Author's Note: I am moving in a few days and I wanted to get this posted before I go. My usual beta is out of town, so I did it on my own - thus, you may find some errors ... or even more than just "some." Anyway, I hope you all will be pleased with the chapter. If you are a JavaJunkie, I think youll like it!
Lorelai looked down at the box in her hands. She had ripped the side in her feverish attempt to get it open. Now she couldn't read the instructions. How could things have changed that much in twenty years? Back then it was a simple stick that turned pink. So why now after all these years of technological advances was this box talking about plus and minus signs and the color blue?
"Damn it," she muttered, bending down to look through the garbage can where she had thrown the insides of the box. There surely had to be instructions in there that she had discarded.
"Ah ha!" she declared triumphantly. Scanning the thin insert, she finally found what she was looking for. "Blue plus sign," she read, looking down at the stick in her other hand. It was still blank. "Come on," Lorelai demanded, bouncing anxiously. "How long does this take?" She looked back at the box again. "Three minutes," she huffed.
Suddenly there was a knock at the door. "Lorelai …" She rolled her eyes and sighed at the sound of Michel's heavy accent. "There are guests in the front and it is time for my break. You may want to catch them before they decide to leave."
Lorelai could hear Michel walking away from the bathroom door. Looking back down at the test, it was still blank. She groaned, shoving the test and the instructions back into the box and animatedly throwing it into her purse.
As she jerked the door open, she cursed Michel.
Lorelai slid onto one of the bar stools, collapsing atop the counter. Luke turned around as she groaned, seeing her splayed out across the counter.
"You do know I'm going to have to disinfect the counter again, right?" he asked. "People eat off of that."
Lorelai lifted her head, pushing herself back. "They eat off plates on the counter," she argued, flashing him a cute smile. "And besides, I'm sleeping with you, so don't I get to enjoy the perks?"
"A perk of sleeping with me is getting to rub your hair all over my counter?"
Lorelai nodded as Luke picked up a rag from under the counter. As he did so, she looked around. "Luke, there's no one here … it's time to close." He nodded, spraying the countertop with something that smelled of bleach. "You made a big deal about my hair and there isn't even anyone here."
"It's the principal of the matter." He wiped off the counter as he spoke.
"Is the coffee pot still turned on?" she asked.
"No, but I saved you the last cup."
"My hero," she groaned as Luke put the cup in front of her and went back to wiping down the counter. She was about to take a sip of it when the thought entered her mind. "Uh, you know, I'm not really that thirsty after all," she sighed, pushing the mug back towards him.
Luke stopped in his tracks, the rag frozen in his hand. He'd never in all the years he'd known her heard those words come out of her mouth. There was simply nothing he could think to say. No thoughts that could comprehend what she'd just said. Nothing. He took the mug from her in silence, watching her as if some hint might give away why hell had just frozen over.
"Are you about ready to go?" Lorelai asked, hoping to change the subject to another topic.
"Yeah, just let me make sure everything is turned off."
"Ok," Lorelai agreed with a smile, "I'll meet you in the car."
Luke nodded as he watched her slide off the seat. Something was not right with her tonight.
Lorelai laughed as she pushed open the front door. Luke followed close behind her, laughing about what she'd just said.
"Do you want a drink or something?" Luke looked at her strangely. "Not that I have anything … I was just asking, you know, to be polite." His look changed into a smile as he shook his head.
Lorelai grinned as Luke dropped his keys on the table and stepped into the living room. "So, you've started packing?" he asked, looking around at the boxes in the room.
"No," she stated simply. "These have been here for a while. And then when I decided to sell the house, I figured I might as well leave them."
"Why do you have boxes in the living room if you weren't packing?" It was sometimes impossible to understand her … or to even try to understand her.
"Well, I was trying to figure out how to take down the TV. I hate that thing. It doesn't look right in here. Then I realized that there was a box not only for the TV but also for all the things that go with the TV. Then there was a smaller box for the remote and the control panel thing. And after I looked at the instruction booklet, I gave up."
"Would you like me to do it?" Luke asked.
"You know how to do that kind of stuff?"
Luke cocked his head to the side. "Lorelai … I have fixed nearly everything in this house at least once. I think I can figure out how to take down a TV."
Lorelai smiled. "I like the idea of having a man around the house … Fixing things and taking his shirt off while he's working …"
"I don't take my shirt off," Luke huffed, moving over to look at the TV and examine the connectors.
"You'll take your shirt off if I turn on the heat while you are working," she grinned.
Luke rolled his eyes, ignoring her comment as he looked up at the TV. Turning back around, he smiled at the way she was leaning against the side of the couch, watching him.
"What?" he laughed, a little nervously.
"I mean it, Luke … I really like the idea of having not just a man around the house, but of having you around. I know we basically live together now and that we spend almost every night together. But, I don't know … I guess it will just be different when it's our house and …" She sighed, sitting down on the arm of the couch. "I don't know."
Luke smiled as he stepped towards her. "I know exactly what you mean," he soothed. "I just … I just want to be with you. That's all," he shrugged.
Lorelai stood up, about to say something when Luke pressed his finger against her lips. Stepping away from her, Lorelai watched as he lowered himself to the floor. Luke placed his left knee on the floor, wobbling just a bit as he found his balance. Once again, Lorelai opened her mouth to speak. Luke shook his head. "You got to do this the last time. Now, it's my turn."
Smiling down at him, Lorelai took a deep breath and sniffed. She could feel the emotions already rushing to her, so intense and powerful.
"I have waited a long time for this. The first time I saw you, you took my breath away. The world just stopped. And I didn't know why. I really had no clue how important you would become to me. I just saw this woman standing in front of me … and I knew my life would never be the same again." Luke smiled at the fond memory, the image of a young Lorelai flashing in his mind. "I have watched you grow up in this town. I watched you as you tried to raise a kid on your own and prove that you didn't need anyone's help. I poured your coffee in the mornings and watched you live a life that most women wouldn't be able to handle. But you did it as if it were nothing and as if being a single mother and working all day and night were nothing. You made me fall in love with not only you, but Rory too. I know that I have April now and I adore her more than I can ever explain. But I didn't get to watch her grow up. I didn't get to go to her school plays or to buy candy from her at the school fair. I wasn't there for any of that yet I didn't miss out on it because I got to watch Rory grow up. And I got to see what is like to raise a child and to be part of her life. You gave me that gift, Lorelai. I didn't ever know if we'd find the right time to be together. I just always knew that no other woman would ever make me happy. No matter how hard I've tried … from that first moment I saw you, it was only ever you."
Lorelai bit her lip, looking down at Luke. The tears had already filled her eyes and were making her sight blurry. She blinked a few times, using her free hand to try and wipe away the tears.
"I know that we've had a rough few years … but this time is going to be different. No more lies. No more secrets. No more hiding from the truth. Without you, I'm miserable. I don't ever want to go back to that. I don't want to waste any more time."
"Luke," she tried to interrupt him, reaching out her hand to get his attention. She had to tell him. She had to tell him now.
Instead of allowing her to speak, he took her hand in his own. "I guess what I'm trying to say is ..." With his free hand, he reached into his pocket and took out a small, black box. Finally letting go of her hand, he opened the box and held it out to her. "Lorelai Gilmore, will you marry me?"
Lorelai looked down at the ring that was staring back at her. It was a different ring than the last one he'd given her but she didn't even seem to notice the ring or the man standing before her. All she could think of was one thing. "Luke, I'm pregnant," she blurted out.
Luke's eyes narrowed as he watched her face, waiting for the response that he thought was sure to come. "Is that a yes?" he asked, uncertain of how to deal with her announcement.
"What?" Lorelai looked from the ring back to Luke.
"I just asked you to marry me," he reminded her, wondering if she had heard the question at all.
"And I just told you that I'm pregnant," she stated, wondering if Luke had even heard her declaration.
"I asked you to marry me ... I'm holding a ring in my hands..." He was still bent down on his knee, holding the ring out to her, somehow frozen in time as he waited for her answer.
"Luke," Lorelai reached out to grasp his shoulders. "I'm having a baby. We're having a baby," she stated more clearly. "Luke," she repeated, seeing him looking down at the box and back at her.
"Is that a yes or a no?" he asked.
"Luke... did you hear me?" she questioned, her hands still resting on his shoulders.
"Just answer the question," he stated.
Lorelai took a deep breath. This was too much to take in at one time. There were too many thoughts and too much going on inside her head. "Ask me again," she stated, looking from him to the ring once again.
"Will you marry me?" he repeated.
Allowing herself to give in to the moment and push her own news aside for a few seconds, she felt the tears sting her eyes as the weight of the moment finally hit her. She looked down at the ring that was being presented to her. It was a simple ring with a silver band and a diamond in the middle. It wasn't overpowering but it definitely wasn't minute either. Scanning her eyes from the ring up Luke's chest and to his face again, she smiled slowly. Lorelai bit the side of her lip, blinking her eyes a few times and trying to widen them enough to hold back the tears. "Yes," she whispered with a nod, "yes, I will marry you."
Luke listened to her answer. Despite the fact that he knew she'd say yes, he still felt a wave of relief wash over him as she answered in the affirmative. Smiling, he took the ring from the box and reached for her hand. Sliding it slowly onto her finger just as he'd done the first time, he held onto her hand. Looking down at the ring as it rest on her finger, he brushed his thumb over it.
Lorelai smiled as she looked down at the ring. This time, she didn't just believe that they would get married; she knew it would really happen this time.
Pushing himself up, Luke wrapped his arms around Lorelai's waist, spinning her around for a second. When he finally placed her back on his feet, he bent his head forward to kiss her. Crushing her body against his, he held her tightly as his tongue searched out hers. He pressed his hand against her back, trying to draw her impossibly closer. Neither of them were willing to let go of the other until they were finally forced to break for air.
Panting, their foreheads rested against each other. Suddenly, Luke let go of her, stepping back. "What ... what did you say earlier?" he asked, trying to replay his proposal in his head.
Lorelai smiled as a laugh escaped her. "Luke ... I'm pregnant," she announced again. She tried to keep her expression blank, waiting to see how he would respond to the news.
"You're having a baby ..." Luke spoke slowly.
"We're having a baby," she corrected him. "I'm only about ten weeks along."
"Ten weeks..." Luke thought out loud. "That was ..."
"The night Rory left," she reminded him.
Luke laughed, "One kid out of the house and now there's another one right behind it ..."
Lorelai's eyes narrowed. "You are happy about this, aren't you? I mean ... I know we aren't married yet and that we didn't exactly plan this, but we have-"
Grabbing her upper arms, Luke silenced her as he kissed her passionately. Finally pulling away after a few moments, he looked into her eyes. "Yes, I'm happy, Lorelai. Having a child with you is all I've ever really wanted."
Lorelai smiled half-heartedly, looking down for a moment.
"Lorelai ..." Luke prodded, sensing that she was not quite as elated as him.
"I thought that I just wanted to have another child and then when ... when we were apart, I realized that the only thing I really, really wanted was to have a baby with you. I wanted to go to the doctor for check-ups and for you to be sitting in the chair next to me, looking uncomfortable. I wanted to feel the baby kick for the first time and to be able to grab your hand. It made me smile to think about getting annoyed with your aversion for hospitals when I'm in labor. And all of those moments after the baby is born. I just ... I guess I realized that it was never going to happen, you know? And now ... I … I don't know what I feel. I accepted that this was never going to happen. And now ..."
"And now it's happening," he spoke softly. Lorelai nodded.
"I am happy," she reassured him. "I guess I'm just overwhelmed too."
Luke bent his head forward, kissing her again. The kiss quickly escalated and they both clung to each other, kissing feverishly. Luke pushed her back and they both stumbled around for a few steps until the back of Lorelai's legs finally hit the couch. Bending involuntarily at the knees, she tumbled backwards as Luke fell along with her. They bounced as the springs on the couch reacted to the sudden impact of their weights. Neither Luke nor Lorelai noticed the pain in their muscles as their bodies collided. Instead, it somehow added to the intensity of the passion as their lips never ceased to part, neither willing to break away from the other or to let go of their grasp on each other.
A few magazines and the TV remote pressed into Lorelai's back and shoulder, the sharp edges of the magazine pages digging into her skin. She paid them no attention; her arms were pressed to the sides of Luke's body, her hands tight against his lower back. Luke's grasp on her hips remained strong as Lorelai lay beneath him. Only when Luke's lips left her own to trail kisses over the side of her mouth and chin did she finally gasp for air. Filling her lungs in one breath, her head dipped back as she felt Luke's tongue against her neck. He traced an unintelligible pattern as she squirmed beneath him. She now felt the magazine and the remote irritating her skin.
Luke's hands slid up the sides of her body, searching out the hem of her shirt. Lorelai moaned as his fingers brushed against her skin, sliding beneath the top. She arched her back to allow him to pull the shirt up. Sliding her own hand beneath her back, she hurled the magazine and remote from the couch, not caring about where they landed. Finally, Luke freed her from the top. As Lorelai soon as the shirt was flung across the room, Luke's lips were upon her bare skin. His hands ran over her stomach and he pushed himself up into a semi-seated position. As Lorelai lay before him, stretched out on the couch, he slid off of it and knelt before her.
Lowering his head to her stomach, he kissed it tenderly. Lorelai let her head roll back against the arm rest as he circled her belly button with his tongue. She squirmed involuntarily, a laugh escaping her lips. He brushed his hands up and down her sides, sending a shiver through her skin. Lorelai opened her eyes to look down at Luke as he grasped the button on her jeans and held the zipper in his other hand. He slid it down as he looked up, his eyes meeting hers. They both stared at each other for a moment. Lorelai smiled slightly and Luke's hands moved to the waistband of her jeans. She willingly lifted her hips, moaning as his hands slowly slid the jeans down her slender legs. Tossing them aside, he brushed his hand up the insides of her legs. Moving over her ankles to her calves, his hand moved in circles as he made sure to touch every inch of exposed skin.
Moving forward, Luke kissed her knee as his hand brushed under it, sliding up the inside of her thigh. He traced the line of her panties with his finger, his hand moving to her hip. Lorelai laid her head against the arm rest, her eyes closing as she gave in to the sensation of Luke's touch. Every time that she felt his hand on one part of her body, it had moved to another before she could react to it. She moaned lowly as his hand brushed beneath her panty line and tempted her.
Luke's hand slid from her stomach and moved down. As his fingers glided across her, she felt her body twitch in anticipation. This time, his fingers slid beneath the thin material at her inner thigh. Her hips moved up to meet his hand involuntarily. As his thumb brushed lightly against her, she inhaled sharply. Moving in slow circles, he knew exactly where to apply just enough pressure to make her gasp for air.
Lorelai dug her head back into the arm rest, grasping the back of the couch with her right arm. Luke glanced up at her, encouraged to go further by her reaction. She groaned deeply as he rubbed his thumb across her sensitive skin. Pressing harder against her, he moved inside of her, eliciting a new sound with each tiny movement.
Whispering his name, she whimpered as he moved his hand from her thigh. When she opened her eyes to look down at him, she was panting heavily. It took all the strength that she could find to force herself to lift her hips enough for Luke to slide her panties down her legs.
She felt his hand brushing up the outside of her leg and suddenly she felt a renewed vigor. Her body began to once again pump the blood to her brain and she sat up. Rolling her head forward to look at him, she slid her legs from the couch, ordering Luke to stand up.
"What?" he mumbled, watching as she put her feet on the floor and turned her body towards his.
"Stand up," she repeated, intertwining her fingers into his belt loop and trying to make him stand. Giving into her unexpected command, he pushed himself to his feet.
Luke held his hands out, about to ask her what now when she jerked the top button of his jeans loose and undid the zipper in a matter of seconds. Shoving the pants down his legs, she didn't even bother to remove them. "Take off your shirt," she ordered him once again, moving to kneel before him as he kicked his pants aside. Lorelai smiled as his hard member rested directly within her line of sight. Summer was always her favorite season, the time of year when it was too hot for him to bother wearing boxers.
Looking down at her, Luke did as she ordered, unbuttoning a few top buttons before pulling the shirt over his head. As soon as it was slid from his body, Lorelai reached forward, taking him in her right hand. Luke groaned the moment he felt her warm fingers wrap around him. She smiled at the way his body reacted to her, his hips jerking forward as she stroked him gently. Brushing her hand back and forth over his shaft, she enjoyed the feel of it against her palm, sliding beneath her fingers. Luke involuntarily closed his eyes but forced himself to open them again. What she was doing was too intoxicating and alluring to not watch her as she went to work. She stroked him a few more times, increasing the pressure and the speed until she heard Luke's breathing getting heavier. He was taking deep breaths and inhaled unexpectedly as she brushed her thumb over his tip. Finally, she lowered her head down, taking him in her mouth. In that instant, his eyes slid closed as she wrapped her mouth around him, encircling him with her warmth. Her tongue teased him for a few moments until she began to suck him. As she moved her head, Luke groaned, her name escaping from his lips as she sent waves of pleasure through his body. Every movement that she made and the way that he slid in and out of her mouth, he somehow felt every muscle and every vein and every nerve on edge.
Forcing himself to regain some semblance of control, he reached out and grasped her shoulder. If she kept going a second longer, he was going to lose control of himself. Lorelai stopped, looking up at him as he grabbed her shoulders and lifted her up. Trying to scramble to her feet, she stumbled a bit as Luke shoved her back onto the couch. She hit it with a thud, knocking the breath out of her for a second. Her arm slid around his waist as he grasped her knee, shoving it out of his way so that he could plunge into her. As her back landed on the couch, she felt him entering her. It was forceful and intense yet she moaned in delight at the ripping pleasure it sent through her lower body.
Lorelai squirmed a bit as Luke's body pressed down on hers. It took her a moment to regain her senses and to respond to him. Her leg wrapped around his as he moved against her, hard and fast. Luke grasped her upper arms, squeezing them tightly as he thrust into her. Each time that he pushed into her, she felt her breath catch in the back of her throat. She groaned his name as her body shook, his forceful thrusts sending waves throughout her entire body. She arched her back and slid her foot up the back of his leg. As she did so, Luke moved his hand from her shoulder to her thigh. Grasping it, his fingers dug into her skin as he pumped into her. Spreading her legs further apart, he pushed deeper into her, eliciting a new series of moans from her lips.
She grasped the back of the couch with her hand, her knuckles turning white. She could feel every inch of Luke inside of her as he moved harshly against her. He glided into and out of her so effortlessly that she didn't quite know what he was doing, but her body reacted to him involuntarily and she held her eyes closed. It was too much and too intense to open her eyes. Opening her eyes would require her to think. She'd have to tell her body to open them. And right now her body was unable to respond to that request.
As Luke pumped into her, she let her head fall back. Luke rubbed his body against hers, his chest pressing down upon her as he bent his head forward to kiss her neck. Lorelai groaned at the feel of his lips against her neck. All she felt was him. Him inside of her. Him kissing her neck. Him pressing down upon her chest. Him filling her senses and pushing her over the edge. It was too much. She gasped for air as she felt him quickening the pace, pumping into her as he drove his hips forward one final time.
Lorelai groaned deeply, her mouth slightly open as she sucked in a deep, shuddering breath. She had no thoughts, no emotions, nothing as she lay beneath him, her body still reacting to his even as her movements stilled. Luke moved his head to kiss Lorelai's shoulder but she didn't feel his lips. It took another few seconds before she could even move her arms.
As she finally opened her eyes and lifted her head, she leaned her head against Luke's. They were both silent for a few minutes, the sounds of their pants filling the air. Finally, Luke found the ability to move, using his upper arms to push himself up. Lorelai groaned, her back arching as her hips lifted and Luke slid from within her. He fell back against the couch, sitting down as Lorelai struggled to also push herself into a seated position. She still felt a throbbing tingle between her legs. It was just now that her breathing was finally coming under control.
"When do you want to get married?" she asked.
"Yesterday," Luke panted, turning his head to look over at her.
"Sounds good to me," Lorelai breathed, watching as Luke's face broke out into a smile.
"How about next month?" he suggested.
Lorelai nodded. "We have a lot to plan. A baby and a wedding both."
"Is it OK if I admit that I'm actually more excited about the baby?" he asked, a bit sheepishly.
Lorelai smiled, nodding. "So am I." Her smile spread into a wider grin as she looked at Luke. "The wedding almost seems like an afterthought, doesn't it?"
Luke shrugged his shoulders. "I guess we can't get away with just eloping, can we?"
Lorelai thought about it for a moment. "No, I don't think we can. My mother would never forgive me for doing that to her twice."
"You think she'd go for meeting us at City Hall and being a witness for Judge Bailey?" Luke suggested, already knowing Lorelai's response.
"I don't know what we can do, Luke. I don't know," she sighed.
Luke looked at her with a blank expression and shrugged his shoulders. "I guess we have to tell her first," he suggested.
"Let's talk about that later," Lorelai grinned. Grabbing the throw from the back of the couch, she wrapped it around her body. As she stood from the couch, she almost seemed to bounce across the room. "I now have an excuse to eat anything I want …" she declared, moving to the desk to open a drawer.
Luke watched as she pulled out a large file and began to flip through it, tossing a few things to the side. "You already eat whatever you want."
"Yes, but now I have a good excuse. Before I had nothing..." She looked over at him, "Chinese or Thai?" she asked, holding up two take-out menus. "I figure that I can go get the wings and you can pick up the barbeque. The Chinese place will deliver and so will the sub shop around the corner."
"Lorelai," Luke interrupted her. "You are pregnant, not a garbage disposal."
She stopped flipping through the menus and looked at him in shock.
"You can't eat all of that when you're pregnant…"
"I did it before," she protested, holding onto the edge of the blanket as it skimmed the floor.
"Well, you weren't pregnant with my child before," he stated rather simply.
Lorelai's eyes narrowed and she dropped the menus down. "Fine," she huffed. "Can I at least get some egg rolls?"
"We'll see," Luke conceded. "Give me the folder and we'll find something decent to eat."
Lorelai's frown turned into a grin as she grabbed the file and bounced back to the couch, plopping down next to Luke.
"Tomorrow," he stated, looking at her purposefully, "you are going to start eating healthy."
"But tonight I can eat whatever I want!" she grinned, opening the folder again. "Do you think the baby would like curry chicken?" she smiled, holding up a menu for an Indian diner in Hartford. Luke shook his head. "I think it would," she mumbled, flipping through the folder.