Title: Take Me

Rating: G

Summary: Following the events in Home.

Disclaimer: not mine, never were, make no profit, do not sue... I just love 'em all so much I need to write about it...

Chapter Twelve

Take Me

by xenoprobe

There she is. Standing right there, waiting to walk to him with Rory at her side.

A long, long time ago this woman appeared in his life, buzzing for that black and bitter juice she claimed is the key to her soul. From that very moment he was taken. How was it that a heart like his could be so unexpectedly blindsided by this one singular person. This Lorelai Gilmore.

It wasn't long before he started waiting… waiting for the bell to jingle, for her to enter his domain; with her smile and her breath-taking beauty. She and Rory were all but kids, and there were times Luke felt like a letch, letting his eyes wander over her as she talked to her daughter or called him Duke; all animated and exasperating. But there aren't many years between them and he softened over time and it was only a matter of patience until that uneasy feeling was all but gone.

So he waited. He watched. He dreamt... he dreamt plenty. Lorelai's lips. Lorelai's laugh, her hips, her hands. Lorelai's hair…, that hair he longed to touch. He was full of imagination about these things and more. Still, he capped it. Patience, thy name is Luke Danes. He stopped himself from every truly admitting that he was hopelessly in love with this woman. People saw it though, and some called him on it; Miss Patty, Jess, Rachel, even Emily Gilmore had offered a few jabs. Then there were all those awful fights with Nicole about his friendship with the Inn owner. He tried to hide it but he wasn't an actor, he was a heart on his sleeve man.

And then there came that moment of truth; he saw her face. (Whoa.) Truth hit him like a blow in the gut- leaving him flattened and helpless. After that point, Luke couldn't wait any more. He simply could not. It took nothing to decide that he was going for it. He drove straight to her and asked her to Liz's wedding and that was that. And they laughed and ate and danced. It was hard and yet so very easy- dancing with her, her lean body against his, her smirking lips right there. It took every ounce of resolve not to pull her tight and open her mouth with his own right there in the square in front of Crazy Carrie and the whole of Star's Hollow.

When all was said and done it took practically nothing to make that move from friends to more. Such was the ease of the matter when they were both already so invested. If it weren't for Kirk, it may have been an even faster transition to lovers that night at the Dragonfly. When the moment finally arrived he lay claim to every inch of her leaving no room for doubt that this was something extraordinary for him and that she was it. It, it.

They were drunk and greedy for each other at first. Routines were shaken. Full of sleepless nights with the scent of her skin all over him, her hair tangled in his fingers as they happily slept. She was so open. More open than he'd ever dared dream. She gave him things that men don't have the vocabulary for and Luke was struck dumb, armed only with his abilities to silence her with kisses. They made do and were glad for it.

There were weeks, endless weeks when they both unraveled; Overwhelmed by this beast that was a 'relationship'; undefined, unbalanced and broken. The burr of their separation was a constant pain, prickly and stinging; the constant reminder from the blue and pink ribbons did nothing to ease his grief either. Somewhere he knew it wasn't all over, but that fact didn't have the power to prevent him from burning toast and tossing customers into the street.

That night when he finally went to her and reclaimed her lips at her front door was unparalleled. She was liquid in his arms and he was no more solid than the air in his lungs. He'd never wanted anything, anyone, like he wanted her.

When they finally regained footing, it felt like winning the lottery, for both of them. They were all in, invested and finally balancing life between them; a future seemed blissfully inevitable. Luke had never been one for looking too far ahead- such leads to disappointment all too often. But with her, he was almost giddy, full of things to say… ranting and letting his emotions spill out of him. He couldn't help it though- Lorelai Gilmore made him laugh, and dream and care and (oh hell,) she could make him cry too.

He'd seen her heart… seen it break, seen it heal and she gave it to him to care for and (so help me God,) he'd never do anything to harm it.

All the times that could have been, stolen glances, veiled questions and useless jealousy; devotion disguised as friendly concern… they were all precious moments but they weren't it, it. That moment came in its own time on the walk home from Liz and T.J's reception. She had her arm in his until he took her hand, walking for a few minutes like that. Silent; knowing there was something happening between them. When he stopped and looked at her, in her pink dress with the not-so fruity flowers in her hair, she was everything he'd always wanted and she saw it- that overpowering feeling that had barely remained hidden for too long. That was it.

All the times he'd wanted to kiss her, feel his lips press against hers for the very first time; times when he was so certain she felt like he did and times when he was enraged by her willful blindness. Now, he could kiss her forever, no doubts, no waiting for reassurances. If pressed, he'd have to admit that kissing Lorelai Gilmore was, quite possibly, the most satisfying thing he'd ever experienced. Sex was fantastic, thrilling, comforting even, but kissing; there was a sweetness to her taste and their lips knew each other intimately from the very first moment they touched. Kissing was indeed his passion and new favourite hobby.

So the long eight years, with his Scorpio horoscope burning in his wallet, were worth every torturous moment because now, they were together. This together eclipsed any other and there was a curious joy in knowing that each held the other in equal esteem. Each loved with the same fierce and protective passion. Life could be a truly wonderful place when doubt was erased.

And she's standing there. The sun is setting beyond her and she's glowing, radiating warmth and love and motherhood. Her belly is a constant marvel to him and he can't resist the silly thrill of talking to the babies through it. He's told them about baseball and coffee and how pretty their mother is. He's told them about their sister and how fun and smart and natural she is. He's even told them about himself, a little; how he thought he'd never have kids unless, someday, he had the great fortune of having them with Lorelai Gilmore.

She's standing there- smiling and the sun is behind her, giving the impression of a halo around her whole body and though her face is cast in a slight shadow, he knows she's looking straight at him. He figured he'd be nervous, thought she'd be nervous too. But they're both grinning at each other like they've just shared some inside joke. She looks like she might even say something and he smirks as she mouths the word 'dirty' as she sizes him up. (How'd I get this lucky?)

As she takes Rory's arm, they start walking towards the Huppa and this is it. Luke Danes is marrying Lorelai Gilmore. Right now! He fights the overpowering urge to run up the aisle and kiss her all over and be married already. It's not that he doesn't want a ceremony… not that doesn't want to share this with everybody, the only time he's ever been eager to join the town's celebrating … he just wants her so much that it seems cruel to make them wait to get their hands on each other again.

She winks once as she steps up to the proverbial plate. Rory leaves them and before he can register what he's doing, he's kissing her soft lips and pulling her in close at the hips. Reverend Skinner clears his throat, breaking the spell as they refocus. She's giggling and he looks like he might burst with pride.

Rory's laughing openly, her head tipped back and her hand in her boyfriend's. Sookie is already crying happily with Katy in her lap and Patty has a video camera hidden in her dress. Kirk's face is stone sober and Lulu is grinning. Jackson is standing off to the side with Davy.

Emily and Richard are even smiling and then there's Liz and T.J.. Liz looks so much like Lena Danes right now that Luke starts to tear. Even Mia's in the back, looking on, a surrogate for Lorelai and Rory and even Luke at times.

This is it. 'Our little corner of the world.' It doesn't get better than this.

Lorelai takes Luke's hand in hers, now sober from her outburst of laughter and they take that first step together… That first step towards this life they are creating. And all Luke can hear in his head is one little perfect sentence… I do.

Stay tuned…

Notes: Ok- so this isn't where I thought I'd go with the whole wedding thing. I have started this part of the story several times, only to stop, unsatisfied. I might (I stress might here) go back when the whole thing is done, and post an addendum to this fic with the specifics and dialogue of the Luke and Lorelai wedding. I researched it thoroughly and have a fairly long chapter (not quite polished off) of the ceremony from start to finish. But when I put it all together with the previous chapters, it seemed to lack something. This is by no means the longest chapter in the lot, but I promise I will invest more time soon and get this updated and finished.

I must apologize for the huge delay after being so prompt with all the previous chapters. I've started back to work since June and have been uber-busy with the practical side of life. There will be more… stay tuned…