Stepford Friends

Chapter 3

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Jewels! Thanks so much for the Beta help - especially thanks for having the cajones to tell me, "Tone it down, crazy lady!" I love that! You're so much more than a proofreader. Thanks a bunch!

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Luke pulled his truck over on the wrong side of the street, and stopped in front of his diner. Lane ran out smiling, and passed him a grease-soaked paper bag, and a Styrofoam cup. She expressed her concern over Lorelai's ankle, they thanked her, and she ducked back to work.

"Oh my god, real food?" Lorelai asked. She danced in her seat appreciatively before taking the items from his hands.

"You had that crazed look of hunger in your eyes," he grumbled, trying to hide how pleased he was to make her happy.

"You are my dream come true," she said, speaking into the opened bag, inhaling the steamy scent of her signature half fries, half onion rings order. It was intermingled with a bacon cheeseburger. Just the way she liked it: extra mayo, no lettuce, no tomatoes. Vegetables just got in the way. "When… how did you swing this?" she asked.

"I just phoned it in while you were changing your shoes, uh shoe," he said, shrugging it off in his signature it-was-nothing style.

Without waiting for further explanation, she ripped open the bag and shoved some fries into her mouth. "You really know the way to a girl's heart. You have no idea how much I missed you, uh, this." She remembered her endeavor to remain reserved and low key a little too late.

Had she not been so intent on pouring Luke's delicious blend down her throat, she would have noticed him blushing deeply.

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"Ok, on three," he said with his hands on her waist. Eyes locked, they counted together. He helped her into the truck by lifting her easily. Once she was settled, they both reached for the seatbelt, which had become entangled in the extra set of arms. It offered resistance to being drawn so he leaned over her, felt for the buckle, and straightened it out. Close enough to smell his masculine, woodsy scent, Lorelai was caught off guard as he pulled the seatbelt across her lap. His face came so close to hers that she felt his soft breath on her cheek. He snapped the belt into its sheath, then tugged on it to make sure that it was secure. She wondered if she had imagined Luke lingering longer than he needed to. Once he moved away, she let out the breath that she wasn't aware she was holding.

As they drove back in near darkness, Lorelai admired the straight line of his nose, and the curve of his lips on his chiseled profile. Her eyes traced the line of his solid, stubble-covered jaw as he concentrated on the road. She was exhausted and easily lulled into relaxation by the gentle bouncing of the truck.

"So, a moderate sprain. That's not too bad," he broke the silence.

"No, the doctor said I should be okay to walk on it a little by the time we have the test run at the inn. That's what I was really worried about," Lorelai answered tiredly.

"Well, do what he says, with the cold and the heat, and it should feel better soon."

"Yeah, I will. I feel like a Cyborg or something with this brace on."

"That is a hefty brace. And now that you have better crutches, you can keep your weight off of your ankle."

She nodded when he glanced at her.

"If you need anything, you let me know, okay?"

"Okay. Um, Luke?"

"Yeah."

"Thank you for doing all this for me. I just want to tell you now, because we…we don't see much of each other any more."

He didn't respond immediately, but hesitated, choosing his words carefully. Seeing her hurt and vulnerable, then spending the afternoon with her made him realize how much he missed her. He missed her smile, her charm, her wit, her energy. He even missed her sarcasm and her insatiable appetite for burgers, fries, and coffee. But he still couldn't bring himself to have only part of her. It took every ounce of energy he had not to reach out and pull her into his arms, and to feel her warmth. It took all his reserve not to breathe in her perfume, like he had in Sookie's kitchen, which seemed so long ago. He considered giving in, and giving up this painful idea that he would be better off without her. But having her here next to him, so beautiful, with her face periodically illuminated by the headlights of passing cars, he knew that he couldn't endure just being friends with her.

He considered the options, swallowed, and said, "I know, but this is how is has to be, at least for now."

"You said a lot of things," she said, trying to hide her disappointment. "But you never told me why you don't want me in your life anymore. An explanation would really help me out. I'm having a hard time explaining it to myself, let alone Rory and Sookie."

"You told Rory?" he asked, his face tensing. If Rory knew, then he was, in effect, asking her to stay away from him, too.

"No, but she's going to know soon enough. Don't you think she'll get a clue when she wants to go to Luke's and I run out of excuses?"

"I never said anything about Rory not hanging around. That wasn't even part of the equation."

"It's just me who repulses you,then," she said, turning away. She stared out her window, watching shiny-eyed as the trees and shrubs blurred by.

God, he couldn't say anything right. It was getting worse; every time he opened his mouth he hurt her. He didn't blame her for being confused around him. He confused himself. She kept her guard up almost all day, and he could see that it was wearing her out. Every time she smiled, she stifled it. Every time she started to make a quip, she pulled back. She was right. He was demanding her to be something she wasn't. The terrible part was, she was trying to be the hollow shell of herself that he prescribed for her. How could he ask her to change who she was, just because he had feelings for her beyond the scope of friendship?

"I can't explain why. I'm not any good at this." He frowned. "This talking, it's your thing, not mine." His jaw flexed and his knuckles whitened on the steering wheel, as he stared at the road.

"Let me help you then." She said, suddenly allowing the anger to rise. "I'm the oblivious friend who uses you and makes you feel stupid. I'm the one who pulls you by a ring through your nose into my escapades. How could I be so callous as to laugh and joke, and God forbid, touch you?"

"Lorelai…"

"How dare I try to give you something, like a tease or a smile. I guess it all has to be on your terms. You get to come out and rescue the damsel in distress, sweep her off her feet, and fix her boo boos. But I have to sit around, worrying that I might do or say something that drives you away from me." She sighed, as her voice quietly cracked, "It doesn't matter what I say or do anymore. You're already gone, aren't you?"

"Can't you see that this isn't what I want?"

"Well, it sure as hell wasn't my idea."

Luke knew that he had to set his fears of talking aside and really communicate with her if he wanted stop hurting her feelings. He took a deep breath, and plunged forward, "Do you want to know why I got so mad when Sookie's chicken-choker almost asked you out?"

"Please, enlighten me."

"He's a pencil-neck stranger. He walks in and meets you for the first time. He gets a glimpse of your beautiful smile, but he doesn't even know you. He doesn't know that you need to drink four cups of coffee every morning before you can even utter a coherent sentence. He doesn't know that chocolate chip pancakes with whipped cream are your hangover food of choice. He doesn't know that you have a cast iron stomach, nerves of steel, and a Mallomar heart." He took a deep breath, and let it out slowly. "He doesn't know anything about you. Yet, Mr. Poultry Pusher was ready to ask you out. I've known you for eight years. He's done more in five minutes, than I've done in eight years."

"You're mad at me because someone almost asked me out?"

"No, I'm mad at me because someone almost asked you out."

"So you want to ask me out?"

"No."

"And you say I need therapy?"

"I don't want to ask you out, not right now; it isn't the right time."

"So, maybe in another eight years, huh?" she smirked.

He could see that the conversation was, once again, heading toward hurt feelings and misunderstandings, both of which he wanted to avoid. "Hold on," he said, pulling his truck over to the side of the road and into a turnout overlooking the lights of Stars Hollow. He needed the world to stop moving so he could think. He put it in park, killed the engine, and turned off his headlights. When he was sufficiently ready to give her all of his attention, he said, "Lorelai, I don't want to date you."

"That's already been established," she said sharply.

"You just broke up with someone. You're still crying over him. I'm not going to be Rebound Man.

"For your information, I broke up with him. Okay, I'll say it. He is suing my family. Yep, I sure know how to pick 'em. You know what a great choice he was? You want to know? He wouldn't even allow me to sleep in his bed."

"That's a little too much informa…"

"What, you only want to hear pleasantries from me, like a good little robot, or do you want to hear the truth?" she asked, challenging him.

"The truth."

"The truth is, I didn't love him. I will never love him. I was probably only dating him to piss my mother off, anyway. How twisted is that? And he didn't love me. So, the lawsuit, that was just an excuse to leave one more man behind."

"What about the crying in the jeep?" Luke asked.

"Who said I was crying over him?"

"Babette said she saw you crying."

"Babette said she saw me crying the night we had our chat in the diner. You remember, the night you told me that you'd had enough, that you deserved a better friend than me," she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

"I said that, didn't I?" he cringed and turned in his seat to face her. "Lorelai, I'm really bad at this. But I'll try."

She waited.

"Lorelai, I don't want to take you home," he said softly.

"I assume you're not going to just leave me here."

"No. You know I wouldn't do that. I…after spending all day with you. I don't want us to leave like this."

"I don't want to fight either," she sighed.

"All I know is, we're almost home and I don't want to drive there because I have no more excuses to keep you."

"I thought you didn't want me around." She blinked several times, while looking out the passenger side window behind him.

"I thought that's what I needed to get you out of my head, but it just made it worse."

"Luke, I don't know what else to do. I stayed away like you asked. I said I'm sorry," she looked at him with such disheartened eyes he had to turn away.

"No, Lorelai, I'm not asking for an apology; you didn't do anything wrong. I'm…well…I'm asking you to stay with me for a while. Not because you're hurt or you need me, but because you want to spend some time with me. I know we've been together all day and you're probably tired but, can we just stay here for a few minutes?" he asked.

She looked at him, trying to read his face. "Yes, we can stay."

"Ok, that's good. Then we'll stay." They both sat quietly for a while, reflecting on the long day behind them.

"The lights are really pretty," Lorelai said gently.

"Yeah, this is a good spot to see all of Starts Hollow," he replied in a deep relaxed voice. "My father and I used to stop here after our fishing trips. We'd talk about the bait we used, and the ones that got away. We'd plan our next trip just watching the lights. This was actually one of my favorite times with him. He wasn't distracted, he wasn't teaching me anything; we just sat and pointed out landmarks. It was kind of our way of winding down from the trip, knowing that we wouldn't be getting much time together once we got back home. Sort of our way of extending the last minutes of our vacation. The town hasn't changed too much since then."

"That sounds really nice, to have been that close with your father," she said.

"Yeah, it wasn't perfect, but we had our moments." Luke smiled at the memories.

"Can you see my house?" she asked.

"Let's see. I don't know if I can make out your house because of all the trees. But, see the row of yellow lights, then the two green ones? That's right near the Dragonfly." He pointed out the landmarks for her to follow.

"Oh, yeah. I see it." She settled back and smiled uncertainly. "Luke, do you think I can do this?"

"The Dragonfly? I know you can do this, I told you you can do this. And I told you that I told you, you can do this," he said with conviction.

"Yeah, you did. You've always been my biggest support. But, it's so hard, you know? There are so many decisions to make, so many details to take care of. Sometimes I get so overwhelmed and think that I can't do it," she admitted.

"You can do it," he said, with steadfast determination, instantly making her feel capable and taken care of at the same time. He took her hand, thinking that she looked uncharacteristically vulnerable. He felt like an even bigger heel for abandoning her at a time when she needed him most.

"Thanks, Luke." She smiled up at him as he rubbed his thumb lightly across her knuckles. She reveled in the warmth his hand provided hers, and without thinking, pulled her other hand over to cover his.

He looked down at their hands, his large, strong and tan, hers thin, delicate and fair. When he looked up at her, she was watching his face. They held each other's gaze. He tucked a stray curl behind her ear then smoothed his finger along her cheek. She took an unexpected breath as his touch caused her face to tingle. Eyes still locked, he leaned forward tentatively and she didn't move away. He closed the distance between them and kissed her lips softly. Her eyes closed on contact, and like the first sip of fine wine, they both inhaled as they savored the moment. He pulled away and they resumed eye contact. He leaned in again, and she met him halfway. Again, the kiss was soft and innocent, yet conveyed an unprecedented intensity for both of them.

Wanting to feel her next to him, he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into a warm embrace. Likewise, she drew her hands behind his neck. Their faces brushed as they settled into their hug. Luke was lost in the spell of her sweet perfume and the softness of her skin. He never wanted to let go. Finally they were embracing. Although it was long over due, it felt so right. He pulled her in closer, hanging on as if to keep himself from spiraling into a free fall.

Luke was unceremoniously brought back to the present when he felt her chest heave and heard her sniff. He felt her warm wet tears rolling down their faces. When he kissed her cheek he could taste the salty sadness that fell from her eyes. Pulling away to look at her, he asked, "Lorelai, did I do something wrong?"

"No," was all her throat could emit.

"Tell me, what's the matter?" he asked, concern creasing his brow.

"I…I don't know. I know you brought me here just to say goodbye. That's what we agreed on. And now, I don't know. I just can't stop. This is so stupid. I'm sorry Luke, I know you hate crying." She sniffed, but the harder she tried to stop, the more profusely the tears spilled. He snapped open his glove compartment and pulled out a tissue, then handed it to her before flipping it closed again.

"What do you mean I took you here to say goodbye?" he asked.

"The story, with your father. You knew you wouldn't be seeing much of each other. And, the kiss, that was so…um…so respectful," she sniffed. "That was a goodbye kiss, and I…hugging you…I tried to say goodbye, but I can't. I don't want to. But that's what you want, so I'll do what you say. We are friends, Luke, and I don't want to hurt you anymore."

"You think that was a goodbye kiss?" he asked.

"Well, yeah. You've acted like you wanted to kiss me. I've imagined you kissing me so many times. But, I never thought that it would be so…controlled," she admitted.

"You've imagined kissing me?" he asked.

"Oh, god. I didn't mean…" she started.

"No, it's okay," he said, "I've imagined kissing you, too."

"You have?" She raised her face to look at him, dabbing the corners of her eyes with the tissue.

"Yes, Lorelai, I have. Only I was saving the, um…less controlled kissing for the first date."

"But, you said you didn't want to date me."

"You're right, I did say that," he said, nodding slightly. "But, what I meant to say is I don't want to just date you.

"What?"

"We can't do it half-way. It's all or nothing, Lorelai. If you aren't ready for this thing, you and me, then let's not start at all."

Lorelai, caught off guard, was trying to process the information. Her brain was darting back to the words that were said between them. Was he really laying it all on the line? Right here, in front of her. Did he expect an answer immediately?

Seeing the surprised look in her eyes, he said, "I know this is a lot to process. But, come on, you've had eight years. You have to know at some level that there's more here than friendship."

"I don't know. Luke, I…that's a lot of pressure to put on me. I, we…we haven't even really kissed yet. How am I supposed to make a decis…"

He leaned in again, this time pressing his lips on hers with more urgency. She sighed softly into his lips, then her words were quickly forgotten. They shared a series of presses and gentle brushes before her lips parted in invitation. Luke gently sought entrance and licked her bottom lip, encouraging her to partake in sensuous tongue dueling. They relished the softness of each other's lips and tongues. After the initial introduction of their mouths, they increased the intensity, both losing themselves in the sensations. Suddenly, there were no lights, no truck, and no sprained ankle, just the two of them in their own private world, aware only of the sound of each other breathing and the sparks of electricity running though each kiss.

Lorelai's arms circled his neck instinctively as she turned on the bench seat as best she could. Her hands found the curls at the nape of his neck and she twirled them around her fingers. Luke's arms enveloped her tiny waist and he pulled her to him as he lost himself. Pouring everything they had into each kiss, the urgency quickly ignited into passion. Luke growled softly into her mouth as he relished her slow sensuous twisting tongue.

"I knew it could be like this," he whispered between kisses. "You're so beautiful," he said as he rained kisses on her face.

She moaned softly under the merciless onslaught of his desire.

"Have dinner with me."

"Luke…"

"Tomorrow," he insisted.

"Tomorrow?"

"Yes."

"Wait, I… um… need to think"

"Just say yes," he said, rubbing his face against hers, then placing lingering kisses on her neck, causing her to fall deeper into the passion that had overtaken them.

"I can't think," she said.

"Don't think. Just say yes."

"Oh god, Luke. Yes." She gave in to his persistence, pouring everything she had into another all encompassing kiss.

"What do you say to that kiss?" he asked huskily, pulling back to look at her.

"I say hello," she said, through a tantalizing smile.

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To be continued...I feel a rating change coming over me...