On Friday morning as she dressed for work Rory realized that today would be the first Friday she'd ever worked at the NYDN since she started there nearly three months earlier. She still had two hours before she had to be into the office, but she was incredibly excited. She paced at the end of their bed scrutinizing the different outfits she had laid out there. Logan had told her that Friday was a casual day and employees were welcome to wear jeans; but she wasn't sure that she was comfortable being so casual on her first day in a new department. She batted pro and con arguments around in her mind as she struggled to make a decision. If she wore jeans on her first day it might look like she wasn't taking this assignment seriously. On the other hand if she wore jeans she would fit in better with her new co-workers and Rory knew the benefit of that all too well. Additionally, she was the boss' wife; did she really expect that they'd look down on her for wearing jeans on a day that was designated as a casual dress day? In the end she put on her nicest pair of jeans with a silky pink camisole and a tailored black blazer. As she shifted through her jewelry box contemplating what to wear Logan finally began to stir.
"What are you doing up so early?" Logan asked as he groggily consulted the alarm clock. We don't need to head to the office for nearly two hours.
"I know," Rory replied with a sympathetic smile, "I was too excited to sleep any longer."
"How long have you been up anyway?" Logan asked.
"About an hour," Rory said offhandedly.
"You were up at five this morning?" Logan asked incredulously, "I'm clearly not going to be getting any tonight. You'll be way too tired."
"I'll try to take a nap when I get home from work, before we go to dinner," Rory promised, "Speaking of dinner, did you ever call Jess with the details?"
"I talked to him last night," Logan confirmed with a loud yawn.
"Good," Rory said, "What do you think of this outfit?"
Logan raised his head off the pillow enough to assess her outfit and replied, "Looks like a successful mix of casual and business for your first day in the department."
"Are you just saying that because you know that it's what I want to hear?" Rory quizzed, "Or because you believe it's true?"
"Both," Logan said in exasperation, "Are you going to stop pestering me so I can go back to sleep for a few more minutes?"
"I have a better idea," Rory said excitedly, "If you get up now and get ready we can go have breakfast together at the diner down the street before going into the office."
"That does sound good but I'm not sure I'm willing to sacrifice precious minutes of sleep," Logan teased. But even as he finished his sentence he had started to rise out of bed. He stopped next to where she was busy looking through her jewelry and deftly extracted the pearl necklace he had given her before their engagement party and some pearl stud earrings to match and handed them to her.
"I'll never know how you do that," Rory said in awe as she swept her hair to one said and handed the necklace back to him to help her with.
"It's a gift," Logan said with a grin.
"Hurry up and get in the shower, I'm nearly ready," Rory chided.
"Yes mother," Logan replied sarcastically before kissing her on the cheek and heading into the bathroom.
An hour later, but still an hour before they needed to be at the office, they couple was seated in an authentic vinyl booth at the diner Rory had wanted to try out.
"Are you sure this place is safe to eat at?" Logan hissed at her across the table.
"Do you really think they'd be open if they weren't?" Rory asked, "I think this place is great. It kind of reminds me of Luke's."
"Okay, but if I get sick…" Logan admonished.
"Settle down, you won't get sick," Rory said and rolled her eyes.
They perused the sticky plastic menus until a waitress whose name tag read, 'Sal,' stepped up to their table and asked, "What'll it be?"
"I'll have the short stack with a side of hash-browns, sausage and bacon," Rory rattled off, then added, "Oh, and a large orange juice and a large cup of black coffee."
"Are you sure you can eat all that toothpick?" Sal asked with a chuckle.
Logan laughed then said to Sal, "You're worried that she's ordering too much, but I'm worried that she's ordering too little."
"You're kidding right?" Sal asked looking over Rory's tiny frame once more.
"Nope," Rory bragged, "Maybe I'll add some scrambled eggs to my order, Sal."
Sal shook her head in disbelief and asked, "What'll you have Blondie?"
"I'll have the French toast and the mixed fruit cup with a cup of black coffee," Logan said and closed his menu.
"You sure that's enough?" Sal asked.
"Yep, that should do it," Logan responded with a smile.
Once their food arrived they could sometimes see Sal keeping a sharp eye on Rory from behind the counter, making sure, no doubt, that Rory was really the one eating all that food and that Logan wasn't helping her. As they ate they discussed their day ahead and the celebration dinner that was planned for that evening.
"Were you serious about taking a nap after work today?" Logan asked, trying to sound encouraging.
"If I wasn't meeting Jess at the gym, I would absolutely take a nap," Rory told him quietly. She knew that he wouldn't be thrilled with her answer.
But he surprised her with his good-natured response, "After a breakfast like that you'll need to go to the gym," he teased.
Sal approached the table as Rory devoured the last few bites and refilled their coffee cups. "You really ate all that," She boomed, "I'm impressed. I figured you'd be sharing all that with your husband."
"She's a girl with an appetite," Logan announced proudly.
"How do you stay so thin?" Sal asked in wonder.
"I inherited an awesome metabolism," Rory explained, "And I go to the gym twice a week."
"What I wouldn't give," Sal muttered, "Just be careful that it doesn't catch up with you someday."
The pair left Sal a handsome tip and headed off hand in hand for the office. In the elevator they shared a couple brisk pecks and just before the doors opened Logan quietly told her, "I know you're going to do great. Go get 'em."
"Thanks," Rory whispered as the nerves threatened to overwhelm her. Despite the fact that she had met most of the people in her department the day before, first day jitters were upon her. She was beginning to rethink her big breakfast.
"After you settle in at your desk you should go meet with the head of your department. His name is Artie Winters," Logan supplied.
"Thanks," Rory whispered.
"You'll be fine," Logan assured her, "I'm just down the hall if you need anything."
Rory walked quickly to her cube, and hung up her coat. She was glad to see that the IT department had gotten her computer moved and all set up. She hit the power button and as she waited for it to boot up she picked up her mug and went in search of coffee.
As she was exiting her cube Kim was just arriving and noticed the mug in her hand. "Looking for coffee?" She asked.
"How can you tell?" Rory joked.
"We have our own pot in the corner by the front window. But we don't share with anyone outside of our department. Not even your delicious husband," Kim added with a smirk.
Rory blushed before responding, "That's okay. His assistant Jonathan keeps a pot on his desk just for Logan."
"Let me put my stuff in my cube and I'll join you," Kim offered. A minute later Kim emerged with a mug in her hand as well and led the way to the coffee machine. "So, on Fridays we have Breakfast Club. We take turns bringing treats for breakfast and we all sit around for a half an hour or so and visit while we snack. If you want to join just let me know and I'll tell Alan, he makes the schedule."
"Count me in," Rory agreed quickly knowing that any department that had a meeting once a week that revolved around food was the right place for her. Then remembering what Logan had told her she said, "But, I am supposed to meet with Artie Winters right away."
"Well, if I know Artie like I think I do, he will be where the treats are," Kim said.
They continued toward the departments conference room where they found more than a dozen people clustered around the table, smearing their bagels with a variety of flavors of cream cheese.
Kim entered ahead of Rory and loudly announced, "For any of you who didn't meet her last night, this is Rory Gilmore, our newest front page reporter."
A few people stood to shake Rory's hand and introduce themselves. The last was Artie Winters.
"I was told I should come meet with you as soon as I got in," Rory told him.
"Let's have some bagels with the group, then we can head into my office and I'll get you up to speed," Artie said easily.
"Sounds good," Rory agreed. After helping herself to a cinnamon and sugar bagel and smearing it with strawberry cream cheese she took the seat beside Kim and listened to the chatter around her; trying to decipher the group dynamic. For the most part the group appeared to be young. She was probably still the youngest member of the group, but not by much of a margin. Based on the number of them who wore a ring on their left hand she appeared to be one of the few married members of the group. They talked about weekend plans and swapped funny stories.
"There is only one rule to these breakfast treat meetings," Kim whispered during a lull, "We are not allowed to talk about work. This is our time to de-stress."
When the meeting broke up a half an hour later and every one headed off to work Rory followed Artie into his office. While his office looked like the typical office of a department head at NYDN with framed spreads on the walls and stacks of papers everywhere, it also had a distinctly masculine feel to it. There was a humidor of cigars on top of a bookcase behind his desk. There were pictures of cars mixed in with the framed spreads. Artie gave off the impression of a man's man. Rory had to clear a stack of manila folders off of one of the chairs to sit down.
"Alright Rory, so, first day," Artie drawled, "We are glad to have you. We've all been keeping up with your pieces since you started and clearly you have a real talent for writing. I know in your last department there were department meeting where you all brainstormed story ideas. We do not do that here. The big news of the day dictates what will be on the front page tomorrow. The story deadlines around here are a lot tighter for obvious reasons. Sometimes we may ask you to write a story, but then a bigger story will come along and your story will get cut. I guess what I'm trying to say is that the front page is a tougher place to work than Lifestyles. Do you think you've got what it takes?"
"Mr. Winter," Rory began.
"Artie," he cut in and insisted.
"Okay, Artie, I was the editor and chief at the Yale Daily News, I know just how cut throat the news business can be," Rory explained, "And to be perfectly honest, after working in Lifestyles, it will be nice to work in a department that feels like familiar territory."
"That's my girl," Artie crowed, "That's what I like to hear. Mitchum and Logan were right about you, I'm glad to see it."
"So, what can I get to work on?" Rory asked, anxious to contribute in her new department.
"I wish I had something to give you right now, but it's been a slow news week. Provided that we don't have something big happen, we've got our stories covered for the next couple days," Artie said apologetically, "For today I'm going to have Kim show you the ropes, you know, how things work around here."
"Sounds good," Rory agreed, slightly disheartened that she didn't yet have a story to work on.
"Kim told you that we're all taking you out for lunch today?" Artie confirmed.
"Yes, I'm looking forward to it," Rory replied.
"I promise that we'll get you working on some stories on Monday," Artie added as Rory rose from her chair.
"Thanks," Rory said with a small smile.
Rory decided to go back to her cubicle and check her email before asking Kim to show her around. At her desk Rory was not surprised to find a cookie bouquet from her Mother and Sookie similar to the one they had sent her for her first day in Lifestyles. Rory located the card amidst all the heavenly smelling cookies and read, "Rory, Congratulations on your big promotion to the Front Page! We are so proud of you. Please share your cookies with your co-workers so that you have friends in this department. Love, Mom and Sookie. P.S. We sent another bouquet to your house…so you really should share this one." Hiding behind the cookie bouquet was an elegant arrangement in a shallow vase of red roses, ever green and holly boughs. Rory smiled and searched for the card although she was already sure that it was from Logan. Finally locating the card under the arrangement she read, "Ace, Congrats on earning yourself a Front Page position. You deserve it. Enjoy your day! Love, Logan." Just as she was about to sit down and open her email a mail room attendant appeared with two Mylar balloons and a card. She accepted them with a shy smile; all this attention was a little embarrassing. Carefully she tied the balloons, one of which said congratulations on it and the other depicted the cartoon cat Garfield sleeping beneath a newspaper, to the handle of her file drawer before opening the card and reading, "Congratulations to my favorite newspaper reporter. I am looking forward to not having to turn any pages to get to your stories now. See you at dinner. Jess."
Rory still hadn't gotten to her email before Kim popped in and said, "Someone has fans!"
Blushing Rory said, "Yeah, my husband, my mother and her business partner and my friend Jess. Want a cookie?"
"You're going to share that?" Kim asked.
"My mother says she sent one to our apartment as well, so there is no reason for me not to share this. I think she is worried that I will be as hated in this department as I was in my last department," Rory explained.
"Well, in that case…" Kim said as she plucked a cookie from the arrangement. "Are you ready for me to start showing you things?"
"Can I have a quick second to check my email?" Rory asked, "That was why I came in here initially, but all the gifts distracted me."
"Understandable," Kim replied, "I'll just go work at my desk until you are ready."
Rory opened her email and before reading the only email, which was from Logan, she sent a mass email to her department asking them to help themselves to the cookie bouquet which she was going to leave on one of the work tables in the center of the room. Rory hit send then quickly moved the bouquet out of her cube. She grabbed one cookie for herself before she headed back to her desk. She heard the shuffling of several pairs of feet moving toward the cookie bouquet she'd just abandoned. Rory chuckled as she opened her email.
Rory,
I hope your day is going well. Don't worry if you don't have time to reply, I'm sure it is going to be a busy day for you. I am very proud of you and know that you will do well in your new position. Stop by and see me on your way out and we will coordinate for dinner tonight.
Love,
Logan
Rory quickly typed back:
Logan,
My first day is going well. Everyone is very nice and welcoming. Kim is going to be showing me around the department this morning. The only downside is that there are no stories for me to get started on today. Artie said I could get writing on Monday. I will stop by and see you before I head to the gym.
Love ya,
Rory
P.S. The roses are beautiful—you spoil me.
Rory would have liked to take the time to email her Mom, Sookie and Jess as well and thank them for their gifts; but she didn't want to keep Kim waiting any longer.
The rest of the morning went by quickly as Kim explained everything from their electronic filing systems to the unspoken rules that existed in the department. A lot of the rules had to do with seniority within the department. Rory understood that in the beginning she would probably be passed over for the really prime story assignments. While it was disappointing that things didn't work on a rotating basis as they had at the Yale Daily News, she understood why things worked the way they did. She would just have to work her way up to the really juicy stories. At quarter to twelve Artie came out of his office and announced that everyone was heading to Bob's Bar and Grill for a welcome lunch in Rory's honor.
Rory was surprised when every single person in the department shrugged into their coats and prepared to go to lunch. She had felt certain that there would be at least a few hold outs. Bob's was a sports bar just a few blocks away and everyone walked down the sidewalk in a big group, talking and laughing all the way there.
The lunch at Bob's was a great ice breaker. Rory got to know more about all her new-co-workers and they got to know more about her. To keep it interesting and since they were such a large group every twenty minutes or so Artie made everyone, except Rory rotate seats so that Rory got a chance to visit a little bit with everyone. On the walk back to the office Rory couldn't stop smiling and had a warm feeling in her heart. It was so nice to be immediately accepted and feel like she belonged to this group. She'd never had anything close to those feeling with her previous department.
"What are you thinking about?" Artie asked as he slowed his pace to walk beside her.
"What a warm and friendly department this is and how welcome you all are making me feel. I felt anything but welcome in the Lifestyles department. This is a huge change," Rory admitted.
"You should feel welcome, we are very glad to have you. There may be a little competition over stories, but we are all friends first. That is how I like to run my department," Artie explained.
Back at the office Kim showed her the last few things that she hadn't already explained before their lunch. When they'd finished they went to Artie's office to see what Rory could do next. It was nearly three-thirty in the afternoon on a slow news Friday. Many of the reporters had left for the day directly after lunch.
"I think you can be finished for the day," Artie said, "Have a relaxing weekend and we'll see you on Monday morning."
"Is there anything I can work on at all?" Rory asked, desperate to be useful.
"It is always good to have some back up ideas for the front page for when news is really slow," Artie offered, "If you really want to work on something you can always start brainstorming those kinds of ideas. But there is one condition…you can't do it here. Go home!"
"Thanks!" Rory said as she turned to head back to her desk. She shrugged into her coat and decided to leave the flowers and balloons at her desk over the weekend. She picked up her purse, briefcase and gym bag and headed toward Logan's office. She had to chuckle as she passed the remains of the cookie bouquet – it was picked clean. Jonathan told her when she arrived that Logan was just wrapping up a conference call in his office.
"So, how was your first day as a front page reporter?" Jonathan asked.
"Really, really great," Rory said happily, "I couldn't believe how nice everyone was, especially after I've seen what the other end of the spectrum looks like."
"Did you get any assignments yet?" Jonathan asked.
"No, but Artie said he'd have something for me on Monday," Rory explained.
Just then Logan's door swung open and he emerged. He draped an arm across her shoulders and squeezed her to him, "So, how was it?"
"Today was really great," Rory repeated, "I'm really excited to work with such a great group of people."
"Good," Logan replied, "You're done already?"
"I had all my orientation and whatnot; but there won't be a story for me to work on until Monday. So, Artie is letting me out early," Rory explained, "So, I'm stopping by as promised to work out plans for tonight before I head to the gym."
"Are you going home before dinner?" Logan asked.
"Yes, I have to. I did not pack an outfit for dinner," Rory replied.
"Okay, I'll see you at home then," Logan said, "Keep in mind that our reservations are for eight."
"And where are we going?" Rory prompted.
"Like I'm going to tell you," Logan replied with a smirk, "That is a surprise."
When Rory arrived at the gym she caught a glimpse of Jess on a treadmill as she walked toward the locker room. They waved to one another and a few minutes later she emerged in her gym clothes and hopped onto the empty treadmill beside him.
"Thank you for the cute balloons," Rory said, "My co-workers were impressed that I have so many admirers."
"You are welcome," Jess replied, "Let me guess, Logan sent over flowers and your Mom sent over some sort of baked good or a tankard of coffee."
"You're so good, you're scary," Rory teased, "Logan sent over a lovely arrangement of roses and my Mom and Sookie sent a cookie bouquet that I shared with my new co-workers."
"You willingly shared cookies with strangers?" Jess asked mockingly.
"My Mom said they sent a second bouquet to my apartment," Rory admitted.
"Ah, that explains the break in character," Jess laughed, "So, how was the first day? Or don't I want to know."
"It was really, really great," Rory gushed, "Everyone was very nice and friendly. It totally felt like I belonged, right away."
"That's great," Jess said, "Otherwise I was going to have to stop by and kick a little reporter butt on your behalf."
Rory laughed at the mental image, "Well, thanks anyway. Hey, you can tell me where we're going to dinner tonight."
"Not if I want to stay on your husband's good side I can't," Jess replied, "He was surprisingly not threatening on the phone. Is he finally done being worried that I'm trying to steal you?"
"Probably not, he might just be learning to hide it better," Rory said, "Although, rather than cringe like he usually does when I mentioned I was meeting you at the gym he made a joke about how I needed it due to the enormous breakfast I had."
"That's a good sign," Jess replied, "He did tell me that I should bring a date though. Do you think I'll be in trouble if I don't?"
"I'd err on the safe side and find someone to drag along," Rory suggested.
"I have no prospects," Jess moaned, "Maybe I can find a nice homeless woman to tag along."
"What about your Mom?" Rory suggested.
"I'll think about it," Jess groaned, "Do you have any single friends who might like to come along?"
Rory thought for a minute before saying, "No, I actually don't think I do."
After much brainstorming of dates for Jess and reps on the elliptical and rowing machines they decided they'd both better head home and prepare for the dinner.
"So, I'll see you later?" Rory asked.
"Unless I can't come up with a date, then I might call and pretend that I have the stomach flu," Jess said.
"Don't you dare," Rory protested.
"I'll do my best," Jess said, 'Call me if you come up with anything."
Back in the locker room Rory gathered her things and simply headed for home. Since she had to prepare for dinner she preferred to shower in her own bathroom. She hailed a cab and was home in less than ten minutes. She dropped her purse, briefcase, gym bag and coat in the entryway and headed toward their bedroom. As she entered their room and began stripping her sweaty gym clothes off, she realized that she could hear the shower running. Entering the bathroom silently she removed the last of her clothing and slid into the shower behind him. As she moved to wrap her arms around his neck he jumped a little in surprise and glanced over his shoulder at her.
"Well, Mrs. Huntzberger," He said as he pulled her to him. Instantly his mouth found hers and his hands slid over her body, which had become slick under the warm water. "Do you think we have time for a quickie?"
"As long as it's actually quick," Rory scolded, thinking of other times he'd promised to make it quick and it turned out to be anything but.
Without another word he lowered his mouth to her breasts and went to work.
She hadn't believed that he could actually make it quick; but fifteen minutes later they were stepping out of the shower fully cleansed and satisfaction had been achieved by both parties. While Rory had climaxed she couldn't help but think that she'd like to keep going now that her motor was running. She did the best she could to push the thought out of her mind; currently they had a dinner to attend in her honor.
"How should I be dressing tonight?" Rory asked as she applied her body lotion.
"A cocktail dress would be perfect. I laid a few options out on the bed for you," Logan said from where he stood at the sink shaving.
"Thanks," Rory replied. As she took in the dresses he'd laid on the bed for her, she immediately eliminated two of them simply because she felt the third was the sexiest. Now that her motor was running all she could think about was how to keep him in the mood too; she was counting on getting some more action when they returned home later tonight. The dress she'd chosen was strapless, therefore worked best with her black strapless push-up bra and her matching black thong to eliminate panty lines. She had just managed to get the dress zipped as Logan came out of the bathroom and saw her.
"Good choice," Logan complemented.
Quickly the two of them moved around between the bedroom and bathroom getting ready to go. Rory applied her make up and curled her hair and finally retrieved the Tiffany bubbles necklace that she wore at their second wedding from her jewelry box. When Logan had finished dressing and styling his hair he helped her put on the necklace and she helped him put on his cufflinks. In the entry way she pulled on her coat and slid her feet into black stiletto heels. As she picked up her purse off the floor she saw Logan pull a large fancy gift bag out of the closet along with his coat.
Frank was parked at the entrance to their building and was not surprised when Logan brandished a blindfold as soon as they climbed into the car. With a sigh Rory accepted it and carefully slipped it on. Still feeling the thrill of her motor running Rory whispered, "You know, this blind fold could be a lot more fun if we used it in a more intimate setting."
She smirked as she felt him squirm in his seat beside her. He leaned in and whispered in her ear, "I'll keep that in mind for the encore presentation later tonight."
"Perfect," she whispered back as she purposely placed her hand indecently high upon his thigh.
"What has gotten into you tonight," He whispered as he carefully removed her hand.
"You, don't you remember?" She whispered coyly. When he didn't respond she worried that perhaps she'd gone too far. She never knew how much fun it could be to play the sex kitten. "Do you want me to stop?"
He chuckled softly before saying, "Honestly, no. But I'm afraid that if you don't I will take you right here in the backseat of this car with Frank watching in the rearview mirror. Either that or I'll walk into the restaurant with a raging hard-on."
"So, you're enjoying me acting like this?" Rory asked softly.
"I wouldn't want you to act like this all the time; but yeah," Logan replied, "How about you tone it down until the ride home at least. I just don't understand where this is coming from."
"The quickie in the shower got my motor running but it didn't completely satisfy me," Rory explained.
"Well, we can certainly remedy that when we get back home," Logan promised. Just as he said that Rory felt the car slow to a stop and Logan said, "We're here."
Logan carefully steered Rory through the lobby of the building and into the elevator. Once inside the elevator he removed the blindfold and stowed it in his pocket for later use. When the doors opened at their floor she knew where they were. "The Sea Grill, I've been wanting to come here for a while," Rory gushed.
"I know and I reserved the perfect table," Logan said, "Let's find our table, everyone else should already be here."
Logan was right, when they arrived at the table overlooking the skating rink at Rockefeller Center, Luke, Lorelai, Jess and April were already seated. Rory chuckled as Logan pulled her chair out for her and she sat then said to Jess, "April is your date?"
"Yeah, funny," Jess replied, "I called Luke and Lorelai to see if they had any ideas of someone I could bring and they were thrilled that there would be an extra seat for April to come too."
"Well, I'm glad. It's not everyday that I get to see my step-sister-to-be," Rory said with a grin in April's direction.
It was an amazing evening, the seafood was excellent and everyone appeared to be enjoying the company and conversation. Even Logan and Jess were getting along for once. Rory loved watching the skaters below and made Logan promise that sometime soon they would go skating there. In turn Lorelai made him promise that he would not take her until after the wedding. Logan agreed to both women's requests. After dessert the gifts appeared. Jess gave her a book about famous journalists throughout history. Luke, Lorelai and April gave her a beautiful monogrammed feminine leather briefcase to replace the old one of Logan's that she was currently using. Then it was Logan's turn. He carefully lifted the bag into her lap. She reached in and pulled out four framed pictures. Tears sprung to her eyes as the looked through them and realized that each was from the memory card she'd recently dug up. He'd somehow stolen it from her and had these printed, matted and framed.
"There is another part to your gift at home, but it was too large to bring," Logan explained, "I printed these thinking you could have one at work and a few others around the apartment."
"They are perfect," Rory sniffled. She handed the pictures to her Mother and then Logan and Rory explained the significance behind the shots to the group.
They all kissed and hugged good-bye down on the sidewalk. Jess was headed home alone. As Rory watched him get into a cab she vowed that she would find someone special to set him up with. Luke, Lorelai and April had gotten a hotel room nearby and were planning to spend the night in the city before heading to Emily's for more fittings for the wedding, which was only a week from tomorrow. When Frank pulled up to the curb Logan helped Rory into the car and quickly and closed the privacy screen between the front and back seats. She climbed onto his lap and loosed his tie to better get at the spot on his neck that drove him wild. "Oh baby," Logan groaned, "I was so hot thinking about this."
"Me too," Rory whispered as his lips grazed her ear.
The car ride seemed to drag on forever as they struggled to restrain themselves until they got back into their own bedroom. Frank announced over the intercom when they were a minute or so from the apartment. They straightened their clothing and re-opened the privacy screen to say thank you and good night to Frank.
In the elevator the couple made out like teenagers and when they finally reached their door Logan fumbled with the key. With a slightly more steady hand Rory opened the door and they quickly abandoned their shoes, coats and bags in the entryway and raced down the hallway to their bedroom. Once there they tried to slow down a bit and really savor the sexual high they were riding. Logan stripped down to his undershirt and boxers before unzipping Rory's dress and peeling her thigh high nylons off her legs. Remembering Rory's comment from earlier in the evening Logan retrieved the blindfold from the pocket of his suit jacket and waved it at her. "Are you sure about this?" He asked huskily.
In response she took it from him and covered her eyes. Carefully he led her to their bed and laid her down upon it. He removed his undershirt before moving onto the bed with her. He started out my simply kissing her. He slowly worked his way down her neck toward her breasts. For Rory wearing the blind fold increased the experience for each of her other senses. It was incredible how hot she was and each new touch sent her pulse skyrocketing. When she could wait no longer she yanked at his boxers and he complied. Within seconds he entered her and they rode each other relentlessly. Half way through the act they flipped so that she was on top and at that moment the blind fold slipped off and something above the headboard caught her eye. Without slowing their movement she opened her eyes wide and realized that this was the final part of her present. Too enrapt to think further than that at the moment she threw herself back into their lovemaking. When they finished she glanced back up at it and asked him, "It is really hand painted?"
"What?" He asked in confusion. Following her gaze he remembered and said, "I'd forgotten about that. No, it's not really hand painted, but it looks like it, doesn't it."
"How did this get here?" Rory asked in amazement.
"I paid Frank a hundred bucks to come back here and hang it up while we were out at dinner. I picked it up while you were at the gym and it was hidden in the back of the closet. That was why I picked out dresses for you to choose from tonight," Logan said.
Rory studied the amazing canvas of them mid-jump at the LDB event. "Thank you, I love it. It is the perfect thing to hang over our bed."
"I'm glad you like it," Logan replied with a grin.
"I might have to put my pillow on the opposite end of the bed tonight so I can stare at it until I fall asleep," Rory said.
"That shouldn't take too long, you've had quite the day," Logan commented.
"Yes I have," Rory replied with a contented sigh.
Author's Note: See how fast I got this chapter done? And it's a super long one too. I hope everyone enjoys. Please review and offer suggestions. The wedding is coming up and events leading up to the wedding will probably begin in the next chapter. Please let me know if you have any brilliant ideas for Christmas gifts our favorite couple can give each other for Christmas. Thanks!!