DISCLAIMER: I think we all know this by now, unless somehow all of your Gilmore Girls viewing has been done without watching any credits or reading any stories about the show; Amy-Sherman Palladino/Dorothy Parker Drank Here Productions wrote it, Hofflund-Polone produced it and Warner Bros. Television gave it the facilities and means to film it and air it. All the programs, networks, universities and products mentioned within are the property and trademarks of their respective owners, and no disrespect is meant or implied. All of the Parisian and French attractions mentioned in this story are the property of their various owners and if there are any errors on how I portrayed them, please feel free to let me know. However I kind of stand by my portrayal of O'Hare Airport as a living nightmare of an airfield.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: I'm going to get this out of the way before anything else; this story does not have a positive view about Rory. This is her if she got Harvard, decided to have sex with Jess and start the attitude she got once she met Logan a few years early, and isn't being nice at all to either Lorelai or Paris. I will not apologize for it, and it will not be toned down for future chapters. You want the Rory that does no wrong, many stories have that point of view already. This is not that one. With that out of the way...you all remember when I said this was going to be written between Longing chapters, right? Back in the waning days of 2009? Yeah, this story kind of ran away from me, and now you're reading the near 90,000 word result of not putting this out earlier  (150 days of having this document open, for transparency's sake). And even then, I have not posted all I have written and this is just the first half of this part of the story. I hope that my next chapter for this will come out before the mid-term elections next year (with me, no promises though :-/). Again, sorry for taking so long and I hope you enjoy what is usually a fic meant for an Epic Proportions update in the heat of July. This is truly a labor of love and shows how much I care about the love these two women would share beyond the show. Heck, this story has been so long I've had two laptops where I've written it on. I also do realize that in the show, Lorelai would not be as receptive to some of Paris's overtures as she would be, say Max or Christopher. But this is a different coupling and it's clear here Paris only wants to make Lorelai happy, not spend money on her just to stroke her own ego, and I have tried to make it so that Lorelai isn't asking for handouts or anything and remains her independent self. My thanks to everyone who has read this story, along with Danielle as usual, and Marieke, who pretty much kept me bonded to LorPar even as my inspiration waned a few years back.
SPOILERS: Nothing spoiled here besides a different take on the backpacking trip between seasons three and four, along with some changes to how Lorelai bought the Inn and some differences involving Paris's summer before she ended up at Yale.
ARCHIVING: Starting out on Passion and Perfection exclusively for the International Day of Femslash, and eventually to GilmoreGirlsFemslash. This is not being posted to ff.net because it's too explicit to meet that site's TOS. Anyone else, ask before archiving.

The Innkeeper's Lover
By Nate

Chapter Four
Unexpected Foreign Journeys & Beautiful Parisian Romances

Lorelai was completely spent. When she had begun to plan her backpacking trip with Rory years and years before, she figured that it would be a breeze. Budget correctly, prepare herself for the rigors of travel for nearly a month and a half and prepare herself for odd sleeping arrangements, along with getting used to having nearly forty pounds of things on her back every day for nearly sixty days.

Truly, it had been an experience so far living out of one bag and seeing Europe with her daughter. She loved looking at everything and having her daughter give her little facts she didn't know about. Thankfully her years in innkeeping also meant that learning foreign languages was almost a requirement, so finally she was able to use her German, Czech, Dutch and French language skills to ask for more than if a guest needed a fresh towel or maid service, and made her seem much better to the locals than an average American tourist.

As she and Rory neared the French capital on a discount bus however, the rigors of travel were finally getting to the 35 year-old woman. She was looking forward to the three day stop in Paris, although the only accommodation she could seem to find was a hostel on the edge of the city. One she had read during a visit at an internet café which was described as 'basic' and 'spartan'. She had been ready to spoil herself with at least one night at least in a respectable mid-priced hotel, but Rory vetoed it, claiming that 'we need to experience this trip in a completely off-the-cuff way, and we can't do that at a hotel'. Although she really wanted to overrule her daughter and knew she had plenty to pay for a room, she ceded to her daughter's wishes to not get into an argument with her.

One of the problems she had found was that Rory spent most of her time buried in writing letters to Jess and making phone calls to hash out details about Harvard rather than actually enjoying the travel. While she was off to explore central Vienna Rory was at the hostel taking advantage of their Internet to have a chat with Jess that would have otherwise been dreadfully boring.

It also reminded her that Rory had a boyfriend that that was supporting her and was available most of the time. As she looked out the window while the bus made its way north up the A6 from Lyon she kept recalling that the last time her and Paris were able to make contact was a few days ago in a way too short to satisfy either of them.

The future Yalie had made her way west for travels herself, deciding to take a week in Seattle and Vancouver with her father for a driving trip along the Sea to Sky Highway and US 101 before hitting both cities and heading west to meet her nanny in Boise to help her and the woman's family get settled in. She sent updates and Lorelai did the same through email, but somehow Rory had completely hijacked the cell phone she purchased for the purposes of her own needs. She kept asking for it back but when she asked why, Rory reminded her she was now buying the most minutes and cards for the phone, closing the argument off and basically killing one of the channels Lorelai and Paris hoped to have over the next two months.

Handwritten letters were also a problem as addresses changed and mail was slow, along with her daughter telling her not to buy stamps. "We'll just buy things to give to everyone," she said. "Why waste money on stamps we can't use after we cross a border?" The problem was, what do you get the girl who has everything, as Lorelai still had not found the perfect thing to buy Paris on her travels.

E-mails had to be sent on the fly as inevitably sessions in Hotmail to send an update were either broken apart by Emily popping on and asking for an MSN chat or Rory's natural curiosity. Exchanges became shorter, more rushed, the only way Lorelai could say anything was sending Rory off for food to get in a couple minutes of writing and hope her courage kept up. Lorelai had begun to find it hard to keep up.

Paris had the same distractions as she made her way back out east. Her father was indeed a well-meaning, although distant parent, and he kept a close eye on things, restricting her internet time and deciding to institute a 'no cell phones' rule on the road, intending for Paris to experience travel like he did in the 70's, Easy Rider style (albeit in a Land Rover with satellite radio and GPS).  Though she found it fun and certainly took many pictures and detours on her travels, she found communications with the older woman to be waning. She remembered reading that Rory controlled the cell phone almost sent her into anguish and gristled at the exchanges with Lorelai online which inevitably lead to the words 'damn it, mom's on, cu' too many times.

Her intention had to been to travel back home after settling Francisca down and spending the rest of the summer lazing around until August just after the family reunion a couple weeks later, delayed from its original date due to a wedding that gave the venue much more money than the Gellars pushing the date forward, which it seemed not many in the family minded. Thankfully she had nothing more to play with Yale as her room was taken care of, her primary class choices were known to her advisors and she had made herself known to her instructors before leaving. Her father diverged west in Boise to head to Jakarta and she took her time getting home by spending the Yellowstone area, another night in Salt Lake City, and then two more days to get to Denver to catch her flight home after a transfer at Chicago O'Hare, along with a few nights in small towns along the way. The woman had so much time to herself, but kept looking to her right in the SUV, missing someone to share it with. The young woman was only beginning to find herself with the beguiling innkeeper and a vacation had broken up the natural chemistry they had been building deeply.

It had been a trip to remember, but she was looking forward to getting home, although she knew she would have her usual hassles at O'Hare, or as Harold called unapologetically, "O'Hell", as inevitably every overseas trip he would end up having a bit of a hassle getting out of Chicago. This was also the case for Paris as what should have been a simple two-hour layover turned into an unexpected overnight in the Windy City due to a hailstorm and almost-tornado which had affected Chicagoland enough to shut down her flight back to Bradley for the night.

The blonde at least was thankful that she was able to stay at the landmark Hilton surrounded by the airport, with more than enough money to boot. If there was one racket she wanted to get into, it was Chilton graduation. If she had gotten into Harvard she wouldn't have had the entirety of Hartford society feeling sorry for her and offering their sympathies to her, in the form of cold, hard cash.

Matron after scion offered her their congrats...then placed envelopes in her hand afterwards. She would tell no one of how proud Richard Gilmore was to see he turned the Gellars into a Yale family with his glowing recommendations of the school, to the tune of a $7,500 non-taxable 'gift' to the girl, knowing somehow he would become the girl's protégé in New Haven in lieu of Rory.

Soon she was happy to not be in Harvard. Although she didn't need the money, she had $35,000 to have the summer of her lifetime, of which only $8,000 had been spent on her Pacific Northwest travels, with airfare, car rental and gas covered by her father completely. The only real outlay so far had been her hotels, but smart Pricelining and negotiations at the desk had brought her costs near to nothing. Her O'Hare hotel stay was covered by her extreme amount of HHonors points saved over the years. So she kicked back hearing the rain against her window on the bed enjoying a delicious and sinful Chicago-style thin crust pizza with everything she loved (and tested her lactose tolerance medication to its limits) delivered by room service, letting the hours go by and making long curls of channel surfing on the room's LCD TV. She huffed as she went through her phone, reading over and over the few messages Lorelai was able to send out from Europe before Rory took over the phone she bought for the woman so she didn't have to feel all lonely all summer long.

Paris checked her email to find an email blast from Rory saying they were finally on their way west after leaving Geneva and Switzerland. "We should be in Paris in the next two days," she wrote. "I'm hoping Mom won't drag me around to all the points Audrey Hepburn has ever stepped foot on--"

"Oh, God." She had to stop reading as she knew that Rory loved to go on tangents about Lorelai she sent to her 'friends list' rather than her 'family list', where she could be a little more annoyed than she showed. She didn't understand why she couldn't say these things to Lorelai and voice them out rather than put them in an email. She dreaded the day when she knew there would be a more social way to share things on the Internet, whatever that form would be. She had begun a Friendster account but found it about as awful as she knew it would be, only putting herself on there so no other Paris Gellar could claim to be her.

She kept trying to look for an email to Lorelai, but to no avail. She knew the woman missed her horribly, having sent her an email a few days ago while she was in Salt Lake City that about had her in tears, describing how sore her shoulders were and how she 'could really use your incredible hands about now'. Another detail also got to her also.

"Par," she wrote, "I don't know how to say this without being crass, or TMI. Then again, when was I told that anything was TMI? But...I'm lonely. I have my daughter and all of these wonderful people where I am and all I'm thinking is, my next stop is in Paris. The city of lights, of romance and churches and the Seine. I'm going to experience it for the first time in my life...but only with my daughter. Just my luck that I have nobody there to share it because I can't do anything right in a relationship."

She continued, "And I have not had a moment to myself outside of the rare private shower I can get. Not one. I'm at my wit's end here looking for a place to have a moment to myself. I really wish I was at that little house at the Manor with you, or in your bedroom. I'm tired of some idiot leering over my boobs in the shower, of having to strategize to make sure I don't bump into Rory. I'm frustrated, deeply frustrated at having all of these hostels and rooms at fleabag hotels and not having a night to myself. I...I hate it."

Paris kept thinking of it as it seemed that the hotel's pay-per-view section was deeply French-centric for some reason that night. An American in Paris, April in Paris, An American Werewolf in Paris, and finally Moulin Rouge. She settled on the final one and watched it, beginning to watch the overly stylized musical and enjoying it, but suddenly felt something was missing. She went through half the movie watching the adventures of Christian and Satine before she finally figured it out as she realized the film was sort of grating on her.

It felt odd to make her observations without anyone to bounce them off of. She had shared many a movie with the Gilmores and although she eventually got used to the fact she would never watch a movie in silence with them successfully, much to her annoyance, she found that watching a ridiculous film without having Lorelai imitate Nicole Kidman's voice as a southern belle was so just not the same. She couldn't riff as easily all by her lonesome and pouted through the remainder of the film, finding it quite empty as she began to realize she missed Lorelai all over again.

Soon she was getting herself ready for bed for the late afternoon flight back home, but couldn't stop thinking about Lorelai at all. Her dreams were filled with that last evening with the innkeeper. She tossed and turned in the unfamiliar bed, groaning as she couldn't find her place in the bed. She was also sexually frustrated and despite images of Lorelai in the nude and talking guiding her, she was unable to bring herself anywhere near an orgasm and felt cranky, finally waking at eight after the worst sleep of her life for a quick breakfast before heading across the way for United's Terminal 1.

Or so she thought. Somehow she soon realized she had hopped the wrong shuttle and ended up in front of the international Terminal 5 instead, a fact she couldn't really argue with the operator as she was so distracted to confuse a one with a five character on the bus's front display. But she still had more than four hours for her flight so she decided to walk around for the next hour until she had to go over. Walking around with her luggage she browsed around the duty-free shop, passing the time and just keeping to herself.

She found the electronics display and took a deep breath to herself, looking around at the new iPods, remembering that her first-gen model wasn't doing too well battery-wise and hearing the new model did much better. She examined the display and played with the display model, looking at it carefully and wondering if she would take the plunge and buy one while it was on her mind.

"Hello, are you interested in this product?" The salesgirl came around the counter and Paris nodded. "I have one and I really love it."

"I have the first." She examined the display model closely. "How much are you asking for this?" The woman told her the price and she winced at the $500 price tag at first.

"Hmm..." Paris took a breath and considered everything. "Could I sync it up with my laptop right away? I don't want to have to go without music for too long."

"Of course you can." She looked at it a little more and took an unsteady breath before the salesgirl asked if she did want to buy it.

"Well, I suppose I should. I've worn out my Bangles playlist to death all summer out west." She nodded. "The 30 gig model then."

"Excellent choice." The young African-American woman brought out one of the black boxes. "Would you like this wrapped with a gift tag?"

"Well..." Suddenly she brought her mind back to Lorelai when she heard the word 'gift', recalling how she intended to give the woman the cell phone and how she was disappointed that it was taken away from her. What was supposed to be something to keep them close wasn't hers anymore. She also knew the woman loved listening to music. So much music...

But the big problem was she had to borrow her daughter's iPod to do so, and she had to constantly shuffle through some tunes she didn't like. She remembered one study night where the woman groaned at having to listen to the Distillers, Hoobastank and Default. Or as Lorelai called them, 'too lazy to come up with a band name'.

She had an idea pop up in her mind. "Actually...let's do two. One for me, one for...another person, wrapped."

"Two gift tags?" The clerk was confused. "Why would you--"

Paris shook her head. "No..." A smirk. "Two 30 gigs. About $1,100, right?"

"Two? Are you sure?" The clerk was flabbergasted as the girl reached into her purse to pull out eleven $100 bills, one more to account for Illinois and Chicago's sales taxes.

"I really am." The woman was impressed and nodded as she got out a second box from the display and then hashed out the details of the gift wrap, which Paris chose a red and gold leaf pattern. The woman wrapped the box in the back, doing an impeccable job of doing so, and then came back out to finish the transaction.

"Also, who is this being gifted to?" she wondered, bringing out a gift tag to lace onto the ribbon.

"To Lor," she said. "Because you put a song in my heart. Love, P." The woman raised her eyebrow up at the name.

"Lor? As in female?" Paris nodded as the woman impeccably wrote out Paris's gift tag in script. "You must really love this woman."

"I do," she admitted with a hitch in her throat. "She's overseas right now."

"Ahh, so you're going over there to surprise her." A knowing glance. "I see."

"Actually I was--" Paris was about to tell her the truth when suddenly the wheels went into motion.

I'm in the international terminal, she reminded herself. Of course she would say that. But what is in Hartford for me right now? Besides Madeline and Louise awaiting my return so they can throw a pool party? She pursed her lips as she thought of exactly what she had to do in Hartford.

Paris came up with nothing. Absolutely nothing. Sure, there was her mother, but even she was relieved to be free of her daughter for the first time since 1984 for an entire summer. Sharon had planned out plenty of fun with her new boytoy and Paris wasn't about to spend the entire summer watching them make googly eyes at each other. The reunion with the family was still a couple weeks out. She didn't even have to be at Yale until mid-August.

She suddenly built up an idea in her mind. She could catch her connector to Hartford and move on with life. But her being Paris Gellar and almost a Girl Scout, she was always prepared.

Her passport was always in the front pouch of her carry-on. She didn't care if she was going to make a sudden trip to Lansing, Michigan; whenever she traveled she had it, lest some air marshal have an assumption she was from the Ukraine. All of her clothes were already washed and she had packed light to begin with so she didn't have to spend a lot of time at the hotel in the laundry room, with the rest of her unneeded luggage already sent via Fed Ex from Salt Lake City to the Manor.

There was only one obstacle, and only one; timing. If Lorelai was on her way to Paris at this moment, surely she would be there in the next day, and she knew which hostel the woman was staying at, the one just a mile outside the Boulevard Périphérique.

A plan was developing. All she needed was a quick stop at the airport club for some information, and to figure out a few other things.

She stopped herself mid-sentence and revised her statement.

"I was on my way to Paris. As of now. Yeah, I just have to buy my ticket and see her." She smiled, though her mind was telling her she was crazy. PARIS, A TICKET TO PARIS AT THIS POINT IS $3,000! ONE WAY! AND MAYBE MORE! ARE YOU INSANE?!

"A romantic, are we?" Paris nodded as she had the purchase bagged up. "Well, enjoy Paris..." She paused herself. "Actually, you know what, I refuse to make that pun because I'm sure it's been made a million times before. Enjoy Paris, Ms. Gellar."

The blonde chuckled, happy that for once there was one person in the world who enjoyed the 'Paris in Paris' alliteration too much. "Thank you." She brought out another couple of bills. "And for giving me such a great idea, have a Lou Malnotti's on me?"

The woman was shocked by the $40 tip she never would usually accept. "Ma'am, I can't--"

"I know, this isn't a tip job, but please, take it..." she read the woman's name tag, "Angela?"

Finally, the clerk relented and took the money. "This tip did not happen."

"It did not," she grabbed a piece of paper to write down her cell phone number, "and if your boss said it did, you can have him call me to verify it." The women said their goodbyes and Paris put her newly purchased iPod for Lorelai in her luggage and hers in her carry-on, sitting down on a bench and taking a few breaths as she considered her plan.

Which was crazy. Completely crazy. She wasn't going to get any kind of Priceline fare; this was full-freight and quite expensive, with money she planned to use for dorm decoration. She also had a few calls to make in three hours.

Soon though after a little bit of research that told her to expect to have a mini-stroke when the dollar figure was delivered, she had gathered her thoughts and her passport and had stepped forward in the line at Air France to catch the 5:10pm to de Gaulle. She knew there was no way she would get a refund for the flight to Hartford, but her father would understand for sure.

Ten minutes later, she had stepped forward at the ticket counter with her credit card ready to go, and said the words only somebody in love would in such a situation.

"Round trip to Paris, one week," she said shakily. "Back to JFK with a connection to BDL on a codeshare." The man at the counter typed in the information she needed.

"We have an opening in first class this afternoon, ma'am, an empty row." She prepared to recoil at the price, which was higher than her original thought could have ever anticipated. "$4,578. Return would be $3,754 to Kennedy with the connection to Hartford on Delta."

Paris nodded, remembering all the advice from her father. "Any way you could get me a room?" The man nodded, crunching some more numbers and looking over more things until...

"I can get you a deluxe at the Crillon for...$5,800 for a seven day/six night. It's in Place de la Concorde and close to everything. You make this reservation and we'll provide car service from de Gaulle to the hotel."

The young woman considered what she was spending. She knew she was about to blow through $20,000 in no time flat, probably more. But as she went through everything she knew that it would all reset the next month. Her father was providing a generous living allowance and had been shocked she hadn't spent a lot on the trip.

"Deluxe, is it?"

"It's about the best rate I can get for a good hotel. Somehow you don't look like you're going for just business, and considering you're willing to go last minute from a city you're not usually in you won't get a better price ala carte. Everything is included, along with room outlays and concierge."

"And you're just a ticket agent, I know." She sighed, looking at her AMEX, the silver Centurion figure on the titanium wafer that was her Black Card taunting her to go for it. "Well..." She nervously handed it over. "Fuck it, this better be the best damned hotel and flight ever." The man took the card and her details and after fifteen minutes everything was taken care of. She had her ticket, and an entire week in the namesake city she was conceived in.

"Bon voyage, demoiselle," he told her, and soon she was waiting out the remaining few hours in the United States in the executive club, doing her research on an internet terminal and making sure that everything would be all set when she landed. Her hands shook as she went over the information and made the calls she needed, including to her father, who had just landed in Shanghai.

"Wait...you're flying to Paris?" He was a bit flummoxed. "What happened to relaxing in Hartford?"

"Nothing...just felt the need to travel and splurge on myself," she said. "Just call it my lost summer, I guess."

"Oh, dear." He laughed over the phone. "At least I know where to find you though and you're not off chasing some guy all over the Continent."

If you only knew, Daddy... "Are you really OK with this though? I know I'm not often this rash but I need to do it. I need to get out for at least a week, and--"

"Honey, you had the roughest year of your life. Harvard threw you on your ass, which I will never forgive them for, that jerk dumped you and you didn't get valedictorian? You deserve a long trip away from home for fun." He did give her a warning though. "Do you have any lined notebooks or pencils with you?"

"No?"

"Good! Don't get anything educational done in Paris at all, I beg of you! Have fun, lots of it, and if you lose a few brain cells, that's fine!" He began to pump up his daughter for her sudden trip. "One other thing though?"

"I know, Daddy." She rolled her eyes, knowing exactly what was about to be said. "We don't need a Paris the Second arriving in nine months. I shall not fall for the charms of a Frenchman, I promise you."

"That's all that I ask of you, Sweet Pea." She smiled as he said his goodbyes. "Tell your mother when you call her that I didn't encourage you to go."

"No, this was all me being impulsive, I promise." She hung up with her father and talked to her mother, who surprisingly was quite fine with it, as Sharon glowed about her new boyfriend and what they would do with their extra free week without her. Paris tuned most of it out for her own personal sanity and felt deeply calm as she hung up and looked up a few more things on her Mac while she had the connection to the Internet. The blonde did all she could to make things perfect before she got there, and called the hotel to confirm everything, along with an additional call to get everything rolling in the first place.

Within a few hours instead of being in the tiny regional jet cabin she was used to, she was in first class on the next Air France flight to Paris without anybody in her row and flight attendants giving her endless Diet Cokes. She shook her legs nervously and wondered if this was either going to be the best idea she ever had, or one of the dumbest and most expensive mistakes of her life.

A few hours later, comfy in her complimentary slippers and with her fresh new iPod fully synced with her computer as she looked on through the mostly quiet cabin, she smiled to herself, knowing she had already had the vacation of a lifetime that took her from the American West and back to what she considered in a sense to be 'home', where she first came to be.

Hopefully she could also come back home with memories of time spent with a certain innkeeper.

As Paris's flight made its final approach in the late French evening, Lorelai was about to catch the cramped bus with her daughter to Paris for the trip that would get them in by the morning, unaware that a change in her itinerary was about to happen...

Lorelai felt odd as she entered St. Christopher's Hostel. It was a building that literally looked like it was made of popsicle sticks, although she knew it didn't look like it from the inside. Compared to some of the older buildings she and Rory had stayed at in their travels, it seemed more modern, although she was still going to be stuck with the usual top bunk and shared bathroom facilities of all the other hostels she had stayed at over the last month or so. About the only good thing about her accommodations was that she had convinced Rory not to arrive until after Bastille Day so it wouldn't be crowded with too many people.

She expected Paris to be just as controlling an experience by Rory, who was determined to stick by Lonely Planet and Fodor's no matter how much she wanted to explore. They'd go to the same places as every other tourist would and with a tour guide who would watch them like a hawk. The younger Gilmore was still annoyed by her mother bringing them off track by a half-hour by lingering at the Berlin Wall three weeks back.

"I can't wait to get a shower in," she observed as they walked in, while Rory immediately was eyeing up the Internet station set up within the lobby. "Rory?"

"Oh...oh yeah, shower." The girl looked at the station and knew she had a chat with Jess coming up in a couple hours she was looking forward to, and Lorelai could tell that she was going to be stuck trying to find something to watch on the five channels she knew too well from National Lampoon's European Vacation. She could only hope that the accommodations were at least slightly better than those of the Griswolds.

The two women went up to the registration desk and Lorelai got out her passport and ID card to register her and Rory in. The woman at the desk looked through a few notes on her desk before she had a sudden look of recognition.

"Gilmore?" The women nodded at the accent of the young woman. "Lorelai?"

"Yes." She nodded. "So, what is our room?"

"Actually, I have a note here," she said. "We don't usually receive memos for expected hostel guests but the person on the other end suggested this was urgent." The innkeeper's ears perked up. "It is apparently from a...So-key St. James?"

"My best friend?" Lorelai was worried now. "Shoot, what's going on?"

"According to the note it is about something involving financing of an inn and a possible partner?"

"Partner?" Lorelai hadn't heard from Sookie about anything except Davey and Martha and was surprised. "As in finance partner?"

"I'm not sure. The note asks you to make your way to the Hôtel de Crillon for a meeting over teleconference and to bring your phone with you, and that the meeting may be five hours so Rory will likely be uninterested in waiting." The clerk handed over the note to Lorelai, who read it herself and felt suddenly troubled.

"Uggh, probably one of those people I outbid asking me to consider a new offer. This may get ugly." Lorelai could already feel her mood plunging as she was stuck with business on her first night in Paris. She gave Rory an apologetic look. "You don't want to come I assume?"

"I don't even know what this is about," she admitted. "I should probably stay close here in case Grandma contacts us in a chat, she wanted to know when we got into town."

"Yeah..." Lorelai sighed, feeling apologetic. "We'll have our day tomorrow, I suppose. I have to go take care of this." She handed Rory her bag. "Probably not going to need this, but I do need the phone."

"I wonder why they told you to keep the phone on hand." Confused about the request the younger woman handed over the cell phone to Lorelai and she put it in her jeans pocket after taking her small purse with her passport and other items out of the big bag. "Are you sure it's going to take that long? Maybe you'll get out early."

"I'm not sure, kiddo. I'll try, but I can't make any promises." She looked at the remainder of the note and found something peculiar at the end. "Hmm, it says here I'm supposed to call for a car at this number to get to the hotel?"

"Mom, are you sure this isn't some kind of odd kidnapping plot? What if--"

"No, they probably are thinking of everything to get me there. Maybe this business person is kissing my butt. I'm not sure." Soon she was on the phone with the car service, which told her to be out front in five minutes. Rory hugged her mother goodbye in the lobby to bring their bags upstairs as the woman headed out to wait for the car where she was told. She waited at the curb feeling totally like an unsure tourist, wondering if she was about to end up in some weird espionage thriller suddenly. "Oooh, maybe I could be Jane Bond and take out Dr. No," she quipped to herself just as the car pulled up, expecting a very cheap taxi.

However, she was surprised. The sign in the window said 'Gilmore', but the car was certainly not just an average taxi. A sleek black XJ8 pulled up with a chauffeur coming out of the car and immediately opening the door for her.

"Madame Gilmore, I assume," the friendly older man wondered, speaking heavily accented English. "I was hired to drive you to the Crillon for your meeting. We must make haste, you must be there within the half-hour."

"Uhhh, OK." The woman laughed nervously. "You're sure? I...I can just catch a cab--"

"Nonsense. I was personally asked to bring you there." He helped Lorelai into the car and she crossed her legs demurely as she slid into the backseat. "It should not be very long at all. Relax, madame. There is a bottle of mineral water in the console on ice to calm your nerves." She looked over to indeed find across from her a chiller with a waiting bottle of something that definitely wasn't Perrier or anything she had remembered back in the States.

Soon the brunette was settled in and looking at the sights of the city as the driver took the scenic route to their destination along the Seine's Rive Droite, looking out towards the landmarks such as Notre Dame, and the Tower in the distance. She sipped slowly on her water wondering if she should give Sookie a call. But the tourist in her wanted her to enjoy the ride over to this 'Crillon' place, whatever it was. It's probably one of those ultra-boring places with glass and steel all over the place, she thought to herself. It's a hotel. It's antiseptic and dull and probably meant for some business traveler who never wants to leave a three-square block radius while they acquire Croatian Ingots and Potash from Amalgamated Platinum.

The tall innkeeper felt frustration at being kept away from her daughter for some boring teleconference, probably looking about as silly as possible in a blue Old Navy logo shirt paired with one of her oldest pairs of Calvin Klein jeans, which she had only been able to afford ten years before when she was bumped up to assistant manager at the Independence. She felt silly, but packing one of her power suits wasn't exactly on her packing list for a European backpacking trip.

Lorelai kept asking the chauffeur about the various landmarks they were passing and the man patiently explained their stories all the way to the hotel, surprising Lorelai with his calmness as she had assumed she had to be quiet and not ask questions at all, as the French stereotypes Trix had hammered into her when she was younger suggested were true. She was able to carry a full conversation with him and hated that the ride would be so short.

Soon the man had made the last of the turns up the Place de la Concorde until arriving in front of Lorelai's destination. First however, he had to somehow pull Lorelai out of the car as she looked up at the pre-Revolutionary architecture in front of her. The woman had clearly been expecting the Holiday Inn and received the Ritz-Carlton instead and he knew there was no way she knew what the Crillon was at all.

"Madame Gilmore?" The woman's teeth stuck out as she took it in.

"Sir, I was requested to go to a hotel. Not a government agency building. Where am I?" She shook her head. "I thought I was going to a boring hotel."

"This hotel is hardly 'boring' at all. If you wanted boring, we would have been headed towards the airport area or the West Bank. This is one of the finest hotels in the city and it is an honor to have your teleconference take place here." He took her hand and she got up out of the car to look at her surroundings. "You see where you are, ma'am? Would you rather be at a mere airport hotel than here?"

Lorelai brushed back some hair behind her ear and took in her surroundings. She was in the true heart of the city, so many landmarks around her, with the Luxor Obelisk in front of her, and to her right a small sliver of the Eiffel Tower in her view, and the beginning of the Champs-Élysées in the distance.

The woman was in awe. Truly, whoever was wooing her had quite the resources to do so and she definitely had more to consider in accepting this person's financing. "Oh, no. Of course not." She began to reach into her purse to retrieve her wallet. "OK, so we went about six miles and--"

The chauffeur held up his hand quickly to stop the woman from retrieving a tip. "Madame, I have already been well compensated for making this pickup. I was actually off for this day but the person who made the reservation was quite insistent on a plentiful gratuity. So there is no need for payment." Still, Lorelai reached in for a €20 tip of her own. "Ms. Gilmore, I must insist on refusing your payment."

Lorelai's eyes pleaded with him as she held out the note. "Sir, I have known what it's like to be stiffed, and I don't care what this person has paid. I insist on tipping you." The driver began to wither as he figured that this woman was kind and not willing to leave without any kind of compensation. "You don't even have to keep it if you don't want to, pass it down to a friend or give it to charity. I must insist." After a silent minute, he took the euro note and folded it into his hand.

"If you must insist then," he said kindly, giving her a smile and a tip of his cap. "I shall be by again to pick you up whenever it is requested, and your contact will make that call. Until then." A small bow later he was back in his limousine and after another goodbye between Lorelai and him, he had departed down the road, leaving Lorelai in front of the hotel with nothing on her person besides the clothes on her back, her purse, and of course, her passport. She looked up at the edifice where Marie Antoinette had seen her end.

She shook her head at herself though she was deeply in awe as she entered the hotel's enormous lobby. "What am I getting myself into?" she wondered, talking to herself. "This is so complicated; I don't even know what to think anymore." Lorelai felt as if she was on another planet as she entered the hotel, which even at the front door made the Independence seem like the mere lobby of a Comfort Inn off the 135 in Salina, Kansas. She knew she was severely underdressed and was completely out of place as she saw a couple of professional women in business suits immediately give her disdainful glances at her outfit. All she could do was look down as she made her way to the front desk, hoping she could get to the teleconference center with only minor bruising.

She took a deep breath and rung the bell on the desk to call out the clerk, and after a minute a friendly and slight light black woman by the name of Dominique in the hotel's receptionist uniform came out to greet her.

"Bonjour, et bienvenue à l'Hôtel de Crillon. Comment puis-je vous aider cet après-midi?"

Lorelai cleared her throat, composing a reply in French, so thankful for her French classes she took during business school. "Bonne après-midi. Je ne sais pas si vous parlez anglais."

Dominique perked up. "I do speak English, it is required of all of the employees here." Lorelai let out a relieved breath as the clerk made her feel immediately at ease. "I do say that your French is impeccable, ma'am."

"Well, thanks." She had to turn away for a moment as she felt the clerk's eyes upon her. "Umm, I was told to come here, but I don't know why. I'm...Lorelai Gilmore and there is apparently a person I need to call or talk to?" She noticed the clerk couldn't stop staring at her at all and flustered at how Dominique was looking at her. "Like, there's a teleconference I need to attend?"

"Yes, I was told that you would be coming here." A perky smile as the young woman held up her pointer finger. "If you could stand for a moment, I will return." The clerk departed for the back as Lorelai stumbled in surprise. Expecting to be pointed to where the conference room was she was instead standing at the desk while waiting for Dominique to come back. She began to thump her fingers on the heavy Old World wood surface before becoming distracted by a business card with Dominique's name upon it in raised type. She wondered to herself if the woman had always been so...friendly, with the other guests.

After another couple minutes, Dominique came back from the office behind the counter, holding a couple of boxes she set on the counter as she reached underneath the counter to pull out a keycard she handed over to the woman, then showed her bright teeth with a wide smile.

"Your room key, ma'am," she said. "And I must instruct you to change in the executive restroom before you enter the room." She smiled and looked down at the boxes beneath her. "That was what we were instructed to tell you."

"Ch-change? Room...key?" She held up the card with what was apparently her room number. "I'm sorry, I was here to meet someone for a teleconference. On the telephone. Which neither requires a change of clothing or a hotel suite."

"I'm sorry, Ms. Gilmore. That's what I was instructed to do." She slid over the boxes to the woman. "I know it seems a little odd--"

Lorelai scoffed. "A little odd? I'm being asked to play dress-up for someone on the other side of the pond and go up to a hotel room that's probably costing more than I pay my mortgage in a year. I mean, did you check what was in here? There's probably a stripper's outfit in there!"

Dominique chuckled. "Actually, I do know what's in here. Because I was sent to buy these items and I shall say Ms. Gilmore, whoever is interested in you does have the finest taste I've ever seen."

Lorelai had to stop for a moment. She was sent to buy these things? No wonder she's giving me a flirty glance; she wants to make sure I fit whatever get-up Mr. Mystery Date has sent me. With a pursing of her lips, she enquired further. "What...kind of taste may I ask?"

Dominique chuckled in response and put on a smile before she spoke again. "Enough that I must say my gratuity was quite pleasant." She slid over the dark boxes. "The person specifically asked for me to purchase these items rather than the concierge. Said I seemed to have 'that eye for detail'. I was only happy to do it, because I always enjoy shopping for fine things, even if I'm usually unable to afford them for my own purposes." The clerk sighed but kept on her best look as she tried to give her clues. "I'll only say that this person is settled, normal. What they picked up will make you feel comfortable and sensual. I think you will enjoy this."

Lorelai shook her head and let her curls bounce as she took the boxes. "You trust their judgment? But you're just a--"

"I know, a hotel clerk," she demurred. "But I have been one for long enough to find a trusting opinion on situations and persons. You seem to be a kind one and I know whatever this person wants to talk about that you'll be open to it."

"Well..." Lorelai paused as she took it all into consideration. Guess it can't hurt, she thought to herself. If anything I'm curious to find out what's in these boxes. She took them against herself and sighed. "I guess I'm...off to the restroom...to change clothes." She sucked slightly on her tongue and took a breath of hesitation. "I mean, whoever bought these things, they were...what it the word I should use for this?"

"Thoughtful?" Dominique provided, with a smile. "They were." Lorelai nodded and asked for directions before making her way to the private suite bathroom reserved only for hotel guests rather than the public one usually directed to for tourists. Closing the door behind her she turned on the light to find herself in front of a vanity she knew cost more than her bathroom at home combined, in front of the mirror as she set the boxes down on a sort of shelf which also functioned as something to lean on when looking in the mirror. It was the first time she had a glance at herself in days. Taking her hand she felt along her face and immediately reeled back, taking in a sigh.

"Damn it," she told herself. "Am I really that tired?" Looking into the glass she saw that she had a few worry marks. Nothing permanent but still enough to concern her, and her eyes were hollowed with darkness, suggesting that she had little sleep in the last few weeks that was comfortable. Looking down she saw that her body was losing its softness, her tall form melting away the fat through the last few weeks during the leanest times where ramen was her only form of nutrition. She didn't know she could come off as so angular at times, so...strong. She was glad to lose some of the weight, though she didn't want to waste away by any means.

Soon she stripped off her dingy t-shirt to wash her face with the soap at the side. Despite the relief she felt with the loss of her worn out shirt, it was undercut by the equally worn out bra she wore underneath it, so stretched out and thin that one of the straps was being held together barely by a safety pin. She shook her head and looked at herself.

"Yeah, I'm really luring them in," she jibed at herself as she took in a deep breath and turned around to open the boxes up, expecting the usual kind of wear meant for a teleconference. If she was lucky they might have spent more than $150 on whatever they picked up for her, but she expected the boxes were just hiding plain clothes designed not to make her look frumpy. The brunette lifted up the top box, not really expecting anything, but was presented with a layer of pink tissue paper instead.

"Okay, so...they decided to make it look a little more presentable." Shrugging her shoulders, Lorelai began to pull away the crinkly paper in layers, rolling her eyes as she got to the fourth layer of paper and tiring of whatever game they were trying to play with her. Soon she had pulled back the last layer...

To reveal a small box. She rolled her eyes. "OK, the nesting dolls bit is getting quite old here!" she commented to herself while opening the box to find more tissue paper. She finished pulling away those layers before finally coming to the first of her gifts.

She lifted them up out of the box and felt a deep fluster color her cheeks. When she was told she was going to change clothes, she didn't expect her entire outfit, down to her underwear.

But now there Lorelai was, holding beautifully crafted lingerie she never expected. The brunette began to worry a little as she dug through everything included within the boxes. She set down the lingerie box to look more in the large box, to reveal something she had always wanted.

Unwrapping the pink tissue paper, her eyes immediately landed on the logo tag on the back of the article.

"Vera Wang," she read to herself, as she lifted the perfect little black dress out of its box. She was beginning to feel surprised as she took in how the outfit went together. French lingerie was paired with the black dress that would go to mid-thigh, with silk stockings covering her legs.

Lorelai began to hyperventilate, in shock as she quickly shucked off her jeans and checked her legs, cursing immediately that there was no way she could wear these clothes without--

Her eyes glanced in the mirror to find that the bathroom did have a shower. A note was laid out for her next to a razor and cream, along with a full-size hotel bottle of shampoo, towel, sponge, and a beauty bar ready for her. She bent down to pick up the note, wondering who would leave all this for her.

The note was typed out however, leaving no clue beyond a cryptic passage.

There is no rush, take your time, it read. You've had a long journey, so please, spoil yourself before you grace my presence.  The half-hour timeframe was just to get you here; I will wait as long as need be until you feel ready.

Lorelai was getting more curious as the minutes ticked by. This was something she didn't expect, to be spoiled before a meeting and being treated like Princess Grace to look her best to this investor. Although she did find the buildup and purchase of beautiful clothes very odd, she couldn't help but see how far this benefactor would push to impress her beyond compare.

She soon had fully undressed and ended up spending a nice and hot twenty-five private minutes in the shower, the water so much hotter than she had experienced in the communal settings she had become used to. She had not had a good shave in weeks and felt wonderful as she let the grime of traveling through multiple countries slide down the drain. The water opened up her pores, pounded on her back and massaged her from the waterfall jet above, taking out kinks and pain she had felt content to keep until she was back in Connecticut.

The innkeeper closed her eyes and just stood in the shower after finishing her cleansing regimen, knowing she would have to soak all of this in until she was back home in her upstairs bathroom. She felt clean, empowered, back to her old cheerful state rather than feeling all dragged out from all of her miles.

When she got out of the shower she took her time toweling off, found all of the supplies she needed to primp herself and fix her hair, including a hair dryer. She psyched herself up for this big meeting and began to feel prepared for anything. She did her makeup in the mirror with the compact in her purse to hide with foundation and mascara from compacts she had not replaced, worn down to the plastic bottom.

Looking at herself in the mirror sans her hollow eyes after taking her time sliding into the fragile lingerie, she gave herself a little wolf whistle. "Mmm, Lori," she spoke in her husky tone, "you look good enough to eat." A laugh at herself and she was just about finished, smoothing the dress over her curves, which were becoming full of shape and tone.

That left one box still not revealed. Purposefully the box had been wrapped up to hide any signs of a logo and Lorelai shrugged as she opened it, figuring all the money went to the dress.

That is, until on first sight she found herself being greeted, rather by utilitarian pumps, a familiar red trademark she knew she wouldn't be able to afford unless she got a lucky scratch-off. Her hands immediately became clammy upon the sight.

"No...oh God..." She began to hyperventilate. Whoever this interested party was, they were apparently never dissuaded by any kind of price tag. They wanted to help her with the inn and would help her.

At any price.

She touched the five inch Christian Louboutin black pumps as if they were a national treasure, only applying slight pressure with her fingertips as she picked up one of the finely crafted shoes at the back. Her discerning eye took in every detail. The curve of the heel, how the lacquer had been applied, the stitching and details within the inner portion of the shoe. Examining it carefully not a stitch was out of place, nor was there any sign of shoddy craftsmanship. She unwrapped the box further to reveal the prized logo atop of it, suggesting these were bought at the source, within Paris.

No price tag was to be found, but from online research she did to try to snipe a hopefully authentic pair off eBay, she knew the cost was between the high $800's to near $1,400. She had been content with consignment Jimmy Choos and been accepting that she would have to wait a few years to afford even a basic pair of Louboutin heels.

Her closet could attest to how she treated her shoes as her sole luxury. If there was one place Lorelai Gilmore would rather be taken by a zombie horde than voluntarily spend money in, it was a Payless. Her shoes were always where she spent the most money for herself.

"Fucking A," she told herself. "Fucking A...these are real. They're real." She sat down and tried one on, expecting it to feel just loose or tight enough to not fit in a good way. She knew one mistake, one millimeter off, and her feet would always be in agony in them. She preferred to be fit for a heel like this, not have someone like this guess her size.

She slid the shoe upon her left foot, fingers crossed and released her hand from the dark surface...

No pressure. No pain. Not a single thing. Just enough wiggle room for her toes. The shoe fit on her foot as if it was poured directly on. The dread she felt was gone.

Whoever bought this outfit knew her. She put on the other shoe. No pain at all. She was scared to even walk on them in fear of ruining their value before reminding herself she was meant to walk in those shoes. She got up. She knew how to walk in heels.

But not in thousand dollar shoes and wearing what she thought was $800 into the dress and what was beneath. She tried to calm herself, doing slow breathing exercises as she cleaned the premises and fit her regular clothes tightly into a plastic bag kept in her purse. Lorelai was growing nervous by the minute as she put everything back in the boxes and looked at herself in the mirror.

She examined herself, feeling all out of sorts. The perfect little black dress stretched over her form, plunging down at the neckline. Flirting the line between conservative and sexy, her breasts were out to play, accentuating the freckling of her chest and framing her breasts in the right way with the help of the flattering lace bra holding her in. She tossed back her hair, which was slightly returning to its naturally curly state, though in large ringlets which cascaded down and created a contrast with the dress.

Lorelai didn't feel like herself. But she loved this. She wanted to feel special. Even If it would be a meeting where she had to break somebody's heart, go it alone, and return the clothes, to even have ten minutes in this outfit was enough for her. She strutted down the hallway back towards the front desk with a confidence she had not known since...

Mmm, I feel like I did when Paris and I dirty-talked in the classroom. A smirk played on her lips as Dominique met her to collect the boxes and handed over the key card.

"Room 652," she told her in her beautiful accent, the Frenchwoman looking over this mysterious American woman who seemed to have the energy of a girl in an anime cartoon. "This look is magnificent! I must have done something right!"

"You...you picked all of this out?" Dominique nodded proudly.

"Not all of it. I had basic guidelines to go through. A nice allowance. In fact, full reign on an American Express card, and I was told money would be no object. I followed them to the letter; basics. No jewelry, as you need not any embellishment." She looked down at Lorelai's heels. "The shoes, I was told that was the crux of everything."

"The crux?" Lorelai scoffed. "I'm going to be on a teleconference and not showing my shoes. They're spending money they'd be better off throwing away."

The woman nodded, but shook her head. "Throwing away? Tell me, mademoiselle, how are you feeling right now?" She held her tongue and let Lorelai chew on her thoughts for a moment before she found her answer.

"To be honest..." She whispered. "Like you're eye-fucking me and giving me all your attention." She thought the employee would be shaken by her observation, but the woman came closer to whisper in her ear, her lower lip barely grazing the lobe.

"That's what I was told to do. Dress you like I was to date you and we were both going to fuck," she intoned, the profanity sparking slight moisture in Lorelai's core. "And if not for this person's interest, you would indeed be seduced by me." Dominique drew away from the confused woman, who felt herself become warm. "Trust me when I say this person you are meeting. They will be touching and adjusting from your overwhelming beauty, Madame Gilmore. They are going to be shocked. And it's all from those wondrous shoes."

Lorelai felt even more emboldened. Dominique was an attractive woman and to have her drooling over her was a high compliment indeed. She gave one last glance to the younger woman and smiled. "Dominique. Are you single?"

The professional clerk nodded. "I am, yes."

A pause. "And what would you consider your orientation to be?" Lorelai knew she was being a bit bold.

"Simply, I do not consider gender in relationships. I have taken both men and women as my lovers equally."

Then Lorelai felt emboldened to do something she would never do with a stranger. Hiking up the bottom of her dress she revealed the upper portion of her leg to Dominique to bare the stocking, she gave the clerk a complete picture of her, as much as she could without violating rules against taking liberties with the hotel staff. She exposed herself in the hall, revealing the suspender garment holding up the stocking, and the briefs, which held a nude front panel.

"That is a good answer." Dominique felt her lips water at the sight, feeling charged that she was being shown nearly the full fruit of her efforts. The normally professional woman gave her a soft little smirk and appreciated the older woman's beauty before Lorelai brought back down her dress and nodded confidently at her. "Now I have someone to impress. Wish me luck?"

Dominique gave her a simple nod. "Good day, ma'am." She turned on her heel and both women headed back to the front of the hotel as if nothing had happened, while Lorelai retrieved the elevator for the ride up and the walk down the hall towards the room she thought she'd be in for no more than two hours.

If the woman was nervous, she didn't show it as she slid the keycard into its receptacle to open the door. Turning the knob and opening it up, she expected European high class to assault her senses from the first minute.

She was still in shock that this would take place in a hotel suite rather than a conference center. The woman was curious as to the investor's motives and wondered aloud if this was such a good idea. She pressed her fingers with her temples, careful to walk gingerly in her new shoes, scared to even leave the thinnest of scuffs upon the sole just in case she did have to return them.

Lorelai walked around the room, looking for the telephone. She found it on the nightstand next to the large king-sized bed and found a slip of paper next to the telephone. Opening it up, she found another typed missive in a small card.

Please dial the number listed.

The woman sat down on the bed and picked up the receiver, then dialed out the number as instructed. She waited through four rings for someone to pick up, crossing one leg over the other to get more comfortable, the pressing of them against her swollen clit giving her slight relief.

One ring...two rings. She tapped the floor with her foot, hoping she would know what to say.

On the fourth ring, somebody picked up.

"Good afternoon." She was surprised to note that immediately, the voice was of an undetermined sexuality she couldn't trace one way or another.

"Hello." A pause. "This is Lorelai Gilmore. Of Connecticut. I am in Paris right now and I was told to call this number because of a financial investment opportunity?"

"Ahh, yes. Ms. Gilmore. I was expecting your call."

Immediately, Lorelai sensed something was odd. There was something she couldn't really place at all about the voice, which had a deep and even tone to it. "Let's get this out of the way then." She found her words. "I usually get these kinds of calls all the time from finance companies in the States, whether at work or on my personal home telephone. I have funding from the bank and a few friends, so I'm covered. Whatever you might say is going to sound ridiculous, and--"

"You're wearing the clothing provided, are you?" Lorelai's train of that thought was suddenly broken mid-stream as the person on the phone broke in.

"What does that have to do with anything?" She tried to continue. "Now, we were--"

"Tell me you're wearing it!" the voice said firmly.

"I am!" Lorelai scoffed. "Now if we may continue?"

"No." The voice was firm. "You surely do not realize the most important part of this, do you?"

Lorelai shook her head. "I don't even understand anything about this. You're giving me this proposition and you're acting like I need to have an indecent proposal. I'll have you know right now I'm not Demi Moore and I don't have a--"

"Ms. Gilmore, please look to your left. You apparently missed one of the required steps." Lorelai looked over onto the bed and found in the middle of a pillow was an envelope with her name upon it.

Lorelai lifted it up and held it in her hands. "OK, another envelope. You know, for wanting to provide me funding you're making more paperwork than the IRS."

"In that envelope, that is your pass to the Eiffel Tower. In an hour you will head there--"

Lorelai scoffed. "I hardly think so. This is getting to be too complicated and complex."

"I am not finished," the voice told her. "The reason you need that pass is that reservations have been made for you at Le Jules Verne to discuss our business. The reservation has been made so they will be aware of your arrival."

Lorelai's eyes lit up wide. "I don't know that I can do this at all. It seems silly--"

The voice cut her off. "It won't be silly at the end of the night. Until later, Lorelai." She heard the line click, followed by the dial tone as she tried to speak to the voice further.

"Hello, hello? Parle vous francaise?" Nothing back. Frustrated, she slammed the handset back onto the phone cradle and began to think there was someone mocking her from afar. She wrinkled her forehead and shook her head.

"It's not cute anymore," she told herself. Opening up the envelope she found the pass, along with information and a reminder to be at the restaurant at 7pm. Be ready to go with the car in front at 6:30. In the meantime, feel free to partake of the mini-bar without worry. She looked towards the other side of room. "Sure, you'd want me to attack the mini-bar," she said, as if taunting the unknown voice. "That way you can ply me with your silly upside-down deal later." She walked over anyways, practicing putting a deep sway into her walk as she felt her courage build up. She checked the time on the clock on the nightstand reading 17:35 and scoffed. "But the hell I'm gonna turn down a free drink." With a smirk she dug into the fine French goodies and alcohol she found on and in the fridge of the mini-bar, amazed at what she found and just letting herself get into what she thought was the fun part of the night.

Lorelai drank only enough to find herself plenty buzzed and hopeful dinner would make up for the rest of it. Leaving the hotel room after a little time with Sky News, she hoped that this business deal would be painless to deal with. The heels began to acclimate to her feet and as she sighted the car waiting to whisk her to the Tower, she did feel one regret about Paris not being here to help her through all of these annoying things.

So much for a rest night, she thought to herself. Before calling Rory to tell her she'd be longer, Lorelai knew it was already going to be a long night. At least the one time Emily talked her into going to a timeshare breakfast in Hartford there was an easily mockable film and the opportunity to belittle the salesman before turning him down.

Here, there was no way to easily turn down a free meal at a Michelin-starred restaurant.

She could only hope she could stomach whatever proposal was offered so she could actually eat said meal.

Paris felt deeply nervous.

Scratch that, she was a wreck. Since landing at de Gaulle and making so many plans under the cover of a businessperson, she was wondering how she had to make things so complicated.

Looking out the window as she sat down to await her princess, she sighed. "Why couldn't I just surprise her at the hotel?" she asked to herself, knowing she denied herself two more hours with her beloved.

But she knew exactly why. She had seen Lorelai spoiled by Max, but in the way he wanted. The yellow daisies were just an off-hand thing, but he had managed to make it so overwhelming by buying out all of the flower shops in Hartford. The one thing Lorelai never realized about her thousand yellow daisies was that there were about 100 pissed off people in Hartford that couldn't get daisies until mid-June. A florist in town actually paid Nanna Gellar a good amount of money to harvest daisies from the Manor garden to fulfill the demand for the flower.

She had to be elaborate in getting Lorelai someplace, but when it came down to everything, that's when she had to be simple.

Paris knew Lorelai frowned on luxury. She could tell by how the woman mended her clothes rather than bought new all that much. Going over her thoughts the last few years she now knew for sure her sneaking suspicion that the odd bumps along Lorelai's shoulders and near the top of her bust weren't random large stitches, but the outline of safety pins used to hold a couple of her favorite bras together.

Not that I had been looking at her bra, she scolded herself upon realization as she came up with her plan after checking in. Okay, maybe I did. A little. Just to compare if I was accentuating right compared to her, that's all. I mean, I have small Madeline with her water bras and then Louise, who put hers out the wrong way. And no way I compare mine to Rory's.

It also wasn't her fault that sometimes Lorelai just loved pissing off the big parents meetings by wearing a bra that could be seen beneath her shirt, usually of a darker color. On her second thoughts away from Chilton, Paris was beginning to learn something about the innkeeper her psyche had blocked out to keep her in Le Pitbull mode;

Her crush on Lorelai Gilmore was silent and came to a head when they counted the money. Also, the first day they met in that hallway there would never be getting the woman's outfit that morning out of her mind. A Dukes of Hazzard marathon she caught in a hotel in Pocatello had since haunted her dream arsenal with the replacement of Catherine Bach with Lorelai Gilmore as a certain Ms. Duke.

The plan seemed to come together in a rush of activity. Thankful she had a deep bank account filled with allowances and inheritances that collected deep interest over the years, she was able to figure out how to get Lorelai to come to her rather than working around trying to meet the woman with Rory and never getting time for anything but a snuck moment in a bathroom.

She wanted Lorelai in that moment, not a girl who was beginning to regard her as a distant memory only to be met in ten years at the reunion.

But if there was one thing she was thankful for, it was that Dominique had quickly proven to impress her. She somehow knew the clerk would only be too happy to help her and before she checked in, sighted her from across the room and knew she'd have to turn on her charm. Her flawless French and lay of the land, not to mention a good glance at her goods thanks to a hastily unbuttoned blouse which met right at the bow of her bra, assured Paris she had an immediate ally and could concentrate more on the trap, while Dominique would help her with the lure by getting everything she had gathered on her list made on the plane.

"I shall help you however I can; anything for you, ma'am," she promised. The blonde was a slight bit unnerved at how blatant Dominique was with her, but she couldn't question the loyalty of the young woman.

She closed her eyes, hoping the woman helped get everything right for Lorelai. Everything came together with her help; the secretive plan to get her to the Tower, the choice in clothing Dominique chose for Lorelai...the Air France agent at O'Hare couldn't have sold the Deluxe plan any worse, but Paris was now thankful she got it.

Paris sighed though, knowing this could easily backfire somehow. Her guise of being a brusque opportunist could easily throw Lorelai off so much she could be cursed at and nothing would happen until August, the trip being in vain to reunite with her lover.

I can't think that way, she thought to herself. There would be nothing she could do as she sat in a room off to the side of the small suite overlooking the city where she would await Lorelai's arrival. She had been there for a half hour, taking advantage of the liberal drinking laws of her vacation destination by slowly sipping a rather young glass of Sauvignon Blanc. Laying in wait, she tried to imagine all she did to melt down Lorelai's defenses.

Truthfully she had become worried for her lover, as the tone of her emails had decreased in excitement since a Rory-mandated tour of Munich turned into what felt a death march while the girl seemed to be oddly excited about tracing the path of the horrible events that occurred during the 1972 Summer Games. Lorelai made an observation that night that she felt like a 'serial killer groupie' rather than a neutral tourist that day.

"I really hate my razor too," she wrote. "It's too dull to actually use, and I get dirty looks when I try to use it in the hostel shower. I have underarm five o'clock shadow for goodness sake! Rory doesn't get bothered because everyone looks at her and thinks she's a 12 year-old kid so they leave her alone. I attempt to take care of my grooming needs and they make me feel like I'm a darned ape."

Ever since that email Paris had sympathized with her woman's struggles in backpacking. But she hadn't been able to really see the effects until Lorelai was finally able to find an internet connection she could use alone and uploaded a two minute long video message meant just for her. Even though Lorelai tried to seem cheery, the blonde could tell it was a front.

"Another day...another awful shower," Lorelai said in a weary tone. "There is literally only five minutes of hot water where I'm staying. I hate complaining, I really do, but...but I feel like I didn't do good research." The woman's hair was hardly sleek anymore, the sheen it usually had replaced with dull and lifeless curls, the life in her cheeks seeming to have faded under the cover of a sunburn. "My feet are blistered as hell, I barely sleep, I get crowded on these coaches which barely allow me to move, and there's no going off the book. Rory can. It's her 'dream trip'."

Paris would remember the ending of the video as she viewed it in a hotel room in Green River, Utah, on a dial-up connection. "The only good thing is the sights I'll remember. What sucks the most is...is that there's this distance between us I wish I could close. Too many miles and..." She sniffed back, trying to hold back some tears. "I'm dirty, I'm tired, and I haven't talked to you in days because my phone apparently is no longer my phone now. I...I miss you."

She slammed her right hand lightly onto the surface of the desk. "I expected this trip to be wonderful, just the two of us exploring. Instead, it's...like I'm a third wheel while Rory gets in chats with Jess and rejects all of my suggestions for off the beaten path excursions. And it takes all I have to hold back on having to stop..." She ran a frustrated finger through her hair. "She has this maddening impersonation of you talking about a fact that I know in your words, you'd make sound wonderful and fascinating, but in her tone, she makes it condescending and in her words, 'wonky'. A word she thought she had to define to me, but I know because I get up on Sundays to catch up on my tapes of Guiding Light and sometimes bump into a political show..." She glanced down at the bottom right hand corner of her terminal screen, where Paris assumed the connection was metered by megabyte and her time was up.

"Shit...have to go. I miss you, and I love you. Take care of yourself on the way to Denver hon; that Divide on 70 is gonna prove your driving skills for sure." The video ended abruptly and Paris wanted nothing more to pull Lorelai somehow back to America, and into her arms. The girl cried lightly a full half-hour after the video, her heart strained while hoping she would see her older lover again.

She was so close now though, calming herself with palm rubs and shaking her leg furiously as she sat at the bar, thankful for a quiet night and a lack of anyone hitting on her. She was still puzzling how Dominique was able to fashion a 'seduction wardrobe' for her even as she shopped for Lorelai with Paris's marching orders.

Paris could admit that she was never a dress girl, yet that was what she was wearing in the restaurant, a pitch black blouse paired with a grey skirt that went more than a few inches above her knee, past the mid-thigh line she demarcated as her absolute height limit for a dress or skirt usually. That was the plan...at least until the hotel clerk kept expressing jealousy at how her legs managed to look so toned and sensual. Though Paris shook her head and denied it, when she tried on the skirt she had to admit that her 'lost summer' had also had a second purpose in finding muscle tone, which managed to flatter her curves deeply without taking away too much of the shape she treasured.

Dominique also suggested to her to keep a few buttons open on the silk top, to better flatter her bust, a piece of advice she wasn't used to, usually hiding her goods. For Lorelai though, there's always an exception, she thought to herself. She put on a small smile, recalling the delicious time she spent in the mirror adjusting her bra straps and position, and the tuck of the blouse until her breast-to-breast symmetry was just even, followed by the ratio of skin exposed to cleavage shown. The hotel clerk could only look on confused as the American college student rambled on about minutia of that type to herself until she felt just perfectly presentable.

Everything picked out by the woman fit the petite girl wonderfully, something which had troubled Paris at first as she was used to having a little bit of looseness in her clothing. But she felt heated as the dark-skinned woman kept giving her further glances and complimenting her, up to and including her freckles as she examined the handiwork of a guest she would hope would regularly utilize the hotel after she heard the young woman's tale of a sudden trip from Denver and across the ocean to chase her love on a whim.

Paris wasn't used to this kind of attention, nor to having others help her attain her goal. But on the way over, she knew a sudden surprise at the hostel would backfire, and Rory would drop her façade and try to block her and Lorelai from any time together. Reading all of her emails to and from Lorelai on her Mac on the flight, she had become even more disappointed that her friendship with the future journalist seemed to become belittling material as Lorelai was powerless to stop it in order to keep her tell in control. She pushed it to the back of her mind, something to handle later, as Lorelai was her only focus at the moment.

She heard the church bells of the city announce it was 7 o'clock, confirming it with her world phone reading 19:00 exactly with a vibration to mark the top of the hour. The student slid out a mirror from her maroon bag one last time to check herself, making sure nothing was off as she emptied the last of her wine.

"You did this at the Manor," she reminded herself. "Got yourself down, but then had the most amazing night of your life." She made sure the bartender wasn't eyeing her self-speech as she psyched herself up for the revelation portion of the entire plan. "You want to win. You're going to win. Remember, you have done more to prepare her for a date than most men would ever do. You're also giving her a break."

The Jewish woman pursed her lips one more time, a head-shaking glance at the room as she slid a hand at the waist of her skirt to adjust the lingerie beneath it just perfectly to prevent any slippage of the material. Her lip stain was applied perfectly and precisely, finessed by one of Francisca's female cousins as the woman suggested improvements to her makeup regimen during her time in Boise. The light pink coloring glossed at a perfect, yet not overpowering level for her, still showing her natural color, but shielding some of the damage done by a long near cross-country trip without easy access to cosmetics. She took a couple of breaths, trying to get comfortable in her skin and she figured out her next move, glancing into the mirror at the bar towards the table she would have Lorelai sit at. The area was private, a deep booth-like structure one on one side shielding off most intrusions and only truly visible by the wait staff.

She took a glance over to the right and found in the reflection a familiar tall form turned around as a waiter guided them to the table. There was too much dinner conversation to discern any conversation, but there was no doubt whom it could be as she could recall from memory the outline of the back of the woman's legs as she sat down. She clenched a fist and massaged her thumb, closing her eyes to build up her concentration and will.

"This is it," she told herself. "Let her down slowly, then build her up like you did that night," she told herself. "You can't let your anger over how Rory's treated her come out right away. We talk, then we ease into the hard stuff..."

The bartender directed his attention at the strange American girl, continuing to wipe a glass clean as he made an observation. "You know, you should just head over. Do it. Don't sugar coat."

Paris rolled her eyes at the man, sliding out a €20 note from her wallet and giving it to the man. "It's easy for you," she suggested with a huff. "Look at you, you probably get all the ladies?" The man nodded slightly. "Well, you have to know how to woo them. That's my plan, sir." Getting up, she blatantly stuck out her chest slightly to give the worker a glance at the goods he would never get. "Meanwhile, until you manage to wake up with a vagina? Don't throw off my game, 'cause you don't know woman-to-woman love." With slitted eyes she turned around as the French bartender realized that a teenage girl had just totally burned him. He winced, knowing it was going to hurt for quite awhile as he decided there was no way the blonde would turn to his charms at all.

She stepped carefully in her own pair of Louboutins, unbelieving that she had been talked into actually wearing heels for this date by her new hotel clerk friend. She had never become comfortable in feminine shoes but held her own as she observed just outside of the room while the waiter lead her beloved into the section. Closing her eyes and saying a silent prayer, she knew this was going to be when her $25,000 gamble was truly going to be tested. One false move and the tenor of the night would be a lot different.

She clasped her phone, scrolling down to Lorelai's entry, while taking out another small device which she used to disguise her voice. Hitting send, she moved the cloaking device towards her mouth, pushing herself against the wall as she waited the three rings until she heard the sound of a phone picking up. God bless SIM switching and Orange France, she said, thankful to get a local French number for only a small pittance, and still able to use her same phone.

"Hello?" She hitched her breath as Lorelai spoke, missing the voice so deeply.

"Close your eyes," she told the woman through her phone and the cloak of the false voice. "Do not open them until I tell you to," she demanded.

"Well aren't you ever-demanding?" the brunette responded. "This better be it, because if you get into handcuffs--"

"Goodbye." She closed the phone with a satisfying flip, smirking at her little strategy.

"Perfect." Paris could have kind and motherly Lorelai any day of the week. But to get her all riled up and ready for an interesting night was much more fun. With her little trademark smirk she put away her phone, making sure Lorelai's eyes were indeed shut as she got over her flustered feeling after the hang-up before proceeding into the alcove-like space which would be their own private world for hopefully longer than she hoped.

Damn it, I'm letting this idiot get to me!

Lorelai was officially flustered. Settling down into the comfortable seat she had been ready to completely turn off her mind, enjoying the food while the odd sounding windbag who was trying to get a stake in her inn would fail to do so, she had just been thrown off once again by the infuriating person who told her to close her eyes. She did so, clenching her fist angrily as she threw her phone lightly onto the tabletop after a curse. The person sounds male, yet...I hear a feminine tone, she argued to herself, still unsure of whether to expect some Continental businessman who would wine and dine her, or some underling who had no idea how to convince her to sign her name on the dotted line. All she knew was that this person was going to get a piece of her mind the moment she could open her eyes and face them.

She felt like the dress was putting too much of her on display, which usually she would love, but in this case it was annoying her. She felt afraid to even bend in different ways in her dress, lest she give a waiter an unknowing glance at her goods. Though she was used to wearing stockings all the time at work, somehow the silk ones she wore felt completely different, much more so than the $5 pairs she picked up from the No Nonsense display at Shop Rite. There was a different and classier feel about them, especially after the thorough grooming she had been able to do in the bathroom suite earlier. Her hair was more controlled than it had been since she ran out of hairspray a few weeks back and she felt like her old confident self again.

Her vision was completely dark as she calmed herself down. After so long on the road and having been through most of Eastern Europe and Germany, it was almost a relief to know London was in sight within the next three weeks before the trip home. She had wished it would be Birmingham instead, but Rory insisted on spending three days in the British capital rather than journeying to the northern city. Lorelai remembered a comment about how Northerners were uncouth or some other insult she blocked out as her daughter seemed to let out long-held prejudices she was able to hold back for so long.

She had never felt the need to be away from Rory for so long, but it was going to be a relief to see Rory off to Harvard. A taste of life alone with Paris was all she needed to know that what would be her very early 'empty nest' years might not be so bad after all. Suffering in silence Lorelai was determined to make the best of the rest of her vacation, but felt like it wasn't going to work out until she got home and had her three week's break before the renovations at the Dragonfly finally got under way.

Her hearing perked up as she heard what she thought were footsteps coming towards her. Squaring herself up she straightened her dress on her shoulders one last time to firm it up, rolling a loose bit of fabric from just beneath her breasts down until she was able to roll it out from her dress. She wasn't buying what this person was selling, but she wasn't going to make this businessperson forget who they were messing with.

She used all of her available senses to judge the situation. Though she knew she wasn't the smartest cookie, years and years at the Independence and Mia's tutelage had taught her to catch more than visual clues of how to keep a room clean and presentable. She truly only had scent and sound to make her determination, so she listened carefully to find her first impression.

The older woman knew a businessman's gait would be lumbering and commanding, that his steps would be few and imposing, a hard slap of a shoe against the floor surface to make himself known. She had expected certainly that.

Instead, she heard still commanding, yet light steps coming towards her, slight clacks of shoe heels suggesting a sole sound that was more feminine than she expected. Her inner thoughts had warned her to expect a traditional middle-aged man with a classical or casual demeanor to bring her into what they wanted her to do.

She was on red alert. She lifted her left index finger in the air, bending it in, and then out to show her nervousness in a less visual form than another kind of panic. It would be unnoticed by most anyone else in the world, even Rory. If Lorelai had her glasses on she would adjust them up her nose in the same manner.

I'm making her nervous, Paris thought, biting down on her lip as she noticed the subtle finger wave while beginning to take her seat. She was thankful all was taken care of with the waiter as she took a few more steps, able to delay a call for service at least ten minutes. Still, she felt unsteady on her legs in any way, though somehow she was able to slide in next to the woman. She had to keep her breath steady, afraid any hitch from the tall woman's beauty would throw off the rhythm of everything.

She sat next to Lorelai, sliding in, but keeping a couple feet of distance from her, a slow strategy building. Her eyes wandered down, not noticing anything else until it had one assurance before going forward. A glance low, a hope, a need...

A glint shone back towards her as the slightest bit of light within the dim dining room caught her by surprise. She opened her mouth wide, thinking that there had been no way that the woman had dared to wear it through the entire trip, that she would just wear it in a private setting.

But there it was. The anklet she had given her lover as a final goodbye was there, resting on her stockinged ankle. The girl felt her heart swell at the small bit of emotional heft she was feeling at that moment but quickly bit down upon her lip to hold back.

She was thrown off however. As she struggled to bring herself back into focus, Lorelai was able to sense the body heat nearby and squared her jaw in anticipation for satisfying this brute.

As she was about to deliver a stinging quip about how she was there for dinner and the pitch would be thankfully ignored, she caught two hints that jarred her brain.

The first was surprising and sudden. She could immediately sense with her nose that something was off. Expecting a heavy male fragrance and prepared for that, along with the added scent of aftershave, she had to keep her eyes tightly closed as instead of the scent she was expecting, she recognized the scent of a French lilac perfume she had tried at the Sephora at Westfarms, which she enjoyed but sensed it wasn't the right fragrance for her.

Her memory recalled partaking in her silly tradition of checking the medicine cabinets at every new home she went to, something Rory discouraged. But the most obvious medicine cabinet snoop had been at a certain young woman's house a month before...

Lorelai flustered as she did recall that Paris did indeed own the same perfume she had tried, well used and nearly empty, resting next to a ear medication. Hold on, she scolded herself. It's probably just a waitress. I mean, they have Sephora here, right? So it's not true...

A second subtle sniff however, opened up alarm bells she had not expected. Her nose through the trip had become more attuned to smells from a distance, especially in rural areas. It was how she could assure herself a bus or train she was on was still relatively clean or new, and told her whether the coffee being offered was finely ground and brewed with care or just thrown in the coffeemaker without a care to whether the brewer was warmed to just the right temperature or all the impurities were filtered from the water used. She was amazed that only a few weeks outside the core of the Northeast Megapolis could improve her sense of smell so deeply.

At first she was ready to dismiss her sense as a red herring. But again she opened up her nostril for a confirming scent.

Lorelai had gone into the situation ready to bargain down this mysterious person on the phone. But suddenly despite her deep tan, she felt like turning white. She suddenly stilled and cursed inwardly.

No...no...just a coincidence. Clearly, just...it isn't true. No, it isn't...

She caught just the slightest note of a strong alcohol, something she only knew from when Sookie had to head to the first aid kit to treat her newest cooking scar to treat it with the rubbing variety. But there was something else she caught in the scent, of scented talc...

Lorelai had to remain still. She refused to confirm who it was next to her. All that went through her head was a reminder from a month before, along with another reminder from a slogan she memorized about not letting anyone see her sweat.

It isn't, she scolded. Nope, it is not--

Her thoughts were suddenly broken as the blonde suddenly felt a little pain in her right ankle as her feet acclimated to her shoes. She let out the smallest of noises to state her grimace at the feeling, her mind not tuned to Lorelai's senses being heightened in any way.

"Ohh..." It was whispered out, barely heard over the din of the music. But Lorelai heard it, and as Paris bent down to adjust her heel, Lorelai knew.

Paris did not know. She was still under the assumption that she had been able to pass over everything over her lover.

The brunette next to her felt a swirl of emotions. She knew the gasp, every bit of her time with the teenager who was mature beyond her years seared into her memory. Every touch, scent, taste, and sound had rooted within her, giving her comfort throughout the weeks on the Continent.

Her fingers began to shake slightly and she really did not want to open her eyes, scared that she was in some kind of dream and she'd wake up in a spring digging into her ass in some dumpy hostel or camp. The words kept playing in her mind...

"I have active glands."

How she had been able to remember Paris's special anti-perspirant was beyond her comprehension. She hadn't even asked before the night at her house and her mind could not have picked up the scent out of a lineup before that moment.

Oh God, she thought. There is no way. No. Fucking. Way. This is not her. Not her. She's just another girl, so much else on her mind. She has no time for me! And come on, here, now? Who would...no. That's just the waitress asking me what kinda wine I want. That's all. That's all...

"That's all..." Lorelai unconsciously spoke the words out loud and felt the walls she had built throughout the summer collapse around her. She wanted to be strong and not let her emotions betray her.

She put fingers to her temple, hoping that the tears wouldn't fall. Paris brought her gaze up after adjusting her shoe, still under the conjecture that Lorelai was expecting the Inn huckster.

What she actually saw though made her heart clench as she heard Lorelai's voice chant "that's all".

Lorelai was going to cry. Her lip was trembling, and though she stuck to having her eyes closed, the girl could tell that tears were forcing from her ducts, ready to roll down her cheeks. Paris could sense it somehow, feeling a connection with the woman.

She took in a deep breath. She didn't know what else to do. I know she knows, she thought to herself, not doubting for a moment that the panic certainly wasn't about her business finances. The little groan had about revealed everything and she clenched her jaw, trying to figure out what to do.

Never before had Paris felt so guilty about a deception, even a romantic one. Her idea of a romantic night in the City of Lights was about to fall apart, and for what? A cockamamie plan to get her lover to a certain place under a business plan?

The nostril flare got me, she surmised. Although she had applied enough perfume to hide her bare scent, the strong smell of the sterile deodorant had managed to overpower it, and Paris knew that Lorelai had a good nose. I have to do something...

In a panic, she decided there was only one thing she could do.

"Don't open your eyes," she whispered in the most neutral tone she could come up with, and then settled her left hand atop of Lorelai's, unclenching it and wrapping it around her own. "Don't do it yet." Lorelai reeled at the sudden touch but was still in too much of a state of shock to muster a response. She trembled at the touch as she tightened her eyes to force them closed.

The blonde felt the tips of Lorelai's fingers, remembering the feel of her prints against her, taking in deep and shallow breaths as she felt overwhelmed with emotions. The bookish girl thought it would have been an overly exuberant moment, two lovers happy to see each other again.

Instead, she felt her heart hurt. Wrapping her fingers around Lorelai's, she could tell just by feel the woman had been through a lot since they last met. She settled back against the back of the seating structure, Lorelai's hand in hers, wondering what to do next.

She knew the charade had to be dropped. Dragging the innkeeper any further and using her 'firm voice' was something she couldn't fathom doing any longer. She craned her neck to the left to look at the woman for the first time fully since their last meeting, and felt everything she had held back since she left Hartford for Vancouver fall from her heart.

Paris knew love was a strong emotion that made people do crazy things. She had just laid down what she was sure Lorelai would make this year through her string of odd jobs and insurance payout for the Inn just to be at her side in that moment. Traveled across one continent to be on another on a whim.

Paris Gellar thought she could keep everything in check when she glanced at Lorelai for the first time after the longest near eight weeks of her life, forty-four days without the woman who had changed her life.

But she couldn't. She took in another gasp, the woman's beauty amplified beyond belief. This is how Paris saw her for so long. How she felt in her room at the Inn at the Bracebridge after the kind woman had hovered over her shoulder, taken in her condemnation about the shirts, listened patiently and left a patented one-liner that made her clench at how the Chilton parent could take a line like that and turn her into jelly.

How she was the first person in the world she could trust with her college choice, and helped her come to the decision to leave a relationship that would have lead her down a path to servitude and self-loathing, leaving Princeton after her sophomore year on her husband's insistence to forever define herself by what procedures and weight loss she could get done to look immaculate for her wedding.

She wondered if Lorelai would mind. If she would object, it being too fast, too sudden. Lorelai held back a sob as a sole tear dripped from her right eye and down her cheek, knowing the feel of the hand, the same hand that nursed her ankle. The short nails, worn nature, a small against hers.

"Not...opening eyes," she said to herself. "No...it's a dream." A slight shake of her head, despite all of the signs of this person being who she thought she was. Paris kept staring at her, her cheeks warming as she felt her courage begin to build again.

"Want me to pinch you?" she asked in the pseudo-neutral whisper. She received a hurried nod and proceeded to take some skin on Lorelai's wrist and roll it lightly within her fingers, before causing the synaptic reaction from the pinch, though lighter than usual.

Even through a pinch and the sound of the woman's voice, Lorelai gasped, knowing now this was not a dream, but holding to her promise to not open her eyes until asked. Just by feel, she knew the fingers holding her flesh were those of someone she had known before. They were familiar, and somehow they felt like they were searching, looking for new information upon her flesh.

Paris moved her hand back down, knowing that the next and final confirmation of her presence in Paris was inevitable. If not for her obsessive tracking of Lorelai's progress west she may have missed her by a few days. She expected to be perhaps three days off at minimum. But to be near on target outside of the red-eye arrival into de Gaulle? It still amazed her that she got to Lorelai just in time.

Certainly it would be top-loading the start of the trip for sure and the rest would be a sort of daze as she had five days without the woman, but she was happy to be here, in this moment. From the moment the hostelkeeper had confirmed receipt of her note hours earlier it was a race to this moment, and now it was here.

She looked around the room to make sure no one would interrupt her. It was a Tuesday, about the slowest night of the week for the restaurant and only locals were in the dining room, but on the other side. Nary an obvious tourist was to be found, and the two or three couples in her section were droning on about tourism arrangements or something she decoded as probably some kind of secret affair. She wryly smiled, a little superior that her own secret going-on was AOK with no complications beyond those outside of their little bubble, and no adulterous guilt.

She guided herself closer to Lorelai until only a few slight centimeters kept them apart thigh-to-thigh. She activated her gloss with a little quick sucking action and felt her chest tighten as all the nervous feelings she had for the hotelier arose again. This is it, she told herself. Although the element of surprise was pretty much out the window when Lorelai opened her eyes, she was happy it would come to this result.

Paris searched out Lorelai's body language, looking along her body for any adverse sign of unease. There was none she could find beyond shaky and sweaty fingers, a natural reaction though she did expect. Never had she expected to be the one causing this reaction.

"Eyes are still closed," Lorelai reminded her, toughing it out, but her mind about ready to scramble itself from overheating. "Come on," she beckoned passionately.

"Reveal yourself to me." She said it in a tone Paris knew was sensual only to her. A little bit of a whine with a pout mixed in, but also a small bit of mischief mixed with plenty of romance and longing.

She could not deny her beloved any longer. Her fingers slid up Lorelai's forearm and thankful for the extra room between her and the table, she turned the woman to face her until she was able to touch the tips of their knees together. Paris grinned and stretched herself out as she was thankful that Lorelai's perfume supply had eroded away weeks before, leaving nothing but her bare scent shielded by the light honey scent of the abrasive body wash and the neutral beauty bar she had Dominique supply for her shower. She kept her left hand pressed against Lorelai's right palm, the comfort needed for her as she approached, her breath a little unsteady.

She calmed herself down and closed her own eyes to fall into the moment, wanting to be even with Lorelai as far as reaction. A few more moments and then it was a natural progression as lips touched lips.

The first kiss in over a month was a long, yet simple peck on the lips as Paris flattened out her lips to be even, and Lorelai followed her lead. The blonde went over in her head if she was kissing wrong some way, but soon felt herself guided slightly as Lorelai warmed to the contact.

The dark-haired woman took in a couple gasps in surprise to get used to the feeling all over again. It seemed easy to forget Chris's aggressive kissing style and how Max asked her several times if it was fine to kiss her. But a silent approval and just the perfect amount of lip pressure reminded her why it was the smart heiress who had become the haunter of her dreams.

She instigated the kiss slightly further, giving just a small nip with both of her teeth to give an assurance that she was fine with it. Paris complied and let her emotions release, moving it further as unconsciously the thoughts of her lover having been away so long melted away when she felt her hand being closed in upon and tightened around. The two women became inseparable, falling for each other all over again while the younger woman felt tears coming on unexpectedly.

Soon, they felt their tongues flitting from their mouths to tease, along with some lip pressure. They had yet to say a word in their normal voices, but they both knew. Lorelai's breath came out in harsh pants between kisses as she felt the flat tip of Paris's nose against hers and soon was moving her hand behind her back to...

Be startled. She shuddered as she felt Paris at the level of the middle of her back. She was surprised to not find a tangle of long locks to nest her fingers in, instead, the woman's broad back and the blouse above it. She hastily moved her hand up to find to her relief there was still at least two inches of hair below the nape of her neck and puffed out a bit of relief against her lover. Her breathing began to even as they both calmed down, and the kiss began to slow after some light tongue touches, before Lorelai broke apart apprehensively to catch her breath and recover her bearings.

The two women remained silent for what seemed to be the longest minute, both careful not to heighten the mood towards a direction they didn't want. Lorelai composed herself, thankful to have this rather than a long rambling explanation of why Paris would deceive her. I don't need it now, she thought, sure of her feelings. It got me here, didn't it? She would still say a few things, but at least she had began to calm herself from the "screw you" speech she had planned for an 'investor' who wanted her to parade as if they were a Barbie doll, willing to do anything for their financing.

Paris kept rubbing at Lorelai's fingertips, noticing in the state of her closed eyes she could not feel lacquer upon them, and they were cut close rather than long as usual, a consideration made for the trip. Her mind still reeled from the kiss, licking her lips as she felt that familiar numb tingle she couldn't seem to get over for at least a week after Lorelai departed Boston.

Her nostrils rose up at the recall of how she had missed the stimuli. It reminded her of how Lorelai was hers to explore, and that the woman was an open book with her. Where Jamie overpowered her in bed or whimpered during his light kissing in public, every kiss with the tall Chilton mother brought the same feeling within her soul of perfect symmetry, enough to throw her off completely.

She composed herself with what to say next, hopeful that the woman wouldn't abandon her because of her elaborate wooing. With a calming breath she rested her left thumb in Lorelai's right palm.

"You may open your eyes now," she whispered. Lorelai shivered at the firm, yet soft tone Paris only used with her, and slowly fluttered open her lids, directing herself to where she thought the woman would face her.

The blonde woman was apologetic as her Wonder Woman revealed her sapphire eyes to her for the first time in her presence since she departed the circle in front of the Manor. She held her breath as Lorelai focused her vision, wringing her lids back and forth until she was able to acclimate to the light again.

"I...I'm sorry," she unconsciously said, the apology rushed, yet honest and heartfelt. Lorelai focused on the young woman and though there was that small side of her that added it to the pile of offenses that began with how she didn't like Paris's competitive tactics when Rory started, that area of her mind had shrunk considerably over the years.

Lorelai was taken deeply aback as indeed, she was finally able to confirm with her own eyes that it was Paris who had lured her here. Paris, a girl who years before needed index cards to even start a date, was here. In Paris. Right in front of her.

No bezel around her, or macroblocking, and speech wasn't exchanged after a sound effect. It was her, in the flesh, looking so beguiling and...

Fuck!

After only ten seconds, Lorelai could tell that the girl's Lost Summer had done so much for her physique. A glance up and down confirmed that whatever Paris was doing to tone herself, it was working very well. She smiled as Paris glanced down, feeling like DuPont retention pond water for forming such a deception. Her mahogany eyes were hooded by her lashes, hiding slightly how affected Paris was in her presence.

She finally was able to speak. "It...it is you."

Another minute of silence, as Paris tried to figure out a leading line before just going for it.

"Yeah..." A pause. "So...I'm here."

"You are." Lorelai was just as wordless. "Paris in Paris. Alliterative, kind of silly."

"It is." She felt her leg shaking return and began to wish for a shirt with deep cuffs to play with. "You look really nice tonight."

Lorelai laughed nervously. "You too." She brushed back some hair. "Oh, dear. Umm, if I'm being honest? I'm kinda still in 'expecting a pitch' mode right now," she shared. "Instead I'm looking at you, next to me, and it's not the middle of August. It's mid-July. You're here. In front of me. In the Eiffel Tower about to order dinner."

Paris nodded silently. "I am here. But it's going a bit differently than I thought. I was going with surprise, but--"

"My super-freaky senses detected you," Lorelai said with a slight squeak. "Guess you should've also brought a clothespin to plug up my nose?" The blonde laughed lightly at the quip and crossed over her legs, feeling slightly exposed for not closing them.

"My scent is that unique, isn't it?" The innkeeper nodded back as Paris shrugged. "I guess that's what you get when outlet malls are the only 'fine shopping' east of Seattle and west of Denver."

"Mm-hmm." Lorelai wiggled her fingers before finding another topic to go off of. "Umm, so the hotel room then? I'm going to guess that's not an hour rental and that's actually your room?"

Paris rolled her eyes. "No, Lorelai, I'm living out of my rental car and a sleeping bag." Lorelai giggled at the blonde's attempt at sarcasm falling far short with her. "I have a lot of things to explain, I suppose about this, and--"

"We'll talk about that later." Lorelai stopped her with a loving glance, moving closer to her. "Par, I really don't care how you got here. If you swam the Atlantic, took a machine like the thingy in Star Trek and teleported here, or hell, if you got deported here because technically this is where you did come into being on a drunken night in the spring of '84--" Paris quickly raised up her hand and shook her head furiously.

"Please! Please, no! It was enough my mother had to tell me of it when she gave me the sex talk! I don't want to be reminded of my germination!" Lorelai laughed and went on as she backed off, yet was pleased to get a rise out of her lady.

"OK, OK, no more 'how you came into this world' talk! Promise. But..." She turned serious. "Even if you had done nothing. If this wasn't...here. If we were in an airport or bus station McDonalds and I look like a grizzly bear because I haven't shaved well in weeks. I don't care where we are. I...I'm glad...glad you're here." She drummed her fingertips in Paris's palm. "However you came, or got me here, it's already in the past because you did get here, somehow, some way. It's certainly more than anyone...else would ever want to give me.

"I was ready to miss you until August," she confessed. "Just ride it out. Live with it. Nothing matters right now though. There's a big world out there, but right here, it's just us. Our own little circle. Par..." She saw the blonde nod. "We will discuss this later. But I am not mad. There's no need to apologize for misleading me, because that's what you had to do. I had to mislead Rory to get here, but I don't regret it, because now it means I get to spend time with you." She took a sip of water from her glass on the table before continuing. "I...I honestly didn't expect this from you at all. Even as I can barely get any kind of message your way without using a Telex machine right now, I knew you were with me, but I know you have your own life, your own things. You didn't have to come."

"But I did." Paris stopped Lorelai before she could ramp up her protective and independent self-pity. "I did, because the thought of you, isolated like you have been the last month, it does worry me. I hate not hearing from you."

"You did, though--"

"From Rory though," she said. "There's a difference. A large difference. She is deeply cerebral about things, but there's all that distraction with Jess and her dorm plans. Not you. You want to explore. This is your trophy for getting past eighteen years and getting your daughter through. You planned this. And instead of being the trip of your life, it hasn't been that." Lorelai shook her head.

"Par--"

"No, you can't make excuses," she argued. "This trip, this is what you worked your ass off for. It was meant to be a victory lap, but right now to me, on the inside, it doesn't seem that way." The bright woman could see that she was finally getting to Lor's strong side, in hiding for weeks. "You should not have to feel like a third wheel on your own vacation." Even through her makeup and the shower Paris could still see worry colored Lorelai's face. "Oh, God," she gasped, shaking her head. "Lor...how have you been sleeping?"

The woman was silent for a moment, worried about coming apart before they ate. But she knew she had to be truthful about things, about how she wasn't feeling her best at all. "Do...do I look tired?"

"I don't even have to look," Paris stated solemnly. "I can tell by your voice." She winced at the exhausted huff she could hear within it, sad that the little lilt she knew was usually there had not yet appeared. "I saw you were struggling in your videos and through your emails, but seeing you now, I just know." She took in a deep breath, knowing that her night with the brunette had to be more than just an evening to catch up. For Lorelai's sake, it also had to be a mental health night. "When was your last good night?"

Lorelai winced, her body indeed hurting quite a bit, something she was able to hide through will power most of the time. "My body's been...going through actual caffeine withdrawals. I've been budgeting my money and refusing coffee as much as I can because it costs so damned much and I refuse to dip into Rory's money from Grandma to ward off the pain. So I toss and turn a lot in bed and just have these scary feelings that the bedding hasn't been just used for sleeping and it keeps me up." Lorelai rolled up into herself, scared of how Paris would react. "There was also this one bed in Munich with a spring that dug into my ass...I...I tried getting a switch, but the clerk at the hostel...she went off on me and then Rory found out and told me to buck up and sleep away from something...poking..."

"Shhh...hey, hey..." Paris took her into a hug, holding the back of Lorelai's head close against her chest as she closed around the woman with no resistance whatsoever. "Why don't you kill this hostel nonsense and start getting hotels?"

"I've tried!" she shrieked. "I wanted a nice regular hotel for my stay here, but she insisted and tried to tell me it's a nice place and I should be comfortable--"

"You won't!" She rolled her eyes skyward, amazed that her 'best friend' could be so controlling when it was Lorelai who got them to Europe in the first place. "I read reviews online before I came here and I can tell you that for a young person, it's a dream place. A thirty-five year old woman just looking for a bed for the night? You're better off at a homeless shelter. One I read said they didn't get a wink of sleep because of an argument and what they described as 'loud grunts of passion'." She scoffed. "Whatever that is."

"Which I've experienced, unfortunately. Right above me." Lorelai cringed at her next confession. "A guy from Belarus even told me one night before bed that he'd imagine me bent over on all fours, and uh...fulfilled himself to that. Made sure that the peak was very audible. And I couldn't move beds due to lack of room."

Paris couldn't help but feel deep anger that Rory would be so self-centered to keep putting her mother through all of this. It was taking every single bit of Dr. Birnbaum's therapy advice to not haul ass up to St. Christopher's and let her have it. To put Lorelai through this all might as well have been elder abuse, in her opinion, age be damned. Closing her eyes before she went into a rant that would make an extreme sufferer of Tourette's wash their mouth out with soap, she tried to calm herself down...

Just in time, as a waiter came to their table to ask if both women wanted anything to drink. Paris calmed down considerably, knowing a little bit of liquor was just what she needed to calm her nerves. Lorelai ordered a white wine as Paris considered for a moment ordering scotch on the rocks before deciding to share the bottle with her. She was thankful for the tension to have been cut, if just for a little bit as the waiter left and Lorelai noticed her distress, reaching out immediately for her.

"Well, you're getting a good night's sleep tonight, I promise," she whispered softly. "No plastic, no sex above you, and nothing else. We've got a private suite--"

"Paris?" Lorelai perked her head up. "I...I don't know if I can come with you," she said. "I...I was told tonight to give Emily a status update back at the hostel and Rory wants me..." She felt a finger placed to her lips.

"You are going to come with me tonight," she warned kindly. "Enough of hewing to them. Tonight in that bedroom, it's going to be about you. About us. This is why I came here, because I was worried and hurting for you."

"I do appreciate the offer," she said. "I really do. But--"

"OK, that's it!" Paris gave her a firm glance. "Hand me the phone." Lorelai gave her a stare as if Paris had forgotten her medication over the summer.

"What? Par, what are you going to--" She felt the Death Glare upon her and felt a sudden mix of arousal and fear as she reached into her small bag for the device. "Look, don't do anything rash! I don't--"

"Don't worry," Paris gave her an assuring glance as the device was handed over. "What do you have planned tomorrow anyways?"

"Umm..." Lorelai dreaded saying. "Guided tour of the Louvre, guided tour of the Arc de Triomphe...a guided tour of the sites where Diana died and the memorial--"

"I thought this was backpacking, not acting like you won this trip on Wheel of Fortune and stick to the dullest tour a housewife in Zanesville, Ohio will be satisfied with." Paris rolled her eyes. "Rory is really stuck to that guidebook, isn't she?"

Lorelai nodded shakily. "I get the 'mom, that's boooooring' whine when I ask to see anything." Paris placed the phone on the table and brought out her cloaking device. "Whoa, what--"

"Behold, my 'mother's assistant'." She held up the small box which was used to change her voice. "Gotten me out of many a date with a boy when they suddenly get a call from 'her' or 'him' to say that I'm not feeling right or buried in homework. How nobody has caught on in four years is a feat in itself." She looked over the phone, which turned out to be a nice Blackberry with a color screen. "You actually have a better phone than me right now. A bit jealous here, Lor."

"Really, now?" Lorelai smirked as Paris played with it before finding the directory. "I figured I'd need it when I get back because I'm going to be dealing with the contractors non-stop, and I don't want to text on the thing I have now." She giggled. "Keep in mind that this thing will be rhinestoned when I get home."

"Of course it will." She scrolled to Rory's entry and her eyes twinkled as she remembered how Lorelai loved putting her phones in silly cases with loud colors. "Now, keep quiet, otherwise this is never going to work." The tall brunette nodded at her girl's stern gaze as she applied the high-tech device to her mouth near the microphone before Rory picked up. Lorelai couldn't hear the other side of the conversation, so she had to depend on Paris's end to decode everything.

"No, this is the person who made the offer to your mother. Unfortunately I cannot disclose my name due to confidentiality. Yes, even to you." Lorelai was shaking her head; this was how Paris got her here, with that voice. "Your mother is in good hands but there is so much to negotiate, we might need up to two days to hash this out. Even then, there's no guarantee of a deal."

Paris cringed as she could tell Rory was getting defensive after a few more volleys of trying to ask 'permission'. "I apologize on behalf of your mother, but this is the only time this could be done. I know this is the trip of a lifetime but you and Ms. Gilmore will be compensated for the incon--I'm not buying you off!" Paris mouthed 'God give me strength' as she held to her story. "Ma'am, your mother is right here." She closed her fingers around the mic and whispered. "She thinks I want ransom."

Lorelai's eyes widened and she groaned. "I should tell you she watches way too many episodes of Unsolved Mysteries." Lorelai took the phone and quickly took charge as for once, Paris was worn out from her deception.

"Rory, really, I'm fine. This all has to be done in private and you're not going to do anything but stare like a zombie as we talk about big numbers and forfeiture agreements." Paris couldn't decode anything on Rory's side just as well off the phone. "I know we had a plan but...no, I didn't plan this, but it's actually turning out to be compelling, really. They have a good plan..." She blanched as she felt her flesh and blood making her feel guilty. "We will do what you want on the last day. Anything, I promise and...yes, I love you too and--" She held back the phone from her ear as she was shocked to hear the hang-up chime. "Wow. Never had that happen before."

"Hmm?"

"She told me she'd just talk to Jess more, enjoy her sights without me and hung up." She shook her head. "Just like that."

Paris shook her head. "This was a bad idea. I...you should go back to her and...I'm sorry." She began to get up from her seat. "I thought I was doing something--" She was caught by Lorelai quickly grabbing her hand. "Lor, no. I fucked up. I knew from the moment I caught the wrong shuttle at O'Hare that this was--"

"It is romantic," she said, holding up her hand and forcing Paris back into the seating. "Look, I know I'm being deeply selfish. I'm not spending time I promised her fourteen years ago. But there's tension, and I need to break it somehow, and this is just the right time. And I'm...I'm still in shock that you are so deeply thoughtful, so concerned for me and just miss me so that you flew out here." Paris looked away as Lorelai patted the top of her hand. "Par..."

"I missed you and I just suddenly had this thought of meeting you here and we could be back to like we were at the Manor, but you're on vacation," she rushed out. "I can't stop a vacation just for my own selfish needs! You could've just dumped the water on me and told me to sit and spin for all I knew, and I...I..." She winced. "I didn't even plan to be here. Honest to God, I didn't, and I know you. You're Lorelai Gilmore, you're happy with eating off fast food collector's china from TV series and Rite Aid and making things last, even if it means safety-pinning your bras together!" She shook her head, suddenly feeling guilt. "You can't be bought off with fancy dresses and sexy heels, and I should've just--"

"Hey there..." She stopped Paris's deep rant with a squeeze of her hand. "Hey, hey..." She tried to quiet the young woman's fears with a kiss to her forehead. "There's a big difference between us back in Connecticut having to sneak around, and here where you've spent who knows what getting here and I'm coming in feeling like utter crap and I'm writing these letters about how much I want you when I just want to be writing freely and doing what I promised. I failed you, miserably. Rory got my phone and Emily controls me through email, exactly what I never intended."

"But how do you feel? You must be freaked out by being here, in this restaurant wearing dressy clothes I bought you and it must make you feel a little creeped out."

"Just...a little. A very little." She shifted her eyes around. "I mean, the whole getting here was a bit James Bondian, but the end result was worth it." She hoped that would calm the blonde student, but knew once Paris got going, it took plenty of calming to stop her.

"You ran away from wealth. Lor, I'm doing the exact thing guys in your life would've done when they were with you. Overspoiling you, using gifts and flying all the way here with literally, only a few sets of clothes and I'm trying to turn you into a Carrie! You're not a Carrie! You don't care about material things!" She lowered her head, feeling that she had overdone her plans.

"You're right," Lorelai assured her, moving a hand against her back. "I usually frown heavily on all of that. I probably ended plenty of dates when I was younger because guys tried it on me." She paused for emphasis. "But..."

Then with a pat of Paris's back, she whispered needed words of calm. "I am not above it at this point in my trip, with my surly attitude, and how much I've been missing you. I haven't seen a familiar face in months. I feel quite a bit lost here, and I did mention that I was in deep need of a shower, right?" She felt a nod. "I'm thankful to just get that, a nice hot one, to myself. Really, that's all I needed. All I needed."

As Paris was about to catch on and try to argue for anything else, Lorelai pecked her cheek lightly and pulled back. "But, I was also tired of feeling like a tourist, bumming around Europe. I haven't felt my peppy self for weeks, nor have I been particularly girly. How can you when you've got hair just coming out of places it hasn't peeked out of since I learned how to shave? I...I've just been pushing through." Lorelai winced, feeling her chest seem to fill with emotion. "So when I got to the hotel and I'm just getting all these nice clothes, I had these thought that perhaps I shouldn't accept them, but something told me to push forward...and I'm glad I did." She sighed. "I did, and I guess in the back of my mind, I knew it was you. Don't know how, don't know why, but when I slipped my feet into the Lou's, that was just a red flag, because a lady doesn't divulge her shoe size."

"I thought that was your weight," Paris said, confused, as Lorelai shook her head with a giggle.

"Oh wise one, you learn never to give out your shoe sizing either. You make the salesman guess and work for the sale, or use the sizer. You never give them your size. Which come to think of it..." She purred, "I never really gave to you."

Paris blushed and slid a little down in her seat, a little embarrassment at her photographic memory betraying her for a moment. "Well, the night you took me in after I dumped Jamie and I needed time to myself..." She nodded nervously. "I slipped out of my gown and then I kinda got curious about the shoe...thing within your closet, so I checked and found the pumps you wore the day we had our moment in the classroom. The number of your size seared into my brain, and then from there...I combined the size of the flirty skirt I stole from you a few years back with that of a dress you had next to the bed, remembered those numbers, and...there we are. Perfect...outfit?" She complimented, hanging the question as she was still unsure her lady was comfortable in her clothes.

Lorelai blushed deeply, loving that the fashion-adverse scholar admitted to closet snooping like any other girl or woman in the world did. She had a feeling, remembering after Paris's departure that a few pairs of her precious shoes were askew in the slanted shoe tree on the bottom of her closet by an inch or so, but she thought her little boom after tripping on the dress shook things. Apparently not, she thought to herself.

"Yes," she whispered, moving closer, one more query still unanswered as she drifted within Paris's personal space. "Perfect outfit." Another brushed kiss against the rose red cheeks of her younger paramour as she made to ask for a secret. "Obviously, you knew my panty size very well though, as much as I do yours, Miss Sexy Undie Trader." She nipped softly against the student's ear, forgetting where she was and feeling the romance of the City of Lights overpowering her senses. "I know I never did give you two numbers though, that you would've never seen otherwise."

Her hand hitched up Paris's right thigh just above the knee, taking in the perfectly nude silk stockings currently encasing the thing she was most jealous of on the smaller woman. "Considering how amazing the girls feel right now, you know my sizing on that front. How?" A pause as her hand drifted up towards the garter holding the surprisingly sensuous young woman in at the bottom, as her eyes were treated to lavish lace below her blouse enticing the tall brunette towards the activities of later. "Then you got my legs right too. How did you know?"

Paris nodded softly as she positioned herself on Lorelai's other side within her own ear. "Stockings were easy enough. I know your height and by memory how you love to show off your legs. I was able to eyeball a measurement and went with that. As for the girls..." She whispered and raised her eyebrow. "Umlauts." She made a sexy little giggle as immediately the annoying teenage nickname suddenly became a sensual private joke between the women.

She explained herself in the form of a theory. "I know your sizing is wrong. Very wrong. You undersize yourself because there's always that need not to outshine your daughter, so you let her have the boast when really, you're more well-rounded." She broke from the woman slightly, eyeing up how the curves of the dress flattered Lorelai's sensually building form. "So you depend on just wearing something you can just adjust depending on how you feel; push them in to feel flirty, open up the straps to have a more professional image. I do know your 'size', but I didn't go off that actual number. I went by touch and feel as we made love, my own observations through the last three years...a few things. The cup size I was a bit iffy on with the exact number, but I think you are definitely a low C for sure. Not that I mind." Her eyes watered at the sight of her tanned lover being completely out there for her to stare at. "I think I did right."

Lorelai nodded, her hands shaking a little as she could take in Paris's scent at its closest epoch that evening. "Par..." she whispered. "You're very good. I think I'm all settled down now too." She slipped her hand into Paris's. "Those eyes...I've missed them hovering me."

"I've missed your blues," the other woman shared. "You're better then?" Lorelai nodded as Paris was finally able to relax herself. "Good. Ever since I got in at four this morning I've been nervous making this all work. I've barely slept since I got sleep on the plane and there was always that chance I did miss you."

This caught Lorelai and she wondered if the girl was up to the rest of the night. "You're going to be OK, I hope."

"Honestly?" She smiled. "If we both collapse into bed and just sleep I don't mind doing that. But I can stay up as long as you need to," she promised with a smile. "I have had on and off rest and a bit of a wind down at the internet café I was at while I gave you time to prepare."

"I should be good too; I was glad for once to get a somewhat empty bus on the way here with a shade." Lorelai began to feel like she was fully comfortable now. "Sooo..." she clasped her hands together. "I guess inviting me here means I can have whatever I want? A nice filling meal with dessert?"

"I am good for the money," the blonde proclaimed. "Order whatever you want off the menu...which is here with our wine." Both women looked up as the waiter approached with the bottle and two glasses, greeting them both kindly and knowing that a great tip would be coming if impeccable service was given this evening. The two women separated for a moment and let the tall man do his work, pouring the wine to halfway up each glass before departing and telling both ladies to take all the time they needed.

The women smiled widely at each other, feeling all the pressures of the summer melt off as they took in the view nearly 400 feet above the city, the first lights beginning to flicker on below through the cityscape. Paris and Lorelai gave each other a long glance as they lifted up their wine glasses, still as could be before offering each other a toast. Lorelai led it off.

"So..." Her little laugh made Paris's heart clench. "This is to...renewal. That we got another shot sooner than we did and another night, or maybe nights, together. To a fine night together...and of course, relaxed drinking laws." The blonde rolled her eyes but still had a nice giggle as she tipped her wine glass closer.

"To us. To renewal. And for you, to a good night's sleep. Eventually." She raised her eyebrows up and both women clinked their glasses together with a bright sound emanating from their meeting, before folding their arms around to sample each other's wine, both taking in careful sips at first before taking larger ones as the flavorful taste hit their palates to the sounds of throaty moans of approval. The two women broke their clasp with nods and 'mmmm's.

Lorelai's eyes lit up deeply as the felt the rosy blush that had left her cheeks weeks before return at the overwhelming contact with the beautifully plain blonde.

"You are planning on consuming the entire bottle with me, right?" she asked.

Paris nodded quickly. "It may be the only way I'll be able to walk in these things!" She lifted up her feet to show off her grey heels. "Honestly, I didn't put these on until I got here."

"We shall teach you the ways of the Louboutin, young padawan," the brunette intoned as she could tell the comfort level was already headed towards their 'normal', where the food might be eaten, but it would definitely be secondary to the long conversations to be had. "I got you into my bedroom and now you're becoming a shoe fiend, aren't you?"

"Well..." Paris grinned deeply. "I did kind of get in $3,000 from my father allowing me a spree at The Bay when I was in Vancouver and shipped a few pairs home. Favorable exchange rates, of course." Her deep almond eyes twinkled with amusement. "And I may have picked up some wonderful lingerie too you'll get to see if you play your cards right."

"Really, now?" Lorelai bit down on her lip, having had the slight preview earlier with the stockings as she took another sip from her wine. "It really is the smart ones who are good in bed."

"Good?" The student raised an eyebrow. "One word; greenhouse." She eyed up Lorelai blatantly, the sprinklers still providing a source through the summer of a memory to relieve her stress.

"Two words for you; spontaneous orgasm." Lorelai came back with a tease of her own, and both women felt the sexual tension ratchet up again. "We're damned great in bed."

Paris added additional alliteration. "Dammmmned great." Then with a laugh to make things comfortable, they both began to talk, prepared for the formal, yet hearty dinner to come.

"So it really is as beautiful as I pictured it? I always thought it was gonna be crowded and grungy--"

"Not that day, actually. I was kind of surprised but I was able to get as close as the rangers allowed. And it went off, like clockwork and it was just so amazing. It's like the Canyon and the tall redwoods in Yosemite. It's something you must see once in your life."

"Did you get any sprayback your way?"

"I got a little wet. Nothing too bad though."

Lorelai had her elbow on the table, leaning her chin against her hand as Paris described her travels across the West, finally getting to Yellowstone, the part she was most excited about. She was still on a high as they both talked animatedly about their trips, while Lorelai described the German and Eastern Europe parts of her trips just before the waiter brought out their meals.

He had been surprised for requests for large steaks rather than the usual smaller meals he had expected of the foreign women, but he knew the blonde woman would pay anything for her meals this evening. Paired with a lovely crab salad, organic broccoli, parsnips, small beets, and a few other sides, both women had made slow work of the meals, but consumed everything as Paris was able to confirm once and for all that the elder Gilmore was a willing herbivore if it was spread out in just the right way in front of her.

The wine bottle was well emptied, both women feeling a deeply pleasant buzz that broke apart their usual filters for the evening. In the whispers of the restaurant Paris and Lorelai didn't have to hold back as Lorelai described just how pervasive Emily was getting.

"You want me to get her off your back?" Paris asked. "She's just doing this to field her superiority over you for financing Rory's college. She shouldn't be doing that."

"Oh, I've tried. I have tried. There's no way to lead her astray at all, trust me. I don't even know how she does it, but she's--"

"Mannn, and I thought Sharon was bad. She's just overly protective of me. Emily though..." Paris cringed. "You drew the 'Annoying Mom' ace there. Sorry about that." She snorted lightly , feeling a little light on her feet as the wine hit her brain. "You should forgo email for the rest of the trip. Tell her if she's so interested in hearing about every move you make she can hear about it at the end. I was able to survive without much Internet for the last month."

"That's the thing. I didn't want to use the Internet at all, except for an email to Sookie here and there, and of course, you. But she's so damned sneaky, and smart. She hired her own tech guy! A guy just to help her get wired, and she knew if she got a PC she'd be in virus management mode all the time, so she made sure to get a Mac!"

"Well, I still say, freeze the Internet. Get Rory off it too; I'm sure Jess is exhausted with her clinginess."

"He is!" Lorelai's eyes widened. "I got a message the other day pleading with me to get her away! He's a guy with space needs, but you know Rory..."

"Yup, Shane knew all too well. Still a little unsporting how she claimed Jess." Lorelai nodded, agreeing with the girl who had heard everything secondhand. "You know, I'm still pissed at her a little. She cost you the trophy."

"Par--"

"No!" She threw her head back. "She was all 'oooh, me and Jess got together, I'm so happy, ladee-freakin-daa', and you were so close to winning the dance contest. Forty fucking minutes was all she had to wait before she could feel free to get her boy troubles settled up, but no, she left you in the cold and Kirk won again! I wanted to give her a piece of my mind because c'mon, you close that down."

"Hey, I really am fine, I promise."

"Lorelai...look me in the eye and tell me you are fine with it." The brunette shirked away.

"But I am, really..." She looked away before Paris brought her attention.

"Lorelai Victoria Gilmore, look at me!" she said sharply. "Come on, don't be shy." Slowly Lorelai brought up her gaze until she was looking straight on at Paris, hoping to end the argument, but there was vulnerability within her eyes which the Yalie detected immediately.

"I knew it!" She laughed with a slight pounding on the table. "You wanted to win!"

"Well of course I did! Kirk shouldn't have that thing. It's mine and I was so close and...gahhhhhh! I wanted to win!" She wrung her fists together. "Is that wrong?"

Paris just smirked. "You love to win. That's how you were about the Dragonfly. You have entitled blood running through your veins and when that girl ditched you to crush Deano's heart, yours was too." She sat back as Lorelai considered how alcohol was definitely the great equalizer in opening up the conversation even more. "Y'know, if you need someone to dance with for the next year, I'll do it. I've got plenty of training and 24 hours?" She scoffed lightly. "I can do that in my sleep."

"You don't know the dance marathon though. Taylor..." Lorelai set the scene deeply. "He's this evil being who takes control of everything, like he's some kind of wicked taskmaster--"

"Eh, like Headmaster Charleston after a big schoolyard brawl. Trust me, I mocked him to his face once." She smiled and proudly repeated what she would have said in full. "Stupid white haired sexist prick."

"If you would have said that all..." Lorelai said, lowering her tone to chill the girl for a moment. Rory had told her about the offside comment, finding it offensive herself. Paris felt a little scared, until she felt Lorelai's ankle against hers.

"I definitely would've been happy. I wanted to get out much worse when I got called to his office. A suspension for telling him off like that? So worth it." The small blonde felt her heart hammer in her chest, a bit relieved that Lorelai wasn't going to yell at her, though she was now a bit on edge from the feeling of Lor teasing her down below. She felt the imprint of the gold anklet within the stocking against her leg and sighed, still feeling shocked that the woman actually wore it.

"Have...have you taken that...off?" She asked in a bluster as Lorelai sidled up against her. "I...I really did not expect it to be worn at all."

"Since I put it on at that roadside, It has not left my ankle except to get past security," she whispered. "It is a reminder, a lingering thing that just reminds me...when I really did fall for you." Her lashes lowered as she slipped her foot out of the shoe carefully so it rested flat on the ground. "To everyone else it's a 'cheap charm' I picked up at the mall kiosk. To the both of us though, it's like a promise ring. Of when you brushed off an instance of clumsiness as an opportunity to open up further."

"I still feel that massage," she shared, her smile opening up a bit as she recalled it. "I did have to take it off going through TSA in Boston and it felt like the longest five minutes of my life. I kept a close eye on the agent because I was scared they were going to steal it from me. I...I don't want to lose it." Lorelai stumbled over her words as she felt a swell of need go through her that she wanted to desperately push down. The dress felt like a tight binding, hitting every one of her curves but making her feel tightened up within it, as everything fit perfectly...

Too perfectly for her liking. She was sure her lady at least had a little looseness going on. She continued to edge her toes along the length of Paris's foot, smiling as she saw the waiter headed their way and pulled it back.

"Thank you," Paris said softly, as the waiter held a platter holding a large dish of sinful chocolate and raspberry mouse for them to share, fluffed up to a point where both women swore it was still just pure ingredients mixed with air.

"You enjoy your meals, ladies?" he asked kindly, the young man having done all he could to make sure the chefs in the back cut no corners. The red flag from the hotel when Dominique made the reservation that Paris was under the "Air France/Crillon Deluxe Plan" made it clear to them that slacking service was unacceptable.

"Absolutely," Paris responded. "I haven't even had a steak just that perfect back home. Everything was perfect." She then gave a look to Lorelai, who nodded.

"Compliments are deserved. Great atmosphere, nice food? A girl hostelling it up is very happy with this meal...and the company." She slid her hand into Paris's, loving to be a little possessive with people that didn't care. The waiter slipped the guestbook down and Paris glanced it over, not wanting to waste time at all. She took out the pen and looked over the figures, to her liking, and quickly scribbled her tip and signature while putting in her card in the book.

"I think you should find that acceptable." Without a glance, the waiter thanked them both, and left to finish the transaction as Paris brought her eyes back to Lorelai, while wrapping her hand around the woman's.

"So...tell me what you gave him," Lorelai asked. Paris knew she wasn't able to get out of her girlfriend's child-like begging, so she whispered the figure into her ear, leaving the brunette stunned.

"Well, a little large. But it was worth it. And he didn't hit on either of us, so that's a bonus tip right there." Paris laughed and they both picked up their dessert spoons to dig into the food as Paris could tell Lorelai was more than flustered from earlier. She used her free hand to make sure she was looking right in the front, noticing every sly glance from the innkeeper at her displayed cleavage through the opening of her blouse.

"I'm so glad you're here," Paris said as she curled up a piece of the mousse with a bit of hardened chocolate. "You up for the rest of the night?"

"Definitely. Top of the Tower for us in a little while, and then a walk on the Seine back to the hotel?" Paris shook her head.

"It's a little far to walk, about three miles. In heels and after a bottle of wine?" The blonde slitted her eyes. "We'll get the car service after we walk to get back there. Besides, I need every bit of energy I can spare."

Lorelai shook her head with a smirk, sitting back as she felt the girl's smugness hit her in a lovely way. "Aren't we a little confident there, Smartie? What makes you think I'll just give it up?" She wrapped her arms around her chest while Paris shook her head.

"You're incorrigible. Clearly, I meant for the intent of that statement to be that we have a long day tomorrow to spend with each other, possibly another evening. I cannot believe you'd take it that way." She slid the spoon into her mouth upside down, immediately coating her tongue with the beautiful dessert and blushing upon first taste of what flavors were mixing upon her taste buds. With a light blush upon her cheeks, she let out an appreciative moan at the fruity and decadent taste.

"Ooooh, God." She licked her lips. "I think I finally have my descriptive note of how an orgasm tastes." She took in another bite, sucking up the flavor off a cookie stick. "I've had good mousse back in Hartford and...this doesn't even compare." Lorelai laughed at how much the student loved the food. "Try it."

"I will, I'm just loving how you're looking right now." Lorelai rested her chin on her hand, just taking in the sight to her right of a totally happy and content Paris, something she had rarely seen outside of their time together. "I don't know what it is, but you just seem more...cheery than you ever had. No stress, no homework, nobody to impress, like everything is off your shoulders. I love how relaxation looks on you." In the dim light of the restaurant Lorelai was drawn in more by how Paris could treasure her despite the age gap between them that would make any other relationship of this type awkward to her. "Happiness agrees with you."

Paris took another couple bites, eating up the mousse from a cookie stick as she swirled it on in long curls. "I'm surprised by myself. I thought by the time Daddy and I split off that I was just going to be along and frumpy all the way to Colorado, but it didn't turn out that way. I felt good. Very nice. There are actually a lot of nice people out there, and Salt Lake City?" She hummed deeply. "I know the image is all Mormons and the Utah Jazz, but it's also of food. Very good food. I had only a couple days there, but the ice cream shop I went to and this family restaurant later in the first day..." She laughed. "Seven words; all you can eat mac and cheese. And it was just nice to have a friendly person there just telling you 'have all you want' rather than watching your waistline. I just had so much fun out there."

Lorelai slid her hand onto Paris's shoulder and smiled back at her wide. "So you are happy?"

"After that mousse? Beyond!" Her eyes were wide open as she looked towards Lorelai. "C'mon, try it already! I swear..."

The innkeeper shook her head, knowing Paris was having a big sugar/wine rush. "You're not going to jump around the room and turn green tomorrow, are you? You did that one night you slept over and you had to go to the CVS to cure your 'hangover'."

Paris shook her head. "Oh God, no! I was on a crash diet my mother suggested...which as usual, failed, thank you...so all that savory food and ice cream mixed with that other crap didn't sit well with me. And besides, it's Europe! Big exception to the rule."

"Alright, alright, I'm trying it. I swear, your mother wasn't a diet freak, you'd be Veruca freakin' Salt. Though...you got me here, so maybe you are." She wagged her eyebrows as Paris gave her a glare, shaking her head as she enjoyed battling the woman's silly sense of humor. It didn't matter though, for as soon as Lorelai tasted the dessert off the cookie stick, she was in heaven.

"Damn, that is an orgasm in a dessert form! Mmmmpfff!" She squealed as Paris shook her head, knowing that she would love it. "Sure we can't take this home? Or have it pumped into our bloodstreams?"

"Yes, I'm sure." Paris was pleased as the two shared the mousse, finishing it off too soon for the both of them as they looked at the soon empty bowl mournfully while Lorelai dabbed the corner of her mouth with her napkin.

"And...that was a meal," she declared. "A great meal." Lorelai sighed as she adjusted her dress downward, as it decided it really liked riding up her thighs. "I guess I should definitely say thank you for this. It's nice to be spoiled."

"You're welcome." Paris felt wonderful that her plan was coming off very well so far. "This is just the appetizer to the night though, you know that, right?"

The tall brunette nodded excitedly. "Even if it was everything, it was so worth it." She paused as she thought about clearing the air a little further. "I...I'm sorry I was a little bitchy earlier, by the way. I was just thrown off by coming to town and suddenly being ordered to some hotel I didn't know for something--"

"Lorelai?"

"No, I do--" She was stopped before she could go any further as Paris laid a kiss on her lips, taking her by the shoulders and helping her up from the seat as she was even surprised by how much force she felt for the woman. She allowed herself the luxury of falling into it and being a little aggressive, feeling up Lorelai's strong forearms and feeling all the tension within them. Man, she could probably lift me off the ground, she thought to herself as she broke apart from a Lorelai deeply flustered and gasping for a few puffs of breath.

"O...kay. No apologies needed," Lorelai said, mainly to herself as again she had to adjust the dress downward. "You've improved a lot."

"I've had a lot of time to think," Paris quipped. "Also way too many fantasies of you to count." She felt down along the back of Lorelai's dress, feeling quite turned on by how it felt like the article was actually painted on against her girlfriend. "I really did get your dress size right."

"A little too right." Lorelai shook her head with a bright smile. "Coming out of the car I was scared I was going to give the driver an unexpected lookie-loo at my you-know-what, but I know the rules of getting out. He was also a chivalrous guy, didn't even look anywhere but my eyes."

"I would hope so; I did pay plenty to make sure I was the only one allowed to stare blatantly this evening." With a smile, she held Lorelai's hand as they began the second part of their date. "You have your camera?"

"That I do have," Lorelai said. "I know though, no pictures of you, just the scenery, which judging from this night is going to be amazing!" The two women began their departure from the fine restaurant after a couple more conversations with the staff, to head out into the Parisian evening and enjoy the view from the top of the Tower before heading back to the hotel.

It was near midnight when Lorelai and Paris finally arrived back in Suite 652, ending their unexpected date evening as the two tired women entered the room with Paris's key slide, both of them laughing as if they were lifelong friends.

"...And then that one guy asked if we were lost. Like we were! How can you get lost on the Eiffel Tower? How the fuck he lead out into 'because I've found the women of my dreams', I still can't get! Do we look like we'll have a threesome with a random guy? I have absolutely no interest!"

Lorelai felt tears of laughter coming on, the extra wine imbibed on the way home in the car after a long tour of the Seine riversides getting to her. "He was staring at your boobs too. Not at your eyes, he only literally saw you as boobs."

"That's besides the point though, he was leering you too. Damn, am I cursing that dress right now." The small woman stared daggers at her lover, having forgotten that putting her girlfriend on display also meant that pervs wanted to check out the merchandise with their eyes. "At least he made quick work of fleeing when you suggested the detachment of his member. Still shocked me; that threat is usually mine."

"Well, he shouldn't have looked at you like a piece of meat, Par."

"But still, I usually scare the guys away." She winced as she was able to sit on the bed and shuck off the heels which had been fun to wear, but murder on her feet. "I didn't expect you to get so...territorial. I mean--"

"You didn't expect me to get territorial? Really. Remember how I cut down that Superman-looking guy who dragged off the girls at the Bangles concert? And just be glad I only saw Jamie in pictures." She had a dopey grin across her face as she made sure to grab the do not disturb tag and put it on the outside of the door before locking it for the evening. "I'm glad that was the only rude interruption to our night though."

"Not that anyone could. My larynx is so stretched out I'm sure it has a rubber consistency at the present time. I have now determined that somehow, Lorelai Gilmore, you bring out the conversation in me." She took off her expensive heels and set them at the bedside, wiggling her toes for the first time in seven hours.

"Well, you helped too, having all of those things to talk about. Of course, Yale. It's just nice to hear that you're just worried about how you'll come off rather than the same talk every day." The tall woman sucked in her lip, trying to be seductive but with the wine, knew they were both a little unsteady on their feet as she made her way to the bed. "I still can't believe what we did when we were on the deck, though."

"I apologize for that, by the way. I don't usually have that problem with heights. Just the tallest." The smaller woman whimpered lightly. "The Hancock in Boston I can do, but then you get outdoors and it's just a bit too much. You feel that lurch at your stomach and the last thing you want to do is look down."

Lorelai came around towards the bed after grabbing two sparkling waters from the fridge. "Having a fear of heights is something everybody has. I even had it as I held you back, to be honest. But I wasn't going to show it because it was just this moment we couldn't spoil with our fears."

Earlier...

Paris knew it had been silly. Admitting she had a fear of tall heights once they went out onto the open air deck as the sun set in the distance, a little whimper noticed by her lover as something she didn't expect to have been read at all. She was fearless, Miss Independent.

But with her new openness towards the former Chilton mother came an unveiling of layers she never shared outside of her own private domain. As she felt that first sense of vertigo overwhelm her she was taken aback by two strong arms wrapping around at her shoulders, locking beneath her underarms as she felt a soft kiss pressed against her neck. The first response of asking Lorelai to let go of her was killed with the simple promise she wouldn't let her fall whispered into her ear.

The older woman's extra height was a thankful safety net as Lorelai kept her arms safely wrapped around, calming Paris until she could feel the soft tremors in the girl's hands fade to nothing. She felt fingers brushing along the underside of her breasts in what appeared to be an asexual manner, her body stiffened from the months away from the beautiful woman.

"Lor..." She felt herself stiffen as it seemed the wine began to hit Lorelai's brain and she felt a little bold, the hands moving just a bit northward. "Thank you." The woman nodded, and blew a puff of air against the back of her neck, hairs standing on end as the brunette enjoyed the reaction of the shudders moving up her body from her hands.

"I'm always going to be here to protect you," Lorelai whispered as the Montparnasse was distant in their view. "You don't have to be strong for me, Par. Let me hold you." The blonde nodded and held on to a railing as she found the night crowd was surprisingly lacking for a rare cool July night. The wind fluttered their hair back and forth as Paris hooked one of heels just below the railing.

"Hold me." Paris felt the clench seem to relax lightly as the night guards made a quick round before heading for the other side. The tall brunette felt a bit flustered, but as she felt Paris push against her, she knew it was about the most intimate public clench she could muster in such a setting.

Surprising to Paris, just the feel of the back of Lorelai's thigh against the back of her skirt was enough to make her feel a drip forming between her legs. She backed herself in slightly, much to the brunette's surprise. But as their usual fears had disappeared with the wine, Lorelai felt oddly empowered by the gesture.

"Love being held like this?" Paris nodded as she felt another puff of breath on the back of her shoulder. Lorelai then looked both ways for anyone oncoming before...

"When was the last time?" she wondered. "Tell me...since we were in the greenhouse...have you?"

Paris nodded shakily. "Not like...usual," she admitted. "Like my body knew you weren't...around."

"It senses, doesn't it? Not feeling me, it's like a dog looking for their favorite slobbery tennis ball," she intoned, blatantly moving her left leg outside of what had been a straight clench and to fit between Paris's. "Still use fingers, or the massager?"

"No massager, not on the road. Though I admit a couple times I fed the Magic Fingers machine with quarters to get a little rocking going to...relax me, as it were."

"Mmm, you just admitted that to me. I don't know whether to giggle or be turned on." Their conversation continued to be whispered as it seemed it definitely was a quiet night. Lorelai dared to allow herself to move her hand up from Paris's waist towards the bottom of her breasts. "You know what I've heard on odd studies designed to fill newspaper paragraphs when the local mini-mart forgets their ad for the week?"

"Ooooh, keep talking journalism to me, Lor. It's getting me wound up," she said with a soft smile. "Never thought I'd get turned on about a newspaper neophyte talking about column space."

"Well, this study said that..." She slid her open fingers seductively across Paris's stomach in a protective manner. "There was a tourist destination in the world most women have said they wanted to be...fulfilled at."

"Of course, I know the answer." A pause of anticipation. "The teacup ride at Walt Disney World? Orrr, was that the Detroit People Mover?"

"Yeah, because that's just what I wanna do at Disney, take someone to the sound of the most annoying song ever, which I will not mention for your sanity." Lorelai chuckled as nipped at the shell of her ear. "You're standing on it right now."

"They want sex here? At the Eiffel Tower?" As she was about to argue the results, she felt a press of Lorelai's other hand on the front of her skirt. The bottom of the woman's hand seemed to somehow emulate the same shape of the "vee" between her legs as she felt the slik-like material of the skirt lining press against her center, while the seam of her pantyhose pressed between her legs. "Lorelai..."

"There's nobody around and you're a little wound up," she whispered. "Really quick, just a little wiggle. Back into my hand and I'll have you off like a light." A finger snuck between buttons, undoing one to sneak a couple of fingers along the lowest part of Paris's bra. "You want this, and I'm holding you down. I'm not gonna let you go here." A kiss below Paris's ear. "You're not going to fall."

"Lor, it's too late," she said softly. "I already...have."

"I know. You came all the way here to make me happy. You've not only fallen, you're tumbling," Looking both ways, Lorelai felt secure enough to press her palm against Paris, quickly finding the seam of her hosiery from memory. "Love you." A finger dared to move along the beautiful embroidery of the bra beneath until she felt a raised ridge beneath her fingertip. "Really love you."

Paris blushed, still not believing only forty-eight hours before she had never considered being anywhere near this position, gasping at the contact from her lover. "Love you too, though I am not moving an inch left or right to prevent a tragic heel accident." She panted in place when she felt the various layers hit her just right as Lorelai's legs held her in a tight grip, keeping her in place as she grasped at the blouse cuff in her left hand to calm her nerves, thankful it was just a little loose. "Oh...God."

"You're so warm," Lorelai murmured in her ear as her palm found a motion she knew Paris was enjoying, cupping her sex in a manner that still looked like an innocent wrap to a neutral observer. She knew Paris wouldn't need much to be driven off.

Paris hissed, closing her eyes and willing herself to let go the stress of the last few much and the missing of any kind of contact with the raven-haired woman since the month before. She could feel her nipples hardening from the bare contact of the woman's fingers against her right one, doing a little flick against the side and gasping out her need.

Just focus on you...nothing else, she kept repeating in her head, even as her libertarian mind was repeating over and over that they were in view of either a closed circuit or aerial view camera overlooking the deck and warning her she was not doing the right thing.

But I am, she said, warning off the voice in her head that pushed off all risk, and over the years, too many opportunities for fun. Damn it, guess what it led to? A flame-out of the Harvard interview, and no valedictorian. I've stopped you when it comes to Lor and haven't felt one bit of guilt, and I don't plan to start anytime soon! She wrapped a little more around Lorelai's leg to gain a bit more leverage and involuntarily moved her abdominals and glutes in a smooth circle, rising and falling as Lorelai barely had to provide any movement herself.

"Need...this..." She took in a deep breath and bit down on her lip, feeling completely secure. Lorelai felt the warmth from Paris and licked her lips, hearing the beautiful gasps and moans from her beloved and smiling as she felt Paris's thrusts speed up more. Definitely not going to take all night, she thought, knowing their relaxed state had taken out much of the blonde's usual performance anxiety.

She moved her mouth lower, nipping at Paris's neck, just behind the mark on her left side. "I missed seeing this," she said. "First thing I think when I see you is I hope you haven't removed it. It would kill me if you did...it's too beautiful. It's part of you."

"Not going anywhere, I promise." Paris shuddered at the deep contact as Lorelai hovered her lips just barely above her neck, which to her was very erotic, even more so than kissing. She carefully crossed her feet over to wrap around, scared to move too much to spark up her acrophobia. "Take me, Lori...please." Her voice was barely a croak, her memory redirecting every nerve she had towards the building need to come.

"Your wish is my command." With a little chuckle Lorelai became a bit more blatant, comfortable that no one had encroached their space in the last few minutes. She pushed the remainder of her left hand into the smaller woman's blouse, cupping at her breast and humming at the intimacy of the soft and firm flesh she had become familiar with, her fingers flicking at the nipple as she felt Paris pushing faster and faster against her. "Also, you are a very lucky woman...I never let anyone call me Lori. Makes me sound like a bored housewife from Schaumburg about to do cardio at Bally's. With you though, a lot different. The name is sensual from you."

The only response she received in turn from Paris was what she thought was a purring. She slid the fingers more blatantly against Paris's center, finding the outline of her lover's mound through the skirt plumping from the contact. She pushed her nail against a felt seam, guiding it in dead-center.

"It'll be fast," she warned as she could see Paris grasping at the rail tightly, her ass grinding slowly against her. "And you can pay me back later, not now. Can't feel much to be honest."

"Sure?" The tightness of Lorelai's dress made any sensual contact impossible on her end.

"Do I have it?" Her index and middle fingers lined up the hosiery seam perfectly against Paris's center through her panties and she began to slouch slightly to provide herself support. She closed her eyes tight, knowing for sure the digital stimulation was just going to hasten things. Her mind was focused on being in the zone she found herself in when going for a near-touchless come. No view of Paris in front of her, below, or above. She was focused, the security of Lorelai's 'hold' heating her up.

Don't let yourself go too much, she warned herself. You really don't want a black mark on your passport for public exhibitionism. Even if it isn't very public. She took in deep breaths to keep herself focused, sighing deeply as she felt Lorelai lightly applying pressure against her breast, alternating between a squeeze and a brush.

Soon, she was feeling deeply light-headed. Her body began to wind up and she gasped out a need for release. "Getting there...alll-most there..." Both women were quiet, Lorelai just sensing by touch and warmth where the younger woman needed the most pressure. Small gasps and whimpers helped her further and she could feel the tightening process begin, her breasts beginning to firm up in anticipation.

"Come, Paris," she whispered. "You've given me a night to remember; hopefully I can do the same for you.". Paris fisted the material of her blouse tightly in her hand and kicked up her leg, stomping her heel against the ground as her pelvic muscles began the deep clench. Heaving deeply, she had never felt this much pressure before and felt tears sneaking from her eyes somehow. She cursed under her breath, her small form tightening as she felt the seam hitting her so right despite the silk layer above the hose, it had to be a dream.

"Lorrrr...fuck!"

Sweat dripped down from her forehead, across her brow and then along her cheeks as she bit down on both her cheek and her lower lip as she knew in a non-public situation this would be a screaming orgasm, something she couldn't have. Feeling one last deep cup of her breast by her lover behind her, along with a circle of her nipple with the heel of Lorelai's hand had been enough for her. She hyperventilated as her walls closed in and she rode the waves, the need for release she had been searching for since being taken in the greenhouse finally found. Lorelai palmed her mound, guiding her through and nipping at her ear, keeping her settled down, feeling deeply naughty for giving her younger lover a bit of pleasure when she least expected it.

"Yessss...." She began to release the pressure from her throat from holding back the orgasmic need, letting it out slowly like a balloon while feeling her body become unsettled and floppy as too quickly she began the come down process, Lorelai quickly sliding her hand from out of her blouse to hold her up at the waist.

The timing was most fortunate, as the night guard had just made the turn back towards them and immediately laid his eyes upon them, Paris quickly adjusted her posture upward despite the lack of current muscle reflex through her system as he seemed to eye them both up for suspicious activity. He turned back to look straight ahead, leaving them behind as both women were relieved not to have been caught. Paris held a hand to her chest and gave Lorelai a deep look.

"You're lucky I enjoyed that," she said. "I...I don't even know what to make of it." A pause as she shook her head and recomposed herself. "Next time you decide to feel me up on a Wonder of the World, you wanna give me a little notice?"

"Wait..." Lorelai smirked with a closed mouth smile. "I could've just let you know?" The response earned her a light punch on the arm. "Hey, I did give you a head's up!"

"Mm-hmm. But I guess I'm to blame a little." She rebuttoned her shirt hastily and smoothed out her skirt. "But you get most of it. After all..." she turned herself around carefully and stood up on her heels to give Lorelai a light brush of her lips against her neck and cheek. "I can never deny how you make me feel."

"Mmm, I felt it, alright." Lorelai moaned as her student lover seemed completely focused on her. "You know what I want to do next?"

"Sorry, Lori, the Notre Dame is closed to our dirty little minds," she off-handed.

"As tempting as that is...and it very much is..." Lorelai hummed in pleasure. "We have some pictures to take."

"Seems like an activity we can do without driving each other crazy." Both women nodded, and Lorelai was relieved at how happy and relaxed Paris was as she held her while taking her pictures, keeping Paris in her arms to view the dusking city at every point of the deck's radius, both of them in awe at the sights below them. She had never felt more relaxed before, and by the time of their departure around 9:30pm, Paris's flirting had picked up considerably after their visit to the gift shop for the usual assortment of souvenirs, including miniatures. By the time they got into the elevator, the younger girl was deeply unlike herself as she usually was. She pushed the button and immediately when the doors closed, gave Lorelai a seductive glance. The innkeeper could see naughtiness in her eyes, but knew it was mostly the wine effects and sex euphoria in her mind.

"Paris?"

"Yessss?" The academic laughed in a way unlike her, with Lorelai shaking her head.

"Not in the elevator. No way. Not with only two minutes to hitting the ground."

"Noo, not that! Lorelai, I know the speed of this elevator!" Another laugh. "No, I just need you to...umm..." She narrowed her eyes slightly. "How do I put this? Adjust me?"

"Adjust?" A pause. "Honey, what are you saying?"

"You know...my undercarriage. The balance is a little heavy in the back. As in, more fabric in the back than up front?"

It took a few moments before the woman got it, and she groaned. "Honey, you can just say I gave you a wedgie unexpectedly. It's OK." She helped Paris with her situation, feeling happy for getting her that wound up, if a little out of control. She was still getting used to Paris being open with only her as she felt around and straightened her underwear and hose anew. "There we go."

"Thank you." Paris shuddered lightly, still feeling odd about being a sensual woman. They used the remaining time to calm themselves down and feel like elegant tourists again before heading out of the elevator, sure to always remember where they met anew in Paris.

Both of them wandered the lighted walkways of the Champ de Mars, the innkeeper feeling assured of her safety as she knew the overachieving blonde was very adept in self-defense if someone dared to harm them both. Her hand never left Paris's hand as they journeyed through the park, talking to themselves and about their surroundings.

Paris sighed as she recalled the hour in the park...while her feet reminded her of what she had gone through with a sharp pain through her ankle. She winced, having been stubborn to keep her shoes on even through the drive back to the hotel.

Lorelai took bottles of sparkling water from the refreshed fridge, coming over to Paris's side as she was thankful to take the bottle, twisting open the cap and taking down three good-sized gulps to refresh herself. She stretched out her legs, not wanting her feet to yet leave their finely crafted accommodations with the red soles. Paris opened her bottle and took a smaller sip before capping the bottle and setting it on the nightstand. She then stretched herself out, feeling quite seductive as she could feel her skirt hitch up slightly as she go comfortable on the bed, a move not unnoticed by Lorelai as the slight slit in the material on the left side moved up to bare just a little more thigh.

"So..." Paris was as casual as a girl her age with her smarts could be. "How does this bed feel?"

"Well, it isn't the cloud that is the Tempur-Pedic back at the Manor, but it is beyond comfortable and..." She laughed slightly as she let her rear bounce on the bed a little. "Now this is a bed! And I can actually trust these covers beneath a backlight!"

"Funny you'd say that; I get to take them home after if I pay the hotel a fee for them," Paris noted, remembering the long line of notes she got with the room itinerary. "I just might take them up on their kind offer too because you can't get this kind of down and thread count back in the States without having to get Lord & Taylor involved. Might make it more cosmopolitan when I get the bed into my dorm."

"Wait...you're actually going to bring that thing with you to college?" Lorelai scoffed, wondering how the girl would be able to fit it in the dorm. "Are you actually going get it in there?"

"I did the calculations when I visited the dormitories last month before my departure for Boise. I will have to take out the door when I actually try to get it in and I will have to buy a special college-only bed frame with under-bed drawers, but I should make it work. I will not sleep on a twin mattress when I just laid down all that money on a bed I intend to use for years."

Lorelai pursed her lips, wiggling her fingers around as she crossed over her legs while noting how excited the older teenage girl was about her sleeping arrangements. "OK...what will you do for a computer then, though? Will you be able to fit a desk in there?"

"You don't think I can live in a small space, can you?" Paris smiled confidently. "I installed a television tuner into my Mac. My clothing needs will continued to be addressed through a laundry pickup weekly by the Manor staff, and I have catalogued my complete wardrobe, so I can call up what I need when I need it. I only plan to keep basic snacks and staples, along with soft drinks in my room, and I have plans for most everything else. I shall be able to make myself comfortable with living alone, while sleeping in complete luxury. The only things that will stay permanently within the room are a tall bookshelf to fit in my books, and a locked lingerie drawer, so that neither some sketchy staff member back home in Hartford or Yale pledges looking to fulfill their fraternity checklist will be able use my underwear to attain their goals." She saw Lorelai staring into space as she talked, and wondered how she was processing her monologue. "How does that sound?"

"Ummm..." Lorelai narrowed her eyes, feeling a bit flush. "Sounds like you've got your college living plans all sealed up." She chuckled and began to move her gaze downward again, her mind processing that her girlfriend had everything well planned out. "Are you getting nervous yet? I remember when I talked to you the day before I left and you were relieved that nobody in your family hated you for your choice."

"A...little." Paris settled back against the pillow, sighing in contentment as she closed her eyes. "I think I can do it, but I keep going back to the breakdown. I did that a lot through the summer and had some nightmares that my acceptance would be taken back for a number of reasons. I'm just kind of scared because I'm going it alone now, really. Louise finally got into Sarah Lawrence and made up her mind after her Tulane flirtation; she had thought of going there until she realized her and humidity have never mixed well. Madeline's even farther away at a school in Oakland. I just have to buck up, get down to studying, and of course...try not to get to that state again. I really don't want to scare anyone off."

Lorelai nodded as she took in Paris's words. She didn't seem scared, but was using the older woman as a soundboard to hope she was right. She shifted up on the bed, finding a couple of loose tendrils of hair and looped them around her fingers to calm the girl's nerves.

"You don't have to worry about impressing anyone right away though," she softly intoned. "Just go into the flow, make new friends and don't fall into the traps of your past. Or think you have to join a sorority to get your social standing up."

"My mother does want me to join, but I know what it will lead to; wasted time and too much talk about boys a confirmed bisexual like me will never swoon to. Don't get me wrong, I do want to make friends. But you know how I am, I can be intimidating."

"I know that well." Lorelai shuddered as she recalled actually quaking in fear many times at the blonde's Jack Webb-like demeanor in public. "Just don't intimidate then."

"I can't just switch it off though." Paris let out a long breath. "You saw how our first two encounters went, the first was all just aggressiveness, the second? I was fuming about dumping a guy. And I barely relaxed at the Manor."

"Well, how do you feel now then?" Lorelai wondered. "You must be much calmer in my presence." She settled her hand along Paris's cheek and brushed it along her fingers. "I know I'm feeling very good right now."

Paris stayed quiet for a few moments, pensive as she faced her lover, turning in the bed as she let herself feel overwhelmed by those intense blue eyes shining at her, nothing but need for her reflected within them. "To tell the truth? I'm a bit intimidated. I forgot how you can fit into a dress and I'm feeling like I actually underdressed for the occasion."

"Par, you look incredible right now," Lorelai hastily said, reminding the girl of her blossoming beauty. "Better you in crisp business dress than all gussied up in your cursed corduroys. The skirt is just killing me." She squinted as she felt her eyes adjusting to the dim light of the room. "I love how it flatters your legs."

"I didn't know it could." The blonde felt like she was treading on different territory. "I'm still getting used to this, looking hot."

Lorelai let her mouth run ahead of her brain. "You always were," she whispered, her self-censor completely turned off.

Paris's head suddenly shot up. "Always?" Catching Lorelai, her curiosity began to build. "I'm sorry, what do you mean by that?"

"That...oh, shit." The lodger slapped her forehead as the impact of her words hit. "That didn't come out in the way I hoped. Fuck." She shook her head in deep guilt. "Paris--"

"No, this I do want to hear." Paris's tone to Lorelai was surprisingly neutral. "You're among friends here."

"Yeah, but I'm also with said friend and carrying on a lesbian affair two months out of high school with her! Not exactly looking for Mary Kay to be the woman I idolize for love life examples."

"Two big differences; we're both well above age, and most importantly, we only had one incident with us together while we were in a relationship. One which I went in, knowing that it was wrong, but I still enjoyed it too damned much to care. It's OK, Lor." She smiled shyly. "You said I was always hot. I'd like to know why."

"Oh, God." Lorelai massaged her temples. "You're not going to let me into the batter's box until I answer it, huh?" She felt shaky around the teenager.

"This goes nowhere at all. Nobody will ever know." Paris's eyes reflected complete honesty and privacy. "Come on--"

"OK, fine. Suddenly had an image of you in a fedora over a crappy light in an interrogation room there." Lorelai sighed, pausing to gather her thoughts as Paris's soft smile spread across her lips. "You know I've talked about how you're cute even without model-like looks, right?"

"We have gone over the appeal of that, yes."

"It's more than that. It's how you seem to care. You don't let yourself get sidetracked at all. When you did that project sophomore year at my house you didn't let the girls get in your way. You went on and on until they got bored with prattling on about my life. But I think what got me was when you didn't listen to Rory when it came to that Tristan mess over the summer."

"Lor--"

"No, no." She raised her hand up. "I am not looking for an apology. I wouldn't, at all. Funny thing is, in that situation..." A pause. "You were right."

"How was I right?" Paris questioned with a scoff. "I listened to the gossip and believed that he was taking her to the concert! I went off the rails there, even I can admit that!"

"But you don't have to. Because you were not wrong." She clenched Paris's wrist. "I never did tell Rory this, but I'm glad you threw up a roadblock at her and started her out low on the totem at the Franklin." Her voice became serious. "I wouldn't have approved of Tristan. He was a part of the side of the rich life I disapproved of. He wouldn't have cared for my daughter at all, and then when I found out you had the date arranged with him by her? Why did you need her help? You seemed to be doing fine luring him in all by yourself and you would've probably been able to turn him in time. But Dumbo there took it as an obligation and damned Skippy I was glad you dodged her Cupid's arrow and refused to date on what terms she addressed."

Paris continued to listen, not interrupting Lorelai as she took in all of her points leading back to her observation. "The thing is, she had to earn your friendship, and I liked that about you. Not really the 'blab about me making out with Max' thing, but she just couldn't skip in, ask you to be her buddy and that was it. You gave her competition, a drive to be better, something she didn't have at the high school back home. That's why I told her to just brush off your 'picking on' her, because I knew you weren't doing anything bad to her at all. Just telling her, get better."

"OK, but that doesn't explain why I've always been hot to you," Paris argued. "That made me understand further, but not fully."

Lorelai opened her hand, shaking her head adorably at the blonde's impatience. "I'm getting to that. Keep your knickers on there." Paris rolled her eyes and let Lorelai go on. "So, OK, that first year we had was awkward. You got to know me as this cool woman too into leopard print and Hello Kitty." Paris nodded, settling herself down again. "But, even in that time, I could tell there was something about you that was unusual. In a way I wanted to know more about."

The innkeeper sighed, knowing the alcohol they had both had through the night was getting to them, but in a way that only opened up conversation more. "I've had my share of friends, you know. The high school ladies who abandoned me when I got pregnant, Sookie, and to a point, Lane. But then I found a new challenge with you, Par. I saw you come in and you were just this girl who didn't enjoy fun. You were there to just work, that's it. So I went about showing you how to have fun, and at first, it was hard. You weren't impressed by me and I began to feel like you were just never going to budge."

"But...I did see some wrinkles." She wandered her hands up Paris's wrist as she unbuttoned the cuff on her left arm and began to roll up the sleeve of the blouse. "The parents meetings when you came around, I never really liked to talk about them with anyone else because I did it just to keep Il Duce off my ass. But I enjoyed it when you rolled in and gave your student POV of issues we brought up. The other women I could tell just loathed you coming in, telling them what to do." She hummed as she could tell Paris was beginning to goosebump on her arms, hair standing on end. "But there was just something about being a neutral ground with you, away from the town, from Rory, and from everyone else who consider you to be a pain in the ass."

Paris took in unsteady breaths as she took in Lorelai's monologue. She didn't know what it was or if it was the alcohol really getting to her as it always did, or just the fact Lorelai was talking to her again. She was just happy to hear the beautiful woman, and feel her fingers wander her arms.

"I think...I didn't realize it until the ticket sale. It was an unconscious thought that just was rattling around behind Max and trying to get back on the market with a good guy. I thought that I needed a man to get my second lifetime started up. But there were times I dragged myself to the parents meetings just to have those three minutes to see you...to hear you. No Rory warning you that you were on the way, or having to see you all wound up for competition. It was just you, as you were. And I kept thinking about that as the months went on.

"I mean, I guess you can't say there was a moment I considered you 'hot'. But I just keep thinking about you, dreaming about you, staying up at night in my bunk awake with fear and going back in my mind...you're just you. You could care less about going all the way to look pretty even when you have to, and I think, really, when I brought you home after the Bangles concert and you were still all giddy from that night, I was glad I could give it to you. A night away from all the stress and your parents and...I don't regret it, at all."

"I do regret one thing," Paris said, interrupting her and suddenly bringing Lorelai to a halt. Her whisper caught the woman unawares.

"What?" Lorelai was startled. "I--"

"The thing I regret," she said, bringing her gaze over, "was that the tickets were wasted on Madeline and Louise. You deserved to be on the floor that night with Rory and I, and though I still laugh at your experience deep in the cheap seats, I think if you were there with me, it would've been a better memory."

The brunette was in shock as the blonde's quiet words rumbled through her soul. "I would've even taken an upper deck seat with you, let Sookie have her ticket. I felt guilty making you give up your seats and when I got home that night I actually wrote a diary entry where I expressed guilt for enjoying an experience you should have. I...I'm sorry, Lor."

"No, don't." Lorelai shook her head. "Paris, I just wanted Rory to bond with hopefully new friends. That was why I offered them. And I had to push her into it."

"That's why I felt uneasy. I didn't want to just take them. I hated cheating you out of all that and two years later it still feels like it."

"Hey...I have plenty more opportunities to see the Bangles. They aren't retiring anytime soon, hon." She hoped to calm her lover's fears. "The only thing that hurt that night was the altitude sickness."

Paris rolled her eyes. "You were only 50 feet above us!"

"Might as well have been 5,000 feet. At least it wasn't a steep, steep theater. I needed an oxygen tank halfway through!" Paris giggled at Lorelai's hyperbole.

"Well, still, you thought I was hot because I enjoyed that concert."

Lorelai nodded happily. "You were. It was nice to get you into a place where you'd be able to let loose for awhile."

"Speaking of the Bangles concert..." Paris giggled happily as she suddenly hopped from the bed. "I have something for you!" She bounced up in the bed suddenly as Lorelai looked started as the tired girl suddenly found a burst of energy.

"Whoa, calm down there, Sparky!" She tried to hold back the young woman but couldn't as the blonde had a rare bubbly moment. She made her way to the modern style dresser at the end of the room to grab something from the drawer. "Honey--"

"No...no, just sit there. I want this to be special." Paris reached into the large drawer, perfect enough to fit an entire piece of luggage. She unclasped her largest piece of hardback luggage and found the black bag from the duty-free shop. "Close your eyes," she said in a rush, which caused Lorelai to heave out a groan more appropriate for a teenager than a 35 year-old woman.

"Again with the eye-closing. If that is a sex toy--"

"Oh my God!" Paris's voice carried surprisingly across the room. "Rule that out, please? I'm not into the idea of carrying bedroom items across international frontiers!" Lorelai snorted at how the serious plea could sound so silly out of Paris's mouth.

"OK, OK, not a sex toy!" The brunette smirked as she heard the rumpling of a bag. "Though I'm not opposed to be given one, or giving you one. Let's just say there's something I miss back in Stars Hollow that is getting a good 'welcome home' when I get back."

"Lor, I am half-drunk with shin splints from walking in heels for nine hours after you gave me a 'how's your father' 900 feet above Paris. Thinking about your bedroom behavior with your Magic Wand does not help when I want to keep my balance." Even as it came out completely serious, the petite woman was smiling deeply as she made sure everything was all in order. She heard a snort from the woman before coming back and flopping onto the bed after placing the bag in Lorelai's hands.

"Oooh, it's something sort of light," she observed, feeling the slickness of the bag. "Not perfume heavy though. This is a bit different. Hmm..." She pondered in the few moments what it could be, feeling the bottom and around, and the tissue paper on top of the package. "Oooh, I love tissue paper, I can totally use this to stuff my bra!"

Paris rolled her eyes and knew it was time to end the mystery. "Open your eyes and stop making me think of your boobs."

"Oh, so now you complain about them. It's because you thought of them we're here in the first place." She looked at the package and squealed. "Oooh..." Reaching in, she put aside much of the paper to find what was in the bag, sizing it up with her hands. "Oh, wow. This must be something really nice." Paris sat on her hands bouncing on the bed, waiting for Lorelai to open her present. She pulled it out and examined the wrapping.

"Even better than I could ever do," she said, complimenting the handiwork of the embossed wrapping. Coming over to the gift tag, she opened it up and read the text out loud, the 'song in my heart' portion suddenly causing her to still up in place.

"Song?"

Paris nodded. "Open it?" Lorelai felt her hands shake slightly, an overwhelming sense of need building for the blonde. Their eyes locked for a moment as Lorelai slid a fingernail beneath the fold to unwrap the gift while preserving the paper as well as she could. The nail ran down each seam until only a small portion of Scotch tape was holding the wrapping together. The older woman sucked in her lip and prepared to reveal the surprise, while Paris was in awe that the woman Rory had once described as leaving 'a scorched trail of giftwrap and bows at Christmas' had undone the wrapping so cleanly.

She tore open the last piece of tape, expecting near anything to appear in front of her...

But then she let out a shriek of delight as the white packaging revealed what led into it.

"Oh my God!" Her heart caught in her chest as all nervousness about what Paris would get her disappeared. "It's...this is what I think it is, right?" She looked over the box in disbelief. "Paris..."

"If it's too grand, I--"

"No, not at all. I'm...I..." She clutched the woman in a sudden tight hug, throwing the iPod box off to her side to bounce harmlessly on the bed. "Honey, you didn't have to but I'm glad you did!" She squealed as her hands wrapped around Paris's back. "My very own iPod! I can stick all the terrible music and dirty comedy albums on it I want and not have to share it. All mine and..."

She paused for a moment. "Though, it's kind of useless without anything on it. Umm...I know it doesn't come with anything."

"Lor?" Paris laughed. "I have all the Bangles albums and a few more 80's acts. Wham! for some reason, Pat Benetar, Belinda, the Go-Go's, Flock of Seagulls, bunch of other music I've bought since you dragged me kicking and screaming into the world of popular music. Of course, I have all my classical music too and a few audiobooks you have no interest in at all. But I will sync my computer with your iPod; it'll take you through the rest of the trip for sure."

"You...you'd do that? Give me stuff to listen to so I'm not stuck listening to people arguing on the train?" Paris nodded happily and Lorelai felt tears of joy coming on as she picked up the box off the bed. "I...I know I usually say I turn down big, fancy gifts...but not something like this." She took her nail to the plastic overwrap, tearing it off in record time as she looked over the cubed box in awe. "I'm going to put every song I've ever had on this thing and every time I play it, I'm going to think of you, and it's gonna be awesome!" She let out a squeal, sliding off the cardboard over the actual box and getting that same swell Paris had when she opened her own iPod box on the plane to sync it to her computer, in awe of how everything was packaged. The girl grabbed her Mac and prepared it for the syncing, still a little dizzy on her feet as somehow, computer syncing had become another part of their odd foreplay.

Lorelai examined the sliver and white player with her eyes and her hands, giddy that for once she had a better model than her daughter's, and best of all unmarked with an engraved message from her parents to Rory as part of it being a Christmas gift. Everything about it was perfect to her, and even if Paris had mailed it to her it would've still been a deeply treasured gift. She played with the scroll wheel and Paris thought she was enchanted by the orange glow of the individual buttons and blue light behind the screen, along with manipulating the scroll wheel up and down the menu with merely the edge of her index finger.

She handed off the iPod to Paris as she opened up iTunes and plugged it in, going through the set-up prompts and showing Lorelai all the music she had. She heard a guffaw as she suddenly realized her guilty pleasures were all out there to see for the older woman to make fun of.

"So...what if I like them? You haven't had bands you regret, yet still play every day?"

"No, I just didn't figure you for a New Kids on the Block completionist, Paris," she cracked. "Oooh, Jon Secada? Ahhh, there's an N*SYNC album--"

"You tell anyone," she stuck a finger up in the air, "no sex for a month."

"I'm already not--"

"Yeah, yeah. So I have some terrible taste in music."

"No, not terrible!" She scrolled down the screen with the trackpad. "I can see all the techno here, the Rocky and Top Gun soundtracks are like the biggest duh ever considering how you psych yourself up, and you have your fill of Lilith Fair'ers, which I'm glad you have because I've missed Sarah McLachlan songs in my life." She scrolled up a little when she caught another few names. "Wait, Nine Inch Nails? Yipes!"

"Trent Reznor is good, I'd never admit to my parents I enjoyed him though. Like I've said, I keep a pretty quiet life that I keep behind closed doors. I just don't publicize my enjoyment of boy bands for both my sanity and because I don't want conversation to devolve into which boy is the cutest." She saw Lorelai looking over everything. "I'm surprised you haven't said anything about what you didn't want."

"No, no, put it all on, it'll make the trip interesting to have Natalie Merchant lead into...Daft Punk. Man, I had you totally wrong, thinking you just emulated Lexus commercials on the road, nothing but boring music."

"My father would argue otherwise this summer; my sing-along of Dixie Chicks songs was not well-received." Paris sorted out all the music before coming to the naming screen. "OK, this needs a name. What would you like to christen it as?"

"Name? I get to name my iPod?" Paris was a little surprised as Lorelai's eyes widened in anticipation. "Oh my God, I get to name something of mine and Apple says it's OK? I never get to do that with electronics! My TV's "Lucy", but to JVC it's just a 32" screen with a long name with numbers in it and they don't care I named it, and Comcast refuses to go along with me naming their annoying cable box Sheldon." She looked at the prompt on the screen. "Hmmm..." Her eyes moved towards Paris, who was grinning and bearing her lady's eccentricities.

Suddenly, the blonde had an idea and began typing. "How about...Susannah? Because as you noted, you named Rory as such under a binge of Demerol and her own mangled vocabulary at age two, and it seems to be a perfectly musical name." She typed it in, stopping just before she hit the enter key to confirm her choice.

Lorelai was quiet for a moment, as she settled her hand into Paris's. Shaking her head, she was lost in her mind, wondering how Paris could love her like this when most men couldn't name where the most freckles she had were on her body.

"Hit enter," she said in a whisper. "And know that you're marvelous for having an amazingly beautiful mind which remembers every little bit of what I say." She sighed. "How you can remember that detail from two years ago is a shock."

"I remember everything. But I also care about you, Lor." She began the sync and moved the laptop and iPod onto the ottoman at the end of the bed so the process of syncing could continue. "I know it's a little much, but I heard in your voice; you need a little bit of fun on this trip, even if it involves an iPod."

"Of course, I can claim I was wooed with the iPod by the 'businessman', right?" Paris nodded with Lorelai's throaty laugh. "This has all been worth it. The dinner earlier, heading to the top of the Eiffel Tower at night. Is there anything you can't do?"

The blonde student nodded. "Serve a volleyball over the net? Rory can do it. I just end up bonking the girl in front of me in the head every single time, or when I try to volley it, it ends up stuck in the ceiling." Paris then averted her eyes. "In eighth grade I...even got an entire couple days of gym classes canceled because I bashed out a halogen fixture above the floor with an errant bump. Glass rained down below and everyone had to run in terror before it all hit the floor with the metal grate, which dented the floor."

The innkeeper felt deep sympathy at her lover's misery. "And I say my daughter is untalented at sports. You're actually destructive! No wonder you only took up tennis; the only damage you can cause there is testicular!"

"And I have at that too. 94 mile-an-hour serve right into Linden Trester's chestnuts!" She cringed in pain at the two year memory. "Poor guy went down like Frazier when Ali took him out. That's when I finally learned how to finesse the ball where I wanted, for the health of my opponent."

"You want to see something?" Lorelai hitched up her dress slightly to show where the pin was inserted to heal up her leg. "Yoga accident a few years back. I went for this one position and I overdid it; took out my tibia in the process. These marks aren't ever going to go away and I was laid up for four weeks in Hartford while I healed up." Paris winced as she took in where the leg had broke and was pinned, the skin beneath the black hose whiter than the surrounding flesh.

"Hurt like hell?"

"Worse than childbirth, by miles!" She moved onto another injury memory. "Then at six I cracked my head open taking the curve in my cul-de-sac a little too fast on my Huffy. I still have a scar on my scalp where no hair grows at all. Microscopic, but still, it's there."

Both of them began to open up as Paris shared her own scars. "Right arm, age eleven. Climbed the ladder in the Manor library to the sixth shelf; I was restricted to the third and lower. Tumbled off, braced myself, shattered my wrist. No long-term damage, except I became a forced lefty from the experience. Never could bounce back to my right hand and actually liked my writing better as a southpaw."

Another one on Lorelai's back. "Attempted to get a tattoo there when I was fourteen to declare my love for Chris. Never got in even a line before my father stomped in and told the artist to stop. Not only got a raging staph infection from it, I have a big black dot of leaked ink representing what never got to be an ill-advised decision."

"Oh yeah?" Paris lifted her shirt slightly to show off a small rash below her stomach at her left side which was only visible in the light at a certain angle. "Jewish summer camp, six years back, I was catching. Attempted to win a softball game in the bottom of the seventh by tagging out a runner about to collide with me at the plate; got a foot full of spikes instead. Had to get a tetanus shot outta that one." A little smile. "Fucker was out though, I did win the game, so it's a proud war winning wound."

The game of 'Anything you can injure I can injure worse' continued. "Five years ago, attempted a do-it-myself Brazilian wax with Nads. Accidently tore off a bit of live skin, had to have a mortifying visit to the ER with Sookie."

"I had a bit of exposed underwire on a bra my mother got on clearance in ninth grade. Thought I could gut it out in class," Paris said. "My instructor who discovered I was gushing blood into my shirt thought otherwise. Almost lost consciousness from the deep wound."

Lorelai thought for a moment, amused at their exchange before coming up with what she thought was the topper. "Barbell piercing to impress a guy ten years back. Didn't do a damned thing except send me to the ER with a blood infection. Took it out and have never considered anything pricking my hoo-haw ever again!"

But Paris had one last one to end their tit-for-tat. "Four words; repackaged Care Bears Underoos. Parents did a great job thinking they got away with returning something to Macy's as new and unopened in the package. Who knew it was possible for a four year-old to get a goddamned yeast infection and UTI, combined? I didn't, but there ya go! Hurt like hell for two weeks while I let the treatment go through and could not say one word at all in school. Hell, I never told anyone else not related to me, except you today!"

That was the moment Lorelai knew she had no other wound to boast about. "OK, that's a win for you. Game, set, match! No kid needs that in their life!" She shuddered in horror. "How...I didn't know that was possible to close up a package like new!"

"Kid didn't like them after wearing the first pair and their mother had her way with a hot iron and made it convincing that it was still a virgin package. Little did she know she tarnished my virgin package in return." Paris's deadpan tone got to Lorelai, and she nearly choked on her own breath as she let out a shocked gasp. After a few coughs and a slap on the back from Paris she recomposed herself, still cringing from the perfect alliteration.

"Damn it, Par!" she let out. "Why do you have to be so funny?!" She shook her head and brushed hair from her eyes. "I...I feel sorry for you, but now I also feel a kinship because we're both so clumsy and accident-prone!"

"At least we're not at Sookie's state of being a regular at the ER, so there's that. But we are definitely not to be left alone with a pilot light out, that's for sure." She let out a relieved sigh, amazed that at 1:30 in the morning in a hotel room in Paris both her and Lorelai were back on like they only had a small break. "You seem in a much better mood than when you came into the restaurant."

The innkeeper nodded. "Just glad to have time to myself with you being how we are. Some of this stuff I would've never told Max or Chris because they would've teased me mercilessly."

"It helps we had some very good wine to make things interesting." Paris laughed as she caught a glint in Lorelai's eye, moving back on the bed as her skirt again hitched up. "I'm very happy right now."

"Me too." Lorelai looked at her hands, worn down and with uneven nails from not having any time for a proper manicure regimen. "Crap, if I would've known you were coming I'd have evened my nails out."

"Evened them out?" Paris raised her eyebrows, feigning shock. "Why, Ms. Gilmore? What were you planning on doing?"

"Mmm, don't know," she teased. "The dishes, maybe? Or scraping them down a very long chalkboard?"

"I don't really mind. As long as your nails aren't too long I'm fine," she asserted with a whisper. "By the way, I'll be honest. I'm still feeling like I'm on Central time, so I'm not ready to sleep yet."

"I still can't believe you flew from Chicago just to be with me. I've never felt I've been that worth it." The taller woman grimaced, shaking her head. "And from our lack of contact I was...I was beginning to think you were forgetting me and giving up for the summer."

"Not for a moment," Paris responded strongly, taking Lorelai's wrist. "There's no forgetting you, Lor. I've had the best summer of my life, but it just became that way because I was able to see you this evening. I mean, there were guys who did hit on me on the road. Some of them were cute, my type, and there was flirting on my end. But..." She paused. "I consider myself exclusive to you, no matter how ridiculous that does seem. We both knew there was a possibility of falling in love on the road, but--"

Lorelai interrupted her. "Me too. Back in Munich there was this man that was after me for a date. If it was any other time in the world, I may have considered it. But I turned him down, and Rory was pissed that I did because he was indeed, the perfect guy. But he wasn't the perfect woman. Someone who knows me. Who doesn't hold me to what I was at sixteen and just sees me as I am, as this woman still in her prime, not ready to ride off into the sunset. And..." She felt her voice hitch as she held back an urge to cry. "Who, even though she is the last girl in the world to think of their lover in such a way, dressed me in this exquisite dress and lingerie, and indulged my fetish for fine footwear. I mean, I know...I...." She quieted for a moment to wipe tears from her eyes. "I know I say I hate 'that life'. That I don't want to be in it. But I know where you're coming from and that you despise it just as much as I do, but yet, you used it to your advantage, knowing I wanted to come to the City of Lights and be spoiled like this. You did it too, and for that..." She stretched over to peck Paris's right cheek softly. "I will forever be grateful. You took what could've been the shittiest part of this backpacking trip, and instead, left me with memories I will treasure always. And I hope there are more to come."

Paris stared into Lorelai's eyes as she spoke, and felt her heart lift with every word. It did work out. It worked, she thought to herself, thankful that none of her money was spent in vain. She had reasserted herself as the holder of Lorelai's soul with what she did and she began crying too, feeling so unlike herself as Lorelai complimented her. Everything she had thought or dreamed of with Lorelai didn't compare to the reality of the situation, that this mother with the kind soul had somehow opened up to her and allowed her a shoulder to cry on.

"There will be more," she simply responded. "Promise you, there will be." The only sound in the room was the whisper quiet process of the Mac hard drive transferring its music to Susannah's drive as both woman gazed into each other's eyes before Lorelai slid her gaze southward, her entire body wound deep and tight. She pursed her lips, faded of the lipstick of earlier, together, taking in Paris in the silent moment, the promise of more getting to her.

"I..." She shifted closer, her hands shaking in deep need. "Par..." A stumble in her voice. "This is gonna sound crazy, but I...I can't take it anymore." Then a sigh. "Unbutton your top."

Paris nodded. "You do it," she said, encouraging the woman closer as she slid the tail of the blouse out of its tuck. "I can't help it, I know you've been wanting take this off all night. Your hormones haven't been dealt with appropriately in weeks."

Lorelai chuckled, always thrown off, but turned on by Paris's complicated wording. "You ruined me, you know? Not since our last phone sex the night before I left have I had anything resembling an orgasm."

"I can believe that." The blonde confessed calmly to something else. "Whenever I had trouble sleeping I had scent recall and fell asleep like a baby when I remembered our smell post-sex."

"Well, what did you say that afternoon? Teenage boys are controlled by one thing." Lorelai wagged her eyebrows, giving Paris a blatant glance at her breasts. "Looks like it's the same for me."

"Technically...you are still a teenager," Paris noted. "You still act like one, for instance. And you sure have the skin complexion of a teenage girl." She pushed herself out a little more to look just that more alluring to Lorelai. "By the way, I think I undersized a bit. Should've accounted for my turned on state with the bra, because since your little fun on the Tower I've been feeling a little tight."

"You don't think I noticed?" The innkeeper smirked at her. "Honey, when you do yourself up, you look incredible. It's just a pity you had to choose your prom gown with your mother. And take out that dullard in it." Lorelai sighed. "I'm still a bit pissed Rory didn't even bother with Chilton prom. Why she wanted to re-live Stars Hollow with Jess, I haven't been able to figure out."

"Actually, Jess did want to go to Chilton prom," Paris said. "He asked me for ticket information, dress code and everything. But when Rory found out, she went mental on me and told me it was none of my business. Then she told me she was still bitter about how she was treated with Dean when they attended the Winter Formal sophomore year and..."

She paused for a moment, knowing it was privileged information she wasn't to tell anyone, but at this point, she knew her friendship with the younger Gilmore would evaporate by the second week of September once Rory found her new circle of friends. "Don't tell Jess this. Ever. Because he will be hurt, he will be angry, and there will be a fight." She composed herself. "Rory disallowed him to go to Chilton prom out of some ridiculous fear he would throw down with a Chiltonian." Her voice grave, she still felt anger at how Rory made assumptions based on the Jess who came from Brooklyn looking to pick a fight with anyone. "Which is bullshit. You know it, I know it. Since the accident in Dean's deathtrap he's been scared straight and just been mischievous, not felonious. He might not be the best guy in the world, but the boy worked hard in this year to get into BC. He deserved that small little surprise and..."

Stoically, she shook her head, wondering how she was coming off to Lorelai, knowing she wasn't exactly a cheerleader for the Jess/Rory romance. "You have to promise me something when you get back to Connecticut. I just get this scary feeling that Rory is becoming more like Emily than you think. That once she gets to Boston, the kind link of normalcy you have given her by living in Stars Hollow, it's going to disappear. She is going to get to Cambridge with these ambitions and this love for Jess of getting him into Boston College, but once she meets a Harvard man, it's going to fall apart. I...I know I sound crazy. That I'm probably offending you by talking about this. But for me...support the hell out of Jess. Encourage him, send him care packages, even if it's just a bag of Chips Ahoy! because you suck in the kitchen. The reason I didn't like the Princeton idea with Jamie in the first place, was I knew it was going to either be go there and ignore him, or just go all in on a relationship and my grades would suck."

Lorelai didn't know where this was coming from, but it seemed somehow that Paris understood Jess much more than Rory ever did. "I don't want him to be left behind. If Rory does that, the first sign of trouble, please, call me, and we'll figure things out. I mean...don't misunderstand me at all. This is not me confessing I wanted to date Jess. I know we'd never work out just based on our book arguments and economic standing alone. We'd be at it like freakin' Ralph and Alice all the time and subsist on hate sex! But...he's a good friend to me. We don't talk a lot, but I consider my world better with him in it, and yours and Luke's too. I want him to succeed, and I hate that Rory has this helpful need to show him off, but also is ashamed by his social standing."

The dark-haired woman was thrown off track by Paris's sudden track. We...we just don't know how to have a normal A to B conversation, do we? It's a winding path like the Adirondacks. Still, she was glad that this came up. To hear that there was another person besides her and Luke rooting for Jess to make himself in the world helped soothe her fears.

"She does talk to him all the time," Lorelai said. "But I know from Luke, the few conversations we've had since I left, that Jess is kind of in the 'I have to talk to Rory or she'll get pissed' mindset when she's online. Otherwise, he has been working himself tired out at the Wal-Mart as much as legally possible and getting plenty of help from his counselor at SHH about the acclimation process. It's been weird...Luke says since Rory's left, he's been completely different. Focused." She laughed lightly. "Sure, he still did put on the Fonzie act at graduation and wore jeans onto the stage and 'whatever'ed his principal when he got his diploma, but he knows this is his fresh start and he wants to make Luke proud of him and defy his mom's predictions he'd be a junkie. I think he's committed to this, but once Rory's back, all bets are off."

"So you're saying you're on my side. You want Jess to succeed. Because I always got the sense--"

"From Rory that I want to disembowel him and make him bleed slowly to death. Very exaggerated." The older woman scoffed. "We get along now. He's doing the lawn and the gutters while I'm away and getting paid well for it. We've come to a truce, although him still calling me 'Ms. Gilmore' gets to me, and I know he treats Rory well. First year and after the accident? Yeah, I didn't like him, but we're better now. My daughter just loves to assert that I hate him because she thinks I have this notion I still revere Dean." She shook her head vehemently. "That couldn't be further from any form of the truth."

"Old ground; Dean is an idiot with a 90's haircut who is bound for lesser things."

"And marriage." Lorelai smiled, relieved she dodged a bullet with him. "He proposed to his new girlfriend Lindsay after graduation, she said yes. Wedding's in December...divorce probably follows in June when they realize the only thing they have in common are pathetic credit reports."

"Marriage out of high school, always a recipe for disaster, especially when you barely know a person." The blonde shifted her skirt to adjust her hose. "I don't know why, but I had this creeping feeling Jamie was going to get down on bended knee at Chilton graduation if we made it that far, and was going to make it nigh impossible to say no to him."

"He would've too," Lorelai theorized. "No doubt about it. You know the Hartford richies, they just love a good high school sweetheart story. Probably even had the ring on him on the boat if he was confident enough you'd go to the Shore on him."

"You know, the more I think about it, the more I'm glad we gave in. I could've been engaged right now to that fool." The wound-up blonde felt relaxed just from knowing that her summer had come mainly because her frustrations had boiled over during the cashbox count. "If not for that second opinion of yours, I...well, I don't even want to think of what goes on at the Jersey Shore this time of year."

"I know what I want to think about," Lorelai sing-songed, moving closer. "You and I, on this bed, making the most of a Parisian getaway, making ourselves happy in this little bubble." She wrinkled her nose with a whimper. "Now, please divest your top and display to me your accoutrements post-haste."

"You...haven't been reading the dictionary for fun this summer, have you?" Paris rolled her eyes while shaking her head. "Lor, you're beginning to scare me a little with your use of large words."

The innkeeper scoffed. "What am I gonna say? 'Show me your tits, hot mama?' That would be rude and crass. You, Paris, are a young woman of refined taste and class, and my compliments to you must reflect how I feel about you."

"Mmm-hmm." Paris gave a questioning glance to her lover, her withering stare this time teasing Lorelai with skepticism. "You actually picture me as Mena Suvari in that one scene in American Beauty, don't you?"

"Are you kidding? That movie is a piece of crap that's already aging horribly! I'm sorry, but if I wanted to see a mid-life crisis I'd just walk down the street and watch Bootsy deal with his. Also? You're not a rose person, which has been made abundantly clear by our garden tour, thus making that entire dream sequence fully fictional should I ever think about you in that manner."

"Not a Six Feet Under fan, I assume then. I never thought I'd find someone in the world who hated Alan Ball's poor excuse for writing like I did."

"Here's how the show happens for me, episode one...the son gets told to come back to the funeral home...'Get bent you miserable goths!' and trudges back home. Show over. Can't even watch it because I really have a phobia of death. You wanna make a weekly series out of that?!" The brunette let out a rough growl. "God, sorry, I just get a little riled up about certain show writers."

"And dying, obviously." She glanced at Lorelai with a pensive glance. "Your cheeks are red. You're all riled up." She hummed a little bit, sliding herself towards the woman who had not left her dreams for weeks. "So...if not rose petals and cheerleading outfits, how do you fantasize about me? Still nothing but knee socks?"

The innkeeper bit her lip, suddenly feeling a red flag as she could tell the younger girl was openly flirting with her, the voice that was usually firm and even hitching up as Paris seemed to notice she was sneaking glances at her cleavage with regularity. "Like I said, not much time to play when I'm stuck in a hostel where undressing myself equals furious masturbation from a multicultural lot of younger guys. Which is why I've been unable to elaborate in email. But, if you're looking for an answer..."

With little surprise, Paris felt herself taken by the waist as Lorelai slipped a hand beneath her blouse to feel her at the same point she had just pointed out her softball injury. "Well, I have had some wet dreams, since nature is taking care of what my fingers haven't when I've been backpacking. When I was in Zurich, it was the rare evening where I didn't have Rory in the same room, and a nice upper corner bunk with a couple of quiet college girls from the South as my neighbors who were off to Nod pretty quick. My brain flipped on a switch and...I had a very good night's sleep thinking about you and I...the Grad Cruise..." She wandered off, feeling a little uncomfortable. "Let's say I completely failed at my chaperoning duties and there was sex involved and Jamie having too much to drink and tipping overboard. He was OK, but well, he created an easy excuse for you to dump him."

"I knew it!" Paris chuckled as she felt Lorelai's other hand finally move along the top of her button line, the tall brunette starting out by teasing her with her index finger along her neck and taking in the silver chain holding her treasured Star of David. "You said the dress was cursed, but it showed me off well."

"That it did. You left it on that hook, along with your bra. It hasn't been able to leave my mind at all. I knew you were vulnerable and bruised at the time, but with distance between, it's become a wonderful memory." She pushed her nail along the chain, then released it before finding the first button. "It was a dress meant to be slid out of so you could make love." Sliding the button from its eye she sucked in a breath as Paris immediately took in a deep breath, forcing the material on each side of the shirt to part. "A pity I was never able to play that out."

"Not a pity. If not for your messy room who knows when we would've had our little fun in there?" She sighed as Lorelai took down a couple more buttons. "It may have never come and been buried under a girly movie night."

"We had ice cream with chocolate syrup. I'm sure it was," Lorelai declared, denying it as she bared more skin with each button taken down. "What if it hadn't? Or you did leave?"

"Not even in any mood to think about it." Paris shook her head strongly. "I would not trade any moment of that night, or the morning after, for anything in the world. I felt just as fetching in your pajama shirt as I did that dress. Don't think about the what could have been with us...just what was, and will be." She felt elegant fingers brush against the outside of her cleavage, Lorelai tracing the swells of her flesh so perfectly and deeply. "And...God...think about the fact if you were on the Grad Cruise you'd have to worry about panty lines, annoying brats ogling you in whatever you wore, adults butting in all the time, actual chaperoning--"

"Shhh, shhh, let me have my 'nothing in my way' fantasy, please!" The hotelier smiled slightly. "I almost did sign up for chaperone duty, except of course it was before we sold the tickets so Rory had me all hyped on how high-strung you were."

"I would've been that night," Paris observed easily. "You probably would've had to hold me back from pushing Jamie into the Sound after the college conversation."

"So all in all, a good thing then." Lorelai finally found her way to the last button of the blouse, licking her lips as she eased the button out. "Wouldn't be here for sure." She pushed aside each side of the blouse to reveal the grey bra encasing her lover's endowments within a secure, yet beautiful package. Despite the dim light of the room and her own inhibited mind she was still cognizant of the reaction she was growing to love when revealing the intellectual's hidden charms, meant only for her.

Possessively she laid a soft kiss upon Paris's upper right breast to assert how she felt for the girl, then rose back up again to take in everything. Paris shirked off the blouse innocently, tossing it softly to the floor and blushing deeply at the way those indigo blue eyes were currently taking her near all in.

Lorelai squinted her eyes to make sure she was indeed looking at Paris in the way she was. With one article off, Paris managed to look stunning looking like she did when getting ready for a date. Her curves were still completely there, but there was something different. She stared in appreciation and smiled.

"You worked off a little weight there," she said, noticing. "A little, not much, but still...it flatters."

Paris nodded softly. "About eight pounds. Honestly, all I need. Just been away from the chefs at the Manor and with a limited need for food over the last few weeks. Even when I was in Boise with Nanny cooking every single day, it seemed to go right through me because I had to run her grandkids over each day to the park a few blocks down. Got the calories off, especially when I had to be on the playground equipment to play with them. Then there was the nine mile hike at Yellowstone and the whitewater trips down the Snake and Salmon. So plenty to do."

"And plenty of sun, I think." She grinned. "Definitely darker than you were before. It's those Sephardic genes, isn't it?" A bit of silence as Paris was confused as to how Lorelai knew her ancestry. Lorelai just shrugged. "What? I actually did listen to you rehearse your ancestry report when you had Rory help you."

"I'll just say I'm glad my bloodline goes back to the Mediterranean region. It's a blessing for sure that I tan so wonderfully." She took in breaths as it seemed Lorelai was enchanted by the rise and fall of her stomach. "You're just glad I'm here, aren't you?"

"Yeah. I'm sorry if I'm being so slow tonight," Lorelai said, apologizing. "I mean--"

"Take your time." Paris took her arm lightly, feeling the hair on it standing prickling on end. "I want it slow. I don't mind it. Tomorrow night, we can rend our garments and do things that would make Laverne and Shirley blush. Besides, I want to relax you to sleep, not cause you to near knock out like we did back at the Manor."

"You want it slow?" Paris nodded, her mouth watering involuntarily at the way Lorelai worded the question. "I can do slow." She laid a kiss on Paris's neck, backing her up towards the heavy dark oak headboard. "Also, sounds delicious to me." The woman sucked in her lip, lightly pinning Paris against the mattress in a loose manner the girl would easily be able to escape from. Paris could feel a big difference in Lorelai's strength right away, even with the light grasp.

"My, grandmother, what strength you have!" she boasted, earning her a throaty giggle from her beloved.

"The better to ravage you with," she whispered. "And please, Trix is my granny. I'm your Lori, so never drop the G-word with me again. There shall be consequences." She wagged her eyebrows, but Paris still knew she meant business.

"Just a little inside joke," she claimed. "Now...we want to take it nice and slow..." She felt herself slowly becoming vertical on the bed, with Lorelai hovering above her. She placed her hands just above Lorelai's ass, and she could feel herself clench at the idea of Lorelai leaving on her Louboutins.

"Slowww...." Lorelai soon moved her lips down to Paris's neck to spark everything up. "Talk time is over. Foreplay is over. It's time for us girls to have a bit of fun."

Paris couldn't let that reference slide by. "A..."She Bop" as it were."

Where Lorelai would have usually doled out a correction as to the actual meaning of said song title, there was no hiding that what Paris said wasn't any accidental in any way. Her memory had caught it in Paris's iTunes library as having the highest play count among the songs of She's So Unusual, so there was no doubt the young woman knew exactly what she was getting at. She just nodded and slid her tongue along the hollow of Paris's throat.

"You're going down," she whispered deeply. "Time After Time." from the deep stare in Lorelai's eyes at her, Paris suddenly felt a thought coming on.

Thank goodness I worked out plenty so far this summer, she thought to herself. By the time we're done with these two nights I'm never going to remember why I ever needed a cock in the first pl--

Her thought was short-circuited as her dominant and older partner began to find anew the control over her she asserted against that refrigerator that one hot May Sunday morning.

Lorelai had figured that she would be exhausted after her first evening in Paris. It was a big city, after all, with plenty of walking between places and a cityscape that even the Haussmann Plan couldn't completely repair. She expected a guided tour of a point of interest she would just look at the pamphlet for and nod quietly in agreement that it was a good place while Rory stayed in awe over it. She had expected to be sore at the end of this evening.

Only, she didn't expect that soreness to come from slow and sensuous activity with her lovely new paramour within the bounds of the finest hotel in the city.

Where she felt sweat-soaked and miserable coming into the city on the coach, she was now sweat-soaked, but in bliss as Paris had done exactly as she promised, not picking up the pace at all and turning what usually led to harried sex into a long experience which had her humming pleasantly between her legs with every nerve on edge.

Despite the last time where the first encounter they shared in Paris's media room was slow, it was more intended to get her to sleep, with a promise of more to come once her body was able to have a rest. This time it was just them in their moment, alone, nobody bothering them. Paris had gone to the point of pulling out the line cord from the back of the room telephone, and turning off both of their cell phones, cutting off all contact with the world. The room's drapes, so darkened not a sliver of light could slide in at high noon, isolated them in a darkness only interrupted by the reading lamp to the side of the bed, dimmed to about the lowest level where both women could still make each other out.

Their clothing came off at a slow pace, as both women treasured the evening as a chance to explore, having gone past the first uncomfortable steps of finding their groove within their first few encounters. Paris knew she had the luxury of being by herself for near a month and a half, which made self-expression of herself sexually easy, but for Lorelai she knew it would be a bit before she was back to how she usually was. She guided the woman in slow and longing kisses, talking her through small things she remembered about the brunette that had caught Lorelai by surprise. The innkeeper was thankful for the material of the dress which stretched with her perfectly through each position she was guided in by the blonde, though she was shocked to how long it took to convince her to help her out of it.

But she could wait, as Paris soon found out that Lorelai was good with stimulating her without shucking off layers. The older woman was very handsy, running her fingers along her back and almost giddy that the waistband of her pantyhose had pushed up above the waist of her skirt. As she bit Lorelai's lip, a gasp was forced from her throat as she could feel Lor's fingers flirt with the skirt waist and rubbed her ass through the material, which was both unexpectedly sexual and stimulating for her.

"Fuck..." The young woman was surprised; she knew that Lorelai was definitely a woman into legs, but in her explorations of her sexuality, especially with Louise, grew used to loathing hosiery, something the honey-voiced girl had told her was a hindrance to lovemaking. "It's an extra layer," she was told. "If you're gonna go for it with a girl, just dive in and get them off as soon as you can."

It had been a factor that as her and Louise grew hotter and heavier in understanding how they worked, she had switched her uniform preference from wearing hosiery to knee socks to meet her best friend's needs. Even after they had broken it off to pursue the usual heterosexual lines, Paris never went back, only choosing hose when it was meteorologically or aesthetically necessary, or for one of the many Hartford social events, to send a silent message to the boys who wanted her to back off. She was happy bare-legged, and only chose to go with the nude pair Dominique had presented her to both satisfy the clerk's recommendations and to add a line of elegance that would make her look more mature than her 18½ years showed her to be.

She purred though as she felt the contact of Lorelai's hand against hers, holding the material in a light grasp that rubbed against her slightly, just enough to provide just the slightest amount of friction. Even though there was no touch anywhere near her center it was enough to keep her warm. Lorelai kept up the circling rub for a few minutes until a sharp gasp from her lover told her it was time for a cool down. She slid her hand back up neutrally to Paris's back, as they took the first of a few breaks in their passion, though they were not pulling away from each other anytime soon as Paris had her first sexual observation of the night, settling down as her analytical brain took in the new information with a sexual creak from her throat.

Lorelai lit up, knowing she struck a nerve. "So...Supergirl, how was that first go around for you?" Although she felt overdressed, to see her favorite intense student in such a thrown off manner got her warm.

"Well, I now know the appeal of both hose and those long boots you seem to favor." A small giggle. "At first...yes, I thought they were, to use the vernacular, 'hooker boots'. But there's a difference, because the boots you buy are both designed to make you look professional, and lure at the same time."

"Have you been lured before?" Lorelai narrowed her eyes. "Come on, Par. You used the h-word, so certainly there was equalization in some form."

"At first? It was a negative opinion. Currently, just the thought of you in knee-high boots causes my thighs to quiver." She hummed softly, her throat uttering a deep groan as she remembered all of the times she had seen the women when her and Rory had time to study at the inn in Lorelai's back office. "More negative though because I don't see the need for them. I'm fine just in regular shoes, or sneakers."

"This coming from a girl who wore out many pairs of saddle shoes probably."

"Please. Don't remind me." The blonde huffed. "You know the little striptease I had during my college rumination, how I didn't mention those damned things? Because first thing I did was dump them in the kitchen garbage. Never, ever again with them."

"You could handle the uniform but not the shoes?" Paris strongly shook her head.

"No flexibility in them whatsoever, no matter what comfort soles I threw in them. They may have promoted proper posture, but they also inspired so many blisters that the reason I looked forward to summer was solely because I could throw on a loose pair of ASICS and never have to be in agony for three months."

Lorelai nodded in understanding. "If there's one thing Rory was lucky about, it's that she only had to wear them for three years. You had...fourteen, and I had at least ten or eleven years. You don't forget clopping around in those awful things, ever." She wrinkled her forehead and pressed a kiss against the younger woman's chin. "And yet, I put myself through heel torture, go figure."

"Mmm, well I'm not complaining about the shoes I bought today," Paris admitted. "They fit well, everything felt right about them. And I am an etiquette school graduate so I can walk in heels just fine. They're just not my type of shoe, is all. I'm all about comfort. Still..." A little smile across her lips, she narrowed her eyes. "Seeing you look down at my ankles over and over nearly drooling through the evening made it all worth it."

"I wasn't looking," Lorelai suggested innocently. "I was just...making sure...you were safe on your legs. That's all. I didn't want you to fall."

"Whatever keeps your mind at ease there, Wonder Woman." Both women threw themselves back in the bed as she took in the sight of the tall woman in bed covered up by the silk sheet, though not hiding anything as she was still in her underwear, the dress carefully hung up to the side on a pull of the dresser to keep it stiff and beautiful. "Didn't want me to fall, hmm?"

"OK, the ink always catches me," Lorelai admitted. "Paris Gellar, a tattoo girl. Next you're going to say you got something pierced!"

"Well..."

"No, don't tell me--" Lorelai threw her head back. "Par, don't tell me you regret it."

"I can't regret something I didn't do...yet. I thought a belly piercing, but then I was like, when do I show off my stomach, so I didn't. But I did take your advice and look up a few of those places Sookie recommended. The one she went to in Uncasville where the piercer knows her stuff, especially when it comes to the people streaming out of Mohegan Sun? I was planning to get my nose done there when I got home...well, it would have been today, but obviously I will have to reschedule."

"So you're going for it?" Paris nodded.

"I've had nearly boiling water thrown at me by a geyser, survived river rapids and managed to get a mountain or two climbed this summer. Oh, and my nanny's niece Marina said I'd look pretty with one. Don't want to be a disappointing aunt now, do we?" The student smiled at the memories of helping her nanny start her second life. "That way when I do get home I have heal time before I start school and I won't be playing with it every five minutes in class making the baseball players think I want them to steal second every time I itch it."

"Did I convince you of it?"

Paris gave Lorelai a thoughtful glance and answered. "Definitely one of the factors. I would have put it back off had you not defended my getting the first one. I live and learn, so I think the second should be a little less stressful and scarring."

"I'm glad I could convince you to go through with your Harvard rebellion, if only it was a little late." The tired innkeeper yawned slightly, the bed getting to her as she felt the stresses of the last month melt away upon the soft mattress. "This bed is way too comfy, you know." She wondered if Paris would be disappointed if the night had to come to a sudden conclusion.

"You need sleep, don't you?" Lorelai nodded, scared to say anything that might be construed as ruining the night, though the blonde knew her. "Lorelai?"

"Well, I know I want to, but...you came here from Denver. I can't just fall asleep on you! Not when you've spent who knows what on getting here and then all of this. It only seems fair--"

"Shhhh..." Paris suddenly put her finger to Lorelai's lips. "You want sleep?" Though Lorelai's body craved some way to relieve her stress with her lover, her brain was begging for a recharge that only a deep sleep could provide. "Look, I'm fine. I am not a woman who needs constant lovemaking to get through the day. You got me earlier already."

"I know. I just don't want you to feel down or anything though."

"Hey, I'm not down that I can't have you tonight! I'm just glad to be here, with you, alone, in the same bed." Paris rolled her eyes a bit. "If you're tired, I want you to sleep to feel better. Get your energy back and use this opportunity of being in a five-star hotel to take advantage of the comfortable bed. I am not going to get mad just because I won't be able to turnabout."

"That's the thing, I do want turnabout. But I also don't want to ruin things by having foreplay turn into me going to sleep on you before we get into the dirty stuff." The brunette groaned. "Damn it, we talk too much--"

"Lor," Paris said with a tone of warning in her voice. "I'm glad for the long talk. But again, I can wait to have a little time with you intimately. We have a lot of time yet." She brushed her fingers against Lorelai's shoulder. "I'm worn out too. My foot still feels like lead from taking way too much advantage of the loose speed limits in the west, and of course I did have a much longer flight than usual here. Chicago adds on two, three hours to flying out of Kennedy or Boston."

"So...if I went to bed now, what would you say?"

Paris smiled. "I would say, goodnight, Lorelai, and I am glad to be here for you, and I will see you fresh and perky in the morning for our ten o'clock wakeup call from the front desk."

"And I would say..." Lorelai blushed shyly, "you sure I'm only your second relationship? Because you have more game with me than Usher."

"Game?" Paris gave Lorelai a confused look. "What game? Monopoly, Scrabble, Pop-o-Matic Trouble? I have more of a game than an usher? What does a person who guides you to your seat have to do with games?"

Lorelai was thrown off, but not completely surprised. "Uhh, I was...saying...um, you're a..." She attempted to think of an example when one finally came to her after a confusing twenty second pause. "You're a smooth operator. Game being 'wooing skills' and Usher is a hip-hop artist."

"The guy Louise was obsessed with who wears tank shirts and has too many songs on the radio? That guy?" Lorelai nodded. "Ohh, so what you're saying is..." A pause. "I know how to woo you."

"Oh lord, we have a winner!" Lorelai cried in relief. "We really need to expand your pop culture reference pool if I'm ahead of you in getting what's with the kids these days. Do you even know about Britney and Christina?"

"Only about how terrible the former is and the latter is wasting too many career opportunities. My iTunes collection should have clued you into that."

"Truly, to MTV you are but a vacuum that cannot be penetrated."

"I have it blocked on my satellite. I refuse to have myself associated with them in any way." She laid back along her side in the bed, feeling very light and relieved to see that Lorelai's worry lines seemed to be disappearing before her eyes. "Seriously, I have no problem if you sleep. You look like you need it. As long as we get to bed in the next half-hour we shall still be within National Sleep Foundation guide--" She suddenly stopped herself and gave herself a face palm. "Oh God. I didn't just talk nerdy to you, did I?"

Lorelai laughed out loud as Paris catching herself. "You're in Mensa, I didn't expect any less, hon." She wandered her gaze down along the younger woman's stomach. "Mmm, I love having genius sex. It's so much more cerebral and...knowing."

"Knowing?" Lorelai nodded at Paris's perplexion. "I don't understand that."

"Because you know your way. You're slow, with a certain method about getting to lovemaking eventually." She pursed her lips together. "You've admitted to me you've stretched out an orgasm for hours, so it's only natural."

"Days, if I'm going to be honest." The blonde displayed a deep blush. "With the way my life is, my focus on things, there are times where my mind just doesn't spark up any kind of need for stimulation. Sounds odd, but when you're deep in a study or a cram session you just push off every single need or want possible. I'll even admit to having to race to the restroom quite a few times after going eight hours without a break."

"Well, you're devoted, it's understandable." Lorelai moved her hand alongside Paris's stomach, feeling a little bit of renewal. "For me, there's just times where I want to have sex, but it's just not there to be had. So I have to make do, or I just read a trade publication and push it out of my mind. I guess I'm tuned to have it, ready or not, but I get these ebbs and flows where the last thing I need is any kind of loving."

"Honestly, with Jamie, I never did feel that need," Paris shared. "It just didn't want to happen and I had to push myself to think 'yeah, this is good, I can grow to enjoy this'. But then...the classroom." A short laugh of mirth slid from her throat. "It ruined me. Like, going home after we broke apart on our own and then I got outside and wondered why the breeze beneath my skirt was stronger than usual." The blonde shuddered in delight. "We basically set aside years of misconceptions and so many other things in those minutes that I knew I was going to feel for a long time, even if we never did come together again."

"Definitely the same feelings here too." The brunette innkeeper dared to use her other hand to clench Paris lightly. "And then when I went wild with you against the fridge, I don't think I've felt that purely sexual in years. In the morning, looking the way you did...that elegant little baring of a shoulder? I just felt this...thing inside of me that wanted to...to..."

Her voice lowered, the tone taking on a slight bit of guilt. "I felt like I wanted to make my mark on you because I didn't have to keep you all clean for Jamie anymore." She realized what she said. "Please don't take offense--"

"Mmmm, do I look like I'm angry with you, Lor?" She stared directly at the woman, the dimness of the room electrifying how she felt. "The human body knows how to heal from a little rough play. I'm a big girl with a big girl brain, and if I didn't want to be fingered against your fridge I would have told you long in advance." The petite blonde's tone was getting heated. "You'd know if I was uncomfortable, trust me. I have a good tolerance; you should see me after I have a six-hour session with myself. I'm just the type of woman who will test herself to limits most girls only think exist in romance novels."

"So you're not mad?" Paris hummed a 'no' as Lorelai felt relieved as she let herself relax. "I'm still all new at this...wooing a woman...especially one your age."

The blonde scoffed at how Lorelai lightened it up. "We're both all new at this and you've done a pretty good job of it." She noticed Lorelai trying to stifle a yawn, hiding it well but still noticeable. "You need to sleep though."

"No...sleep," Lorelai denied, even as her eyelids drooped halfway to hood half her pupils. "I can stay up."

"Come on, turn around. I need to unhook you." She tapped at Lorelai's arms to encourage the woman. "Lor, you can't possibly sleep in that thing."

"Wanna bet?" she answered, to a stiffened scoff by the younger woman. "I can!"

"You've been wincing all night, I saw it, and your multiple adjustments."

"Hey, you've been playing 'tweak and adjust theater' all night yourself, missy!"

"I have an excuse! I'm much more...loaded." The blonde thought to herself for a moment. I'm trying to argue Lorelai into taking her bra off? I really am on another continent. "Plus you felt me up before!"

"I've slept in my underwear multiple times. I even did it when I was breast-feeding, Par. I think I can handle staying in here for another few hours." She smirked. "Besides, I know exactly what you want to do."

"No?"

Lorelai nodded softly. "And, I'm not going to say another word." She brought Paris close and kissed her. "Remember, you did say you wouldn't argue about me sleeping, so...night, Par."

The flustered college freshman noticed the glint in Lorelai's eyes that suggested she did want to rest, but the seduction game between them certainly wasn't over. She nodded, knowing despite starting off the domino effect, Lorelai could easily place her heel between two of them and stop the inevitable to meet her own needs. Besides, Paris thought to herself, I know I have the next volley. She's anticipating of it, needy of it. And I'm certainly not objecting right now. Her mouth had watered all night at the sight of Lorelai's curves presented to her both in and out of the little black dress. The light scent of her perfume mixed with arousal and perspiration was also able to calm the beast within her, needy of the woman she had so chivalrously given up for the last month.

"No arguments," she whispered softly. "I need to shut down my computer after the sync anyways." She got up from the bed, her body tingling at the loss of contact. "Goodnight." With a kiss to Lorelai's forehead, their first night back together was over. Lorelai fell asleep within mere minutes as Paris moved her computer to the writing desk near the window where the data port was, sending of a couple of quick emails to her parents to assure them that she was well across the Atlantic from them.

It had been a whirlwind couple of nights for her. She still felt like it was all a dream, that Lorelai wasn't in a hotel room with her in the center of the City of Lights, nor that she had created a date night that would now set a bar so high for anyone else wanting to date her that it was impossible to top. She mindlessly tapped out her cover story of a week's break from everything as she went through both emails, glad to find that her personal banker hadn't put a flag on her accounts for the sudden surge in activity. Soon both had been sent and she was walking around the room, slipping off her hose and rolling them into a ball while gasping at the contact of her fingers with her waist as she slid them beneath the layer of lingerie holding her back from nudity. She slipped on the complimentary silk robe offered with the room and headed out onto the balcony overlooking the courtyard. Though every Parisian vacationer's dream was to have a view of the tower, the girl was glad for the privacy of a room which had the natural coolness and solitude of a courtyard view.

Closing her eyes, she let herself relax on the lounge chair on the small deck which barely had room for much more than three people.

It's been a revealing night, she thought to herself, the cool air brushing against her cheek and sneaking beneath the robe, up her thighs before sneaking along her underwear to send her into a gasp she didn't even know she could utter. Everything came together better than I could have expected when this idea suddenly germinated like kudzu in Atlanta. She was still shuddering from the contact she felt in bed with Lorelai, feeling driven to her limits and then let down gently before the night could reach its peak.

If anyone had done that with her, even Tristan in the worst part of her infatuation with him, it may have ended in an ugly manner with an argument and profanities for leaving her hanging. Lorelai...she was a much different story.

Lazily, she let one side of the robe fall to expose a leg to the early morning air. She thought about how she would pay back Lorelai, but had assumed it would eventually lead to sex in bed. It hadn't ended up that way, however. She knew Lorelai would need sleep, but the video mail of her travels had showed that a long sleep was actually needed and the brunette was thankful for a mattress not manufactured in the same line as that of a prisoner or mental health facility.

Everything about her Paris trip had been deeply stimulating. From the glances of Dominique as the young clerk helped her with her wardrobe and the help to get her European sizes just right, to how a good heel, rather than repulse her as if she was playing with a Barbie, made her feel like the seductress never seen in years previous, the young woman hardly felt like the silly girl who went wild over spiked hair and muscles like she did years before with her first love.

And in the rear view? The awkwardness of those 'seven months of what the hell', where she couldn't trace one reason she wanted Jamie Pratt outside of him saying he loved her or punched her v-card. Everything had perplexed her about the relationship, from meeting his parents and friends to his pleas to attend Princeton, along with his idea of romance which hardly matched hers.

Louise ruined me, she surmised, going back a few years to her experimentation when she knew she would always be more of a lover of women. If not for Louise she knew that Lorelai would've just been yet another Chilton mom she'd barely notice in any way and would not have found attractive.

She laughed to herself, the thought completely absurd. She had heard Headmaster Charleston, a man happily married to his wife of 35 years declare once in a teacher's lounge meeting she eavesdropped on about 'the fetching and infuriating Ms. Gilmore', and the cranky old chemistry instructor Mr. Weinemann declare the same.

Even Ms. Peters had declared once it had been a 'pleasure' to deal with Lorelai when she submitted an ad for the Independence before the fire in the Franklin, with the word said in a way that suggested the woman would dump her girlfriend of ten years for a mere shot at the hotelier if she wasn't deeply in love with the woman.

Then there was the innate jealously she felt for Max Medina she had never been able to explain until she realized her feelings for Lorelai selling Grad Night tickets. She knew now with so much hindsight that her spreading of gossip wasn't to annoy Rory (though it was a definite bonus) or distract from the divorce, but her mind's odd way of making sure Lorelai remained unclaimed and unmarried by the time she graduated.

I am really applying a retcon to this, aren't I? Man, I'm in this deep. The girl would never admit her free nights of reading Xena and Guiding Light fanfiction to any one, ever, along with a few very anonymous forays into that world of writing, but she knew the language of fanfic well. She also knew she never read anything below an R.

But Paris knew she could finally justify her crush on Lorelai into some kind of love that was growing deeper every day and night. It had been beyond absurd to think it, but somehow, being around the woman for the last three years had rubbed off on her and brought her into a need to know the woman as more than she was on the surface.

She felt a chill slide up her body from a breeze circulating through the courtyard. With a smile she got up from the lounge, taking in a deep breath as she slid back into the room with a slow close of the patio door, then a soft click of the lock. She tossed back her hair, still loving that the few inches she cut off actually made a 'toss' a little more elegant and less messy than it had been when it was down to the middle of her back. She slid off the robe, hanging it off the bedpost, then shucked off her hose, sliding back beneath the covers still in her underwear to match Lorelai. Soon she had curled up in the bed with Lorelai behind her, prepared to sleep...

Only to hit on some unconscious need on Lorelai's side. She was surprised as the tall woman suddenly shifted behind her, sensing her presence and her heat as the air conditioning seemed to be stronger than Paris thought when she was thinly dressed as she was. Soon she felt strong arms around her stomach and found the sleeping brunette snoozing in her ear, her breath warming the back of her head with breath. She stiffened at the touch and sighed, her lip shaking as she realized even in sleep, Lorelai was definitely a cuddler.

Their other times, both had just been exhausted by lovemaking when they fell asleep. This to Paris was...comforting. Despite the night seeming to lead towards sex, it had not and she was still more than satisfied with all that went on. Her body was well settled and though she knew Lorelai would likely need her as soon as she felt up to it, there was an intimacy she hadn't known before between them. Feeling Lorelai's mound settle against her butt, she felt herself calm, settled and ready for a good night's rest.

Clasping Lorelai's hand with hers, she bent down to apply a soft kiss to her lover's knuckles before settling the guarding hand back against her stomach.

"Night, Lor. I love you," she whispered, not sure if Lorelai heard her in the waking world, but knew she would know so in sleep.

Soon, the young blonde woman was asleep, the day ahead and her plans spinning in her mind, hopes that the woman who had her heart would see it as romantic, rather than too much. She shakily set aside thoughts that it would be too formal.

But as she lost her last thread to consciousness, she already knew it would be an interesting day to come, no matter which direction it went in. With this day over, she could finally know that Lorelai would be there with her, no matter what.

Lorelai blinked her eyes open as the sun came through a thin line in the light-blocking blinds of the room. She cringed as it hit her eyes in a burst of red as her consciousness finally pushed her out of what had been the deepest sleep for her since she left home.

It was an unwelcome interruption to her, as she had been dreaming of Paris and her back at the Manor having another night there. This time, it was in the guest cottage with the old-fashioned porch she had found Paris on when she went out to find her. She imagined it as a three-room setting with a beautiful living room and a cozy upstairs bedroom space and having her blonde temptress guide her up having a sort of cynical spin on Dorothy Gale in a dark red dress that went with her eyes. She had been deeply relaxed as her dream self made love with the figment that was Paris in her dream, an image of the girl wearing vintage lingerie beneath her classic dress. She was pleased to have actually reached an orgasm with her in this lovemaking, a rarity in a dream world where a meowing clock usually interrupted her just as her pelvic muscles began their preparatory clench. This time she woke up as Paris gave her ass a flirty squeeze and she popped her eyes open.

Not remembering her bearings, she grumped at the frustration of another hostel sleep as she batted her curls out of her face.

"I wish she was really here," she whispered to herself, slowly willing herself up. Still used to the smaller bed of the hostel she rolled over expecting to land her feet on the floor or dangle them over the bunk.

Instead, she found her legs blocked. "Damn it," she grumped, and prepared to lift her legs higher...

Before she realized that she was in no bunk. And there was much more bed than expected.

Along with a certain dreamy blonde, whose back was turned to her, still softly snoozing through the morning.

"Ooooh. Oh, yeah." Lorelai's mind quickly reminded her of the events of last night. She felt a smile on her lips recalling many of the things that took awhile from her consumption of alcohol to remember. It is true, I had dinner with Paris last night. Then I gave her dessert. She smirked at the memory of the girl wrapped around in her arms as she blatantly felt her up on the Tower.

One of the effects of the wine though was a bladder that was stinging deeply, throbbing and begging for emptying. Lorelai cringed, not wanting to leave the warmth of the bed in the chilly room, but knowing that she would have to.

She also felt an unexpected sting against her breasts. Come on, I know I'm not seven months knocked up, she thought to herself. I only felt that before when I was feeding or...

Her lip lowered as she realized a couple of things. She moved her hand over to her breast and winced as she felt the flesh was more tender than usual. A mere touch with her fingernail had made her gasp.

The second item was a little more apparent. She had expected to push down a bra cup to feel around her nipple, only to find no material whatsoever. She searched around for her bra furiously trying not to disturb Paris.

Just as she wondered if a lingerie thief was somehow on the loose in the hotel, her eyes caught an odd sight on the lamp on the nightstand.

There was her bra, along with Paris's hanging from the finial of the lamp.

She then made one more discovery as she broke apart from Paris to use the bathroom. She felt clammy and discovered that her panties were down around her thighs. Closing her eyes in shock, she wondered if Paris was in the same state. She peeked below the blankets to see.

The widened shock in her eyes at seeing her lover sans underwear was enough for her to feel a rising heat in her cheeks.

"Hoooooly shit!" She said in the softest voice she could. "Shit, shit, shit. That dream sex I had was sleeping sex!" She quickly got up, shrugging down her underwear the rest of the way as she rolled into what she suspected was a wet spot that had resulted from her orgasm. "I...I had sex. When I was asleep. And she was too!" She tossed on the robe left on the bedpost, feeling more than hot as she raced into the bathroom to look into the mirror before using the bathroom wondering if it was true.

She looked at her reflection and immediately she knew indeed that her fun in the cottage ended up in the bed of the Crillon. "Oh God, I'm glowing. I am glowing like I did something slutty," she said to herself, a blush in her cheeks and her hair all out of sorts. "I knew it felt so real, so deep. I felt the clench but I didn't wake up and..."

The innkeeper sucked in her lip, looking at herself and feeling both like she wanted to lecture her dream side to keep her legs shut and indulge in it. "I am a dream slut. That, or I'm catching that girl's quirkiness somehow." Afraid to see the result, she slowly bared her tender breast, curious to see what had happened to make it feel that way. Opening the robe she expected at most that there was just too much weight put on it in the post-afterglow.

Lorelai Gilmore had indulged in rough sex before. She especially loved hair-pulling and fucking so good that she had to keep her legs closed all day, the pressure too much for her.

As she glanced her left nipple however, she knew this was more than rough sex, or even dream sex.

Asleep, her and Paris had made love in a way that had actually bruised her breast, leaving a dark purple mark just above her nipple, along with the remnants of some bite marks left along the flesh. She felt her own teeth were sort of numb also, a suggestion that she had partaken in some biting and nipping of her own, along with the lingering taste of Paris's fragrance in her mouth.

She slid off the robe and sat on the toilet to relieve herself, noticing that her lady-like spreading felt a little more pleasurable than usual as she closed her eyes and let it flow.

Somehow it was actually the most relieving emptying she had for some time. Having used facilities of questionable cleanliness for weeks, to use a clean toilet and to have plenty of wine to cleanse her system was a relief to Lorelai, along with the use of a bidet. She looked down at herself, noting a couple more bruises along the top of her arm and a bit of a red mark along her right leg.

"I didn't know it was possible for me to have a wet dream," she cracked as she finished up, getting up and wondering what to do next. She didn't even know what time it was, much less what her and Paris's full mindsets were. She felt overly relaxed, a change of pace from the last few days on the way to Paris where everything had been stressing her out.

Finally however, she decided that the next course of action was probably a nice and hot shower in the multiple spray unit in the corner of the room. She shrugged, wondering how her clothes situation was going to be remedied later since there was no way Paris would allow her back in the clothes she came in wearing yesterday, and turned on the shower, uttering a little squeal at how the hot water came on within two seconds of the shower coming on. Definitely seeing if I can get a few tricks of the trade here, she thought as she stepped in, looking at the array of full-sized shampoo, conditioner and body wash bottle resting on the shelf on the other side of the unit.

She closed her eyes and quickly let her hair soak up the water, wondering what the day had in store for her. She also kept recalling her dream come in bed and how real it felt to her, a prickle of anticipation between her legs.

Paris felt an emptiness against her.

It was odd. She knew Lorelai had been against her all night, spooning against her, and then later she found herself in a tangled embrace when she slid out of bed around four to use the bathroom quickly. The blonde was surprised in the fog of her sleep of being brought against the woman suddenly, and now to wake up in bed, without her...

And without clothes.

She reeled back, suddenly noticing her toes were tangled in silk, her panties down below her feet. Then tilting her head over, she found her bra on the lamp.

The way she had discovered her dream loving with Lorelai wasn't unusual to Paris at all. There had been many a night where the young woman had fallen asleep in her uniform shirt to find it open in the morning when she awoke, tangled around her shoulders. Her sleep talking also manifested sleep fantasies, and she knew it was normal for her to put off sexual self-pleasure for days to have it all expelled through her rest.

This was different however. She felt sort of mortified for having ended up nude in her sleep. She slumped in the bed as she slid back on the pillow.

"How the hell did I get my bra off?" she wondered to herself. "I was barely able to get in it, I should've been awake trying to get it--"

It was then her hand landed in a certain place in the mattress she knew would basically seal her purchase of the bedclothes due to her mortification.

"That answers that," Paris said in a tone that suggested the odd dream she had of her and Lorelai in the garden cottage had somehow played itself out in real life. She bent down in the bed to grab her underwear from the foot at the bed to set at the side of the bed and just that action made her feel winded and reminded her that the hum between her legs was still strong.

"Damn my abnormal sex drive," she grumped, getting out of the bed. Her hair was ruffled heavily, blonde tendrils left on the pillow as she knew despite their sleep, her and Lorelai somehow had a deeply amorous dream that had nearly left the bed in a tatters. She looked over at the clock, hoping it wasn't too late in the day as no alarm had been set. Her breath caught slightly as she panicked for a moment before the numbers came into focus. 9:34 am. Not too early, or late.

She licked her lips and knew immediately that she needed to get motivated. First though, she needed some time in the bathroom, and hopefully she could find Lorelai. Getting up, she pawed for the robe, only to not find it at all within her grasp.

I knew it was here, she thought to herself, turning over the blankets quickly to make sure she didn't fall asleep in it, even though she knew she hadn't. Frustrated she finally just shrugged and gave up, not wanting to search much longer when she had so much to do to get ready.

Going over a list in her head Paris reminded herself the 'do not disturb' hangtag was on the door and soon was up and with a lack of clothes, made up the bed to be somewhat neat. She then headed over to the room's coffeemaker on the side which was thankfully for her a K-Cup dispenser she couldn't make a bad cup of coffee with unless she somehow flooded the machine. Pouring in a bottle of water from the room's fridge she began the brewing process, hopeful that when Lorelai got back into the room from where she was she would be appreciative for the help.

With most of the particulars of preparing for the morning finished, there was one more to take care of. She headed for the bathroom, ready for a long and hot shower. Though she wasn't as bad off as poor Lorelai, the toll of having some kind of noisemaking device in a few truck stop shower stalls had frazzled the young woman a bit despite nothing coming out of any of her experiences.

As she prepared to open the door however, she noticed that it was locked, trying to twist the knob but not finding any give. She had used the bathroom a few hours before and didn't need it immediately, but also knew she didn't want to interrupt Lorelai's time in the shower with a need for lovemaking.

Paris resigned herself to not being able to give an immediate morning delight to her lover. "Well, no shower sex today," she grumbled, but quickly recovered as she left Lorelai to her business and instead went into her drawer to open her luggage and grabbed something to wear. Her most comfortable set of underwear, a loose grey cotton bra with a pair of grey pinstripe Gap boyshorts she usually reserved for Saturday lounging while getting a project done, when the Manor staff proved their mettle by getting her everything she needed to survive staying solely in her room and private bathroom for an entire weekend, when she never changed out of her comfortable sleep shirt.

She knew she would need to wear it because of the plans for the day. Hooking her bra into place on the loosest clasp, she felt relieved that she didn't have to deal with heels or breast symmetry on this day. She rushed through her activities before throwing on a basic tank top she had found in a thrift store with the famous white outlined block "oval Y" logo of Yale across the front, a worn shirt she prized because of both how it fit and that it indeed felt like it was well cared for by a previous Yalie, feeling well broken in. Pairing it with a pair of Calvin Klein jeans broken in and faded from dark blue to a light indigo through three years, she felt both sexy and relaxed, a rare feeling for a girl who usually tried to blend in and keep herself hidden as much as possible.

Listening for clues in the shower, Paris knew Lorelai would take awhile in the bathroom, long enough for her to look at the menu for breakfast. She scrolled through, quickly determining what exactly she wanted, and knowing she could afford to be a little demanding of the hotel's kitchen. Excitedly, she picked up the phone and dialed out to room service.

"Il s'agit de la réception, je suis Dominique. Comment puis-je aider?"

Paris was relieved to hear a familiar voice on the line. "Bonjour, Dominique, c'est Paris Gellar dans la suite 653. Puis-je utiliser l'anglais?" She knew her pleasant voice would give the desk clerk a little bit of a pick-me-up.

"Of course. Good morning, Miss Gellar. Are you finding everything to your satisfaction?" the clerk asked cheerfully.

"More than that, thank you for asking."

"As we are speaking of satisfaction, how was the woman you were meeting last night?" Dominique asked, probing. "I found her to have pleasing and friendly aesthetics."

"It was a good night," Paris said softly, her voice soft. "She is here with me now. Although she was more tired from her travels so we talked until we went to bed. I am hoping for more today."

Dominique was pleased to hear her most important guest was feeling wonderful. "That is good. I suppose I may discard your wake-up call coming shortly?"

"Please do, and I would like a breakfast rolled up here, please." She read off the menu. "For Ms. Gilmore she would like your freshly made Belgian waffles made with the imported chocolate chips, topped with chocolate sauce with Vermont syrup on the side. Fruit salad, two scrambled eggs, American-style fried potatoes, three slices of bacon, and a glass of orange juice, along with a buttered croissant."

The desk clerk furiously typed up the details of the order. "Oh my! I thought Ms. Gilmore was a thin woman?"

"She is, with a furnace in her stomach and the appetite to match! You should see her when she's at home; she has eaten a full pizza with the works. It's amazing how she can enjoy food and stay so slim. I try it and I feel it in the morning."

"Certainly, Ms. Gilmore sounds like a conundrum."

"I would have to agree," Paris said before stating her own order. "I'll go a bit more lighter; I'm ordering heavy because Lorelai is backpacking across the continent, while I've had plenty to eat on the road. Sliced peaches, a baguette buttered with blackberry preserves, a bowl of Honey Nut Cheerios, and a cup of strong black tea with half a packet of sugar substitute."

"American cereal?" Dominique pretended to scoff. "Surely you can spoil yourself."

"I will later in the week, but for now I have plans for today and I might want a little time for dessert," she hinted in her deadpan manner. "If I could have it in the next twenty minutes?"

"It will be arranged, Miss Gellar." Dominique finished the order, sending it on the way to the kitchen. "I hear in your voice that you're in a very good mood."

"A mood that would be improved if you were to wheel the delivery up. I know it's not part of your usual work, but I'll make it worth your while. €50 worth."

"If I could have another glance at your partner it would most please me also," Dominique hinted softly, perking Paris up.

"'Friendly aesthetics', huh?" She looked towards the bathroom door, the blonde shaking her head and smiling. "You now understand my attraction to her, don't you?"

Dominique capitulated, thankful that Paris was playful. "She also has strong thighs."

"I'm so pleased I can trust you," Paris said, remembering their talking as Dominique helped her with her shopping. "I shall see you shortly then. Ignore the tag, it's just to keep housekeeping from bumping in yet."

"Certainly, Miss Gellar. See you shortly." The two younger women disconnected as Paris felt thankful her small fear that Michel had evil and snarky siblings working at Paris hotels had proven false and Dominique turned out to be a clerk she could trust deeply with everything.

Paris felt her energy pick up and poured Lorelai her cup of coffee, ready for what was sure to be a day filled with fun, clothed or otherwise. The weather had looked to be beautiful with only a few cirrus clouds in sight and a pleasant temperature, and the forecast she had seen on Euronews had proven to be true. It was sure to be a comfortable day, and hopefully Lorelai would feel the same.

She grabbed the outfit she had purchased from Lorelai from a bag she had hid in the room's small closet and began to lay it out in the closet on a hanger. What guilt she did feel for treating Lorelai as a human Barbie doll was buffeted by the excitement of picking out something to wear for the woman whose body she had begun to memorize like it was second nature.

Also, I get to take it off later on, she thought to herself, a warmth in her chest at what had become her 'happy place' of helping Lorelai disrobing. It was something that made her feel somewhat dorky for getting excited about. She clutched her hand to her heart, shaking her head and having a little laugh as she opened the door to check for a complimentary newspaper, which turned out to be the International Herald-Tribune.

"Oh, thank God. These people don't assume I need pretty colors and summarized news," she said, having tired of USA Today seeming to be an inescapable presence at every place she had stayed. She opened up the patio door to let some air in and got comfy in the little eating nook in the corner of the room to catch up on the news, awaiting both breakfast and Lorelai.

Lorelai had not woken up this way since the day she departed for Boston.

Even the first morning in Europe she was already dragging, whether it was the unfamiliarity of a foreign bed, jet lag or just some other factor, she hadn't woken well from bed for the longest time. The wait in line for a shower, terrible coffee, Rory telling her they had to motivate to get to yet another landmark commemorating another needless war, it all combined to make her feel completely annoyed at the world and it took until 1pm local time to finally feel fully awake.

So it was a miracle that near ten in the morning she was ready to run a marathon if Paris asked her to. A piping hot shower with actual toiletries and a bath scrub that stripped away layers of dirt and skin had been just what she needed to get back on the horse again. Even as she got out of the shower after a half-hour, it felt as if she could stay in there all day until she was but a prune with four limbs. Everything felt good, and Lorelai Gilmore felt rejuvenated as she stepped out.

The first night with Paris had reminded her that she came to Europe for fun, not this 'educational field trip' Rory had turned it into. She squealed in delight at the sight of a curling iron to get her hair into some control and wondered how else Paris could amaze her in this mini-oasis that was this hotel room. She spent her time getting ready, but for the first time in awhile she felt wonderful enough to skip the foundation and concealer step in her makeup regimen as of late.

She looked over everything as she slipped on her robe and had to smile. Her mood was a complete 180° from how she had felt on the bus over and she felt like how she usually did, peppy and cheerful.

"I wonder if she's up yet," she asked to herself, curious to see how long Paris could go sleeping when there was no true schedule to follow. Toweling herself further she made sure to go over everything, not sure when she'd have a luxurious shower like this until she got back home.

She rubbed at her back, then down to her rear before finishing up and hanging the towel back up, slipping into the silk robe and brushing her hair to sort out the loosened hair she had been unable to separate from her mane due to her own travel brush proving unacceptable within a couple weeks, then using the room's hair dryer on the low setting as she knew from experiences relayed by her guests about the differences between American and overseas electric plugs that she might ruin her hair for just putting the dryer on high. Using the luxurious brush provided by the hotel itself she was relieved that she only had found a few strands ended up in the brush rather than the many that she feared. She ran through the bristles until everything felt smoothed out and her ringlets were completely brought out, cascading down her neck, making her feel almost comfortable to pull off a Charlie's Angels gun pose with the brush in the mirror.

Almost. Instead she laughed and nearly skipped her way to the door, tying the robe completely and preparing herself for the day to come. She turned the lock to unclick it, holding her hand at her heart and shaking her head, remembering the now comedic moment when Max had her against his brick wall and how she was stuck in slacks for the next two weeks.

She wrinkled her nose and giggled, looking down at bruises that would thankfully heal and be seen by few. "These are better," she told herself. "And they'll keep me sane at least for a few more weeks when I miss her." With a wistful sigh, she twisted the doorknob, ready for whatever complicated day Paris had planned for her.

Paris was startled as she heard the door click open from the bathroom from the patio, her eyes jumping from the newspaper. She hoped her plans for the day would go well, and that Lorelai wouldn't think she did too much. Having her for only a day and a half meant she would only have a few things she could do rather than the full monty she could do on a regular week-long trip, but she hoped it would be just as memorable for Lorelai.

She turned around to face Lorelai and immediately blushed. The effect the woman had on her was undeniable as she took in the tall innkeeper with her beautiful locks full of life again, and her eyes immediately finding Paris's.

What got to her immediately was the difference in how Lorelai looked in the robe. Where it covered most of her short form to below her knees, Lorelai was a lot different as it rose to mid-thigh, giving her a salivating look at Lorelai's legs. Paris closed the newspaper and folded it over, getting up as Lorelai headed her way.

Lorelai was just as surprised. Oh my God, she's trying to look cute, she thought to herself. And she's doing really well at it! She wasn't used to the spartan woman wearing something to flatter herself rather than minimize, and the idea that Paris had actual arms rather than just covering them was something that surprised her. Seeing her lover trying to be both practical and sexy warmed Lorelai's heart, especially the fact that unlike Jamie, she didn't expect Paris to dress up and look nice.

The blonde blushed at Lorelai's stare, feeling altogether out-of-body at Lorelai's smile at her which had proven her choice of outfit nice. Her nervous titter of a laugh was natural, an attempt to play herself down, but she knew it wasn't possible when she actually had the girls out to play rather than stuck beneath a sweater two sizes too large. She bit her lip as she glanced upward to find that the cool air of the bathroom once the steam had dissipated allowed Lorelai's nipples to firm, clear through the silk of the robe.

"Oh wow..." she shook her head, feeling perplexed at what to say next. "Um, good morning."

Lorelai was a bit more confident about herself. "Good morning, hon." She smiled fully, her eyes squinting slightly. "You're ready for a day of adventure."

"Yeah. I...am." Paris shook her head as Lorelai approached closer, brushing stray hair back behind her ears. "You look more...pretty this morning." Then as she sensed her wording was wrong, tried to correct herself. "Not that you haven't always looked pretty, I mean, that's a stupid thing to say, not saying you're pretty. You always have. Hot even. It's just that with a full shower and time to get ready...you are prettier this morning than you have been this summer, because it's--"

"Paris?" Lorelai took her by the shoulders and had Paris bring her gaze up. "I accept your compliment and understand what it is. I'm not gonna run away on you."

The student brought her gaze away slightly. "You don't think I'm a dork? Or worshipping you like some kind of unattainable standard of beauty?"

"Well, you've attained me," Lorelai reminded her, before laying a soft kiss on Paris's forehead. "And by the amount of time this summer I've thought of you, there's also a little worship on my end of you." She moved her hands down Paris's shoulders, sighing at the feeling of smooth skin beneath. "Finally, you're not a dork at all. Remember, we talked about not putting yourself down?"

"I know, just a little...afraid." Her breath caught as Lorelai's thumbs slid along her underarms and to her elbows. "That would be pretty pathetic if I lost your love overseas."

Lorelai shook her head slightly. "Burn that thought. I am not dumping you, especially not after last night." Slowly they made their way towards the end of the bed, sitting carefully down. "So...um, I kind of remember us barely making love, but we weren't awake."

"I'm so sorry if I did that. Haven't been able to really get off for a week or so, so I guess I took it out on you."

"Mmm, not complaining, it helped get out a little stress I was feeling. Probably helped me sleep better too, to be honest." A little blush appeared in her cheeks. "Of course, that doesn't mean at all I'd be opposed to a repeat performance while I was awake." She raised her eyebrows, causing Paris to clench her fists lightly.

"I certainly wouldn't object either," she responded, Lorelai's mouth so close to her it was tantalizing to lay a kiss on and forget about the room service coming soon. She opened her hands up, wanting to touch the woman. "You know you're visible this morning."

Lorelai played innocent. "In what way is that?"

"You know what way...Umlauts." Paris directed a glance at Lorelai's breasts, loving the way the nickname seemed cute with her. "They're so big...I don't get it. You've got hand-sized breasts but they're half-nipple."

"That's another first; a compliment of my nipple size." The brunette could feel that Paris was ready to ravish her. "Most everyone else is all about my cleavage or the size. You, it's how they are when I'm turned on or stirred up."

"I wouldn't like you when you're angry," Paris joked. "Guess you can't be She-Hulk for Halloween."

"I've done Wonder Woman a couple of times. Had to sew extra material into the bustier because I saw a little rosiness above the fringe when I wore it factory-made," Lorelai admitted as she could see Paris's hands shaking, able to tell the young woman wanted to ravish her.  "Is that a 'I can't wait for Halloween' thought floating in your brain right now?"

"I have to admit something; I actually have you as Diana in my phone," Paris whispered. "Can't put you down as Lorelai, nor Wonder Woman, so I went with the secret identity thing."

"Kara for you, Supergirl." Lorelai chuckled at the blush against Paris's neck. "You look ready to go in the costume."

"Not quite. Last night I pretty much had to be talked into buying that skirt, so getting into that cheerleader outfit is going to take some cajones. Or alcohol." She felt shy, looking down at her hands and fighting the urge to undress Lorelai herself or do more than that. "Umm, you have a nice shower?"

"Yes, and really wishing I could put that setup in every room of the Dragonfly." She looked over at the other side of the room, realizing something. "I must've missed that, there's a whirlpool tub on the other side of the room." Paris looked with her and was also pleasantly shocked.

"Would you look at that? Surprised we didn't see it." She shook her head. "Of course, you have wine like we did and we can't see anything but each other."

"That's true, and I was so huffy when you got me here under the false pretenses all I saw was the mini-bar and high priced revenge. Which I'm sorry for, by the way."

"Actually it's part of my room plan, so no damage done. Except I really wanted that caramel bar myself." She shrugged. "Oh well, I'll have it down the line." Lorelai kept her eyes to Paris's hands and her breath, becoming shorter and harried. "That wine really didn't give us that bad a hangover, did it?"

"Can't even feel a thing," Lorelai said. "Honey?"

"Hmm?" Paris clenched her jaw, feeling deeply nervous.

"You keep looking at the knot of the robe."

"It's a very nice robe. I think I'll buy it for you." She slid her tongue along her lower lip, continually reminding herself that she only had a few minutes until room service.

"You keep looking at me...like you want me naked," the older woman purred. "Something I haven't been with you since the Manor."

Paris furiously shook her head, trying to evade. "No, I can't, I have--"

"Even when you were picking the clothes you were picturing me in that bathroom putting on every layer, I know it. Not a bad feeling to have." Lorelai's hooded eyelashes brought up Paris's alarm bells, suggesting her sexually wanting side was coming out. A cold thought of the fridge, and then the greenhouse slid through her brain. "Probably also pictured me stark in the heels, didn't you?"

The younger woman's eyes widened considerably. It had been a thought when looking at them, but quickly pushed out of her mind because of the public setting. She blushed violently, quickly crossing her legs to halt the rush of heat between them. "Lor, I can't, there's--"

"Getting down on your knees and ravishing me with your tongue. I remember still, you really wanted to do it in the pool room but common sense won out there. Well..." She slid out a leg slightly between the separation between the two parts of the robe, baring it high to tease the blonde. "No water. We're here all alone and there's nothing between your tongue and my clit except this thin layer of silk. Though technically I feel a breeze up here..." She ran her right hand along her thigh. "Mmm, that does feel good."

"Lor..." She found nothing but lust in those deep pupils staring back at her. "I would love to go down on you. There's nothing more I'd love to do, but--"

"So do it," Lorelai soothed. "Dive in and eat me out. What are you scared of?"

"Uhh, doing it wrong? And that--"

"Just think of it like the most sensual Jell-O ever, except you can't eat it."

Paris quickly shook her head. "Something I can't imagine because I can't have gelatin."

"Why no--oh, yeah, Jewish." Lorelai groaned at her flopped analogy. "Damn it, sorry."

"Not everyone knows the gelatin, so you're forgiven." Paris shook her head. "But--" She found her hand taken by Lorelai, but knew she had to ruin the woman's fun. "Look, room service is going to be here in ten minutes!" The sudden outburst startled Lorelai out of her reverie as she realized why Paris was diverting.

"Room service?" Lorelai felt way off track from what she thought Paris was inferring to. "Oh, dear! I thought you were playing hard-to-get with me." She winced and laughed lightly. "I um...I guess I should feel a little embarrassed because you kept looking at me like you wanted me naked."

"Naked to get you dressed," Paris cracked. "Sorry to say but I'm not feeling up to exhibitionism when the food is brought in."

"Well, in that case, you mind if I stay in the robe a little longer? After I eat I might be up to a little...help in dressing," Lorelai hinted as Paris felt her heart pump faster. "That is if you're up to it."

"Yes! Yes, I'm very up to it!" She shook her head, feeling silly for still having her nude picture of Lorelai floating around in her mind. "Or wait..." She rethought her words and lowered her tone, moving close to Lorelai with her secret smile on full display. "Should I say...down for it?" With a wag of her eyebrows, she left Lorelai gasping at her comeback and shaking her head.

"Dammmmmn, that was very dirty," the innkeeper proclaimed. "And that look too. Didn't think you could pull it off."

"I'm talented in many things." The young woman kissed Lorelai on the lips with a little tongue flitter and hummed happily. "Especially getting coffee from an idiot-proof coffeemaker." She pointed over to the table where Lorelai's cup sat, already prepared. "I know it isn't Luke's--"

"Nothing else will ever be Luke's," Lorelai said with deep defiance. "But this hotel room coffee I'll take gladly. Better than the brown water I've had at the hostels." Both women made their way to the table as Lorelai prepared for her first sip of coffee in over two weeks, taking in the scent and already knowing she'd love it despite it probably just being a domestic conglomerate brand. "Hello there little friend, been a long time since I had you." Paris laughed as it seemed like Lorelai was 'talking' to her cup to make it taste good. "Mamma's been bad for ducking you lately, but you either cost too much for my budget or taste of cat pee. Very, very bitter cat pee that sends me barfing. But you smell really, really nice." She took a sip from the cup and felt contentment overwhelm her features as she took a good size gulp of her life source. "And...you taste really, really good for being in a funny invention named after a really, really large bra."

"Oh God!" Paris couldn't help but smile. "You know about K-cups? I didn't know if you did."

Lorelai smiled slightly, reminding Paris of her business skills. "I get ten hotelier and innkeeping trade mags a month. I also get Tea & Coffee Trade Journal and Fresh Cup. I know more about the coffee industry than Mr. Coffee and I can tell you I love the K-cup and I plan to put it in every room in the Dragonfly because I'd rather have someone just flood a machine with too much water than break a carafe and maybe get injured." She took another thankful sip, loving the dark roast and how the flavor was hardly bitter in any way. "This confirms it will be a wise choice for sure. Probably get a little kickback from Krups for pushing it too because those things aren't exactly cheap, but they're lower maintenance because usually guests just want one or two cups. They don't need ten or twelve. They leave it behind for the maids to clean up and it's all still and flat, cold. Total waste of coffee. These? They get a cup and besides the usual vinegar cleaning, we don't have to do a thing to maintain them otherwise."

"So you like them?"

"It's kind of my dream to have an inn where I learn from the small mistakes rather than the big stuff." The woman was animated as she described more about her decision making process for the Dragonfly as she continued to sip her coffee. "At the Independence I had just had our web guy redesign the site so that cell phones and email addresses could be use to confirm reservations rather than just by home phone and it was already saving time. Sending receipts out via email and auto-fax without having to print and stick paper in the machine halved our postal costs and reduced the fax waste by 20%. As long as guests see there's a full commitment to cleanliness, they don't need the 'sanitized for your protection' paper on the toilet seat. Then there are alarm clocks; many prefer to use their cell phones now because they remain dark through the night and the familiar sound and buzz the alarms make, but until then, I had all the alarm clocks switched out to have a backlight on only when the guest hits a button, not the 'numbers on all the time' alarm clocks you can find anywhere for $5. Like that one." She pointed to the nightstand where the alarm clock indeed wasn't lit at all and needed a button pushed to display a time with the backlight. "You get the small details right, then the big items in running an inn are just that much easier."

"Wow. I'm impressed." Paris was surprised by how deep Lorelai's business acumen was. "So you know for certain some people hate continuously lit digit clocks?"

"One of our top complaints. Many unplugged it or put something in front of the numbers like duct tape, so the staff had to plug them back in or peel the tape off. Thankfully the clocks I have in mind have an atomic time server receiver so they just set themselves after a power outage."

"Wow." The blonde was rendered near quiet. "I didn't even think you knew about that. They usually market those types of clocks to the most persnickety obsessed with their time being as perfect as can be." A sheepish glance. "Like me. I set my cell phone clock so it's as close to the atomic time as possible."

"Like I said, the little things. I remember the hell you went through that month Chilton switched out all the clocks in the building to digital readouts and suddenly entire classes were late!" Paris winced as she recalled how the clock installation was botched up. "I want to make sure everyone is down for checkout when they must be down, not an hour later because the clocks were set wrong." The tall woman described her wishes even further. "There's just so much I want to do. I also need to find some good horses. Not like a retired thoroughbred or prize yearling that'll cost $8 million. Just some good horses that'll love a relaxing life away from the stresses of the stables and...uh, studding."

"What kind?"

"Some loyal ones, foal or mare, it doesn't matter. I just want a few nice ones to stable at the Inn."

"Hmm, I'll keep that in mind. I know the riding and jockey club up in northern Windham County is always looking for some buyers for their retired polo ponies and carriage horses. That might be a perfect fit because from the lay of the land you have some good grassy lawns in the back and a walking trail around the pond."

"Windham County?" Lorelai was glad to have a lead, no matter how small it was. "Is that the one near Taft Pond and Chase Hill outside Eastford?"

"Yes, the exact one. I used to take my private horseback lessons out there when I was younger, before time with everything else just made it hard to fit in even an hour. Quality facility, good vet in Pomfret, they always make sure the horses get all the care they need before they're sold off. I would recommend it, especially for your needs of just needing some good light transport horses to occasionally pull a cart or just have a quiet life where they get spoiled."

"I think when I get time I'm going to email Sookie that," Lorelai said. "An amazing suggestion, thank you!"

"Anything to help you succeed," Paris gave Lorelai a bright smile. "I'm assuming a comprehensive sprinkler system is on the list also."

"Mia opened the Independence at a time code didn't require it, and Taylor actually asked for a grandfathering of his store ten years back so he didn't have to put one in. Luke didn't ask for an exclusion himself. But he's running a diner, so it's an absolute to do so. With Mia mainly an owner but not really a contractor we never saw the need to retrofit the building for sprinklers, which really did turn out to be the downfall." Lorelai rubbed her cheek in a pondering motion. "We have to take down the ceilings after preservation pictures in the first place to put in code material so sprinklers are going in, along with a good fire alarm and extinguisher plan. Largest one in the kitchen of course for you know who." Her eyes crinkled as she laughed with Paris, who caught the hint. "I just can't wait to get into everything. I might be putting myself into some debt to start this up, but you pretty much have to do it to get into the business."

"Yeah, it's a necessity." Paris cringed at the idea of the innkeeper without much fallback outside of the bank and the backers she had. The cost of the inn had plagued her through the summer and she kept trying to think of ways to help Lorelai out, but she knew almost all roads led to a firm answer of 'no'. I just don't know how to bring it up, she thought. Maybe something will present itself today. I hope. "Flatscreens for each room?"

"In my dreams, perhaps," Lorelai said. "Reality is I'll probably just go with the TV leasing outfit Mia used and go with a cable and antenna mix so the New Yorkers still get their stations without annoying the people who don't mind Hartford." Sighing, the hotelier felt very comfortable. "This is nice. That I can talk about all of this inn stuff without feeling like I'm talking to a wall."

"Well, you aren't. I don't mind at all." Paris nodded at Lorelai, feeling content in her talking with the woman. Just as she was ready to bring up a new topic...

Knock, knock, knock.

The blonde popped up after removing her hand from Lorelai's. "Room service is here!"

"Thank goodness, I'm a little starved. I hope it's nothing very basic like toast! Or a granola bar. Rory bought them in bulk at an Aldi store a few weeks back and we haven't run out yet!"

"Prepare your stomach, and it isn't a granola bar. Or any kind of health food!" Paris headed to the door and opened up the door to find a familiar face behind it. "Bonjour, Dominique."

Lorelai was jarred, not expecting the friendly face of Dominique and still wearing her robe as the petite woman came in with the food card. "Good morning, Miss Gellar." Her eyes caught Lorelai and the innkeeper looked flustered as she caught the attention of the clerk. "Ms. Gilmore, how are you today?"

"Umm, uhh...I'm fine, thank you." She shook her head as an image she had buried in the back of her mind of the two women together forced itself into the front of her brain. "I didn't know you did this. It's a big hotel...surely there's staff to do this."

"Oh, there is, but Paris has put me into her employ for the week to help her out with her plans." She stopped the cart at the table and Lorelai directed a look at Paris. "I hope you found the delivery time to your satisfaction."

"I did." Paris puckered her lips together, then smiled at the French woman of Guadeloupian heritage. "Also, your choice of restaurant was superb, we were both partial to the mousse ourselves."

"I always hear nothing but compliments for the mousse," Dominique said. "Ms. Gilmore, you look much more refreshed."

Paris giggled at the extreme focus Dominique was putting on her...needs as Lorelai still felt a little jarred.

"I...I am. Thank you." She shook her head. "And please, call me Lorelai. Ms. Gilmore makes me sound like an old maid."

"Of course...Lorelai." Dominique rolled each of the L's elegantly off her tongue as she set the food tray on the table. "Paris ordered plenty for you to eat. Apparently you have been living on ramen and granola for too long."

Lifting up the tray, Lorelai didn't know what to expect. But once everything was on display, she felt like she could weep. Her eyes went right to the waffles and eggs, then to the fries. She whimpered.

"Oh my God." She clenched her hand to her chest. "This...this is surprising."

Dominique wondered if Lorelai was OK. "Is there something wrong with the food. If there is, I apologi--"

"No, nothing wrong at all." She sighed. "This is...this is my weekend brunch. I have it at the diner in my town back in Connecticut. Except for the croissant, it's pretty darned equal." She looked towards the blonde. "How did you know?"

Paris pointed to her head. "My memory knows all. I have been to Luke's during the weekend and Rory can rattle off what you order by heart. I thought, you're here. You should eat great for once while you're over here."

Lorelai nodded. "You even did bacon. I thought you couldn't do bacon."

"I can't do bacon," Paris reminded her, "but you? I wouldn't deny it to you. Also..." she put on a half-frown/smile, "I can't resist it. I know it's not kosher, but I have one outside breakfast with it every few months. On the sly. Damned Madeline and her father making it so tantalizing!"

Laughing, Lorelai brought Paris close and kissed her softly on the lips to thank her for the breakfast. "Let me guess, anyone knows, I lose my tongue?"

Paris raised her eyebrow. "No loss of body parts, but a probable loss of special privileges in bed." She pulled out a chair for Lorelai. "Now dig in. We're getting out of here in just over an hour and I'd like time to help you...dress."

"Mmm, I need plenty of time to...dress," Lorelai hinted as Dominique opened up Paris's tray, noting that the clerk's eyes were hardly suggesting innocence at all and were focused lower than her face. She looked at Paris's breakfast and wrinkled her nose. "Really, hon? You're going with the TV commercial 'complete breakfast'? In Paris?"

"I told her to spoil herself," Dominique interjected, "but she insisted on the basics."

"I didn't even know they offered Cheerios in France! C'mon, live a little."

Dominique laughed, then told the women of how Paris was able to get one of her usual breakfast cereals. "Actually, they're imported from across the Channel. They don't offer them locally, but of course we keep near every cereal on hand in the kitchen we can find. We aim to please."

"Well, thank the chef for me," Paris said as she poured a cool carton of soy milk into the bowl. "Actually, that's one of the reasons I'm going to Yale."

Lorelai was thrown by Paris's odd interjection and snickered. "Par, DeVry offers Honey Nut Cheerios, and they don't even have dorms."

"No, not that." Paris giggled, realizing she sounded a bit odd about being excited about Yale and cereal. "The dining hall has a cereal bar with multiple varieties of cereals. Some of them are god-awful gruel like Kashi or Grape Nuts, but there's also Honey Nut Cheerios, all the varieties of Chex, frosted flakes, raisin bran...but more importantly the cereals Nanny and my mother banned me from trying because I apparently got hyperactive the one time I tried Trix when I was four. You know what I'm going to do my first morning there?"

"I would assume eat breakfast."

"Well, my plan is this; Lucky Charms, combined with Fruity Pebbles, a bit of Apple Jacks, which apparently aren't made of apples but they're good, and then in my second helping, combining Peanut Butter Crunch, Cinnamon Toast Crunch and Cocoa Puffs. And nobody can stop me from my plans of trying every cereal this year that the Yale dining hall offers."

Lorelai shook her head and smiled as she looked at Dominique. "My girlfriend, Paris. Other college students would rebel by doing pot and chugging extreme amounts of Coors. She just overdoses on Cocoa Krispies and buys a $5,000 bed to ease rejection pains."

"And dropping a lot of money on a trip to Paris," Dominique said, reminding them of why they were both here. "Which you both seem to be enjoying."

"So far, so good." Paris couldn't help but notice the glances continually being exchanged between Lorelai and Dominique and felt a cool shiver up her spine at how beautiful the Frenchwoman looked to her. She saw a spark between the two women, yet knew Lorelai was still fully here. Hmm, couldn't hurt. Though I'm not going to say a word...

"Alright." The woman wondered what to do next. "Is there anything else that you need, ladies?"

Lorelai finished her bite of egg as she poured the maple syrup over her chocolate-coated waffles. "No need to leave so soon. Are you needed downstairs, hon? Surely you could stay a little bit." She stared into the woman's eyes, struck by a connection she felt with the clerk. "I mean, we're just eating, but we'd love a little company."

Dominique ran a nervous hand through her curls, her forehead wrinkling as she felt flustered by the kind American woman. She found both Lorelai and Paris attractive, but there was something about the brunette's light attitude that caught her in just the right way. She loved the woman's humor, and though she made it usually a policy to keep work and home completely separate, she had went to bed and found herself unable to strip Lorelai's flirting from her mind. The leg baring and display of a flash of panty had stuck with her all day and into the evening, and only after a slow manual tease of herself to the idea of the kind American innkeeper touching herself in front of her, was Dominique able to finally fall into an ethereal sleep.

She wanted to flee, finding Lorelai's scent overwhelming, along with Paris's more casual dress making her feel overwhelmed with an emotional need for both women.

"Um...I should, I--"

Paris then reached into her pocket, and to Dominique's utter shock, she found rather than the €50 note she had expected, that the girl was pulling out a green €100 note instead.

"I insist on you staying," Paris whispered softly, moving close into the woman's personal space as she brushed the fingers containing the €100 note against Dominique's, noting the complete lack of any kind of ring. "A little friendly company is needed here." The woman sucked in her lips as the heated and deep tenor of the guest's voice hit her pleasure center just right.

"Merci." Dominique was overwhelmed, but knew even without the money she couldn't deny the pull of these two women. "I shall stay then." With a nervous smile she sat down in the chair between Paris and Lorelai's place settings, favoring herself more towards the brunette. "This would be just a large gratuity I assume."

"That is all it is," Paris insisted.

A little smile slid across Dominique's lips and Lorelai sucked in her own, a little hot beneath her non-existent collar. "So you are from, where Paris said, Stars Hollow? It sounds like a beautiful town."

"It is. I ran an inn there for about ten years or so, at least until it burned down last March in an electrical fire. I just purchased another building in town and when I get back from Europe, it's all renovation for the next nine months."

"Oooh, that sounds lovely." Dominique glowed as she listened intently to the woman. "And this is a small inn? Not one of those overly stuffy bed and breakfasts or an 'inn' like those chain hotels that are on the outskirts of town that call themselves inns?"

"I've seen the building, this is the very definition of a small inn," Paris mentioned. "I think about 15-20 beds and the trappings is what she has planned."

"18, to be exact." Lorelai was impressed with Paris's knowledge of her business. "We plan to be focused on hospitality, weddings, religious and other kinds of large events. Pretty much we're near New York and Boston, so we hopefully will get business from both areas, and beyond. If I can get the right kind of advertising out there, probably all the way down to Washington and towards Nova Scotia."

Paris went further with Lorelai's description. "She's excellent with her job. From what little I do know she did such a great job that the owner of Lorelai's former inn felt pretty well comfortable enough to head into semi-retirement in North Carolina. She's very devoted to her job and I can't think of anyone better to run an inn than her."

Lorelai laughed and pointed at Paris's way as she bit into her croissant. "This one, she's a hidden charmer. Geeze." Getting the full bite in she continued with her mouth full. "You really think all of that?"

"I really do." Paris sipped lightly at her juice and placed it back down. "She could probably run this hotel if she had the drive to do so."

"Paris..." Lorelai's lips were tight. "We can't show any disrespect to--"

"No, I understand how she is stating it," Dominique told the woman, waving her hand. "I can really see how Lorelai could be a professional hotelier for sure. Just her voice, I could see that she would be able to fill my every need if requested." With a coy smile she wrinkled her eyes slightly at the brunette, the accent of her voice making Lorelai feel a twitch between her legs. She took in a deep breath as she took a sip of her juice.

"Well..." a nervous laugh. "I guess I shall take that as a compliment."

"Take it however you want." Dominique bared her teeth slightly with a wider smile, a little curl of mischief in her voice. Lorelai looked over to Paris, sure to see that the girl was jealous that the clerk was coming onto her, but found no sign of her classical signs of annoyance. No narrowing of her eyes, not a sigh, nor any attempt at malice towards the clerk. Just an understanding smirk that told the older woman she was entertained by the banter between the innkeeper and the French woman.

Lorelai continued to eat, conversing with the woman and surprised by how versed Dominique was in English. Her and Paris learned from Dominique that the main reason she received the job was indeed how she was versed in English, which included one year of a student exchange with a family in Montreal which helped her soak up plenty of culture and included a few trips below the border to New York City, Vermont, and other cities in upstate New York where she was able to soak up American culture, along with an unexpectedly strong obsession for Friends.

"I actually had someone I knew in Syracuse tape episodes and send them to me for a few years. It took forever to get here translated. Thankfully the Internet makes it easier to get it now, if a little illegal and of cruddy quality, and there's a community I can talk to about it online. I love how I can be close to America, even if I'm not nearby."

Lorelai shook her head. "I'm having the reverse problem right now. I don't want the Internet but my mother in Hartford wants me to check in continuously." The woman shook her head as Paris felt for her deeply. "She thinks I'm going to die or run off with some foreigner."

"She does?" With a mirthful laugh, Dominique tested the limits of Paris and Lorelai's coupling, noticing that the blonde had made no move to end the game the older women were playing. "She's fearful of our overpowering sexuality, isn't she?" On the side, Paris snorted through a spoonful of her cereal, while at the same time wondering if she was indeed showing too much. The way Dominique was looking at her and Lorelai was to say the least, much more interesting than any Chiltonian male had done.

On the other hand she had noticed Lorelai's robe come slightly loose from gravity, the knot she thought was secure, instead sliding open and giving both women a nice view of her open cleavage. She was surprised at how fluid her sexuality was, as unlike when Tristan was trying to get Rory and she could be frothed up too easily, she could easily share Lorelai with others she trusted.

She watched the two women talk more about Friends, completely lost as she had one of the few parents in the world who enjoyed Promised Land on Thursday nights and wouldn't allow the viewing the more popular show, watching them go back and forth about Ross and Rachel, along with Phoebe's antics, Dominique feeling at least a little less lost in the world being able to talk to an American. Paris busied herself with sips of her tea, noting Lorelai was eating all of her food but just as hungry for conversation.

I'm easily imagining her, she thought to herself, taking in the women chatting happily while going over Dominique's form more closely. The woman's short build belied the curves she held, her legs standing out even in well scuffed mass-market heels that were definitely 'work shoes'. Dominique wore the hotel's uniform beautifully and Paris noted that she had her crème blouse beneath the black blazer down a few buttons to hint at just the smallest amount of her cleavage. The woman's long and tight curls also showed a woman proud of her heritage and not just living within the walls of French society, her own self and proud of it.

Lorelai's robe continued to slip down ever so slowly and from Paris's view, she could see a hint of nipple, along with...

She almost shrieked in reaction to seeing the slight bruising and bite marks along the areole that she could see. Oh my God! Paris Eustace Gellar, you do that to her in your sleep?! She wondered how the clerk hadn't noticed yet and was mortified by her behavior. Yes, you enjoy it rough. She does too. But, man, you probably have her feeling tender right now!

Paris hoped she could be distracted as she began to eat her baguette. However, as Dominique's eyes landed upon the slowly exposing breast, the black woman giggled softly.

"Merci! Lorelai, do you know you're bruised?" She straightened her lips, wondering how looking at what hadn't been exposed skin would be taken by the innkeeper just as she bit into the bacon. "Are you OK?"

Lorelai folded the strip into her mouth, chewed and then swallowed, giving a look to her girlfriend not easily read at first by the Yalie. "Am I OK?" A pause as Lorelai reached out for Paris's hand. The nervous student folded it in.

"I am more than that," she softly intoned. "When I got out of bed I don't think I've had my pussy feel so relaxed in the morning, and I had the best pee in a long time."

Paris blushed violently. "Oh God." She averted her eyes. "You...didn't just say that."

Smiling in response, Lorelai squeezed her hand as Dominique looked at both women, highly amused. "I did, and I would again. I'm glad I had a sleeping session of lovemaking, in our dreams. I know it's a little mortifying, but I enjoyed it."

Paris was surprised as Lorelai traced the bite mark along the upper part of her breast. "But I bit you while you slept."

"Lightly, and it didn't wake me up," the woman reminded her kindly. "You were being a tease in your dream, and that was just fine with me, Par. You're a very considerate dream lover." She ran her index finger along Paris's inner palm, feeling her pulse begin to fade. "Also, it always feels nice to wake up to your scent rather than sweat and hair and...manliness. It's soft."

"Thank you?" Paris said, questioningly, her body beginning to react more to the teasing. "You...you should finish up breakfast."

"Are you sure you don't want bacon or waffles, hon?" Lorelai pushed over her plate slightly. "Or eggs?"

"I'm good. Very good," Paris insisted. "I...I'm just feeling out of sorts. Must still be the jet lag. Or--"

Lorelai snorted. "No, it's the orgasms I keep giving you. The Eiffel one got to you, didn't it?" Dominique's ears perked up at the mention of the local landmark. "And you want more. You want me to finish breakfast so you can get me out of this robe and into your mouth." She looked at the hotel employee, wondering if she went too far with being so blatant. However, she only received a knowing smirk in response as the coloring of the college student began to approach tomato proportions.

"Why do you have to be such a teaser?" Paris grumbled, taking a quick bite out of her bread. "Gah."

"What can I say, I live...to please." Putting emphasis in the end brought out the deadly eyeroll from the student, though in a much lighter form than usual. "And boy is she ever."

"She looks it," Dominique observed. "I see how you both work; you're the lighter and funny one, and Paris is the serious and focused half, the one who plans out everything. You don't have the traditional compliments, but somehow you both work." With a smile, Paris was able to relax slightly, though she was still a bit wound up.

"Got us figured out," she said softly, with a small smile. "Though Lorelai has things more together I think. I've been on a path I didn't expect since March when Harvard rejected me. I'm not bitter about it any longer, but it still burns."

"I see it does, thus the overriding Yale shirt. You're making yourself comfortable with that but it's taking a bit, isn't it?"

"I think it's not going to be until I get back second semester that I'll know this is my life. That Harvard isn't crawling back for me. It's the 'temporary arrangement' that's going to be permanent eventually." Paris took in a deep breath as she saw Lorelai give her a supportive glance. "I'm OK now, but I know by the time I leave home in August it's going to be odd going directly south rather than northeast."

Lorelai gave Paris's hand another light squeeze, knowing she needed it.

"You know I'll support you, no matter what?"

"Mm-hmm." Paris nodded, taking in a deep breath to settle her pulse down. "I'm ready for Yale. I am. But it's an escaped dream and somehow I still want to catch it." She closed her eyes slightly, feeling herself trying to hold onto her control. "You understand, right?"

"I do. Definitely do." Lorelai moved close to comfort Paris as Dominique began to sense she was intruding on a private moment. Lorelai had finished her food, and Paris only had a little bit of juice left in her glass. Looking at the two women she felt as if there was a connection between them that crossed much more than an age barrier.

"I...I should probably depart," she insisted. "You two should be alone." She began to gather up the items but Paris spoke up, her voice shaking.

"Leave it for housekeeping later. I think they can handle it."

"You are sure? I can take it without a problem."

"You've been here, and that's all I really need," Paris assured her, getting up with Lorelai to show Dominique to the door. "Thank you for everything this morning, and especially last night."

"Always happy to help." The two women helped the clerk back to the door. "If you need anything of course, I will be in most of the day, up to seven o'clock this evening."

Paris nodded, her eyes falling upon those of Dominique's as she could tell there was a certain tension in the room. "Of course," she spoke with a small smile. "We will definitely talk again today, I'm sure."

"Thank you, Dominique," Lorelai said, and the kind woman nodded back.

"Enjoy your travels today." With that, Dominique left the room, leaving the two women alone again, sexual tension frothing between the two. Paris directed her gaze at Lorelai, and then...

"Someone's smitten," she teased. "I never thought I'd see it; monogamous Lorelai flirting with a hotel clerk."

"I was not," Lorelai said, afraid Paris would be mad at her. "I don't know what you were seeing."

Paris shook her head and placed the slide lock on the door to afford them privacy. "I was seeing someone struggling to get through breakfast because she's a massive flirt with two women." She moved over towards Lorelai. "Along with someone knowing her robe was opening pretty damned blatantly."

Feigning shock, Lorelai held an indigent hand to her slowly baring chest. "My robe has not been opening!"

"It has, you've just been 'forgetful'," Paris argued, knowing exactly how Lorelai could be a quiet flirt in just the right way. "Not that I've been complaining." With a side smirk from Paris, Lorelai knew she had been caught.

"So I may have let it fall open a little." She clicked her tongue. "But I didn't expect to have company. Especially...that kind of company." She pointed towards the door. "You expected me to be normal when I'm in an extreme case of sexual tension?"

"Why would I want normal?" Paris quipped. "If I wanted that I'd be content to be on the Jersey Shore with terrible sex and over-protectiveness." She quirked her eyebrow. "Besides, it's fun seeing you flustered around a multi-cultural and multi-lingual woman."

"Of course you'd be amused." The innkeeper took in a deep breath, looking at her girlfriend, feeling all wound up. "I thought you'd leap in and be jealous of her."

Paris shook her head, still smiling at her. "What jealousy? You're here with me. I have no thoughts that you will be stolen at all. Though you really need to learn how to wear a robe." She looked down, smiling at the sight of the top of Lorelai's nipples being able to be seen. "And you're not hungry anymore; that breakfast is three days right there along with the dinner from last night."

"Mmm, that it is." Lorelai had a blush spread up her cheeks as she saw Paris looking her up and down, anticipating that the girl had been soaking herself for the last half-hour. She moved to bring Paris close and placed her hands at the small of her back, then moving her towards the bed. "I have new energy now that I haven't had for awhile. And coffee. I wonder how I might be able to expend it..." She put on a pondering glance, as her hands slid down towards the hem of her top, letting it up a little and feeling the peeking waistband of the younger woman's underwear. "Also, I heard you wiggle the doorknob when I was in the shower."

"I...I thought of taking a shower, but you were in it," Paris responded, her body tightening in response to having the brunette against her. "And since the door was locked...I did not want to intrude."

"You know," Lorelai whispered, recalling their separate showers in the Manor. "I don't mind sharing a shower with you at all. I'm not opposed in any way."

"I'm not either. We just wouldn't leave until we ran out the hot water. Which in this hotel would be about ten o'clock tonight." Paris brought herself onto tip toes to try to be near eye level, her fingers shaking at the anticipation. She looked down at the teasing knot again. "I just realized I'm dressed, and you're not."

"It's a little unfair, isn't it?" Lorelai moved her gaze down with a slight smile. "Although I'll say, more of those shirts, please. Many more. You wear tank tops very well."

"You know why I haven't that often? My mother expressed a fear about 'perverted gazes' and that I would receive untoward attention, not for my brain, but for what's below it. It's understandable, but with her controlling the fashion for a long time, I've been a little underwhelming when it comes to flattering things to wear."

"And you finally got that control this year."

"Mm-hmm. Still not used to it though. Besides us, I don't need to stand out, so I haven't thought of what to wear that often. I'm not really sexual, so what I wear beneath means nothing to anyone else except for EMT's. And showing off? Chilton doesn't do well with individuality. The only thing you can do is the skirt hem, and even then you have to be careful. And forget any other alterations; it's an automatic two-day suspension if you forget the tie and don't get a spare from the office."

"Same for Hillside. I did the best I could there, but there was nothing I could do. Especially because the dark red in the skirt and blazer fabric they used made me feel like a 70's game show host. I didn't even really have boobs until...well." She grimaced and Paris knew exactly.

"Mine came early. Way too early." The student cringed at going on about her puberty. "That's why Louise and I started out in seventh grade. She was just fascinated about how I was growing in and back then, she was so innocent. I was basically her guinea pig turning her into how she was today. But between then, I actually had to get new blazers and blouses twice in that year, and then just the most painful periods. Whatever those videos they made me watch in fifth grade said, they were very, very wrong. The first one I had in February of 1998, not in class, thank goodness. But it had me in tears, in a ball just lying on the floor of my private bathroom with a towel. Thank God it came on Presidents Day weekend so my attendance streak wasn't affected."

"Oh my God." Lorelai sucked in a breath at the description of the pain of her girlfriend's first time. "My first wasn't that bad."

"Until the rejection it was the worst I had ever physically felt. I wanted to die. Even my mother, in the uncomfortable relationship I had, was very empathetic for me. I also threw up and...it was terrible. I've been on a form of birth control that limits the flow I have ever since it became clear they needed to be controlled somehow. I know I could control it now, but the thought of getting to that point scares me shitless. I...I never even told Louise or Madeline. They've never known. And it's probably why I waited so long to become sexually active with someone because I just can't trust them with this much information."

"Not Jamie at least." Lorelai shook her head. "No wonder you latched onto me, hon. I make you feel comfortable?"

"You do." With a nod, both women sat on the bed, Lorelai wondering how it was her who was getting to know the true Paris usually only revealed behind closed doors. "I'm sorry if it was too much for me to say, it just was something I felt like talking about."

"Don't feel ashamed about it, at all. You can't control things like that, so I'm glad to know."

"It just sucks that I have these kinds of genes. Like I'm cursed up deeply."

"If you're so cursed, why are you here in Paris with an amazing gal like me as your lover?" She smiled, and Paris rolled her eyes, though she laughed at how Lorelai phrased it. "Face it Par; we both had pretty crappy childhoods. But I think adulthood is looking up."

"You think things can get better?"

"They definitely can." Paris whimpered lightly, not sure if Lorelai was right. "Hey, let's go over a few things; you get a fresh start at Yale. None of the 'five generations of Gellars have attended Harvard' baggage to deal with. You survived high school, and the usual crappy relationship that could have been 'miserable high school sweethearts' 'til Jamie's mid-life crisis, but it's gone. You're all good, and then there's your dream trip out west that somehow will end out here. You've got a great uncursed life going here, Par."

She then smirked and moved her left hand towards the sash of the robe. "And finally, you do have me. I'm here...and I think I need to begin to get ready for the rest of the day." Moving towards the knot, Paris whimpered at the idea of Lorelai opening the robe and presenting herself to her.

"Get...ready. Right." She smiled nervously. "I do...have clothes for you. They're in the closet. Where clothes go."

"And that's why I love you; you know how to fill my needs." Lorelai wiggled her fingers within the loose knot, beginning to will it off. "Needs I'm sure you enjoy attending to." Her blue eyes were on full focus, a little smirk playing upon it. "Needs that mean we have an hour to get ready?"

"Yes. An hour. Sixty minutes." She wondered if she would be able to remember what an hour was by the time she finished helping Lorelai get ready. "Or, about fifty minutes, actually. We've burned a few minutes finishing breakfast."

"Fifty is good. Still a good amount of time. I mean, if you don't mind--"

Paris found herself getting antsy. Enough, Par, stop stalling. You didn't find her in Paris just to talk; you want her. Look at her, being all...hot and tall. Come on girl!

"I think we can work with fifty minutes. If we stop talking for a little while." The abrupt end to the conversation reminded Lorelai of why Paris invited her to spend two nights in a hotel room. "Time to get you out of that robe, Lor." She moved aside Lorelai's fingers and slid hers inside the knot, purposefully knowing she'd brush the woman's sensitive navel and midriff. Soon, Lorelai brought away her focus from conversation.

"Yes, definitely time. Then you can tease me." Paris groaned slightly at the come-hither look of her lover as she found the knot wouldn't have lasted five more minutes, so loosely done it took only the slightest of pulling to unravel it completely. Paris slid the sash out of the belt loops completely and put it aside completely, while the robe still stayed together from the spare friction of the silk.

Lorelai took in deeper breaths as she saw the heated look in Paris's eyes, her browns turning into a somewhat darker color as she looked over Lorelai, one of her fingers moving towards the woman's right nipple peaking through the silk, the darkness of the areole noticeable. A bare brush of the fingertip made Lorelai clench, anticipation building up.

"Sooo..." The student was curious about how Lorelai wanted it. "You want this?"

Lorelai nodded. "Ever since I left the Manor and had to settle for phone sex." She felt a light twist of the nipple. "Oh God."

"This needs to come off then...but first, lay down." Lorelai complied, the robe material sliding slightly askew towards the upper part of her torso and barely shielding her navel while partially baring each breast. Paris eased herself next to Lorelai's thigh and glanced up and down before rolling up her own top and working it up to her underarms before taking it off completely and folding it into a perfect square off to the side, leaving her in her bra.

Lorelai felt herself soften at the care Paris was putting into the seduction. To see her be so considerate and kind, yet slow despite a time deadline was helping to keep her calm. She sucked on her bottom lip looking at Paris without her shirt on, again marveling at how the summer had done her younger lover well as far as the tone of her body.

"Damn," she whispered. "You're hot." She wondered if Paris would narrow or roll her eyes at the compliment, but instead found the material of the robe moved to the sides on the lower portion, Paris becoming surprised as what was invisible in the dimness of lamplight was apparent in the daytime. She traced Lorelai's stomach, finding a thin trail of hair down from her navel that was invisible except up close.

"Could say the same of you," the blonde whispered. "Not much for stomach-baring this summer, are we?"

Lorelai nodded. "Not since I found out both disposable razors suck at non-leg shaving and my usual razor doesn't have cartridges carried here. So...gave up on that." A cold shudder went through her from Paris's gaze. "I...I'm sorry for the trail--"

"No need. No need at all." A subtle lick of her lips told the hotelier that the sudden sexuality of mid-July certainly would be just as heated as two months back. "It's sexy. Kinda animalistic. Like this summer..." She slid herself to Lorelai's head to look right into the woman's eyes while her left fingers wandered the line of hair. "I had to let go of most shaving for a week and a half before I got to Denver, mainly just out of laziness, but sometimes, I just couldn't get to a guaranteed shower. Didn't shave my underarms from the raft trip all the way to my one-nighter in Vail."

Letting out a whine, Lorelai shuddered at the idea of Paris growing out some of her body hair, in a good way. She knew without asking her legs were a definite shave no matter what, but she would let go of her underarms rather easily.

"The shower yesterday," she admitted in a rush. "Let go of ten days of underarm hair myself. Now I feel a little guilty. We could've truly done it like the French did." She wrinkled her nose as the student did feel a beat of disappointment. "How did it feel?"

"Nice. I could get away with it," Paris admitted. "I might do it for a bit this winter. Not in this season though." She moved her mouth to nip at Lorelai's lower lip and slid in her tongue slightly, Lorelai letting her have access. The two women began to tangle together slightly, heavy breath exchanged between them as they began to get back in the mood for intimacy, at least away. The taste of the almond and honey from the cereal got to the older woman and she moaned in contentment.

"Mmm, better kisser now I see," she observed. She felt the girl's left hand cup at her right breast as the other hand made work to slide the robe off, providing a surface for lovemaking. "Not that you weren't bad before."

"Last thing I want to be is a bad kisser, or a bad lover." Parting Lorelai's lips, her tongue swirled against Lorelai's front teeth as she sensed their breathing was nearly synced together. She circled the breast, taking in the texture of the familiar feeling she had missed for so long, emotions welling up within her to stretch out the time. It felt more firm, a testament to the month on the European backpacking trail.

Lorelai panted as she could feel Paris's thigh against her, covered in denim. Her own hands grasped the sides of Paris's back, the hem of the jeans becoming a guide for her to figure out how to work her hips against her just right. They were both comfortable, finding the groove that they had without missing a beat. She gasped as she knew Paris was teasing her, letting her circle against her but not too deeply.

Lorelai bit down on Paris's lower lip to tease her, sexily mewling at the thin flesh between her teeth and hoping to leave a little bite against it. She bit down lightly to test the girl's pain tolerance and felt encourage, biting down until she heard a divine gasp slide out. She pulled away to find the smallest impact with her front teeth, an indent towards the right side of her lip. Paris pulled away, leveling a small smile at the innkeeper.

"Pain is pleasure," she whispered. "Love your pain, Lor." She found the woman's blush building and decided to play with her a little more. "Do you share my opinion though?"

The elder Gilmore nodded knowingly. "I go out in the cold in a skirt without underwear sometimes, what do you think?"

"Well considering you have a tat below the waist...I think you love the pain." She brushed a finger along the area she knew the tattoo was at, slightly obscured by dark and deep hair along Lorelai's pubis. She began to move her lips down a line from Lorelai's mouth and towards her chin, taking a little nip with her teeth at every opportunity. Her hand moved to cup the brunette's sex, her other hand upon her breast finding it to firm up from sexual interest. "I didn't get much time to myself this summer," she whispered, taking time to build the foreplay. "But my dreams were vivid. I swore I felt you up head to toe at every opportunity when I slept. It was a godsend when a hotel had a body pillow to cuddle up with. A clean one, of course."

"Of...course." Lorelai's imagination overwhelmed her with images of her girlfriend in a t-shirt and shorts or less doing sinful things in her sleep, rubbing up against a surface to frot herself off. "God, I need to cum...thinking about you." She moved her hands slightly lower to guide Paris's thigh against her.

"Eventually...still plenty of time." Despite her tension, Lorelai was willing to be patient and slowly felt her lover's leg peel away from her as Paris moved lower, laving the tall woman in lustful attention as she was presented with Lorelai Gilmore looking utterly exhausted from her travels but still deeply beautiful. She curled her body up slightly as she reacted to Paris touching her stomach, fingers sliding along her navel and enchanted with the line of hair she hated now to have removed.

Kisses along and upon each of her breasts, then down along her midriff, she felt out of her body, like this was all a dream, even though she had confirmed multiple times It wasn't. A mess of dirty blonde hair below her, Lorelai felt a happy hum at the idea of her girlfriend about to go down on her. Sucking in her lip, her nostrils flaring, she knew she was about to go through a tailspin of emotions as she moaned while the kisses moved even lower. She began to feel the tension build up and anticipated her release.

Paris eyed up her situation. She could sense how turned on Lorelai was just by scent alone, which overwhelmed her with the need she felt for the beguiling brunette.

You can do this, she told herself. No way you're going to disappoint her so far into this. Psyching herself up she licked her lips and prepared to dip her tongue in. Lorelai stiffened up as she felt the breath of her lover below, not willing to tell the student that her breath was ticking her in just the right way even then.

As Paris began to move in...

The silence was broken by a sudden shrill sound that came from the nightstand. One that Lorelai dreaded.

Her phone rang. Paris between her legs, the phone was ringing.

"Oh God, no," she whimpered, feeling very stressed. Stretching her neck out, she found Rory's name displaying on the Blackberry screen. "Damn it, it's Rory." Paris lifted up her head and groaned.

"Oh man." Paris shook her head, forgetting about the one thing that could stop them. "I knew we forgot something, either keeping the phone off or calling her earlier." She glanced up at Lorelai, sighing loudly in the same way her lover was. "Pick it up, that way she can't bother us for the rest of the day."

"Paris--"

"No apologies," she assured her, though a little ornery. "Get it in." With her body shaking, Lorelai grasped the Blackberry and started the call, greeting her daughter with her voice shaking, in need of a come.

Immediately, the ease of the morning seemed to melt away as Rory inquired as if the original tour plan would be followed. Guided by Paris listening in but staying silent, Lorelai judged her cover story on hand gestures and facial movements as the blonde quickly fled to her purse in case she needed the voice changing device.

"No, I can't. This person, they're very insistent. They really want to--No, it's not happening, kiddo, I'm sorry. I'll be back in the morning." Paris gave a signal as if to say 'things were complicated, describe it that way'. "Well, I have to stay because of....securities law, credit check, income verification, uhhh, notary of Connecticut? Yeah, we have to transmit things to Hartford to be notarized, and the fax there is dog slow."

Paris pushed back onto the bed, ready to rescue Lorelai, who despite the state of her excuse making had not made a move to cover herself yet, going three minutes into the fruitless and mainly one-sided conversation on Rory's end. "Hon, it's a long process. Very long. I also have things to negotiate." A pause. "What? Look, I'm fine. Being fed well, just fine, no problems. No, I'm not kidnapped, promise, I--No, I'm not trying to get out of the Eiffel Tower. I don't have a fear of heights, why did you think I did?"

"Or finger-fucking your girlfriend on it," Paris whispered suddenly, intending to keep Lorelai's libido high and causing here to snicker when she heard it, causing a bit of surprise on Rory's end as she reacted and asked what was funny. "Uh, nothing, nothing. Just thought of a dumb French stereotype, Jerry Lewis movies. Really, nothing." Paris kept the device close just in case she would need to speak.

"Honey, one tomorrow, I'm back. Promise. Cross my heart, die, needles in my eye and...and..." Suddenly the blonde knew she would have to take desperate measures to keep her girlfriend interested in the last half hour. Despite having thought there was no way to them to get back on track, Lorelai could see Paris sliding back between her legs.

An idea planted itself in the front of Paris's brain. Taking the device, she placed the speaker right against the edge of Lorelai's pussy lips. With a devious smile, she intended to seal her claim on the woman. With the box's volume set at low in order to not blow out the speaker, she knew what Lorelai could hear, Rory could barely make out, or her mind would be able to construe as dirty. Clicking the box's button to change her voice, she struck with precision and passion Lorelai had never known in any other lover.

She spoke into the box. "Get off the phone or I'm going to use this," she threatened, her voice somehow both teasing and infuriating at the same time. "Ms. Gilmore, I don't want to have to...back out of this deal." Paris's eyes directed down below with her brows raised, Lorelai felt a cold chill in her throat at what was being suggested. Oh dear God! If mine at home gets me off in minutes, Paris's voice turned up in that...too much! I have to get off...I mean stop this call! Tremors went up her legs and she feared ruining the device on one mere paragraph.

"Rory," she said shakily, "I have to let you go. This person is very insistent on..." her voice tinged with need, she directed a flirtatious glance at her lover, "...finishing the deal." A smirk was received in answer. "We have too much to discuss." Hearing protestations blasting in her ear she quickly eased a frustrated goodbye from her daughter and hung the phone up, furiously setting the phone into silent mode.

"I'm not gonna be interrupted...again." Hitting the final button, 'silence mode activated' appeared on the screen and she threw the phone back onto the nightstand. "As much as I love the idea of a voice box getting me off, it's not the same." Paris chuckled, thankfully moving the device away and tossing it to the side.

"You want me?" Lorelai nodded. "Then say the magic words."

Lorelai didn't know how such a young soul like Paris could do it. For someone half her age, she managed to have much more of a commanding and sexual personality than anyone her age. Paris slid up her fingers, beginning the tease anew as she let breaths drift along the woman's center.

"Fuck me, please, Paris," she intoned simply, though with a harsh impatience in her voice. "Even if someone knocks, I don't care about anything else."

"Nothing else?" Her lips brushed softly against the stiffened hair upon Lorelai's mound.

"Nothing else...we have a limited time." She pushed her legs together, trying to hold herself back. "Just please, please!"

Paris curled her tongue out, a thought about Lorelai begging being very hot to her. She slid her tongue in slowly between the folds tangled with hair, the scent much more heady to her than it had been at the Manor, more natural to her. She immediately felt a clench against her back as Lorelai clenched her with her hand, digging her nails in as deep as she could without it hurting and threw her head back, hissing and then screaming Paris's name out. As she circled in against Lorelai's clit she applied suction against each of the lips, her senses overwhelmed at how blushed they were, knowing now that the sleep orgasm was only enough to burn off the stress of the evening and seven weeks of missing each other.

Lorelai wrapped her legs around Paris's upper body to help hold the girl in place as she tested and prodded, moaning as she felt Paris' fingers against her inner thighs, opening her up more. There was no time for slow pressure or sweetness, so Lorelai let herself go into the pleasures she knew she wanted to feel. She gritted her teeth as she sensed Paris moving lower away from her clit, playing with her, clamping up at the very idea of the talented tongue anywhere near her 'forbidden neighborhood'.

"N'tyet," she screamed. "N'tyet, t'night," she promised to the young woman, at the point of solely needing her in the regular sense. Paris filed the words as a possible contract of what her favorite brunette would want later on and stiffened out her tongue, letting the finely tuned muscle provide the pleasure she knew the innkeeper had craved for weeks. She grasped Lorelai's ass, beginning to work the woman in a way she knew would have her in a boneless heap. Hooking her feet to the end board of the bed she raised herself up and encouraged Lorelai to move her hands to grasp at the decorative hollow behind her in the headboard, promising the woman she'd get her off.

Lorelai had her own stimuli as Paris worked around her hips, circling them hypnotically and raising herself in the air, letting her shirt slide down and knowing her girlfriend was looking at her ass, along with how the jeans stretched out to give a glance of her panties and definitely a little of the cleave of her buttocks. Satisfyingly Lorelai moaned deeply as Paris's tongue hit her clit, hissing with need as it circled it with a slow, but practiced rhythm. Lorelai concentrated on her lover, in awe that a girl with such little sexual experience could know so much and take from her cues.

Paris closed her eyes, concentrating on sound and scent to guide herself, familiar with her surroundings. She kissed at each side, a circle motion along each lip, back to the clitoris, then over again. She rubbed circles along Lorelai's flesh with her fingers to calm the innkeeper, smiling as she heard little mewls and whispers of her name encouraging her on. She quickened her tongue strokes as she was able to sense Lorelai's walls close in around her.

"You ready to cum?" she whispered from above. "I'm going to go faster from here on out. I need you dressed in a half-hour."

"Yess, sooo ready." Lorelai slid back further on the bed, ready to let all the weeks of frustration out from missing Paris. She felt Paris's nose brush against her and gasped, begging for her release as Paris's tongue flicked against her clit, going in a circling motion as her thumbs moved to the outside of her lips, sending her deeper into a frenzy. She pushed down Paris's bra straps, needing to feel Paris's flesh in her hands.

She wanted to hold in this picture in her fantasies, of the blonde bent down worshipping her as if she was an Amazon princess, giving her so much pleasure and clenching at the taste of her. Gritting her teeth Paris knew the price she would pay for most of the day was painful arousal as her clit pounded between her legs, needing its own release. But she did not want to come off as selfish and put every bit of her effort into pleasing her lover.

Longer strokes, longer circles. Paris hastily grabbed for the bottle of water at the side of her nightstand to hydrate herself before going back in, turned on at the sight of Lorelai looking content with a full blush across her cheeks and along her upper body, freckling standing out against the expanse of her flesh, the outline of her tank top straps apparent from the tan which had built up since her arrival in Europe. It caught Paris to know even Lorelai had tan lines too.

"Make those circles for me...little circles," she begged. "Get me off, oh God, please." Paris acceded to the wishes and rolled her tongue into a semi-circle shape to lick Lorelai as deeply as she wanted. She could feel her fingers begin to drip with needy arousal being forced out, her senses working overtime to please the brunette. Feeling overwhelmed herself she began to sweat, dripping down her forehead, realizing then she had applied the roll-on supplied by the hotel rather than the prescription anti-persipriant still in the bag in the closet. Fuck, she cursed to herself, though she knew it certainly wasn't anything to ruin the mood.

She knew it would only turn Lorelai on more. Pheromones, she thought to herself as Lorelai bucked against her tongue, riding her off. She felt hands slide down lower and gasped at the contact as rounded fingernails scraped down her back, nearing her bra, then going for it for some kind of leverage, which caused friction against her erecting nipples and for her to curse.

"Fuck!" Lorelai looked down, blue eyes full of fire.

"I want...it off." Paris looked up at her, a questioning gaze.

"I want you bare, you look so hot."

"Only a few minutes--"

"I don't...give a damn." She neared the hook. "I see you now...it's you...busting out. Especially...the road vids."

Paris gasped audibly, recalling most of the videos she sent through email she had taken her top down a bit to provide Lorelai a visible cue of missing her without having to be nude. It was only through Lorelai's love that Paris began to find an appreciation for her body, curves and all. A finger played with the hook, Paris wondering if her timing would be thrown off.

"Ohhh...fuck it. Just, quickly." Lorelai smiled and stretched out each end, Paris moving her arms to catch each side and quickly work it off from her body, putting it to the side as Lorelai shuddered.

"God, I love that sight," she confessed, looking down at the young woman with her full breasts dipping down. "You're all worked up, hon."

"I am, but back to you." She lowered herself back down and Lorelai felt relief at feeling Paris's bare breasts against her legs as she got back to circling her clit. She dipped back down, stretching out and suckling it between licks, Lorelai opening up her legs with a gasp.

"Fucking A, take me deep," she pleaded with Paris, propping further as she wound her ass into a counter-clockwise motion to meet Paris's practiced clockwise laps and sucks. Though it seemed she was predictable, it was mindblowing to Lorelai as the student knew much more about her anatomy than her exes ever cared to learn. She begged Paris to raise her body slightly and grasped as much of her breasts as she could despite some protestations that it wasn't orthodox, It drove Paris crazy as she felt her tits laying in a different manner than usual, the unfocused innkeeper stroking her nipples to a hard stiffness she hadn't been able to work herself into in months.

Paris quickened her strokes and found herself rubbing herself against Lorelai's bare shin, trying to avoid it but knowing it was inevitable that she was very turned on. She whimpered, the audible cue that Lorelai was doing well on her end driving her ever closer to the come she desired. She felt completely out of her body as she could feel pelvic muscles tightening, the scent held in though the thick mat of Lorelai's pubis overwhelming her senses.

The brunette's pants became deeper as Paris slipped her tongue in, moving away from the clit for a little bit to tease her further. A countdown clock ran through Paris's mind, a goal to use every second to the fullest. Lorelai gritted her teeth, pinching the nipples at a moment before withdrawing them to grasp her hands beneath Paris's underarms with curses and exclamations falling from her at a rapid clip.

"Please, take me...fuck me, Par, I need to cum, do it! Fuck me!" The blonde obliged with her movements becoming faster, both women rocking against each other in desperate need of release as Paris gave in to her base desires and lowered a hand into her jeans to guide her pulsing clit right against Lorelai's shinbone. She gasped against Lorelai, the aural rumbles pushing things closer.

"Fuck...oh god damn!" Lorelai was moving ever closer, the lack of dirty talk for once surprisingly hot to her with Paris using her tongue for other purposes. She could feel the smaller woman mashed against her shin in need of release, her nails dug in deep against her hips. More needed and thankful circles, that familiar heat and clench beginning to build below her gut. It wasn't of matter of if it was going to happen, but when, their teasing banter through the night finally coming to a head.

With finality she began to push her legs ever closer to put Paris in a grip, desperate for that final push. She bit on her lip and sucked in her stomach, knowing it was only a matter of time as she looked down at the tips of her own nipples, sticking up high, knowing even one touch would be enough to send her over the edge. But she wanted the orgasm the hard way, and began moving her leg up and down at the knee individually to reward her lover, which turned out to be torture for Paris.

I am going to ruin these panties...oh fuck! Even with her nighttime release Paris knew even the shin-frotting through denim would take her down. She was determined to hold out as long as she could but knew that her young body wouldn't be able to hold out that much longer. The need for Lorelai to fuck her overwhelmed all the need she had for control. She nipped lightly at Lorelai's clit and felt everything soaking through. The friction against her breasts was unbelievable, her nipples so painfully erect she didn't know when they would begin to calm down.

One last move of Lorelai's hands to each side of Paris's face, it was building. Lorelai could taste the cum on her lips when she shared her after-sex kiss with the blonde. Paris's tongue made faster and faster strokes, more uncontrolled, making sounds that would usually be speech from the pressure building against her but came out as groans and spurts of sexual want. Lorelai pushed her ass as low into the mattress as it could go, along with her legs, Paris's ears basically sealed between her.

"Wanna cum, wanna fucking cum, please!" she pleaded. "Love you so much for...for this, guuuuh..." Paris slid her hands to cup each side of Lorelai's ass, the two women moving into nearly a sitting position as Lorelai braced Paris with her free leg. Both women were uncontrollable, both knowing what was about to happen.

Yanking at the back of Paris's hair, she yelped slightly, knowing Lorelai was doing it on purpose for stimulation. The hotelier knew she was near her breaking point soon.

"Need it, need it...yessss...yesss...." She bent down and kissed the back of Paris's head before falling back against the pillow to ride out the last strokes, Paris knowing now exactly where to hit. Their scents overwhelmingly in the air between them Paris circled her tongue a few times more, knowing the clench was about to hit.

"FUCK, OH SHIT!" Lorelai raised her hips in the air, desperately. Paris drove herself faster against Lorelai's leg, her eyes wrenched shut as she knew she would hit at the same time. She felt soaked through, exhausted, her heart a mile a minute as they reached their apex. She felt Lorelai scraping her nails down her back and knew this was it. A few more circles and licks, her body becoming used to being a living toy for the innkeeper.

"Goddamn, need this...yess...yess...." She felt a nip against the inside of her lips, teeth against her flesh, and the other woman furiously fucking her leg. She gritted her teeth and felt that prickle In her skin that told her it was inevitable.

"PAR...OH FUCK....PAR, JUST A LITTLE MORE, PLEASE...PLEASE..."

Paris tugged at the waistband of her panties outside of her jeans, her cunt pounding...

"MORE...YESS, LIKE THAT..."

"LORRR..."

"PARR..."

The blonde ground in faster and faster while her tongue was a mile a minute before knowing the clench was there. Before she could pull back...

"OOOOOHHH SHIT!! AHHHHH!! YESSS!!! AHHHH!!"

Lorelai's vocal cords were fully stretched as she let out her well-needed release and a long spurt of fluid against Paris's face was let out as she let out the last few grinds against Lorelai before screaming her own, feeling like she was both drowning in pleasure and basking in it. She felt her hair being pulled tightly but the usually painful feeling was buffeted by the sweet and unexpected release she was having. Lorelai moved her right hand against herself to both finish off and control the flow of the fluid, feeling it force out from her as if letting out a heavy burden built up over weeks. The sight made Paris hot as she kept licking her clit until Lorelai begged her to stop, pulling away in deep gasps to the hot sight of Lorelai's dripping quim pushing her orgasm further.

"Fuck...Lor..." Putting her hand down her pants she groaned, the slightest touch reeling her back suddenly. "Fuck, I'm so wet!" she exclaimed as she felt the last of Lorelai's little spurts, falling against the bedding. Lorelai was still deeply in orgasm, riding it out with little circular rubs on the outside as she felt the clenches before finally feeling the comedown after two minutes, Paris's beautiful gaze bringing it much further than she ever imagined.

The two women's eyes connected and they couldn't stop staring, Paris quickly withdrawing and moving up, joining Lorelai's hand and settling her down, slowly sidling up as the two exhausted women knew this was a moment they weren't soon to forget. She unsnapped her jeans and undid her zipper, Lorelai quickly lowering her gaze to see that indeed, Paris was very wet. She smiled and brought Paris up against her, finally kissing her lip to lip, exhausted and tired, though ready for the day ahead.

They both were silent for a couple minutes, just gazing, both with damp hands connected, flesh sticking together, bruises and scrapes beginning to accumulate on their bodies. Both had shaky and unsteady breaths, Lorelai squirming at the wetness beneath her and trying to work around it without much luck, whispering obscenities under her breath for lack of control.

But finally, Paris brought her mouth to Lorelai's again, dipping her mouth in against the other woman's tongue, and enjoying the hum of the woman against her as the taste of her own arousal overwhelmed her. She hastened the kiss and wrapped around Paris, shamelessly sliding her hand into her jeans and panties, cupping her ass and reveling the feel of hot flesh within her damp fingers. She moaned against Paris's mouth, the two tangled in an afterglow embrace unlike anything Lorelai had ever known. The only thing that pulled them apart was the need for oxygen, Paris utterly ruined as Lorelai helped her out of her jeans and panties, leaving them both nude in the bed within a few minutes as they stayed together atop the made and wet bed, nothing able to break their love.

Lorelai was finally able to speak, looking at the utterly ruined student who had just expected a quick bit of oral sex, only for it to go a little farther. By feel she pulled the dampened panties from the jeans and slowly brought them to her nose to take in the scent of the crotch, a little whimper at a slight stain of period blood. Paris bit her lip, the sight of the content woman in front of her so overwhelming she felt herself clench at the sight...

...And then she licked at the deepest part of the dampness, then sucked it in to get a full sense of the arousal. Paris felt like she was about to faint as the older woman had somehow taken the focus off her own powerful orgasm and turned the tables to focus on the giver's sudden one. She held in her mouth for another longer moment before finally saying something.

"We both taste wonderful," she whispered, laying in another kiss on Paris's lips. "And smell sexy."

"Lor..." She found the woman overwhelmed with emotion.

"I'm so...I don't know how to feel. But I'm warm. I'm numb. I think...I think my PSAT score disappeared about the time you hit my G-spot from the outside somehow." A breathy laugh. "That was fucking hot how I got you off."

"But--"

"It was. We both came. We were awake this time, and you look so beautiful." She wrapped around the girl, moving her against her. "And damn it, you now own this bedding. I'm so sorry."

Paris laughed. "If it comes through. By tomorrow I might be paying a damage claim because I shredded this duvet." A sigh as Lorelai continued to hold her underwear. "And you pretty much soaked it to the mattress, which is pretty hot in itself."

"Maybe we'll have to buy the mattress? I could use a new bed."

"Good luck with international shipping there," Paris cracked. She slumped down against her lover. "Fuck...I shipped many of my clothes back from Denver. I had enough underwear to last me five days including last night. Now I'm going to be behind."

"That's what you're thinking about?" With a laugh, Lorelai lightly twirled them around. "I actually have a confession for you." She neared to Paris's ear.

"I have your pair from the first time in my bag. Washed, of course." Paris whimpered at the confession. "They are now officially my Thursday pair and they fit me like a glove."

"You...you do realize what that does to me, right?" Paris looked down, knowing Lorelai was tempted by the pair she held. "I still have your Wonder Woman briefs. Thank God I was with my dad who had no interest in my underthings all through the trip."

"What about your nanny?"

"I did my wash at the Laundromat. In the eyes of the world I'm not with you or regularly stealing underwear as tribute to our sexual congresses." She smiled, curling herself against the taller blonde. "You're going to keep those, aren't you?"

"Depends...how much do you want to keep them?"

"Not particularly attached to them outside of Saturday loungewear."

"The little blood speck shows that," she observed. "But this would be the tit for tat in our usual oddness where we swipe underwear from each other."

"Fine with me; better this than something a little too mad like spanking." Paris relaxed, content that the afterglow was full of comforting and sweetness, though she noticed Lorelai giving her an inquisitive glance. "Alright, what's spinning in the spark field of your mind, Lorelai?"

"What, me?" She pointed at herself and scoffed. "Bah, nothing."

"Spill it." She knew Lorelai was looking southward. "Tell me." She had her narrow and pout on full lock.

"Well..." Lorelai shook her head. "I know you can be uncomfortable with this kind of thing but...the top, I think it would look good..." She mumbled the last words, "without a bra."

The blonde moved in closer. "Sorry, I didn't hear that."

"Your Yale top today. It's nice. I don't think you need a bra," she rushed out as Paris nodded, taking a few moments for the words to wash over her.

"So you want me to go without?" Lorelai nodded, looking away and wondering when the 'proper dress' rant was coming. "Thank God!"

"Well, I--" She paused. "Wait."

Paris's eyes brightened at the suggestion. "That is why I got it, it felt snug when I tried it on in the store braless. I have gone without a few days this summer to save on the laundry bill and I've felt fine. It's not like I'm sagging down or anything. I just thought you'd rather I keep a bra on. Of course I can go braless." A laugh. "As long as you do too, Lor."

Turned around, Lorelai sucked in her breath at what was being asked of her now. "Par--"

"I know you took your crappiest lingerie along," she stated. "The one you wore is probably the one held up by safety pins. I do have some new underwear for you with the clothes I bought today, but the shirt I got for you should fit snugly."

"Wait, you got me...but I thought that the fancy stuff from last night was it."

"I made a second stop at Monoprix, like K-Mart here for some practical stuff. It's not as fancy as the date outfit lingerie, but it'll allow you to throw out that dreadful bra." Her eyebrow lowered. "You don't know how down I was that I had to look at the outline of that pin in the videos you sent. It was just hard to watch...distracting."

"But I--"

"Needed to save for the Inn and the trip. Understood. But it shouldn't have to make you look shabby either." She moved in close for another kiss, breaking it with a whisper. "You are a vital woman who should be spoiled. You have a whole lot of hard work ahead of you and I know you would put everything aside just to get the inn open and that you are going to be living off savings for awhile. Just promise me that you'll still put yourself first if you need to. And if you need help, come to me."

Lorelai looked into Paris's eyes and was shaken by her sincerity. She really isn't one of them at all, she thought to herself, amazed despite the Gellar wealth that Paris pretty much lived her own life in a middle-class and thrifty manner and spent money only to show her love for the woman. So many people in Hartford's high society defined themselves by wealth, but to Paris, it was only a number which meant she didn't have to think. She could live her life her own way, including a last-second trip to Paris to sweep her off her feet.

"You really hate that bra, don't you?"

"It's in your bag, right?" Lorelai nodded. "If I ever see it on you again I'm going to tear it right off your body."

"Wait, you make that sound like a good thing." With a wide smile, Paris raised her eyebrow.

"It could be, but bra tearing isn't as practical or sexy as shirt tearing. Especially with the underwire in it."

"It had underwire," Lorelai responded sheepishly. "It snagged on something and I had to yank it out."

Paris frowned. "So what you're telling me is not only has your bra been staying on with a safety pin, but it's ripped too?" A shy nod from the brunette. "When did you buy it?"

"The...first Bush was in office and I finally found my post-preg cup size?" she whimpered, feeling very guilty.

Paris blinked her eyes a couple of times and opened her mouth slightly. "You buy more regular clothes than lingerie then?"

"Well I buy more fancy stuff for work, but at home I usually don't do that much."

"I'm glad I bought you a few things then. Thank goodness. At least for the rest of the trip I don't have to worry about you wearing a crappy bra." She looked at her lover and spooned within her. "I'm not making you feel uncomfortable, am I?"

Lorelai smiled, playing with Paris's hair. "Are you kidding me? The guys usually see me in my best stuff but you managed to catch me unaware and in my regular state of mind. I...I just am under the mindset that who needs to gussy up when I'm home or just being casual? So I don't mind it. It shows that you do care about how I look, how I feel. Though it's odd it took a relationship with another woman to get to that point."

"I think we're just more in tune with each other. Understanding and knowing how we both feel." Lorelai nodded in agreement. "And I don't want you to feel like you have this first half of the trip. You still have four weeks before you get home, so just promise me there's some way to cheer you up?"

"I promise I'll perk up here and then the rest of the way out. Having all these showers helps considerably."

"And good food, I'm sure." The blonde woman stared at Lorelai, completely enchanted. "Thanks for letting me off on your leg, by the way."

"Mmm, it's nothing." Brushing Paris's cheek she knew things had to move along pretty soon, beginning to break away. "You are very talented, young lady. When I expected you to go down on me I didn't expect it to be that hot. I'm going to probably need an energy drink before we go, that was like cardio!"

"Now you're just fucking with me." A smirk, which received a shaken head. "Really, that good?"

"Feel my heart." Paris moved her hand to Lorelai's breast and near ten minutes after orgasm, it was still beating well over 120 times per minute. "That's good sex. If not for a rush of adrenaline or excitement to see where you take me I'd be knocked out right now."

Her eyes wide, Paris began her own slide out of the bed. "I could stay here all day too, but we do have to get going." She checked the alarm clock at the side. "Man, we have fifteen minutes." She quickly rose from the bed, pulling at the duvet and wrapping it around her as she headed to the closet to get out Lorelai's clothes, her internal nagging that she had ruined her perfectly made bed drowned out by how light she was on her feet after making love to Lorelai.

Taking out the clothes she looked them over one more time, hoping they would be fine, not too extravagant. Turning back around she found Lorelai laying on top of the blanket, not covered up and her eyes landing upon a damp spot in the blanket.

Yup, I'm leaving a note for housekeeping that I have to purchase the bedding, she thought to herself as Lorelai gave her a come-hither look, a smoky and heated look in her eyes, lip sucked in and her front teeth fully out in that seductive smile that always caught her unaware.

"So, what ya got for me, Supergirl?" She giggled, feeling very heated at her behavior in the hotel room being more her attitude than any hostel visit over the summer.

"Pack of three hi-cut briefs, 4 for €10." Lorelai grabbed the pack and ripped open the multi-colored selection, quickly settling on a pink and red striped pair. "Low cut jeans from H&M...never heard of it but apparently it's a nice place to buy clothes." She set down the aged denim before an offended woman.

"You have not heard of H&M?" With a dramatic gasp Lorelai felt like she was on another planet. "I see I still have much to teach you about fashion. It's like Target, but European and fancy; they just really need to open a store in Hartford already." She examined the craftsmanship of the pants and was very impressed, looking in to see if the size was correct. "Good choice on the size too."

"A few more of the hardy, but inexpensive bras that should hopefully get you through the summer and beyond." She put them down, and Lorelai smiled.

"Actually, I have to wear one of these, just because you matched them up so well to their brothers in the package." Pulling out a pink and red bra with polka dots she smiled. "If you don't mind."

"I do not if you're happy." She brought out a six-pack of socks and some blue running shoes for footwear, thankful that Dominique was able to find New Balance somewhere in Paris.

She finished off the outfit with a shirt. "And finally, this was going to be your gift when you got back to Hartford, but heck, I might as well give it to you now." She gave it to the woman and Lorelai unfolded it, wondering what to expect.

Her eyes lit up as she saw what was on the front of the dark red tee, a white screen-printed outline of the state of Idaho's boundaries with the image of a diamond pointing out where Boise was. In script writing along the other side of the shirt, the words "I'm a Real Gem in..." led down to Idaho vertically down in capitals on the other side in the cheesy round 70's font Lorelai knew mostly from Garfield. Her heart caught at how Paris deeply thought of her.

"Oh my God, thank you..." She opened up her arms and brought Paris into a hug, holding the girl tightly. "You know me...you so know me. I'm one for cheesy t-shirts and kitschy things!" She was about in tears as she released, tingles across her arms. "I love it! I love it all! Oh God, you really did think of me all summer!"

"Why would I ever lie about that? You're in my heart, Lor, my Wonder Woman, and looking at this shirt, I just knew it was perfect." Lorelai began to get into her clothes quickly with Paris, and within a few minutes both were dressed, running their brushes through their hair in order to make it downstairs on time. Paris turned to look at Lorelai and was struck by how she looked elegant in both her dress last night and now in a t-shirt and jeans. She had bought Lorelai's shirt a little small to get a peek of the older woman's stomach and was not disappointed as everything looked killer on her, while Lorelai was giving her the same lustful look.

"Damn, Par, looking cute today." She smiled at the girl as she tried to play 'casual' yet line up her unencumbered breasts perfectly in her top that just fit her snug. She handed Paris one of her hair wraps to put her locks into a ponytail. "See, you can do sexy and relaxed. Was it that hard?"

"For so long it was. I thought I had to spend what Madeline and Louise do in order to do it. Turns out about ten dollars at a Goodwill in Nampa is enough." She zipped up her jeans, secure with her replacement pair of panties and showing off just a little skin. "That's where I got the jeans. The shirt came from a tip from one of my Rebuilding Together people; I claimed it near the end of my last shift."

"How did that go, by the way? I know you stretched out your trip to where you didn't come back to finish up the summer."

"I got a few days as foreman, the fun stuff anyways is the wiring and drilling. I trust the live electrical work to the companies more and..." She quivered at Lorelai's stare against her. "Honey, are you going to behave today?" In response, Lorelai took her by the waist and held her tight against her, smoothing out the hair tie.

"Behave, for you?" She scoffed. "Oh, I'll behave. Might be in the Austin Powers definition, but I will behave. For you." She pecked Paris's lips. "Thanks for letting me rock this top."

"Thanks for indulging my crazy planning ass and the whole 'business opportunity' thing. I'm glad it got you here, but if I could do it again--"

"Don't. Don't question it." Another kiss, and a giggle as she felt up the slightly bared skin along the petite blonde's waistline. "You've come a long way since May."

"We...both have." Paris nodded. "You know how much I love you, right?"

"Deeply and truly. Like I do." She felt the girl quivering. "You nervous about getting out of here?"

A little whimper and Paris detailed it more. "35% that, 25% all this going right, 5% we get discovered, which I know where we're going we won't, 20% I'm still turned on, 12% excited, 3% feeling a bit scared/powerful that I'm not wearing a bra right now."

"That's about the equation I thought you were." She could feel Paris's skin goosebump. "Want to get downstairs?"

"Before I guide you back to the bed?" Narrowed eyes. "Please."

"Lead the way, Madame." Laughing, the two women closed up the room with their purses in hand and made their way to the elevator, heading to the ground floor to wait for the town car.

On the way out, the two women headed past the front desk, silently sending a greeting towards Dominique, who had perked to see them heading out from the elevator. Twining their fingers together to hold hands, they both gave her a look and a smile as they headed out the door, a silent thanks for her breakfast visit. They walked out, both silently knowing that the clerk could not take her eyes off them at all.

Not seen was Dominique crossing over her legs to quell the heat between them, her need to be a professional overwhelmed by the distracting desire for the two American women. Sighing deeply she watched them both walk out of the lobby from behind, sucking in a breath, her mind overwhelmed with erotic images and knowing they had done more than eat breakfast after she had left.

She shook her head as they departed, and went back to her work, counting the hours until she would be off the clock, and no longer in violation of the rules against on-the-job fraternization, though the company did look the other way after hours. Adjusting her position, she whimpered at how engaged the older brunette woman with the German name was with her.

They are both beguiling, she thought to herself. But I do wonder if there is an opening to something more, even if for one sole evening?

Dominique looked down at her legs, knowing she would be distracted all day. If there was one thing the hotel clerk of African heritage was thankful for, it was that their room just happened to be three doors down from a hardly-used paper goods closet.

Though she was not thankful that her modesty would not be there for the remainder of the day. Her wine-colored silk panties, folded within her inner blazer pocket and still dampened from the overwhelming thoughts of taking the funny brown-haired woman to an orgasm as the college-bound blonde watched, were a testament to the fact a stop home would be needed.

Thankfully Ms. Gellar has me on call for the week, she thought. I may ask her for a favor later. Getting back to work in her distracted state, Dominique knew however the day would end, it would be very interesting.

"I can't believe you're doing this. This is a little ridiculous, you think?"

"Is it, really? It's not like I'm kidnapping you and taking your body out to a shallow grave near Orleans."

"But it's...it's Paris. A big city. For all I know you're taking me to the Stade de France and making me sit through a soccer match!"

"Why would I see a French soccer match? I follow the Premier League and La Liga, not French soccer. I'd be completely lost."

"Most of America is completely lost on soccer. They want tackles, helmets, big asses in spandex and Tom Brady's hair blowing in the wind."

"You're not dissing the Patriots, are you? My dad bought tickets for the Hartford stadium but found his heart crushed when they decided to stay in Foxboro, although the Super Bowls made up for it."

"No...no, no hate for the Pats. Even though I'm lost on the game. And my own father would probably shiv yours in the parking lot because of his love of the Giants."

"You do realize we are in France, talking about sports, and American football. For the both of us, we're in some kind of backwards world right now."

"And I'm in a blindfold pretty much expecting you to grope me any second."

"I'm not going to grope you, not with the driver in view!"

"Sure, now you're playing hard to get."

"I'm not, I'm trying to maintain my modesty."

"Says the girl who quickly obeyed my request to go braless today."

"Oh dear, thank God this partition is nearly soundproof."

"So, where are we going?"

"I can't tell you for...another ten minutes."

Lorelai pouted as the car went southward towards their destination. "You're mean, you know that? You could have just told me."

"Then you wouldn't have a surprise coming, would you?" Lorelai groaned, not satisfied with Paris's response in the least. "Besides, the annoyance you feel now will transfer to the bedroom later, won't it?"

"Man, you're going to keep rubbing in that being stuck with the tickets got us here, didn't it?"

"You're not complaining, are you?"

Lorelai shook her head and sighed. "Absolutely not. And you're right, we get back to the hotel and these things are all coming off."

A laugh. "We had sex only a half-hour ago and you're ready for more?"

"I have an addiction to sex with you. I'm not ashamed to admit that." Paris's mouth opened wide at the bold admission from the innkeeper.

"Wait, you know who I am, right?" She didn't say what I thought she did. "How can you compare my lovemaking to...say, the father of your child? Or bedding George Clooney? How about that woman singer who calls herself Pink or...um...Kate Winslet? You know I'm not--"

"Because you know me," Lorelai said honestly, relaxing in the seat and beginning to find a conversation in a blindfold somewhat normal. "You're beautiful, Paris, don't doubt that, but you're deeply cerebral. Even in fast fuck situations you just know where to hit the right button in me to get a reaction. Finally, you have the right emotions about it. You can be soft, but when there's a time to be aggressive you meet me there too, but not to the point you're hurting me."

"Hold on. Hurting you?" Paris considered what Lorelai was alluding to. "Have you been hurt during sex? Too much rough play?"

"Not to the point of hospitalization, but..." A nod. "Times with Christopher when I was younger left me sore and wincing. He loved to push me against the bed frame and I actually suffered a concussion once because of it. Max, the brick wall sex I've told you about. And then a few of my one-nighters have gone in too far or went or things that made me physically hurt. The most I've hurt with you so far was because of my own clumsiness with tripping over my cami." Paris cringed, the thought of this woman in pain through the act of making love too much to take. "You know how to hurt for pleasure, and really, that isn't painful in the least."

"It still does hurt though. Doesn't it?"

"Not if you will it to not hurt." A calming breath, Lorelai set her hand on top of Paris's. "As long as we're consensual adults here, there's nothing wrong with what we're doing. And even if we kind of stretch it, it's cool too. We both know where we stand, and that both of us aren't too vanilla in bed."

"Vanilla?" Paris scoffed. "Please, if we're putting our sexual relationship into the terms of an ice cream flavor, it is not vanilla. Not going to be Rocky Road either. I would say...a combination of two scoops of Jamoca and mint chocolate chip. Never disappointing or dull."

"Hold on..." Lorelai held her hand, hoping she wasn't about to whap Paris with it. "Are you saying that you have actually eaten ice cream in other flavors? Besides Shop-Rite chocolate? I don't think of you as eating ice cream."

A laugh. "Of course not, I have to be plied with Lactaid to even have one scoop. But it's been a tradition for years for my dad to take me to Baskin's after my report cards come out for a free scoop with a second one he pays for. I always go with mint chocolate chip on top, fudge brownie for the bottom with the one he buys. Besides the sense of accomplishment I feel for again raking in the A's, it's the second best feeling I have around report card time."

"So naturally...Jamoca is me?"

"You are a perceptive one, Ms. Gilmore." Paris squeezed Lorelai's hand to assure her she was correct. "Also, vanilla is just so...bland. I don't mind it in small doses, but as a full ice cream flavor, it is terribly dull."

"Vanilla swirl with chocolate?"

"Please." A scoff. "That flavor was created as a lame 'compromise' for those who just can't decide what they want or not. Yale has a 'swirly' machine in the dining hall, but I won't be eating any of that adulterated milk and cream they freeze together and call 'soft-serve'."

"As pragmatic as ever," Lorelai said, understanding of Paris's disdain of artificial flavorings. "OK, feelings on frozen yogurt?"

Paris knew Lorelai was unable to see her eyes narrow, but she could hear her groan of disapproval a mile away. "Ice cream for wusses. Seriously, it's vile. Anyone who could bother to digest that crap and then say it tastes delicious? They're clearly lying to themselves. I had it...once. Surprisingly, both my mother and I agreed that we'd rather consume raw unpasteurized goat milk than that again. And that was even with those little jimmy sprinkles added in for alleged flavor."

Lorelai was a bit stunned, closing her eyes behind the blindfold and taking in the explanation as if Paris's words were erotic rather than venting. Taking a breath she came back, still feeling the squeeze of Paris's hand against hers.

"We're more alike than you think," she said, shaking her head. "Same reasons I hate fro-yo."

Paris stared at the woman unable to look at her and smiled. "The nickname sucks too." She felt the bones and tendons in Lorelai's hand, her heartbeat speeding up at the idea of the woman so in love with her even a food rant was making her weak in the knees. "Hey...I just wanted to say I know you'll have fun today. If you don't, I'll be surprised." She looked around nervously as she found the exit to the destination ahead in three kilometers. The driver behind the partition had not even said a word the entire ride, being a different man from the one who drove her from the airport and Lorelai from the hostel.

I just wonder...Her thoughts suddenly ran to a place she hadn't expected when the car pulled up. She poked her tongue slightly out at her right side, examining the older woman to her left. The sumptuous décor of the town car which had been ordered was still surprising to Paris, who had been used to the Lincoln-style comfort of her own personal limos. There was even a table to each of their sides, along with a DVD screen in front of the partition.

Obviously I should've had him take the really long route, she thought to herself. She slid her legs out of what was becoming a sensitive cross, out of her comfort zone and brought her hand back, placing it into her lap. She felt unexpectedly warm, her cheeks filling with color as she sucked in her lip, licking around them to remove the dryness. Get these thoughts out of your mind, she scolded herself, feeling guilty for her line of thinking. You shouldn't...Paris! Come on, are you seriously turned on right now?

She shook her head, trying to find the scenery wonderful. But the road seemed to resemble any stretch of expressway back home in Connecticut; guidance signs, planted trees and the Jersey barrier in the middle. The only difference was in the advertising along the road and guidance signs above it reading in French with measurements in Metric. For all the beauty of France, it seemed the Parisian suburbs were somewhat similar to the ones she knew in Montreal. She knew even the radio would be barely different from Kiss FM back home, except for the token local songs required by the broadcast authority and French-speaking deejays.

It left her with thoughts of the woman next to her. With the windows tinted, the car was darkened, leaving Lorelai shaded in blue. The Idaho shirt fit better than she imagined, the southern part of the state outline seemingly perfectly lined up with her right breast, the Panhandle running just along her bra strap.

She made an inaudible groan at the idea of the gem pointing out Boise being perfectly lined up with her nipple. Now I'm sexualizing an outline map. The thought colored her cheeks deeply and she clenched her fingers, the circling of her thumbs an attempt to forget her aroused state.

It failed, as the reminder to 'unclench your fists' from their first physical content filled her mind with the reminder of what else she 'unclenched' that afternoon. She backed up against the seat, the frustration building up again.

The knot of Lorelai's navel was apparent and Paris licked her lips, aroused at the sight, and--

"You were going to say something else?" Lorelai's voice suddenly broke her train of thought as Paris's eyes darted to the left, her heart jumping in shock. "You said something about having fun. You'd be surprised if I didn't?"

Paris nodded, despite knowing Lorelai couldn't see her. "Um...yes. You will have fun. I'm sure of it."

"You're distracted, aren't you?" Paris sucked in a breath.

"Dis...tracted?" Startled, Paris tried to explain it away. "Uhh, no. Just thinking about later on."

"I'm sure. Or barely hanging onto control." Lorelai popped the last syllable. "Honey, I sensed you out last night on scent. It's damned clear you're not feeling innocent today."

"No...I'm fine," she claimed. "I can keep my control for a few more hours. You're here, we're going somewhere. All I need."

"Mmm, along with a few other things." Suddenly, Paris felt a hand against her left hip. "I know you wanted to change your mind about going out today, but you're chivalrous. You don't want to spend the entire day having sex, because it's Paris, the city of romance, which has so much to do. You're...well, you're kind, generous."

"Words I never thought I'd hear in regards to how I am," Paris said in a deadpan manner. She pushed back in her seat, wrapping her hands around her check. "But you're right. I should be well-behaved. We'll be back to the hotel room later tonight where we can be as sexual as we want to be. Not here where even making a move will violate a seatbelt law, which truthfully is the only thing keeping me from ravaging you right now." She hissed at the circling touch along her hipbone. "And that is not helping."

"Mmm, it isn't? I am touching your arm, right?" Paris rolled her eyes as Lorelai's wide grin suggested she knew her fingers were nowhere near her arm. "Though your arm is kinda lacy. I wonder why."

"Oh God." Paris wanted badly to push away, but the husk of the older woman's voice was hitting her in just the right spot. "I take back describing you as a Natalie Merchant lyric. Right now you're a Meredith Brooks lyric."

"I thought you were the bitch among us." The brunette somehow had the sense despite her artificial blindness to nip the blonde's ear. "I'm the tease, remember?"

Paris shook her head, adjusting her jeans and really hoping the exit ramp would come soon. "I gave you one homework assignment and you haven't found that word yet?"

"I didn't really consider it, seeing as I was otherwise distracted. Besides, it suits you better than anything else I could have ever come up with." The younger woman stood still, her body completely on edge as Lorelai's lips brushed against the sensitive hairs just below her ear, the fingers against her hip dipping just below the waistline of her jeans. "Whenever I thought about it, I'd be reminded of your scent and...that was it. Strong, like it is now."

Sucking in her lip, the student's control was quickly falling away. "Stop...teasing. Stop."

"The tearing of your clothes...opening up your legs to me...if not for the big price tag you paid for that stuff last night, I would've torn that skirt right off you and slid my fingernail against your hosiery to open a nice hole to..." A pause, as the innkeeper's voice fell to an aggressive whisper. "Fuck you, Par. The moment I figured out it was you, I was ruined. I fucking hate my body for deciding sleep was better than sex."

"I don't hate it. To the contrary." Despite being chilled slightly by the dark side of Lorelai she loved being brought out, she wanted to play Lorelai's game. "I really can't stand how your breasts look in that shirt."

"I'm poking out right now, aren't I?"

"Yeah." Paris tried to avert her gaze, surprised how even the blindfold wasn't even a factor is tamping the chemistry between them. "I...I want to get to where we're going already. At least that way, we both have to behave."

"Both?" A smile. "Are you suggesting you don't want to be a good and smart girl on this trip?" Paris whimpered as the right thumb of her lover slid along the outer periphery of her mound. "Remember when I said I dreamt of you this summer, and most of my sexual dreams have been internal?" Paris 'mm-hmmed' in quick response. "I just keep having this one that goes on in my head, over and over. When I had to bring you and Rory to that one school north of the Mass./Vermont state line because Ms. Peters's car...well, it petered out."

"To Putney. Yeah." Paris whimpered, unable to forget, because it was the first debate after the rejection she had to attend. With little preparation and her mind on anything else, Paris had her weakest debate ever and felt out of her element. With Ms. Peters distracted with her repair bills while getting a rental car and Lorelai driving them up last minute, it was a disaster to Paris, and Rory had barely earned them a victory coming out of Vermont.

"Rory and I shared a room, you had your own because Angelina didn't get up there until the next morning." Feeling courageous, the woman inched closer to the blonde. "And Rory was deep in sleep. I was up, worried because you hadn't said a word since we left Hartford. Not one. You were still in mourning mode, and worse, still with the gauze from your failed piercing attempt."

Lorelai thought Paris would stop the story, but with no response, continued it on. "The hotel we were put up in? Totally backward. No bathroom in our room, and I had to go through yours to get to it. It was three in the morning, I was up and needed to pee. I was scared to arouse the sleeping beast in you. I tiptoed into your room; I was in a tank and panties, still jarred from coming home from the Inn and having to drive you two straight up into Vermont and chaperone you for that debate. I looked at you, headed into the bathroom and did my business, and just before I flushed the toilet..."

A pause. "And this is true. All very true. I didn't make this up, never told anyone, and I never considered even saying this to you because of how quiet and reserved I always thought you were. But..." she took a deep and audible breath. "Your...sleep-talking."

"Yeah?" Paris narrowed her eyes, expecting the usual mocking done when somebody found out about it. She hated that she did it in the first place and had still not found any way to quiet herself. Expecting to be made fun of she had a harsh response ready, only to be quieted within moments by Lorelai.

"No...no. God, I am not here to say it's silly and abnormal. Not that at all. Remember after the break-up?" The blindfolded woman hoped she sounded same. "I was just caught by your sleep-talking. At first I shrugged it off and prepared to pull the handle. But then you said something that surprised me. You said my name."

Paris winced, her body constricting at the last part of Lorelai's statement. "I...said your name."

"Mm-hmm."

Paris tried to guess why. "Let me guess, I hated your driving up to Vermont? Or how you were annoyed with having to put up with me for a day and a half, with your daughter and Peters there."

"Not because of that." Lorelai gulped, knowing this would make things even more heated than they already were. "I was willing to brush it off as an anomaly. Just you being...well, you're a teenager. Three weeks off of your first time. Working off your feelings."

She settled back in the seat, hoping to get all this in before their arrival. "You said my name and I slid my finger off, not wanting to wake you up. I didn't know what you were thinking about, but the calling of my name let me closer into the room itself. At first I just thought you were awake and doing a self psych-up before the debate, which I could see you doing, but then I saw how you were sleeping. Or should I say...dreaming."

The blonde felt her body twist at the idea of Lorelai watching her sleep. "I hadn't really glanced at you when I came in the room. I didn't think there was a need. But as I approached the bed, I could tell there was something going on. I didn't know what, but then you said my name again. Drawing out slowly. Three syllables, parted in a whisper. Not like 'get it together, Lorelai'." She said the name in the style of the girl on the hellpath, making Paris wince at how near-perfect her imitation was. "Like...'get your dress off, Lor-el-laaaai.'"

"Fuck!" Feeling uncomfortable, she knew this was easily a moment where Rory could have been in the room. "Lor--"

"Hon, you didn't tell Rory at all. I promise you. She did all she could to stay out of your angry and pouty way that night. So this was just between us." The woman kept her voice even, determined to finish the tale. "Well, you, really. And you were having what seemed to be a pretty deep fantasy about me."

"That's impossible. I didn't even know I wanted you until the tickets."

"Same here," Lorelai argued. "I figured you were just finding the nearest hot body to fantasize about and it happened to be me."

Clenching her teeth, Paris knew exactly why her mind was probably plagued that evening. "I...I can't believe it. My mind, it was focused on the debate. I have a serious 'no fraternization' rule before a debate. In fact, I remember that night I took a Lunesta in order to kill every damned sexual thought I had. You're...you're just wrong."

"I heard my name. You were in your dorky nightgown, usually looking as sexy as Wee Willie Winkie, I'm sure." Paris saw Lorelai bite her lip. "Except...you had worked it up your legs, rolled It up. Between your legs, you had in your sleep crumpled the bottom sheet into a ball and squashed it between them, and..."

The recall of how she woke up the next morning hit Paris's frontal lobe with force. She had been embarrassed as the state of her sleep was relayed to her, reminding her of how close she came to having her most intimate of thoughts made fun of.

"The gown was pushed up. I saw nothing untoward, but...you were in your sleep, unknowingly working yourself off."

With wide eyes, Paris felt mortified. "And...what did you do? Stand there? Stare?"

"To be honest? I got out of there and threw myself into bed. But not before your sexual need seared itself into my brain. I thought it had disappeared after that, but obviously we're here five months later and..."

The brunette emphasized how even then she cared for the girl. "Nobody ever has known except me. They never will." Her finger still flirting with the blonde's fringe, she cleared it up further. "Until we came onto each other in the classroom, I absolutely had no remembrance of the event, and I'm sure you didn't at all either except for waking up a little damp and probably mortified in the morning."

"I honestly don't remember, sleeping pill and all." With a huff, Paris took in a deep breath, feeling guilty. "I'm sorry you had to see that. I wish I knew what I was dreaming about, but when I take medication it's often just some kind of haze that I'm in, one that I feel like I could pass out from. That's how I felt in the morning--"

"Disorientated, out of it."

"Yeah." Nodding, Paris remembered details about the morning. "I was still sad from the last few weeks and just frustrated from everything." Sensing an emotional moment, Lorelai turned herself around, moving her hand to the young woman's hip. "Other classmates were teasing me for my breakdown, some of them the piercing, and then...there were the others. I heard plenty of others varying the phrase 'serves the bitch right' in many forms when I got back. And when Francie saw me at that first student gov meeting since I came back..." Her voice had went from steady to hurt, the syllables rattling from her throat. "Everyone was there. I felt like a failure and when she looked at me, with this false 'welcome back, Paris' speech that had hidden taunts at me for not getting into Harvard. It was by far, the worst I ever felt in my life."

"Hold on...she gave you a back-handed speech basically cutting you down for not getting into your dream school. And where is Rory in all of this?" The parent's curiosity of how her daughter would react to her friend's first public reaction to her rejection was natural, and Paris was scared to state her actual reaction.

"I...I..." The young woman was scared. Hurting. She had stayed quiet about it for four months, afraid to say a word. This is supposed to be a romantic getaway, she reminded herself, not a master class in your own fucking self-loathing.

"Paris?" Despite the darkness in her eyes, she could easily sense Paris's fears by her labored breathing and the tone in her voice. "You can tell me."

"No." She attempted to be strong, but the refusal came as more of a whimper. "I...I cannot--"

"Cannot?" The blindfolded innkeeper was surprised at Paris not answering a question.

"It's not a question of cannot. This is because...you're her mother. I--"

Lorelai clenched her free fist, knowing whatever the girl would say was trying to hide a moment in her daughter's life she would not be proud of.

"Tell me," she advised strongly. "Paris, I am not going to yell at you, and I'm not going to break your heart. For this moment at least, I'm listening to you as a concerned friend who needs to know."

"But--"

"Paris." Her assuring voice hoped to calm the girl, and Lorelai's fingers made an assuring circle along her hipbone. "I need you to tell me."

Closing her eyes, Paris took in a deep breath and confessed what had haunted her deep inside for months.

"I heard her and Francie...talking after the meeting. She didn't say anything during, there was nothing wrong there. But I had left after it and forgot a binder so I was about to head in to retrieve it. But I stopped because Francie and Rory were talking."

"Wait, the girl--"

"I'm not finished." She held her thumb close within her fist. "It wasn't Francie trying to bring me down again. But...there was something she did. Something, I wish would have been done for me."

Paris held herself in silence for a minute, trying to compose herself for what was to come. Ready for Lorelai to even open the door and throw herself out the car, she prepared for anything. With tears building in her eyes, the usually firm blonde prepared to show the strong innkeeper she knew that her innocent and wide-eyed daughter was more than she knew.

"In...in the week after, Rory was my vice president. She was supposed to take over the duties I could not carry out. The thing is, I had not even had meeting notes mailed or slipped in my locker to go over. I had gone in uninformed as to what happened in the time I had missed. But in the time I was gone, Rory...Rory..."

Her throat hitched as she mentioned it. "She...she handed the gavel that week...against Ms. Peters's wishes, mind you...off t-t-t-o...Francie."

Lorelai felt the air sucked out of the small space of the car interior. Paris described how Francie was able to push through a few things without her vote, and that Rory did not contest them. She did not want to believe that this was true, that her daughter conspired whom she said was a bully had yielded the floor to her in Paris's absence.

"I was just outside the door, unseen. Like I was when you and Max were..." a nod from the other woman. "I heard them talking and then they moved onto something and..."

She let it out fully. "For all she was against the plan to take me down, the impeachment mess and everything...Rory actually got help from Francie for going along with the plan."

Here goes nothing. And everything. "While I fucked up my interview...Francie used connections her parents had to Harvard to...finesse things for Rory. Smooth them out."

Lorelai took in the measured wording. "As in?"

"Rory wrote a peer recommendation for Francie to get into Brown. In exchange, she did the same for Rory for Harvard. And to boot, while I bombed my interview with an admission officer who lets in only a 1/3 of her quota and I was doomed the moment I walked in..."

Quietly, she said what she had held back. "Rory got a one-year guy. The most...green they had. Easily susceptible to sex appeal...flirting and compliments. For the toughness it takes to get into Ivy League, the Jarvises had planted this guy into the office in order to get in the people they know will run Francie's future political campaigns. It is ugly, full of nepotism and a process that despite all the talk in publications, is downright fucking corrupt. She had the experience with that family, but that's window dressing. As with politics...it is all about whom you know."

"So what I'm saying is--"

"No. I got it. Rory got in with grades, but by also taking advantage of you and playing both you and Francie like fiddles."

"Oh God, you hate me," Paris said, curling herself protectively. "You think I made this up."

"Paris..." A pause. "I know you wanted the blindfold thing to help keep a surprise, but I feel like I need to see you now." Her voice was firm and had lost most of the innocent heft it carried.

"Lorelai--"

"I need to see you. May I take the blindfold off?"

The Yalie wasn't about to argue. "G-go ahead." Lorelai reached behind, removing the mask-like cover from her eyes and then closing her eyes so she wouldn't be blind from the light adjustment. For a minute Paris though she was done for. That Lorelai would order the car to St. Christopher's and drag her out by the ear to make her answer for what she thought was slander against her daughter. She cowered in her seat, wondering if this was it, her Waterloo moment. She saw Lorelai's eyes open and was concerned that she might be revealed as a liar.

However, by the tone of voice alone, the older Gilmore woman knew in her own heart that her lover had held back ugly truths about her daughter, scared to lose her friendship after it came to a head in that gym class. She had not told anyone of the disgust and horror about how Rory had instigated the swordfight further, instead of running away or clenching Paris straightaway, fighting her and forming it to her advantage to embarrass her friend. Of revealing Jamie's relationship to Francie in the first place, mistakenly or not. She was trusting you, she said at the time to her daughter. You should not have even entertained going behind her back at all.

The talk had been enough punishment for her to dole out to Rory, but clearly it had not reinforced anything further than that. She looked into the deep eyes of the blonde, and the sadness within them, the hurt and pain expressed on her face, showed Lorelai that what she had been trusted with, it was all indeed true.

She had read the Harvard letter, and found it unexpectedly congratulatory of Rory's grades, when Paris's were at least higher by .15 and deeper in the subjects she excelled at. Even she knew Rory's lack of extracurriculars would be looked at closely, but she was surprised to note that she hadn't done much more than she had in her junior year. It remained impossible to believe Rory was sought after, as only a few schools she had applied for as safeties came back, while all of Paris's safeties worked out.

The interview had been too easy. When Rory came out of the room, she had hardly broken a sweat, while Paris described her experience as a gauntlet. And now hearing this, and knowing that the Jarvises were the type to grease the wheels to get their daughter and friends where they wanted to go?

Paris was still pushed back, scared and afraid, clutching the belt latch so Lorelai couldn't undo it. She couldn't read Lorelai and knew suggesting Rory would be doing improper things would be grounds for her to never speak to either of them again.

Lorelai raised her hand and Paris clenched her eyes, expecting a slap.

Instead...

"I do believe you." Whispering, the open hand Lorelai presented instead took a tissue in the console, and rested it beneath Paris's right eye, running it down her cheek to catch a streak of a tear falling down her face. Paris slowly opened her eyes, heart beating faster than normal as the woman she loved glanced at her with concern.

"Lor--"

"I believe in you fully," she admitted. "And did they continue to talk all year?"

"In public? Only professionally. But privately I know they talk all the time and...she's asking for another recommend into the sorority Francie's family and Emily were in when they went to school."

"Of course. Which will entitle her beyond belief." Lorelai didn't know what to think. "God, I didn't even know about the meeting. By the time you were talking about the grad cruise with the parents you must've been exhausted."

"Deeply so. Trying to bury myself with that prep, it made me forget." Lorelai offered her shoulder, one Paris took thankfully. "But once I went to bed at night, I admit I had too many nights where I needed the pills to sleep."

"What about now?" Worried, Lorelai thought that her lover had developed a dangerous habit of depending on them. "Do you--"

"Not since the second night. There have been rough nights, but I never want to be at that point again. There were even a couple nights where I was forgetful and took a second dose. I both barely made it to school and felt out of it on those days. I haven't even seen the Lunesta bottle since I left Hartford."

"Thank God." Lorelai cringed at the idea of Paris so down that sleep was her only respite from life. She caressed Paris's chin, tipping her gaze towards her and determined that the girl could make up some elaborate yarns, but in their processes of conversation, nothing ever sounded rehearsed between them. She knew there had been no way from their conversations that Paris would have brought up the latter months of Chilton so easily. There may be some natural exaggeration or off observations, she thought to herself, but I know my daughter, and since her acceptance came, it's as if she now considers Paris lower than her.

"I honestly can see the truth in everything you just told me," she said to Paris. "Especially with how I've felt this summer. I know the rejection still hurts."

"It does. Still does. And the reason I didn't say anything about Rory and Francie...I...I was scared of going through the same loop over again. Friendship, complications, rejection. It almost ended with being slashed by an epee the last time. I didn't want it to get to that point again. Just..."

"Surviving." Lorelai understood. Three more months, and Paris just wanted to move on. To forget. "You wanted to get through."

"And I did. Except I forgot one thing." Her voice lowered down as she took in the sight of the innkeeper still brushing her fingers against her, still enchanted that such a free spirit, an eternal teenager, could fall for someone so young, but mature. "I never planned on falling for you."

Lorelai nodded, taking in the little wispy hairs along the edge of the student's chin. Even in the dimness of the car cabin, a blush was still visible. "Not in my plans either. But I think we make each other better. Even if I have to be your dirty little secret, we've already had such a deep relationship, that I don't want to lose it."

"No...no...losing it." Her breath shallowed as she began to realize that unknowingly, Lorelai had soothed her by cupping her left breast, a finger along her nipple curling in and out, making a wound-up figure-eight. She whimpered as the hand moved away, Lorelai sensing the tension. "Can't let you go now. Not when I've buried myself this deep into things." She nervously laughed as a sign denoting the upcoming exit from the expressway came forward and the car merged to the right to take the ramp. Noticing the shift, Lorelai looked up to see what direction they were headed, finding a sign to the left. She stretched out her neck to read it, cursing that she didn't have the front view due to the partition.

"V...v...versus? I can't read that. Something about a versus center, but it's spelled with the -re at the end like we're in Toronto." Another line of signs was at the stop sign, but she wasn't able to make them out because of words she hadn't learned in French yet. "Crud, where are we?"

"Still not telling you," Paris teased, her smile evil to the older woman. "But I think you'll love it."

"Fine." Sighing, Lorelai was content to allow herself to be teased as to where they were going. "But if we're headed to some place boring, you owe me."

"If you wanted boring we'd be at the Bastille museum. The history of the guillotine is either visual Sominex or has you running from the building in fear, depending on how you feel."

"That bad a tour?"

"How they managed to make capital punishment a dull topic is a wonder of the Western world." She clasped her hand into Lorelai's. "There is no way we're not going to have fun this afternoon. I guarantee it."

"OK there, Men's Wearhouse CEO guy." Lorelai laughed at how Paris managed to sound just like him.

Paris rolled her eyes as she realized exactly how she sounded. "I watched too much local TV in Idaho this summer, especially Wheel of Fortune. I swear, that show is like elderly catnip. My nanny could watch that insipid show forever."

"I almost got on it when their tour came by Hartford a few years ago, but I didn't make the final cut."

"Let me guess, you were too smart for the show somehow."

"Well, that and my insult of Pat Sajak as smug and annoying probably didn't help."

"My dream is to get on Jeopardy!," the blonde admitted. "I'd love to stay on so long Trebek gets tired of my presence and tries to bribe me off the show."

"That's a good dream to hold." Lorelai smiled, feeling deeply comfortable as the tangent of game shows led them away from one of Paris's dark places, something the young woman was thankful for as the expressway turned into a two-lane road, and then a four-lane arterial. As she looked out the window a few times while going over her travel path in the West, she felt nervous with each and every kilometer. Then with the assurance of the driver the previous day, he began to take a few residential streets in order to get to the vista Paris intended.

She had never taken the route herself, but had studied it on the map. Going over each turn in her mind, she felt like a human GPS, the familiar drone of the automated voice in her Jaguar nearly seared in her memory. As the second to last turn was made onto Rue Vauban, she knew it wasn't too much longer.

Finally, the seemingly long journey from the center of Paris was finishing. With the right turn onto Avenue de Paris, it wasn't long, about three kilometers. The partition had remained up, the conversation distracting Lorelai enough to not ask where they were going.

The long-winded description of how Lorelai's hair smelled from the hotel's shampoo certainly helped too. Although internally she was cursing herself for being so flowery with her words, she had to admit the mention of the woman's 'flowing Irish curls' which caused a deep blush on the woman's cheeks was definitely worth it.

Then the turn she had waited for all day was made as the expressway-wide avenue lined with beautiful old-style and modern architecture made the last bend towards the axis of its destination. Thank God, she said. Any longer on this road and I'd be ill. She hit the call button to the front.

"Mon bon monsieur, vous pouvez réduire la partition. Merci."

"Je le ferai, madame." Within moments, the partition came down, revealing the view from the front, out of the windshield. Both women adjusted their eyes to the extra light before the blindness passed, revealing a sight that left them breathless.

"Lovely ladies," the older driver from the day before called out, "I welcome you to the city of Versailles. In the distance..."

"The...Palace." Lorelai completed the sentence, holding her hand close to her heart as the wide avenue opened up the sight a mile away of the colossus that had been the seat of power before the Revolution. An edifice she had read about and was in awe about for years, and which had become one of the most inspiring templates she would insist on having within the walls of the Dragonfly.

A place that meant so much to her, that she had never seen. "Noooo...."

She couldn't believe it. In all of her life, she had never been so close to a place that outside of Rodeo Drive, she had wanted to make a pilgrimage to. She began to hyperventilate as Paris looked on in concern.

"Lor, are you OK?" Paris shook her head. She expected the pinnacle of their visit together to be awe-inspiring and breath-taking, but not in the literal sense. "Hey...breathe."

"I...I am...breathing." Lorelai struggled with the concept, pushing herself as forward as she could in the seatbelt, taking in the surrounding architecture around her. Tears fell freely and she was overwhelmed with so many emotions she felt like her heart would explode. "This...this isn't another dream, is it?"

"No, and I'm not pinching you again." A smile. "Well?" The gleaming palace reflected in her eyes as the buildings in front of it came into view, along with the needed but not-so-beautiful parking lot in front of the building.

Somehow in the space of a minute, the roles of the women had switched. Paris was the mature one presenting a beautiful sight to Lorelai, who was clenching her own fists.

"It...it...it's..." Whatever word she had to describe the 17th century building was caught in her throat, her mouth wide open. Setting a calming hand on Lorelai's back, Paris knew there was only one thing she could do to bring Lorelai into what was about to be a dream come true.

"When I got to visit the Inn before it was destroyed, I was in your office waiting for Rory while she finished her weekend work, and I saw all these books on your shelves. So many of them were about France. But you had about eight, ten books, some of them just history texts, others coffee table books, about the Palace. And I meant to talk to you about it, but I never did because I eventually had to get to work." Lorelai's gaze finally moved towards the girl, still in shock.

"Eventually I asked Rory about it. I want to say it was a good and informative conversation, but it was short and to the point. She just said you had a thing for French architecture and got some books about it because Versailles is basically that. But I knew there was more and..."

Now she batted Lorelai's eyes with a tissue. "A few weekends ago, before we became involved, I asked Sookie when she was on break and...it really gave me some clarity I didn't know would have."

"You...you talked to her?"

"She was curious as to why I was there and we talked." Paris shrugged it off and went on. "And eventually I learned that coming here, it's been a dream since...well, you saw Cinderella and wanted to live in a palace and your father brought out a couple of those books for you to read. Most cases that would be awfully misguided as what little girl wants to read about the architectural design of a building bigger than, but much more awe-inspiring than a Costco, but for you..."

A pause. "I know what happened, Lor." Whispering, she kissed the woman's forehead and continued on. "That your grandmother was going to take you on the most awe-inspiring tour of it. It was going to be wonderful, the highlight of your summer trip in 1985. It would have been, too. Had..."

Paris couldn't voice it. She knew exactly what happened, and that even if it was widely known, Sookie had trusted her with it in understanding that it still hurt her best friend to this day that her eyes never laid sight in the country suburb west of Paris. That Emily had toured Lorelai out of ever wanting to love Paris again, and the innkeeper had been denied her one want in her teenage life.

"When I was at O'Hare planning this all out, I had everything in mind and nearly had it all planned. But at the last minute, that detail popped out at me. The books, the awe, the need to inspire your baby based on this place. To bring the beauty of a tranquil palace to Stars Hollow. I know I can't give you the Trix-approved Grand Tour, not on two days notice. But I can give you the next best thing."

Opening her purse, she grabbed out the tickets and brochure describing the tour they'd be going on. "This...this tour isn't some bus and tour guide thing. Our group is about ten, and we have near six hours to explore slowly. I paid a lot more for this than I could have the usual tour. We also are accompanied by people dressed normally, not ready to gawk at the world's largest stainless steel spork in trucker's hats, fanny packs and...disposable cameras." The term was spat out like she wanted to spite anyone for paying $10 to waste plastic and paper, and worse, to a UNESCO World Heritage Site. "We're actually a little later in the day than advised to visit because they advise a nine o'clock arrival. However, since we're using a good tour group, we should make good time, even starting out at noon and going to 6:30pm, and my plan is to sort of go backward from recommendations and..."

Paris wandered off. "Hey, are you--"

Finally able to draw in a breath, Lorelai whimpered as the last quarter-mile before the parking lot came into view, trying to enunciate her wonder.

"I...I..." She shook her head, the towering front of the building beckoning her. It was even more beautiful than the books, and the programs she taped off History International and the boring late night classroom shows on CPTV. "You didn't have to do this. I...I could have made time. Maybe in a few years, but--"

"We're here now though. You wanted to go through Europe and see sights that you never were able to with your parents. This is one of them, correct?"

"Yes."

"Then we shall see it, and you will have the memories to last a lifetime, but not only that, the details of architecture to examine up close that will make the Dragonfly Inn one of the finest establishments of its type in all of New England. Well, within Taylor's insane historical preservation requirements, of course."

Lorelai staying mute for a moment, shaking her head, just lost in her thoughts as she went over it all. I would have never dreamed of any of this in a...million's an understatement. Billon's still too little. Yeah, a...a trillion years. I'm at my childhood embodiment of Cinderella Castle. Versailles. Louis XIV's place. I'm staying pretty much where his lady got her head cut off and...OK, a little morbid, but I'm here. After so much damned hard work and so much stress, I'm finally here. But not with anyone I ever expected.

She saw the need and want in Paris's eyes for her to enjoy the tour. How somehow Gellar Manor turned out to be a mini-Versailles, though Americanized and modern. She then clutched Paris's hand and to the student's surprise, placed a soft kiss upon her knuckles, and then with her wide smile, disarmed Paris's worries completely.

"How on Earth could you decode where I wanted to go most in Paris when God knows how many guys and my own parents couldn't even figure it out?" She sniffed back a tear. "You figured this out so well and, I'm in awe right now. You got me to the place I wanted to be most on my vacation."

"Did you have it planned?"

"Of course I did! Until Rory changed our next destination to be Normandy. I get it, but, I wanted an extra day here and..." She stopped. "OK, we're going to stop now. This is our romantic getaway. We're here, together. Phones are off. For all anyone knows I'm stuck listening to Don Lapre convince me to sell the Inn to put cheap classified ads in shopper papers." Like a light switch, Lorelai's mood went from shock to giddiness in seconds flat. "You're hot, I'm hot, we have all this time to explore this place, and there's nothing stopping us. So...I guess I should thank you, Par. Whatever you had to do, I'm sure I'm going to love every moment of it." Her face lit up, and Paris knew that the surprise would be well-received for sure.

"Thank goodness," she said in relief. "I...you know, the restaurant meeting last night? That was easy compared to this. Because we're stuck with each other for seven hours. In public."

"We did good last night though, right?"

Paris nodded. "Yeah, we did." The blonde grew excited herself for the fun to come. "Just one thing though?"

"Hmm?"

As the town car pulled towards the front drive with the driver giving them instructions for later pickup, Paris wrinkled her eyes. "Please, please do not act like an overexcited tourist! I get someone like that on every tour--"

"Par?"

"Hmm."

"I'm gonna be more concerned with my neck than being overexcited. The ceilings, the moulding, the gold work and fine details. I am going to be in so much memorization of what I find here today that I might mistake you for a Chippendale chair when we get back to the hotel later."

"And that's why I have the camera." Pulling in front of the building, the two women were in stunned awe. "Along with five memory cards and a ten pack of batteries. We're gonna need them."

"Yeah...do they have GPS collars too? This place looks like we could get lost in it." Lorelai knew the grounds were much bigger than she even imagined. Just the back part could hold four Stars Hollow-sized towns alone. "You thought the theater with the Bangles show was tall, that looks like a Punch and Judy playhouse compared to this place!"

"Well, we're sticking together, no doubt about that." The car stopped and the driver offered his goodbyes as he helped both women from the car, where 87°F heat hit them both straight off. "Or being sticky together." Paris grumbled. "I'm going to melt, I know it."

"You have SPF 482 sunscreen though, right?" Paris's eyes widened at Lorelai's words, remembering the one thing she had forgot, as her bottle of No-Ad 60 had been emptied and thrown out in Utah as she assumed she would be home in the next few days.

"I did...in America." Thankfully Lorelai chose at that moment to pull out her own small bottle of SPF 45 picked up at a German drugstore. "Oh, thank God."

"Wasn't going to take any chances," Lorelai said. "I only want to bring back souvenirs from Europe, not a case of melanoma. And naturally, we did run out of time so I knew you'd forget, but there was no way I was going to put a stop to foreplay just to get this stuff on." She handed the bottle to Paris. "I put mine on after my shower, so you can hit the bathroom and then we'll be ready."

"You're sure? I--"

"You don't owe me anything at all. Especially after giving me this." The car pulled away from the curb, leaving both women in awe looking at the plaza in front of the Palace, Lorelai just shaking her head. "Damn...this would take a lotta baby-sitting for you to buy."

"About 75 years worth, and I'm sure their maintenance and garden bills would give Martha a coronary and aneurysm at the same time." She neutrally set her fingers on Lorelai's back, wondering why she had never came here in the first place. "Funny how the little place in Stars Hollow has you happy enough, but you get here and you look like you want to have your way with the place." Lorelai's grin seemed a little unnatural to her. "As in literally so."

"I...I really do like that?" Paris nodded. "Geeze, see what I've held in all these years?"

"I do." She began to guide the woman towards where they would pick up the tour and the bathroom to apply her sunscreen and get in a quick hand wash before the tour departed.

Internally she was nervous, with a couple of darts of her head to make sure nobody else was there, or if Rory made a surprise visit to Versailles, even though the call earlier made it clear she was on the regular tourist track of central Paris. It was her first true time out in public with Lorelai, and even though it still felt like a completely secret date where nobody knew them at all, there was still the idea of one of her mother's friends from Europe somewhere ready to blab on her.

However, she couldn't see anyone. Lorelai felt the unease as Paris's fingers went flaccid, and just before the restroom, she knew something was wrong.

"Par?" Her voice suddenly rang through Paris's ears, startling her from a worrying monologue.

"Wha...huh?" Paris shook her head. "Oh, I...I'm sorry."

"No, it's OK. I know there isn't anyone around. We're going to be fine," she assured. "Besides, the haircut and you in jeans and a tee should take anyone you know off-track. Speaking of which..." She looked at her bag. "I...I did ball it up. I expected cafes and maybe something avant-garde. Not...a royal tour. Kinda feels disrespectful now. It's in my purse."

Paris's cheeks colored as she remembered her state. "Y...your fault." Then a smile. "Kinda mine too though." She found the garment placed in her hand in a way it wouldn't attract attention. "Nice fantasy, but for this, it's a terrible reality."

"A terrible rash-filled reality." In front of the ladies room, Lorelai slid her knuckles against Paris's before letting her go to the restroom. "See you in a bit, much better supported."

"Thank you." Paris made her way into the public restroom, quickly finding a stall and stripping off her top, then putting her bra back on, which made her wince immediately.

"Oh, God." Not from hurting. The scent of her lover's perfume from it being in her purse overwhelmed her and she sighed deeply, content to know that certain article would not hit the wash for quite awhile unless it got truly dirty. Despite the temperature, the skin on her arms dimpled as if she was freezing as she looked herself over, nervous, her lip quivering as she considered where she was.

"I got her here," she told herself. "To Versailles." Her eyes closed, she filled her lungs with air before letting the breath out slowly. "I really do have it deep for her, don't I?" Putting her shirt back on, she knew she was probably crazy, talking to herself and thinking herself unworthy of the innkeeper.

She remembered being in this same position months before. In Philadelphia, before Jamie took her on the dream tour of Independence Mall she had always dreamed of. Inside the Liberty Bell Pavilion restroom on a lovely December day, looking at herself in the mirror. She came out of the stall to look at herself in the mirror.

That day, she looked in the mirror in that worn-out bathroom and knew she was putting on a front. Despite the happiness she would show when she came back to Hartford, it never felt right with Jamie. The dream tour may have never been if the Pratt parents had not told Jamie that Paris was bored in their house and needed to get out.

Another trigger had been the fact that her precious Whalers had been made fun of for no longer existing when he invited her to watch a Flyers game in his parents' luxury box. It had been the sudden trigger for their first fight, where she had to defend the honor of her New England teams to him.

"You'll eventually become a Phillies fan," he told her, in what she thought was a teasing tone at the time.

Later when they began to fray though, the tone became more threatening in hindsight.

Stretching over the sink, the blonde looked over herself now. Unlike Philly, she was hardly green any longer. She had gone through the best and the worst that a relationship could offer.

But she knew the problem with it from the beginning.

"I never wanted it," she told herself, activity bustling behind her and chattering in multiple languages echoing through the hallway and into the restroom. She closed her eyes, remembering that the only reaction she could muster upon seeing Jamie in the courtyard was the thought in her mind of Are you fucking kidding me?. But she knew if she didn't go forward, she would forever be known at Chilton as the frigid bitch who let down a guy who got down on bended knee for her.

But likewise, Lorelai also bent something to prove her love. A laugh.

"She bent her ankle, but still..." She glowed as she realized this was a much different situation. "I'm going to go with her, tour, and when we get back to the hotel, have a long soak in the tub." She felt her spirits rise as she looked herself over in the mirror, also knowing that Lorelai hadn't grabbed the 'casual' bra she usually wore, but instead one she had picked up with the one she wore the previous night to give herself a little confidence boost.

"I really have to be proud of these things," she told herself, her eyes wrinkling in happiness. "Well, here goes nothing." Heading out of the bathroom, she was surprised to find that Lorelai already knew where to go and was talking with the leader of their tour group.

"Hey, Paris! This is Martine, she's our guide!" A tan woman slightly older than Lorelai guided Paris over and the young woman felt at ease right away, knowing just from looks that Martine was a seasoned pro.

"Pleased to meet you, Paris," she greeted, holding out her hand for Paris to shake as the girl noted that her English was great. "And may I ask--"

"Yes, I was." An eyeroll, and a laugh. "Can we leave it at that, please?"

"Umm, I was actually going to ask if you have your ticket?" In her other hand, Martine already had Lorelai's ticket, and Paris looked to her lover, who had tried to avert her from the obvious question. "Not your conception."

"How did you--" A sigh. "Of course." Reaching into her pocket, she grabbed her ticket out and handed it to Martine. "I can be so daft."

"It's fine," Martine assured her as the other groups in the party came forward in the small intimate group. Rather than the pushy American group of amateur shutterbugs in loud clothing currently streaming in, Paris and Lorelai found themselves with a lovely old couple from Leeds in the north of England, a small school group from Spain and another couple from Kansas rounding out the ten.

After the introduction and the rundown of the rules, the group went in, Lorelai in awe as Paris kept herself close. Like a young child her attention went everywhere, her head filling with facts, figures and memories of the architecture and interior design to come, while Paris reveled in the old history of pre-Revolutionary times.

Both women knew before they even entered that the Palace would prove to be the perfect place for them both to visit.

Lorelai's feet were sore. Even though she had been prepared for the tour to be long, she didn't know how long in reality it would be.

Especially in new tennis shoes. They were very, very comfortable, but after walking the length of what seemed to be thirty Inn-to-Luke's trips, she was happily exhausted.

Mentally however, she was still perked up. That's what the dance marathon does for you, she thought as the tour went through the broad gardens and canals of the Palace. Everything was just so awesome to her, and she soaked in every word of Martine's wonderful commentary on the environs. She had even been very chatty with the others in the group, to the point where the Kansas couple was very probable on a foliage trip to Connecticut next fall, with the northern Englanders possibly following with their own American trip.

What was amazing her though, was that usually Paris, who in the chaperoning experience she had to museums and the Sox game, was always asking questions, pestering the guide to the point of exhaustion, or droning on and on about oddball baseball statistics that would make even fans of sabermetrics glaze their way into a coma, was very quiet. Just in awe.

Both women listened deeply and intently to Martine's guiding of the edifice, fascinated by history and the impressive costs to build and maintain it. The copious fountains and greenery, along with the detail in the architecture, stonework, all of the artistry of construction coming together to form the story of one of the world's most fascinated buildings.

Paris snuck glances at Lorelai, flustered at how well everything was coming together. She had made a conscious decision to be quiet through the entire tour, enjoying the tour and able to know that Lorelai was thankful to be there. She took in the way the woman walked, how she lit up with Martine getting into deep conversations about what she knew about the Palace, and how it was easy to befriend her with just a smile and a glance. Her heart kept skipping as she saw the Lorelai she remembered from that first September morning at Chilton.

I know it was silly, but even as I was conspiring against Rory...she was getting to me in that part of the brain I didn't want her to. She still remembered going home angry from the burned question spree Rory got in the class, but she still didn't know how a woman like Lorelai could look how she did at her age. At first she even thought Lorelai was Rory's sister, until Louise's read through the file told her otherwise.

Somehow she was able to rebuild her castle that evening, but not before she found her dreams overwhelmed by long limbs, a pink shirt and cut-offs. For a long time she was able to put it aside after that, but the inevitably of the parent's meetings and Lorelai volunteering for it, along with Rory being her seemingly permanent partner, meant the tall woman would be a permanent part of her life.

Now it's even more so, she thought as the tour hit the ¾ point of the day within the Hall of Mirrors, the definite high point of Paris's interest in the Palace. As Lorelai was in awe of the room, Paris's mind pictured the famous paintings of the Armistice signing, all those world leaders in one room to settle up what they thought would be the last Great War eighty-four years in the past, not knowing that Germany wasn't exactly happy with the results and Mother Russia was preparing to sweep across most of northern Asia and eastern Europe.

The history of the room echoed through it, as it had for many years, Lorelai treading cautiously as if a past king would come to life so she would eventually bow before them. The solemn look upon Lorelai's face caught Paris by surprise, and unnoticed she had been able to get a couple pictures of the woman lost in thought as she stared at her own reflection. The two women had not talked to each other in four hours, content in soaking in the history before Martine was thankful for a little time to relax.

"...and, that is the Hall of Mirrors. You are free to wander the room or take a break for the next ten minutes, before our last quarter of the tour heads towards the apartments section. Enjoy the rest." With a smile, Martine and the group broke apart throughout the room, with Paris and Lorelai finding their own little place in the middle of the hall, reuniting together with a brush of their hands.

Immediately, Lorelai could tell that Paris was the one more exhausted than she was, her eyelids drooping and back seemingly hunched slightly. She slid her fingers along the girl's apparent left shoulder blade and nodded down at her.

"You OK?" she asked. "Seems you're a little quiet there, Smartie."

Paris nodded, with a slight smile. "Just in awe. So much of it. I knew this was big, but I'm overwhelmed by it. To you, it must be nothing since you've seen every room in pictures in your books."

"Oh, I'm still shocked. This place...it's huge. But we caught a break with this tour group you got. It's...intimate. We don't have to crowd around. But you...you're all kinds of distracted. What's up, Par?"

With a blush, Paris lowered her stare and whimpered. "I...I..." She scuffed her shoe against the floor, the camera strap tangled against her fingers. "I'm...flustered. Don't tell anyone."

Lorelai nodded. "Flustered?"

"Well, I'm here. With you. And you came with me voluntarily and...I sound a little silly but I think I'll forget most of this tour, to be honest. But you, the way you are and you're here and, I'm still trying to get my head around it. That you're with me, and you're happy about it, dirty little secret and all."

"What you're saying then is, you're having a crisis of the heart and the mind." Paris looked up, her mouth agape. "You're in a very historical place, yet your mind is still on this whole 'I get to ravish this beautiful woman' track. You're in a place you've never been before, your head and your heart being completely off-focus from each other."

The blonde narrowed her eyes. "You think that?"

"I do. You've taken probably 200 pictures today and somehow I've gotten into most of them. And if I'm correct, you're still in awe you dressed me right, twice."

"I...might be," she admitted. "God, I feel like you can see through my brain," she said, nearly going back to the tone she loved to use with snotty teachers. "I'm trying not to be distracted but, you're beautiful today and I keep thinking I should've let you wear your crappy clothes so I wouldn't be."

"I think that wouldn't have stopped any of our moods," Lorelai responded. "Admit it, Par. You're very wanting of me."

"What kind of wanting?" Paris asked back.

"Any kind." She brought Paris's attention to the mirror in front of her. "Man, look at the two of us in here."

"I don't know--"

"Shhhh..." She moved her hand down to rest at the small of the shorter girl's back. "Remember that first day? When I was quaking in fear of spending all that time with you and all you wanted was the day to end and the figures to come out right?"

"And I was mad about having to skip my classes and took it out on you. Yeah." She took a glance in the looking glass, surprised to find that the seven inches of height Lorelai had above her was really nothing. They seemed to fit together perfectly. "Frustrations with Jamie."

"Frustrations with dating in general. Our safety blankets gone, you with Chilton, the Independence for me. Both of us...just plain lost. And then in that classroom, no filters, nobody in our way, no rules..."

"And no mind to the mores we've had to hold with society." Paris looked up at the woman. "Before I met you, I thought I was alone. Unusual. For even considering the idea of you in a more than friendly way, it just, in normal terms, didn't feel right. Like there was more."

"Par?" A smile, and a glance down. "What exactly prompted you to consider you to ask for the unbuttoning of my top? Besides the teenage boy lure. There had to be more than that behind it." Both looking in the mirror, it was a way to lay everything out there for both women to open up. "I mean, it threw me off, but it was a very...Paris thing for you to say."

"A Paris thing?" A snort. "What exactly is 'a Paris thing', by definition?"

"Throwing me off completely, something I know only you would say, or ask. Or consider."

Paris considered holding back, afraid to voice it herself, but knew openness was the best thing for their relationship. "Truthfully?" Her pitch went up slightly. "It was the teenage boy thing for sure. But there was three more hours with you at that table, the two more in the classroom counting. To be honest..."

She brought her glance up at the brunette, wondering if everything would fall apart. "I really did not want you assigned for the Grad Night tickets, and when Rory told me you had been put forward by the parents to do so, it struck a nerve with me. I've spent all that time in your house the last couple years. I wore your clothes for the date with Tristan and felt a boost of self-confidence I couldn't have with anything I ever purchased myself. You have this life you built up all by yourself, without much help, and even if you don't admit it, you can be at times this selfish bitch out for her own interests." Expecting a retort, she was surprised to see Lorelai's features hardly register a cringe at the b-word. "But I love that about you. You're out for yourself. Nobody else but you and your daughter. Everyone else cares more for how they look to everyone else. But you...forgive me for saying this, but..." I really hope I don't stir up any ghosts for saying this here, she thought before saying her piece.

"You're hot shit. You are determined to be this strong woman, fuck anything in your way. And that energy is what I want in my life. You charge in. You laugh. You cry. You will take down anybody who stands in your way. Somehow, you're a feminine feminist who knows what she wants, and will use every portion of her gender to get it. In one day you can flirt the living daylights out of some guy and get him to do what you want, but hours later, just take the wind out of the Headmaster for being such a chauvinist pig. And I suppose...that's what I wanted. Have the soft you selling tickets, and then to get to the goal, have a little bit of that sexy side of you come out to play. And I guess in that way, that's what attracted me to you...how you'll get down and compete with the boys, but you'll also stomp their hearts if they get in your way."

One more pause. "What attracted me to you that day was how even though I thought I was in this crap thing with Jamie...you made me see the light. That I did not need Jamie. That I didn't have to settle. And when you gave me that 'snap outta it' imploration, I don't know exactly why I went with kissing you rather just thanking you. But it just worked out the way it did, you found me sexual, and...here we are."

Lorelai took in all of Paris's rant and sucked in a breath. I love it when she gets all analytical, it's so hot, she thought. Finding that her question was well answered, she decided to answer with a smile.

"I guess you are right then. It does make sense that I took charge and you found that an endearing trait. Although I'd probably not call myself hot you-know-what. Feels a little cocky."

"Please. You do a victory dance when you score the last Danish at Luke's. Cocky is your middle name."

"It's more of a victory boogie, thank you very much!" She looked at the both of them, looking like the odd couple that they were. "Hey, we should get a picture on your camera of us in here."

Paris was surprised. "I thought you said no pictures of us."

"Yeah, but one picture wouldn't hurt. We need to know we were in Paris together with some kind of evidence besides your gaudy credit card statement."

The reminder of all the fun of expensing she would have to do when she got home made Paris wince. "AMEX must think I have the most bizarre charging history. 'Oh, she bought an expensive bed? Then travel in the West? Now all this in Paris?'"

Lorelai shook her head, taking Paris's camera from her and asking the wife among the Kansas couple to help them with the picture taking. After assuring the blonde that the 75 year-old retiree wouldn't be fleeing with it like one of the area's infamous pickpockets, Paris got into position on Lorelai's left side with her right hand resting just above the taller woman's rear.

"Aw come on ladies! You're together, get a little closer!" the woman implored, much to the chagrin of both women, who directed odd stares at her wondering how she knew. "Hey, Garden City isn't the middle of Russia. We know women love women out there too, and you don't look like mother or daughter. Or just friends."

"We're that obvious, huh?" Paris said, with the woman nodding. "Fine, a little closer." After a little more direction from the woman, they had found the perfect position, with Paris perching herself on her tiptoes to have the small bit of height she could muster further.

"Count of three, smile. One...two...three." Both women stood in front of the grand mirrors as somehow one picture ended up becoming two, then three, and then one more as the basic profile picture turned out to be not enough for the Kansas woman. She also wanted a shot of them looking into each other's eyes, holding hands and then to top it off, resting their noses against one another. Both Lorelai and Paris were game, and with one final shot, definitely had the shot that they would both be saving for sure.

For Paris, it was a final clincher of how much Lorelai loved her. She had always been self-conscious of how the tip of her nose indented in, and her mother underwent a rhinoplasty to correct her own nose divot. She expected Lorelai to put her nose in front of the photographic frame so the divot would be hidden.

Instead, she touched tip-to-tip, and the picture was perfectly taken as the nuzzle of Lorelai's nose seemed to line up perfectly with the channel of her's. She blushed deeply as the photo was taken and Lorelai held the pose a little longer than expected, lingering in close against the blonde as their strong gazes met, blue on brown.

Lorelai felt the temptation to sweep Paris into a commanding kiss, whimpering at how the intense blonde had proven herself such a deep romantic over the last day. Slowly she let Paris go, taking the camera softly from the woman and handing it back to Paris as the blonde brushed back a loose tendril of hair behind her ear.

"Thank you. Again," she whispered. "This...it's beyond words. I'm still overwhelmed by everything and all of this...just, thank you."

Paris smiled, realizing that by taking a tour of Versailles, she had performed a task deemed Herculean by anyone who knew the innkeeper. "So I guess it's no longer a theory. You can be rendered speechless. Usually you're at 250 wpm by now, way above me."

"Oh trust me, Par, my head is at that. I just can't express out loud how much all of this means to me." She smiled down towards the blonde, slowly drawing away as they toured the room until they were guided by Martine for the remainder of the tour to the royal apartments and back gardens before the fountain show towards the end of the tour.

Many more pictures were taken between both women, along with many glances. By the time 6:20 had come around and they were in the gift shop gathering the things they wanted to pick up as souvenirs, Paris couldn't help but wonder where the rest of the evening would lead them. She bit her lip, in awe that her lover had finessed the art of wearing heels and long walks so well that about five miles around Versailles was nothing. She knew the woman would pay for it later, but in the moment she kept her amazement to herself.

"This looks good, right?" Lorelai picked up a collector plate with an image of the Palace, shaped in a rectangular pattern with gold edging. "Not too fancy?"

"Not at all," Paris responded. "Just the perfect amount of kitsch. I love the snowglobe you picked up too."

"And you're sure I can go nuts and you'll get this back to Hartford for me? I can just--"

"Lorelai, I insist. Pick out what you want. You can't carry all this back in your luggage. I have miles with extended baggage privileges; I'll just pick up a couple of Le Mondes and wrap the breakables in between my clothing or get it shipped in via FedEx."

"Then..." Lorelai looked over the shelf and found a woven wall hanging that caught her eye. "I want to put that in my sewing room." She pointed at the tapestry with the image of the palace gardens on it. Paris picked it up and found it beautiful, then made her way to the pricetag.

"You could buy a sewing machine for the price of this thing!" Slightly exaggerating the €100 price tag, the blonde nonetheless gathered it into her basket. "But I'm not turning it down."

"I owe you so much already. I--"

"It's yours." With a wave of her finger Paris indulged her lover as the final purchase of a souvenir was made. As the women went to the checkstand, Paris began to think of the proposition she would make later on, wondering if it was indeed too much.

As Lorelai cheerfully talked to the cashier in French, Paris knew the next couple hours would make or break their relationship. This has to go perfectly. No exceptions, she told herself, glad to have given Lorelai such a wonderful memory of the City of Lights and its immediate suburb, but hoping that what she would ask would leave more of a mark in the innkeeper's future.

She knew already she had to do it in a way where Lorelai was relaxed.

Don't screw this up, Par, she scolded herself. You already had Philadelphia and the Jersey Shore ruined forever by Jamie. Don't do the same thing with this town. As her and Lorelai left and the bright woman rambled on and on about the beautiful sights, she knew she was ready to go on with her proposition.

 The sun was an hour from setting on another beautiful evening in the French capital. The evening before, Lorelai and Paris had dined at one of the finest restaurants in the world, and in the morning had a brunch Marie Antoinette would cut off her own head to eat.

A long day had instead found the two women conversing in a restaurant, the world rushing about them outside and along the Rue de la Paroisse, the both of them having a nice and quiet meal and talking as the enjoyed the finest in French...

...fast food.

Despite their cultured reputations and palates, the American couple had decided to forgo anything fancy and with Lorelai missing the taste of Luke's but unable to find it unless it was named McDonalds, a word which may have well been 'Satan' to her internally, both had decided to head a mile into central Versailles, where the simple sign of Quick had beckoned them forward with friendly pricing and quick service. Two Giant burgers, orders of fries, sodas, churros and a split order of fried cheese curds were exactly what both of them needed to have a reminder of home served French style, and as they sat out looking at the Versailles market square a few blocks away, both of them were content in their unexpected choice of a second night meal.

"Mmm, thanks for suggesting this!" Lorelai bit into her burger, impressed. "I was truly scared to ask what you were going to think if I asked for fast food!"

"If there's anything my father knows, its international quick service chains, and he swears by Quick. I've never had it, but I would again." Popping a fry into her mouth she loved that she was able to decide how much salt she wanted, rather than the amount foisted on her by the American chains. "I never thought I'd see the day where I'd be eating junk food in France, and my mother is nowhere around to force some foie gras on me instead."

"Or Emily, or my grandmother." Lorelai blushed. "Oh, if Trix were here right now, and she better not be, she'd be scarlet at the thought of me with a younger woman."

"Then you should get that thought out of your mind and concentrate on how great a day we had." Paris hummed in contentment at having her rare non-kosher meal, sipping her Diet Coke after a nice bite into her cheeseburger. "I could have never believed I could have so much fun in a place I consider stuffy."

"You did?" With a scoff, Lorelai rolled her eyes. "My mother managed to suck so much fun out of Paris over the years she made it seem like a trip to suburban Montreal more than the French capital. Three words; guided Louvre tour. Two more words; three times."

"The same tour?!"

"I could repeat the spiels and 'ad libs' by heart by the time I was fifteen. Two more months and I would have seen my old friend Ludivine giving the same tour once again, but you know...the 'thing' with the 'weight gain'."

"Yes...the 'weight gain'." Paris shook her head, but kept the discretion up. "I had all the tours myself. I had to do it at the parks because otherwise I'd be lost. But if it's a museum or other attraction I have to have some leeway. Thankfully I hear with iPods coming in some museums might allow more of these roaming tours without having to stick with the guides and docents. Saves me from having to hear the same dumb questions from the same people from Muskogee."

Lorelai demurely sipped from her cup, the humidity of the day somehow making Paris look more beautiful. Her eyes couldn't stop landing on the young woman's neck, and although the mole on the side of her neck was just about the biggest erotic focal point she had, she was also getting used to the small little marks along the back of Paris's neck and how the loosely dressed form she had in the Chilton uniform betrayed how snug and near-normal she looked right now, indulging in plenty of cheesy items. She was wound up, tight like a wire, yet she was having so much fun free from the usual demands of being a backpacking tourist.

Wrinkling her nose, Lorelai slid her hand across the table and grabbed a french fry from Paris's container, still a bit hungry after finishing hers. Paris gave a slight eye narrow but then let it go.

"Like I've said before, your stomach is a volcano." With a little shake of the head she watched Lorelai slide the fry into her mouth, shuddering as somehow the woman could make eating erotic at the level of Nigella Lawson with a deadly smirk that suggested she was enjoying every moment of the fast food meal. "How does Luke keep up your appetite again? And Sookie with your coffee addiction?"

"I think they gave up years ago. This is me, how I am, and I have the perfect metabolism somehow. I'm certainly not going to complain, but if I do gain a few pounds..." A shrug. "As long as I fit my jeans I'll be fine."

"Lor?" A smile as Paris took in the woman being happy. "I'm glad I could make you smile again. Even if just for tonig--"

In response, Lorelai held up her hand. "No, no, we're not going to pine before we have to leave each other. I'm taking this night as just us, together, remembering that we've had our run of the town this afternoon." Her lips curled deviously. "And I suspect that there will be more than smiling done this evening. I really want to give the whirlpool tub a go. Even with these clean clothes the heat of Paris is getting to me, and you too, I can tell." She looked down at Paris's underarms, where slight perspiration darkened the fabric of her shirt slightly despite her prescription anti-perspirant. The blonde shook her head, but in normal circumstances she would feel mortified, instead she felt heated.

"If you'd stop looking at me like you did all day maybe I could stop the sweating. Call it my body's misguided defensive mechanism." She bent over slightly, feeling provocative and bold as she knew at a certain angle her lover would receive an eyeful of her unexpectedly deep cleavage. "So much for our little outing today cooling our moods down a little." She licked her lips, allegedly to rid herself of a salt crystal in the corner of her lip, only to slide her foot out of her shoe and slide in beneath the cuff of Lorelai's jean leg, bringing the brunette into a cold shudder. "You know what's coming out of today, right?" She slowly drew the words from her throat, both women finding themselves despite the quick service atmosphere extremely turned on.

"A...report on the Armistice?" Lorelai said, her spare high school history remembrance at least able to recall that event.

"Of course, I've seen the place, now I'll ace a report if that's ever given out for sure. No." Paris shook her head. "Now I know we make a lovely couple. I've seen it for myself. And...I have permanent photographic proof of us together. Except, I think I found a new kink also." Her toe took down Lorelai's sock to expose the anklet anew. "I'm getting really used to you wrapping around me, just a movement of your hand and you can either manipulate my breasts, or slide your fingers in and do your worst."

"Is that what you got out of that? Besides my love of the building and the history behind it?"

"Along with your need to hold my hand, to look at me often, remind yourself that this is real. And we're here, eating dinner after a beautiful day at the Palace, which was on your dream list of destinations, but was ignored by both your mother and daughter. Your love of architecture, of history, of romance and royalty." She brushed her fingers softly against Lorelai's open hand. "I cannot forget your awe today, Lorelai Gilmore."

The woman's lip trembled and she felt like crying, but held back, knowing a scene that would be beautiful in a café would be a little odd in front of a fast food restaurant. "I...I don't know how you pull off this stuff. If you're actually a member of the Mob or anything."

"Just a regular member of society here," she said confidently. "Though with access to the better tour plans not offered on the website."

"Or the better transportation and company." Lorelai sighed happily, Paris's foot still brushing at her ankle. "You know, if you keep doing that, I'm going to be very distracted."

"You are?" Paris said in a whispered tone that suggested deep flirting, her nose wrinkling slightly. "I thought you already were distracted. By my breasts."

"It's not that. Oh lord, it isn't, honest--"

"I know you've been looking and a bit annoyed all day at a couple guys outside the Palace who stared. At least for both of us it has proved we are lusted after and sexual beings. Especially losing the noose that is the Chilton uniform--"

"I don't think it was a noose," Lorelai argued, disagreeing vehemently. "Maybe...you just weren't really ready with anyone else but me to put yourself out there all the way. That you feel safe and comforted when it comes to the both of us?"

"Maybe." Finishing her serving of food, Paris pushed away the tray to focus fully on the older woman. "Of course the aftermath of the garden."

"The shower afterwards where we barely could keep our hands off each other," Lorelai recalled, sighing at the contact of the woman's toes against her ankle. "Man, for everyone else it's either my neck or my side, beneath my underarm. For you, right along that ankle."

"It is an erotic zone, truthfully, but more for me it's where we first came together, massaging away that sprain. That's what keeps drawing me to it, I guess."

"Not a bad thing at all, then. I'll take it...for sure. Better than being remembered for losing a swimsuit in the lake." Lorelai sighed as she looked over Paris, who despite being tired was ready for the rest of the night with her. With the daylight fading in the west, both women had that feeling of wanting to make the most of the rest of the evening. "Par?"

"Hmm?"

"You look like you're lost in thought about something." She saw the blonde suddenly feel a little unsure about something. "Is there something wrong?"

"No, nothing wrong." She touched the bridge of her nose, knowing this was probably as good an opportunity as any. "I'm just..." she looked up. "I'm a little nervous."

"Nervous? After a full day with me? I think the nervous train left the station the moment you caught your shuttle to IT in Chicago."

"No, not about that." Get your nerve, Gellar. She opened up her hands. "Lorelai?"

The tone of voice Paris used worried the brunette. "Hey, you OK?"

"I am. I've had a great day. But I still have something on my mind."

"What is it?" She was now scared of what the student was about to tell her. "Did...did you say something to someone?"

"Not that." With a deep sigh, Paris went into her topic, a conversation that replayed in her mind all summer. "The Inn. How are things with it?"

"Umm, in a holding pattern. I have an architect creating the plan right now, and we'll get down to brass tacks in carrying it out by the end of August. Sookie is planning her menu and then there's the permit stuff. I have her working on that in my absence."

"Making sure the building isn't ready to collapse?"

"That was all worked out before the building was even put up to auction," Lorelai shared. "Some of the usual foundation work, along with the roof. But the structure of the building's sound. Outside of what we have to keep for preservation, I will have an open slate to work with."

"Hey..." She took Paris's had. "What's with the sudden need to know the haps on the Dragonfly?"

A small smile. "Well..."

Steadying herself, Paris knew she was ready to go forward. "I'm just curious. Do you have estimates on how much the work on renovation will be?"

Lorelai was thrown by the line of questioning, but decided to answer to soothe Paris's interest. "Well, as far as I've known from estimates, land and building value, average labor costs I've had at the Independence. It varies somewhat because of the differences in the buildings, but after what I paid...I say I still have to put in at least $150,000 on the low end, $225,000 tops."

"OK." Just about what I thought, Paris thought. "I've had some time to think this summer. A lot of time. And some of those thoughts have wandered towards the Dragonfly and the construction of it." Lorelai nodded, following the line of questioning. "For going into an old building with needed work, that price isn't bad. You do think that range will end up being your budget."

"Pretty much. You account for supplies, fixtures, labor and other things. We have to start out new pretty much."

"Uh-huh." God, don't fail me now. She bit her tongue as she prepared for tension. "Again, thinking over the summer. I feel like after my encouragement in the bidding and being with you, that I now have a rooting interest. That includes your business. Now I know you. We've shared things usually not breached between many people. But there's something I want to do."

"So...I guess I can say that this trip, and the excuse of getting you here under the cover of a business deal to take an interest in you? It may not be a lie after all."

Noticing the tension building up, Paris decided to lay it out honestly. "The lawyer who has handled by business affairs since I was a child is one of the smartest in the business, along with my financial and trust advisors. Great people; they would commit seppuku before being tempted to touch my finances. When I turned eighteen, some of the money from the trust I can't get to until I'm 25 was funneled out of it, per the terms of my grandfather's will making me heiress to the Gellar wealth eventually. This money is vested within my business lawyer, who has set up a limited liability corporation which on all outside purposes is under her control. However, I am actually the one who authorizes what can be done with LLC as a silent partner."

Lorelai remained quiet as Paris went on. "This allows me to pursue business opportunities restricted by my trust. I don't intend to dip into it in any way, as the funds from the LLC are used to invest in a mix of blue chips, bonds and other interest-bearing opportunities. The LLC was set up at my birth holding $50,000 with a portfolio mainly consisting of purchases of old-line stocks, tech companies and municipal and treasury investments. My financial manager has avoided so much over the years and kept my portfolio strong."

Nodding, Lorelai went along with it, although to her, Paris was currently speaking another language. "By specification in the will I have no knowledge of what amount my trust currently holds. I know it's a lot, but for now, I am not concerned with it." Taking a napkin from the middle of the table, she also removed a pen from her purse. "However, I do know day-to-day what funds are within my personal LLC." She wrote out numbers in her lengthy and tall script. "As of my last check about five days ago, this is the figure within it. I can do whatever I want with the money in this account." Crossing the dollar sign, she then pushed the napkin towards Lorelai, who then read the figure to herself.

The reaction to the number listed made Lorelai's eyes nearly pop out.

"Holy fuck," she whispered. "The hell? This...this is like Tom Brady money."

"It is. As I've noted in the past, the Gellar financial affairs are the most respected and revered in all of Connecticut. I certainly have no intent to lay off that financial legacy in any way. When I die, hopefully a long time from now, I hope that I pass down a comfy nest egg. However...that is not the business we are dealing with today."

Pursing her lips, she made her offer, her voice familiar and soft and soothing, yet stirring Lorelai from the inside out.

"My proposal, after consideration, and talking to my lawyer and financial manager over the summer..." She moved closer, stretching herself out. "I propose helping to have you and Sookie form a Delaware corporation to sort your financials out so everything is sorted just as well as most businesses. For that, blindly, my LLC would take a ten percent interest in the company. In turn, with the backing of my LLC, I will assist you with my money, unknown to anyone else, to pay for all renovation costs associated with the Dragonfly, to be either paid off, or not, at your convenience. You will receive all the help that you will need to open the business. I would not interfere, and you and Sookie would have all operational control over the matters of the Dragonfly. However, as it would be in my best interest to have a successful business, if you would run into trouble, there would be help. I would not let you fail."

Lorelai's face turned white as the offer was made. "Let me note that I have been considering this well before we sold the tickets. I'm looking for a 'sure bet' project to put my money in, to have a rooting interest in. You've been successful. You have a business degree, and you've never fucked up in the business, Lor. Your chef is regularly in Beard contention and I expect her to win someday. The risk I see in the Dragonfly failing is very low and what I'm proposing is certainly not charity. It is a safety net to experiment all you want with getting this thing off the ground. In fact, I had been watching the sale with great interest, as I planned to send you a notice of consideration for the proposal I'm making to you.

"I know you're a proud woman, Lorelai. If you do not take this deal, I will not be disappointed. But I will promise you this; no matter how we end up romantically, there will be no interference from me whatsoever in the day-to-day operations of your business. It is in the contract that is written up, awaiting your signature. All I am doing is assuring your financial success, while giving me a sense of accomplishment. All revenue remains with the Dragonfly. I will pay the administrative costs of the DC. The agreement, if we do come to it, is for full autonomy with the assurance the only mode of failure is via natural disaster or act of God."

Lorelai gulped, going over everything. "I know about the Durham Group and companies of their ilk, which offer help and such with management. That's all well and good...but you're still under their control. With what I'm proposing, there will be only accounting to yourself and Sookie. That is all. I promise you, this is a good thing."

"You may think on it then," Paris said, finishing the speech she had in her mind for weeks. "If the answer is no...I can take it. I won't be pleased, but I understand." Closing her mouth, Paris nodded, and the table went silent as Lorelai heard everything echo in her mind.

Help. LLC. All costs paid. No interference. All that money.

Lorelai's mind spun as the actual business opportunity was offered to her. She had not expected it, nor had any clues of Paris offering it to her actually dawned on her.

The night before, she would have been prepared. She would have known that she would have refused if it was offered by a random stranger plying her with booze.

But this is different. This is Paris. Beautiful, fiery, determined and capable...it's Paris. Who has suddenly burrowed into my heart in a way no man could, and actually listened to my business planning. She looked at the blonde in front of her, wondering how such a small woman could hold so much power over her.

She stated it matter-of-fact. Knows about my pride. That I would want to pay it back eventually. But...she sees me as a sure bet. How can she be sure?

Her rational side argued against it. And if she falls in love with someone else, how are you gonna deal with that? This time, you're Jamie and you're making her cry. And Sookie...she's wanted the inn too. What will she say? And even if she says nothing will be interfered with, what's to say this lawyer won't pull funny business?

Lorelai raised her hand up, to ask that question. "And these people...if they do interfere, what happens?"

"What happens is they'll be blacklisted for fucking up my business. This money is for my use only. It is my personal responsibility. The only thing my lawyer can do is make sure it's being used legally, while my financial advisor can only work out the books with my CPA. You have my absolute word that this investment will be treated in the same way as my education; only the best."

"And if I want to dissolve it or sell?"

"We work with it. However this package I have worked on is also drawn up to provide financial security to Sookie and Jackson's children. This will be a very secure investment. If I do lose money, I'm fine. But I will know what to do for the inevitability of opening up the practice I would like after post-grad, be it law or medical. However, the one big restriction is...no selling to big business, or someone like the Durham Group. My LLC reserves the right of first refusal as far as a buyer and will act in your interests rather than those of what other might offer."

"OK..." A grimace. "If somehow this trust is mangled up and you have to file some kind of bankruptcy, what is my responsibility?"

"None. If my financials get below a certain level, the 10% interest immediately goes back to you both with no liability, financial or otherwise." The confidence in Paris's voice stirred the innkeeper's interest deeply. "There will be no interference by me or my people, in any way. My parents have no knowledge of this because the money is blind to them. Everything I'm doing here, is on my own volition. My own spending, and--"

"I...I just don't know." Her voice soft, Lorelai looked down at the empty wrappers and tray in front of her. "Paris, I would be...well, words can't describe how much I would be thankful to have someone in my corner, someone who I know wouldn't make me feel indebted to them, or make them go to weekly dinners." She side-eyed Paris. "No...dinners are involved, are they?"

"No dinners, no way. You have enough fun with Emily every Friday."

"Just, wanted to make sure." Lorelai's words were measured, and she was careful not to hit a sour note. "But I don't want to feel like a burden, or be under pressure from you to do well. That's why it took me gathering all my nerves to even go to my parents for Chilton in the first place, or the termite thing with my house. I hate debt. I don't want to be in debt, or beholden to you in this way. If I lose money, I want it to be on my own. Not a handout."

"This isn't a handout," she argued. "Kill that line of phrasing right now. This is me, believing in you, putting in seed money so we can both show we can be successful in life. And the security of incorporation, you need that."

"I know I do. The hotel business is brutal. When 9/11 happened, nobody wanted to travel, and it hurt us. It hurt me. The termites seemed to know that and came just in time when I was in a deep cash ebb." She raised her hands. "Paris, this isn't the most secure of businesses, at all. You just need to go down the 5 or 95 to see all the shuttered hotels along them, or into towns in foliage county to see people could give a shit about the entire 'New England experience' and throw down their cash in a Residence Inn. I am taking a major risk here. I could only be open two months if I don't have this perfect, and if I lose your money, you're going to be pissed. And I wouldn't blame you."

"It's money, I have more," she stated. "And I know what business I'm going to, because when I was younger that's how I lived. In hotels. Some of them the finest establishments, but a few times I would've rather had accommodations in the looney bin. I know what I'm getting into, that the smaller inn is more challenged than a chain hotel right on the highway. But I have a confidence and a sense in you. You're more positive about being in the game than anyone else I've seen chomping at the bit to get their own business. Others in our little circle are happy to get into cute kitten heels, or silk pocket squares, or a boutique soap-making operation. All fads. All bound to Enron. You're going into this business armed with a maid-to-manager story that would make for a killer resume. This is your life. I want to set you up to succeed, not fail."

"I know." Lorelai shook her head. "i...I just don't know though. You really believe in this. I just don't want you to feel committed to something just because we have something going on, and then--"

"Again, this was all in my mind well before we even made eye contact selling those tickets. And I'm committed because I feel you're good. That's all."

But what if I'm not? What if I fail? And if I take money from you and someone finds out, I'm proving my parents right. Lorelai began to consider everything about her pride and need for a successful business as she went over everything in her mind. She looked at Paris, expecting to find doubt and maybe a known smidge of disappointment, but was unable to find much of anything but a promise to help her all the way.

She knew the amount Paris had presented her from her investment fund was a good amount of money. That the renovation would guarantee great materials and great shots at items from the building salvagers to help meet Taylor's codes. It would definitely work.

Lor, you cannot turn this down, her conscience told her. You have a woman crazy about you offering to help with your dream. A great woman who has gone leaps and bounds to capture your heart. It only seems like a short time that she did.

The brunette did not doubt Paris's sincerity, but her doubts still had her on edge.

"You know that I will try to pay every single penny of this grant off, right?" Paris nodded. "No matter how much I do make in the first few years of operation, my priority is to be debt free by my 45th birthday."

"Of course. Whether you pay it is of no concern to me, but I will accept whichever terms that you give me."

"The other thing is, I will need to talk to Sookie about this before I proceed any further. I could answer now, but she is my equal partner. You do have your voice change box, do you?"

"Now? Do I have it?" Paris nodded. "Of course. Lorelai, I'm not saying you should accept now--"

"Have the car brought; I'm going to talk to her on the way back," Lorelai said with a kind formality. "Strike while the iron's hot, I say. I think that I want this, but it's Sookie's dream too, hon. I can't just go behind her back."

"Of course not, that's why I made up the fib about her calling you first to get you out of the hostel." Resigned to her fate being decided by a phone call, Paris was scared that the chef would somehow talk her away from the plans. "Did I throw this on you on a bad time? Because--"

"Actually, just about when we're getting our material costs figured out as far as raw materials, figuring out whether to go with a local lumber supplier or 84. It actually works out great; you can have me sign a faxed contract down the line and by the time I get in, Tom and everyone else has an early start rather than waiting for me."

The student nodded, feeling shaky as she felt like she threw Lorelai off with her request using too much business-speak. "I didn't mean to throw it all on you. I guess I wanted to get it out there."

"I'm actually glad you did." Being honest, Lorelai took Paris's hand. "We both need to be open and know where we stand, where we feel. Otherwise this won't work, and actually giving you a bit of the business would be hell."

"I don't want it to be. I just want to see you happy, not as a distant Scrooge figure."

"Oh, you're not Scrooge. Not at all. I...I just want to make sure this is right with Sookie. My best friends needs to know."

"She will. Fingers crossed." Paris pulled out her cell phone while Lorelai contemplated how to bring up a new business opportunity to her best friend while people-watching as the day faded in Versailles, filled with so many memories that she wasn't sure she could keep them all in her mind.

"No, I do not kid, Mrs. St James. This is exactly how I described it, and I assure you this will be what you need to have what you need to succeed. No, we would not do that, I assure you. You and Ms. Gilmore are the owners of the business, not us."

Halfway back to Paris, Lorelai sat in the back of the towncar, amused as Paris had to use her voice changer to try to make Sookie understand the investment was a good thing. She had spent ten minutes herself on the phone explaining the specifics, which the chef was leery of. Thus it was up to Paris in disguise to try to convince her that there was no ill will to it all.

Another ten minutes was spent on the phone with the woman, the two arguing back and forth about terms of the deal, which Lorelai knew was bound to happen. She could sense Paris's frustration, but knew she couldn't interrupt at all due to the voice changer and that when Paris negotiated, she was in the zone and bound to get the deal done. With the turn on the expressway towards the center of Paris about to come up, the girl finally knew she would have to yield something to Sookie in order to gain her approval.

"Fine," she said in exasperation. "I would rather do it this way, but I guess I can understand where you're coming from. 10% interest in the inn corporation, but if the bookings for the dining side of the business exceed $400,000 per year, you receive a 15% bonus for every dollar above that figure, along with your own advisor alongside those that manage the money coming in for the lodging side. And if you do take a Beard or any other nationally recognized chef's award, you will receive a $30,000 award bonus per award." A pause. "And yes, in the renovation, no corners cut. High-quality appliances and kitchenware will be provided, and you receive the right to refuse lesser items."

She pulled away from the microphone for a moment. "She's playing hardball." Lorelai nodded, knowing getting Sookie's interest in the Dragonfly in the first place took forever. "Yes, I can agree to that. No interference in kitchen design or hiring. This is investing, not dictating. Uh-huh...uh-huh." One more pause. "Of course you can look over the entire agreement. It will be emailed to you in the morning. Look it over, go over what you agree to, talk to the lawyers. Sign and send by certified mail. If you're sure..." Paris took a calming breath as she lifted the phone from her ear. "She wants to talk to you." Lorelai took the phone thankfully as Paris was finally able to take her mouth away from the voice changer, the male sound of her voice beginning to sound very harsh and unsettling after awhile.

A few more minutes were spent as Lorelai and Sookie gushed about the details of the deal, and how the 'businessman' spoiled her, including the trip to Versailles. Paris kicked back and looked out the window, feeling the tension for bringing up everything in the first place still there, but beginning to calm down. She was afraid that the tenor of the night would be ruined further, and as she slid her personal assistant out to get out an email to her lawyer to be synced to her Mac later tapping out the details in the contract to be tweaked. She was glad for the privacy of being able to make the deal without needing the parental approval that would have been required in the past. Her thumbs ran along the device at a fast clip before Lorelai ended the call with Sookie, and after four minutes had passed by, she had finished the message, ready to be sent on the next sync as Lorelai hung up with Sookie after saying goodbye.

"And...done." She took a calming breath before looking at the text messages coming in, a couple from Rory which seemed to ramble about Jess, and one from Emily she had no plans to respond to asking her why she hadn't called in a couple days. Knowing Rory was taken care of, she turned off the phone for the night and scooted over to Paris, slipping her device back into her purse. "Now that's all done."

"So, we look at the contract, and we're pretty much in business with you." Lorelai still wondered how this was eventually going to all work out. "We have the terms we like, you have your terms. You think this can work?"

Paris nodded, though still unsure herself about a few things. "It's still a better position than having to work through one of the megabanks. I swear when the bank my family used for a long time was swallowed up by Bank of America they couldn't give a shit about us anymore. My money is actually mainly in a couple smaller banks, with some sheltered in Scotiabank up in Canada as a hedge."

"I...I just don't want to disappoint. We've built up this relationship of trust, and now we're making it much more than that. You're my business partner, no matter how hands off you are."

Gliding her fingers along the curve of a bottle of Ty Nant, Paris licked her lips to wetten them before taking a sip from the water to clear her parched throat. She set the bottle back down on the console and slid the cool hand into Lorelai's. "I'll feel the disappointment if there's any problem on my own end. Because I have full confidence in your running the business. Let me say this again; you're not working for me. My money is just in the business trying to grow. The most I'll probably stress out about my money is when I get my quarterly statements and end of year tax forms. Otherwise..."

She inched closer to the brunette, and then with a sudden move, took one of Lorelai's legs, looking the jeaned limb up and down and rubbed along her upper thigh.

"The only reason I do want think about you, is in how much my knees go weak at the sight of you." Lorelai sucked in her breath as she felt individual fingers snake along her leg. "And for the rest of the trip, as of now, we don't talk about the deal. It'll be waiting for your signature when you get back to the Hollow."

Lorelai's eyes slitted at the assumption. "No more surprises? You're not going to want me to file an IPO? You have nothing else you're hiding?"

"Nothing else. No other secrets on this trip to be found." A smile. "From this point forward, the only activity we should consider is bedroom activity."

A knowing grin. "We aren't in the bedroom yet," Lorelai purred as her right hand slid up Paris's arm to ire the goosebumps, earning a groan from the younger student. "Also, that's the activity you're considering with me? What if I wanted to go grocery shopping? Or watch monster movies?"

The blonde shook her head. "it's not the only thing on my mind, I meant--"

"You're thinking of me naked right now, aren't you?" Lorelai teased, moving closer to Paris. "I've been sweating all day and your mind just wants me undressed and on the bed as you hover over me on all fours." Paris let out a heavy breath as the picture hit her mind, blood rushing towards her cheeks. "That, or your idea of sleeping involves overexertion."

Paris snorted slightly, nearly feeling like choking. "Even if I were thinking of you naked, I can't do much about it here, can I? Seatbelts kind of keep the sexual mood down a little."

Lorelai kept silent for a moment, recalling earlier. "You weren't exactly obeying the seatbelt laws earlier when we were on the way to Versailles."

"I wasn't but I was also still on a sexual high."

"So you're not high on love right now?"

"I'm not saying that. I...I..." Paris bit on her lip, knowing her point wasn't being made very well. "We've been out and about for over nine hours. My feet are hurting and this bra is biting my shoulders something awful," she admitted. "I've had these shoes all summer but I forgot I didn't wear them on my long hikes."

Lorelai cringed, knowing her own sores too well. "So it's more you're uncomfortable than anything else." Paris nodded, seeing Lorelai's deep concern register. "Prop your legs up here. Even if you have to unbuckle we can use the middle belt."

"But--"

"Do it, we'll be safe. I promise." As Paris could no longer argue the point, Lorelai pressed the call button. "Puissions-nous prendre la route plus longue, chauffeur?" she asked kindly. After a few moments, the driver responded back as she began to unlace Paris's sneakers.

"Je vais le faire, madame Gilmore." The driver began to redirect the car more to the south of the city to give the two women more time in the car and Lorelai intended to take advantage of the extra time. As Paris clasped the middle belt she could see concern color her lover's eyes as she rolled off her socks, revealing the cracked and calloused feet that had been the result of her strenuous senior year and vacation which left her without a moment off her feet.

"Oh my goodness. No wonder you're hurting. Some of this looks like it's because your toes can't stretch out," she observed, seeing each toe pushed in a little in an unnatural position. "Do you file?"

"Only when I get to the spa, and that was last in January I was able to get there," Paris admitted. "I tried it once alone and ended up bleeding when I was too rough with the file. And with my compressed schedule I wasn't able to ask Nanny to help me out." She felt a cool hand upon her right foot and winced. "Take it easy, please?"

"You're definitely in good hands," Lorelai declared. "I'll treat your feet like you have my own." She set aside the socks and took Paris's right foot, feeling the strong parallels between now and the massage after her minor injury. Paris grimaced as she felt each of her toes spread out after being compressed within her shoe for hours on end as Lorelai took a tissue from the console to remove the build-up between each toe. "Oh geeze, there's an actual little stone between one of them!" She pulled it out as Paris gasped.

"I was wondering why that felt so odd," Paris said truthfully. "I probably brought that all the way from Denver and never got it out." 

"You focus too much on the pain. You need to relax. Maybe go fully sockless for a few days when you get home?" Lorelai felt the rough texture of each heel and felt for the young woman. "Heck, spend a day or two naked to let your body heal up a little in the air." She felt the rough texture of the small foot and began to rub at each side in circles, then the bottom and the heel, which Paris could feel almost immediately as she let out a soft purr of enjoyment. "That does feel nice, doesn't it? Reciprocation is a beautiful thing."

Paris nodded, getting comfortable as extended her arm behind her to rest her head against the seat. "Just a little deeper?" she encouraged, her mind filling with erotic thoughts of the innkeeper as Lorelai kneaded her flesh in the manner she wanted.

She smiled at the woman, who returned one back as the hurried activity of the trip and the deal disappeared behind them. Lorelai looked Paris over, finding her calmer, although feeling curious about something.

"So...just making sure. Jamie hasn't called since the breakup?"

Thrown for a moment, Paris recovered her bearings and shook her head.

"I think he's well over me. As it should be, you're my complete focus now." She felt the massage begin to hit a trigger point and quietly pushed her legs together. "I didn't mean to make that sound flippant."

"Didn't hear you seem flippant," Lorelai observed. "It's the truth that you're done with him. You're very attractive, so hopefully getting over you will take a while." Lorelai pushed her fingers together near the middle arch of Paris's foot. "Did he ever do this?"

"God...no." Unnoticed to Lorelai, Paris closed her eyes, feeling overly sensitive. "You know what...I love about you?"

"Hmm?" A smile.

"You know just how to hit the right spot." She felt her midsection begin to pulsate with need. "Down to the heel, that's where it's really hurting."

"Heel, got it." Elegantly long fingers along the bottom of her foot, Paris knew it wouldn't be much longer. What's going on? I get around Lor here and it's like my body craves release! The middle seam of her jeans lined up perfectly with her clitoris. Lorelai placed more pressure against the foot, feeling a tightness in the muscles within it.

"I should have used lotion for this," she said, not even looking down at Paris struggling to hold in her need. "You're really wound up here, Par."

"Yeah," she said, the confirmation sounding more like a gasp. "You're telling me." She felt short nails along above her inner sole and cringed, hoping that her reaction was hidden. She felt Lorelai's full hand encircling her foot, fingers and palm, with the other hand focusing on her toes. She felt herself shivering at the sensation of the massage being deeper than anything her nanny gave her. She looked into the older woman's eyes, finding the woman's gaze in full concentration of keeping her relaxed and calm.

Lorelai continued to circle her hand around the heel, and Paris let out a soft gasp, holding it between her throat and her lips. Paris shuddered as she felt the push moving closer and closer, wanting to hold back but knowing it wasn't going to be easy to do so. I can't. Really, I can't. If I do...

The rubbing became even deeper as Lorelai began to feel the texture soften. She took in the arch of each foot, her own mind picturing each leg fully bared, then higher up. She wanted to get back to the hotel and ravish the blonde with thanks for the wonderful night and day they had spent together.

Paris cringed slightly, knowing she was beginning to edge off. She didn't want to drive herself to this point, but know it was inevitable. Her bra dug in further as a stray touch against her breast seemed to stir her nipple into action and engorge it with bloodflow, peeking through her shirt clearly. The other followed.

Only a matter of time, she thought, her groin grinding involuntarily against the denim of her seam as she felt completely needy to come, wondering if Lorelai was noticing, though her eyes had not wavered yet.

Another minute, and she had moved on to the left foot. The rubbing was even deeper as she concentrated on the upper part as she noticed Paris's gait, the favoring of putting her messenger bag on her left shoulder meant that the left leg took much more weight than her right side. The student was shivering even more, her body prickling with goosebumps in anticipation as she felt her clitoris extend fully out. Her breaths became shorter, eyes glazing over and her focus began to shift fully to working through the release.

She wanted to hold back as Lorelai's hands trailed along the middle of her foot. But as she hit the most sensitive spot, she let out a moan.

Lorelai looked up from the noise, and found herself with a sight that caught her fancy.

Oooh, nice. I knew my massage was good, but I didn't expect this! Smiling she increased the pressure, rolling her thumbs as Paris didn't notice Lorelai's attention shift. Her fingers along the arch, she knew the young woman's sensitivity was probably high.

"You know what we should do when we get back to the hotel?" she asked.

"Hmm?"

"I think....we order a nice bottle of champagne, some ice cream with strawberries, and we enjoy the whirlpool tub, nice and hot."

Paris nodded, the woman's voice driving her closer. "Go...on."

"We spend plenty of time in there and eventually we make our way back to the bed, not even contemplating putting back on our clothes until I have to leave."

"Ohhh..." She felt the warmth pricking through.

"Maybe we get some room service too. We could have Dominique up there." A shock went through Paris's spine. "She could deliver us the food and we could have her stay behind." The seductive curl in Lorelai's voice was bringing her closer. "Would you love that?"

"I...I love how you both...are...together." Images of the hotel clerk with the innkeeper began to fill her mind, long fingers through the curls of the Frenchwoman. "And that she got to see you first."

"You know what I did when I showed off the dress?" Putting more pressure on Paris's heel, she knew what her voice was doing to her. "I hiked up the dress...showed her the whole package."

"You did...did you?" The blonde gave the older woman a glare. "I'm sure it was solely...in the interest of complimenting her choice in...undergarments."

"Of course, but I nearly ruined them just looking at her. But then I looked at you...felt you last night. I was ruined yet again."

"I love ruining you," Paris admitted, sweat building on her brow. "Ruin you forever."

"I want to undress you," Lorelai whispered to her. "Not like the greenhouse. Just slowly undress you. Slide off your shirt, work off your jeans. Then I'd use my mouth to suckle your clit through your underwear until it puffs up like your nipples are right now. Lick your mound so it's visible through the material."

"Lor..."

"Paris, if this has made me realize anything, it's how much more that I want you," she swore. "The way you look happy with me makes me feel special and revered, and everything you do for me is just so special. You didn't even love me that first year and knew about Versailles. And now you offer me this funding for the inn? Words cannot express how much I want to kneel at your feet and worship you."

"Ooooh..."

"I will make all of this worth your while, I guarantee it." She lifted up the young woman's right foot, baring the ankle, along with the blue-inked star. She looked at the student eye-to-eye, taking in the smooth and near-hairless consistency of the limb. "I don't care what any of the men in your life have ever said to you. Truly inside and out, you are a strong, caring and beautiful woman."

Paris's breaths became short stutters as she could see Lorelai lifting up her leg. Her eyes widened, knowing what she was about to do.

She felt Lorelai's breath on her foot. Then with an anticipatory tingle, she felt herself about to clench. She wanted to hold off until the hotel, but knew there was no way.

Blazing blue eyes glanced at her, the only point of attention.

"Spill over for me," Lorelai dared her, before applying the softest and most fluttery of kisses to the tattoo upon her ankle.

Immediately the tingle shot up her spine, and into the nerves residing between her legs. She bit down on her lip and then found Lorelai, even as she bathed her foot in kisses, stretching her right hand out and sliding it into her jeans to cup her sex. Two fingers immediately slid alongside her clit.

"That's beautiful," Lorelai observed. "Push yourself against them. Get off for me." The manual encouragement flipped a switch and Paris knew she wouldn't last much longer. She ground against the offered fingers as the other three teased at curls peeking out through the crotch of the underwear. Her kisses fluttered up to the middle of the younger woman's foot, before ending up at her toes.

Without a thought, she began to kiss the woman's big toe and then pushed a third finger against Paris's clit, rubbing softly, feeling it plump as she could feel the muscles clench. Paris closed her eyes shut.

"Yess...oh fuck..." She grasped at the armrest on the door of the car, while her other hand grasped the strap of the seatbelt. She pushed herself against the hand as the other finger joined to thrust against her. She clenched and as Lorelai continued to kiss at her toes, the floodgates opened.

With a little whinny, her pelvic muscles came together and she let out what seemed like a grunt combined with a whine, pushing against Lorelai's fingers as she released her leg to come down carelessly against her lap. She kept pushing against the fingers as Lorelai felt the surge of fluid coat her lover's panties in small spurts. Even if she couldn't hold the girl because of her position she knew Paris looked ravished and sexual to her.

With a few more pushes against the long hand, Paris finally slumped against the corner of the seat, completely spent as Lorelai withdrew her hand slowly, glistening with her arousal. Silence permeated the luxury car for what seemed limitless minutes while Paris regained her bearings, releasing tension in her seatbelt slightly as it seemed to dig into her abdomen from the odd positioning of the strap. Lorelai wiped her hand onto her jean leg, and both women were stunned silent.

Paris was the one who was able to speak. "So...yeah." She nodded, her brown eyes slightly closed. "You actually took advantage of my body's need for sudden orgasms."

Lorelai nodded, feeling shy. "I think I did." Her eyes were wide open. "I...I didn't mean--"

"To take me by surprise like that?" A weary smile. "This whole trip has been about surprises. Especially the kissing of my star."

"Well, you have so many kissable things, I can't help it." Lorelai let out a dorky laugh. "That is, to me. I'm sure not many have a 'that neck mole is hot' mindset going on."

"You wouldn't believe the ratio of people who could care less to others who want me to zap it. Including my mother, Jamie, Louise."

"Who wants you to keep it?"

"Pretty much you and Madeline. That's it. Rory even wanted me to zap it."

"Well if it helps? Please don't," Lorelai pleaded. "I don't want to see it gone." She gave the mark a glance. "It gives you character, a trait."

"Exactly what I think. If someone doesn't like it, who are they to judge unless they pay to get rid of it?" Paris wrapped her arms around her chest, blowing hair from in front her eyes. "Man, that took a lot out of me. And it's only about 8:30 yet."

Lorelai let out a long smile. "Still way too much time to fuck around, literally. My body is ready to get these clothes off."

"I'd love to get them off myself right now," Paris responded with a wag of her eyebrows. "Of course, I don't think the city's nudity laws would facilitate that until we got back into the hotel room."

"You can still undress me with your eyes," Lorelai encouraged. "Nothing illegal about that."

The blonde nodded with a smile. "I really am regretting inviting you to the restaurant last night. I should've just had you stay at the hotel for hours and hours of great sex."

"And who says we can't have that tonight? Unless you have plans to bring me anywhere else."

"Well I was going to make a detour to Normandy--"

Lorelai showed her irritation at Paris's joke with a light punch to her arm. "Hey!"

"Sorry, we have made the verbal agreement that we will have sex until the cows come home. That cannot be reneged on at this point, Ms. 'I have a contract ready to sign'."

"You make up one agreement..." Paris shook her head. "Definitely back to the hotel. And eventually, we will see if Dominique will join in our fun."

"Really?" Lorelai lit up. "You mean that?"

"Hey, you only live once," Paris said, excited at the prospect of having another beautiful woman to choose from, if only for the evening. "She's seen us both near-naked, so I think she would be a lovely woman to roll around in bed with us."

Lorelai grinned at Paris's excitement. "Now we just have to see if she'll bite onto our hints." The two women spent the rest of the ride back to the Crillon anxious as to how things would go until Lorelai had to get back on her trip the next day.

To Be Continued

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