"Wait, what?" Lorelai sat in shock
"Christopher had no will," his lawyer repeated, "He had trusts set up for Rory and Georgia, but nothing else. We talked about it and he was planning on coming in with you in the next few months. But since he didn't the bulk of the money goes to you. Connecticut law does say that a quarter will go to his mother and you get the rest. Which means you'll get roughly seventy-five million dollars."
Lorelai was stunned, "But the girls?"
"I told you, they each have trusts that they get access to when they turn twenty-five or earlier if their mothers sign off. Each girl has twenty-five million"
"Oh my god!"
The lawyer looked confused, "I thought you knew that Chris got the bulk of his grandfather's inheritance?"
"I did," Lorelai said, "I just had no idea how much it was. Chris and I weren't married that long, it was a spur of the moment wedding and we hadn't really combined our finances yet."
The lawyer nodded, "Well if you will just sign these few forms I'll start the process of transferring the money."
"Thank you Mike," Lorelai smiled. "And I will take that card for the financial planner you mentioned."
The lawyer smiled and nodded.
XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx
Davey and Martha were scooting around on the floor playing with some toys that their Auntie Lorelai bought for them. Lorelai was in the kitchen with Sookie getting snacks for the kids and some for themselves.
"What are you talking about?" Sookie asked incredulously.
"I want to pay you back for your half of the Inn," Lorelai repeated.
Sookie looked heartbroken, "You don't want to be partners with me anymore?"
"No! That's not it at all," Lorelai gasped. "Remember I told you that I was meeting with Christopher's lawyer today?"
"Yeah," Sookie said as she poured some hot chocolate for both of them and chocolate milk for the kids.
"Sook, he didn't have a will so all of his money goes to me."
Sookie didn't react, she just kept prepping snacks.
"Sookie, look at me," Lorelai said. "I'm not going to tell anyone else this except you and Rory, okay?"
Sookie looked worried and nodded.
"The lawyer estimated that I will be getting around seventy-five million dollars from Chris. That is after he already set up a trust for each of his daughters at twenty-five each."
"Oh my god!" Sookie gasped and sat down.
"Yeah, so I don't know what to do with all that money. And I can't be happy with that kind of money if I'm not using it to help the people I love. You have an unexpected third pregnancy, I know you can use the money. I'm not talking about taking your name off of anything, we won't even tell anyone about this."
"You're just coming from the lawyer now and your first thought was to help me?" Sookie was almost in tears.
"I just remember both of us struggling and how it felt when I had to ask Luke. I know that Jackson wants to add on to the house, I know he wants a bigger greenhouse. This money can do that for you guys without any worry. You are more like family to me than anyone else in my life, please take the money!"
Sookie smiled as tears ran down her cheeks, "I don't know what to say."
"Don't say anything," Lorelai smiled. "Just nod yes and when I have the money I will transfer you this amount and we'll never talk about it again. You will still get your cut from the Inn, it's still ours. Okay?"
Sookie nodded and began to cry just a little harder.
"Mama, are you okay?" Davey asked.
"Yes Honey," Sookie said wiping her face, "These are happy tears because Auntie Lorelai is the best friend in the world!"
"Okay," Davey said and ran back to his sister and the TV.
XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx
A few hours later Lorelai hugged Sookie and the kids goodbye and made her way to Luke's. She sat alone and read some magazines as she ate her dinner. It was particularly busy, Zack served her and she wasn't sure if Luke even knew she was there.
As the crowd thinned out Luke saw her by the window.
"Hey, when did you get here?" He asked as he refilled her coffee cup.
" I already had my dinner. Is there a two for one special tonight? It seemed extra busy."
He chuckled, glad that it only took one month for her to begin to banter with and tease him again. He was hopeful that in a few more weeks he could start adding the flirt back into their relationship.
"Can you join me for a second?" She asked.
"Sure," he smiled and sat across from her.
"So I need to talk about something a little awkward and I want you to just listen, okay?"
"Ooookay"
"I met with Chris' lawyer today and long story short I'm about to get a ridiculously large amount of money. Like Daddy Warbucks, Scrooge McDuck kind of money."
"Congratulations?" Luke said not knowing why she was telling him this.
"I want to pay you back."
"For what?" Luke asked, "You guys already paid me back for my investment in the Dragonfly."
"Well, I meant the house. You paid so much for the renovations and now you don't even live there. You can use that money for something, maybe a college fund for April."
Luke exhaled, "No."
"No?"
"I don't want his money."
"Well it's my money now," Lorelai said with some annoyance in her voice. "And I can't live in that house with everything you had done."
Luke's face contorted with anger, "You lived there with him! It was my input, my planning, my time and energy yet you managed to live there with him."
Lorelai was working hard to not cry, "I can't have this fight again. Once the money is in my account I will transfer some into yours. I guess we can't be friends, it was nice trying though." She got up, left money on the table and left the diner. She walked at double speed to get home, lost in her thoughts, willing herself to hold it together until she got behind a closed door. She was so wrapped up in her own mind and pain that she didn't hear the footsteps behind her.
"Lorelai!"
She didn't register who called her name and she wasn't in the mood to talk, so she kept her pace.
Luke sped up to a light jog and caught up with her when she reached her porch. He grabbed her arm and she finally turned to make eye contact.
"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry," Luke said. "You're right. We can't keep fighting about this. I forgave you and you forgave me, we can't throw our mistakes back at each other any time we get mad or this relationship will never work."
"What relationship?" Lorelai snapped.
"I love you. I always have, I always will." He moved slowly, stepping in front of her, taking her face in his hands and lowering his lips to hers. He kissed her softly and just for a moment. He then whispered "Was that okay?"
She closed her eyes and ran her hand along his cheek, "I've missed you so much."
"Let's go inside," he asked more than stated.
She nodded and opened the door. He followed her in and looked around. He noticed that any trace that Chris ever lived there was gone. Also most traces of Luke were gone as well. Things that they bought together weren't there anymore. He wondered if that was Chris' doing or if she did it after their break up. It hurt, but he understood. Most of the things that reminded him of her were in a box at the bottom of a closet in his apartment.
"I guess it looks different from the last time you were here." She half smiled as she handed him a beer.
He smirked, "Well that's quite the TV you've got there."
"It was the only thing of his that I actually ended up liking. It's like a mini movie theatre at home. So how's April?" Lorelai asked, trying to steer the conversation away from romance.
"She's good," he took a sip of his beer. "This beer is good."
"It used to be your favourite," she whispered.
He looked at the label and remembered a day trip they had taken to Walton's Beach and finding this beer. "That was a great day," he smiled.
She didn't respond.
"I still dream of you in that bikini sometimes."
Now she couldn't help the smile that crept across her face.
"Rory told me that Jess is now running a publishing company, and that he published his own book," Lorelai once again tried to veer the conversation back to safe territory.
"Yeah. I'm really proud of him. He even gave me a check when I went to see him. He wanted to pay me back for some money I left in his car that time he came to town. He wanted to make things right with me, he also thanked me for everything. Who knew that I did anything right?"
"You loved him, you showed him you cared at a time when he felt really alone."
"I guess." He took a big swig of his beer, "So how are your parents?"
She sighed, relieved that he was keeping the conversation about family and not them. "They're okay. Mom hired this really fancy chef to make all their meals, she worked with him and Dad's doctor to have heart healthy meals and it's driving my Dad crazy! Last Friday he offered me fifty-thousand dollars if I would leave the house with him right then and go to a steakhouse."
Luke chuckled, "Did you do it?"
"Nah, Mom would have had us both killed before we reached the end of the driveway. I did offer to have him come for an insurance consultation at the Dragonfly with the promise that Sookie would avoid fish. So he was happy."
"I want you back," he stated. The room then fell silent. She was holding her breath staring at the blank TV. Highlights and lowlights of their relationship flashing across the screen in her mind.
Luke shifted so he was closer to her, "Did you hear me?"
She turned to face him, "Luke, maybe we're better as friends. We both got so hurt when we were a couple. I know what I did is unforgivable."
"Some would say the same thing about how I handled the April situation. You were my fiancée and I didn't tell you I have a child."
"Exactly!"
Luke shifted so they were facing each other, his eyes locked on hers, "Yes, we hurt each other, I also know that I have never loved anyone the way that I love you, I know that you are the only one I ever imagined having a family with, a life beyond my job. I know we screwed up, but look how much pain both of us were in when we were apart. Doesn't that mean something?"
"Luke,"
He leaned in and kissed her. It started soft and tentative, he was testing to see if she would kiss him back or slap him. When she didn't move either way he slipped his hand into her hair and deepened the kiss. They stayed that way for a few moments, kissing like teenagers, never opening their eyes or pulling away. When she finally needed to catch her breath, she rested her forehead against his.
"I do love you, so much." She whispered.
"That's all that matters."
"My husband died just over a month ago, how will it look if I jump into a relationship so quickly?"
"How will it look to who? Why do you care what other people think? Everyone who knows you, knows that we have a long history and it's not new. This isn't something you are just jumping into."
"Right. But how many people will think that I was having an affair with you while I was married to Chris. I mean he thought I was, so why wouldn't everyone else?"
"People know you! They know you're not like that. And if they do believe that, they aren't really your friends anyway, so who cares what they think? Look, I don't want to force anything on you, but if your answer is 'No', let it be no because it's not what you want, not because you're worried about what other people are thinking." He took her face in his hands and kissed her. "I'm going to go, just promise me you'll think about it." He got up, adjusted his hat and headed for the door.
"Don't go," she called softly.
He stopped.
"Can we do this slowly? I mean in private we can be us again. But around town, can we just give it a little bit more time? I'm not ready to tell my parents, but I do want to talk to Rory before it gets out. She didn't have a great relationship with Chris but I don't want her to think I'm disrespecting her father."
"Lorelai, I'll go about this in any way that makes you comfortable. But you are way too nice of a person if you are worried about respecting the memory of a man that hit you."
"For Rory. Please just stay. I want to talk more."
"Talking? Is that what the kids are calling it now?" Luke joked.
Lorelai laughed, "Just sit down."