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“Where did you say Logan is today?” Emily asked.Rory browsed through the small dresses on the rack, marveling at the astronomical prices for a bit of clothing a baby would only wear for a month or two if that. There was something about Nantucket prices in Nantucket boutiques that made her stomach hurt. “He’s meeting with a couple of people at different places to look into job prospects.”“That’s very vague.” Emily peered over Rory’s shoulder at a pink and blue floral printed dress she was holding. “Oh, that’s darling. It’ll be perfect with the baby’s beautiful blue eyes.”Putting the dress back, Rory’s face creased lightly with the annoyance she hadn’t felt in years. Still, she tamped it down; her grandmother was being very sweet, accompanying her on the shopping outing when Logan had been called last minute. “Or brown eyes.” She loved how expressive Logan’s eyes were.“Or brown eyes,” Emily said wistfully. She plucked the dress off the rack. “I’m getting it.”“Grandma, it’s too expensive. Let’s go somewhere else. I saw a thrift shop that got great reviews on Yelp.”“Nonsense. Everything here is too expensive, but you only live once.” At Rory’s frown, Emily added, “I only live once. Humor an old woman, would you?”Rory looped her arm around Emily’s. “Okay, Grandma. And you are far from an old woman even if you are going to be a great-grandmother. I’ve seen you at the whaling museum. No old woman is that energetic.” She’d been amused by how passionate Emily was about her tour presentation even if the description of whale hunting was a little graphic.Emily patted her hand. “My knees would beg to differ.”“Should you see a doctor?” Rory worried about her grandmother being out here on an island by herself.“No, no. It’s only this time of the year. The cold. Plus, I don’t like the doctors on the island.”“I meant a doctor you like,” Rory nudged.“I see my doctors in Hartford regularly. Don’t worry about me.”“All the way there?”“I didn’t lose all sense of nostalgia, Rory,” Emily said softly. “Just because I don’t live there anymore. I like to make a trip out of it.”They reached the register, and Emily hung the dress on a rolling rack that was stuffed with baby clothes in a range of sizes and types, baby blankets and sheets, shoes, bath towels and a small bathtub, pacifiers and bottles, some sort of half pillow, and colorful headbands.“Oh! No,” Rory protested when Emily pushed it at the saleslady for checkout. “When did you accumulate all this stuff? We’ve only been in here for fifteen minutes.”“Rory, let me spoil my great-granddaughter. Please.” Emily picked up a little blue hat with a turtle on it. “Isn’t this adorable?”“But how?” Rory hadn’t even seen her grandmother pick anything up. The saleslady had a small smile on her face as she started to ring things up, and Rory started putting it together. “How many times have you been here?” She looked at the saleslady. “How many times has she been here?”The woman smiled. “Five or six times.”“Five or six times!” Rory hadn’t even found this place until Logan had shown her his search results.“That’s not that many times. Sometimes I just bought one or two things before I knew you were having a girl.” Emily opened her wallet and pulled out a card. “Just here and there when I’d go out for coffee or before work. They are really good about holding things for me.” She addressed the sales lady. “I really appreciate it, Pam.”“It’s no problem, Mrs. Gilmore.”Another salesperson arrived and started to package up all the items.Rory narrowed her eyes. “Tell me this is all of it.”“Well,” Emily hedged, avoiding Rory’s gaze.“Grandma! We don’t even have a place to live yet!”“But you will, and I’ll ship it all to you.”“Okay, but no more. And I don’t think we need to go anywhere else.”Emily touched her arm. “We are absolutely going to get lunch. I know a good place. You’ll like it. It reminds me a little of Stars Hollow. Good sandwiches and fresh pastries. Little tables. Coffee.”Touched by her grandmother’s thoughtfulness, Rory felt herself soften despite the excessive spending. Food sounded good. Plus, she hadn’t had her daily dose of caffeine. Surprisingly, since she’d been drinking less of it, she wasn’t craving it as much. “That sounds perfect.”Her phone beeped, and she pulled it out of her purse to see that Logan had simply texted, “L.R.”She immediately pulled up her phone app and dialed his number.He answered on the first ring. “Hey, Ace.”“You okay?”“I met with Stuart. He says hello.”“Oh, hello, Stuart.” She had loved working with him even if it had been short-lived.“And you know how my dad pretty much abandoned the Stamford paper?” Logan sounded stressed.“Yeah.” Mitchum had sold off the small paper after he’d refocused his company on bigger fish overseas. Rory remembered Paris finding an article about it and texting it to her years ago. Neither of them had been surprised.“He’s nosing around. He knows that I’m putting out feelers. I hate this. I just want a small fish. Nothing too big. Just something to keep me a little challenged while we raise our little girl.”Rory wished she could hug Logan. “Ugh. I hate it for you. What did Mr. Wultz say?”“He said my dad’s pressuring the new owner to not sell, and none of the staff that remember my dad want it, but you know Mitchum.”“Bottomless pockets and endless influence. I know.” Rory centered her thoughts. “What do you think? Taking your dad out of the equation, what do you want?”Logan was quiet for several seconds. “I don’t know yet. I have that meeting in New York tomorrow.”“Take the meeting. See what you think. We’ll go over pros and cons. You’ll figure it out.” She wished she was with him. “I’m here. Always.”She heard him take a deep breath. “I know. I love you.”“I love you, too.” Rory hesitated for a moment. Should she remind him? “I’m shopping with Grandma.”“That’s right. How’s it going?” She was relieved to hear easy amusement back in his tone. “Did she buy out all the baby stores in Nantucket in an hour?”Rory moved out the front door of the shop, shivering in the cold weather. She tugged her jacket over her small baby bump. “Pretty much. One store. Five or six trips since she found out about the baby. I haven’t even seen everything. You’ll have to look through it with me.”“I’m looking forward to it. More than you know. Thank Emily for me.”“I will. We’re getting lunch next.”“You going to talk to her about it?” Logan asked.Rory’s stomach churned. She needed to remember to take some Zantac with lunch. The heartburn was starting to be a not-fun problem, and she was only in the second trimester. It was a weird sensation to be hungry and have heartburn at the same time. “I am. Wish me luck.”“Good luck. And have fun. Thank you for this. I needed to hear your voice.” He’d rarely asked for much from her in their Vegas era. She was glad he was leaning on her. “I’m grabbing lunch with my faculty advisor at Yale.”“How are you feeling about seeing him?” Rory had never met his advisor, but she remembered how Logan had met with him only when his feet were to the proverbial fire. Oh, how times had changed. Oh, how Logan had changed.“Well, I went from his student most likely to flunk out of Yale to a semi-successful professional. Maybe he’ll be happy to see me?”“You’re more than semi-successful. And I asked how you felt,” she pressed.“Nervous if I’m honest.”The shop door’s bell tinkled behind Rory, startling her so that her response was less thoughtful than she’d hoped. “You got this, Huntzberger.”He laughed. “Nice pep talk, Ace.”Emily said, “There you are. It’s not good to be out here too long in the cold when you’re pregnant. Who are you talking to?”“Logan,” Rory whispered, trying to give her grandmother a hint. . . a hint she completely ignored.“Oh, hi, Logan,” Emily half-shouted with her hand by her mouth as if she could project better that way.Surrendering to the interruption, Rory flipped her phone to speaker as the wind blew over the tiny microphone.“Hi, Mrs. Gilmore,” Logan said. “And thank you.”Emily continued to project. “Of course. You’re so welcome.”“Enjoy lunch.”“We will,” Rory said. “Bye!”“Bye!” Emily called.“Talk later. Bye,” Logan said and disconnected the call.“Well,” Emily said, “they’re delivering our purchases, so we don’t have to pack them in the car. “Let’s get lunch.”Rory peeled a stray strand of hair off her face and smiled at her grandmother. “Let’s.”As they made their way to the parked car, Emily asked, “What was that place you wanted to go?”“Mitchell’s Book Corner.” Rory wanted to find another book for the baby to surprise Logan with.“Okay.” Emily unlocked the car, and Rory continued to be impressed and grateful that her grandmother got around so well at her age. “After lunch.”Rory looked out the window as Emily drove them wherever they were going. Though the weather was cold, the sun was climbing out from behind the clouds, lighting the world in golden rays. Rory liked getting peeks of the ocean around the grey-colored houses with their white columns and inviting porches. The history of the island was depressing if she really thought about it – all those whales killed so violently, but she also understood the need to find a way to survive, to put food on the table, to give their children a chance. Her hand went to her stomach. Someday soon, she would comprehend that need so much more clearly.Emily soon parked again, and Rory found herself in front of a cute little restaurant called Born and Bread. The corner of her mouth turned up; even the name reminded her of Stars Hollow.With a smile of her own, Emily put her hand on Rory’s arm. “It’s cute, isn’t it?”“You’ve been here before?”“Many times. I’ve tried almost everything, and I can tell you with complete assurance that everything is delicious.” Somehow, Rory could envision this version of her grandmother loving this quaint place. “Shall we?”Emily held open the door for her, and the delectable scent of freshly baked bread and freshly brewed coffee drew Rory inside. The warmth of the place enclosed her in its arms, and luckily, there was no line because the glass case had many pretty things for Rory to study. Emily and the dark-haired man behind the counter allowed her time to choose, and Rory ended up keeping things simple: an egg, cheese and bacon sandwich, a cup of coffee, a glass of water for the antacid, and a cherry Danish for later. She also insisted on buying Emily’s lunch.Together, they sat at one of the tiny tables that reminded Rory of Luke’s or Weston’s while they waited for their sandwiches.After taking her medicine, Rory savored a sip of the coffee. Of course, it wasn’t as good as Luke’s, but no coffee ever was or ever would be. She missed him and her mom.“So,” Emily said, “you and Logan. All grown up and together again?”The cup was warm on Rory’s hands. “Yes.”“I always liked him.”“I know.” Rory briefly chewed the inside of one cheek. “You and Grandpa thought he was a better fit for me than Dean or Jess.”“Well, yes. On the surface. He’s what we would want for you.”“In the world of Hartford.”Emily drank some of her coffee. “You know, I’ve done a lot of thinking about a lot of things since your grandfather died. What matters to me now is different than what mattered to me then.”“Yeah?” Rory could see this. Her grandmother had kept a maid for how long now? A world record amount of time for her. She was more relaxed and less formal. She wore jeans – strictly at home but denim nevertheless. She’d jettisoned the large house and DAR, traded the country club for a whaling museum and the ocean.“I see how Logan is with you. How you are with him. You’re more relaxed when he’s here. And now you’re having a baby. I can’t help but think fate stepped into whatever mess you were making of your relationship before.”“It was a mess,” Rory admitted. “More of a mess than we ever made of things between us.”“I’ve read the websites. I know Shira and Mitchum. And I’ve been on the receiving end of that type of disdain.”“Gran.” Rory had never really known her, but she’d seen the effect of the dynamic on her grandmother – how stressed and lonely she’d felt in the face of Gran’s denigration.“It’s not an easy thing to deal with, but it is possible. It was different with your grandfather. He doted on his mother. I couldn’t really talk with him about it. But Logan sees what’s real. You see it.”Rory was grateful for this. “We do.”“Good. The two of you should keep talking about it. Being together with a disapproving parent hovering nearby is not for the faint of heart, but it is possible to navigate. You have to keep choosing each other. Richard did that. Not always perfectly, but he did. Despite the persistent disparagement.”“He loved you so much.” Rory’s heart ached with the loss of him.Emily’s eyes misted over. “He did. We always loved each other. Like you and Logan love each other.”Rory put her hand on her grandmother’s arm and passed over her napkin. Emily blotted her eyes so that her makeup wouldn’t run.“Do you miss him?” Rory knew the answer, but she asked anyway.Emily looked her straight in the eye. “Every single day.” Something shifted on her face, and she sat up a little straighter. “I should share the thing your mother taught me.”Rory reflexively smiled at this segue way. “What did Mom teach you?”“Just a little mental trick for how to deal with Gran.”“What trick?”“She suggested that I think of something amusing every time Gran insulted me. Go to a little happy place in my head. It worked, too. You should try it next time you see Shira.”Rory leaned both arms on the table. “I guess it can’t hurt to try.”The sandwiches arrived then, and they ate in appreciative silence. Rory was impressed by how something so simple could taste so delicious. The bread practically melted on her tongue, and the bacon was just crispy enough without being burnt. She had no idea what seasoning they’d used on the eggs, but she liked the distinct flavor. And the coffee washed everything down so well.“Wow, Grandma,” Rory said when they’d finished eating. “This place is wonderful.”Emily smiled her Emily-smile of satisfaction. “I knew you’d like it. Are you ready for the bookstore?”Rory grinned. “Absolutely!”The bookstore was a two-minute drive away, and Rory loved the white-trimmed windows and doors and the books lined up on display. She couldn’t wait to peruse, but as soon as she entered the shop, she was surprised to see a large elevator – odd for such a small place.Emily appeared at her side. “You should ride it. There’s a window inside. Makes it kind of fun.”“You’ve been here?”“Of course. Bookstores always make me think of your grandfather.”Rory’s heart felt warm and happy. “I love that.”“Are you looking for anything in particular?”“Something for the baby.” Rory held up her hand. “And before you buy the whole bookstore, I just want you to know that Logan and I have a plan to buy one book for her wherever we go.”“At least you have one plan in place.” Emily’s comment was one of those zingers that only Emily Gilmore could throw out in the middle of a conversation and completely blindside a person.Rory willed herself to remain calm even though all her muscles had tensed up. She caught the eye of the saleslady ringing up another customer. “Let’s get in the elevator.” She strode forward and pushed the up button.The door clunked like it was on its last legs and opened ridiculously slowly, and when they’d both boarded, it closed with equal slowness and clunkiness.Neither of them pushed the button for the next floor.But Rory did find words. “Logan and I have plans. They’re just not all nailed down yet.”“You have plans to stay together and what? Have the baby and what? Cohabitate without a commitment?” This was such a contrast to what Emily had said at the bakery that Rory’s defenses went flying up.“We’ve done it before.”“When?” Emily looked completely bewildered.“In college.”“At Yale?”Rory avoided eye contact with her grandmother. “When Paris threw me out after she got ousted from the paper and I was elected editor. There were no housing options left, and Logan offered to let me live with him.”“How did I not know about this?”“It doesn’t matter. That was a long time ago. But yes, we plan to live together and raise our daughter.”Emily switched gears, “You’re financially okay. No matter what happens. That’s not what I’m worried about.”Rory’s shoulders sagged. “What are you worried about? My status in social circles? The sanctity of marriage? About me becoming a housewife?”Emily looked hurt, but she pointed at Rory’s chest and said, “Your heart. I care about your heart.”“You don’t want my heart to get broken.”Emily nodded. “I don’t have much longer in this world, young lady – ”“Grandma, don’t say that.” Rory couldn’t imagine a world without Emily Gilmore in it, but she kept alluding to it.“And before I go, I want to know that you’re happy and in love. Settled and safe. And maybe that you find what you’re passionate about. The thing that makes your heart sing, that helps you get up in the morning. Not just romance or the love for your child. Something that you feel driven to do. I know that’s something your grandfather wanted for you.”Rory held her arms as she teared up. “Even if it’s not journalism?”Emily touched her arm. “Even if.”Rory decided that this was her cue. “I have found something that’s inspired me lately.”“What’s that?” Emily seemed pleased.“I’ve been writing, and I’m working on a book.”“A book? How delightful. That’s so fitting. You’ve read so many. Why not write one? What’s it about?”“Us. You, Mom, and me. It’s going to be a book of essays.”Emily’s mouth dropped open, and her expression was unreadable. Before Rory could say anything else, the elevator dinged and the door did its clunky side shuffle. A young couple joined them in the small space, avoiding eye contact with Rory and Emily. The woman pushed the second-floor button as the door slowly closed. No one said a word as the elevator inched up and the door slowly opened again. As the couple exited and Rory and Emily stayed, the man gave Emily a strange look when she gazed down her nose at him.Rory’s heart pounded as the door shut. “So, what do you think?” She squinted her eyes in anticipation. “Are you mad? Hate the idea? ‘Cause Mom had a strong reaction, too, and I really want to know how you feel about it.”Emily pulled her into a tight hug. “I think it’s a beautiful idea.”Rory hugged her grandmother back with equal fierceness. “I’m so glad. And I promise I’ll write it through a lens of empathy.”When Emily drew back, she had tears in her eyes. “Your grandfather would be so proud of you. He always was and not just for your achievements.”“I love you, Grandma.”“I love you, too.”Something tickled in Rory’s belly then. It felt funny – a little like fluttery bubbles. It took a moment for her brain to register what it was. Her hand went to her baby bump.“Rory, are you okay?”Rory’s smile grew wide. “I think I just felt her move.”Joy spread over Emily’s face, and she took Rory by the hand and pushed the open doors button. “Let’s go buy her a book.”