Luke let his breathing calm down and only then realized he hadn't stopped long enough to call Lorelai. He cursed his lack of thought but there was nothing he could do about it now. The 2.5 hour flight felt like a decade. As soon as the seatbelt sign was off he jumped up, grabbed his bag and hurried to the door only to have to stand waiting another ten minutes while the exit was prepared. When he finally made it into O'Hare he ran over to the first phone he found and dialed her number.

But there was no response. Her answering machine clicked on and he hesitated in leaving a message. He wasn't prepared to talk to a machine and it seemed like his control of the english language disappeared.

"Hi Lorelai, I'm in Chicago. I'll call you!" and he hung up cursing himself.

He raced out to the front of the airport and hailed a cab, called out Rachel's address and sat back to gather his thoughts. The journey took about 40 minutes and when they pulled up outside the apartment block he was suitably impressed. He pressed the button for her apartment and it took a moment or two for her to respond. Luke shook his head and thought if this was his place and Ellie was missing he'd be sitting on the doorstep waiting for her to come home. Or out on the streets scouring everywhere for her.

"Hello?"

"Rachel, it's me."

"It's open."

A loud obnoxious buzz rang from the door and the lock flipped open so he pushed it open and went in to find her apartment. When he knocked it took another minute to open and all it did was add fuel to his already raging fire. Then when the door was finally pulled open for him he found himself looking into the face of a man he didn't recognize.

"Luke I presume?" the man said and he stuck his hand out to be shook.

Luke looked down at his hand in confusion then back up to his face.

"Who are you?"

"I'm Brian. I work with Rachel."

Rachel appeared over his shoulder and pulled him back to stand in front of him. Luke stared at her, clenched his teeth and hefted his bag on his shoulder.

"Come in Luke."

He walked past her and dropped his bag by the door but continued to walk into the living room. His eyes wandered around the tasteful decoration and he began to realize why Ellie was so infatuated with the place. The wall was a mass of floor to ceiling windows that looked out over the park and the streets below.

"Any news?"

"Nothing yet. The police have issued an amber alert, they are checking the bus stations, and train stations."

"They think she got on a train?" Luke bellowed and turned to her. Brian stepped forward and put a hand on her shoulder.

"Yes, I don't know! They are checking them because I have her passport so she couldn't have flown."

"It's over a day on the bus to Boston from here! Probably the train too." He was pacing now, his hands on his hips. "Where would she get the money for a ticket anyway!"

"I give her an allowance. Lunch money for her museum trips."

"Allowance is a couple of dollars rachel, those train tickets cost fifty bucks, easy!" Rachel had the good sense to look admonished and blushed under his scrutiny. "How much allowance are you giving her?"

"Fifty dollars."

"Fifty dollars a week?"

"Lunch in Chicago is expensive Luke!" she yelled back at him.

"Rach, shhhh." Brian pulled on her elbow to take her out of the firing range of Luke's stare. He guided her towards the kitchen and got her a glass of water then return to Luke with another one for him. "The police said we should stay by the phones, we should wait for her to call."

"Do you even know what she was wearing?" Luke spat out as he put the drink onto the coffee table and resumed his pacing.

"Her blue jacket."

"And underneath?" Rachel was silent. "Can I see her room? I know what she packed, I might know what is missing."

Brian directed him to Ellie's room and Luke stormed off, ignoring the sobs coming from Rachel in the kitchen. He opened her wardrobe and was immediately assaulted by her scent. The flowery perfume she wore, the apple scented shampoo and it knocked him for six. He stumbled back onto her bed, and tried to steady his breathing. He held back the tears, calmed his panic down before it could take root then rifled through her clothing again. Her Yankees long sleeve shirt was gone and so were her light blue Levis with the flower stitching on the back pocket. He checked the laundry basket in her room then hurried through the apartment to see if there was one in the bathroom or utility room but they weren't there either.

"Her Yankees top and her flower jeans are not here. Did she rip them or throw them out?"

"I don't think so."

"Call the cops again and tell them that's what she was wearing."

Rachel snagged her mobile phone from the counter top and quickly dialed the number on the card left by the police. Luke listened to the call and sat onto the couch with a whomph when it ended. A tightness griped his chest and wasn't letting go. It was just half past midnight now in Stars Hollow and his mind was reeling with worry and information. He went over and over the last conversation he had with Ellie and wondered if he had missed something.

Then realizing he hadn't called Caesar, nor Lorelai to explain his message he picked the phone up off the cradle and walked back into Ellie's room to call. Caesar was half asleep so Luke made it quick and hope he understood or remembered the call. When he hung that call up he dialed her number and lifted it to his ear. She answered on the first ring so he knew she was up and waiting for him to call her back.

"Lorelai."

"Luke. Whats going on?"

"Ellie…" his voice started to break and he wasn't sure he could get the words out. Saying it aloud meant it was really happening.

"Jesus Luke, what?"

"She is missing."

"Oh Luke!" Luke sank to the floor, his back to her bed, his legs stretched out before him and he cried. "Oh god Luke, I'm so sorry, what happened?"

"Rachel called me earlier to ask if she was with me in Stars Hollow. She hasn't seen her since Monday evening."

"But that's a couple of days ago. Why did it take so long…" Lorelai stopped herself from asking questions she knew he didn't have answers to, and were probably questions he had asked himself.

"She said she was working late and leaving early. She didn't check in on her on Monday when she got home."

"Oh my god." Lorelai sighed and wished she was with him. "I wish I was there with you Luke," she said softly.

"Me too."

"Do you think she took a flight home?"

"The police seem to think it's a bus or a train."

"Oh…" Lorelai refrained from stating the obvious. "Should you be in Chicago? What if she comes home?"

"I know, I just panicked. I needed to get here, to see if she was missing, if there was anything I could do."

"Will you be staying long?"

"I don't know." He paused. "Is that ok?"

"Oh Luke, geez. You take all the time you need." She listened to his shaky breathing. "I love you."

"I love you too."

"You need to buy a cell phone."

He chuckled. "I know. I think I'll pick one up tomorrow."

"Is there anything you need me to do?"

"I've talked to Caesar, he is going to put a sign up on the door. I'm closing the diner for a few days."

"Okay."

"Thanks Lorelai."

"Call me as soon as you hear anything."

"I will." He hung up the phone and dropped his chin onto his chest, then let go of the tears he was holding and cried.

Luke spent the night in Ellie's room, He noticed her backpack was gone and some small effects like toiletries and a couple of tee-shirts, as well as a few books he knew she never left home without. This fact gave him solace and let him believe she really was traveling.

In the morning he noticed how Rachel and Brian had been holding hands, how Brian was still in the flat so he had obviously stayed and he looked more than comfortable there too which told Luke he had stayed before. He sat on the couch and watched them both move around the kitchen preparing breakfast though how they had a stomach to eat he would never know. His stomach had not stop churning since hearing Rachel's voice on the phone.

As soon as he thought it was time, he went down to the police station to talk to the detective who was in charge of the case. They talked about the different routes she could take and how they didn't have the manpower to search every bus station or train station between Chicago and Boston. Luke fought with them to find the manpower but there was no hope of him winning. It did feel good to fight something though. And he was sick of fighting with Rachel. Luke collapsed onto the couch when they got back to the apartment and pressed the heel of his hands into both eyes to dislodge his tiredness.

"You should get some rest Luke."

"I'm fine." he replied sternly.

"You'll do no good in that state."

"I'm fine Rachel."

"Suit yourself!" she turned away and walked off towards her own room. Luke felt a pang of guilt but shrugged it off when he watched Brian follow her. Luke let his head fall back onto the couch and his eyes dragged themselves closed and took him into a fitful sleep.

Lorelai moved through the motions at work but after messing up the third customer request and dropping a pot of coffee in the kitchen, Sookie took her by the elbow, pushed her into her car and ordered her home. She had spent the night awake after Luke's phone call and had only managed to get to sleep an hour or so before her alarm buzzed. Now back in her Jeep she didn't quite have the energy or concentration to drive home, but the alternative of sitting in the parking lot in her Jeep was less appealing than the effort it would take to get home. She started the engine and slowly pulled out of the lot. She took the drive carefully and what was normally a twenty minute drive took her closer to forty minutes. She parked, climbed out, grabbed her jacket and bag from the passenger seat and walked over to the porch, where she found Ellie lying asleep on her porch swing.

"Oh my god." Lorelai dropped her bag and jacket at the door and hurried over to crouch by Ellie's head. "Ellie? Honey…" She reached out and rested a hand on her arm and shook her gently.

Slowly Ellie started to wake and she opened her eyes to see Lorelai looking at her expectantly. She sat up and looked down and it broke Lorelai's heart to see her tear stained face look so pained.

"Come on, let's get you inside and warmed up."

She helped her up and guided her into the flat, slowing only to pick up her belongings then guided her into the living room and ignited the gas fire. Ellie was sitting on the couch, shivering with a chill that Lorelai wasn't fully sure was all to do with the cold.

"Lie down honey, stay under this blanket." Lorelai pushed her onto the cushion and draped a heavy blanket over her to keep her warm then when Ellie snuggled in deeper Lorelai hurried upstairs and grabbed the phone. And only then realized she didn't have a number to contact him. "Shit." She carried the phone downstairs, and crouched again by Ellie's head. "Honey, what's your mom's number?"

Ellie reeled off a number and Lorelai dialed it then walked into the kitchen to speak. the phone rang a few times before being picked up but finally she heard a male voice answer gruffly.

"Luke?"

"Yeah, who is this?"

"Luke, it's Lorelai."

Luke sat up immediately and gripped the phone tighter in his hand. "Lorelai, what is it?"

"Ellie is here."

"Oh thank god…"

"She is fine, she is tired and cold, I'm betting hungry too. I just got back from work and found her asleep on the porch."

"Oh jesus….Rachel, Rachel, get out here!"

"She is on my couch now, I've the fire on and I'll get some food into her."

"Ok, thanks, I'm coming right home. Tell her, I'm coming right home."

"I will."

"Thank you Lorelai, god, thank you."

"See you soon."

Luke dropped the phone onto the couch and hurried into Ellie's room to grab his bag then met Rachel and Brian back in the living room.

"Lorelai called, Ellie is back in Stars Hollow."

"I told you she would go there."

"Don't fucking start with me Rachel!"

"Hey now," Brian stepped in between them and held up his hands to get Luke to back off. "There is no need for that."

"I'm going home."

"I should come too."

"No," Luke turned back to face her. "No, you shouldn't."

"What about her stuff?"

"I'll send for it. Call the cops, call off the search. She is home."

And with that Luke stormed out of the apartment.

Lorelai sat with Ellie for a few hours until she woke and shuffled on the couch. She didn't seem to remember Lorelai coming home, or how she had gotten onto the couch. Based on the expression on her face, Lorelai guessed she had been through quite a lot over the last few days.

"How are you doing?" she asked carefully. Ellie looked at her for a moment then when her face crumpled and she started to cry Lorelai gathered her into her arms and held her tightly. Ellie lost herself in her tears and just let go. It was a while before she stopped crying and a while longer before she stopped her body from shuddering.

She pushed herself up and away from Lorelai's embrace then leaned back against the couch and dry washed her face with both hands in a gesture that mimicked her father and made Lorelai smile.

"Thanks," Ellie muttered.

"You wanna talk about it?" Ellie shook her head. "I called your dad. He is on his way."

"Where is he?" she looked at Lorelai with a sideways glance.

"Chicago."

With that word Ellie's eyes opened wide and she looked at Lorelai fully. "Really?"

"Your mom called. She told Luke you were missing."

"I'm surprised she noticed," Ellie said with a scoff but Lorelai ignored it and continued to speak.

"So he caught the first flight out there to see if he could find you." Ellie smiled a little and sank deeper into the couch. "Anyway, are you hungry?" Ellie nodded her head so Lorelai reached for the phone and dialed the first take out on speed dial. "Hey, it's Lorelai, I need two medium pie's. One with the usual and one with pepperoni...Yep, sounds good, thanks."

"What's the usual?"

"Half bbq chicken and sausage and half ham and pineapple."

"Quite the combination."

"I like to be adventurous." Lorelai reached over to the coffee table and grabbed the remote then tossed it onto Ellie's lap. "You find us a movie to watch and I'll run upstairs to change."

When she returned Ellie had a movie on pause but before settling back onto the couch, Lorelai went into the kitchen, grabbed a couple of cokes and made a large bowl of popped corn. Ellie smiled at the sight of it and tucked in eagerly.

"Aren't you afraid of spoiling your dinner?" Ellie asked around a mouthful of popped corn.

"Oh honey no." Lorelai shook her head and helped herself to a handful from the bowl. Ellie pressed play and Lorelai squealed with delight at the sight of Mean Girls starting. "I love this movie!"

"Me too."

"But you realize you have inadvertently cued up a double bill?"

"What do you mean?"

"You can't just watch Mean girls, you have to follow it up with another Lindsay Lohan movie."

"Maybe Freaky Friday?" Ellie suggested as she reached for more popped corn.

"Yes! Perfect."

They settled in to watch, pausing only when the pizza arrived and again to make a joint bathroom break. When half the food was gone and the second movie was almost over Ellie looked over to see Lorelai asleep. her head was against a cushion at the end of the couch and her feet were propped up on the coffee table between pizza boxes. Ellie carefully draped the blanket over her and returned her focus back on the rest of the movie. When the doorbell rang she glanced at Lorelai who didn't stir then carefully got up and went over to the door. When she pulled it open she didn't have a chance to register anything but her father's presence before he engulfed her into a tight hug. She circled his neck with her arms, and held on as he dropped to his knees and rested his head on her shoulder. She had never really witnessed her father crying. There was one year when the Yankees stole a win back off the Red Sox but generally he was not a crier. But now as he held her his whole body shook and she was sure there were tears hitting her neck and she just held him back.

After a long embrace, Luke leaned back, held his hands on her shoulders and stared at her, as if to be sure she was still there. "Ellie...what in gods name were you thinking running away like that?"

"I didn't think."

"Thats right."

"I just needed to get home."

"And why didn't you call me?"

"I did."

"You called me on Monday night and everything was fine. Your mother calls me on Tuesday night and you have gone missing."

"I'm sorry Dad." Ellie felt her tears welling up again. "Is mom mad?"

"Of course she is Ellie. You ran away. do you have any idea how serious this is?" Luke sat back on his haunches and let his hands roam down her arms to grip her wrists. "We called the cops, put out an amber alert."

"I'm so sorry Dad, I just needed to get home. To Stars Hollow."

Luke wanted to admonish her further but the look of defeat in her eyes was killing him. He pulled her into another hug and just held her against him. After a moment he released her and stood up then looked around expecting to see Lorelai standing there but the place was empty.

"She is asleep on the couch," Ellie said and she took his hand to bring him over. Lorelai hadn't moved and was still sleeping soundly. "Should we wake her?"

"Yeah I guess we should, or she won't sleep tonight." Luke crouched beside her head, rested a hand on her shoulder and called out her name. "Lorelai," he said and shook her again. Slowly her eyes fluttered open and her lips curved into a wide smile at the sight of him. Instinctively she reached out for him and pulled the lapels on his shirt to get him close enough to kiss.

"Hey good lookin'" she said and smiled but Luke pulled away with an embarrassed look and glanced over at Ellie who was perched on the edge of the couch watching them with a smile. "Oh, sorry," she stammered with a blush and pushed herself up into a seated position and curled her hair behind her ears.

"Don't mind me," Ellie grinned, "I'll be out in the truck."

"Hey," Luke said after Ellie left the room. "Thanks for taking care of her."

"Don't even think about it. I'm just glad she came home."

"Me too."

"I'm also glad you came home." she circled his neck and pulled him against her for a hug and felt his shuddering breath escape his chest. "She's home now Luke. You can relax."

"I know. I think I'm still in shock."

"I'm not surprised." She cupped his face and kiss him lightly. "You look really tired."

"Thanks."

"Go home with Ellie, you guys need to talk."

"Yeah, this one will be a doozy."

"Just listen to her Luke, let her tell her story."

Luke looked into her eyes and felt a splurge of love for her wash over him. He leaned forward and kissed her again then pulled back and stood up. She held his hands and he helped her to her feet then they walked to the porch. "Do you want to come over later?"

"No, I think you two need your space to clear the air."

Luke nodded. "Goodnight Lorelai." He leaned in to kiss her but when he tried to deepen it she pulled back and glanced over at the truck. "What."

"Ellie is right there, she can probably see us very clearly."

"Who cares, she knows we're dating. She knows we kiss." he chuckled at her reluctance, a complete juxtaposition to her actions in the past. "Are we done with the kissing, and the sex now that Ellie is home?"

"No."

"Alright then," he said as he leaned forward and kissed her again, his hands on her hips gripped her tightly and pulled her against him as his tongue lapped the inside of her mouth, slow and sensual. "Okay, that's probably enough…" he said with a laugh after pulling back from her. "Goodnight."

"Goodnight."

Luke and Ellie walked into the flat above the diner and they both made a beeline for the couch. A blanket of silence washed over them and he waited for her to break it but it became quickly apparent that she was not going to be the one to break it. So instead he just sat with her. Nearly thirty minutes had passed since they got home before she turned on the couch and faced Luke.

"Okay Dad… let's talk."

He turned on the couch too, lifted one leg to lean his side against the back of the couch and nodded. "Shoot."

Ellie took a deep breath and started to tell him all about her trip. At first he realized how much she was enjoying the city. The freedom of coming and going. seeing the museums the lectures, science events and talks at the university and he couldn't help but smile at her excitement. But then he realized that she was speaking softly and taking deep breaths and he focused on her words again.

"She was never home. Not in the mornings for breakfast or the evenings for dinner. Some nights she didn't come home at all. I think she either stayed at Brian's or stayed at work." Luke clenched his jaw and frowned. "I was really lonely."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"I didn't want you to worry, I didn't want you to…"

"To what?"

"To say I told you so."

"Oh Ellie, I would never do that I really wanted this to work out for you."

She didn't respond and instead took a shaky breath and focused her attention back on her fingers that twiddled a frayed piece of her jeans around and around. "And you seemed so happy."

"Happy?"

"While I was gone. With you and Lorelai."

"Ellie," he reached across and grasped her shoulder. "Ellie honey, look at me." Ellie looked up and he hated to see the unshed tears there. "When you left to go to Chicago, part of me left too. And no matter what happens between me and Lorelai, no matter how happy you think I might sound, there isn't a minute that goes by where I don't miss you."

"Okay." She looked away but he shook her shoulder to get her to look back.

"No Ellie, don't dismiss this." He sat up straighter and leaned closer to her, his grip on her shoulder tightened. "I love you, very much. More than anything else in this world." Ellie nodded. "But I'm also in love with Lorelai." He waited for her reaction. Her eyes widened in surprise and her lips curved into a wide smile.

"Really?"

"Yeah, really." Luke felt the constriction on his chest loosen a little. "But that doesn't mean I love you less or anything."

"I know Dad."

"Do you?"

"Yeah I do. I guess…" she struggled to find the words. "I was so lonely in Chicago, I missed you so much, but you seemed to be getting on fine without me."

Luke Laughed and squeezed her shoulder. "Oh Ellie, I was a mess without you. Ask anyone, ask Lorelai."

"I wanted to tell you but something was stopping me."

Luke nodded. "I know how you feel. I wanted to tell you things but something was stopping me too."

"About you and Lorelai?" Luke nodded. "Have you told her you love her?" Luke nodded again. "And has she said it back?" This time when he nodded he looked away slightly and a blush crept up his neck to color his cheeks. "Oh Dad, you big softy." She punched his shoulder and confounded his embarrassment. He let the mood lighten for a little while but soon turned somber again.

"So, tell me again about your plan to run away?"

"Not run away, run back home."

"Lay it all out for me Ellie."

"After I talked to you the the other night, I decided to wait for mom to come home and tell her I wanted to go back to Stars Hollow. But…" Ellie hesitated. "But she never came home."

"What do you mean?" Luke asked, his voice stern and his frown deep.

"I mean I waited up for her. I was on the couch, I was up until about 3am but then I fell asleep on the couch. I woke up at about 7 and checked her room but she wasn't there. So I got online checked the train times and left."

"Jesus Ellie." He closed his eyes over and sighed. "Do you know how dangerous that was?"

"Yeah. A little bit more dangerous than living in an apartment on my own in Chicago," she retorted and Luke had to concede she was right.

"Honey, you should have called. I would have gotten you a flight, or come up and collected you myself."

"I know Dad, I was just so mad."

"Yeah… she has that effect on me too," Luke muttered. and he squeezed her shoulder again.

"Are you mad at me?"

"Yes."

"Am I grounded?"

"Oh honey," he smiled at her and nodded his head. "You are so grounded you don't even know what grounded means."

"Is... " she hesitated to ask but Luke shook her shoulder to urge her to continue. "Is mom mad at me?"

"I don't know," he replied honestly then reached over to the coffee table to pick up the phone and handed it to her. "Why don't you call her?"

Ellie looked down at the phone for a minute then reached out and took it out of his hand. She stood up and went into her room to call and Luke only caught the start of the phone call, a stilted greeting and then a sob.

He rested his head back against the couch and took a deep breath. He could hear her muted voice as she spoke to Rachel and wanted to be in there beside her, but he needed her to resolve this herself otherwise Rachel would have a hold over her, he wouldn't be able to deflect. After only a few minutes she emerged and resumed her position on the couch next to him, if a little closer.

"Well?" he prompted when he couldn't take her silence any more.

"She isn't mad."

"Good." Luke looked away and rested his head back on the couch. Though he couldn't help but wonder why she wasn't mad when he had a bubble of fury just below his own surface.

"She said she would pack up my stuff and send it here, unless I wanted to keep some of it there."

"Hmmm," Luke said noncommittally

"I told her to sent it all and I would take what I needed when I visited next time." Luke nodded his head and sighed inwardly another wave of relief washed over her. "Hey dad…" He looked over at her. "I'm really sorry."

"I know honey." He rested a hand on her knee and leaned forward to kiss her forehead.

"Next time I'll call. I'll call you straight away and I won't be afraid to tell you what's on my mind."

Luke listened to her promise and though every sinew in his being wanted this to be true he knew better than to take that promise without a pinch of salt. "Is this your way of asking for permission to go see Lane?" Ellie shrugged but after a moment smiled. "Go. But you have to be back by 7pm for dinner."

"Okay." she jumped up off the couch and grabbed her jacket from the rack but as she opened the door to leave she paused, turned back to see him sitting on the couch watching her. She closed the door, raced over to him for a tight hug then just as quickly let go of him and left.

Luke lost all the air from his lungs when she embraced him and was grasping at the space she had just occupied when she left. He fell back onto the couch and tried to catch his breath as relief and weariness washed over him. The panic and adrenaline was wearing off and he was crashing fast. He ticked through all the things he needed to do and top of the list was call Rachel. He grabbed the phone and started to pace even before she picked up. When she answered it was with a chuckle in her voice and it seemed to enrage him further.

"I talked to Ellie."

"How is she doing?"

"Better now that she is home." He said, the jibe not going unnoticed. "She told me she waited up for you, waited to talk to you but you never arrived."

"Luke…"

"She waited up for you Rachel." Rachel was silent. She took a deep breath and Luke closed his eyes over. "I really don't know why I expected anything else from you."

"That's not fair Luke."

"Isn't it?"

"She's fourteen, I thought-"

"You really have no idea what she needs."

"Luke-"

"She's home now. She is safe. I'll send for her belongings later this week." He gave her a moment to respond but when she had nothing to say he hung up the phone, tossed it onto his couch and pressed the heels of his hands into his eyes and released some of the tension he was feeling. Luke checked his watch and realized she would be home in about three hours. He contemplated going to see Lorelai, thanking her properly for looking after Ellie but instead he went into Ellie's room, changed her sheets, and aired it out. Then gathered some supplies from the kitchen and prepared a meal.

Ellie came home, half an hour before she was meant to, and smiled at the sight of Luke standing over the cooker stirring something that smelled distinctly garlicky. She dropped her coat on the back of the chair and stood next to him. Without a word he handed her the spoon and she continued the stirring motion as he opened the oven and pulled out the sweet potato fries.

Her smile widened as he patted them dry and put them into a large dish. Then nudged her away and poured the garlic chicken mix into another bowl. She went into the fridge and grabbed a beer and a coke then set the table as he washed his hands.

"Hey, should we call Lorelai?" she said suddenly.

"You think?"

"I think it would be nice to have her here."

"Okay, shall I call her, or do you want to?"

"I'll call her." Ellie raced over to the couch to grab the phone and dialed her number. Lorelai picked it up after only a few rings and Ellie pressed it harder to her ears to hear over the sound of the background music. "Lorelai?"

"Ellie? Honey? Is everything ok?" the music stopped and she could hear Lorelai panting.

"Yeah, everything is fine. Everything ok there?"

"Yeah I was just dancing around the house cleaning up."

"Do you wanna dance over here and join dad and me for dinner?"

"Oh, what a lovely invitation, but maybe your dad and you want to have dinner alone."

"Nah, I'm already bored of his old man stories." She said chuckling and ducked to dodge a towel that Luke tossed over at her.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, of course, come quick though, it's sweet potato fries and I'm not sure I can resist them all!"

"Okay, I'll be there in three minutes."

Ellie hung up and tossed the phone back onto the couch then went back to the table where Luke was putting the fries back into the oven to keep warm. He left the chicken dish on the table as it was still piping hot and grabbed another beer from the fridge.

"That was a really nice thing you did Ellie."

"I really like her Dad."

"Me too." he lifted his beer to his lips and took a long drink.

"You reckon you guys will get married?"

Luke choked on his drink and spluttered it down his front. "What?"

"You reckon you and Lorelai will get married?"

"Um, I dunno. We really just started dating…"

"But you love her?'

"Yes." he stated without hesitation.

"And she loves you?"

"Yes." Again no hesitation and it made Ellie smile, which in turn made Luke smile and blush.

"So…?"

"So it's not something we're really thinking about yet, we're just…"

"Happy."

"Yes." Luke smiled, sipped his drink and looked at his watch. "You want to go down and let your guest in?"

Ellie swigged her coke then hurried out of the apartment to the diner to wait for Lorelai. Luke checked the food and dealt out another place at the table for her then grabbed her a beer from the fridge. Just as he had it ready he heard them both coming up the stairs and they came through the door, arm in arm, laughing at something he would probably never hear or understand.

"Hey," he said as he approached.

Ellie unlinked her arm from Lorelai and went over to the table. Luke handed Lorelai her beer and leaned in to kiss her cheek. She took the beer and the kiss and smiled as he blushed and leaned back.

"So we're back to the blushing stage?" she whispered and he blushed more then turned back to the kitchen to lay out the dinner. Lorelai turned to Ellie and winked then took a seat next to her and sipped her beer.

"Dig in," he said as he set the food out and took his own seat between both of them at the head of the table. Between the three of them they polished off the food in no time. They chatted easily and despite the sore topic, Ellie spoke fondly of the museums she had visited in Chicago. She talked about the science one the most and Lorelai asked her if she wanted to study science in college.

"I don't know. it seems so restrictive. You can't just study science you have to pick a particular field, and I don't know if I could pick just one." Luke chuckled and shook his head. "See I want to study physics, astrophysics especially, but also microbiology, and if I really had my way I'd also throw in a dash of chemical engineering."

"Wow, ambitious work load."

"Yeah, and damn near impossible."

"So if not science, what then?"

"Engineering," she said simply and guzzled the last of her coke. Lorelai looked over at Luke who was still staring at Ellie.

"What kind of engineering?" Lorelai asked.

"See, there is that same problem in Engineering. Which field. But this one is easier to break down. Structural engineering." She tossed her coke into the bin and went to the fridge for a second one but thought better of it and grabbed a glass of water instead. Lorelai looked over at Luke who glanced at her and shrugged.

"I wanna build oil rigs, stadiums, bridges!" Ellie spoke excitedly.

"Sounds great."

"Well, it's a long way off before I have to worry about that. What did you study in college?"

"Business management and marketing. Very boring stuff."

"Yeah but look at you now, running an inn!"

Lorelai laughed. "Not quite the ambition I had for myself when I went to college It was more of an escape route than a pathway."

"What do you mean?"

"Maybe that's a story for another night?" Luke said, giving Lorelai the chance to back away if she wanted.

"Oh, of course, sorry Lorelai."

"No that's quite alright. I didn't get on well with my parents, so when it came time to go to college I went to one that was as far away as possible, and chose which ever topic I thought could serve me well as I didn't really have an ambition other than my geographical location."

"But it all worked out in the end?"

"I'm here now and very happy with where I ended up so yes, I guess it did." She looked over at Luke who was now watching her with interest, his elbow on the table and his hand under his chin.

"Okay Ellie, you are on dishes tonight."

"But Father! I have a guest," Ellie protested and gestured at Lorelai.

"I can take over your hosting duties from here." He stood up and stepped behind Lorelai's chair to pull it back so she could stand up, then took her hand and guided her over to the couch.

Ellie washed the dishes while singing show tunes and Luke and Lorelai sat on the couch flicking through tv channels. Every so often she would catch him looking at the kitchen where Ellie was cleaning up and she squeezed his hand. He looked back at her and smiled.

"You doing ok?" she asked in a muted voice.

"Yeah, I just keep checking to see if she is still here."

"It's great to have her home, huh."

"You can't even imagine how good."

Lorelai rested her head closer and onto his shoulder and he snuggled her in with a sigh. When Ellie was done she came over and stood by the edge of the couch to see what they were watching but it seemed like the tv had ended up on the shopping network and neither of them were interested in watching it anyway.

"I'm going to bed," she said and she rested a hand on top of her father's head.

"Good night honey," Luke said and he reached out to pat her side.

"See you in the morning Lorelai," she said with a wink then turned and walked back to her room.

Luke watched her leave then faced Lorelai after her bedroom door had closed. "You staying?" He asked bluntly.

"Um...I don't think so."

"Why not?"

"Because Ellie is home."

"So?"

"Maybe I should give her time to settle in before we start having sleepovers." she sat up away from him, curled her hair behind her ears and looked back at him over her shoulder.

"Look Lorelai," he sat up with her, placed a hand on her back and gently rubbed it. "Ellie is home now, so that means I need to be here. I need to sleep here when she is here and I need to be around. She needs a constant like that in her life right now…" He pulled her shoulder to make her face him more fully. "But that doesn't mean that my life with you takes a back seat."

"Luke-"

"I'm still in love you Lorelai, I'm still crazy about you and if you make me go cold turkey without holding you naked against me, then you are onto a losing battle."

"Shhh! She might hear!" Lorelai said chuckling.

"Hear what? All I said was the word naked!"

"Shhh Luke!" Lorelai said again, this time laughing.

"I want you naked and writhing in my bed at every available opportunity." He leaned forward and kissed her just below her earlobe. "And tonight, has presented itself as just such an opportunity."

"Luke…" she pushed him away and turned to face him. "I don't know if I'm comfortable with that. Maybe it's not Ellie that needs time to adjust, maybe it's me."

Luke stopped leaning towards her and frowned. "Oh god Lorelai, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable."

"I'm just not used to it." She paused. Leaned forward and kissed his lips in a short warm peck. "But I want to get used to it, in small steps."

Luke smiled. He turned off the tv and guided her into his room. "You start getting used to being in bed while I go lock up." He left her in the room and double checked all the locks then came back in and found her lying under the sheets, with them pulled up to her chin. He smiled as he walked into the bathroom to get ready then came out and undressed at the end of the bed, all the while watching her carefully. She was smiling at him expectantly and when he stripped down to his boxers he hesitated only a minute more before dropping them too and crawling up the bed to climb in.

"How are you doing over there?" he asked when he noticed she was lying on her back on the far end of the bed.

"Chilly."

"Come here, you big lummox." He lifted his arm and she rolled into him, her head on the front of his shoulder, her bare breasts against his torso and her hot crotch nestled against his hip. Luke took in all sensations and sighed with pleasure, delighting in the fact that she was just as naked as he. "Lorelai," he kissed her forehead and she tipped her head to look up at him. "I love you."

"You do?"

"Yep."

"Good." she snuggled into him closer, and kissed his chest. Luke held her tightly and let his eyes close. A wave of peace washed over him as he mentally ticked off all the worries he had and realized there was nothing else in this world he wanted than her body pressed against him just like this, and the knowledge that his daughter was home and safe. He sighed, kissed Lorelai's head again and let his weariness wash away.

The End

Skinfull.

A/N: This fic was a long time in the making. I started it back in November 2014 and abandoned and came back to it on multiple occasions. (So sorry if it feels a little stop starty!) But I was always determined to get through to the end and find a happy resolution. I was stuck for ages with Ellie in Chicago and Luke in Stars Hollow and I couldn't think of a satisfactory ending. But thanks to Beta readers like Junienmomo and an ideas wall like Eledgy I was able to get to the end. 90% of the credit for making this fic readable goes to them.

As far as I'm concerned, this fic is now complete, but if you all deem it necessary, I have a possible smut epilogue that can follow.

Next up on my chopping block is Xfiles so if anyone is beta reading for that, I need a soundboard!