Saturday, January 6, 2001 – The Feast of the Epiphany

Luke glanced over as Lorelai sat up and pulled away from him. She turned to face him, tucking one leg under her as he looked at her questioningly.

"Luke," she began in a low voice.

Luke frowned at the serious tone of her voice and murmured, "Movie's still on, we're not supposed to talk."

"I love that you give me coffee even though you hate that I drink so much of it," she said in a rush, unable to form a coherent thought, but speaking truly from her heart. "I love that I can call you, anytime, for anything, and I know that you'll be there for me." Luke stared at her wide eyed, not daring to breathe. "I love that you love my kid, and I love that I can talk to you about anything. I love that you let me be myself, even when I'm feeling particularly obnoxious, or scared, or happy or sad." She reached up and touched his cheek gently. "I love it when you argue with me, scowl at me and rant at me, or make snarky comments about my food, because I know that if you didn't care, you wouldn't bother." Lorelai took a deep shaky breath. "I love that I need you, because for the longest time I was afraid that I didn't need anyone other than Rory, and that's not really what I want." She trailed her fingers down his cheek to his mouth and touched his lips softly. "I love the way you kiss, and the way you smell, and how safe I feel in your arms. I love that you are the only man who has ever slept in my house," she said in the barest whisper.

"Lorelai," he croaked.

She shook her head slowly and forced the lump in her throat down. "I know that you probably don't want to hear this, and I know that it could possibly ruin everything, but I love you, Luke." She wrinkled her nose as she watched his reaction nervously. "I'm in love with you."

His breath rushed from his lungs as he asked, "Really?"

Lorelai nodded and whispered, "I think I'm pretty sure of it."

Luke nodded quickly as he digested what she had just told. He cleared his throat and then said, "I'm not as dumb as Harry. I've known that I've been in love with you for a long time," he admitted, a small smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.

"Oh, thank God for smart men," Lorelai exhaled in a rush. She smiled brilliantly and said, "What I love most of all is that you're the only one I have ever said that to." She launched herself at him, pressing her lips to his, her fingers frantic as they fluttered over his face and into his hair. Luke kissed her back, parting her lips with his as he hauled her into his lap, tasting her, breathing her in, searching for everything she had just told him in her kiss.

When she pulled away wide eyed and gasping for air, Luke smoothed his hand over her hair and down to the soft wool of her sweater. "You look so pretty," he whispered, his voice tinged with wonder and the words sounding lame even to his own ears.

"No talking, kissing," she said breathlessly.

Luke shook his head slowly and said, "Talking and kissing," as he cupped the back of her head and pulled her down to him. His tongue found hers, circling it slowly, massaging it with deliberate promise, drawing her in and giving himself in return. He broke the kiss, pressing his forehead to hers as he captured her wrist and placed her hand over his heart. "Do you feel that?" he asked in a raspy voice. When she hummed her confirmation, he chuckled softly and said, "The first time you kissed me, I thought it would burst."

"Luke," she sighed, threading her fingers through his hair and tangling them in the soft curls at his neck.

"I wanted to keep on kissing you, drunk or not. You said that I was a gentleman, I wasn't. I mean, I really didn't want to be," he confessed in soft throaty voice. "I just couldn't have taken it if things had gone further than they did, and you said, well, basically what you said the next day. I wasn't a gentleman, I was a coward."

"Oh, Luke," she said sadly.

He kissed her tenderly, his lips clinging to hers even as he pulled away. "The kisses were hard enough to try not to think about."

"I wanted you, I just didn't know if you… I kind of threw myself at you," she said with a breathy laugh.

"And I was right there waiting to catch you, trust me," he assured her.

"I do," she whispered. Lorelai pressed a tiny kiss to the corner of his mouth. "I trust you. And, you're no coward, you walked right into this tonight," she said as she pecked soft lingering kisses to his cheek and jaw. "I had a plan."

"I had hopes," he answered. Luke's hand slid up the nape of her neck and into her hair as he pressed his lips to hers and kissed her with everything he had been holding back for so long. Their lips parted as he slid to the side, shifting to stretch out on the couch and holding her tightly to him. "No more talking, kissing," he murmured as his head touched the armrest and he straightened out on the couch. He pulled her down to him and kissed her hard and hot, pressing up into her soft curves.

Lorelai broke away, trailing hot, wet kisses over his jaw and down to his neck. She drew greedily on his skin and whispered, "Can you hear it?"

"Hear what?" he asked in a whisper.

"My heart, it's like a drum," she told him. "Not just any drum," she added as she nibbled her way up to his ear. "It's like John Bonham is trying to outdo Buddy Rich in there." She bit his earlobe gently and he growled deep in his throat, setting her nerve endings on fire. "I can feel yours," she whispered. Lorelai lifted her head and fused her lips to his, kissing him frantically as her fingers scrambled for the buttons on his shirt. Luke's hands skimmed over her back, curving into the dip of her waist, molding to her ribcage, and splaying over her back as he sought to touch every bit of her.

With a frustrated moan, Lorelai tore her mouth from his and sat back, impatiently pushing the plastic buttons that trailed down the front of him through their buttonholes, desperate to get to him. She tugged at the shirt, trying to free it from his waistband as his hands found her hips, holding her steady on top of him. She caught her bottom lip between her teeth, her brow furrowed in fierce concentration as she worked the buttons only to find a tight white t-shirt beneath the soft denim. "You wear too many clothes," she muttered under her breath as she parted the shirt and ran her hands up over the planes of his chest.

"This was not chosen by color blind, diabetic glaucoma patients," Luke said with a chuckle as he ran his hands down her arms, enjoying the feel of the rich, soft wool under his fingertips.

"No, this was picked out by a woman who likes that certain people like the way her sweaters fit," she told him with a sly smile.

"It fits perfectly," he growled.

"Thank you," she said primly. Lorelai sat back and reached for the hem of the sweater, crossing her arms and pulled it up over her head, and shaking one arm to free her hand from a sleeve. The fine cashmere fell to the floor in a heap as she stared down at him boldly.

"Lorelai," he breathed, his hands automatically reaching for her waist and raising a flurry of gooosebumps as his cool fingertips touched her heated skin.

"I want you," she whispered. "It's still Christmas, and I want you." Luke sat up, wrapping his arms around her tightly as he kissed her passionately. He pressed wet open-mouthed kisses to the creamy skin of her neck, his breath warming her as he laved the pulse that throbbed in her throat, and sucked gently on tender flesh. His palms cupped her ribs and his thumbs brushed the sides of her breasts. "Luke," she murmured, her voice throaty and aching. "The sweater thing was kind of a blatant invitation," she told him with a husky laugh.

"I don't want to rush you," he murmured against her skin.

Lorelai raked her nails over is back before she began to push the denim shirt off of his broad shoulders. "I'm going to rush you."

"Lorelai, we, uh," he said as she pushed him back and began to tug the sleeves down his arms.

"Let go," she ordered. When he dropped his arms to his sides, she skimmed the shirt off as he pulled his hands free. Lorelai looked down at the tight white undershirt he still wore, and touched her fingertip to the dip of its vee neck. She marveled at how tan his skin looked next to the snowy white shirt, she watched as his adam's apple bobbed in response to her fingers trailing over his throat. "For the last two nights you slept on my couch," she said softly as she traced delicate swirls and curlicues over his skin. Lorelai raised her eyes slowly, allowing them to linger on his soft pink lips for a moment before they locked on his. "Tonight, you're sleeping in my bed."

Luke's lips twitched as he tried to smother the grin that threatened. "I am, huh?" he asked gruffly.

Lorelai nodded solemnly as she kept her eyes on his. "Yes. I'm sorry, but yes, you are."

"I'm not sorry to hear that," he said as he ran his hands over the soft skin of her back. He traced the curve of her spine with his fingertips, letting them trail teasingly down into the gap in the waistband of her jeans. "This couch sucks," he muttered.

"You'll be naked," she warned him with a feline smile.

"Will you be too?"

"More than likely," she answered with a nod.

"This is really happening?" he asked uncertainly.

"Oh yeah, this is really happening," she said with a laugh.

Luke nodded and said, "Just making sure." He kissed her once more, his lips sweet and gentle, but firm and sure as he drew her in. His tongue danced slowly over hers as he sighed into her waiting mouth, and then pulled away reluctantly. "Hang on," he ordered as he planted one hand on the couch and turned so that his feet hit the floor. He ran his hands over her denim clad thighs and then cupped her bottom as he murmured, "Help me out, here."

Lorelai encircled his neck as she pressed her heels into the couch cushions to lift her weight from his lap. Luke stood up, and adjusted her in his arms as she wrapped her legs securely around his waist and giggled into his neck. Luke smiled as he blew her hair away from his lips, and started for the stairs. "You are not," she chuckled as she lifted her head.

"Stop squirming," he grunted as he lifted his foot onto the first step.

"You'll break your back," she laughed. "Luke, put me down."

"I'm trying to be romantic, dammit," he complained.

Lorelai unlocked her legs and lowered her feet until she found the step behind her. She flashed him a luminescent smile and then pressed her lips to his. She shook her head slowly as she gazed into his deep blue eyes and said, "The crazy must have rubbed off on you. I don't need romantic, I need you." She took his hand and laced her fingers through hers, folding her arm into the small of her back as she turned and led him slowly up the stairs.

She paused at her bedroom door and turned back to him. "You're the only boy I've ever taken to my room."

Luke smirked and said, "I'm no boy, and I've been in your room lots of times."

"To fix things, yeah, but you're the only guy I've ever, uh," she trailed off as she glanced nervously into the room.

"Good," Luke said with a smug smile.

Lorelai laughed and said, "If it didn't look so damn sexy on you, I'd stick a pin in that ego of yours."

"I'm sorry, weren't you telling me that to boost my ego?" he asked innocently.

Lorelai grinned and said, "I was telling you that because it's true. And now that I think about it, I think you are the only guy who has ever been in my room, period."

"Let's keep it that way," Luke said as he kissed her firmly. "Besides, I've never seen it this clean," he added with a grin.

"I was trying to make a good impression," Lorelai answered playfully.

He kissed her again, his lips softening as he parted hers, falling into her kiss as he inched her into the room, pressing their joined hands into the small of her back as each kiss grew deeper and more heated.

A foot from the bed, Luke's feet stopped shuffling, and when Lorelai took another step back, their lips parted. "Why'd you stop?" she cried plaintively as she reached for him.

"Are you sure?" he rasped.

Lorelai's eyes widened, and then she rolled them meaningfully. "Look at me, Luke," she laughed as she gestured to her bra and jeans.

"I need you to be sure," he said, loosening his hold on her hand and keeping his eyes planted firmly on her face because looking anywhere else was just too tempting.

"Am I going to have to do everything myself?" she teased as she unbuttoned her jeans and slowly lowered the zipper. She smiled as the sound caught his attention and his eyes soon followed.

Luke batted her hand away, his gaze roving over her already exposed skin with patient deliberation. "No," he said softly. "It's just that I've been very careful so far," he said in a low rumble. "If I start touching you, I won't stop, Lorelai," he told her as his eyes met hers again.

"I don't want you to stop. There, is that clear enough?" she asked, cocking her head as she plucked at the stark white cotton of his shirt. Luke nodded once and immediately stripped his t-shirt off, granting her a glorious view of his muscular chest and arms. "Don't stop," she said softly as she stroked the soft hair on his chest.

One hand snaked out and caught her by the waist, pulling her to him roughly as he bent his head and kissed her passionately. He propelled her the final twelve inches to the edge of the bed, and gently nudged her onto the mattress, bracing himself on one knee and one hand as he followed her down. His lips were everywhere; buried in her soft, fragrant hair, plundering her mouth, nipping at her jaw, her ear, her neck. His hand, warm and calloused, glided over her skin, stroking the supple softness of her curves, teasing her taut nipples through the coarse lace that covered them. He moved steadily lower, claiming her with his hands, marking her lips and tongue, breathing her in deeply and flooding his senses with every bit of her. His lips found the soft curve of her breast, his teeth tugged impatiently at the fabric barrier that both aroused and annoyed him. He covered one tightly beaded tip with his open mouth and drew deeply, pulling her in to the wet warmth of his mouth and worrying the aching flesh with is tongue.

"Luke," she breathed, fisting her hands in his hair.

Luke slid one finger under the front clasp of her bra and lifted, sliding the plastic catch free and brushing the lace from her other breast impatiently. He covered her with his palm, curling his long fingers into the soft mound as his groan of pleasure overtook her moan of frustration. He released her, moving to lavish the same attentions on her bare breast as he swept the rest of the fabric aside, warming her damp skin with his hand. He sucked gently, teasing her with light flicks of his tongue before taking her harder, deeper. Lorelai arched off of the mattress, circling her hips and pressing against him, mindlessly seeking the friction she craved. Luke caressed both of her breasts, cupping them gently before squeezing them together and burying his lips in the valley between them. He nuzzled the soft underside of one as his fingers memorized each and every contour of the other. "You smell incredible," he whispered against her skin, drawing in the musky scent of perfume, vanilla body lotion and Lorelai. He kissed his way back up to her chest, sliding the tip of his tongue over her freckles in a maddening game of connect the dots.

One hand slid down over her hip to the soft denim that covered her thigh, his fingers splaying possessively as he kneaded her muscle gently. He kissed his way down her flat stomach, pausing to dawdle at her navel, flicking his tongue into the shallow indention teasingly. "Oh my god," Lorelai gasped.

"What?" he asked, his voice humming against her skin as he shifted off of the edge of the bed, bending over her prone body.

"You're so good at this," she said with an awed laugh.

"You boosting my ego again so you can pop it?" he asked as he looked up at her. He turned the flaps of her zipper back, creating a vee of fabric highlighting her lacy panties. He pressed a kiss to the very bottom of the vee and Lorelai moaned loudly.

His chin brushed against the sensitive skin just above her panties as she panted, "No boost." As he pressed his lips to the pale blue lace and his breath seeped through to her soft curls. "I want you," she whispered.

"Lorelai, you have no idea," Luke said in a deep husky drawl.

"No, you have no idea," she responded automatically.

"Geez, you're gonna fight with me now?" he groaned as he pressed his lips to the lace that covered her once more.

"No fighting," she gasped.

"Good," he breathed, watching her respond as his warm breath washed over her.

"I'm a lover, not a fighter," she murmured.

"Oh, you're a fighter," he chuckled as he lowered his lips to her again, this time pressing his tongue against the rough fabric.

"Wait, wait," she panted. When he looked up with a worried frown, she shook her head and said, "I can't see you." Lorelai scrambled back onto the bed, straightening her legs as she pressed onto the pillows. She held her hand out to him and said, "Come up here."

Luke crawled up over her placing one hand in front of the other, his muscles bunching and smoothing once more under his taut skin. He braced one hand on the pillow next to her head, and his eyebrows shot up as it sank down into it. A slow smile spread across his face as he asked, "Feather pillows?"

Lorelai grinned up at him and said, "Goose down, but don't get any funny ideas."

Their eyes met, and for a moment they stayed locked in the simple warmth of each other's smile. Lorelai's hands found their way to his torso, smoothing over his tight stomach, around his ribs and up over the hard muscles in his back. She batted her eyelashes flirtatiously and murmured, "You're awful pretty."

"Stop," he growled as he bent to kiss her.

When he pulled away, Lorelai squeezed his biceps appreciatively and said, "Do it again," as she flashed him a challenging smile.

Luke lowered himself slowly, the hard ridge in his jeans pressing insistently into the exposed lace of her panties, as he brushed his lips over hers and murmured, "Stop distracting me."

"Me?" she asked innocently as she clamped one leg over his to hold him there and ran her hands greedily over his back of his jeans.

"I might not remember where I was," he said in a low dangerous voice. "Don't make me have to start all over again," he threatened.

"Oh no, not that," she gasped in a horrified tone.

"Yes, that," he said as he kissed her slowly, lingeringly, his lips gliding over hers, tasting her and testing her.

"Wow, you meant all the way back there," she asked with a laugh. "I'm not sure that I could take that."

"Where was I?" he wondered aloud as he pushed away from the pillows.

He nuzzled into her neck, nipping her ear playfully as she said, "Lower."

"Lower?" Luke asked as he scattered kisses over her collarbone.

"Yes, lower," Lorelai said as she placed her hands on his shoulders and pressed him down gently.

"Oh, here?" he asked as he pressed his mouth to the top of her breast.

"Much lower," Lorelai said with a laugh as she pressed harder on his shoulders.

"Must have been here," he said as he placed a soft kiss to her belly button.

"Lower, please, lower," Lorelai laughed helplessly.

"I remember now," he said in a deep gravelly voice. He caught the elastic of her panties between his teeth and gave them a playful tug.

"You're killing me," she giggled.

"Want me, Lorelai?" he asked with a slow smile.

"So much," she replied easily.

Luke ran his hands over the front of her jeans, his fingers tracing the outline of the tiny coin pocket in front. "No swan," he said quietly.

"Swan?" she asked blankly.

"On your jeans, there's no swan," he said with a heavy sigh of disappointment.

"No, no swan," she said with a tender smile.

"I would buy you seven pairs of swan jeans," he told her solemnly.

Lorelai smiled and said, "You like jeans."

"I like you in jeans," he countered.

"Thank you," she whispered.

"Anytime," he said as he hooked his fingers into her waistband and began to peel her jeans down over her legs.

As he carefully pulled them free of her feet Lorelai asked, "You think you could maybe lose yours while you're down there?"

"You bet," Luke answered with a nod. He slipped off of the end of the bed and quickly stripped out of his jeans while Lorelai watched, admiring the smattering of hair that dusted his chest and narrowed at his trim waist. Luke stood up, but quickly dived for the bed once more, affording her only a glimpse of his straining boxer briefs.

She smiled and asked softly, "Shy boy?"

"Man whose not gonna stand around in his underwear," he countered as he ran his hands up the length of her legs. He massaged her thighs gently, his fingers trembling slightly with scarcely contained need. "Um, do we need to talk about, uh, stuff?" he asked gruffly.

"Oh," Lorelai whispered, her mouth forming the letter. "Um, well, yeah. I'm, uh, on the pill," she began slowly.

"It's, um, been a while," he said as he ducked his head slightly.

"Me too," she admitted. "I'm, um, good though," she told him. Lorelai laughed as the words tumbled out of her mouth. "I mean, I'm not bragging here, although I think I'm pretty good," she added, lowering her voice. "What I'm trying to say, but can't seem to spit out, is that I'm clean, you know healthy," she babbled.

Luke couldn't contain his smile as he said, "Me too." He ran his fingertips along the lacy edges of her panties. "Healthy wouldn't be the first word I'd pick for you," he said with a low chuckle.

"Hey!" she protested, swatting his shoulder.

He grinned as he looked up at her and said, "But I'm definitely willing to believe that you're good."

He let his fingertips dip under the elastic teasingly, and then curled his fingers around the lace. Lorelai raised her hips and Luke pulled her panties slowly down her legs, keeping his eyes locked on the fabric until he dropped them over the edge of the bed. Only then did he allow himself to feast his eyes on her. Luke sucked in his breath, dazzled by the sight of Lorelai Gilmore lying naked on the bed, wanting him, waiting for him. He blinked, and felt a moment of panic, thinking that she wasn't really there, that this wasn't really happening.

"Luke?" she called softly.

"You're amazing," he said at last, and then his hands were on her.

His lips followed shortly after, licking, tasting and stroking his way up her long legs. Unable to resist, he parted her thighs with his hands and simply pressed his face to her sex, breathing in the scent of her arousal as tangible proof that he was indeed the man who brought her there. His tongue darted out, touching her tentatively for a moment, and then sinking into her wet heat as she moaned her approval. Lorelai's nails dug into his shoulders as he circled her slowly, drawing her onto his tongue and into his mouth. Driven by her tiny sighs, Luke feasted on her, burying his lips and teeth and tongue deep in her folds, driving her up as he lapped greedily at her juices. Lorelai's hands flew to his head, her fingers curling into his hair as she undulated against him, her breath caught in her lungs, trapped by the waves of pleasure coursing through her. "Luke," she whispered urgently. The sound of his name spoken softly in that aching tone sent him into a frenzy. He drew her into his eager mouth as he pressed his finger into her, groaning against her as her walls closed tightly around him. "Luke!" she gasped as she pushed up onto the pillows, just out of his reach.

"I'm sorry, I…" he whispered, instantly contrite.

Lorelai saw the bereft look on his face and reached for him. "No, no, God, no," she said quickly. "Luke…" she started and then stopped. "Oh, Luke," she said with a breathy laugh as she grasped his arms and pulled him up to her. "Nothing to be sorry for at all. It's just, whoa," she chuckled softly. "You have talent. Serious talent, my friend," she said as she caressed his cheek and looked him straight in the eye. "I just, I need, I want us to be together," she explained softly.

"Together," he repeated.

"Yes. I want to be with you," she told him, her eyes searching his for understanding. "Next time, you can use the whole arsenal, I promise, but right now…" she trailed off with a helpless shrug.

"Next time," he said as if it never occurred to him that this could happen again.

Lorelai smiled as she reached to push his boxer briefs over his hips. "Yes, next time, but right now, together," she whispered as she trailed her fingers along the length of him as she lay back on the pillows once more, her eyelids heavy as she looked up at him, nearly masking bright blue eyes hazy with desire.

Luke wet his lips with the tip of his tongue, and nodded again as he pushed his boxers the rest of the way down his legs and kicked them off of his feet with a softly muttered oath. He looked down at her, and Lorelai beckoned him to her, welcoming him into her embrace. Luke positioned himself at her parted thighs, fighting the urge to close his eyes, unwilling to miss one moment with her. Lorelai guided him into her, a soft sigh of relief slipping past her parted lips as he sank slowly into her heat. "You feel so good," she whispered as he pressed deeper, sheathing himself in her.

A breathless laugh rushed from him, but no words would come as he swallowed hard, his eyes locked on hers as he lowered himself onto his elbows, framing her with his arms. Lorelai circled her hips, and he began to move slowly, withdrawing to the brink and then letting himself fall into her, the pace increasing with each deliciously tortuous stroke. Lorelai's hands skimmed over his back and cupped his ass, drawing him closer, urging him on, desperate for more. He watched her carefully; cataloging each moan, each whisper, each whimper and trying to commit them to memory. Lorelai closed her eyes savoring the feel of him deep inside of her, his back broad and strong, his arms, cradling her. She opened her eyes and found his dark with desire, and warm with emotion.

"Luke," she said breathlessly as she arched her neck, pressing her head back into the soft pillow as she felt the heat of her climax consuming her.

Luke drove into her, pushing her higher, unable to hold back any longer. When she cried out, he was lost, rising to meet her with a strangled groan of release, and then hanging his head as he murmured her name over and over, his voice hoarse and his breathing labored. His arms quivered as he continued to move inside of her slowly. He pressed his face to her neck, collapsing onto her as she wrapped her arms around him tightly, whispering nonsensical little words of comfort into his ear.

Finally, he slowed, lifting himself slightly to allow her to catch her breath as he pressed hundreds of tiny, worshipful kisses to her face and hair. Lorelai smiled lazily as she stared up at the ceiling, her hands busily stroking his back, his hair, his neck. Incapable of remaining silent for too long, Lorelai murmured, "Wow." Luke laughed softly and then nodded a bit. "You okay?" she asked smugly.

"Please, God, tell me you didn't fake that," he growled into her ear.

Lorelai burst out laughing as she hugged him tightly and said, "I'm not that good of an actress."

Luke lifted his head and pressed a gentle kiss to her lips. "I've seen other performances," he said with a pointed stare.

Lorelai grinned broadly and framed his face in her hands. "That beat the crap out of frankincense and myrrh. You are worth your weight in gold."

Luke kissed her again and then pressed his forehead to hers as he said, "We left the fire going, candles."

Lorelai made a soft sobbing noise and moaned, "But I've been ravaged, I can't move!"

Luke nodded and said, "So, I guess I'm going down." When she quirked an eyebrow at him he shook his head and said, "Don't even. I'm going to go downstairs to put out the fire and blow out the candles."

"Still sounds dirty, even when you say it that way," she teased.

Luke shook his head and kissed her again before pushing himself up off of her. He spotted his boxer briefs hanging on the bedpost, grabbed them, and pulled them on quickly. "A man with your talents shouldn't be so modest," Lorelai observed as she rolled up onto her elbow and watched him try to untangle his jeans.

"See, now, you keep sayin' stuff like that, and I'll know you were faking," he said as he stepped into his jeans, rising up on his toes slightly as he pulled the zipper up.

Lorelai flashed him a devilish smile and said, "Well, I could keep reassuring you, or I could just use this seed of doubt as an incentive."

Luke left the button on his jeans undone as he stopped and looked at her, bare and beautiful in the center of the quilt. He quickly pressed one knee on the bed as he leaned down to kiss her. "Don't you dare fall asleep without me," he said in a low voice.

"Hurry, it's been a long day," she called after him teasingly.

Luke rolled his eyes as he walked from the room. When he reached the steps, he called back over his shoulder, "I'm taking the Christmas lights down when we get up."

"Who said I'm letting you out of bed?" she called back, her laugh happy and free as it followed him down the stairs.

"I think this may be my new favorite holiday," Luke murmured to himself as he hurried into the living room, blowing out the candles spaced on the mantle before he began to bank the remains of the fire.

Lorelai rolled onto her back and shivered slightly, already missing the warmth of his body. She stretched contentedly, pulled back one corner of the covers, rolled over and scotched down into the sheets. After a few minutes, she called loudly, "I'm lonely!"

"Keep your pants on!" he called back.

"I'm not wearing any pants," she said with a giddy laugh.

She heard his bare feet pounding on the steps before he appeared. He walked into the room and said, "Which is why I'm back."

Lorelai giggled as she held the blankets back in invitation. "This is now a no pants zone," she told him sternly.

Luke quickly shucked his jeans and shorts and then crawled into the bed beside her. The moment he settled onto the pillow, Lorelai curled herself up against him, smiling softly as she traced his fingers splayed over his stomach. He watched her for a moment and then asked, "What?"

Lorelai rubbed her cheek against his shoulder and then shook her head slightly. "Nothing, I just think we made a very wise decision."

Luke nodded slowly and then smiled as he tightened his arm around her. "Yep, Luke. He was the fourth wise man, you just never hear about him."

The End