Finding Rory

Chapter 50: Seizing the Opportunity

Lorelai was downstairs at the front desk twenty minutes later when Tanc and Alan returned to the lobby.

"Tell me, what's going on around town that two handsome men such as ourselves would enjoy?" Tanc asked as he approached the desk.

"We have breakfast here at the Dragonfly until ten o'clock. We have the best chef on the Eastern seaboard, so you really don't want to miss it. Then there's a bid-a-basket in the town square at noon. All of the ladies in town fill a picnic basket with food, and the men bid on them. If you win the basket, you get a lunch date with the woman who prepared it," Lorelai explained.

"And is the lovely Reporter Girl participating in this event?" Tanc asked with a smile.

"Reporter Girl?" Lorelai asked.

"Yes, the ravishing brunette who checked us in. She looks like your mini-me," Tanc elaborated. "That reminds me, I need to post the photo with her on Instragram, " he said as he took his phone out.

"Oh! Yes, she actually is," Lorelai said with a smile.

"I wouldn't mind bidding on her basket," Alan chuckled.

"Well, in that case, I'll tell you what it looks like," Lorelai whispered conspiratorially. First seeing Tristan jealous and now finding out that these two guests wanted to bid on Rory's basket - it couldn't have worked out better if she'd planned it herself.

*                    *                    *

Jess, Rebecca, Tristan and Rory walked into Luke's and Luke immediately scooped up the puppies.

"I'll take these two upstairs and play with them while you guys eat," Luke said as he rubbed them behind their ears.

"I'm sorry, has Luke Danes turned into a softy in his old age?" Rory teased.

"Watch it or I'll tell Caesar that you can't have anymore coffee," Luke growled before disappearing behind the curtain.

They all sat down at an open table and ordered breakfast.

"So, Rory, did you make a basket this year?" Jess smirked.

"I did, and my handsome boyfriend is going to bid on it so he has the pleasure of a lunch date with me," Rory joked.

"You'd better hope it has more than old takeout and canned goods," Jess warned Tristan.

"I feel like there's a story here?" Tristan prodded.

Rory shot Jess a look, but he ignored her and continued.

"Oh, there's definitely a story. The last bid-a-basket that I was here for was while Rory was dating Bag Boy. He and I got in a bidding war, but I finally won Rory's basket. Imagine my surprise when I opened the basket and couldn't find anything edible. The closest thing was an expired box of Pop-Tarts," Jess said with a laugh.

"And how much did you pay for the basket?" Tristan asked.

"Eighty bucks, man," Jess complained.

"Didn't get your money's worth, then?" Tristan chuckled.

"Hell yeah, I got my money's worth. It was worth every penny just to piss Dean off," Jess said with a laugh.

"I would have killed to see that," replied Tristan.

"It was pretty epic, man. The moral of this story is don't let anyone outbid you on your girl's basket," Jess warned.

"I'll make sure to remember that," Tristan said with a laugh.

*                    *                    *

Tristan stood watching the crowd as the bidding started. Taylor Doosey was conducting the auction with the crazy dance teacher, Miss Patty, helping him. Rebecca's basket had been up for auction first, and Jess has won it for $50. He was observing the action when Kirk came walking up to him in a panic.

"I need you to help me," Kirk said frantically. "Lulu is afraid that no one will bid on her basket. I need you to bid against me, but only go up to $25 so I can win it for $30. Can I count on you?"

"Umm...sure," Tristan answered uncertainly.

Kirk snuck back over to the other side of the square and nodded obviously at Tristan when Lulu's basket came up for auction.

"Do I hear $5 for this lovely basket?" Taylor asked as he held it up.

"Five!" exclaimed Kirk.

"I have five dollars. Who'll give me ten?"

Kirk sent Tristan a pointed glare and he sighed. "Ten dollars," he mumbled.

"Fifteen!" Kirk yelled out.

Hoping to shorten the exchange, Tristan raised the bid to his maximum. "Twenty-five!" he called.

Jess poked Tristan in the ribs. "Watch this," he whispered. "I'll give twenty-eight," he yelled loudly.

Kirk's jaw dropped and he quickly threw his hand up. "Thirty! Bang the gavel, Taylor," he exclaimed frantically.

Jess was just about to open his mouth again to torment Kirk, but Rebecca slapped her hand over his mouth and and gave him a death stare. "Don't you dare," she hissed as they all laughed.

"I have $30 going once, going twice, sold!" Taylor proclaimed with a bang of his gavel.

Rory's basket was up next. The guys were so busy cutting up over Kirk's panicked expression and dirty looks that neither of them noticed Lorelai giving Tanc and Alan the signal, but Luke saw it from across the way and wondered what was going on.

"Alright, our next basket is basket number seven. Who will start the bidding at $15?" Taylor asked.

"Fifteen," Andrew exclaimed, and Jess and Tristan's heads immediately snapped around to see who was bidding.

"Twenty-five," Jess called. He was going to do his best to make sure Tristan ended up with Rory's basket.

"Thirty!" Tristan exclaimed. He'd be damned if someone else was going to win his girlfriend's basket. This wouldn't be a repeat of Bag Boy's auction experience.

"Fifty!" came an Australian voice from the back, and it was soon followed by his friend's voice calling out. "I'll give a hundred!" Alan said.

Tristan seethed and turned back to Taylor in frustration. "Two hundred!" he barked out.

"Sorry, man, but for that kind of money you're on your own," Jess chuckled.

"Three hundred!" called Tanc.

"Four hundred" Alan answered immediately.

"Five hundred!" Tanc cried.

Tristan turned and shot daggers at the two men from the inn this morning. They were lucky he'd learned to control himself in military school. "Six hundred," Tristan bit out as he stared the other two men down.

"My, it seems that this basket is quite the draw," Taylor said as the town people were all abuzz over the excitement. "I have six hundred. Do I hear seven hundred?" It was silent. "Six hundred going once, going twice, sold!" Taylor proclaimed with a bang of his gavel.

Tristan turned to Rory, whose jaw was still dropped over the bidding war, and wrapped his arm around her waist. "There'd better be more than inedible leftovers and expired Pop-Tarts in there or you'll owe me big time, Mary," he teased.

Rory turned toward him and smiled. "Hey, you could have just let Tanc or Alan win my basket," she teased.

"Like hell I could! I saw how they were both looking at you," Tristan growled before pulling her into his arms and kissing her.