RR13 Upping the Ante
Jess rolled out of bed mid-morning and stretched, glad to have clean sheets to sleep in and a peaceful house compared to the noise and mess made by sharing an apartment with virtual strangers. The well-stocked library in Rory's room didn't hurt either. Leaving the bedroom, he looked and listened, but it appeared that both Luke and Lorelai had gone to work already.
Good, a little time to do things for myself. The project doesn't have to start for a couple of days; maybe I can get some work done on my book before I start the interviews.
He poured a glass of juice and headed toward the living room with Rory's copy of William Burroughs' The Soft Machine, hoping to jump-start his creativity. The problem was, he wasn't writing from the bitter angry place that he did for his first book. How the hell do you write happiness anyway? Happiness is boring.
Liz happy and married, Luke happy (That was an odd thing to imagine, a happy Luke) and Rory was finally his. The whole damn Danes clan was happy at once. Whatever happy meant.
"Damn." Burroughs' insights into drug addiction, which Jess hoped would stir up some memories of Liz before TJ, were going to have to wait when the phone rang just as Jess passed by. Figuring it was Luke, he picked up and said hello.
"Uh, um, Luke?" came tentatively over the line.
"Rory?" queried Jess. "Where are you calling from?"
"Jess?" Rory was flummoxed. Their conversations had been sporadic at best since he'd left Stars Hollow. "Is Mom there? I thought you weren't coming back until I got home?"
"I got an assignment that brought me back earlier," he said. "Both Luke and Lorelai are at work," he added awkwardly.
"Where? In Hartford?"
"No, Stars Hollow."
"What is there to write about in Stars Hollow?" asked Rory.
"Patty Lacosta," he replied. "Matt has a music connection with one of her former bandmates, and we're going to write both sides of the same time period. Ought to be wild, if any of Patty's stories are actually true."
"Wow," Rory said. "That's amazing. So you'll still be there when I come home."
Rory could hear Emily stirring. She must have woken up from her nap.
"Look," she said, more quietly this time, "Grandma's waking up, and there isn't much more time to talk."
"Where are you?" Jess asked.
"We're in Italy, but we're getting ready to leave. I don't know where we're going next; it all depends on Grandma's friends. She likes to plan the travel schedule around who she can visit."
"Is that good or bad?"
"Mostly good. Most of Grandma's friends who are in Europe in the summer have their kids with them, so there are always young people around. We've been going to clubs and hanging out in the different cities."
"Hanging out with a bunch of snooty prep students is fun?" he snorted.
"Hey, don't knock it. Some of these people are really nice, and they know all the good places to see."
Jess felt Rory liked the rich girl life a little too much. He had no interesting life to balance against that. Philadelphia was fine, but wasn't Italy.
"Hi Grandma," called Rory. She whispered to Jess, "Gotta go before she wants to talk to you. Bye!" and hung up.
"Was that Lorelai?" Emily queried.
"No, it was Luke's nephew. I called home to talk to Mom, but he's the only one there. Both Luke and Mom are at work." Rory still hadn't told Emily about Jess, and had no plans to do so anytime soon.
"Too bad, I would have liked to talk to Lorelai for a few minutes." She smirked. "I do have good news, though; we're going to Spain in a few days. My friends have a villa on the sea. We can relax enjoy the hot Latin sun, swim in the ocean and enjoy the Spanish siestas and hot romantic nights."
"Wow, sounds great. Rome is a beautiful city, but I'd love to spend a few days on a beach somewhere, doing nothing."
"All in good time, Rory. Now we have a private tour to see the Borghese gallery. It's magnificent!"
Lorelai moved down Main Street at a fast pace. This meeting with Taylor was irritating and worrying. As if he thought she didn't have enough to do with the Dragonfly, Taylor had summoned her to his Town Selectman office for a meeting. At least she'd be able to stop by the diner afterward for a little necking and a lot of coffee.
As she turned the corner onto Birch Street, she smiled. Putting her fingers in her mouth like she'd seen on TV, she tried to whistle. Nothing. Several more tries with other techniques she'd seen before, she finally resorted to the soft whistle that came out when she formed an O with her mouth. The problem was, that got no one's attention, certainly not the attention of the person ahead of her.
"Are you trying to do this?" the guy ahead of her asked as he suddenly stopped and turned around. Making an 'OK' sign, he put those fingers in his mouth and emitted a loud screeching whistle, causing Lorelai to slap her hands over her ears.
"Jeez, Luke, that's loud!" she cried, as Luke grinned at her.
"Just trying to get your attention," he said evilly.
Luke tried to show Lorelai how to whistle like that, folding her tongue. She giggled, unable to get it right, mumbling "Dirty!" as he tried to position her fingers properly.
A series of high-pitched whistles broke their concentration as they turned, suddenly noticing that they were standing in front of a park playground. A number of kids were hanging on the jungle gym, laughing and whistling.
Lorelai grinned at Luke. They were both well-acquainted with these children, Lorelai through her work with costumes for various town and school events, and Luke through the diner. Most of these kids had eaten at his diner at one time or another. He winked at her and turned to confront them.
"You kids stop it! What do you think you're doing, making all this noise!" he yelled in his best grumpy voice.
A few kids jumped down and backed off to a safe distance, but others simply started whistling again as soon as Luke and Lorelai turned their backs and continued walking. One wolf whistle like the kind that construction workers whistle at pretty girls rose above all the others.
Luke turned on his heel and began yelling again. "Who's whistling at my girlfriend like that?" he shouted, shaking his fist and looking at each of the brave remaining kids.
The first kid, a short freckled redheaded boy who always ordered a hot dog and chips when he came to the diner, shrugged his shoulders. Strawberry jam pancakes girl looked a little frightened, so Luke spared her a little smile. Cheeseburger and salad boy made a hasty retreat, but just as Luke was about to yell at him, he ducked down and French fries with peanut butter girl popped up, a wide toothy grin on her face.
"Hi Callie," said Lorelai to the nine year old Pippi Longstocking lookalike.
"Hi Lorelai," replied the girl before she turned to face Luke again. Her impudent gaze startled him.
"Who said the whistle was for Lorelai?" she said cheekily, before jumping down and running off with the others, wolf-whistling all the way.
Luke stood there, open-mouthed and red-faced until Lorelai stopped laughing at him.
"C'mon, hot stuff, let's get you out of here before some toddler takes advantage of you," she laughed.
She wrapped her arms around his waist and pulled him down the street as he mumbled to himself about the Stars Hollow water creating a whole town full of Crazy Carries and Miss Pattys.
Lorelai stopped in front of Taylor's office. "I'm here. See you later?" she asked Luke.
"Here? Taylor wants to see you too?" he asked. "This is not gonna be good." He shifted the cap on his head, girding himself for battle before opening the door.
Taylor sat in his town selectman office, busily moving papers from one location to another. The artificial light of the tiny space reflected off his balding head as he acknowledged their presence.
"Lorelai! Welcome! Luke, nice to see you again," said Taylor in his best selectman tone of voice. He straightened his tie and stood up to shake their hands and welcome them. "Let me just find our meeting agenda," he said as he poked through several folders on his desk.
"Agenda? We have an agenda?" grumbled Luke. Lorelai threaded her hand under his elbow and slid it down to clasp his hand, squeezing it to help calm him.
"Ah, here we go. Our meeting for today." Taylor puffed his chest up before continuing. "As two of our most important business leader in Stars Hollow, we would like to welcome you to the Business Leadership Team, otherwise known as the BLT."
Luke scoffed, but Lorelai said simply, "BLT? I'm hungry. A BLT sounds really good right now."
Taylor rolled his eyes, wondering where to start. "Lucas, you need to take this seriously. We need leaders like you to guarantee the future of our beloved city. Lorelai, try to be a little patient. This won't take long, and it's very important for Stars Hollow."
Luke scoffed again. "Have you met Lorelai? Patience is not in her vocabulary."
Lorelai pinched Luke in retribution, eliciting a cry of pain. "Taylor, what do you want us to do? We already do a lot for Stars Hollow," she asked.
"This is a completely different role. You will be standing in front of business leaders, representing Stars Hollow in many different venues. It's an honorary position that perfectly fits the owner of a prestigious inn and a more modest, but still important eating establishment."
Luke crossed his arms and stretched out in his chair. "Taylor, what's the bottom line here? Venues? Which venues?"
"Take a look at our calendar and pick out a few. I'll write your speeches, and you won't have to do anything but stand up and give them at the appropriate time. When prospective new business investors come to visit, you can take them out, wine them and dine them, schmooze a little. Help them to understand what even a small investment like $500 will bring."
"$500? Who is paying this $500? If an investor opens a business he will put in a lot more money than $500," grumbled Luke. He turned to Lorelai. "Are you buying this? Is this making any sense to you?"
"Well I do understand the benefits of a good schmooze. That's what my dad does all the time in the insurance business to get new clients," she commented. "I wouldn't mind schmoozing some new investors, especially people who might bring in some business for the inn. It will be even more fun doing it on the town's tab."
"That is exactly what I am talking about, Lorelai. You have a good head for business." Taylor nodded enthusiastically. "Although, your money doesn't actually cover the expenses of taking investors out. You'll have to cover that yourselves."
"Our money? Are you serious?" shouted Luke. "You want $500 from us for the privilege of doing your work? This is crazy, just crazy." He looked meaningfully at Lorelai. "Why are we still here?"
Taylor cringed briefly, then added, "Well, it's $500 apiece. But really, it's a very good investment in Stars Hollow!"
"Now Luke, it's not so terrible, even though I don't have any idea where to get that money for the inn this year," said Lorelai. "Maybe next year would be better, after I've broken even. What happens to our money, Taylor?"
"Glad you asked, Lorelai. I like how you think. You will be a brilliant addition to the BLT when you join."
She smiled and bounced up and down in her chair, starting to get excited, while Luke gave her his 'you've got to be kidding' look.
"The money," continued Taylor, "goes into the general fund, so we can apply it to the most important needs first."
"That being whatever hare-brained idea you think up, most likely lining your own pockets! C'mon, Lorelai, this is insane. I'm not putting $500 into these crazy schemes." Luke was beside himself.
"One tiny correction, Lucas," added Taylor, unwilling to meet either person's eyes. "The $500 a month takes a tiny little hop to $1000 a month next year."
This brought Luke to his feet in anger. "Taylor, what in the world are you thinking? Have any other business owners started this? What about Tom? His construction company is five times as big as our businesses. What did Tom say?"
"I can't repeat what Tom said in mixed company. I still fully expect that once you two are on board, he'll join you."
"Well I am NOT on board," stated Luke. "Lorelai can't afford it, and Tom almost certainly told you 'Hell No!' Your BLT is now officially out of B and L, so all you've got left is an empty team. I am done here. Lorelai, how about you? Are you ready to go?"
"Sure. I'm still hungry. Do you think you could fix me a BLT at the diner?" she asked, rubbing her stomach and ignoring Taylor's offended looks and stammers.
Luke took her hand and smiled as he led her to the door. "Your usual? No L, No T, extra B?"
"Of course. Maybe a little C this time."
"C?"
"Cheese."
"No way. How about a nice salad? Got some fresh beets."
"So a BCB? That's Bacon, Cheese, and Beets? Could you hold the beets?" she plastered an innocent look on her face as they walked out the door. "Bye Taylor! Better luck next time!"
"How about Beets, Carrots and Broccoli? That sounds really good, doesn't it?"
"Uh, no."
They picked up their normal walking pace, skirting the playground this time as they walked to the diner.
Lorelai entwined her fingers with Luke's as they walked, and he unconsciously looked around to see who might have observed their PDA.
"Luke! We've been together for weeks! Everyone knows about us. We've been seen at the Inn and at the diner. What's this business with you looking around like we're doing something illicit?"
"Ah, you're right, I'm sorry," he said, contrite. "It's just that thing with Taylor now made me so mad I'm discombobulated."
She stopped. "Kiss."
Luke had gone two steps further, but stopped, turned and looked at Lorelai. "What?"
"Kiss." She puckered. "Now you owe me two."
Sighing and smiling at the same time, he walked back to her. "I'm doing this under protest, you know."
"Oh, I know. Maybe you need some incentive," she raised an eyebrow at him.
Luke kissed her once, chaste enough to pass even Mrs. Kim's rules, if they had been married. Before she had time to start pouting, he leaned in and kissed her in a way that would garner Sookie's approval.
"Wow," she said. "That's better."
Luke nodded. "Our 'no major PDA' rule is still in effect," he warned smugly. "That was just an exception."
"Huh," she said disbelievingly. Maybe it was time to motivate him to want to relax that rule a little.
Lorelai fiddled in her purse for a moment, pulled out a lipstick, but before she could open it, it fell out of her hands and rolled over to the edge of the sidewalk near the bushes. She casually walked over to it and bent over to pick it up. As she bent, she chose an angle intended to give Luke the most favorable view. Snagging the lipstick, she snapped up again, flipped open her compact and applied a touch of lipstick, all without ever looking at her boyfriend.
Her boyfriend was rooted to the spot for Lorelai's little show. It delighted him every bit as much as the 'no PDA' rule now frustrated him. He crossed his arms on his chest as she preened, obviously drawing it out as long as she could. She continued just long enough for Luke to recognize what she was doing. He decided to take his own turn at bat.
Sauntering over to her, he wrapped one arm around her waist, pulling her close to him. "Aren't you getting hungry?" he asked, all but whispering it in her ear. His hot breath stirred her deep inside, and she leaned into him, tugging on his shirt lapels, readying herself for another kiss.
"It's kinda hot, don't you think?" he said, unbuttoning his flannel to expose his T-shirt. Her eyes tracked his movements, sliding over to his arms as he flexed his not inconsiderable biceps. He slowly moved his hands down to her hips, pulling them slightly toward him, yet deliberately not touching bodies.
He narrowed his eyes before speaking again. "If you drop something again, I'll be happy to pick it up," he said as he turned and plucked an imaginary dead leaf from a nearby bush, making sure she had as good a view of him from behind as he had of hers.
"Luke! You are incorrigible! Hey, I'm too hungry to continue this battle now, but we're probably going to have to rethink this 'no PDA' rule," she said, wrapping his shirt around his neck as if she were going to choke him.
Luke just laughed without committing. He did, however, hold her hands and give her one more kiss, this time one that would have pleased Babette, if not Miss Patty.
"So you really don't think that we should join Taylor's business group?" asked Lorelai as she and Luke sat upstairs in his office after lunch. He'd kept the sofa, and they sat there side by side as Lorelai enthusiastically polished off a piece of boysenberry pie.
Luke's apartment had by now been completely converted to his office with Lorelai's workspace tucked into Jess' old sleeping corner. Luke had added a thick wooden countertop and shelves underneath for his various tools and her crafting and sewing supplies. Due to Lorelai's heavy workload, she hadn't yet used it for much more than making the occasional repair to some Dragonfly curtains and sheets.
Luke finally had his desk organized, files properly stored and Lorelai had made sure that it was decorated with those little touches needed to make it feel comfortable for him. When he worked at his desk, he could look around the room and see photos on the wall, trophies and other memorabilia on shelves, and a coat of paint freshened up the space, making it lighter and more pleasant. Photos of Lorelai and Rory had a key position on his desktop.
"Can you afford $500 per month just to stand near Taylor at town events?" he asked. "I sure can't, especially when he's just going to blow it on another festival." Luke finished off the apple he was eating and dropped the core onto Lorelai's empty plate.
"Still, it sounds nice, being a leader in the community," she said wistfully.
Setting the plate on the coffee table, he slid to the floor and positioned himself between Lorelai's legs. "You have more power than you think," he murmured as he flipped the flippy part of her flippy skirt. Lorelai's heart flipped with the skirt.
"My power over you is well-documented," she replied as she slipped out of her shoes, rubbing her bare feet over Luke's denim-clad calves as he knelt before her. "You're putty in my hands. Sometimes Silly Putty."
"It's more than just me," he countered. "I mean, you better not be using THAT power on anyone but me, but you can talk anyone into anything when you put your mind to it. You work harder than anyone else and you raised Rory by yourself. If you want to schmooze some investors to bring them to Stars Hollow, you don't need Taylor's help; he should pay you, not the other way around."
She kissed him on the nose and began unbuttoning his flannel. "You're cute. Blinded by love, but cute."
"I am not cute." Luke ran his hands along her thighs up to her hips, then slowly back down again. The second time he slid his fingers under her skirt, pushing it up as far as it could go.
"You're my seeing-eye dog," he replied as she giggled. A beat later, he said, "I'm sorry, that sounded better in my head than it did coming out of my mouth."
"I could wine and dine you," she suggested. "Maybe I could convince you to speak at a Founders' Day celebration." Luke leaned forward, stretching his long torso over hers. He clasped her hands in his, then moved them to the back of the sofa near her head, pressing himself fully against her. She wriggled sinuously, positioning her center under his as she strained for even closer contact, wrapping her legs around his waist.
"Not gonna happen," he said, barely lifting his lips from her mouth. He could feel her hard nipples harden against his chest as their kiss deepened.
"Decorate the diner for Thanksgiving?" she sighed, moaning slightly. "A couple of turkey salt and pepper shakers would really spruce up the place."
"No way in hell."
"Invest in a business in Stars Hollow?"
"Already made the only investment worth making here, and I'm in as deep as I can get."
"Not yet," she insinuated throatily. "You could up the ante."
"This is the only ante I'm gonna up." He bounced her a bit with his hips, feeling the heat between her legs as she squeezed him even tighter, pressing her feet into his ass.
"Up it again!" she encouraged.
Ante upped.
The door flew open as Jess walked in. The sofa was fortunately turned away from the door, so he saw nothing more than their heads, arms and the startled looks on their faces.
He stopped dead cold. "Oh jeez! You guys have a whole house to play in! Why can't you keep it in there?" He put his hands over his eyes, trying not to burn any more images in his brain than necessary.
Luke broke their embrace and Lorelai let her head fall back on the sofa, twisting it sideways until she could see Jess' horrified face. "Keep it in there! Dirty!" she teased.
"Seriously, though, what is with you two? I come up here for a couple of envelopes and you're making out on the sofa. Miss Patty was downstairs talking about your little PDA on the street today. Don't you ever …" Jess thought better about that question. "Not gonna finish that question, you might just answer it." He moved quickly to the desk and took a couple of envelopes out of the box on the desktop.
"I seem to recall a certain young punk sucking Shane's face everywhere in Stars Hollow all summer long one year," chided Lorelai.
"Get out!" said Luke.
"Gladly," replied Jess as he closed the door behind him.
Rory scooted back and relaxed again into the comfortable cushions of the long-distance train that took them from Italy to southern Spain. Even though she cherished the European trip she made with her mother, it was now clear to her that Lorelai had been playing out the dreams of her youth, most of which included being very independent from Emily and Richard.
Rory didn't share Lorelai's opinion about Emily and Richard. She had rather the opposite opinion, tempered by the understanding that her mother's experience had been far different from her own. Traveling with Emily was equally as delightful as traveling with Lorelai; they were simply two completely different experiences.
First class travel, especially across the ocean and on long-distance train trips, was far better than the crowded, confusing trip that she and her mother had made. Emily knew her way around Europe, and the friends she had in every major country gave Rory experiences like she didn't have with her mother only a short time before. Instead of searching out the frequently questionable dives near the hostels, Rory and Emily attended parties at the homes of rich friends, replete with the best food and wine. They traveled on private tours, avoiding the long waits and annoyances that accompanied the large tourist excursions.
Rory ordered her third double espresso and looked out the window as they climbed the Pyrenees. Emily returned to her seat and smiled at her granddaughter.
"This is going to be so much fun! Relaxing on the beach, enjoying the sun. My friend's children have been taking Spanish cooking lessons. Shira says their paella is to die for!"
A/N: glad to be moving this story along again. Hope you enjoyed the little twists.