighed, "I don't want to ruin a good night."
"You think everyone enjoyed themselves?" Logan asked, "I never know what to do for these things."
"You've set a high bar," Rory told him. She had attended a few retirement dinners he had hosted over the last couple of years and each one seemed to be better than the rest. "You have a knack for really honing in on what people like and then making it unique to them, and I think everyone appreciates that we don't go to the same place over and over and just have the same cookie cutter dinner."
"Well we do that for the office goodbye," Logan laughed as he thought of the going away events that occurred in the office where there was a generic sheet cake that may as well have been from Costco and people milling about as an excuse to get away from their desks for half an hour.
"I hate those cakes," Rory rolled her eyes as the car stopped in front of the building, "they shouldn't even be allowed to call them cakes. What is that custard in the middle? Does anyone like the custard?" Rory asked as Logan got out of the car and walked to open her door, "if I ever retire I want a good cake."
"You will have the best cake money can buy when you retire," Logan put his hand on the small of her back and led her into the lobby, nodding at the doorman as they walked by. These were the moments that he was enjoying most so far. The moments where they could be normal and he could just be a man who was walking with his girlfriend, sitting on the couch watching TV, making each other coffee, talking on the phone and not having to worry about who could hear them. Logan pushed the button for the elevator and Rory leaned her body against him as they waited, "Ace, you can talk to me."
"I just," Rory sighed as the elevator doors opened and they stepped inside, "I want to enjoy this. We…we waited…we have waited for so long to just be able to be and I want to enjoy it and not feel guilty and not worry about everyone else…"
"So what can I do? Is there anything I can do to make this easier on you?"
Rory paused to consider his question, she saw they were nearing their floor and she shook her head. "I think I just…I need to figure this out for myself." The doors opened and Logan took her by the hand, leading her to the front door, he unlocked it and the pair stepped inside silently. Logan flicked on the lights and Rory put down her purse on the table in the gallery - she had looked at enough expensive Upper East Side apartments in the past couple of weeks that she knew the space she was passing through had a proper name. She shrugged off her jacket and hung it up in his closet as they both made their way to the master bedroom. "Drink?" She suggested as she watched Logan loosen his tie and shrug his jacket off his shoulders.
"Sure," Logan nodded. "Did I tell you how hot you look tonight?" Rory blushed as she glanced at herself briefly in the mirror, "it almost felt like you were trying to drive me crazy?" He stepped towards her and smiled.
"Unzip?" Rory turned so her back was towards him and glanced over her shoulder with a coy smily playing on her lips. She felt her breath hitch at his fingers brushed over her neck and took hold of the zipper and pulled it down slowly.
Logan let go of the clasp and let his hands wander slowly up her now exposed back. They had been taking it slow but after spending an evening watching her in that dress, he wasn't sure any red blooded male could not want to undress her. "Ace," his voice was low and husky as she leaned her body back against him, relaxing into his muscular frame.
"I know," Rory closed her eyes as his hands slowly but deliberately moved the garment off her shoulders, allowing it to fall to the floor and leaving Rory standing in nothing but her green lace La Perla and her fuck me pumps. She had of course bought everything except for the panties for this exact purpose…the thought of Logan taking it off of her.
"I'll stop," his lips were on her neck and his hands were on her stomach, holding her body against his and she could feel exactly the effect she was having on him as his erection strained against his pants and into her ass. "If you want slow." Rory turned so she was facing him and he was immediately awestruck by the sight of her. He had of course seen her naked before, many times, more times than he should have as a married man, but seeing her standing before him and knowing that they were finally free was a whole other kind of intoxicating. He didn't want to admit that he desperately didn't want to stop, but he wasn't the kind of man to have sex with an emotionally detached woman. "Ace…" He was silenced this time by her lips on his and her hands on the buckle of his belt, frantically freeing the leather and making quick work of the button on his black Tom Ford suit pants.
"I've missed you," Rory purred as she pushed his pants off of his hips and gave him a moment to step out of them, smirking at the Saxx boxer briefs he was wearing with the wiener mobile all over them. He stepped out of his pants and bent down to pull off his black dress socks, leaving the garments crumpled on the floor he undid the buttons on his white dress shirt as Rory bent over very deliberately and took off her heels, giving him quite the view and then walked to the bed. The sight of her laying on the white linens with her hair splayed out underneath her, nothing on but her green lace thong which by his estimation was far too much clothing was enough to make him harder than he thought possible. Logan walked over to the bed and situated himself so that he was on top of her, kissing her passionately propped up on his elbows while Rory snaked her arm between them and moaned into his mouth while her fingers slipped under the waistband of his boxer briefs, she grasped his length and smiled as his lips left hers and went to her jaw line, her neck and eventually his tongue was grazing her nipple while she stroked him slowly and deliberately. "Logan," she squealed as he bit gently at her right nipple as his left hand made its way to her left breast and massaged it gently.
He was thrusting into her hand at this point and Rory couldn't help but love that she could bring him to the brink of unravelling with so little effort, she slowed her movements and withdrew her hand from his dick, "hey," Logan looked up at her as her hands went to his shoulders and pushed him away from her. Rory gave him a look as he rolled onto his back and she stood up, slowly wiggling out of her thong and leaving it on the floor, Logan followed suit lifting his hips up and pushing his boxers off his lower half as Rory climbed over top of him, he could feel the heat coming off of her core as his hand instinctively moved forward to touch her, if he had any concerns about moving too fast they were gone the second he heard her moan his name as his fingers gently rubbed her wet folds.
Rory tried to press down on his fingers to get more pressure, the anticipation was killing her and she had felt the wetness pooling in her as soon as he had unzipped her dress. "Logan," she breathed, her voice was soft and the need was clear in it, "more."
"More what baby?" Logan grinned as he watched her head fall back in ecstasy as he applied a bit more pressure on her clit.
"You, please."
"Please what?" Logan knew just how to drive her wild and as much as he wanted to be inside of her, he loved watching her like this.
"Fuck me," Rory licked her lips, the entire point of being on top was that she was in control but somehow she had managed to lose it all. "Please."
Logan took his hand away and sat back as Rory slowly slid down on his member, settling for a moment when he was fully inside of her, it was a sensation he was certain that he would never get sick of. Something about Rory was different than anyone else had had ever been with and as much as he enjoyed staring at her in front of him, he bucked his hips up to encourage her to continue and Rory happily obliged. "Jesus, Ace," Logan captured her lips in his and his hands went to her ass, kneading her skin and he wasn't completely sure he wouldn't leave a bruise but Rory certainly didn't seem to mind.
Rory closed her eyes as Logan moved his hands from her ass to her breasts, alternating between sucking and kneading and nipping at her skin as she rhythmically moved herself up and down, "Logan," she moaned at his efforts, she didn't need to say more, he knew what she wanted and it was something that had surprised him, he hadn't known many women who got off from behind but Rory seemed to be the exception to that rule, "now." She dismounted him and moved onto all fours, giving Logan a devilish grin as he teased her at her entrance as he stood on his knees, "I need you," she knew that drove him wild, it always had.
His right hand went to her hip and his left stroked himself vigorously before positioning himself at her entrance he thrusted in rapidly, eliciting a gasp in response as he set his pace. He kept the pace for a few minutes before he felt the familiar feeling of Rory moving her hand to her clit and rubbing herself as gentle moans escaped her lips, "come on baby, come for me," Logan encouraged her, he knew she was close and he could feel her contracting around him which put him closer to the edge as well.
"Oh god," Rory gasped as she reached her climax, "don't stop, don't," she started coming undone as Logan continued to pump into her, "fuck, I…yes, yes baby, yes."
Logan smiled as he watched her, her body slowly moving to the mattress while she kept her ass in the air, "you're amazing," he told her, it was only a few thrusts later before he grunted and found himself following her over the edge. He leaned forward and kissed her shoulder blade as Rory panted into the pillow beneath her. "Worth the wait?" Logan asked once they had both regained their wits and he pulled himself out of her and grabbed his boxers from the floor, pulling them on his body as Rory reached and pulled him back down on top of her and kissed him. "God I love you Ace."
"I love you too," Rory wasn't even bothered by the fact that she was simply laying fully nude on top of the covers, her head resting on his chest as she listened to his heartbeat. "Thank you for letting me stay here."
"Don't leave," Logan told her simply. "Just live with me, come on…this isn't new," he reminded her.
"I can't just move in with you," Rory answered softly.
"I'm going to go get us that drink," Logan kissed the top of her head, "and then we are going to talk about this. I will bring a pen and paper so you can make a pro-con list, and I'm going to convince you that there is not a single con on that list."
Rory smiled as she watched him leave the room. She stood up and grabbed a t-shirt of his and a pair of silk pyjama shorts before heading into the bathroom. By the time she had washed her hands and returned Logan was sitting under the blankets with two champagne glasses in his hand. "You are…," Rory wasn't even sure what to say as she walked over and kissed him.
"Cat got your tongue?" Logan grinned as Rory climbed over him to get in bed and took the flute from him once she was seated. "I thought we should toast."
"Oh? A toast…and what is that toast for? All the sex?"
"It was one time," Logan countered, "I would hardly call it all the sex. But no, I wanted to toast to us, to a fresh start."
"I can't just move in here," Rory told him as their glasses clinked and she took a sip of the drink.
"Why? Give me a good reason that you think it would be better to pay a small fortune in rent or buy another place here…"
"I'm barely separated."
"So?"
"What about Emma?"
"Emma is welcome here Ace, and hell if it makes it easier, I can make myself scarce at first when she is around. We can look for a new place with more space for all of the kids."
"I don't have the money to look for a new place until the divorce is finalized and I know Dean isn't going to make my life a living hell."
"Don't worry about the money," they both knew he had enough, but Rory wasn't used to being the one who was taken care of. Logan put an arm around Rory and pulled her close, "none of this is you saying you don't want to live with me."
"Of course I want to live with you, but I'm not sure it's that simple." Rory exhaled and put her glass down on the bedside table before turning to face Logan. "I just…I don't know how Emma is going to be," she ran a hand through her hair, "you should've seen her today. I told her…I told her that I was seeing you and that I had been seeing you and I tried to explain to her that Dean and I hadn't been happy and she just looked so broken. We didn't even get lunch," Rory felt tears welling as she pressed her fingers against her tear ducts and swallowed hard, "she just wanted to be with Dean. Everything is my fault and she hates me, and I want to feel bad," Rory let the tears fall as she let out what she had been holding in all day, "I want to feel bad for messing this up for her but I don't. I was so unhappy with him and I love you so much and I think…my willingness to pick myself over her…maybe they are right. Maybe I am selfish," Rory cried.
"Shhh," Logan pulled her closer and kissed her temple, "you aren't selfish," he assured her. He knew how hard this had been for her, he knew how she had struggled. He remembered after the first night they had spent together, she had felt so much guilt and they had avoided each other for a few days but something had drawn them back, and at first it wasn't physical but they had ended up back in the same spot, they were safe together. "Emma is a kid, she isn't mean to understand this," he told her, although Lily was taking it better than Emma, she was still struggling and had told her father that earlier in the day. "If you stay here, maybe you will show Emma that you're happier, you can show her a different life and you can show her in time what two people who love each other look like. Not to mention, she likes Lily and Noah…"
Rory sniffled and sunk further into his embrace. "I think… maybe it will just take some time until she can come here."
"But you'll stay?" Logan tried not to show his excitement show.
Rory nodded her head, "I'm going to take the train to Hartford tomorrow, and then I'll get the rest of my things and drive back. I'll find a long term lot until I figure out what to do wth my car."
"I have an extra space here. We had two in case we ever needed two cars here, so you can use one."
"I was hoping to catch up with Colin and Finn tomorrow, and Abigail is bringing some paperwork to the office for me to sign. Then we're all set, the lawyer says because nothing is contested we should be officially divorced in a couple of months."
"Jealous," Rory laughed, she didn't imagine her divorce proceedings would ever be amicable at this point.
"Dinner?" Logan suggested, "I'll order something."
"Perfect," Rory kissed him.
xxx
The morning had gone well, reasonably most mornings she woke up in bed with Logan were ones that went well. They had a leisurely breakfast and read the paper and then Rory left to catch her train and Logan went to meet the guys for an early lunch. Her trip to Stars Hollow had been uneventful. Of course her mother had some questions about moving in with the man she was cheating on her husband with, a man Lorelai wasn't convinced she had ever met, but Rory had explained simply that it was happening and she wasn't about to change her mind. She snapped back when Lorelai had suggested that saving on rent wasn't worth jumping into things and Rory reminded her that she had been in a relationship with this man for two and a half years and things with Dean had been off the rails for long before that. She knew her mother was trying to encourage her to be cautious, but if she wanted to be with Logan, it didn't make sense to rent an apartment or stay in Stars Hollow when he had the space. She was reminded how much she hated driving in the city but was thankful for the parking spot he had directed her to, of course she had always known where his parking spot was, but she hadn't realized the spot beside it belonged to him too.
Rory brought her remaining suitcase of clothes up to the apartment, sure she had more but that was still in Farmingdale and she would need to make a plan to coordinate with Dean to pick that up, probably on her next weekend visit with Emma. She also figured she needed to make a plan to talk to Dean. Reasonably she would need to take a day off work to ensure that Emma wasn't around for the conversation so that was a whole other issue. She imagined that Dean would not be impressed if she asked him to take time off work or meet her on his lunch, which was laughable considering how often he had tried to avoid working throughout their marriage. She unpacked her bags in their bedroom and glanced at the clock, it was a few hours until she could expect Logan home with dinner, so after finding space for her suitcases tucked in the guest bedroom closet, she put on her Bose noise cancelling headphones and turned on Lizzo, walking into the kitchen with a certain bounce in her step, "woo girl, need to kick off your shoes, got to take a deep breath time to focus on you. All the big fights, long nights you've been through. I got a bottle of tequila I've been saving for you," she danced her way through the space as she pulled out a coffee cup and started making herself another coffee. She considered what her mother had said, and she considered her own worries about Emma, but she also realized that Emma wasn't going to suddenly be happy with this situation because Rory was living on her own, Emma needed time to come to terms with this and she would get there. Rory knew she would get there. "'Cause he don't love you anymoreeeee," Rory drew the words out, "so walk your fine ass out the doorrrrr!" She turned around with her cup in her mouth and practically jumped out of her skin, it was a miracle that she hadn't spilled her coffee all over herself as she stared at the figure in front of her. She put her coffee down and frantically pulled the headphones off her head and put them on the counter. She was relieved that she had decided to stay dressed instead of going to Stars Hollow in sweatpants as she stood in her ill fitting yoga pants and a long sleeved black top. "Hi," Rory wasn't sure what to say.
"Sorry, I rang the doorbell a few times and there was no answer…I still have a key," Abigail Huntzberger held up the key she had used to enter the apartment she was technically on the deed for. "I'm supposed to be meeting Logan…"
Rory swallowed the lump in her throat, "uh…he is meeting you at the office I thought?"
Abigail gave Rory half a smile, it was as though for a moment she forgot this was the woman who had destroyed her marriage and instead was going to lament about how difficult communicating with her husband could be. "Well you seem busy," Abigail raised an eyebrow, "I suppose I'll let myself out. If you hear from him you'll tell him I'm on my way?" It was more of a statement than a question.
Rory nodded, "you know…why don't you stay. You've already had to drive here and…we all know how much that drive sucks, even as a passenger…I have some stuff to do, so I'll just…I can leave for a bit."
Abigail inhaled, "you're living here now? Or have you just spent so much time here that you feel fully comfortable in the space?"
"I'm sorry," Rory didn't quite know what to say, the answer was yes to both of course. She had spent many days in this apartment and now she was living there.
"You know," Abigail took off her gloves one finger at a time to reveal her bare hands, "I had friends who warned me about you. They didn't know anything that was going on, but they just said to watch out for you and I laughed at them. I told them that we were friends and while sure you may have been the person he called about work situations and that stress, you knew your place. You were married, a beautiful family…but low and behold, keep your friends close and your enemies closer…isn't that what they say?" She paused for a moment as she looked Rory up and down.
"I never…we didn't plan for this. I didn't want to hurt you or your children or Emma or…Dean," she admitted softly.
"I'm not doing this," Abigail cut her off. "I'm not going to absolve you of whatever guilt it is you feel for sleeping with my husband. I'm not going to hold your hand and tell you that it will all be alright. I will get along with you because more than I hate you, and more than I hate my husband," she added pointedly, "I love my children. As long as you are good to my children we will have no issues. Understood?" Abigail was moving to take a seat on the couch now but she paused for a moment before she sat and then looked at the velvet chairs and sat in one of those instead, "not sure when the furniture was last cleaned thoroughly."
"I'll get out of your hair," Rory nodded, there was something about Abigail that was both intimidating and comforting as she stood before Rory. This was a woman who at least on a superficial level hadn't fallen apart as she stood before her wearing leather pants that Rory wasn't completely sure she hadn't been sewn into and a beautiful rose coloured belted cashmere jacket and a pair of leather Louboutin ankle boots, she exuded confidence and while Rory could see that she was hurting, this was not a woman who was going to be destroyed by her divorce, this was a phoenix who was going to rise from the ashes and move on. "I'm really…I'm sorry."
"Rory," Abigail stopped her as she grabbed her jacket off of the chair at the island, waiting until Rory was looking at her before she proceeded. "Please don't tell him I'm here."