AN: Thank you for all the kindness, I'm glad you guys are liking this, so remember...two steps forward, so this is step two...
Disclaimer: I do not own Gilmore Girls or The Holidate
Part Seven - July 1, 2021
Logan put his hands on her hips, roaming up and down as he pulled her closer to him and she put her arms around his body, her fingertips lightly skimming over the skin of his back and under his shirt as his tongue gained entrance to her mouth. After a moment of gentle exploration, Rory moaned as he put his hands on her ass and lifted her up so that she was encouraged to perch herself on the countertop, and she willingly complied. It had been months since she had been with anyone and the way her body was reacting to Logan was a combination of need and also longing for the person she was holding onto. Rory wrapped her legs around his waist to hold him closer as his lips left hers and found her neck, she tipped her head backwards to give him better access to her collarbone which was exposed by the v-neck t-shirt she was wearing.
"Fuck," Logan murmured as his lips moved back to hers and she bit gently at his lower lip before their tongues continued to dance, "Rory," he groaned as she ground her hips into his.
"Shhh," Rory whispered as she pulled away and looked at his face, loving the content smile on his lips with his eyes closed. She brought her lips back down on his and moved her hands to hold each side of his face while his remained firmly planted on her ass. They continued their dance for a moment, both of them trying to stay as close to each other as they could and only breathing when completely necessary, their eyes meeting with content smiles full of passion in those seconds when they weren't connected.
"Well, this could be awkward for some parents," Mitchum Huntzberger cleared his throat to make his presence known. It wasn't the first time he would walk in on his son and a woman, but there was something about this moment Mitchum could tell was more intimate than some of the other things he had seen over the years, even though it was certainly a more PG moment than some of Logan's previous dalliances.
Logan slowly pulled away from Rory and looked at his father, "dad, sorry. Brody is off today, so it's just us in the kitchen."
"I can see that," Mitchum nodded, "I'll find your mother then."
"Basement."
"Nice to see you, Rory," Mitchum smirked before walking away.
"You too," Rory couldn't even look at him as she heard his footsteps on the hardwood floor, wishing maybe that she had noticed them on the way in. "Oh my god," Rory gasped, not even addressing the fact that she remained wrapped up in Logan's arms.
"Yeah," Logan agreed, keeping his hands where they were and considering if he should make another play for it or if the moment had passed at this point. "We should…"
"Finish dinner," Rory finished for him.
"Right."
"Uhm…."
"It was nothing," Logan told her quickly, it wasn't nothing. He knew it wasn't nothing for him. But he also knew that more than he wanted it to be something, he didn't want to lose Rory as a part of his life, so he would tell her it was nothing. "Just two red blooded Americans who happen to be attracted to each other."
Rory licked her lips, "right, yes. Absolutely. We can just talk about what it," she paused, waiting for her heart to stop beating so damned fast, "what it didn't mean…later."
"I'll put the meat on," Logan nodded and took he cutting board which the meat had been placed on and walked out to the patio, taking a deep breath as he did. He was essentially on autopilot as he brushed off the grill and tossed the steaks on. He could see Rory in the kitchen, preparing the vegetables she would bring out to him in a couple of minutes. She was beautiful. Since the moment he had first laid eyes on her, he had thought she was beautiful, but when he got to know her, it was possible that she had become more attractive in his eyes. Logan watched her as she gracefully moved through the main floor of the home, she looked to be telling his family that dinner would be ready soon and she appeared through the sliding glass doors to hand him a bowl full of various vegetables. "Thank you," Logan nodded as he took them.
"How much longer?" Rory asked him nervously.
"Maybe five minutes?"
"Everyone will be out in a minute," Rory told him quietly, "do you want me to grab your wine from inside? Or a scotch?"
"The wine would be good," Logan nodded as he tended to the grill.
"Sure."
A few minutes later they were sitting on the patio with Logan's family, beginning to pass the plates around for their dinner.
Honor and her kids had sat down and Jude, the oldest was telling Logan all about his plans for the summer, and Honor was simply trying to keep the younger two from tearing each others eyeballs out at any given moment. "Really, Rory, thank you for making dinner. This is lovely," she smiled at the brunette.
"Oh, don't just thank me," Rory took a sip of her wine and looked at Logan, "I really just cut the vegetables and prepped, Logan was the man in charge."
"Hey, don't give me credit," Logan put a hand on his chest and winked at Rory, "if you hadn't stepped in, we would've been going out for dinner. Or even worse, it would've been known as the year the Huntzberger family went without a meal."
"Logan don't be rude," Mitchum warned, having heard from his wife about the argument she and Honor had. "Thank you Rory, for organizing this, and for seeing something in my son that none of the rest of us can see."
Rory leaned over from her seat and gave Logan a quick kiss on the cheek, lingering for a moment, she whispered "relax," before turning to the table, "I'm lucky he puts up with me. You guys haven't seen me without my coffee fix."
"Let me tell you," Logan nodded, "this woman without coffee is basically unrecognizable."
"Well there is a top of the line coffee maker in the guest house," Mitchum smiled. "I expect you two will lay low until the party?"
"Is that your way of banishing us?" Logan asked with a smirk.
"Don't be dramatic," Mitchum rolled his eyes, "I may be an old man but I can't imagine you two lovebirds want to spend your entire weekend with us. Enjoy your day, be ready for two when the guests will be arriving."
"Sure," Logan looked at Rory and gave her a smile, "I'm sure we can find something to occupy our time."
"There's a bowling alley in the basement," Jude interrupted with a grin, "can we play tomorrow Uncle Logan?"
"There's a bowling alley?" Rory gaped.
"And a pool," Jude told her, "and a movie theatre."
"I was hoping," Honor looked at her son, "that you would spend some time outside tomorrow. I think dad and I will take you to the beach, so don't try to rope Uncle Logan into a day of video games."
"The beach sounds great Jude," Logan told his nephew, "but i'll make you a deal. In September when you are back in Hartford, I will bring you to my place for a weekend and we'll have a boys weekend. If your mom says that he can, your dad can even come too. Does that sound like a deal?"
"Sure," Jude shrugged.
The family finished the meal making idle conversation about plans for the weekend. Rory explained that while she had been in the area before it had been a few years and Shira and Honor had immediately peppered Logan with all of the places he just had to take Rory. Logan noticed how Honor perked up ever so slightly when Rory told her that she and Logan would be going to dinner the following evening, just the two of them, and Logan tried to ignore the grin on her face. Given that she was the only one who know what their arrangement was, and she had expressed concerns about it from the beginning, he expected he knew what her thoughts were. Honor liked Rory, they texted, they had hung out a few times on their own, Honor thought Logan and Rory would make a gorgeous real couple if they would both get over themselves.
"Well, I think that it is safe to say," Logan looked at his watch, "that as we cooked it, we will not be cleaning. So if you guys don't mind, Rory and I are going to call it a night."
"I can help clean up," Rory told him.
"No, don't be ridiculous," Mitchum spoke first, "you've done enough. You two enjoy your night. Logan, you should take Rory on a walk of the property, it's nice this time of night, or a swim. I had them turn up the pool heater for tomorrow."
"Thanks Dad," Logan nodded, he felt like a seventeen year old being chaperoned on his first coed sleepover.
"I guess…goodnight then?" Rory and Logan both stood and said their goodnights before walking back to the guest house. Rory looked at her watch and noted that it was barely eight, "I'm going to go and get changed I guess," she told him somewhat awkwardly.
"Sure," Logan nodded. "Me too, I guess."
Rory walked to the bedroom and took a deep breath. She wasn't sure what to make of what happened in the kitchen. They had kissed. It wasn't like when he kissed her in front of Jess. It hadn't been a show, it had been intentional, and gentle, and passionate and now she didn't know what to do. Did she pretend it hadn't happened? Just carry on with their arrangement? Did they talk about it? Did it mean something? If it meant something, what did it mean? Logan had said it was nothing…so it was nothing? This wasn't the plan. Rory worked with plans. She made decisions based on plans. Kissing Logan hadn't been the plan. Liking kissing Logan hadn't been the plan. Rory went into the bathroom and splashed some cold water on her face before pulling out the Harvard sweatpants and white tank top she had brought to sleep in. She plugged her phone in beside the bed and walked back into the main room with her laptop in hand, hoping she might be able to get some work done at some point.
"Drink?" Logan asked as he emerged from his own bedroom wearing a pair of Yale sweatpants and a black t-shirt.
"Uh…if you are? Sure."
Logan nodded and went to the kitchen where he pulled out a bottle of gin and some tonic, quickly pouring a drink for each of them and garnishing it with a lime before returning to the main room and handing it to Rory. "So," he exhaled as he sat down, "you've got work?" he nodded to her laptop.
"Oh this?" Rory looked down at the computer that was closed on her lap, "I…I have some stuff I guess that I could do," she was rambling again, as she always did when she was nervous. "But I don't have to…I just…I wasn't sure what you were doing or if you were going to hang out with your family or something…"
"Ace," Logan laughed, he was sitting on the couch with his body turned to face her, there was almost a full cushion between them, "I'm not sure how I would explain to my family that I left the woman who they think I'm dating for the night to hang out with them…especially considering they know I'm not really their biggest fans…other than Honor and Josh of course."
Rory nodded and moved her laptop to the coffee table, "sure, yeah…that makes sense."
"We don't need to a make this weird," Logan told her as she took a sip of her drink somewhat nervously.
"It's not weird."
"Rory."
"You called me Rory…"
"It's weird, but it doesn't have to be. Look, I would be a liar if I said I didn't find you attractive, and don't even try to start the decent conversation right now. You are gorgeous and I'm a guy who finds you very attractive, and I think you find me attractive too."
"That is one way to put it," Rory bit her lip.
"So we're two people who find each other attractive, and we kissed. But the truth is, I don't want to lose us because of a kiss. I've grown to like you. I like being able to call you, I like having you in my life. I don't want to screw that up."
"I don't want that either," Rory told him honestly. He was right. Sure, they were two people attracted to each other, but was that enough reason to risk the friendship they had built.
"Alright, so we're friends, and we're friends who aren't going to complicate things with sex. Now that we have that sorted, do you want to watch the news? Dateline? A movie? I can show you around the property like my dad suggested?"
xxx
By the time the party was gearing up to start, whatever awkwardness had existed between Rory and Logan had dissipated. They had gone for a long walk that morning where Logan showed her the property and took her to see a few local sites. They had enjoyed a quiet breakfast in the guest house and then got themselves ready for the party. Honor had managed to catch up with Rory and make some recommendations for her attire which Rory was thankful for because she really had no idea what to expect, and at the end of the day, she was still a respected New York Times reporter and didn't want to look like an idiot in front of any of her peers. She had chosen a white, sleeveless dress with a little bit of floral detailing. Honor had tried to lend her a dress with a barely there skirt but Rory had declined and thanked her for the offer.
"Drink?"
"I think just a water?" Rory told Logan as they walked towards the bar, he gave her a curious look as normally she would have a couple of drinks, especially if she had nowhere to drive. "What?" Rory laughed, "it's hot, we have a long afternoon ahead of us and if I get too drunk now, you won't be able to take me to dinner and what was the point of coming all this way if I don't even get a proper dinner that I don't cook?"
"I knew you were here because of my money," Logan grinned, relieved that they seemed to have fallen back into their familiar pattern. "Anyone you think you want to meet that might be here today?" he asked her, genuinely hoping that if she needed a connection she could make it.
Rory shook her head, "I think that I will just roll with the punches."
"That is the least Rory thing I have ever heard," Logan smiled as they stood beside the pool. "If we're lucky, someone will challenge my dad to a game of tennis and the old man won't be able to help himself so he'll say yes, and then he'll make a complete ass of himself."
"You almost sound like you would take pleasure in his embarrassment?" Rory smirked.
"If you make that face too much, it'll get stuck like that," Logan told her.
"Oh Logan, Rory, perfect, I was just hoping to catch you, look who I found!" Shira Huntzberger was beaming from ear to ear. "Logan, I ran into Laura and her husband, Thomas this morning and I just insisted that they come here this afternoon."
"Did you now?" Logan gave his best society smile to his mother before turning to the woman who had broken his heart several years earlier, "Laura you look beautiful as always," he gave her a gentle kiss on the cheek. "Thomas, I'm Logan Huntzberger, nice to meet you. This is my girlfriend, Rory Gilmore. Rory, this is my ex-girlfriend Laura and her husband, Thomas."
"Hi," Rory smiled, taking advantage of the moment to intertwine her fingers with his while making their greetings, "so nice to meet you. What a gorgeous day, couldn't ask for better weather!"
"No, you couldn't," Shira agreed. "Rory here is a New York Times reporter," Shira gloated, "and she is the granddaughter of a dear friend of ours from Hartford so it's really remarkable how everything turned out for the best, wouldn't you say?"
"Seems that way," Laura nodded. "Shira if you don't mind, we're just going to get a drink and we'll catch up with Honor and Josh and head out soon, it really is so lovely to see you though."
"I'm going to find Mitchum, make sure you say goodbye before you leave," Shira added before walking away and leaving the foursome.
"Sorry if she cornered you," Logan gave them a sympathetic smile once his mother was out of earshot.
"You know your mom," Laura shrugged, "doesn't take no for an answer. She said something about you guys cooking last night?" Logan nodded his head in response as Rory watched the interaction, "I don't think I've ever seen you cook."
"Logan is such a wonderful cook," Rory interjected, "sometimes it is just so nice to stay in and have a quiet meal with no distractions. I swear, without him…I wouldn't get fed unless I ate out."
Logan smiled at her and kissed the crown of her head, he appreciated what she was doing. He had managed to avoid running into Laura for years, and now his mother had invited her. Probably in hopes of showing off Rory, and he wasn't sure he could blame her for that, but it was still an uncomfortable interaction. "You're not so bad yourself, Ace."
"Are Colin and Finn here?" Laura asked.
Logan shook his head, "no, you know them, they aren't around if my dad is."
"Of course," Laura smiled.
"So Thomas," Rory interrupted the two of them, "what do you do?"
"I'm an investment banker."
Rory smiled, "I can't even pretend that sounds interesting," she laughed, "sorry that was rude of me."
"No, I get that a lot, it isn't exactly a flashy profession. Laura here is an art curator and trust me, her work is much more interesting than mine."
"You know, it was so nice meeting you both, but, I actually see someone I'm just dying to catch up with over there and you wanted to chat with Honor and Josh. So maybe we can catch up later?" Rory suggested. She was relieved when all parties took the bait and she and Logan walked hand in hand to the other side of the pool. "Was your mom trying to be nice or…"
"In her own way," Logan explained, "she was trying to show Laura that I've moved on and that the replacement is an upgrade."
"I'm not sure if I should feel flattered or…" Rory laughed. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine," he shrugged, "it was weird, but it was bound to happen eventually. Thank you for…that."
"It's what I'm here for," Rory assured him, "are you sure you're alright?"
Logan nodded and took a sip of his own drink. "We should probably go and make the rounds," he told her.
"Do you want a minute? We can go sit down inside…"
"I'm fine Rory," he told her again, "what is there to be upset about? She married the guy she left me for, she has a baby, and I have someone who will hang out with me at events to keep my parents at bay…totally fulfilled."
Rory took a deep breath and put her hands on Logan's cheeks, "Logan, you are not some pity party for me. We are friends," she told him softly, "so stop questioning that. I'm not here because you casually mentioned the idea in Thanksgiving. I'm here because I like being around you and I like being your friend." The way she said friend lingered ever so slightly on her lips. Was he just a friend? Was he more than a friend? What did they mean to each other? Rory exhaled, "I need you to believe that I'm here because I want to be."
xxx
"Logan, we can split the bill," Rory looked desperately at the waitress for some help.
"Ace, I invited you to dinner, I'm paying for dinner. Deal with it," he told her with a smile before telling the waitress for the third time that one cheque was acceptable.
"Thank you," Rory smiled at him, "but next time, my treat."
"Sure, the next time you ask me to dinner, you can pay for it," Logan smirked at her, "this was nice."
"It was nice," Rory nodded her head in agreement, "I don't think I've ever eaten somewhere with such a gorgeous view," Rory noted, they could see the water from their table and it was absolutely stunning, "and the food was delicious."
"Whadya say we head back to the house and watch a movie? Your pick? Or we can go to a bar, I'm sure the guys are nearby?"
"I think after being in the sun all day, I'm ready to just go watch a movie," Rory told him with a smile as the waitress came with the bill and handed it to Logan. Rory watched as he gave it a quick once over and handed her his credit card. These were the things that she had learned about Logan during the course of their friendship. He was generous, to a fault, he would pick up the tab, he tipped outrageously well, he would see something in a store or online and send it to a friend or his nephew or nieces just because, but he wasn't careless. He reviewed bills to make sure he hadn't been overcharged. He reconciled his credit card statements against the receipts he always made sure to take with him. He was polite to servers, and on more than one occasion when he was brought the incorrect dish, he smiled and ate it without so much as a comment to a server. Logan Huntzberger held the door for people, he waited until everyone at the table had their meal before he started to eat and he was nothing like the playboy that many people assumed he was. Rory was certain she had never had a friend like Logan Huntzberger before, and also that she couldn't imagine not having him in her life.
"Sounds good," Logan agreed, he smiled as he took a sip of his wine and the two sat in silence for a moment before the waitress returned for him to sign the bill. He scrawled his name on the receipt and tucked the customer copy in his wallet before standing and offering his hand to Rory, "shall we?"
"We shall," Rory smiled as she took his hand and he led her out of the restaurant, "thank you, really."
"You already thanked me, Ace."
"No, thank you, really. I just…I've liked getting to know you, and knowing the real you," Rory told him as they waited for their Uber.
"The real me?" Logan cocked an eyebrow at her.
"The real you," Rory repeated in a joking tone. "Not the playboy, egotistical, slacker that you let other people think you are. You're a good person, you're an amazing friend to me."
"Well, I guess you get what you give because you've been pretty nice to have around yourself."
"Aw," Rory stuck her tongue out, "you like me," she teased him.
"Uh huh," Logan laughed, "get in the car," he told her as he saw their car pull up in front of them and he opened the door for her.
"Bossy, you are bossy," Rory smiled as he slid in beside her.
"I can't be perfect."
"I've got a question for you when we get home," Rory smiled at him as the car started on the relatively short drive back to the house. Logan pointed out a few landmarks on the way back to the house, the driver asked if she had been before and Rory explained not in a few years and that she had never stayed in this area before. It was a comfortable silence by the time they arrived at the house and Logan offered her his hand as they got out of the car. She smiled as she thanked the driver and followed him back to the guest house, avoiding the main house and the chaos inside. When they had left there was evidence of a party that had just wound down, but now, the backyard almost looked as if no one had ever been there except for some stacks of chairs that needed to be taken away by the rental company. "It's pretty," Rory smiled as she looked at the pool.
"What was your question?" Logan asked, thinking back to the comment she had made on the ride.
"Why…" Rory paused, "why haven't you found someone? Why are you still single? You're good looking, you're smart, you're generous, you are driven…" Logan shrugged his shoulders. He wasn't sure how to answer that question. The truth was, there had never been a shortage of women who were interested in him, the problem was, he wasn't interested in them. "What happened with Laura?"
"She broke up with me."
"Logan, what actually happened with Laura?"
Logan inhaled and looked up at the sky, he knew what the truthful answer was, and he knew the half truth he had been giving everyone since the breakup. "I wasn't a good boyfriend."
"How?"
"I worked a lot," Logan admitted, "I thought I was better than just about everyone, I could be dismissive to staff, waiters, I missed things I promised her I would be at…"
"You just assumed she would always be around," Rory summed up his statement.
"I thought to myself more often than I would like to admit that she was lucky to have a guy like me and then when she left…I realized that I wasn't a good guy…so I've spent the last few years trying to prove that I can be a good guy…"
"So why haven't you shown anyone else that good guy? Other than seemingly your friends and occasionally your family."
Logan shrugged, "what if I do and they don't want him either?"
Rory cocked her head to the side and smiled at him, taking his hand as she led him away from the pool and back to the guest house where she slid open the door and flicked on a light before turning back to him. He was standing. Staring at her intently, he almost looked a little bit sad as she studied his face before she spoke. "If someone meets you today and doesn't think you are a decent man, a kind man, a man who deserves to be loved, then they are an idiot."
"Not if you knew who I was," Logan countered. "I was the kind of guy in college who could be introduced to the same person four times and never bother to learn their name."
"You remembered my name," Rory smiled at him.
"I thought you were hot," Logan admitted.
"The feeling was mutual," Rory told him honestly. "Go get us a drink, I'm going to pick a movie."
Logan shook his head, "why don't you get us a drink and I will pick a movie because as a grown man, I refuse to watch Willy Wonka for a third time."
"Spoil sport," Rory stuck her tongue out at him.
"Meet me on the couch," Logan laughed as Rory practically skipped to the kitchen. He took a seat on the couch after pulling out a couple of blankets. He knew Rory found it chilly, but for some reason they couldn't seem to find the just the right temperature for either of them. He was absently flicking through channels when Rory sat down beside him. There was no gap, her body was pressed against the side of him and without thinking he put his arm around her shoulder and pulled her slightly closer. "Thanks," he told her of the gin and tonic.
"No," Rory glared at the television.
"Come on, it's funny."
"It is not watch over and over again funny," Rory pouted.
"Come on Ace, it's part of being a grownup…compromising."
Rory rolled her eyes and looked at him. He was staring down at her, a little sparkle in his hazel eyes as he smirked at her. "Stop," she warned him.
"Stop what?" he asked, teasing her, "Bridesmaids is funny!"
Rory shook her head, she couldn't be completely sure what compelled her to move her hand to his cheek, her thumb stroking his chin for a moment before his smirk changed into a full-blown grin and his lips captured hers once more. She didn't want to think, she just wanted to enjoy the moment. Rory grinned as his tongue brushed her lips and she happily allowed him in, she maneuvered her body so that her chest faced towards him as he pulled her closer.
"You're amazing," Logan whispered as he gently pulled her into his lap, his hands were on her cheeks now, he brushed a hair out of her face before she kissed him again, "Ace," Logan breathed, she didn't answer, she just kissed him again, her hands were on his chest, undoing the buttons of his shirt as she ground her hips down into him and his hands moved down her body and found the hem of the dress that had ridden up due to their change in position. "Rory," Logan finally breathed as he pulled away for air.
"What?" she asked quietly, she had moved her lips to his neck. His body was warm against her, she was perpetually cold, so being so close to him simply felt safe, it felt like where she needed to be. "This is good," she whispered.
"Are you sure?" Logan asked, his finger tips skimming her thighs as he spoke. She nodded her head and smiled shyly, she may have dressed the part, she may have become a woman comfortable walking the streets of Manhattan in a four inch heel with a certain confidence in her step, but sexually, Rory was not a risk taker, and the decision to straddle one of her closest friends and basically beg was not something she had ever imagined herself doing. "You need to say it," Logan told her huskily, "because if we start, I don't think I can stop."
"I'm sure," she told him before placing her lips once more on his.
