Hey everyone, so sorry it took me so long I've just been really busy with school :/. Anyway this is a pretty long chapter so hope y'all like it. The next few chapters are going to be good :)

Read & Review please – thanks x

CHAPTER 20: Dance with me?

"Hey Sook" Lorelai said as she walked into the kitchen smiling widely.

"Hey Mrs Sunshine" Sookie said noticing Lorelai's excited smile.

"I did something slutty" Lorelai said mischievously.

"Oh my god, you and Luke, ahh" Sookie said jumping up and down grabbing Lorelai and making her jump too.

"How was it? You have to give me details" she squealed.

"It was great" Lorelai said still smiling.

"This is so exciting, you had sex and now you're together, it's wonderful, isn't it wonderful? Don't you know how wonderful this s?" Sookie said still squealing and jumping up and down excitedly.

"Yeah it's pretty great"

"Oh my god, you're sleeping with Luke"

"Okay Sookie, stop jumping, you're making me dizzy"

"It's so great, you two are so perfect for each other, I knew that someday you two would get together, and now we have our Inn and you have Luke, this is so great, I'm so happy for you both"

"Yeah me too"

"So where did you two ...ya know? I always thought it would be on top of the table like in Bob Durham"

"Actually we used the old fashioned thing, you might know it, it's called a bed"

"So... was he good? I mean between Max, Jason, Chris and Alex how does he rate?"

"Jeez... Sook, don't hold back" Lorelai said laughing.

"So..."

"Well Chris was always the best...."

"Oh" Sookie said disappointed.

"....Until last night, I'm not just saying that because I'm with Luke but he's so great Sookie... and I'm really happy" Lorelai said with the biggest smile on her face.

"Oh my god you two are so getting married"

"Let's just take it as it comes"

"... no pun intended" Lorelai said as Sookie raised her eyebrow.

"So are you going to come out of hiding then?"

"Not yet, I kinda like not many people knowing"

"Yes but it's killing me... it's like that disease in that movie Cabin Fever, I need people to know or I'm going to like blow up, Davie really isn't enough anymore!"

"Soon okay!"

"Great" Sookie squealed.

"Ok well I'm gonna get back to work now" Lorelai said as she took the cup of coffee that Sookie had just made her and walked out of the kitchen.

Luke stood at the counter in the diner, the breakfast rush was just over so he was having his mid morning lull as Kirk called it. He had been bombarded with questions as to why he had opened the diner late this morning, even Taylor had come in to have a go, Luke had just told them that his alarm clock had broken. He walked around that morning in a happy daze thinking about the night before, he had Lorelai now, not just as a friend from across the counter but he really had her.

He had surprised himself more than her when he had said goodbye to her the way that he had, he had never said 'Love you' to anyone just like that... even Rachel.

"Luke just the person I wanted to see" Taylor said bringing Luke back to reality.

"What is it?"

"Well as you know it is Stars Hollow annual dance marathon this weekend so I would like to put a small stand outside the front of the diner..."

"Okay" he said nonchalantly.

"... And I know that you're going to go on one of your rants but Luke this is a town event and it's about time that..." Taylor continued until he realised that Luke had just agreed.

"What?" Taylor asked with a surprised look on his face.

"That's fine Taylor" Luke said impatiently, he hated seeing Taylor pleased.

"Well Luke, I'm glad that you have finally started to become part of the town" Taylor said smiling at Luke which he hated.

"You've got 10 seconds to leave or I change my mind" Luke said impatiently as Taylor sighed and shook his head before turning and leaving the diner.

7 pm

"Hey Luke"

"Hey" Luke said as Rory came into the diner.

"So when are you going back to Yale soon?"

"Yeah two days"

"Oh"

"I have been shopping with Lane all day for school supplies"

"You get everything?"

"I think so"

"Coffee?" he asked.

"Thanks"

"So where's your mom?" he asked as he started to wipe down the counter, he still felt a little awkward with Rory whenever the subject of him and Lorelai came up.

"Only 45 seconds that's a record" she said laughing.

"Sorry" he said blushing a bit.

"No it's cute" she said smiling to which he looked at her sternly before he grinned at her.

"She'll be here soon, she had a lot on at the Inn today, and she was late in apparently so she had to work longer" Rory said raising her eyebrow at Luke who quickly turned around to the coffee machine.

"The longer you laugh and try and embarrass me the longer you'll be waiting for your coffee"

"Okay stopping" she said trying to supress her giggles as he poured her coffee.

Lorelai stood outside the diner and looked in at Luke and Rory who were talking, they were both smiling. He was kind of like another dad to Rory, Lorelai thought remembering all the things he had done for her and the balloons and everything in the diner for her sixteenth birthday.

"Oooh did you see the sign outside?" Lorelai said as she walked in and over to the counter where Rory was sitting.

"No what is it?" Rory asked.

"It's the dance marathon"

"Oh no" both Rory and Luke groaned at the same time knowing that she would most likely try and drag one of them to it.

"I have to win this year – it's my destiny"

"Sure mom, it has been your destiny for the last four years" Rory said going to sit down at the table behind her.

"So what time will I meet you there at?" she asked Luke.

"Where?"

"The Dance Marathon, it starts at 6 so about 5.45? Bring coffee first"

"I'm not going"

"Yes you are Luke"

"No I'm not Lorelai" he said defiantly.

"You're my boyfriend you have to, it's in your job description" she whispered across the counter with a frown on her face. She really wanted him to be her partner this year, not just because she wanted to win so badly but she hadn't got to dance with him since the wedding and she really liked dancing with him.

"No"

"Please" she said smiling sweetly at him and battering her eyelashes.

"No"

"Pretty please with a coffee bean on top"

"No"

"C'mon you know you want to"

"Actually I'm pretty sure I don't" he said rolling his eyes.

"But you can dance!"

"Doesn't mean I want to"

"Mom stop harassing him, I'm starved" Rory moaned behind her mom, Lorelai turned around and Luke shot a look of gratitude to Rory. He really wasn't the type of guy to take part in a dance contest and he didn't want to give Taylor the satisfaction of him taking part in a town event.

"We'll talk about this later" Lorelai said frowning as she turned and walked back to Rory. They talked until Luke brought over their order, then Lorelai focused her attention on trying to persuade him again, he ignored her pleas. A while later Rory and Lorelai were just finishing their dinner.

"You go get the movie and I'll meet you in Doose's hon"

"Okay-don't be too hard on Luke" Rory said smiling before she left the diner where Lorelai would continue to annoy Luke with her incessant whining.

"So you wanna come over and watch a movie with me and Rory"

"Um sure"

"Woohoo" she shouted

"What?" he asked looking at her strangely.

"I knew I would get you to be my dance partner"

"I'm not your dance partner"

"You just agreed!"

"No I didn't"

"You just said 'um sure' so that is yes"

"I said yes about coming over"

"Ah but didn't you know, the code for 'Will you be my dance partner Luke?' is 'You wanna come over tonight'?"

"Okay then no" he said rolling his eyes. He knew that she would probably break him down eventually but he wasn't quite ready to give up yet.

"We'll talk later" she said raising her eyebrow.

"So will I come over?"

"Yeah, is half an hour okay?"

"Caesar and Lane will be here so that' should be good"

"Ok bye" Lorelai said lifting her bag off the chair beside her and walking out of the diner. She was looking through her bag as she walked out, not looking where she was going when she bumped into someone.

"Oh sorry" she said looking up at the familiar face.

"My fault" he said bending down to lift up her bag that she had dropped.

"No I was doing a Stevie Wonder there sorry" she said as she fixed the dance sign which she had nearly knocked over.

"So what's this dance marathon thing about?" Jenson asked her pointing at the sign.

"Well basically everyone has to dance for twenty-four hours and whoever is left standing wins the trophy, I have been sooo close the past few years but stupid Kirk won" she said frowning.

"Ah so you wanna win pretty bad" he said laughing.

"Uh yeah! You should see the size of the trophy, I really really want it" she said rubbing her hands together and giving him a wicked smile to which he just laughed in response.

"So guess I will see you on the dance floor then"

"Well maybe, I'm trying to get a dance partner, the guy I have asked REALLY doesn't wanna do it and I've probably already broken a few state laws trying to convince him so if you see me in the newspaper for harassment don't be surprised!" she said laughing. 'Okay Lorelai shutup and stop talking to this stranger, he doesn't care' she thought.

"Well if you want I could be your dance partner, this is so embarrassing but I used to take dance classes for extra credit in highschool"

"Nice, but... mm I'm not sure"

"Well if you're boyfriend doesn't mind, just friends, I mean I don't really know anyone here yet, well except a woman called Patty in the supermarket, she seems... a character" he said grinning.

"You better watch out, she eats bigger men than you for breakfast"

"Thanks for the warning"

"So the dance marathon this weekend, we on?" he asked grinning at her. She looked quickly into the diner at Luke who was carrying some plates with his back to her.

"Yeah, okay just so long as you know how important it is that I win this"

"I think I know"

"It's as important to me as it is for America to not vote Bush in the next elections"

"I'll second that"

"Okay well as long as you do"

"I've made a mental note"

"Okay well I gotta meet my daughter so I'll probably see you around?"

"Sure will, bye then" he said grinning before he continued on his jog.

About ten minutes later Rory met Lorelai in Doose's market.

"You were a while! I thought I would have to set up camp here while I was waiting, but then I thought 'I don't camp what am I saying'. So then I just waited here, starving to death"

"Not that you exaggerate at all, anyway I figured you would probably be in the diner hassling Luke all night"

"Nope, actually I have a dance partner"

"No mom, I am not doing it again this year"

"Did I say it was you, Miss now-everything's-about me"

"Luke said yes?" Rory said surprised that he had given in so easily.

"Let me finish... Jenson is going to be my dance partner"

"The new guy?"

"Yes"

"That asked you out?"

"Yes"

"Does Luke know?"

"We're going as friends, he knows I have a boyfriend and I will tell Luke later when I see him"

"Oookay" Rory said in a tone that Lorelai knew meant something more.

"What?"

"Nothing"

"That wasn't a normal 'okay' that was a 'I know something you don't okay'"

"I didn't know there were different meanings to okay"

"Spill"

"I just don't think that Luke will be as cool with this as you think he will"

"Why?"

"Because he'll be jealous"

"It's not like I didn't ask him like a million times already to go"

"That's true"

"Okay so he has no excuse" Lorelai said louder as Rory walked further up the aisle. 'He would be fine... wouldn't he?' she thought.

About an hour later Lorelai and Rory were sitting on the couch waiting for Luke to arrive, they had already finished the pizza and were starting on the junk food. Luke knocked on the door about ten minutes later, in his usual flannel uniform and a bag of food in one hand.

"Hey"

"Hi" she said giving him a small peck on the lips once he had closed the door.

"What did you bring us?"

"I didn't bring you anything, you said you were getting pizza" she grabbed the bag off him and looked inside and a wave of relief came over her face as she smiled at him.

"I knew you weren't that brave"

"So what are we watching?" he asked walking over to the sofa.

"Well to get in the mood for the dance marathon we got Grease and Dirty Dancing"

"Not this again" Luke groaned.

"Why have you seen them?" Lorelai asked, she knew he was talking about the dance marathon but decided to play dumb.

"I think he's talking about the dance marathon Mom"

"Don't worry I'm not going to ask you again" she said turning to look at Luke.

"Are you feeling okay?"

"Yeah why?"

"Because you and the word no don't exactly get on too well"

"I meant I won't ask you again because I have a dance partner"

"She got to you huh" he said grinning as he looked at Rory who shook her head.

"Nope"

"Who?"

"Jenson?"

"The new guy?"

"Yup"

"Oh" he simply said before sitting back in the couch and just stared at the TV. Rory shot Lorelai a 'I-told-you-so' look. Lorelai signalled for her to go to the bathroom so that she could talk to Luke alone.

"I'm just going to the bathroom" Rory said and walked upstairs.

"So... you wanna talk?"

"About what?"

"You know what"

"Why don't you tell me what you wanna talk about" he said getting defensive.

"You didn't wanna go to the dance, Jenson offered and he knows I have a boyfriend so it's not like it's a date"

"You honestly think he's just going to be you're friend"

"Yeah, and what does it matter, do you not trust me?"

"I do, but I don't trust anyone with you" he said looking into her eyes. She moved closer to him and took his hand in hers.

"Luke, we'll just be dancing okay? I love you, I didn't know it would bother you so much"

"I know. I didn't mean to be annoyed, I just..." he trailed off.

"Just what?"

"Nothing"

"Tell me"

"I just don't wanna risk losing you" he said as he rubbed her hand.

"You can be so sweet when you wanna be"

"Um... thanks" he said getting a bit embarrassed. She leaned over and kissed him deeply on the lips, he moved his arm around the back of her and pulled her closer to him. She ran her fingers through his hair gently and bit his lower lip softly, he moved both hands to her ass and moved her so that she was sitting on his lap.

"Okay I'll leave you two alone" Rory said as she turned and started to walk up the stairs.

"Mm I'm getting a bit of deja-vu here, okay lets start the movie" Lorelai said standing up and laughing a bit.

"You sure?"

"Of course"

"Actually I'm gonna get going" Luke said standing up.

"What? Why?" Both Rory and Lorelai asked.

"I just remembered I have to do something" he said walking to the door. Lorelai walked with him looking confused.

"You okay?" she whispered.

"Yeah, I just think you and Rory should get some alone time before she leaves for Yale"

"She doesn't mind"

"I know but I'll see you tomorrow, just enjoy the night, and those don't really sound like my type of movies anyway" he said grinning as he leaned in and kissed her softly on the lips.

"Yeah see you tomorrow" she said smiling watching him leave.