AN: A smaller filler chapter today. :) Thanks for the reviews.
"Hey, Luke! What's up?" Jess answered his phone just as he was about to get out of his car in front of their house, having arrived form work.
"Hey!" Luke replied. "We're good, thanks," he replied.
"Good", Jess reflected, recognizing a bit of an evasive pattern in Luke's tone.
"I was just wondering what your plans were for next weekend?" he inquired.
Jess got out of the car and reached to grab his leather satchel with his laptop from the backseat.
"Nothing much. We were thinking of maybe going to the zoo with Evie, but nothing's set in stone. You need my help with something?" Jess asked, as he stepped carefully onto the icy sidewalk. He slowed his step, before walking up the stairs, knowing he probably wouldn't be allowed a quiet moment to finish the conversation with Luke before Evie was all over him.
"Not so much help, but…," he replied, not really explaining. "I was just thinking about taking Leo to Woodbury, they have a snow maze and we can bring sledges. Maybe we could bring Doula along - make it a bit of a group thing," Luke explained a little hesitantly.
"I'd have to ask, but I don't see why that would be an issue. Sounds like fun," Jess replied. Ever since he had a child a lot of things he never really considered fun had suddenly turned into something he might consider - all that for Evie. Besides he was a little curious to meet Leo himself.
"Good. Ask," he sighed with relief.
"Do I sense some need for backup in your voice? Something going on there?" Jess asked, glancing up at the house, noting the lights on in the living room. He couldn't wait to get home, the weekends date having opened a new door for the two of them, allowing him to enjoy being home again. Not everything was fixed, but things were less tense and they seemed to have an understanding that essentially they wanted the same thing, which required some effort and attention from both of them.
"Oh, it's nothing…," he tried to brush it off.
"What?" Jess asked, not letting him off that easy.
"Leo is just a little odd around me. I went ice-fishing with him last weekend and I swear he barely said five words to me. When he's around Lorelai he talks to me just fine. I'm not sure if it's just me or guys in general or what…," he explained with a shrug. He'd pondered about several possibilities - maybe it was just that he'd grown up with women and never really had guys around or perhaps it was the way he communicated.
"Are you giving him the same treatment you gave me?" Jess laughed.
"Jess…," Luke scolded.
"Yeah, I get it…but I'll let you know, okay?" he added, and walked up the stairs.
"Thanks", Luke replied.
"Who's my favourite little girl?" Jess exclaimed happily as he opened the door, his words echoing both out the door and to Luke, before he bothered to hang up the call.
The fact that Logan had offered some financial incentive to the photographer had really hurried things up and they'd sent out their pregnancy announcements already the day before, including one formal one to the press, which naturally had been all over the news the next morning. Rory really shouldn't have been as surprised that her press phone was now ringing non-stop, which she decided to ignore, and her professional e-mail was flooding with requests for interviews and additional comments.
"This little trip of ours can't come soon enough," Rory commented on that note to Finny, who had currently decided one of her suitcases was a fun place to climb into, as she was packing up her things for Maine. It was all about packing to stay warm, Rory recalling well enough what the place had been like in the midst of a snowstorm with no power, preparing for the worst. She also needed to pack for Finny to bring to Lorelai's and for Logan who hadn't really had the time having just gotten home from work to sum things up so he wouldn't actually need to bring work. Logan knew he couldn't admit to Rory how much he'd actually enjoyed the day - having gotten congratulated from every direction, his tolerance for media interest being a lot higher than Rory's.
"Hey, you need my help?" Logan greeted, having just gotten home, now stepping into the bedroom.
"We might have to pack Finny but other than that I have it covered," Rory explained, pointing at Finny who seemed to be considering the suitcase as rather comfortable place for resting.
"Hey you!" he scolded playfully. "Where do you think we'll pack your stuff if you are taking up all the space?" he heaved Finny to his lap, the toddler letting out a whine of disapproval.
Logan quickly distracted Finny by putting on a song he liked on his phone, which automatically got his little legs and arms moving and placed him back on the floor.
"Way to take on the dancefloor, kid!" Rory chuckled, continuing to pack her things.
"Hey, do you mind if I go see my dad tomorrow?" Logan asked suddenly.
"No, of course not. How long do you need? Do you think I have time to take Finny to mom's or…?" Rory replied, knowing they had a busy schedule for tomorrow. She didn't really need to explain to him that she wasn't particularly a fan of that the Huntzberger mansion and would avoid setting foot in there is she could.
"I should be like half an hour maybe, maybe less…," he explained. "Maybe go meet Paris for coffee or something?" Logan suggested.
"That's an idea," Rory noted, deciding to find out what Paris was up to. Paris had moved back to Hartford as her kids had started school, having simply no trust in New York schools and she really hadn't seen her much lately.
"Oh, and we have to go buy a carseat on our way," Rory noted.
"Anything wrong with the one we have?" Logan asked, recalling just getting a new car seat a few months ago.
"It doesn't need to be fancy, but it's for mom's car. In case she needs to drive him somewhere," Rory explained, having almost forgot about that herself.
"Fine," Logan sighed. Sure he had no problem buying one but he already knew how he was going to hate the buying process, there being a 1001 options at least and having to install it himself. He was a firm believer that some of these things were made to torture young parents.
It was funny how the Hartford mansion looked smaller and smaller each time Logan visited it, and especially in daylight. Maybe it was that the way the house was built like a fortress and what it withheld really didn't scare him anymore. With Shira now in London, even the dobermanns had been retired and the staff reduced significantly, it seemed almost like a museum, stuck in time.
The maid answered the door swiftly as he waved Rory off. She had decided to go hunt for the car seat herself while he was there, Paris having told her she was fully booked for the day unfortunately.
"Hi," Logan greeted politely, as he entered.
"Your father is in his study," the sturdy woman, called Nelly, whom he'd known most of his life, said.
"Thank you," he replied, handing her his coat, and walked along the marble floors towards the far wing of the house. His father had set up the path to the study on purpose so anyone who visited it would clearly feel intimidated - seeing a few million dollar row of paintings and sculptures. Yet here Logan was - perfectly calm. He even considered that perhaps he should be more worried, considering what he was about to ask him, or rather tell him, not looking for his approval.
"Come in!" Mitchum said, after Logan had knocked onto the door.
"Hi, dad!" he greeted.
"Logan! Great to see you!" he began, adding, "what no Rory this time?" he inquired, not getting up from his desk.
"She needed to go buy something. We're on a bit of schedule today actually," Logan explained.
"Oh, so what's on the agenda?" he asked.
"We're just dropping off Finny at Lorelai's and then driving to Cousin's island for a few days," he said, observing him carefully.
Mitchum raised his eyebrows at him, wondering why would he be going there.
"You want a drink?" he asked, pouring himself a small scotch despite it being before noon.
"I better not," he replied, knowing he'd be driving.
"So Maine?" he inquired curiously.
"Rory has some thesis stuff to do there, but I want to see if Owen might be willing to talk to me," Logan said, not beating around the bush. He wanted to tell him who he was, let him know his relation to the Huntzberger name. He'd felt bad about not really getting the chance to do that years ago, and now he almost felt like he'd delayed it too much. He knew Owen didn't particularly express any wish to know about his father, but maybe he'd be more welcoming towards the idea of a brother?
"I see, and you need my… what? Approval?" he asked with a slight chuckle, taking a sip of his drink, as she sat down to his desk again
"I just wondered if you have that NDA somewhere? I wouldn't want him thinking he's breaking that," Logan asked.
"Owen doesn't have one, just Catherine," Mitchum replied as he looked up at him.
"Do you really think there's still a need for it? Wouldn't it be a gesture of good faith if we just had it annulled?" Logan suggested.
"That same contract gives her a well-paying job and there really has very little work involved with it, I doubt she'll want to part from that at this point," Mitchum explained.
"Right," Logan sighed, running his hand through his hair.
"Do you really think it's wise to go poking around old wounds, Logan? Why now?" he asked after a moment's pause, seeming a little puzzled.
"From what I hear he's a lot like me actually. And I guess I just want to know him. This is not how I want to deal with family issues - to brush them under a carpet," he tried to explain. Just like the HPG was beginning to grow into something more liberal, more balanced and diverse, open and understanding place to do business with and work in, he wanted to carry those same values himself. And frankly he just didn't like having skeletons in the closet, even if they were essentially his father's.
"So you'd be willing to give up part of your inheritage if he comes asking for it?" Mitchum asked, eyeing him sceptically.
Logan really didn't need to reply, just smiled at him shrugging his shoulders. What was another 150 million? He had his grandfather's inheritage already, he worked, he was set - whatever Mitchum himself had to leave - he found it only fair Owen might benefit from it as well.
"Anything you want me to tell him?" Logan asked.
"Tell him like it is. If he expresses a wish to meet me - I have no problem with it, give him my info. But he should know what to expect," Mitchum added, trying to sound indifferent.
Logan nodded in agreement.
Still it almost sounded like Mitchum wasn't entirely opposed to the idea, but Logan knew that for someone who didn't know his father, he came off as an obnoxious jerk, and in many ways it went deeper than just the surface. This clearly wasn't the main topic he wanted to go to Owen with.
"What does he do anyways?" Mitchum asked suddenly, surprising Logan by actually having an interest.
"I don't know what he does right now, but in 2017 he was a science teacher at Portland High," Logan explained.
"Takes after his mother," he noted without emotion. His cold demeanor didn't really surprise him, he'd had expected as much, but still he was glad that he'd come and there was a line of communication open when it came to this.
"I guess," he replied. "Alright, I better go. I'll let you know how it goes! Do you mind if I borrow your driver for twenty minutes?"
"No, go ahead," Mitchum replied, returning to whatever he'd been doing.
Rory was a little disappointed that when she'd dropped off Finny with Lorelai who'd been at the inn at the time, already beginning to immerse the toddler in the inner workings of an inn, that she hadn't had a chance to meet Leo, who'd been at school at the time.
However, with four hours of driving already done for the day and two to go, the number of stops Rory kept wanting to make along the way, the babies pressing on her bladder and her discovery that tortilla chips helped quite well whenever she felt nauseous, made it quite a bit lenghtier.
"So what did Mitchum think of the whole thing?" Rory asked, after another stop, just past Haverhill, the Riptide by Vance Joy playing in the background, Logan actually having dug up one of his old road trip playlists.
"Didn't seem to be terribly opposed but showed little interest," Logan replied.
"Can't say that I'm surprised," Rory commented.
"Do you know if he even works there anymore?" he pondered realizing that he really hadn't done his homework.
Rory pulled out her phone and with few nimble strokes she pulled up the information. "He sure does, classroom T-14, chemistry and AP bio," Rory commented. "And apparently he's engaged," Rory added, having reached his Facebook page. She couldn't help but to look over his fiance's profile as well, the blonde long-legged beauty, with a full sleeve mandala tattoo, creating a strange feeling in her. She knew of course there was no reason to feel envious or jealous - Rory was happily married, a mother already and pregnant, but just the idea that Owen had once liked her and had now found someone who he liked, loved, stung a little. She brushed to the thought aside, blaming her hormones for messing with her head.
"You okay there?" Logan asked, seeing her go a little quiet.
"Oh, nothing - she's pretty," she replied.
"Do I detect a hint of jealousy in your voice?" Logan chuckled.
"No," she exclaimed.
"Just a little maybe?" he teased.
"Logan…," she grumbled.
"Hm-hm…," Logan sighed, playfully.
"He was flattering, but believe me, there's nothing more to it," Rory added assuringly.
"I know," Logan replied smugly. He really didn't feel threatened by the guy - not now.
