SPOILERS - None.
SUMMARY - Same as the other chapters
DISCLAIMER - The WB, Amy Sherman-Palladino, et al owns it all.
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Chapter Twelve (Friday)
Rory ran back to the house full speed, dragging me behind her. As we got to the lawn and the party, Lorelai burst through the group of people, running towards us at about the same speed we were running towards her.
"Is there something you need to tell Mommy?!" she asked with a wide smile. Rory squealed and held her hand out to show her mother the ring. "Oh my god! That is the most gorgeous ring I've ever seen!" Lorelai squealed, jumping up and down.
"Ahem!" Luke interjected, peeking over Lorelai's shoulder to look at the ring, even though he had already seen it. He reached out and shook my hand, patting my back proudly with his other hand. "Congratulations, Jess, I'm really happy for you," he said with a smile.
"Oh! I mean, besides MY ring, of course!" Lorelai said, giving Rory a huge, over-exaggerated wink.
Rory smiled at me and wrapped her arms around my waist. "I just can't believe this is all happening," she said quietly, her eyes sparkling. She hugged me close and layed her head on my chest. I absently kissed the top of her head and wrapped my arms around her protectively, letting out a sigh. Yeah, this was happening really fast.
The news seemed to spread through the group like wildfire, adding to the celebratory nature of the party. It seems that everyone was coming up to us, hugging Rory and shaking my hand. God, I hate getting so much attention, I wish they'd all just go away. But Rory seemed to be beaming in the glow of the attention, so I just stood back and watched her. Fortunately, my cell phone rang to distract me from the throng.
"Jess Mariano," I answered, shooting Rory a wink then walking away from the crowd.
"Hey Jess!" said a familiar voice.
"Christ, Heather, you need to get a life! It's 8:30 on a Friday night, go the hell home!" I said teasing her.
"Yeah, well, if Bill's reporters ever called in with their travel plans, I wouldn't be stuck here until all hours, now would I?" she teased back.
"Oh shit! I'm so sorry. Yes, you'll need to book another ticket for me for Sunday. It's for Lorelai Leigh Gilmore. It'll have to be open ended, though, sorry, I'm not sure when she needs to get home. Oh, and it'll have to be departing Hartford, Connecticut but returning to Dulles for her," I added.
"You owe me, Mariano," she warned.
"Yeah, yeah, well I've owed you since I got there, haven't I? Anyway, get some good seats for Mrs. Mariano-to-be, okay?" I asked.
"What??? You're getting married?? But...um...when? How? When do you have the time to find a wife? I don't have enough time to own a fish!" she laughed.
"The woman I dedicated my book to. I never got over her, and fortunately for me, she never got over me. So here we are, at her mother's wedding rehearsal dinner, and we just got engaged," I told her. I know that telling her is just about like telling something to Miss Patty here in Stars Hollow. I'm sure the entire reporting staff at the Times will know about this within an hour.
"I'm so happy for you! Oh! You better have lots of pictures taken so we can run it in the paper!" she said excitedly.
"Yeah, yeah, since I like publicity so much," I teased.
"Okay, back to your party, you! I'll make these reservations and email everything to you. Congratulations again, Jess! You really deserve this!!"
"Thanks, Heather. I'll talk to you soon," I said hanging up the phone.
"Old girlfriend?" I heard Rory say as she sauntered up to me.
"Bosses' secretary, sorry. She's booking your flights for St. Lucia. I'm having her book it open-ended to Dulles, is that okay?" I hated to presume, but I had to get that ticket booked.
"Oh, yeah, I fly into Dulles, I'll have to check with work on Monday to find out how much time I can take off. How about you?" she asked, suddenly aware that we still live in two different cities.
"I'm flying back on Thursday, back into New York. I need to get my stuff packed up and meet with Bill, make sure he's okay with me living in D.C. instead of New York," I said. She brightened up at that.
It got to be about 11:00 and the party was starting to slow down a little. "Let's go home, Mrs. Mariano," I whispered into Rory's ear after I snuck up behind her while she was in conversation with Sookie. She jumped a little, I'm not sure whether it was from me whispering, hearing 'Mrs. Mariano', or my hands that landed on her waist. She turned and put a hand on the side of my face and gave me a kiss. She ran over to say goodnight to Lorelai and Luke and came back to me, her hair swishing behind her from her excitedness. "Ready?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Oh yeah," she replied, intertwining our hands as we walked back over to the diner. We got back into the apartment, undressed quickly and got into bed. I turned the light out and layed back with a huge sigh, completely exhausted from all of the emotion of the day. Rory lay down and I wrapped an arm around her. She stretched her arm across my chest, staring at the ring as it sparkled in the glow from the streetlight. I brought my face to hers and kissed her, long and sweet. She snuggled up to me, burying her face in my neck. Life is pretty good.
Saturday
We woke up the same way, completely sore from the awkward position we had been in for so long.
"Geez!" I commented, sitting up and stretching my arms in front of me. Rory eyes fluttered open and she reacted in the same way, stiffly trying to stretch. "Okay, so much for the romantic 'sleep in each other's arms' nonsense anymore!" I said with a smirk.
"I'm with you there!" she commented back with a smile, rolling her neck.
"I think a nice hot shower might get the kinks out. Join me?" I asked with a raised eyebrow, holding out my hand.
"Yeah!" she brightened up, running past me and into the bathroom. We took a long, hot shower together, relaxing our muscles and sexually satisfying each other. By the time we were 'finished', our fingers were both getting wrinkled from being exposed to the water for so long. "I hate being all pruny!" she mumbled as she toweled herself off. I smiled to myself. So much for Harvard giving her a proper vocabulary. I decided to keep my mouth shut, though, since I found it so cute.
I left her to dry her hair and do her makeup, quickly running downstairs in my sweats to get some breakfast from John. I came back up and she burst out of the bathroom as soon as the smell of coffee entered the room. Rory and her appetite never ceased to amaze me. But there were so many things about her that amazed me. And now I'd have the rest of my life to be amazed by her. I sat there with a smile on my face at the thought of it.
"What?" she asked, looking up at me from her breakfast plate.
"Nothing," I smirked.
"You aren't going to make a comment on my eating habits, are you?" she grinned.
"Nope," I said with conviction as I finished my toast.
"Good," she answered with a smile.
I put on my tuxedo and she put on a gorgeous light blue dress that matched her eyes and we were ready to go see Luke and Lorelai get married.
We drove over to the inn and laughed as Michel was running around like a crazy person, with Kirk right at his heels, bugging him with questions. "Kirk, if you do not get out of my sight right now, I will kill you!" he said with his thick accent.
"But Lorelai said that I was your assistant today, and I'm assisting you!" Kirk demanded.
"Well, insist me from further away!" he said with a huff, walking off. Both Rory and I shook our heads and laughed.
"I guess I'd better go find mom," Rory said with a pout, running her hands along my suit lapel.
I gave her a little pout back. "Aw, poor Rory, I'll see you in a little while. Don't miss me too much, okay?" I said with a smirk and pulled her to me for a kiss.
"Get a room!" Michel snapped at us, breaking the kiss.
"Well, good thing we're at an inn, then. Can we get a room?" I asked, getting a smack in the arm from Rory.
"See you later," Rory said with a peck on the lips and then she disappeared into the inn.
"Where's Luke?" I asked Michel.
"At the bar," he pointed over to the bar that had been set up near the piano, much like how Sookie's wedding had been set up. The wedding where Rory kissed me for the first time. I walked over to the bar and Luke was standing with Jackson and Randy, a nervous wreck.
"What if I forget the words?" Luke was ranting, the guys were trying to calm him down.
"Luke, relax, it'll be fine, just take a deep breath," Jackson said reassuredly.
I walked behind the bar, since the bartender was nowhere to be found. "Or have a stiff drink," I smirked. All three of them spun around in surprise to see me.
"Jess! Jesus! I didn't think you'd EVER get here!" Luke raved.
"Geez, relax! I'm an HOUR early!" I whined, pouring four shots of tequila. "Okay boys, the man can't drink alone," I said, pushing the glasses toward them. Randy stepped right up and took two glasses, handing one to Luke, who took it with a shaking hand. Jackson looked at the glass warily.
"I don't know if that's such a good idea, Jess," he said with hesitation.
"Oh please, how much do you want to bet that the girls are up there doing the same thing?" I narrowed my eyes at him. "I mean, it's Lorelai!" They all shook their heads yes and laughed. I think we all pictured Lorelai, Rory, Babette and Sookie passing a bottle around. "To the big day," I said raising my glass. The other three raised theirs and we all downed our drinks and laughed. Luke seemed to be a little more calm right away. "See?" I said to Luke.
"Yeah, whew, I do feel a little better. Thanks, Jess, I hope I can do the same for you in a few days," he said with relief.
"Thanks, I don't think I'll need it, but I appreciate the offer," I said with a smile. It's amazing how appreciative I've become in the last few years. And the last few days have changed me even more so, I feel like I'm a member of the family already. A far cry from the days when Rory and I started dating and she was convinced that I was going to corrupt her. Thank God those days are over. At least I hope they are.
A cough interrupted us. "Excuse me, is their room for one more at this little party?" a very distinguished voice boomed.
"Oh, Mr. Gilmore, uh, it's great to see you." Luke stammered, clearly embarrassed. Jackson said hello. That must be Rory's grandfather. I never got to meet him, only his grandmother at that awful dinner when Rory and I fought. Ugh, that damn swan. I hate to even think about that whole week in my life. Luke looked at me with desperation. I poured a shot of tequila and walked around the bar to hand it to him. He took it and made a toasting gesture and downed the glass, setting it down on the bar.
"Excellent method to steady the nerves," he stated simply. "And please, call me Richard. You're family now. [pause] So, Luke, I'm very sorry to have missed the rehearsal and dinner last night," he added.
"Oh, not a problem. Lorelai said you and Emily were coming back from a last-minute trip?" Luke asked.
"Yes, terrible airline, I'll never fly them again. We were supposed to arrive back home in plenty of time, but of course, there had to be delays, ugh! Awful!" he chuckled. There was an uncomfortable silence for a moment. I elbowed Luke.
"Oh! I'm sorry! You haven't met everyone. You know Jackson, this is my high-school friend Randy Gerber and this is my nephew, Jess Mariano," he explained. "This is Lorelai's father, Richard Gilmore," he added. He shook Randy's hand then mine. He stopped short, obviously trying to recall how he knew my name.
"Jess, do I recall correctly that you dated my granddaughter during your high school days?" he asked with curiosity.
Luke coughed nervously and looked at me. Richard looked at him. "Is there something I should know?" he asked looking between us.
"Well, actually." Luke started to say. But I couldn't let him do it. I'm an adult now, this should come from me.
"Mr. Gilmore," he looked at me oddly.
"Please, call me Richard," he stated.
"Richard. Rory and I are back together again," I started to say. I wasn't sure how to tell the guy that I'm going to marry his granddaughter after dating for a couple days. This was going to be difficult no matter how I said it.
"Oh! Is this a recent thing?" he was obviously confused.
"Very recent, sir," I said respectfully. I wasn't going to get on his good side by being a smart-ass. And I'm sure once Rory's grandmother finds out, there's going to be an argument. I looked to Luke, unsure if I should say any more. Luke closed his eyes and nodded that I should just tell him everything. "As a matter of fact, well, I've asked Rory to marry me," I said nervously.
"What?" he said in shock.
"I've been in love with Rory for a long time, Richard. And she has not stopped loving me either. I thank God that I've been given a second chance to make things right with her. And I plan on doing just that by marrying her," I stated simply.
"My! When did all of this happen?"
"I asked her last night at the party, and she said yes," I smiled, sensing that he was okay with this revelation.
"Wonderful! Well, this is definitely a cause for celebrating, in addition to Lorelai's big day!" he said with a smile, nodding towards the empty glasses. 'Welcome to the family, young man!" he slapped me on the back. I couldn't help but flinch a little. I still can't handle too much physical touching from people, especially people I've just met. I went over and poured another round of tequila shots.
"To Rory and Jess!" Richard said with enthusiasm and we all drank our drinks. Luke shot me a look. I decided not to say anything about us getting married in the next few days. I'm sure that would be a problem.
"I can only hope that it's going this well with the girls, you know?" Luke said with a worried look. "You know that Emily was not too pleased with you that time that you met her," he added. I rolled my eyes, wanting to forget that it ever happened.
"Maybe she forgot," I said.
"Not likely" both Luke and Richard said at the same time. We all started to laugh at that.
The hour went by quickly, and soon we were all standing alongside the chuppah. Rory was beaming as she walked in, her eyes never leaving mine. Her hair was up in a tight bun, with flowers in it, exposing her long neck. She looked like a vision to me. Lorelai wore her hair down, and she looked lovely also. Luke froze when she and her father came down the aisle. I elbowed him to bring him out of his daze.
The ceremony was very romantic. There wasn't a dry eye in the house, including me, unfortunately. I was just happy that it ended so that as we walked back down the aisle I could hold Rory's hand. We ate and danced until late into the night.
When we sat to eat, I realized that I, as best man, hand to give the toast. Oh, shit, I've been so focused on Rory, I hadn't even thought about it. Oh well, I'm a writer, so I just have to do something off the cuff. I stood up and cleared my throat loudly, getting everyone's attention. I raised my glass and sneaked a quick glance at Rory, who was looking up at me with affection. "Everyone! A toast!" the crowd grew quiet, for the first time that evening. "Please raise a glass to Luke and Lorelai. We never thought the day would come. I would like to take a moment to start them on the path to a happy successful union, with just a few thoughts. Always love each other. Always respect each other and always be there for each other. May the best day of the past be the worst day of your future.May you be friends to each other as only lovers can; and may you love each other as only best friends can. For good friends come not with time, but with trust. I'd also like to thank you for honoring me with the role of best man. Luke, you have fought through some tough times with incredible determination and courage and have been successful at everything you have done. You have taught me so many things. In particular you have shown me the determination and motivation required to achieve success. You are the only person in the world who makes me laugh out loud. We have shared some 'special' [air quotes] memories and I'm sure that there will be many more in the future. I look up to you in more ways than you can ever believe. Finally, I can only admire your good taste in women.which brings me to Lorelai.who is as lovely on the inside as on the outside. My wish is for health and happiness to the both of you.Cheers!!!"
"Here, here!" Miss Patty yelled. I looked over to Luke and Lorelai and they were both teary-eyed. Damn, I'm good. Rory dabbed her eyes too. I sat down and Rory put her hand on my leg.
"God, that was beautiful. You should be a writer or something," she grinned and squeezed my leg.
"Huh. Maybe I should try that!" I smirked, and kissed her.
"Hey you two! That's our job here!" Lorelai interjected.
Dinner was fantastic, of course. Sookie was doing double-duty as chef and bridesmaid, which made for some hilarious situations. After dinner, the DJ played a variety of music and Rory and I danced a little, sat out a little, and walked around a little. I had tried to avoid Emily's glaring looks for as long as I could, but she eventually found me when Rory went off with Lorelai to solve a wedding dress train problem.
"So, I understand that you are going to marry my granddaughter," she said stiffly.
"Yes, ma'am, I am," I answered.
"I must tell you that I don't really approve of this, so suddenly you are back in her life and now you are engaged. But I have to respect my granddaughter's wishes so I feel obliged to welcome you to the family," she said and forced a smile.
"Thank you, Mrs. Gilmore," I answered.
"Emily, please. And Jess." she warned
"No, Emily, I will never hurt her, she means the world to me," I interrupted.
"I can tell that when you two look at each other, Jess. Well, welcome to our family," she said quietly and affectionately squeezed my arm and walked away. Whew. That went a hell of a lot better than I thought.
"Hey you," Rory came over when she saw her grandmother leave me. "How did that go?" she said with concern.
"She welcomed me to the family, so I guess she isn't going to murder me anytime soon, well at least not until we get back from St. Lucia, that is," I smirked.
"Shhhhh!!!!" she hissed, looking around cautiously. I chucked at her concern.
"Let's go home," I said, wrapping my arms around her.
"Mmm, sounds good," she said. "Let's say goodbye to mom and Luke and grandparents," she said, grabbing my hand and leading me over to the group. We said our goodnights and went back to the apartment, where we made love through most of the night. I lay there for hours, thinking about how tomorrow will begin an entire new chapter in my life, starting with the trip to St. Lucia..
.to be continued! Please let me know what you thought of this! Especially Jess's toast. It took me forever to write it!
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Chapter Twelve (Friday)
Rory ran back to the house full speed, dragging me behind her. As we got to the lawn and the party, Lorelai burst through the group of people, running towards us at about the same speed we were running towards her.
"Is there something you need to tell Mommy?!" she asked with a wide smile. Rory squealed and held her hand out to show her mother the ring. "Oh my god! That is the most gorgeous ring I've ever seen!" Lorelai squealed, jumping up and down.
"Ahem!" Luke interjected, peeking over Lorelai's shoulder to look at the ring, even though he had already seen it. He reached out and shook my hand, patting my back proudly with his other hand. "Congratulations, Jess, I'm really happy for you," he said with a smile.
"Oh! I mean, besides MY ring, of course!" Lorelai said, giving Rory a huge, over-exaggerated wink.
Rory smiled at me and wrapped her arms around my waist. "I just can't believe this is all happening," she said quietly, her eyes sparkling. She hugged me close and layed her head on my chest. I absently kissed the top of her head and wrapped my arms around her protectively, letting out a sigh. Yeah, this was happening really fast.
The news seemed to spread through the group like wildfire, adding to the celebratory nature of the party. It seems that everyone was coming up to us, hugging Rory and shaking my hand. God, I hate getting so much attention, I wish they'd all just go away. But Rory seemed to be beaming in the glow of the attention, so I just stood back and watched her. Fortunately, my cell phone rang to distract me from the throng.
"Jess Mariano," I answered, shooting Rory a wink then walking away from the crowd.
"Hey Jess!" said a familiar voice.
"Christ, Heather, you need to get a life! It's 8:30 on a Friday night, go the hell home!" I said teasing her.
"Yeah, well, if Bill's reporters ever called in with their travel plans, I wouldn't be stuck here until all hours, now would I?" she teased back.
"Oh shit! I'm so sorry. Yes, you'll need to book another ticket for me for Sunday. It's for Lorelai Leigh Gilmore. It'll have to be open ended, though, sorry, I'm not sure when she needs to get home. Oh, and it'll have to be departing Hartford, Connecticut but returning to Dulles for her," I added.
"You owe me, Mariano," she warned.
"Yeah, yeah, well I've owed you since I got there, haven't I? Anyway, get some good seats for Mrs. Mariano-to-be, okay?" I asked.
"What??? You're getting married?? But...um...when? How? When do you have the time to find a wife? I don't have enough time to own a fish!" she laughed.
"The woman I dedicated my book to. I never got over her, and fortunately for me, she never got over me. So here we are, at her mother's wedding rehearsal dinner, and we just got engaged," I told her. I know that telling her is just about like telling something to Miss Patty here in Stars Hollow. I'm sure the entire reporting staff at the Times will know about this within an hour.
"I'm so happy for you! Oh! You better have lots of pictures taken so we can run it in the paper!" she said excitedly.
"Yeah, yeah, since I like publicity so much," I teased.
"Okay, back to your party, you! I'll make these reservations and email everything to you. Congratulations again, Jess! You really deserve this!!"
"Thanks, Heather. I'll talk to you soon," I said hanging up the phone.
"Old girlfriend?" I heard Rory say as she sauntered up to me.
"Bosses' secretary, sorry. She's booking your flights for St. Lucia. I'm having her book it open-ended to Dulles, is that okay?" I hated to presume, but I had to get that ticket booked.
"Oh, yeah, I fly into Dulles, I'll have to check with work on Monday to find out how much time I can take off. How about you?" she asked, suddenly aware that we still live in two different cities.
"I'm flying back on Thursday, back into New York. I need to get my stuff packed up and meet with Bill, make sure he's okay with me living in D.C. instead of New York," I said. She brightened up at that.
It got to be about 11:00 and the party was starting to slow down a little. "Let's go home, Mrs. Mariano," I whispered into Rory's ear after I snuck up behind her while she was in conversation with Sookie. She jumped a little, I'm not sure whether it was from me whispering, hearing 'Mrs. Mariano', or my hands that landed on her waist. She turned and put a hand on the side of my face and gave me a kiss. She ran over to say goodnight to Lorelai and Luke and came back to me, her hair swishing behind her from her excitedness. "Ready?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Oh yeah," she replied, intertwining our hands as we walked back over to the diner. We got back into the apartment, undressed quickly and got into bed. I turned the light out and layed back with a huge sigh, completely exhausted from all of the emotion of the day. Rory lay down and I wrapped an arm around her. She stretched her arm across my chest, staring at the ring as it sparkled in the glow from the streetlight. I brought my face to hers and kissed her, long and sweet. She snuggled up to me, burying her face in my neck. Life is pretty good.
Saturday
We woke up the same way, completely sore from the awkward position we had been in for so long.
"Geez!" I commented, sitting up and stretching my arms in front of me. Rory eyes fluttered open and she reacted in the same way, stiffly trying to stretch. "Okay, so much for the romantic 'sleep in each other's arms' nonsense anymore!" I said with a smirk.
"I'm with you there!" she commented back with a smile, rolling her neck.
"I think a nice hot shower might get the kinks out. Join me?" I asked with a raised eyebrow, holding out my hand.
"Yeah!" she brightened up, running past me and into the bathroom. We took a long, hot shower together, relaxing our muscles and sexually satisfying each other. By the time we were 'finished', our fingers were both getting wrinkled from being exposed to the water for so long. "I hate being all pruny!" she mumbled as she toweled herself off. I smiled to myself. So much for Harvard giving her a proper vocabulary. I decided to keep my mouth shut, though, since I found it so cute.
I left her to dry her hair and do her makeup, quickly running downstairs in my sweats to get some breakfast from John. I came back up and she burst out of the bathroom as soon as the smell of coffee entered the room. Rory and her appetite never ceased to amaze me. But there were so many things about her that amazed me. And now I'd have the rest of my life to be amazed by her. I sat there with a smile on my face at the thought of it.
"What?" she asked, looking up at me from her breakfast plate.
"Nothing," I smirked.
"You aren't going to make a comment on my eating habits, are you?" she grinned.
"Nope," I said with conviction as I finished my toast.
"Good," she answered with a smile.
I put on my tuxedo and she put on a gorgeous light blue dress that matched her eyes and we were ready to go see Luke and Lorelai get married.
We drove over to the inn and laughed as Michel was running around like a crazy person, with Kirk right at his heels, bugging him with questions. "Kirk, if you do not get out of my sight right now, I will kill you!" he said with his thick accent.
"But Lorelai said that I was your assistant today, and I'm assisting you!" Kirk demanded.
"Well, insist me from further away!" he said with a huff, walking off. Both Rory and I shook our heads and laughed.
"I guess I'd better go find mom," Rory said with a pout, running her hands along my suit lapel.
I gave her a little pout back. "Aw, poor Rory, I'll see you in a little while. Don't miss me too much, okay?" I said with a smirk and pulled her to me for a kiss.
"Get a room!" Michel snapped at us, breaking the kiss.
"Well, good thing we're at an inn, then. Can we get a room?" I asked, getting a smack in the arm from Rory.
"See you later," Rory said with a peck on the lips and then she disappeared into the inn.
"Where's Luke?" I asked Michel.
"At the bar," he pointed over to the bar that had been set up near the piano, much like how Sookie's wedding had been set up. The wedding where Rory kissed me for the first time. I walked over to the bar and Luke was standing with Jackson and Randy, a nervous wreck.
"What if I forget the words?" Luke was ranting, the guys were trying to calm him down.
"Luke, relax, it'll be fine, just take a deep breath," Jackson said reassuredly.
I walked behind the bar, since the bartender was nowhere to be found. "Or have a stiff drink," I smirked. All three of them spun around in surprise to see me.
"Jess! Jesus! I didn't think you'd EVER get here!" Luke raved.
"Geez, relax! I'm an HOUR early!" I whined, pouring four shots of tequila. "Okay boys, the man can't drink alone," I said, pushing the glasses toward them. Randy stepped right up and took two glasses, handing one to Luke, who took it with a shaking hand. Jackson looked at the glass warily.
"I don't know if that's such a good idea, Jess," he said with hesitation.
"Oh please, how much do you want to bet that the girls are up there doing the same thing?" I narrowed my eyes at him. "I mean, it's Lorelai!" They all shook their heads yes and laughed. I think we all pictured Lorelai, Rory, Babette and Sookie passing a bottle around. "To the big day," I said raising my glass. The other three raised theirs and we all downed our drinks and laughed. Luke seemed to be a little more calm right away. "See?" I said to Luke.
"Yeah, whew, I do feel a little better. Thanks, Jess, I hope I can do the same for you in a few days," he said with relief.
"Thanks, I don't think I'll need it, but I appreciate the offer," I said with a smile. It's amazing how appreciative I've become in the last few years. And the last few days have changed me even more so, I feel like I'm a member of the family already. A far cry from the days when Rory and I started dating and she was convinced that I was going to corrupt her. Thank God those days are over. At least I hope they are.
A cough interrupted us. "Excuse me, is their room for one more at this little party?" a very distinguished voice boomed.
"Oh, Mr. Gilmore, uh, it's great to see you." Luke stammered, clearly embarrassed. Jackson said hello. That must be Rory's grandfather. I never got to meet him, only his grandmother at that awful dinner when Rory and I fought. Ugh, that damn swan. I hate to even think about that whole week in my life. Luke looked at me with desperation. I poured a shot of tequila and walked around the bar to hand it to him. He took it and made a toasting gesture and downed the glass, setting it down on the bar.
"Excellent method to steady the nerves," he stated simply. "And please, call me Richard. You're family now. [pause] So, Luke, I'm very sorry to have missed the rehearsal and dinner last night," he added.
"Oh, not a problem. Lorelai said you and Emily were coming back from a last-minute trip?" Luke asked.
"Yes, terrible airline, I'll never fly them again. We were supposed to arrive back home in plenty of time, but of course, there had to be delays, ugh! Awful!" he chuckled. There was an uncomfortable silence for a moment. I elbowed Luke.
"Oh! I'm sorry! You haven't met everyone. You know Jackson, this is my high-school friend Randy Gerber and this is my nephew, Jess Mariano," he explained. "This is Lorelai's father, Richard Gilmore," he added. He shook Randy's hand then mine. He stopped short, obviously trying to recall how he knew my name.
"Jess, do I recall correctly that you dated my granddaughter during your high school days?" he asked with curiosity.
Luke coughed nervously and looked at me. Richard looked at him. "Is there something I should know?" he asked looking between us.
"Well, actually." Luke started to say. But I couldn't let him do it. I'm an adult now, this should come from me.
"Mr. Gilmore," he looked at me oddly.
"Please, call me Richard," he stated.
"Richard. Rory and I are back together again," I started to say. I wasn't sure how to tell the guy that I'm going to marry his granddaughter after dating for a couple days. This was going to be difficult no matter how I said it.
"Oh! Is this a recent thing?" he was obviously confused.
"Very recent, sir," I said respectfully. I wasn't going to get on his good side by being a smart-ass. And I'm sure once Rory's grandmother finds out, there's going to be an argument. I looked to Luke, unsure if I should say any more. Luke closed his eyes and nodded that I should just tell him everything. "As a matter of fact, well, I've asked Rory to marry me," I said nervously.
"What?" he said in shock.
"I've been in love with Rory for a long time, Richard. And she has not stopped loving me either. I thank God that I've been given a second chance to make things right with her. And I plan on doing just that by marrying her," I stated simply.
"My! When did all of this happen?"
"I asked her last night at the party, and she said yes," I smiled, sensing that he was okay with this revelation.
"Wonderful! Well, this is definitely a cause for celebrating, in addition to Lorelai's big day!" he said with a smile, nodding towards the empty glasses. 'Welcome to the family, young man!" he slapped me on the back. I couldn't help but flinch a little. I still can't handle too much physical touching from people, especially people I've just met. I went over and poured another round of tequila shots.
"To Rory and Jess!" Richard said with enthusiasm and we all drank our drinks. Luke shot me a look. I decided not to say anything about us getting married in the next few days. I'm sure that would be a problem.
"I can only hope that it's going this well with the girls, you know?" Luke said with a worried look. "You know that Emily was not too pleased with you that time that you met her," he added. I rolled my eyes, wanting to forget that it ever happened.
"Maybe she forgot," I said.
"Not likely" both Luke and Richard said at the same time. We all started to laugh at that.
The hour went by quickly, and soon we were all standing alongside the chuppah. Rory was beaming as she walked in, her eyes never leaving mine. Her hair was up in a tight bun, with flowers in it, exposing her long neck. She looked like a vision to me. Lorelai wore her hair down, and she looked lovely also. Luke froze when she and her father came down the aisle. I elbowed him to bring him out of his daze.
The ceremony was very romantic. There wasn't a dry eye in the house, including me, unfortunately. I was just happy that it ended so that as we walked back down the aisle I could hold Rory's hand. We ate and danced until late into the night.
When we sat to eat, I realized that I, as best man, hand to give the toast. Oh, shit, I've been so focused on Rory, I hadn't even thought about it. Oh well, I'm a writer, so I just have to do something off the cuff. I stood up and cleared my throat loudly, getting everyone's attention. I raised my glass and sneaked a quick glance at Rory, who was looking up at me with affection. "Everyone! A toast!" the crowd grew quiet, for the first time that evening. "Please raise a glass to Luke and Lorelai. We never thought the day would come. I would like to take a moment to start them on the path to a happy successful union, with just a few thoughts. Always love each other. Always respect each other and always be there for each other. May the best day of the past be the worst day of your future.May you be friends to each other as only lovers can; and may you love each other as only best friends can. For good friends come not with time, but with trust. I'd also like to thank you for honoring me with the role of best man. Luke, you have fought through some tough times with incredible determination and courage and have been successful at everything you have done. You have taught me so many things. In particular you have shown me the determination and motivation required to achieve success. You are the only person in the world who makes me laugh out loud. We have shared some 'special' [air quotes] memories and I'm sure that there will be many more in the future. I look up to you in more ways than you can ever believe. Finally, I can only admire your good taste in women.which brings me to Lorelai.who is as lovely on the inside as on the outside. My wish is for health and happiness to the both of you.Cheers!!!"
"Here, here!" Miss Patty yelled. I looked over to Luke and Lorelai and they were both teary-eyed. Damn, I'm good. Rory dabbed her eyes too. I sat down and Rory put her hand on my leg.
"God, that was beautiful. You should be a writer or something," she grinned and squeezed my leg.
"Huh. Maybe I should try that!" I smirked, and kissed her.
"Hey you two! That's our job here!" Lorelai interjected.
Dinner was fantastic, of course. Sookie was doing double-duty as chef and bridesmaid, which made for some hilarious situations. After dinner, the DJ played a variety of music and Rory and I danced a little, sat out a little, and walked around a little. I had tried to avoid Emily's glaring looks for as long as I could, but she eventually found me when Rory went off with Lorelai to solve a wedding dress train problem.
"So, I understand that you are going to marry my granddaughter," she said stiffly.
"Yes, ma'am, I am," I answered.
"I must tell you that I don't really approve of this, so suddenly you are back in her life and now you are engaged. But I have to respect my granddaughter's wishes so I feel obliged to welcome you to the family," she said and forced a smile.
"Thank you, Mrs. Gilmore," I answered.
"Emily, please. And Jess." she warned
"No, Emily, I will never hurt her, she means the world to me," I interrupted.
"I can tell that when you two look at each other, Jess. Well, welcome to our family," she said quietly and affectionately squeezed my arm and walked away. Whew. That went a hell of a lot better than I thought.
"Hey you," Rory came over when she saw her grandmother leave me. "How did that go?" she said with concern.
"She welcomed me to the family, so I guess she isn't going to murder me anytime soon, well at least not until we get back from St. Lucia, that is," I smirked.
"Shhhhh!!!!" she hissed, looking around cautiously. I chucked at her concern.
"Let's go home," I said, wrapping my arms around her.
"Mmm, sounds good," she said. "Let's say goodbye to mom and Luke and grandparents," she said, grabbing my hand and leading me over to the group. We said our goodnights and went back to the apartment, where we made love through most of the night. I lay there for hours, thinking about how tomorrow will begin an entire new chapter in my life, starting with the trip to St. Lucia..
.to be continued! Please let me know what you thought of this! Especially Jess's toast. It took me forever to write it!