The day of the rehearsal dinner arrived and much to Emily's horror Rory had gone into work for the morning. She had had to argue hard pointing out that she was the head of the firm and was about to go on a three week honeymoon during which she had no intention of answering any work calls or emails, she wasn't even bringing her laptop or ipad with her so she wouldn't be able to do any. Rory glanced at the clock on the wall of her office, it was ten-thirty, she could probably get away with two more hours worth of work before someone arrived to drag her out of the office so she had to work quickly to ensure everything was done.
"Miss Hayden?" Charlie buzzed in through the intercom.
"Yes Charlie?"
"I have a Mrs Huntzberger on the line for you?"
"Did they happen to mention which one? Summer I will talk to, Shira is a hard no."
"It's Summer, also would you like me to bring you a caramel macchiato to tide you over until lunch?"
"You can put her through, and the coffee would be great, thanks Charlie"
"Hi Summer, What can I do for you?"
"Sorry to disturb you at work again Rory, although I'm shocked you are in the office today."
"Well to sound like my other half, I had to get away from all the women for at least half of the day or else I will be going to prison not on honeymoon." Rory joked, leaning back in her chair to relax for a minute, she was intensely curious as to what Summer wanted, they hadn't spoken privately since she had passed on the number of her most sharklike divorce lawyer.
"Are they all torturing you? I remember that feeling." Summer said almost wistfully.
"Yes! You have my mom and Charlotte who both help manage and plan weddings as part of their jobs, then add in both of my grandmothers who want to be the queen bee's of society. I really don't care about all the extras, I just want to be Finn's wife." Rory said with a sigh, "So Summer was there something you needed that prompted this call?"
"Straight to the point Miss Gilmore, or should I say Miss Hayden while you are at work. I know that you will be seeing myself and Logan tomorrow at the wedding and I just wanted to give you an update so that you could understand anything you see."
"Okay, call me intrigued," Rory stated, as she mouthed 'thank you' to Charlie as he placed her coffee in front of her.
"So I called your lawyer, he reviewed the prenup and he found a few clauses that can be helpful and that I could potentially exploit and he found a few that I wish I had known about prior to marrying him."
"I was afraid of that," Rory said, "Anything awful?"
"There is an adultery clause that pretty much means if Logan cheats after five years of marriage it isn't really adultery and therefore not grounds for divorce, but if I cheat at any point after one year or thirty, I lose the right to any marital funds."
"Seriously? That is one of the worst ones I've heard of, this is why I don't do family law, I get too frustrated by some of the clauses and conditions people can place on people they apparently love."
"Yes, a total Mitchum clause I would say. So he gave me tips and pointers for gathering evidence of his adultery because it's been less than five years, it counts. Also he advised giving him the full six months as we agreed on the last time we discussed it."
"I can see where he is going with that plan." Rory said, subconsciously nodding along as she agreed with the advice.
"So when you see us at the wedding I will have to play the part of an adoring wife, and I didn't want you to think I had fallen for his crap again."
"I wouldn't and honestly even if you had, I would just try and support you, we can't help who we fall in love with." Rory said earnestly, hoping that Summer could hear the sincerity of her tone.
"If he had managed to behave for the six months I might have, but he didn't even last a month based on the evidence I have found." Rory winced at that knowledge.
"So you just want us to make sure we act as though there is nothing different at all going on? That you are just your normal society couple?"
"Yes, please if that's okay with you? I know that both of you have been pretty disgusted with him recently, but he is honestly upset that he isn't part of Finn's wedding and I don't want to antagonize him."
"Summer, I just need to check after that sentence, he has never hurt you, has he?" Please say no, Rory pleaded internally.
"No Rory, he has never laid a hand on me, we barely even argue, you have to care about each other to fight."
"Oh Summer -"
"No Rory, it's okay, I have accepted that I will probably be filing for divorce before the end of the year."
"I'm still sorry it has come to this, you will be getting an extra tight hug from the bride tomorrow."
After exchanging final pleasantries and well wishes tomorrow, Rory disconnected the call. She leaned back and thought of how she was helping a friend prepare to end a marriage the day before she started hers. She couldn't decide whether that or the fact that she now counted Summer as a friend was weirder.
That evening Rory and Finn were getting ready side by side at their home, much to the horror of Emily Rory had declined her offers for a hairdresser and stylist for the evening. She knew she wanted to do this part by herself, with her fiance beside her for one last time. Rory had just finished telling Finn about her call with Summer, he agreed with her that it was a sad situation, but he was also glad to know what was going on so he didn't put his foot in it the next day.
Rory finished her make up and moved to the closet to put her dress on, while Finn finished trying to tame his curls into the purposefully messy they usually were.
"Are you sad that we didn't invite Logan tonight?" Rory asked from the closet, part of her was still sad her relationship with Finn had caused that friendship to perish.
"Not as sad as I thought I would be to be honest. I had thought I'd miss him, but really I don't want anyone who doesn't support us fully to be there tonight."
"If you are sure," Rory said coming out of the closet in her silver cocktail dress and she pulled her sapphire blue Jimmy Choos onto her feet. Everyone had tried to talk her into a white rehearsal dinner dress, but Rory felt much more comfortable in the silver.
"I'm sure, Kitten," Finn said coming out of the bathroom. "WOW, you look amazing," he said huskily pulling her towards him as he looked her over from head to toe. Maybe we need to stay in tonight, one last night of living in sin?" Finn asked, waggling his eyebrows at her. They both knew she was being kidnapped to sleep in the plaza after the dinner so they wouldn't be alone again until after the wedding.
"As fabulous as that sounds, and believe me it does sound fabulous, I think these two outfits deserve to be seen," Rory said, turning him so that they were both visible in the full-length mirror in her closet.
Finn was dressed in a navy suit with a white shirt, he had put a Finn spin on it by wearing a silver ascot instead of a tie. He had no intention of wearing the ascot all night; he really just wanted to see what Emily's reaction would be to it. His arm was looped loosely around Rory's waist, she was in a knee length silver cocktail dress, it was modest but sexy, and Finn loved the way her legs look in those sapphire heels.
"Well Miss Gilmore, are we ready for one final outing as a betrothed couple?" Finn asked, smirking at his other half.
"How long have you been waiting to say that?" Rory asked with a knowing eyebrow raise.
"Since about a day after I proposed." They both laughed at that.
"You look very sexy Mr Morgan, I know the ascot started as a joke, but I got to tell you, it is totally working for me." Rory said, eyeing him up and down.
"Miss Gilmore you are killing me, if we are late your grandmother's will have a fit, I wonder if we can find somewhere later for a quickie, because believe me that outfit is totally working for me too."
"I think there is a small room, meant as a dressing room off the room the dinner is in, maybe we can check that out?"
"Okay, we need to leave now or else we will be very late." Finn said, pulling away and leading Rory down and out of the house to where their car had been waiting patiently for them to take them to the restaurant they had booked out for the dinner.
Rory and Finn managed to not be late for the dinner, walking into the room a fashionable ten minutes late as they had planned in advance to ensure that they were the last to arrive. Charlotte and Finnegan had demanded that they stick to tradition and allowed the groom's family to host the dinner which is how they ended up in a Morgan family owned restaurant, getting ready to sit down to an italian style dinner.
Everyone cheered as the couple walked into the room, they had kept the guestlist for the rehearsal dinner small, only immediate family and the bridal party plus spouses. It meant that there was a much more relaxed atmosphere than there would be the following day at the wedding. Rory and Finn mingled and made sure to speak to everyone, but they refused to separate from each other, both already hyper aware that they would be separated for the night.
The relaxed atmosphere was emphasised even more when it was time to sit to eat and everyone realised there was no seating plan much to Emily's horror. Rory had requested that no one's seats be assigned apart from her and Finn as they wanted everyone to feel free to mingle and move around.
Once Rory and Finn were seated at the centre of the main table, Rory got a chance to look around the room for the first time. Olivia and Charlotte had decorated it and from the looks of it they had broken into Rory and Finn's house for some of the items. The room was decorated with fairy lights and candles everywhere, the walls all had silver lines with pictures of Finn and Rory hanging from them. There were pictures of them as babies, as teenagers, at various events throughout college, and lots from all of the events and trips they had been on since their relationship began. Whoever picked the pictures had been very careful to ensure that Logan was in none of Finn's high school pictures and none of their combined college ones.
Before the food was served everyone was called to attention by the clanging of a knife against a glass, Finn looked around for the culprit, they had been very clear that they didn't want any speeches at the rehearsal, only to see it was his own father.
"Now Finn, I know we all agreed on no speeches but as the groom's family traditionally hosts the rehearsal it is their time to give a speech as they don't usually give one at the wedding, so I am taking my chance while I can.
As most of you know I am Finnegan Morgan Sr, the goofball over there's father. Finn has always been a bit of a free spirit, a handful if you will. So when Finn told us he had someone he wanted us to meet last year we were admittedly a little shocked. That little shock turned into a giant shock when Miss Lorelai Leigh Gilmore-Hayden walked into the room. Honestly we were a little worried she had banged her head that she was willing to put up with him. -"
"HEY!" Finn interrupted as everyone laughed.
"It's okay son, we know that after the injury it turned into Stockholm syndrome." Again Finnegan was interrupted by raucous laughter from the guests.
"No, in all seriousness, after thirty minutes in a room with the two we could tell that they were end game, as the young people say, and not just because Finn was following her around like a lovesick puppy. Rory, you are the perfect fit for Finn, you calm him, while he helps bring you out of your shell. We couldn't ask for a better daughter to be joining our family, and I think I can speak for all of the Morgan family when I say, we love you and welcome to the family! To Rory and Finn!"
"To Rory and Finn!" The room happily toasted on champagne as the food was brought out.
As everyone finished up the tiramisu that was served as dessert, Olivia stood and spoke. "Now Rory and Finn, we kept a lot of details of tonight secret from you both including who cooked your dinner, so if you would all join me in giving your chef for tonight a round of applause, Giada De Laurentiis." The group were all excited to meet her, Lorelai was raving about how jealous Sookie would be, while Emily and Francine both had no idea who she was.
As the evening started to wind down, everytime Rory and Finn tried to sneak away to get a moment alone they were interrupted. It was as though their families and bridal parties were conspiring against them, which they probably were. By eleven, the groups were all starting to disperse and Lane, Paris, Olivia and Stephanie were all waiting anxiously to take Rory for their group sleepover at the Plaza. Finn, Colin, Robert and Seth were all staying at Rory and Finn's house for the night.
Finn pulled Rory aside to get a private goodbye, if only for five minutes. "Do you get the feeling it was our friend's mission to keep us separated and supervised all evening?"
"I think you might be right." Rory said, winding her arms around Finn's neck. "This time tomorrow I will be someone's wife."
"No, not someone's, MY wife," Finn said, wrapping his arms territorially around her waist. "And I for one can not wait."
"I can't wait either, Finn. I still feel like this is all a dream I'm going to wake up from."
"If it's a dream, then it's the best, most lifelike one I've ever had. Thank you Rory, for making all my dreams come true, I never imagined I could be this happy, and it's all because of you." Finn leaned his forehead against hers as he spoke so he could look into her eyes.
"You've made all my dreams come true as well, Finn. I had a good life before you came back into it, but it was more of an existence, you have turned it into a proper life. I love you Finn."
"I love you Rory. Now I think I better get to giving you some final single girl kisses before Paris comes over here and threatens to castrate me if I don't let you go." Finn said as he brushed his lips against hers.
"She totally would as well," Rory replied before giving herself up to his kisses. Sooner than either of them would have liked Paris and Colin came over together to divide and conquer the couple. Both of them went sadly off with their counterparts for the evening. They would miss each other but they were both excited for everything that the next day would bring.