A/N: This is a follow-up oneshot to Olive Branch, in which Lorelai expresses her thanks to Logan for reuniting her with Rory.

His cell rang around midnight, and looking at the unfamiliar number, Logan recognized the area code. Atlantic City. Ace misses me, he thought to himself. He sure as hell missed her, even though it was only for one night, and grinned broadly as he answered, "Hey, Ace!" but to his surprise, it wasn't her.

"Logan, it's Lorelai. Sorry to disappoint."

"No, I, uh, hi." So this is where his Yale education has brought him. He can't string a sentence together in front of his girl's mom, when he'd had no problems the previous evening. "Are you two having fun?"

"Of course, but I'll let Rory fill you in when she gets back. Don't want to steal her thunder. That's not the reason I'm calling, though. And before you interrupt, let me just say I've written down some things I want to say to you, and I assure you, it's better to just let me get all this out while she's sleeping. Okay?"

"Okay," he responded unsurely, wondering if this was going to be a positive or negative Gilmore ramble.

"First off, as you must know from Rory, I hate high society. I hate the people, I hate the restraints, I just hate it. Watching Rory fit into your world, her grandparents' world, made me sick to my stomach. The fucking DAR, Logan. Insipid, vapid women who have nothing better to do with their time. And my baby joined them. But talking with her today, I've realized that she might occasionally dress like one of them, but she's not. The Borg hasn't taken her, and it won't. She's not one of them. And I think, from your phone call last night, or should I say this morning, that you're not one of them either. You walk the walk, but Rory told me you're fighting your future, your family, and doing all sorts of crazy things, and I can't help but be reminded of myself a little younger than you are now."

"Really?" he asked, shocked. Rory had commented on the resemblance of his attitude to her mother's, but he'd never really believed her. Lorelai was strong. She left society, had a great life, an amazing daughter, and never looked back. That sure as hell wasn't him. Was it?

"Kid, you've got moxy, that's for damn sure, and I think you're in a much better place to strike out on your own than I was at 16. Because you've got the education, you're unafraid, and you are the heir, but hey, if it doesn't go to you, who else would your dad have running his company? That's the ace up your sleeve, pun absolutely intended. He needs you a lot more than you need him.

And because I've realized that you've got heart, contrary to what I had thought before yesterday. You're the only person who has truly stood by Rory, who is allowing her to figure out for herself that she belongs at school, without pushing her in any direction at all. Thank you for doing what I couldn't do, Logan. I mean that."

"I just, I've felt pushed my whole life, Lorelai. There's no way in hell I'd do that to someone I loved." Oh shit. Cover it! "Even though I disagree with what she's doing."

Luckily, she either glossed over his declaration, or missed it in her attempts to organize her scraps of paper. He heard her take a deep breath.

"So about your call yesterday... From the bottom of my heart, I thank you. For recognizing what we needed to do. For making me make the first move. You know, she gets her stubbornness from me."

"Yeah, I kinda figured that," he said with a laugh, truly smiling for the first time since picking up the phone.

"And last but not least, I was going to ask what your feelings were for Rory, but based on last night, and your little slip-up a minute ago, I'm guessing you love her. Of course you do, everyone does. Except the Munsters. So I'm gonna ask you to just tell her. I think she needs to hear it."

"I know."

"So."

"So."

"Good talk."

"Yeah. Goodnight, Lorelai."

"Night, Logan."

Sorry, I didn't think this would be a two-parter when I started, but I wanted Lorelai's reaction, and acceptance of Logan, to be clear.