TITLE: "The Mariano Effect"

NAME -Sandra aka Lukerules

E-MAIL -baumann1@yahoo.com

SPOILERS - Up to the scene in "Goodnight Gracie" where Jimmy runs out of the diner to avoid Luke (except he doesn't leave his wallet behind this time)

SUMMARY - Gilmore Girls Adult Fan fiction challenge. Bear with me, I'm not used to doing point-of-view stories. So if you have any **constructive** criticism, please share it with me. Thanks!

RATING - R

CONTENT -For mature adults. If you aren't a mature adult, then for Pete's sake, don't read it!

PAIRING OR CHARACTER - Lorelai/Jimmy Mariano - and anyone who knows ME, knows that I can't write anything without Luke in it!!!!

DISCLAIMER -I don't own the characters (pout) -the WB, Amy Sherman- Palladino, everyone else does. And yes, Jimmy is definitely yummy (DILF), but I would never choose him over LUKE, my love!

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Chapter Two

Early Afternoon (3pm)

Lorelai's P.O.V.

"So, is he here yet?" Sookie poked her head into my office for the thousandth time.

"No! I told you that Michel would call me the second he walked in to check in and that I'd come get you to check him out! Now, stop bugging me so I can get some work done!" I said in frustration. At that very moment, the phone rang.

"Lorelai, the studmuffin you've been bugging me about has just entered the building," Michel barked, sounding annoyed.

"He's here? Thanks!" I said excitedly, making wide eyes at Sookie, which made her jump up and down.

"Now listen, don't be too obvious, just do a quick walk-through to check on the pastry table and then come right back here," I warned her. She gave me a quick nod and disappeared out the door.

A few minutes later she reappeared at the door. "Woo hoo, he's a hottie!" she squealed like a teenager, and all I could do was smile.

Jimmy's P.O.V.

I wandered around town for a few hours then found a strange pancake place to have some lunch. The place didn't even serve pancakes. I found a great spot on a bridge near the high school and sat and read a paperback I had brought along with me to read, figuring I would need to kill some time before I got up the nerve to approach Jess and Luke.

Before I knew it, it was almost 3pm and I figured I'd better check into the inn and take a shower, shave and get ready for my rendezvous with Lorelai.

I got to the inn and was impressed, it was really nice. There was a sign on the door explaining that there had been a fire so there was limited access to the rooms, which concerned me until I walked into the lobby. It was filled with fresh flowers and tables with pastries and teas on it. I walked over to the front desk and was met with a snooty French guy who didn't seem surprised to see me. As I was registering, a woman came by to check on the pastry tables and she seemed much more interested in me than the items on the table. I remember Liz telling me years ago about how odd Stars Hollow was, how nosey the entire town was, and it appears that this fact hasn't changed much.

The pastry lady made her way back towards the back offices very slowly, and I took advantage by flashing a smile at her. Her eyes widened and she smiled back, then hurried off around a corner. The guy at the front desk seemed thoroughly disgusted with the whole encounter.

I found my room and took a shower, shaved and put on some better clothes (a polo shirt and khakis was the best I brought with me). I made my way down to the lobby where a small group of people were helping themselves to hors d'oeuvres and cocktails. I walked over and poured myself a glass of wine. I found a quiet spot over near the fireplace and sipped my drink.

"What, not in a mood to mingle?" I heard a familiar voice approach me.

"Hey there," I smiled to Lorelai as she walked over, also holding a glass of wine. "Yeah, well, the dentists and accountants of the world don't really hold my interest for very long," I smirked and she nodded in agreement. "And I'm not really that good at the small talk thing," I added.

I look around and feel like I'm on display or something. I really dont' like having people staring at me like this. I'm not going to be able to get anywhere close to Lorelai with all of these people gaping at us. I suggest we leave to get some pizza, she seems to feel the same way, and we leave.

She offers to drive since she knows the area. We head out of town (thank God) and find a great bar that serves pizza, real casual, dark, my kind of place. We slip into a booth and order drinks and a pizza. She is very animated - describing her job, her daughter, her life. Fortunately for me, she doesn't ask me too many questions, and I'm not offering very much, except that I'm here visiting a relative, I live in California, I'm in the restaurant business. That's about all I'm offering. I like this woman. I like her alot. We've both had a few drinks and feeling pretty good.

We went back to the inn and I offered to have her come up. She seemed pretty willing, which was working in my favor. I just had to have her. I tested my theory, grabbing her before we got into the place to give her a first kiss. This will tell me if she wants to have a good time, or if she's just being nice. Oh yeah, she's ready for it, I thought as our tongues met and carressed each other. She pushed me away, telling me it's not good for her to be seen in public, so I knew we were heading for my room. Score!

The place was pretty quiet and I grabbed two wine glasses when I noticed that she was eyeing a half-bottle of wine left over from the earlier happy hour. I told her to bring it with her and headed for my room, not sure at first if she was even following me. But what the hell, I had to take the chance that she would.

When we got into the room and I went for it. We were on the bed and she was giving me the signal to go for it. My lips were on her hard nipple when I heard a noise at the door...

Lorelai's P.O.V.

I paced at the front desk while Michel gave me dirty looks. "Will you just call up to his room already, then you two can go away and give me some peace around here," Michel sniffed.

"No! I'm just going to wait down here, nice and calm like. I'll be in my office," I told him.

I checked my watch. Okay, it's 5 minutes to 5. I'm just being way too enthusiastic about this date. Geez, it's not even a date. It's just a drink. I'm not sure where this'll go.

He said something about not being good at small talk.

"You're doing fine," I commented automatically, taking a sip of my drink. Why did I get a deja-vu feeling when I said that? I'm loosing it. This guy is wreaking total havoc on my brain. I notice that Sookie and Miss Patty have appeared and are checking us out.

"How about we finish our drinks and get out of here, maybe go get a pizza or something," he says, noticing the prying eyes on us.

"Sounds good," I answer, we finish our drinks and head out (of town) to get some pizza. I drove since he doesn't seem to know the area. We went to Vinnie's in Mount Pilot. It's a quiet, dark bar that has awesome thin crust pizza. I always thought it would be a romantic place for a rendezvous, but never had the opportunity, until now. We slipped into a booth and enjoyed a few hours of getting to know each other. I knew that having a few drinks would loosen me up, but his casual attitude just made me feel like I've known him for ages. It felt so good to be with him. We finished our dinner and headed back to the Inn.

When we got back to the parking lot, I wasn't sure what was going to happen.

"So?" he asked with a smirk and a raised eyebrow, unbuckling his seat belt. "Care to come up for a while?" His charm was disarming.

"Sure," I answered, unbuckling my seatbelt. We walked towards the door and he quickly took my hand in his. He stopped and turned me towards him. I caught my breath in my throat at the sudden movement and saw his eyes soften. He leaned in and kissed me, very gently. His hand came up to my face and pushed my hair behind my ear. I returned his kiss, and felt his tongue begging entry. I acquiesed to him, putting my hand on his chest. After a moment I pushed off, breaking this kiss. "Not here," I said looking around. It's not exactly good manners for the person who runs the place to be making out with someone at the front entrance. We walked into the Inn, where the only people in site was Michel and a guest, who were looking at a map. He looked up briefly and gave a disgusted look. Yeah, whatever. I walked over to see what was left of the cocktail hour and noticed that there was half a bottle of wine in the ice bucket. Jim had followed me and grabbed two glasses.

"Bring the bottle," he smirked, motioning to the stairs. I grabbed the bottle and followed him up to his room.

We walked into his room and he set the glasses down immediately. I set the bottle next to it and the next thing I knew his arms were around me, his soft lips on mine. My arms went around him, scratching up his back. He moved me over towards the bed. A little voice in the back of my head said things were moving way too fast, but I pushed it aside. Still locked in a mind-blowing kiss, he pushed me back on the bed, following and lying on top of me. My hands found the bottom of his polo shirt and pulled it up. He broke the kiss to straighten up enough to pull his shirt off and cast it aside. He had a nice body. I ran my hands up his washboard stomach to his chest, teasing a nipple very gently. His eyes were dark and wanting, and it made me wet. His lips went down to my neck, kissing and nibbling. My body felt like it was on fire. His hands ran up from my waist and his thumb gently glided over my nipple, which hardened to his touch. I arched my back in reaction to it and moaned. His lips kissed down from my neck towards my nipple, gently taking it in his mouth through the material of my shirt and bra, leaving a wet mark. My hands were crazy in his hair, tossling and messing it, making me crazy with desire for him.

Then there was a noise at the door....

Meanwhile at Luke's Diner....

Luke looks up at the clock. It's 8:00 and the dinner rush is pretty much over. All he's been able to think about for the last two hours was Lorelai hooking up with that mystery guy she just met. **Why the hell am I so upset about this? I mean, I've got Nicole, Lorelai can date anyone she wants. It's not like she hasn't been around, Christ, I've had to watch her parade one boyfriend after another in front of me. Okay, stop it, Luke, it's not like she's doing it on purpose. She doesn't know that you love her. But what about Nicole? How can I stand here and admit to myself that I love her when I'm dating someone else? Why is this guy Jim bugging me so much? Jess said that he was hanging around the diner for hours before I came back from my errand. What is his story?**

About the time that he was having his mental debate, Rory entered the diner and took at seat a the counter. Jess walked past and gave her a quick kiss before delivering two plates to a couple seated at the window. Luke poured a cup of coffee for Rory and asked her where her mom was. "Oh, she called and said she was having dinner with a guy she met today, so I'm on my own. Can I get a burger and fries?" she asked, without any care. **How can she not be concerned about some guy her mother met TODAY?** He wrote up the order and passed it to Ceasar, but my mind was reeling.

His curiousity got the better of him. "Jess, I've got to go out, finish up and close for me, okay?" he called out to Jess as he grabbed his jacket.

"Yeah, sure," Jess said with very little enthusiasm. His date with Rory would be postponed, he knew it, and that bugged him.

Luke pulled up to the Independence Inn around 9:30. He had been driving around for an hour and a half, trying to decide what to do or what to say. **What am I going to do, break down the door and carry her off in my arms? Wait, why am I assuming that she's in his room? Oh God, maybe they're in the same room that Nicole and I stayed in. I had never been so uncomfortable in my life as when she walked in to do the turn down service and saw Nicole. I could almost see it in her eyes. What was that? Jealousy? Yeah, right, wishful thinking.** He sat in the parking lot. Her jeep was there, so he knew she was in the hotel. He got out of my truck and went in. **Oh great, Michel is at the desk. He's such a pain.** "So, Michel, is Lorelai around?" Luke asked.

"Yes, she is, she and her gentleman friend came in a few minutes ago, and went up to his room," he answered flatly.

"Well, I need to talk to her. It's um, an emergency, can you tell me what room he's in?" Luke said with some hesitation. **There is NO WAY this guy is going to tell me what room they're in, now what?** he thought.

Michel typed a few keystrokes into the computer. "Yes, well, Jim Mariano is in room #22," he said with little concern.

"What???!!!" Luke hissed.

"Mr. Mariano. He checked in this afternoon. Friend of yours?" Michel asked, amused at Luke's obvious disturbed demeanor. Luke didn't even answer. Michel only saw his retreating form up the stairs to the second floor.

"I'm going to kill him!" he murmured, not loud enough for Michel to hear as he stormed up the stairs.