Chapter 37: Gilmore Dinner Part 1

Walking into the diner for coffee after dropping Rory off at school the next week, Lorelai didn't stop at her usual place at the counter. Continuing through the dining room, she headed towards the curtain that led to Luke's apartment.

Looking up from cleaning the nonexistent stain on the counter, Luke questioned, "Uh, where do you think you're going?"

At the doorway, Lorelai stopped and turned to him with a smile. Casually, she answered, "To the bathroom."

"But the bathroom for the diner is down here."

With a careless flip of the hand, Lorelai countered him tauntingly. "I know, but I'm your girlfriend. I don't think I should have to use the one everyone else uses when there is a better one upstairs."

Rolling his eyes, Luke crossed his arms in front of his chest. "Well, right now you're not just my girlfriend, you're a customer. Customers use the bathroom down here."

With a smirk, she took a step closer to him, bringing herself behind the counter. "Ah, you see, that's where you're wrong. At this moment, I am not a customer. I haven't ordered, and I don't see my mug sitting on the counter full of coffee. I haven't even attempted to order anything from this fine establishment, therefore, I am officially not a customer. I am merely your stunning and amazing girlfriend…" Taking a moment, she gestured to herself and modeled the flippy skirt that happened to be his favorite. "And as your girlfriend, I have the privilege of using the utilities of your apartment, which includes the bathroom."

Looking at her with a stern glare, he moved her from behind the counter. "If I let you go, will it shut you up and make you stop getting on my nerves?"

Pretending to ponder his question, Lorelai tapped her chin lightly. "Hmmm, probably not."

Sighing, he shook his head and turned around, mumbling, "Just go."

A few minutes later, Lorelai returned wearing a bright smile. Plopping down on her stool at the counter, she was met with a full mug sitting in front of her. Feigning surprise, she fawned in a cheery voice, "Why, thank you Mr. Danes… I must say, as your favorite customer, I thoroughly enjoy such prompt service."

With a plain look, Luke spoke sarcastically. "Is there a reason for this pleasant mood you're in today?"

"You mean you don't enjoy my complements to you? Fine, I guess I'll just keep the comment I had about your butt in those jeans to myself."

Groaning, he responded in a chastising tone. "Lorelai…"

"What," she grinned mischievously, "You have a great butt! And those jeans show it!"

Grumbling, he turned to head back to the kitchen. "I'm leaving."

"No, wait, wait," Lorelai called with a laugh. Extending her hand, she reached across the counter for his and looked at him with loving eyes.

Looking back at her, he begrudgingly took her hand waiting for an explanation.

"I'm sorry I'm annoying you. I just know that within the next 24 hours all of the happiness in my body will probably be purged by my mother, so I figured I might as well be my normal, playful self before it goes away."

"Fine," he said with a small grin, unable to resist her charms, "Be annoying, I deal with that on a daily basis anyway." His smile grew larger when he noticed her offended look. "But, please, no comments about my butt."

"How about comments about your ass or tush… does that count," she countered, a playful glimmer appearing in her eyes.

This time, Luke didn't even bother to roll his eyes or sigh. "No. Say nothing about my butt, my ass, my tush, or any other name for my backside. In fact, don't say anything about any part of my body."

Before he could finish his statement, Lorelai began to laugh softly.

Narrowing his eyes at her, he questioned, "What?"

"I can't believe I just got you to say butt, ass, and tush in the same sentence."

Hearing Caesar placing a plate in the window, Luke turned and grabbed the order with an eye roll and placed it in front of her. "Here. Maybe this will quiet you down for a little while."

Gaping at the plate in front of her, Lorelai whined, "But I didn't order! What if this isn't what I wanted?"

Crossing his arms back in front of him, Luke countered confidently, "This is what you always order on Fridays… Is this what you wanted?"

Grinning, she nodded and leaned up, offering a kiss, and he happily obliged. "Thanks Luke."

Pulling away, he smirked and groaned impishly, "Man, the work." As he turned to grab the coffee pot to tend to other customers, Lorelai reached out and grabbed his sleeve.

Turning back, he noticed her smile. "What, Lorelai?"

"I just wanted you to know that I love you."

He couldn't help the smile that appeared on his face. Grabbing her hand, he squeezed it gently. "Back 'atcha."

Knocking on the door at 6:15, Luke heard a faint "It's open!" called from inside. Walking through the foyer and into the living room, he found Lorelai digging through the desk drawer. "Hey, Lorelai? Is there a reason I'm wearing this blue tie and not the extremely expensive red one I had to buy the last time we went to your parents' house?"

Without turning to him, Lorelai spoke in a rush, "Sorry, Luke. No time to chat. We have 15 minutes to leave, and I just noticed that Rory's dress is missing some buttons on the back." Grabbing a small plastic baggy of off-white buttons, she exclaimed, "Aha, there they are!" Slamming the drawer quickly, she ran into Rory's room, leaving Luke behind in the living room.

Confused by what just happened, Luke sighed. "Okay then…" Striding over to the doorway of Rory's room, he looked in to see Lorelai crouched down behind a completely still Rory, attempting to quickly sew on the missing buttons. "Do you really think that your mother would notice a missing button or two?"

Without saying a word, Lorelai glanced over at with raised eyebrows and a knowing look.

"Right… I forgot. It's Emily Gilmore we're talking about here."

"I like your tie Daddy Luke," Rory spoke up with a smile, not affected by the stress exuding from her mother, "It matches my dress."

"Thanks Rory… So, Lorelai, is there a reason I am wearing this tie?"

Not distracted from her work, she began sewing on another button. "Well, one time when I was younger, I repeated a dress two years apart, and my mother called me out on it. I wanted to save you from being badgered about your "inability to purchase more than one presentable tie," the last part, she spoke using her impersonation of her mother.

"And where did this tie come from?" He eyed her curiously.

"I had to make a trip to Hartford for Mia earlier this week, so while I was there, I made a quick stop at the mall and picked it up. I put it in your closet when I went upstairs this morning."

Shaking his head, Luke sighed. "Lorelai, you do not need to be buying my clothes…"

Putting her hand up to stop him, she replied sternly, "Nope. Stop right there. We are not having this conversation." Finishing the final button, Lorelai stood up and walked over to him, brushing the lint off of his shoulder. "You're my boyfriend; I'm gonna buy you stuff."

"I know you'd like to impress your parents, but you didn't have to do this."

"I know," she smiled, "But I wanted to. It wasn't expensive, so it was no big deal. Now come on, we've got to go."

Rory quickly scurried out of her room and into the foyer to get her shoes. Moving towards the door, Lorelai motioned for Luke to follow her, but he captured her wrist, holding her back. "Wait a second."

Groaning, she turned back towards him. "What? We've got to go, Luke. We can't be late."

Lacing his fingers through hers, Luke brought her hand up to his lips. "I just wanted you to know that you look beautiful."

From his one comment, her demeanor completely changed. Smiling brightly she took a step towards him. "Even without the curls? I know you like my hair better that way."

Tucking a stray strand behind her ear, he spoke confidently, "You wore your hair like this the day we first met. I thought you were beautiful then too."

Feeling the familiar tingle in her stomach that he always caused, she ducked her head as her cheeks blushed. "Thank you… You're sweet." Leaning towards him, Lorelai planted a short but intense kiss on his lips.

Luke's arms found their way around her waist as they parted, holding her to him.

Looking up at him with a smile, Lorelai rested her hands on his chest. "You always know just what to say to make me feel better."

"That's my job," Luke countered with a smile matching hers, "Now stop stressing. You look beautiful, Rory looks beautiful, and I look presentable enough that your mother shouldn't make too many comments about how I'm dressed."

"Oh, she'll probably say something," Lorelai spoke, rolling her eyes, "But just so you know, no matter what she says, you look pretty damn hot… and I'd show you right now if it didn't mean scarring Rory for life." Stepping out of his embrace, she straightened out his tie and looped her arm through his. "Come on, handsome, let's go."

After giving their coats to the maid, Lorelai and Luke walked hand in hand into the living room and Rory followed, clinging to Lorelai's other arm. Entering the room, they were met by Richard.

"Hello, Lorelai, Rory."

"Hi Grandpa!" Releasing her mother's arm, Rory skipped over, throwing herself at Richard for a hug.

Looking on with a grin, Lorelai spoke up. "She's been dying to see you Dad. Apparently, she finished the book you got her and wants to tell you about it."

Releasing her grandpa from her arms, Rory stepped back beaming, "The book was really good! I've read it twice!"

Chuckling at her excitement, he patted her back, "I'm glad you liked it, Rory."

After an awkward hug with Lorelai, Richard extended a hand to Luke. "It's nice to see you again, Luke. I'm glad you could make it."

"It's nice to see you as well, Mr. Gilmore. Thank you for the invite."

Making their way to the couch, as they all took a seat, Emily made her way into the kitchen.

"Oh, you're here already. Hello Lorelai. It's nice to see you Rory."

"Hi Mom." "Hi Grandma." Both mother and daughter spoke at the same time, but when Lorelai stopped, Rory continued. "Did you see? My Daddy Luke is here too."

A tight, and obviously fake smile appeared on her lips. "Of course. Hello, Luke. That is a very interesting suit you're wearing."

Ignoring the comment about his clothes, Luke simply replied, "Hello, Mrs. Gilmore."

Standing up from his seat, Richard made his way over to the beverage cart. "Well everyone, sit, sit. Lorelai, Luke, can I get you anything to drink? How about a soda for you Rory?"

"Yeah, dad. A sprite is fine for Rory, and I'll take a gin martini with an olive." Putting her hand on Luke's thigh, Lorelai implored, "What about you, babe?"

Unseen by anyone in the room, Emily cringed at Lorelai's term of endearment.

Placing his hand on top of hers, Luke answered, "I think I'll just have a soda like Rory." At Richard's surprised look, he added, "I'm driving home tonight."

Nodding his head, Richard responded, "I can definitely respect that." Once everyone had their drinks, he took his seat and began speaking. "So, how have things been since the last time we saw each other?"

Quickly, Emily added slightly snidely, "Yes, how are things in Stars Willow."

Taking a generous sip of her drink, Lorelai prepared to answer when she heard Rory giggling next to her. Looking down, she questioned, "What's so funny, hon?"

Her giggles subsiding, Rory smiled. "Grandma said Stars Willow… that's a silly name. We live in Stars Hollow."

Amused by her daughter's innocent answer to her mother's purposefully wrong question, Lorelai grinned. "It is silly." Turning back to her parents, she cleared her throat. "Uh, things have been going pretty well, actually." Trying to keep attention from falling onto her life, she questioned back, "How was the Vineyard?"

"Oh it was wonderful, wasn't it Emily?"

The whole time Lorelai was talking, Emily had been eyeing the "family" in front of her critically. Pulled out of her trance by Richard's questioning, she answered, "It was. We had a very nice time."

"So, Luke," Richard prodded, "How is the diner business."

Surprised that a question was directed to him, Luke took a moment to answer. "Well, it's about the same as usual. People get hungry, and I feed them."

Suddenly feeling the need to speak, Emily added, "How popular is the diner business, anyway? I imagine that with such a limited menu, people would get tired of the food after long."

Despite the fact that she didn't outright say anything bad about his business, both Luke and Lorelai could tell from Emily's tone that she disapproved of the diner business. Ready to jump to his defense, Lorelai opened her mouth to speak, but Luke squeezed her knee, causing her attention to fall on him. Looking at her with a knowing look, he shook his head, letting her know that he was going to answer. "Well, Mrs. Gilmore, there's enough variety on my menu to feed everyone's taste. I don't add things to the menu very often, but if I see a demand, I might try something new."

Narrowing her eyes at him, Lorelai frowned, knowing he never changed his menu, but her frown immediately faded with Rory's interjection. "He put my special milkshake on the menu, Grandma. It's yummy!"

With her granddaughter's defense of Luke, Emily bit back her response and Richard began asking his questions to Rory. "So, Rory, have you ready any new books lately?"

"Yes! And Daddy Luke took me to the library yesterday when Mommy was working, so I got another one to read!"

As Rory chatted with her grandfather, Luke turned his attention and could see Lorelai's small smile out of the corner of his eye. Turning toward her, he cocked his head, wondering what was on her mind.

Leaning in, Lorelai whispered in his ear. "You added a milkshake to the menu just because Rory wanted it?"

Shrugging his shoulders, he waved her off. "It was no big deal. I already had the ingredients, and I only added it to the menu that I have specially for her."

Despite the awareness of her mother's eyes on them, Lorelai placed a quick peck on Luke's lips. Whispering again, she answered, "It doesn't matter that it's only on her menu… you still added to it. It's a big deal to me. Thank you."

Instead of answering, Luke just smiled and laced his fingers through hers.

This was Emily Gilmore's worst nightmare. Her daughter might be in love with a man so beneath her. She didn't know if Lorelai loved him for sure, but she could tell by the look in her eyes that she cared a great deal for Luke. Even Rory was defending him and singing his praises. Eying Luke up and down, she tried to figure out what could be so appealing about such a disheveled man.

Deciding to remind Lorelai of what she could have, Emily spoke up. "So, Lorelai, have you heard form Christopher lately?"

Pulled from their intimate moment, both Luke and Lorelai visibly tensed. Swirling the glass that was in her left hand, Lorelai tried to keep her cool. "No mom. We haven't heard from him… not since Dad's party. But Rory's birthday is coming up, so there's a chance that he'll pop up for a few minutes and then return to his ever-changing hideout for another year."

Taking on a haughty tone, Emily answered, "Well, I think it's wonderful for him to show up for Rory's birthday. A girl needs her father. "

The obvious jab at Luke had Lorelai fuming.

Not stopping there, her mother turned her attention to Rory. "Rory, are you excited that your father is coming for your birthday?"

Her face wrinkling in confusion, Rory turned to Lorelai. "Mommy, Dad's coming? When?"

Staring down her mother with a glare, Lorelai reeled in her anger and took on a fake tone of calmness. "Sorry, sweets. I don't know. I haven't heard from him. Your grandmother doesn't know if he's coming or not. She's just guessing."

Shrugging her shoulders, Rory looked to continue her conversation with Richard. "It's okay, I have Daddy Luke."

With a victorious smile appearing on her face, Lorelai looked over at her mother.

Breaking the tension in the room, the maid came in, announcing dinner.

Walking arm in arm to the dining room, Luke whispered to Lorelai sarcastically, "Well that was fun."

With an eye roll, she whispered in frustration. "I can't believe she had the audacity to question the diner and bring up Christopher."

Squeezing her hand, Luke smiled. "Well, thanks to Rory, all of those obvious insults were shot down."

Smiling back at him, Lorelai answered, "I've gotta hand it to the kid. She sure knows how to brag about her Daddy Luke. You'd think she likes you or something."